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No Debt Deal; NYPD Foils Terror Plot; Death Toll Rising in Egypt; Super Committee Warns of Failure; Gingrich's Social Security/Medicare Fix; British Phone Hacking Scandal; Poker "Black Friday"; Holiday Shoppers Beware; Fallout From Debt Deal Failure; "Talk Back" Question
Aired November 21, 2011 - 12:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
JIM ACOSTA, CNN ANCHOR: It's top of the hour right now. I'm Jim Acosta. Let's get you up to speed.
Stocks are falling fast because of fears Congress' debt super committee isn't going to reach a deal. The Dow has dropped -- look at this -- 292 points. It was over 300 points just a short while ago. This follows last week's losses on Wall Street,the worst in two months.
New York police say a terror suspect was one hour away from completing a bomb. A judge refused bail for 27-year-old Jose Pimentel last night. Authorities say Pimentel wanted to blow up NYPD cruisers, post offices and U.S. troops just home from Iraq and Afghanistan. They describe him as a lone wolf.
And the death toll is now rising in Egypt. Take a look at this. Thousands of protesters are clashing with security forces in Tahrir Square. Authorities say 22 people have been killed, our Ben Wedeman just reporting there a few moments ago, another 1,700 wounded in the violence that started over the weekend. The protesters are demanding the country's military rulers quickly transfer power to a civilian government.
And the University of California, Davis, in an uproar after Occupy protesters are pepper-sprayed. Look at this. The campus police chief has been put on administrative leave along with two officers while a task force investigates. Students are planning a rally three hours from now and the university chancellor says she will be there.
Penn State is bringing in former FBI Director Louis Freeh to lead its investigation of the child sex abuse scandal. Longtime assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky is charged with molesting eight boys, some on campus. Freeh pledged a thorough and independent investigation.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LOUIS FREEH, FORMER FBI DIRECTOR: I am committed to ensuring that our independent investigation be conducted in a thorough, fair, comprehensive manner, leaving no stone unturned and without any fear or favor. We will examine all the relevant evidence, records, information, and circumstances. We will attempt to interview all necessary and appropriate witnesses.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ACOSTA: And former NASA astronaut Guy Bluford, a Penn State grad, will join the investigative panel as well.
(WEATHER UPDATE)
ACOSTA: We're seeing a big sell-off on Wall Street right now, mostly because Congress' debt super committee cannot come up with a deal.
(STOCK MARKET UPDATE)
ACOSTA: Here is your chance to talk back on one of the big stories of the day. Who should come to the congressional super committee's rescue?
Carol Costello joins us with today's "Talkback" question.
Hi, Carol.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Jim.
Remember that old Bonnie Tyler song, "I need a hero and it's got to be soon and he's got to be larger than life"? You know somebody like that, someone who can ride to the super committee's restaurant, who can put partisanship, philosophical differences and tax pledges aside?
I know who that person isn't. He or she doesn't sit on the super committee, the committee of six Republicans and six Democrats who were supposed to save our economy, supposed to trim $1.2 trillion from the deficit? But, alas...
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. JON KYL (R-AZ), MINORITY WHIP: We went in to this exercise in order to try to reduce federal government spending. And what we get from the other side is, no, we're not going to make any more cuts unless you raise taxes.
SEN. JOHN KERRY (D), MASSACHUSETTS: This thing about the Bush tax cuts and the pledge to Grover Norquist keeps coming up. Grover Norquist has been the 13th member of this committee without being there. I can't tell you how many times we hear about the pledge, the pledge.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: The pledge. Norquist is a lobbyist who runs Americans for Tax Reform. In case you didn't know, all six Republicans on the super committee signed Norquist's no-tax pledge. Of course, we could debate whether that or anything else really made any difference. But at this point, who cares? The super committee is on the brink of failure, and I know you're not surprised, but surely there is a hero out there somewhere. President Obama? Mitt Romney? George H.W. Bush? Hillary Clinton? Rush Limbaugh?
So the "Talkback" question today, who should come to the super committee's rescue? Facebook.com/CarolCNN. Facebook.com/CarolCNN. I will read your comments at the end of this hour.
ACOSTA: All right, Carol, looking forward to those responses. Appreciate it.
Here is a rundown of some of the stories coming up.
First, the consequences of -- if the super committee does not deliver.
Then, a lone wolf with deadly intentions stopped in the nick of time -- why New York police say an alleged terrorist was going operational.
Plus, he is rising in the GOP polls. You will hear Newt Gingrich's plans for Social Security and Medicare live in just a few minutes.
Then, the Justice Department deals a popular global poker Web site a nasty hand -- why U.S. gamblers could be fulltiltpoker.com's biggest losers.
And Hugh Grant becomes the first of many celebrities to testify against the Rupert Murdoch empire.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
HUGH GRANT, ACTOR: If someone like me called the police for a burglary, a mugging, something in the street, something that's happened to one of -- me or my girlfriend, the chances are that a photographer or reporter would turn up on your doorstep before a policeman.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ACOSTA: Police in New York say they have stopped a terrorist in his tracks, a man they say was plotting to plant pipe bombs in and around the city this holiday season. If he had succeeded, officials say this is what could have happened.
CNN's Deborah Feyerick is working this story.
What do we know about the suspect, Deb?
DEBORAH FEYERICK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Jim, we can tell you that he is a U.S. citizen born in the Dominican Republic who recently converted to Islam.
And police say he became quickly radicalized by the writings of the U.S.-born cleric Anwar al-Awlaki killed two months ago in a U.S. drone strike. You can see the suspect there allegedly building that bomb. And we actually were able to get a comment from his mother at the home where he lived.
She says: "Everyone is in shock. We don't know what to do. There's a lot going on." And she's very upset about what happened. She says her son is unemployed and had been looking for a job. Now, apparently, Pimentel's views on jihad were so radical, so extreme that even like-minded friends grew nervous about his actions.
The video you saw earlier, according to court papers, he spent hours scraping match heads to collect the flammable powder. He also put together ignition devices by combing batteries, wires and electronics circuits from Christmas lights, some of which he bought at Home Depot.
You can see there in the pipe bomb that the police commissioner is holding that you see there, he had started drilling holes on that and that's when this really went from aspirational to operational. He told police detectives that in fact he believed he was an hour away from having these devices be viable.
Now, we spoke earlier -- yesterday, as a matter of fact, the New York police commissioner as well as the mayor had this to say.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MICHAEL BLOOMBERG (I), MAYOR OF NEW YORK: The suspect was a so- called lone wolf, motivated by his own resentment of the presence of American troops in Iraq and Afghanistan, as well as inspired by al Qaeda propaganda. He was not part of a larger conspiracy emanating from abroad. He represents exactly the kind of threat FBI Director Robert Mueller and his experts have warned about.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FEYERICK: Now, the NYPD had this man on radar for about two-and- a-half years. Investigators did use a confidential informant who got so close to the defendant that the two of them actually went out and bought some of the material together, and Pimentel, the defendant, was actually building the device in the informant's apartment.
Jose Pimentel has pleaded not guilty to the five terrorism charges against him. And, Jim, we're also learning -- we want to bring you up to date -- that in fact federal authorities and the FBI were aware of what was going on. They had been alerted and they were monitoring to see what kind of information the NYPD developed on this man. In the end, it was decided that he would be charged on a state level, not on a federal level -- Jim.
ACOSTA: Sounds like some great investigative work went into this arrest. But, Deb, getting back to that conversation that you said was had with the mother, it sounds like that perhaps she didn't have much to say.
Anything else that we can take from what she had to say about her son?
FEYERICK: No. And she was really in shock. He had been living in Manhattan. He went up to Schenectady, and had been up in Schenectady, New York, which is Upstate New York, for about five years. And it appears that he belonged to a mosque there and that's when this whole radicalization took place.
It does not appear he belonged to any mosque here in the New York City area. We are told though that his views became very extreme very quickly and also he actually had a Web site, TrueIslam1. And when you go there, there is a lot of talk about jihad and there's a lot of talk about striking out against the United States because of its involvement in Muslim lands.
So there's a lot going on there. Whether this bomb, these pipe bombs actually would have actually exploded, that is the big question -- Jim.
ACOSTA: All right, Deb Feyerick in New York, thanks very much for following that.
And again the suspect is charged with state crimes, as Deb mentioned, not federal. Listen to what CNN national security contributor and former homeland security adviser Fran Townsend had to say about this two-year-long investigation.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
FRANCES TOWNSEND, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY CONTRIBUTOR: I'm a little troubled by the fact that the feds weren't -- that the FBI was not involved. After all, this was a targeting of U.S. service members, among others.
He was inspired by Anwar al-Awlaki, the now deceased inspirational leader of al Qaeda in the Iranian Peninsula, and so the feds may have been able to help here. We don't know very much about the informant who was involved, what the basis of the investigation and the involvement of the informant was. There are a lot of reasons and guidelines that the FBI follows that are different for the NYPD.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ACOSTA: And Fran Townsend says federal authorities could get involved in this case if they believe they have the basis for federal charges. We will stay on top of that was as well.
The debt super committee appears read to announce a super fail. So what do Americans think about increasing taxes on the rich and cutting spending? We have new poll results on all of that coming up.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ACOSTA: Americans are weighing in about what they think the debt super committee should do.
Our Wolf Blitzer joins us now from Washington with brand-new poll numbers.
And, Wolf, it is interesting to see these numbers in terms of what Americans want and don't want as part of a debt super committee deal. I guess, let's first start with what Americans do want as part of a deal.
WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: Well, these are fascinating numbers, our new CNN/ORC poll.
And we asked a simple questions of all Americans, Democrats, Republicans, independents. Do you favor or oppose increased taxes on high-income Americans and businesses?
And take a look at this. Among all Americans, 67 percent favor increased taxes; 32 percent oppose. At the same time, we asked, do you favor major cuts in domestic programs? We will put it up on the screen -- 60 percent favor major cuts in domestic programs; 39 percent oppose.
Now, if you dig deeper into these numbers, Jim -- and you and I, we always do -- it is interesting that there is a mirror image, Democrats and Republicans. Democrats overwhelmingly favor increased taxes on higher--income Americans and businesses. Republicans don't.
Republicans favor major cuts in domestic spending, and Democrats don't. And I think that split in an of itself underscores why the so- called super committee apparently has failed in its opportunity right now to come up with a way to reduce the deficit by $1.2 trillion, because the country is so divided on these two sensitive issues, cut domestic spending, increase taxes for rich people.
Republicans and Democrats see things in a mirror image, opposite.
ACOSTA: Of course, the cuts have to come from somewhere, Wolf. What do Americans want the committee to do? What do they not want them to do?
(CROSSTALK)
BLITZER: We know what they don't want them to do. And we will put some more numbers up on the screen.
These are for all Americans. Would you favor major changes in Social Security and Medicare? Not very popular. Only 41 percent favor major changes in Social Security and Medicare -- 57 percent oppose. At the same time, another area of cuts would be the defense spending. Would you favor major cuts in military spending? Forty percent favor; 60 percent oppose.
So it underscores -- you know, people want to do the right thing, they want to reduce the deficit and they want to reduce the national debt, but not in my backyard, not when it would specifically hurt Social Security and Medicare, or for that matter defense spending. Republicans and Democrats disagree on these issues and that's why -- at least one of the reasons why there is this gridlock here in Washington.
ACOSTA: And it is interesting because if these triggered cuts go into effect in 2013, as they are expected to do if this super committee does fail in its duties, the Defense Department would be perhaps hit the hardest by these triggered cuts.
And as you just showed, Wolf, most Americans don't want the Defense Department to take those kinds of cuts.
BLITZER: Yes. And I'm not sure they would. Remember, none of those defense cuts go into effect until 2013, after the next presidential election. There's all of next year to revise that, if they will, under this automatic trigger, the sequestration, as it is called, $600 billion over 10 years which is about $60 billion a year in defense cuts.
And people at the Pentagon think it is draconian, it is awful. But if you take a look at how the Pentagon spending has grown over these past several years, a lot of the supporters of these kinds of cuts say it is not that bad, the Pentagon could certainly live with it, even though Defense Secretary Leon Panetta says it would be terrible, create a hollow military, if you will.
His critics are saying, not so fast, Mr. Secretary, you guys could live with it. You are spending a lot more at the Defense Department now than you were only a few years ago. So if everyone is going to have to cut their spending, the Defense Department will have to do its share as well.
ACOSTA: Sounds like a good subject to bring up at tomorrow night's CNN debate there in Washington with our very own Wolf Blitzer.
Wolf, thanks so much for joining us and breaking down those numbers.
BLITZER: Thanks, Jim.
ACOSTA: Good seeing you.
What's the fallout if the super committee goes belly-up? Well, it could be bad news for our fighting men and women and for the companies that arm them.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The employees are incredibly nervous. I think everybody is. In a small business, it is a very hand-to-mouth kind of thing.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ACOSTA: And don't forget, as we just mentioned with Wolf Blitzer, tomorrow night, the Republican hopefuls face off in Washington. CNN hosts a presidential debate on national security and the economy, your moderator, our very own Wolf Blitzer. That's tomorrow night at 8:00 p.m. Eastern right here on CNN.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ACOSTA: Here's a rundown of some of the stories we're working on right now.
Next, the fallout if the debt super committee does not agree on a deal.
Then, actor Hugh Grant testifies in the "News of the World" hacking scandal. We will take a look at the allegations.
And later a popular gambling Web site is shut down by the feds. We will also tell you how much money Americans lost on it.
And moving back to this titanic failure of bipartisanship in Washington, after a year of bruising budget battles and months of go- nowhere talks by the congressional super committee, Democrats and Republicans today are expected to announce that they simply cannot reach a deal on how to reduce the debt.
So what happens now? The plan B is not pretty. It could mean automatic spending cuts across the board. Critics say the national defense budget and entitlement programs will suffer. And now everybody is, of course, pointing fingers.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KYL: Our Democrats friends said, we won't cut $1 more without raising taxes. And I think that tells you a lot about the ethos here in Washington.
We went in to this exercise in order to try to reduce federal government spending. And what we get from the other side is, no, we're not going to make any more cuts unless you raise taxes.
KERRY: They want the Bush tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans extended. So the whole deal is really being held hostage to this idea that the wealthiest people in America ought to get a bigger tax cut while everybody else chips in. I don't think anybody in America thinks that's fair.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ACOSTA: So, with all that gridlock, was the super committee doomed from the beginning?
Our Carl Azuz is here to talk about all of this. He is taking a closer look at the special budget team and what went wrong.
Carl, why did some say this was an uphill battle from the beginning? It just looked like as they were getting started that this was perhaps doomed to fail. CARL AZUZ, CNN STUDENT NEWS ANCHOR: Well, it is a good point that they bring up and that you bring up, Jim, because of the fact that everybody in Congress has something he doesn't want to cut or that she doesn't want to cut.
That's part of it. But lawmakers aren't just dealing with the fact that this is sort of an unwilling assignment. We are not talking about new government programs. We are talking about existing programs that Americans would have to live without. So that's not an assignment a lot of people would want.
They're also dealing with pressures from their own parties. On one hand, you have people from their parties saying, look, stick to party principles, do not make cuts that would go against what we stand for. You have pressure from other lawmakers, pressure from lobbyists in Washington that all have something to do with this, pressure from interest groups.
And then some of these folks are up for reelection next year, Jim. I mean, 2012's just -- what, we're less than a year away now.
ACOSTA: Just around the corner.
AZUZ: Exactly right.
ACOSTA: Right.
AZUZ: And, so, I mean, with that coming up, these folks are -- they have to answer to their constituents and their constituents are saying don't cut the things that are important to us.
ACOSTA: The thing that I find so interesting about what's happening today is that all of a sudden there is this other deadline. We thought that the deadline was on Wednesday, the day before Thanksgiving.
And all of a sudden, we hear that the deadline was really today.
AZUZ: Yes.
ACOSTA: The deadline was to announce that they would have some sort of a deal by Wednesday.
Why can't Congress just move the goal posts? That's one thing that they perhaps could do. Why not change the deadline?
AZUZ: Well, they can't change the deadline. Congress came up with this idea of November 23rd. Of course today, 48 hours away, when they are supposed to vote on their own agreement and we're seeing that vote not likely to happen.
People are saying, look. I mean these folks aren't looking to move forward. They're looking to find a way out. But I mean have you that factored into the fact that there were two goals of this committee.
One, obviously, cut $1.2 trillion from U.S. government spending, but there was another one and this might be why Congress has a tendency to kick that can down the road. That has to do with the fact that we were supposed to show our creditors that the U.S. was serious about reducing its debt.
Moody's, Standard & Poor's, Fitch, they all want the United States to stop so much entitlements spending and to find a way to increase government revenue.
A lot of analysts are saying if congress does not reach an agreement now, maybe the effects wouldn't be tangible within the country in the short term, but it could be that that S&P downgrade we saw this summer is the first of more to come -- Jim.
ACOSTA: Yes, and there's just so much pessimism out there about the way Congress is handling its job right now. You take a look at the latest poll numbers. I mean, it is down in the teens to almost single digits in terms of the American approval rating for Congress right now.
I have to think that this is only going to make matters worse for members of Congress looking to get re-elected. But Carl, thanks so much. We appreciate it. Good talking to you.
And presidential candidate Newt Gingrich is about to unveil his plans to overhaul Social Security and Medicare. Both are familiar retreads, of course, for Republicans.
They've often looked at these programs for making changes. Gingrich is making the announcement in Manchester, New Hampshire in just a few moments.
He will tell the students he will be talking to that he wants them to have the choice of private retirement accounts. You heard this before. Instead of the standard Social Security program that's in place now.
Gingrich wants to wind down Medicare. Today's younger workers would get subsidies to buy traditional health insurance when they retire. He will have these remarks coming up in just a few moments and we'll bring them to you as they come in.
Another reminder, tomorrow night the Republican hopefuls face off in Washington. CNN hosts a presidential debate on national security and the economy. Your moderator, our very own Wolf Blitzer that's at 8:00 Eastern right here on CNN.
The investigation into the hacking scandal over in Great Britain is broadening when actor, Hugh Grant is taking the stand later today in London. We will take that to you live when that happens.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ACOSTA: Actor Hugh Grant slammed the British press today as a new round of hearings on the phone hacking scandal got under way in London. Grant won't be the only celebrity testifying.
Actress Shiena Miller and author, J.K. Rowling are also expected to speak at the inquiry into the ethics and practices of tabloid reporters.
Our Atika Shubert is covering the investigation and joins us live from London. Atika, tell us about Hugh Grant's testimony. These were pretty pointed words coming from the actor.
ATIKA SHUBERT, CNN CORRESPONDENT: He did. He had some very harsh words for the tabloid press. He called them cowardly and shocking and he specifically pointed to the fact that the mother of his newborn baby daughter was harassed by Paparazzi for three days as she came out of the hospital.
He says this was something that he felt was a personal invasion on his privacy and he basically said that the tabloid press needs to reform here in Britain. Here's how he closed the statement.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
HUGH GRANT, ACTOR: I just think that there has been a section of our press that has been allowed to become toxic over the last 20 or 30 years, the main tactic being bullying and intimidation and blackmail.
I think that needs courage to stand up to. I feel that this time this country's had historically a good record of standing up to bullies and I think it is time that this country found courage to stand up to this bully now.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SHUBERT: Now we actually have a whole week of testimony from various witnesses, including other celebrities. This will be going on for some time -- Jim.
ACOSTA: And of course, this is not just a case of celebrities being harassed. This all came to a head after the press over there hacked a murdered teenager's cell phone voicemail while her parents and police were still looking for her. The teenager's parents also testified today. What did they have to say?
SHUBERT: Yes. Some quite emotional testimony, Jim. This is the case of Millie Dowler and her mother, Sally Dowler, testified to the fact that when they were searching for her weeks after she disappeared, they checked her voicemail messages and found some of them had been deleted and this led to the hope that she was still alive.
We now know she had been abducted and murdered and those voicemail messages were deleted by a private investigator paid for by "News of the World," the British tabloid. It was really probable the most egregious case of how those tabloids basically interviewed with a criminal investigation.
ACOSTA: And a scandal so far has focused mostly on Murdoch's publications, but it seems to be widening now, is that right?
SHUBERT: Yes, most definitely. In fact, Hugh Grant pointed out that "The Daily Mail," others, he believes may have been involved in the sort of intrusive, possibly illegal measures. This is why the inquiry is being held to see if other newspapers were involved and if other illegal methods were used.
ACOSTA: All right, Atika Shubert live in London for us. Thanks so much. We appreciate it.
All bets are now off on popular gambling website fulltiltpoker.com. The feds just shut it down and we will tell you why. And how U.S. gamblers could be the biggest losers. That's coming up.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ACOSTA: U.S. gamblers who gambled on fulltiltpoker.com may have made the wrong bet. The Justice Department just shut down the website calling it a glorified "Ponzi" scheme. Here's our Poppy Harlow.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
POPPY HARLOW, CNNMONEY.COM CORRESPONDENT: How much money did you make playing poker on line?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: About $300,000.
HARLOW: In how long?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Three or four years.
HARLOW (voice-over): In the online poker world, Shawn Busse was known as Jordan Kicks.
SHAWN BUSSE, FULL TILT POKER PLAYER: I was playing poker like any other day and all of a sudden we couldn't play anymore. The money was frozen.
HARLOW: It became known as Black Friday, when the Justice Department seized Full Tilt poker operations and froze player accounts alleging the company was operating a global "Ponzi" scheme.
JOSEPH KELLY, CO-EDITOR, GAMING LAW REVIEW: I think this is unchartered territory for the first time players' moneys have been seized.
HARLOW: The DOJ says Full Tilt owed some $390 million to players around the world, including roughly $150 million to U.S. players, but had only $60 million in its coffers.
And it alleges that members of the company board and other owners were paid more than $440 million over a four-year period. Full Tilt fired back, saying it's in no way a "Ponzi" scheme and says it's committed to paying players back. Out 60 grand, though, Shawn Busse is not convinced. BUSSE: A lot of people feel betrayed, I guess, that this was, you know, the site where they made their income. They had a relationship with people there. They trusted them, and, you know, they basically stole from us.
HARLOW: French investment firm group Bernard Tappe reached an agreement with the Department of Justice to acquire Full Tilt Poker and says, it will reimburse players outside the U.S. But for American players like Shawn, they'll have to apply to the DOJ to get their money back. Full Tilt's current owners have not yet accepted the deal.
BUSSE: I try not to get my hopes up. I consider that money lost, and if I get it back, then it will be a nice bonus.
HARLOW (on camera): I think that the general feeling is, OK, well, people can't play the games they like online anymore. But for you, it was a lot more than that. This was your livelihood.
BUSSE: This was my job, yes. I feel like my job has been taken away from me right now. This was my source of income for the past four years.
HARLOW: And Shawn is not alone. According to 82 gambling capital, about 8 percent of U.S. online poker players, or about 3,500 people in this country made a living on the game, now many have moved abroad where online poker is alive and well. What was your best day ever?
BUSSE: Playing online in 2009, I got second place for $163,000 in one tournament. Poker has been an American pastime for how many years --
HARLOW: An American pastime?
BUSSE: Sure. Everyone loves to play poker.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ACOSTA: Poppy Harlow is joining us live now from New York. You know, too many questions, Poppy. I wish I had time to ask all of them.
It is fascinating to watch people say this is my job to be online playing poker and by the way, I'm out $60,000. This is going to strike a lot of people watching this as kind of crazy.
HARLOWA: Yes. I completely agree. That's the question we posed to him. When you take Shawn, for example, he was in college. Jim, he started playing online poker. He was making $100,000 a year. When you look at this economy and the job market, you know, there's a reason for this.
He told me he never had a losing year in the four years that he was playing. He's not the only one we talked to. I want to show you some photos here, some other guys we talked to. That's Ethan Ruby. He says he used his winnings playing poker to start a college fund for his kids and have a little fun.
He bought a hot tub, but he doesn't think that he's going to get back the $13,000 he now has frozen in his account. Then there's this guy, Brian Mogeleski. He turned to online poker for a job after losing his career in the mortgage industry and the whole housing fallout.
Right now he's out about $28,000. Those are just a few examples. You've got a lot of people in this situation. I do want to read you part of a statement that we got from Full Tilt poker this morning after the settlement came to light after the end of last week.
They said, they are pleased that a settlement has been reached between the DOJ and the French investment company. They said, quote, "Repaying customers has been Full Tilt Poker's number one priority."
POPPY HARLOW, CNNMONEY.COM: I think the question is now, Jim, are these players in the U.S. going to get paid back? They've got to apply to the Department of Justice for restitution. Big question, if they'll get the money back. And if they will, when is that going to be.
Jim.
JIM ACOSTA, CNN ANCHOR: Yes, it reminds me of that saying buyer beware, but I guess this is gambler beware. You know, if you go online and play poker, you might not get the money.
HARLOW: Yes, exactly.
ACOSTA: Poppy Harlow, thanks so much. That was a fascinating story. Good talking to you.
Well, you've been sounding off on our "Talk Back" question, who should rescue the congressional super committee trying to reach a deal to reduce America's debt? Well Marvin writes, "well, it is obviously not a politician. Politicians are at the root of the problem. It will take the super efforts of the American people." And more of your responses are on the way.
But first, forget Black Friday. The holiday shopping season is already underway. But before you buy anything else, check out this week's "Smart Is the New Rich." Christine Romans has some cost saving tips.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hello holiday hype machine. Retailers will do whatever they can to separate you from your money, whether you have it to spend or not. So holiday buyers beware. Here are five steps to outsmart them.
Don't open a store credit card. Most have very high interest rates and credit limits are too low. Even applying for them hurts your credit score. That one time 10 percent off may not be worth it.
Now if they aren't pushing the store credit cards, they're pushing the extended warranty. Don't waste your money.
MANDY WALKER, CONSUMER REPORTS: In fact, you really very seldom should take the extended warranty. Probably never is OK.
Consumer Reports Mandy Walker says your credit card may already cover you. Plus --
WALKER: Products seldom break during the extended warranty time period, which is probably only two or three years past the time you bought it and the manufacturer's warranty will probably last the first year.
ROMANS: Gift cards are not always a great gift. A quarter of all gift cards are still lying around in your purse or your deck drawers 10 months after you get it. This is according to Consumer Reports. And two-thirds of people who get them spend more than the card's face value, so they're basically paying for their own present. Unless you know for a fact the recipient wants it and will use it, you're probably buying the retailer a gift.
Also, be leery of layaway. There are up-front fees. What if the item goes on sale. And if you miss a payment, the retailer could cancel the layaway and you'll lose money.
And, finally, do not pay full price. Beware of retailers who jack up a price before lowering it again. And hunt through online sites like retailmenot for coupon codes you can plug in for online shopping.
Make it your mission never to pay for shipping. There are always free shipping deals right around the corner.
And don't buy the hype! Black Friday prices are not always the lowest of the season.
Christine Romans, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
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ACOSTA: We've been telling you about it all morning. After months of talks by the congressional super committee, Democrats and Republicans today are expected to announce that they simply cannot agree on how to reduce the debt. The fallout could be widespread across the economy. And our Lisa Desjardins reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) LISA DESJARDINS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Take a look at where super committee failure could fall. John Langford's 400-person aviation business in Manassas, Virginia.
JOHN LANGFORD, DEFENSE CONTRACTOR: On the outside it looks like a normal airplane. And then on the inside, this is the equivalent of R2- D2.
DESJARDINS: So it's a drone made for U.S. defense. And across the board cuts hitting the Pentagon in 2013 could hit this aircraft and this business, too.
LANGFORD: The employees are incredibly nervous. I think everybody is. In a small business, it is a very hand-to-mouth kind of thing.
DESJARDINS: So let's stop here a sec. Specifics. Super committee failure triggers about 8 to 9 percent in automatic cuts for the Defense Department. But cuts would also hit here, social programs that help the poor, and other places like border patrols and hurricane readiness, because the non-defense side of government also gets an 8 to 9 percent cut. Some call that catastrophic. Dan Mitchell from the conservative Cato Institute, he says something else.
DAN MITCHELL, CATO INSTITUTE: If there's no deal, taxpayers actually win because we get a sequester. And that means, in Washington budget talk, there are automatic reductions in the projected growth of government spending.
DESJARDINS: How much red ink would automatic cuts stop?
STAN COLLENDER, FISCAL AND MONETARY POLICY ANALYST, QORVIS: Well, the maximum amount it can be under the law is $1.2 trillion over nine years. And, obviously, $1.2 trillion is a lot of money.
DESJARDINS: All right, hold it there. That's Stan Collender, federal budget expert. He said $1.2 trillion in automatic cuts. Sound like a lot?
COLLENDER: But over a nine-year period, it's not that great.
DESJARDINS: The bottom line. Well, back at Aurora Flight Services, John Langford worries super committee failure looks like across-the-board cuts that will knife defense, but barely scratch the debt problem.
LANDFORD: Even as we're talking about bringing overall spending down, you have to do it wisely.
DESJARDINS (on camera): And there's another possibility. Those across the board cuts coming because of super committee failure, they don't happen until 2013. So Congress would have a year to try and water them down. And if Congress did, that could have repercussions on Wall Street and extend this messy debate into a messy campaign year.
Lisa Desjardins, CNN, Capitol Hill.
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ACOSTA: You've been sounding off on our "Talk Back" question, who should come to the congressional super committee's rescue? It looks as if efforts to reach a deal to cut the national debt are not panning out. Carol Costello joins me live now from New York.
And, Carol, there might be some people out there who don't want to rescue the super committee. Just saying.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, some just want to say, let the chips fall where they may --
ACOSTA: That's right.
COSTELLO: And then you know they'll go to the voting booth in 2012. But some have ideas. So, who should come to the rescue of the super committee?
This from Sharon. "Please consider Colin Powell. He doesn't have a political axe to grind and shows outstanding judgment. He believes everything is too polarized and this does not benefit our democracy."
This from Mitch. "Former Presidents George H.W. Bush and Bill Clinton are both good friends, respected elder statesman. President Obama, in my opinion, cannot do this nearly as effectively as a former president can right now because he's running a partisan political campaign while former presidents are not."
This from Mary. "It is not one person, it's the American people. They must come to the rescue. First, through an absolute mandate for action for investment in the economy to produce jobs and second, for campaign reform. Occupy Congress."
It from Steven. "Who should come to the rescue? Superman, Batman and Robin, Spiderman, Spiderwoman, Robo Cop, To head it all James Bond and the cast of Law and Order." That should get the job done.
Facebook.com/carolcnn. Keep the conversation flowing. And thanks, as always, for your responses.
ACOSTA: Carol, the process could not get more wacky. I think that cast of characters just might plush it over the edge. But I have to say that the one gentleman who recommend putting Bill Clinton and former President George H.W. Bush together, they've actually accomplished a lot of stuff. I mean look at what happened with the tsunami. They came and put together an effort to help folks reeling from that catastrophe. That's actually not a bad idea.
COSTELLO: And they obviously like and respect one another. They're friends. George H.W. Bush says he sometimes considers Bill Clinton as another son. So maybe that's the answer. Who knows.
ACOSTA: Who knows. If that's the answer, the credit will have to go to you, Carol, for asking the question. Thanks so much. Good to see you. Do you ever hear politicians say something and think, did they really just say that? Well, stick around, you're about to hear some of the best clips of the week from senators, candidates and even the president.
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ACOSTA: The politicians are constantly talking and some of what they have to say may have you doing a double take, especially on a day like today. Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I was just presented with the most unique gift I've ever received as president -- crocodile insurance. My wife, Michelle, will be relieved.
REP. JOHN BOEHNER (R), SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE: Well, I think I'm just going to go ahead and say what I think everybody here is thinking. This is pretty cool.
HERMAN CAIN (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: The day after I get elected president, I'm going to take a nap. I'll probably be a little bit tired.
REP. MICHELE BACHMANN (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Are you going to live on 25 percent of your income? You can't even do iTunes downloads for that. I mean, come on, let's be honest.
REP. EARL BLUMENAUER (R), OREGON: It's shameful that we are poised to intervene to make sure that pizza continues to count as a vegetable, and that we protect the privileged status of french fries on the lunch tray.
REP. DON YOUNG (R), ALASKA: I want you to know I'm supporting Mr. Markey. I will tell you right now --
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm sure he is --
YOUNG: (INAUDIBLE) Obama energy program.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm sure he is thrilled with that.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You can ask questions, but I think first Governor Romney has a few words that he is going to say.
MITT ROMNEY (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I was going to -- I was looking forward to eating that.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You were looking forward --
ROMNEY: But, go ahead, you keep going. That's fine. I'll get one bite in.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: OK. REP. ALCEE HASTINGS (R), FLORIDA: I don't want to get in any more trouble than I already have. So if the gentlemen could withdrawal his complement, I'd be very appreciative of that.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm delighted to withdraw the compliment.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ACOSTA: Withdrawing the compliment. Oh, that was a good one.
Don't forget, tomorrow night the Republican hopefuls face off in Washington. CNN hosts a presidential debate on national security and the economy. Your moderator, our very own Wolf Blitzer.
That's at 8:00 Eastern tomorrow night right here on CNN.
And CNN NEWSROOM now continues with Gary Tuchman. Gary, good to see you.
