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Former Penn State Coach Charged with Abuse; Cain Vs. Gingrich in Texas; Crackdown in Syria; Italy Protests; FARC Leader Killed
Aired November 05, 2011 - 19:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: Hello, everyone. Thank you for joining us. I'm Don Lemon. You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.
We're going to start with this -- on a huge Saturday for college football.
Shocking allegations of sexual child abuse against a former coach for the revered Penn State Nittany Lions and a pair of university big wigs are accused of covering it up. You may not know his face, but if you're a college football fan, you certainly know his name, Jerry Sandusky, Penn State's former defensive coordinator, led away in handcuffs today.
Sandusky retired from coaching in 1999 and founded a charitable organization for at-risk children called Second Mile. He's accused of making sexual advances on eight young men he met through that program. The charges are piled up against him.
Sandusky is currently out on a $100,000 bail, on $100,000 bail. His attorney says he maintains his innocence.
Also involved in this case, Penn State's athletic director, Timothy Curley, and the university's senior vice president for finance and business, Gary Schultz. Both are charged with perjury and failing to report an investigation into the allegations.
Pennsylvania's Attorney General Linda Kelly made this statement. She said, "This is a case about a sexual predator who used his position within the university and community to repeatedly prey on young boys. It is also a case about high-ranking university officials who allegedly failed to report the sexual assault of a young boy after the information was brought to their attention and later made false statements to a grand jury that was investigating a series of assaults on young boys."
Penn State's president, Graham Spanier, released a statement, reading, in part, "The allegations about a former coach are troubling, and it is appropriate that they be investigated thoroughly. Protecting children requires vigilance. Tim Curley and Gary Schultz operate at the highest levels of honesty and compassion. I am confident the record will show these charges are groundless and they conducted themselves professionally and appropriately."
Now, one thing we want to make clear here, Penn State's legendary head football coach Joe Paterno is not facing any charges. The attorney general says Paterno did alert the athletic director Tim Curley about one of the alleged incidents involving Sandusky in 2002. Sandusky's attorney says he knew this arrest was coming.
(BEGIN VDIEO CLIP)
JOSEPH AMENDOLA, JERRY SANDUSKEY'S ATTORNEY: He's been aware of these allegations now for over three years. He came back to state college voluntarily last night. On the other hand, I've seen counts and cases like this where there are allegations of child abuse that involved hundred of counts. So, 40 actually in terms of the nature of the case and the allegations, it doesn't surprise me.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: Earlier, I spoke with Sara Ganim, a reporter for "The Patriot News." She says she's been following this story for years.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SARA GANIM, REPORTER, THE PATRIOT NEWS (via telephone): We first learned about this in the summer of 2009, not long after the first boy came forward. And I say the first boy -- I mean, the first one to really come forward to police and be believed by police. What we -- what we know from today is that there's really, like, two sets of allegations here. There's a couple of kids -- there are two kids who accused Sandusky of a prolonged relationship of abuse over a couple of years and really adult-like sex acts. Then there's the series of shower incidents involved.
The indictment by the jurors started by saying -- they all but come out and say this charity was a point for him to get access to kids. It says basically many of these boys were vulnerable due to their social situations and this was how he found his victims. Almost every single one of them was a child that initially was in a Second Mile program and began hanging out with Sandusky.
And what's interesting about their case, I think it's going to come out as kind of a he said/he said situation. This could end up being them versus Joe Paterno in some way. You know, Gary Schultz and Tim Curley say was told to them is very different than what that graduate assistant says he told Joe Paterno in 2002. And since the attorney general have come out and said that Joe did the right thing, I think, you know, he's going to be a major witness for this prosecution.
LEMON: I'm glad you bring up that. We talked about Joe Paterno -- again, he is a legend. If you can explain to our viewers, I'm sure many of them know, but some of them may not know, just how historic this particular football organization is and Joe Paterno is a legend in that area, the Nittany Lions.
GANIM: Both of them are. If you -- if you were to ask me 10 months ago, even today, who are the two biggest names in state college, it would be, one, Joe Paterno, and two, Gary Sandusky in state college
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: And our thanks to Sara Ganim, a reporter for "The Patriot News." Again, Sandusky was released today on $100,000 bond.
All right. Take a live look now. You're looking at live pictures from the Woodlands, Texas, where the latest fireworks in the Republican battle for president are about to go off. This time, instead of eight or nine candidates squeezed into a stage, you only see two: Newt Gingrich, who's enjoying a recent upswing in the polls, and Herman Cain, the virtual front-runner who's coming off a very tough week with past allegations of sexual misconduct coming back to haunt him.
CNN political reporter Shannon Travis standing by live at the debate for us.
So, Shannon, getting ready, tension is rising. It's getting exciting there. The question is, though -- I'm sure some people will be paying attention. But in the back of everyone's mind, they're going to be thinking about Herman Cain and those sexual harassment allegations. They're not going to come up during the debate, though.
SHANNON TRAVIS, CNN POLITICAL REPORTER: No, they're not, but they will absolutely be the elephant in the room, Don. This is week-long drip of information and accusations, all of which Herman Cain has, of course, denied. He said that he's never sexually harassed anyone.
That will not be a topic of discussion at this debate here today. It's sponsored by the Tea Party organization the Texas Patriot PAC. And they want to stick to entitlement.
Obviously, anyone who's a spending or deficit hawk wants to talk about how to bring the nation's deficit down, how to bring the nation's spending levels down and obviously entitlement. Social Security, Medicaid, Medicare, eat up the lion's share of that. So, that will be the focus of this 90-minute discussion.
I can tell you right now that one of the competitors is getting ready by signing books. I'll have my cameraman swing over to Newt Gingrich and his wife over there signing autographs, signing books for Newt Gingrich's "A Nation Like No Other." So, probably, he prepared before this. But right now, he's taking a few minutes before this event actually begins to greet some supporters.
No sighting of Herman Cain just yet. He may be in the building. We're not quite clear. But this event doesn't kick off, Don, for a little while. We're hoping to maybe catch him before get --
LEMON: And, Shannon --
TRAVIS: -- before this event starts, maybe ask him a few questions --
LEMON: Leave it on the Gingriches there. You mentioned books. Herman Cain has been signing his books as well. Did you get a chance to walk over and speak to them? Are they taking reporter questions? Have they been opened to press?
TRAVIS: Yes, I haven't gone over just yet. I actually just caught sight of him. My cameraman told me that they were over there. You better believe that after this I will go over and put a few questions to the former House speaker. He's normally pretty amenable to the press, Don.
LEMON: Yes. So, what about tonight? What's the reason, instead of eight or nine, why are they doing this just two people? The sort of Lincoln/Douglass-style debate, if you will.
TRAVIS: Yes, it's an excellent question. The organizers tell me basically that with issues like entitlement spending, it's such a serious issue, that they don't feel that it gets a fair airing and a discussion and a debate among eight or nine candidates on stage, where they may have a minute to respond to a serious question about entitlement reform. So, they wanted to just kind of pare it down, pare it down to two people at a time digging in again, 90 minutes on this discussion.
No moderator of sorts. There will be two people who will tee up the discussion, congressman, Republican Congressman Steve King of Iowa will be one of them, so they want to tee up the subjects and really let Newt Gingrich and Herman Cain really tear into these issues and offer their proposals for fixing the entitlements -- Don.
LEMON: Yes. Even if you hadn't told me, I'd know something was going on over there because everybody behind you is looking over to see what's happening over at the Gingriches table.
TRAVIS: Should I look behind my shoulder?
LEMON: No, no, they're just looking over to the Gingriches, where they're signing books. Everybody is rushing there.
Shannon, thank you. We're going to drop in, see what happens. Thank you. We appreciate it, Shannon Travis.
Here in Atlanta, just a few blocks from the CNN Center, the occupy movement has vowed to return to Woodruff Park tonight. Demonstrators were forcibly evicted from the park just nine days ago.
And as CNN's George Howell explains, occupy Atlanta is trying to tap into the city's strong civil rights legacy.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
GEORGE HOWELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): We've seen police clash with protesters in cities across the country. But in the cradle of the civil rights movement, it's a different story.
TIM FRANZEN, OCCUPY ATLANTA PROTESTER: Everywhere we walk in this neighborhood is in the steps of Dr. King and it's a big shadow.
HOWELL: In the heart of the South, where images like these from the civil rights era are still fresh in the minds of some, occupy protester Tim Franzen says the stakes to keep the peace are higher for both sides.
FRANZEN: It would be a lot painful to see, you know, acts of civil disobedience met with, you know, physical brutality. So, I do think that the mayor is, you know, he's in a precarious situation.
MAYOR KASIM REED, ATLANTA: I think we've handled them consistent with our values. I mean, we didn't use any tear gas. We didn't use overwhelming force.
HOWELL: Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed initially gave an executive order permitting protesters to occupy Woodruff Park through November 7th. But he says after seeing a man legally carrying an AK-47 and after growing safety concerns, he rescinded that order and police arrested 52 people for staying in the park too long.
REED: They will have to respect our ordnances, because I felt the environment was getting dangerous.
HOWELL (on camera): Even with the city and protesters at odds, both sides are turning to civil rights icons who marched alongside Dr. Martin Luther King for guidance. Protesters are even taking nonviolence training here at the King Center.
REV. JESSE JACKSON, RAINBOW, PUSH COALITION: Renew your faith, keep your hope alive.
HOWELL (voice-over): The Atlanta movement is getting encouragement from Reverend Jesse Jackson who says he's hoping for a creative solution.
JACKSON: Mayor's in a bind. Protest's in a bind. All of us, the mayor is part of 99. Atlanta's a part of the 99.
HOWELL: Atlanta's mayor tells us he turned to mentor and former mayor, Ambassador Andrew Young, for guidance.
ANDREW YOUNG, GOOD WORKS INTERNATIONAL: I didn't want police getting out of hand and getting blamed for something that's not their fault. I think that you have to err on the side of patience. And I think that he did.
HOWELL: Even Joe Beasley, a civil rights activist, and one of the 52 people arrested agrees.
JOE BEASLEY, CIVIL RIGHTS ACTIVIST: We're trying to work it out in the tradition of Atlanta.
HOWELL: Turning to the playbook of the past to find solutions for the present.
George Howell, CNN, Atlanta.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON: America's most lovable curmudgeon has died. Longtime "60 Minutes" commentator Andy Rooney passed away last night from surgery complications. It was just a month ago that Rooney signed off from "60 Minutes" for the last time. He was known for his droll wit on matters large and small at end of each program.
And despite coming across on air as a little grumpy, his colleague Bob Simon says, in reality, Rooney was a prince of a man.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BOB SIMON, CBS NEWS/"60 MINUTES" CORRESPONDENT: I think people looking at him on camera might not realize what a nice guy he was. Sure he was. When I joined "60 Minutes," and "60 Minutes" is not the easiest club in the world to join, he was awfully, awfully nice.
He invited me to lunch. He'd call now and then to see how I was doing. He was a sweetheart of a human being, which didn't always come across in his commentary.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: Andy Rooney was 92 years old.
One week after a surprise snowstorm hits the Northeast, thousands are people are still without power. That report is coming up next.
And a controversial spanking video sparks a national debate. "Supernanny" Jo Frost weighs in, straight ahead.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: An unsettling wake-up call for people in Oklahoma. A 4.7 magnitude earthquake jolted many people around 2:00 in the morning.
Our affiliate KOCO says the epicenter was near the town of Prague, about an hour from Oklahoma City. No injuries or damages to report but aftershocks have been hitting ever since. That's according to the U.S. Geological Survey.
Now to Connecticut where thousands of homes are still in the dark and the cold one week after a surprise snowstorm overwhelmed the Northeast. The governor says he's not happy with the pace of repairs.
Our national correspondent Susan Candiotti has latest from West Hartford.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Don, as a lot of public officials in the state of Connecticut have been telling us, sometimes the squeaky wheel gets the grease. And since a lot of them have been making noise about what they call the very slow pace of restoring power to residents of Connecticut, that's when things really started to pick up in the last few days.
And this is the kind of thing that power crews have had to deal with. Old trees that were weighted down by all that snow last weekend, snapping these trees in two, the trees falling on power lines and it created havoc. Right now, all residents want is to get their power back.
(voice-over): At nearly every turn, fallen trees, twisted limbs and tangled vines. Leaving hundreds of thousands of Connecticut residents in the dark more than a week after a freak storm.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: At night we come home and do the best we can with no heat and cold water.
CANDIOTTI (on camera): No generator?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No, we don't have one.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We don't have one.
CANDIOTTI: You just have to bundle up.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Bundle up? We haven't bundled up like that in years.
(LAUGHTER)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Come on.
CANDIOTTI: What do you have here?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Inflatable bed.
CANDIOTTI (voice-over): Audrey and Bob Hugle (ph) are keeping their fireplace going, couple, sleeping on an inflatable bed in their den.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm cold. Oh, my God. Do we have to go through another day like this?
CANDIOTTI: Residents are fed up waiting for power to come back on. The state's attorney general is investigating whether the utility company failed to properly prepare. West Hartford's mayor is frustrated.
MAYOR SCOTT SLIFKA, WEST HARTFORD, CONNECTICUT: I'm running out of words to describe how furious I am about it. This has been -- it's been hideous. It's --
CANDIOTTI (on camera): Oh, there you go. She agrees.
SLIFKA: There's somebody who agrees.
CANDIOTTI (voice-over): As we spoke, a resident chimed in.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm furious. This is ridiculous.
SLIFKA: And she should be.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes, we've been without heat since Saturday. The house is -- it's cold. And where are the trucks? Where are they?
CANDIOTTI: Connecticut Light and Power crews are hard at work. Now getting help from 22 states and Canada and the National Guard.
(on camera): Do you think you were prepared enough? BILL QUINLAN, CONNECTICUT LIGHT & POWER: I do. I think we were as prepared as we could have been for this storm. And, you know, it has hit us a bit harder than we anticipated but I think we have ramped up our workforce just as quickly as we can.
CANDIOTTI (voice-over): Governor Dan Malloy is keeping an eye on the cleanup. And the utilities promised to get 99 percent of its customers back on line by Sunday night.
GOV. DANNEL MALLOY, CONNECTICUT: I'm worried that they're not being realistic about it. And that's why certainly I'm out here.
CANDIOTTI: Bob and Audrey Hugle are skeptical, too.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Forget it.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We'll believe it when we see it.
CANDIOTTI: For now, they're holding on to hope and each other.
Connecticut Power and Light says this is the kind of repair that's going to take longer than others when you have power lines dangling across the street. Now, the utility company is trying to do the best they can, they say, to get power turned on at all of the polling stations to make sure that it's done in advance of Tuesday's elections. But if you don't have power this night, it's going to be awfully cold inside your house. Freezing temperatures are forecast.
Don, back to you.
(END VIDEOTAPE) LEMON: All right. Susan Candiotti in Connecticut for us -- thank you.
You saw that, 175,000 people or homes still remain without power in Connecticut. So, how cold will it get tonight for those without electricity? That's a big question.
Our meteorologist Jacqui Jeras joins now.
Jacqui, how cold will it get and when will they get their power back?
JACQUI JERAS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: I know, right? Well, they're hoping that they're going to have it by Monday morning, right? And that would make a lot of people happy, because it has been a brutal week. And even though temperatures have been warm during the day, in the 50s, you know, a lot of people still have their heat on when it's that temperature.
Now, temperatures tonight are going to get down to about 32 degrees. In Hartford, you get outside of the city, more like upper 20s. But we'll see a warming trend throughout the week.
Now, it hasn't been terrible throughout the week. And we melted a lot of snow. This is an image from last weekend to show you how much snow was on the ground. Now we're going to advance this and take this to present day. Look at that. Yes, just a little bit over there in parts of Connecticut, into western Mass, into New Hampshire, on up into parts of Maine as well. So, it is slowly whittling away. Hopefully, they'll see some good improvements and get that power back on for all those people.
No weather really expected in terms of stormy conditions in the Northeast by the way until Thursday and we'll be tracking this storm over the West Coast for that potential.
All right. So, there's really two storm systems today that we're tracking. One in the nation's midsection, one across parts of the West. Snow and wind makers are really going to be the big story with both of these. There you can see the winter storm warnings which will remain in effect across the Rockies, four to eight inches out there. Out West, we're looking at a good foot.
Now, that system is going to move into the plain states, Don. And we'll be watching this for Monday and Tuesday next week as it meets up with that Gulf moist. We're expecting to see some severe weather.
LEMON: Winter. Winter.
JERAS: I know. But you get to sleep an extra hour tonight. Don't forget, set your clocks --
LEMON: Oh, that's right, that's right. We'll talk more about that. Thank you, Jacqui. Appreciate it.
Texas judge who handles child abuses is now being called an abuser himself all because his daughter posted video of him beating her. Coming up, the "Supernanny," the TV star who makes a living disciplining other kids, she's going to weigh in. There she is -- on the other side of the break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: You want to hear this next conversation. It is about a viral video that set off a nationwide debate this week. When does a parent's discipline turn into child abuse? The footage that triggered it all shows a Texas family court judge beating his 16-year-old daughter with a leather strap.
A warning, the clip is graphic and it's disturbing.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JUDGE: Bend over that bed.
DAUGHTER: Dad.
JUDGE: Bend over that bed. Bend over the bed. Bend over the bed.
DAUGHTER: Stop. Dad. Stop. Stop.
JUDGE: Bend over the bed. I'm going to keep beating you on your leg. Lay down on your (EXPLETIVE DELETED) face. Roll over. (EXPLETIVE DELETED)
DAUGHTER: No, that's enough --
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: Joining us now is Jo Frost, who starred on the reality TV show "Supernanny."
Thanks for being here.
I know you are outraged by this particular story. I know that you wanted to speak about it. But, listen, I have to tell you, the judge is getting a lot of support online. A lot of people on Twitter and Facebook saying, oh, I bet she won't download any illegal videos anymore or spare the rod, spoil the child.
What do you say to that, Jo?
JO FROST, FORMER STAR OF "SUPERNANNY": I say this is abuse. That's what I say, very loud and clear here. And let's not justify this behavior.
There are alternatives of discipline on the child that allows you to have a healthy relationship with your children. Trust for you to be able to build your family dynamic in a way that's healthy and functional. And this is not functional.
This is people calling in, going on Twitter and actually justifying what we know is abuse. We're living in the 21st century, Don. This is not the 16th century.
We are fully aware of what the damages are, how it breaks down relationships. We are fully aware of understanding that this is abuse. And we've got to open our eyes up to this. We have to do something about it, we really do.
LEMON: Jo, we have you on, so is there any instance, any instance, where corporal punishment is acceptable?
FROST: I don't think so at all. I have clearly shown certainly in America for the last eight years where families who have been raised to think that corporal punishment is fine and have asked me to come into their homes. And I've recognized that parents have a choice in choosing alternative discipline that allows them to grow with their family and to bond. And it's not acceptable by any means at all.
LEMON: OK. People know you as the problem solver who has entered the homes of hundreds of families and turned things around, possibly thousands of families. If you were in this home, what would you have done?
FROST: I think the most important thing to do here is to understand that families need to be very clear in their communication with their rules and their expectations, and to understand that when we're dealing with 16-year-olds, it's about meeting those expectations and understanding that we can take away their privileges when they've broken those rules.
But we were not dealing with a family here that we're looking at clear expectations and rules. We were looking at a family where the mother was subjected to emotional abuse and certainly the daughter was as well. And there's a very big difference, OK, between parents wanting to raise their children in a functional family dynamic and families that have been raised with abuse. There's a big difference, Don.
LEMON: OK. All right. I want you to take a look at this, because when you see the full seven minutes of the video, the father is definitely very stern, scary to a lot of people. He is cursing. And he puts his teenage daughter down -- as he puts her down.
I want you to look at the clip, how he views what he did seven years ago when the footage was shot.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JUDGE WILLIAM ADAMS, ACCUSED OF BEATING DAUGHTER: In my mind, I haven't done anything wrong other than discipline my child after she was caught stealing and I did lose my temper but I've since apologized.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: OK. So he doesn't really have remorse. He has apologized.
So, how do children especially teens respond to this type of parenting, this severe scolding and here how he downplays it?
FROST: Don, he didn't apologize. He didn't apologize. He justified what he did. That's what he did.
And he knows -- he knows now that there are certainly other ways in how he could have done things better. That's the point here -- that America needs to recognize that.
As a spokesperson for the American Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Children where we know that addiction and bullying comes from family who do not break this mold. This is what we're going to see. I think it's important for teenagers to have that help line. I think it's important for families to be educated, for them to understand the ways that they can raise their children --
LEMON: So how does -- nanny, nanny, what if a child just won't listen? You know, they say, this child is so hard-headed. I couldn't get it through his or head thick head. What does a parent do then?
FROST: Well, I think it's important to understand that it's not just about laying down rules and expectations. It's about how you nurture a relationship. It's about how you build trust with your children.
It's about validating their opinions. It's about certainly having healthy conversations with them. It's about talking about what's important to your family. But we're not talking about that, you know? We're talking about a family that was abusive -- a man that has abusive behavior not only to his wife but to his child. There are millions of families, Don, that are being raised right now the same way, and are not aware and they're not identifying that actually this is abuse.
LEMON: Yes --
FROST: And this is the epidemic we have here at the moment in America and we need to put a stop to it.
LEMON: Jo, I have to go -- but if you can just quickly respond to this. There are people who are out there who are saying, why would she put this video out now, seven years ago, because she's upset that he took her Mercedes away and that he's not going to support her anymore.
Why on earth would she do something like this? There's no need for this video now.
FROST: As a 16-year-old, she probably was fearful of what her father would do if she put that father out and it went viral seven years ago or for her mother's safety, for their safety, under the roof that she was living under.
And she's a grown woman now, living on her own. And thank God she has done so. Because for those that think this behavior is Godly, in the Bible, where in the Bible does it say you can beat your child to submission? Please, somebody, you know? I'm glad she did.
DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: That's why Jo Frost is a super nanny. Thank you, we appreciate you coming on.
FROST: Thank you.
LEMON: At least 13 people are killed in Syria demonstrations. We'll show you the newest video next, on CNN.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: Activists say despite Syria's pledge to end the crackdown on protesters there, the violence continues. You're looking at a nighttime protests in the city of Daraa. At least 13 civilians were killed in violence across Syria Saturday. The Arab League has condemned the violence and warned the government to comply with its agreement to stop all violence and let outside observers into the country.
At least 10 of the casualties were from the city of Holmes where the opposition reported explosion, shelling and heavy machine-gun fire. CNN's movement is restricted in Syria so we can't independently verify those accounts for you.
Tens of thousands of people are also protesting in Italy, calling for the prime minister there to step down. Protesters filled a central square in Rome voicing their opposition to Silvio Berlusconi and his budget reform measures. Berlusconi faces a vote of confidence in Italy's Parliament as soon as next week. On Tuesday, lawmakers will vote on those reform measures aimed at easing Italy's large debt problems.
A Columbian military operation has taken out the leader of the rebel group known as "the FARC." This man, his name is Alfonso Cano, has led the group since 2008. Colombia's president said the army killed or captured several other key leaders as well. The FARC has been at war with the government since the 1960s. The U.S. State Department called Cano's death an important victory.
We're learning that boxing legend Joe Frazier is very sick. An update on his condition and more of your headlines, next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: Let's check your headlines. Boxing legend Joe Frazier is said to be in a hospice, seriously ill with liver cancer. The 67-year-old former heavyweight champion was diagnosed with the disease several weeks ago. Nicknamed "Smoking Joe," Frazier took on the biggest names in boxing including Muhammad Ali and George Foreman.
Several western diplomats tell CNN that an upcoming report by the U.N.'s nuclear watchdog will contain the most damning evidence yet that Iran is developing a nuclear weapon. Tehran insists its nuclear program is strictly for peaceful uses. The U.S. hopes the report will prompt international organizations to step up efforts to get Iran to stop the program.
A little more breathing room for Greece which has been teetering on the verge of bankruptcy. The prime minister George Papandreou met with the country's president today, just hours after narrowly winning a vote of confidence. He says he will do whatever he can to form a coalition government. His next objective, to push through approval for an international bailout package.
So, how are Greece's debt problems impacting your bank account? How does it affect you? Here to explain is personal finance columnist Terry Savage, and I have to say that Terry is the author of the book "The Savage Truth on Money." She joins us now from Orlando.
Terry and I are old friends. We worked together in Chicago many moons ago when we were both teenagers. So Terry, listen, let's talk about the political events in Greece. Why are the political events in Greece affecting our 401ks?
TERRY SAVAGE, AUTHOR "THE SAVAGE TRUTH ON MONEY": Well, they're affecting our 401ks - not directly. Well, I mean Disney World, after all, Walt Disney said it's a small world after all. That's probably the appropriate way to start. Greece isn't that big a country. But Greece is dragging - and the debt that is held by the banks in Europe primarily and some in America, Greek debt is defaulted upon, will have a big impact on the financial markets in Europe and of course all that global trade and all that uncertainty has an impact on our markets. And it shows up in your 401k temporarily. I don't think it's going to destroy America's stock market. LEMON: Let's turn now to the job market. Talking about unemployment. It actually fell a tenth of a percentage point in October to nine percent. Is that a sign of real recovery? I mean is that enough to point to something like that?
SAVAGE: You know, first of all, OK, let's acknowledge that it's a step in the right direction and the economy created 80,000 jobs and for those people, those people think it's a great step in the right direction. But we're still at historically high levels. And you know, what is needed to create jobs is confidence. And the latest consumer confidence report showed that confidence is at its lowest level since March of 2009.
And how can it not be when we're waiting for Congress to come up with the debt package. The super committee is still trying to work something out so we don't have to go through the hassle of last summer. We don't have any agreement on taxes. Our healthcare issues are hanging over the economy. And all this uncertainty means not only big businesses but small businesses where jobs are created are thinking, "I don't know if I should hire that next person." So we need some clarity, we need some confidence, and that's what will create economic growth in be jobs but every little bit helps.
LEMON: Hey, Terry, I want to talk about this because this one - I mean this one actually resonates with me. I am a member of a credit union and have been for years. I haven't had a bank for years just because I realized, "Wow, this is pretty good." Today is bank transfer day. Not that I'm telling anyone that they should do it and that's a campaign backed by consumer groups urging people fed up with bank fees to move their money to credit unions or banks with fewer fees. Is that a good idea? Because - I want to say that because it's not always open 24 hours. I don't get as many fees. There are drawbacks. There are pluses. So is that a good idea though?
SAVAGE: Yes, well, what it's showing is that the free market works. We didn't need government to regulate fees on big banks. The consumers are getting smart and saying, "Wait a minute, I'm going to take my money to a place where I get treated better." Whether it's fees or just personal relationship with the bank. Now, look, if you're going to transfer your money, you have to think about a lot of the inconveniences. That's why people don't transfer. I'm not talking about printing new checks. Most people are paying online now. But things like direct deposit, if you're getting social security, if you're paycheck is direct deposited, you have to make that change.
You may have automatic bill payments, your car payment or mortgage or property taxes or insurance coming out of your checking account. So you have to actually do a little work and then I caution one other thing. Many of the smaller banks don't have as many ATMs in your town.
LEMON: Right. Right.
SAVAGE: Now, if they're not going to charge you a fee for using another ATM, you're OK, but otherwise you could pile up ATM fees that are higher than perhaps the fees your current bank is charging. That said community banks, credit unions provide a great service. And people are smart. And we are now thinking about the cost of banking. And the banks, by the way, are recognizing that we're smart consumers so they're going back on some of their decisions like BofA's debit card swipe fee.
LEMON: I got to tell you, Terry, it's nice to call and someone recognizes your voice. I go hey, "hey, Mr. Lemon, how are you doing?" Just recognizing your voice. I'm in there occasionally and they do it with all of their customers. It's really a good personal feeling.
SAVAGE: Yes, not - not digging your driver's license's number out when you go to that bank all the time. It is a little frustrating. And so this is a big part. Free market works. Consumers work. We're going to have another choppy week. Greece is going to have to go through a lot more hoops this week. So we'll see volatility in the markets. But we're actually kind of moving in the right direction. We've had a lot of good economic reports in America. So with a little bit of confidence and maybe some good news out of that debt super committee, we could start moving forward at a faster pace here.
LEMON: One can only hope. Thank you so much. It's good to see you my former colleague and home girl, as they say, from Chicago, Terry Savage, we appreciate it.
SAVAGE: Thanks, Don.
LEMON: Herman Cain and Newt Gingrich are about to be locked in a one- on-one battle in that room in Texas that you're looking. But we're going to talk about one thing that definitely won't come up in their debate, the allegations of sexual harassment against Cain and why his memory is so foggy about it.
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LEMON: Right now, Herman Cain is about to have a head-to head debate with Newt Gingrich down in Texas. But don't expect either of them to discuss what everyone else is talking about, the allegations of sexual misconduct against Cain dating back to the 1990s. I want you to listen to how Cain's story evolved in the days after the allegations resurfaced this week.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
HERMAN CAIN (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: If the restaurant association did a settlement, I am not - I wasn't even aware of it.
I am unaware of any sort of settlement.
I was aware that an agreement was reached. The word settlement versus the word agreement, you know, I'm not sure what they called it.
And yes, there was some sort of settlement or termination and I don't even know what the contents of that was.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: I was talking about Cain's slow recall earlier with comedian Will Durst. Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON: So Will, I mean I think most people were scratching their heads. It seems like his memory is slowly being revived, doesn't it?
WILL DURST, POLITICAL SATIRIST: Well, it harkens back to actually Bill Clinton. It depends what the definition of "is" is. It depends what the definition of "agreement" or "settlement" is. His story, let's face it, his story has changed more often than Mitt Romney's policies.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON: Will is a funny guy. We're going to get more of his take on Herman Cain and some of the other big Republican names in the race tonight at 10:00 p.m. Eastern right here on CNN.
We all know the popular website Groupon can save you money and now it could actually make you money as well. Offering stocks, to the public. But is it really safe to invest in the online dealmaker? That's next.
But first, middle class students apparently are not making the grade. A report from the think tank Third Way finds middle class students are consistently under performers and underachievers. Only one in four likely to graduate from college. In this week's "Perry's Principles," education contributor and high school principal Steve Perry offers some perspective.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
STEVE PERRY, CNN EDUCATION CONTRIBUTOR (on camera): One of the most interesting things about this report is it dispels the myth that if you move to the suburbs you're actually going to get a better education. What we're finding is that across the board America's schools are falling short of the expectation of American parents.
As a result, we are seeing that our children are being beaten by international comparison to other schools in other countries. So we need as a country to do a better job of uplifting all of our schools and providing children with choice, actually access to opportunities outside of the traditional school in which the children can find the school that fits their needs best.
One of the reasons that the middle class students are not going to college is the fact that truthfully a third of them when they get there are taking remedial courses. That's at four-year colleges. Percentage of students who are taking remedial courses at community colleges can be anywhere from 60 percent to 70 percent.
So just because you graduate from a high school doesn't necessarily mean you're college ready. In fact, in America, it may mean that you're not.
(END VIDEOTAPE) (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: All right. If you're like a lot of people, you probably get offered some Groupon in your inbox every single day, discounts from everything, from restaurants to horseback riding to kayaking trips. And now you can actually invest in the on-line dealmaker stock. The company raised $700 million with its initial public offering. That's the biggest IPO from a U.S. internet company since Google went public in 2004.
I want to bring in now tech expert Jamie Turner, the author of the book "How to Make Money with Social Media." I want that book. A lot of people I have to say that I am a scout mopper. I do the scout mopper. So a lot of people made money on this but is Groupon safe investment for our viewers?
JAMIE TURNER, 60SECONDMARKETER.COM: You know, I got to be honest with you. If you're a seasoned investor and you know what you're doing, you might want to get into Groupon. If you're like most people where you're just trying to go in and do some safe investment, I wouldn't touch this thing with a 10-foot poll. To be honest with you, just because there's so many things that have gone on in terms of how they filed their SEC things, all that sort of stuff plus they have a huge competitor out there coming into the marketplace. Google Offers is in beta testing right now. It could be risky for Groupon.
LEMON: All right. So explain how this Groupon thing works. How do you swing these awesome deals for everyone and then still make dough?
TURNER: That's the challenge. It's basically, as you know, Groupon is a group coupon. People go in and if a hundred people or 200 people sign up for it, it drives a lot of business to your doorstep. The problem for businesses is they come in, they get a lot of foot traffic but a lot of times it's these people who come in once and don't come back. That's the big complaint about Groupon, is that it's driving foot traffic to your door but then the people are going down to the next deal down the street to do some other deal and you don't get the repeat visitors. That's what really make something work.
LEMON: I was just going to say I use scout mob a lot. And then my favorite bartender in my favorite restaurant would say we get you enough free stuff, you don't need that. Forget about it. This Groupon thing or this scout mob thing. So do you think competitors like Google, you think they're going to drive eventually drive Groupon out of business?
TURNER: I think Groupon is here to stay. It's sort of like - remember when Amazon came out and people were always saying "Oh, Amazon is not here to stay?" And Amazon trudged through and they've really done a terrific job. Groupon is here to stay. I just think it's a little bit of a dicey investment. At this stage again, it's way over hyped. It has a lot of people looking at it. And so if I were an investor, I kind of steer clear of it for now until the dust settles a little bit.
LEMON: Do you remember in the not so distant past you would walk into a restaurant and think of using a coupon and people think "Oh, my good, how gauche." Or, you know, if a man went on a date with a woman and the guy would use a coupon, she'll say "I'm never going out again with that guy."
TURNER: Right.
LEMON: Things have changed. It's cool now.
TURNER: It is cool. It's the new normal. It's the thing to go in and talk to people about it and say "Look at the deal I got on this." And people don't look down on that anymore. People actually are in admiration of other people who go out and get great deals. Because they want to get them too.
LEMON: It's probably because it's dressed in this little box that makes it look fancier. Before you whip out a coupon and say -
TURNER: Right.
LEMON: (INAUDIBLE)
TURNER: That's also true.
LEMON: Let's get out of here.
Jamie, thank you. The name of the book again?
TURNER: "How to make Money with Social Media."
LEMON: I like it. I want it. Thank you. Signed copy.
And tonight making your mark. Long-time "60 Minutes" commentator Andy Rooney has died. He passed away last night from complications after undergoing minor surgery. It was just a month ago when Rooney signed of from "60 Minutes" for the last time. A veteran newsman, Rooney began his career as a war correspondent for "Stars and Stripes" in World War II. He was best known for his droll wit on matters great and small at the end of each program. He was 92 years old.
New information about that exotic animal release in Ohio last month. Police detail exactly what happened in the frantic moments they were confronted by lions and bears.
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LEMON: Updating your headlines.
New reports detailed the chaos at a private compound in Ohio where dozens of exotic animals were set free last month. Law enforcement officers say lions and bears were crashing through fences and charging at them. They say they had no choice but to kill, shoot to kill those animals. Sheriffs deputies were forced to kill 48 wild animals after their owner, Terry Thompson, released them and then committed suicide on his farm. Deputies said they saw Thompson's body but they couldn't get near him because a white tiger was nearby. How much is a single rotten tooth worth? It depends who the tooth belonged to. One of John Lennon's yellow molars with a bonus cavity was sold at auction today for more than $31,000. The buyer a Canadian dentist who has written a book on celebrity teeth. That's kind of gross, I have to admit it.
Finally, don't forget to turn your clocks back. Isn't it? An hour tonight, daylight saving time, 2:00 a.m.. Make sure you do it. Make sure you do it and you'll get an extra hour of sleep.
Make sure you join us at 10:00 p.m. Eastern. I'll see you back here. In the meantime, go Tigers. LSU. LSU.
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