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New Herman Cain Accuser Comes Forward; Investigating Bernie Fine; American Airlines Files for Bankruptcy; Impeding Sentence for Conrad Murray; How GOP Presidential Candidates Can Distinguish Themselves on Economy; Herman Cain To Reassess Campaign
Aired November 29, 2011 - 11:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN ANCHOR: Live from Studio 7, I'm Suzanne Malveaux.
I want to get you up to speed for this Tuesday, November 29th.
We are now just learning that Vice President Biden has arrived in Baghdad, that he will be meeting with Iraqi officials, including the leader of Iraq, to talk about the drawdown of U.S. troops that will be taking place by the end of the year. We're going to have more information on that as it becomes available, but we're just getting this information now that the vice president is in Baghdad to try to work out the final process of actually removing the remaining U.S. troops.
This hour, Michael Jackson's doctor finds out if he's going to prison for his role in Jackson's death. We're carrying the sentencing of Dr. Conrad Murray for you live. That's at 11:30 Eastern.
Murray was convicted of involuntary manslaughter for recklessly giving Jackson the powerful anesthetic Propofol to help him sleep. Well, he faces a maximum of four years in prison. Now, prosecutors also want him to pay more than $100 million to Jackson's children.
And it's another case of he said/she said for Herman Cain. Ginger White, a single mother from Atlanta, says that she had a 13-year-long affair with the married Republican candidate. Cain once again shooting it all down. That and all allegations.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: Was this an affair?
HERMAN CAIN (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: No, it was not.
BLITZER: There was no sex?
CAIN: No.
BLITZER: None?
CAIN: No.
(END VIDEO CLIP) UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Are you sticking with your original story that it was a sexual relationship?
GINGER WHITE, ALLEGES AFFAIR WITH HERMAN CAIN: Absolutely, and I can't imagine him actually confirming. It's the name of the game, I guess.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MALVEAUX: Pittsburgh police will open a second criminal investigation into Bernie Fine. He is the fired Syracuse assistant basketball coach. Zach Tomaselli claims that Fine molested him at a hotel in Pittsburgh in 2002. Now, Fine's wife, Laurie, in a secretly recorded telephone conversation, seems to confirm her husband's attraction to young boys.
CNN tried to ask her about that tape.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GARY TUCHMAN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, ma'am. I'm Gary Tuchman with CNN. I'm sorry to bother you --
LAURIE FINE, BERNIE FINE'S WIFE: You're not bothering me.
TUCHMAN: -- but -- I was hoping I can ask you -- your nephew was saying that you might make a statement.
FINE: We have no statement.
TUCHMAN: You're not going to make a statement?
FINE: Not today.
TUCHMAN: Is that tape misinterpreted though?
FINE: I have no comment.
TUCHMAN: How come you can't comment?
FINE: I cannot comment.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MALVEAUX: Police have not filed charges against Bernie Fine. Syracuse plays its first home game tonight without him.
Well, tomorrow, a court is going to hear why the man who tried to assassinate President Reagan should get more time away from the mental hospital where he is staying. That's right.
John Hinckley, Jr. was found not guilty by reason of insanity back in 1982. He wants more unsupervised visits to see his mother who is aging. Well, prosecutors are fighting that request.
Angry Iranians stormed the British Embassy in Tehran today. Now, protesters broke down the embassy's door, they trashed the place, and raised the Iranian flag. The crowd wants Britain's ambassador to go home.
The Iranian parliament expelled the ambassador on Sunday in retaliation for Western sanctions. The BBC is reporting that embassy staffers escaped through a back door.
After a big rally yesterday, market momentum continues. Right now, Dow Jones up. I'm looking at 68 points. Mainly, that's on the hopes of Europe working out the debt crisis.
American Airlines filed for bankruptcy this morning, but you don't have to worry about holiday travel. The CEO says it's going to be business as usual. The airline and parent company, AMR, said they couldn't hammer out a deal to cut spending on labor.
So, details in a few minutes. We're going to go live to the New York Stock Exchange.
And also a status update for you. Facebook reportedly considering going public, and the initial public offering could happen soon. "The Wall Street Journal" is reporting that the social network is hoping to raise $10 billion. That's going to put the value of Facebook at about $100 billion, and so far Facebook hasn't posted any comments.
New sex allegations are threatening to derail the so-called Cain train.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
WHITE: It was pretty simple. It wasn't complicated. And I was aware that he was married, and I was also aware that I was involved in a very inappropriate situation, relationship.
I'm not proud. I didn't want to come out with this. I did not.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MALVEAUX: But Ginger White, a single mother of two, tells Atlanta's WAGA that she had a 13-year affair with White House hopeful Herman Cain. Cain is denying everything, he says the two were just friends. But the campaign, as you can imagine, is now back in crisis mode.
Joe Johns, out of Washington, has more for us.
So, Joe, give us a sense here. Do we think it's the last stop for the so-called Cain train, or can he recover from this?
JOE JOHNS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Frankly, I don't think the campaign thinks it's the last stop. They've sort of been up and down this tree a couple other times on very different subjects, of course. Sexual harassment is very different from an alleged, you know, relationship that was consensual, though he's denied all of it. The fact of the matter is, yes, they've got an e-mail out today touting his 9-9-9 plan and talking about revising the tax code.
That said, you know, it's caused him certainly a bit of problems. And the other half of this, Suzanne, as you know, it's not just about allegations that have been made by women, you know, allegedly in his past, it's also about his campaign organization, the fact that he's come up blank or confused on some issues, notably Libya. And the whole ball of wax creates a problem for Herman Cain, but he says he's not getting out of the race.
MALVEAUX: Joe, how does this campaign try to get back on message? I know you said that they're trying to bring back the 9-9-9 plan. Do they have a strategy here? Are they addressing this up front, or are they putting it aside and saying, no more, this is what we want to talk about?
JOHNS: Well, it's interesting. I mean, you saw the statement from the lawyer that came out yesterday, and the lawyer suggested this is a private matter, essentially none of your business.
Also, I think it was notable that Herman Cain, even though he wasn't saying the same thing as his lawyer, actually tried to get ahead of the story rather than behind it or reacting to it. So it looks like they started reading the campaign playbooks a little more carefully.
Nonetheless, this is sort of an uphill battle for him, because women voters in our polls have shown they have gotten very skeptical about Herman Cain. And then you have the social conservatives, particularly in places like Iowa and South Carolina, and they expect their politicians and their candidates to answer, if you will, to a higher power. So that could make it difficult for him -- Suzanne.
MALVEAUX: All right.
Joe Johns.
Thank you, Joe.
Herman Cain, he has had what you could call a rough month, which brings us to today's "Talk Back" question: Should Cain drop out of the presidential race?
Carol Costello with more from New York.
Hey, Carol.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Suzanne.
The Cain train's final stop will not be 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, not unless the big train conductor in the sky can take over the spin machine and campaign. Forget the latest allegations of marital infidelity. Candidate Cain has had a really, really bad few months.
There was his initial inability to explain his own economic plan, 9-9- 9, his botched answer on Libya, his confusing abortion beliefs, his seeming confusion over government unionization, and his campaign's inept handling of sexual harassment allegations.
That's the one that did it for the Tea Party Nation. Judson Phillips saying, "Herman Cain has got to go. If Cain cannot run his own campaign, how is he going to run the country?" Other Republicans are piling on.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KAREN HANRETTY, REPUBLICAN STRATEGIST: This campaign is a complete disaster. Cain was in Ohio yesterday selling books. He's not even really campaigning now in Iowa. So, I think as we continue, we see that this campaign is really a farce.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: Cain's book, "My Journey to the White House," is selling. It's number 43 on Amazon's ranking on political biographies and memoirs.
As for Cain, he says he's still in it to win it. After all, Bill Clinton survived charges of infidelity.
But the "Talk Back" question for you today: Should Herman Cain drop out of the presidential race?
Facebook.com/CarolCNN. I'll read your comments later this hour.
MALVEAUX: Carol, I think this is one of those moments of truth, really, when you think about it. This month, going into next month, I mean, he's got almost a year to go on this. How he survives the next four weeks, going into next year, I think is going to be really critical. Even the polls though now showing that his numbers have dropped, yes?
COSTELLO: Well, the most disturbing thing perhaps is he's sort of sucking all the air out of the room. We're not hearing about economic plans, or plans for the wars that are currently going on internationally. We're not hearing that from other candidates. We're hearing all about Herman Cain and these allegations against him, and some Republicans say that's not a good thing.
MALVEAUX: All right. Looking forward to the responses. Thank you, Carol.
Here's a rundown of some of the stories up ahead.
First, it is sentencing day in L.A. for Michael Jackson's doctor. We're going to take you there, to court live, as soon as that starts.
And then the alleged molestation case against Syracuse coach Bernie Fine. We're going to look into why federal authorities are now taking over.
Also, November snow down South. Yes, here. Say it ain't so. We're going to tell you which states got hit with the frosty weather.
And a popular way of scoring in soccer can actually cause brain injuries. We've got a full report at the bottom of the hour.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) MALVEAUX: New developments about the child molestation allegations against Bernie Fine. He's the coach fired by Syracuse University.
Now, police in Pittsburgh plan on their own investigation. And in Syracuse, actually, federal authorities are taking over the case.
Our Deborah Feyerick, she's at the Syracuse campus to talk a little bit about sorting all of this out.
It's become somewhat confusing here, Deb.
So, first of all, why are the feds taking the lead role in this? Because, normally, these kind of cases would be handled as a matter of state law, right?
DEBORAH FEYERICK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: You know, normally they are handled by the local investigators, the district attorney's office. Federal authorities stepped in, in part, because they were using the Secret Service, who -- they've got an expertise in forensic analysis, the ability to go through computers, they've worked with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, so they know exactly how to get into computers and to look for certain things. For example, they may look for a pattern of downloading child pornography, things like that.
So that was one of the reasons the Secret Service executed this search warrant. But also, it's very interesting, because the police really took the case to federal investigators. The police just released a new statement, Suzanne, and they're trying to clarify what happened back in 2002 when Bobby Davis, the alleged victim, came forward trying to get somebody to listen to them.
And what the police say in this very latest statement that just came over moments ago, that is that one of the problems is when Bobby Davis called police, he was told by detectives that unless he met with a detective, or if he could provide the names of other victims -- which he could not, he could not provide entire names of victims -- then in fact they would not be able to open an investigation. Key in this statement coming from the police department also though, Suzanne, is that the police department never knew that Syracuse University had initiated its own investigation based on similar complaints by what appears to be the same alleged victim, Bobby Davis. So that's clear.
So you had a couple of agencies who were notified and, yet, because there was no cross-communication, neither of them realized that, in fact, the same guy, a prominent guy, was being looked into. And the police department now saying they are going to change their protocol so that if somebody does call in with an allegation, they're going to thoroughly document it -- Suzanne.
MALVEAUX: So the feds are going to try to sort all of that out.
Now, tell us why the Pittsburgh police now are getting involved in this case. Why is this becoming even bigger?
FEYERICK: And the Pittsburgh police -- and this is very interesting, because a third person ultimately did step forward, somebody who's not even from this area, but somebody who met the ex-coach, Fine, while he was at an away game, and he has accused Coach Fine of sexual molestation in a Pittsburgh motel. And it's his allegation, basically, that helped this investigation begins.
Bobby Davis' statute of limitations had, in fact, run out, but with this latest allegation, it is now within the time frame where it can be investigated. So, Pittsburgh now saying, OK, feds, we know you have got the lead on this case, but we're going to come and see whether we can help dig up anything that can help, or really to see whether there are any more people who are out there -- Suzanne.
MALVEAUX: All right. Deborah Feyerick, thank you so much.
(NEWSBREAK)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MALVEAUX: The markets building on yesterday's rally, but first, the big announcement this morning from the airline industry. American Airlines files for bankruptcy.
Alison Kosik joins us from the New York Stock Exchange.
So, Alison, what does this mean for all of us who are going to be traveling over the holidays?
ALISON KOSIK, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: OK, Suzanne. Keep in mind that this does not mean that American Airlines is going out of business. In fact, the new CEO says it's going to be business as usual.
So, if you have got a reservation, it's still valid. It's going to go ahead and even maintain its frequent flyer program. It's also going to keep its flight schedule the same, and it says it's not going to ground any planes.
So, sure, the next logical question is, well, how is this possible? How can things just sort of operate as normal? Well, the fact is, is that American Airlines still has $4 billion in cash. It's going to use that money to continue operating, to pay its vendors, to pay its suppliers while it works through this whole court process -- Suzanne.
MALVEAUX: If they can still operate, why are they filing for bankruptcy today?
KOSIK: And that's a good question, too, because for American Airlines, the end game for American Airlines at this point is really just to be more competitive. And if you think about it, American Airlines is kind of the last airline, the man standing. All of its other major carriers, its major competitors, they've either filed for bankruptcy or merged with other airlines, or both, so what this does, essentially, this bankruptcy filing, is it allows American Airlines to unload its massive debt and cut costs.
The new CEO, Thomas Horton, he spoke with CNN International's Richard Quest, and here's his reasoning on this. Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
THOMAS HORTON, CHAIRMAN & CEO, AMERICAN AIRLINES: Virtually all of our big competitors in the U.S. took this step, and as a consequence, they lowered their costs and improved their capital structure in a way that simply made them much more competitive. And, you know, the folks at American have worked very hard and honorably to avoid that path over the last decade, but it became clear to us that that gap was just to wide now.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KOSIK: So, American Airlines has clearly been at a disadvantage compared to its rivals. You look at the numbers here, it lost $5 billion just since 2007. The stock has plunged 79 percent just this year. It's now trading today at around 25 cents, 33 cents a share.
So the goal here is to go into bankruptcy, unload its massive debt, rework its labor contracts and its cost structure, and essentially emerge a much stronger, leaner, healthier airline -- Suzanne.
MALVEAUX: OK. And what about the markets in general today? They rallied yesterday. How are they doing today?
KOSIK: It looks like stocks are building on those gains from yesterday. Investors seem to be shrugging off a report that disappointed the Street showing that home prices plunged more than expected. But consumer confidence actually rose more than expected. In fact, it was the biggest monthly gain in eight years.
From this report, you can see that Americans are more optimistic about their employment prospects and about their income prospects. So you see Wall Street focusing on the positive today -- Suzanne.
MALVEAUX: All right. We like that news. Thank you, Alison.
So, how much will Michael Jackson's doctor pay for the death of one of music's biggest icons? Dr. Conrad Murray learns his fate very soon. We're live from the sentencing.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MALVEAUX: In just a few minutes, Michael Jackson's doctor finds out whether or not he will spend the next four years in a state prison. We are carrying Conrad Murray's sentencing for you live from Los Angeles.
Joining me from L.A. is Sandra Endo, and from Las Vegas, attorney Richard Herman, to take us through the sentencing.
But first, want to bring in Randi Kaye. She takes a look back at the trial's highlights.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
RANDI KAYE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Tears, tales of addiction, and half-truths -- just another day in the trial of Dr. Conrad Murray.
From day one, Michael Jackson's doctor cannot hold back his emotions. Prosecutor David Walgren shows little sympathy, hammering home what he calls Murray's incompetence in the scramble to save his star patient.
Day two: Jackson's personal assistant tells the jury Murray called saying something was wrong with Jackson, but never said he'd stopped breathing or to call 911.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Were you asked to call 911?
MICHAEL AMIR WILLIAMS, MICHAEL JACKSON'S PERSONAL ASSISTANT: No, sir.
KAYE: Day three: Jackson's former head of logistics testifies Murray was hiding vials at Jackson's home before paramedics arrived.
ALBERTO ALVAREZ, MICHAEL JACKSON'S HEAD OF LOGISTICS: I was standing at the foot of the bed. He reached over and grabbed a handful of vials, and then he reached out to me and said, "Here, put these in a bag."
KAYE: Day four: this Los Angeles paramedic tells the court Murray never told him he'd given Jackson the powerful anesthetic Propofol, the drug that killed Jackson.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Did Conrad Murray ever mention the word "Propofol" to you during the time that you were at the location or in his presence?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No, he did not.
KAYE: Day six: a harem of women. A stripper, former cocktail waitress and Murray's girlfriend all testified they were in touch with Murray the day Jackson died.
Sade Anding was on the phone with Murray when he noticed Jackson wasn't breathing.
SADE ANDING, FRIEND OF CONRAD MURRAY: I said, "Hello? Hello?" And I didn't hear anything.
KAYE: Day seven: a disturbing iPhone recording taken by Murray is played in court of Michael Jackson sounding wasted and slurring his words.
MICHAEL JACKSON, ENTERTAINER: I love them. I love them because I didn't have a childhood. I had no childhood. I feel their pain. I feel their hurt.
KAYE: Also on day seven, Elissa Fleak, an investigator for the coroner's office, testifies she found 12 bottles of Propofol in Jackson's bedroom, though the defense jumped on her for what they call mistakes in her investigation.
Day nine: Detective Scott Smith shares his two-hour recorded interview with Dr. Murray. DR. CONRAD MURRAY, DEFENDANT: I sat there and watched him for a long enough period that I felt comfortable. Then I needed to go to the bathroom. Then I came back to his bedside and was stunned in the sense that he wasn't breathing.
KAYE: Day 14: the prosecution's key expert, Dr. Steven Schaefer, testifies the only scenario that fits is that Murray hooked Jackson up to a slow Propofol IV drip and didn't notice he stopped breathing.
Day 18: the defense puts Murray's former patients on the stand to praise Murray. He listens in tears.
Day 20: the so-called father of Propofol, Dr. Paul White, testifies for the defense. He supports the theory Jackson gave himself the fatal dose, unaware it would kill him.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So you think it was a self-injection of Propofol near the hour of -- between 11:30 and 12:00 that did it?
DR. PAUL WHITE, PROPOFOL EXPERT: In my opinion, yes.
KAYE: Day 21, Murray takes a hit when prosecutors press Dr. White about Murray's failure to tell paramedics he gave Jackson Propofol.
WHITE: It was obviously overlooked. He didn't -- he didn't --
DAVID WALGREN, PROSECUTOR: Well, not obviously. It could also be a lie, correct?
Correct? That's another option.
WHITE: If you say so, I guess, yes.
WALGREN: That's another option, correct?
WHITE: It's an option, yes.
KAYE: That same day, on cross examination, prosecutors get White to admit that he believed Murray drew up a syringe of Propofol and left it in the bedroom, accessible to Jackson.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
MALVEAUX: Randi Kaye has been covering the Jackson doctor trial and joins us now.
Randi, you've heard a lot of trials in the past. What struck you about this one?
KAYE: I think just from an emotional level, what really struck me was the stories from the witnesses about the children. Paris Jackson, when she saw her father struggling to breathe, collapsed in the bedroom, curled up in a ball on the floor crying.
His son, Prince, in shock. Another thing, we heard a little bit of it there, was that emotional tape from Jackson like we've never heard him before, sounding drugged, which Conrad Murray recorded on his cell iPhone, and continued to order Propofol for him, the powerful anesthetic which they believe killed him.
And also just the amount of Propofol that was coming into the home that Conrad Murray had ordered it, and he was sending it to his girlfriend's house, to see the numbers and to see the drugs laid out in that courtroom, knowing that this was really what killed Michael Jackson, in the end, was pretty dramatic stuff.
MALVEAUX: Just to think about that, we kind of grew up on Michael Jackson, and you hear that tape, it's awful to hear his voice like that, and the kind of state he was in. But you and I were talking about the fact you saw him in concert when you were 15.
KAYE: I did.
MALVEAUX: I still have his albums at home. What do you think of the celebrity factor in all of this? Do you think it played any kind of roll in this?
KAYE: In a say way, this has come full circle. At 15 years old, I went to see him in concert. and then to be there behind his family sitting in the courtroom, his mother, father, Katherine and Joe Jackson, La Toya Jackson and Janet and Jermaine, his brothers and sisters, to see that family reaction, to see the impact that they had on the jury.
And La Toya was shaking her head when certain witnesses were on the stand. And only feet away, there you have Conrad Murray, who is crying many times throughout the trial. And then you have the whole scene outside with the crazy doctor who comes every day and was standing with the I.V. stand dressed in a doctor's suit outside.
MALVEAUX: Really?
KAYE: Then you have Conrad Murray supporters, Michael Jackson supporters, and crazy placards, people saying, if there's no drip, don't acquit, meaning --
(CROSSTALK)
KAYE: -- referring to the O.J. trial.
MALVEAUX: That's right, yes.
KAYE: It was a complete circus. But definitely, a lot of people were saying, would we even be here if it wasn't for Michael Jackson?
MALVEAUX: Right.
(CROSSTALK)
KAYE: -- malpractice case, and who knows?
MALVEAUX: Did you have a chance to talk to any of the Michael Jackson family while you were there? KAYE: You would acknowledge them because they were only a couple feet away from them in court, and the media usually sat right behind the Jackson family. Joe Jackson, he would always acknowledge me and say hello. But other than that, they pretty much kept to themselves.
MALVEAUX: All right, Randi, we'll bring you in for more questions as this unfolds.
I want to bring in our Sandra Endo who is standing outside the courtroom in L.A.
Sandra, who has actually arrived today? Who have you seen?
SANDRA ENDO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: We just saw Katherine Jackson arrive here at the courthouse, also siblings, Jermaine, Randy and La Toya. They've all been a mainstay, as Randi mentioned, throughout the trial. We're going to see the proceedings start momentarily. They're waiting for all parties to arrive.
The prosecution and the Jackson family, of course, want the max, Suzanne. They want four years in prison for Dr. Conrad Murray and hefty fines, which could amount to more than $100 million. Of course, Murray's lawyers are arguing he should just get probation and essentially stay out of jail. California is struggling from overcrowded jails and obviously it's going to be tough to keep him in prison.
There you're see some live pictures, if you will, of Michael Pastor (ph), the judge on the bench right now. Court has started. The proceedings are about to begin. They are likely going to read some victim statements. We understand the Jackson family statement will be read by a family lawyer. and we understand that also the mother of Conrad Murray -- actually, both mothers made a petition to the judge, one, of course, pleading for mercy, the other, of course, pleading for the max -- Suzanne?
MALVEAUX: And we understand the judge is dealing with that right now, whether or not they're going to be able to broadcast some of those statements. Give us a sense here. I understand Conrad Murray's mother wrote a letter to the judge begging for mercy. And she also wanted to reach out to Michael Jackson's mother, Katherine, to say how sorry she was that Katherine Jackson lost her son, Michael Jackson. Can you tell us a little bit about this, this kind of back and forth between these mothers?
ENDO: Yes, absolutely. This petition was very interesting to read because we have heard very little from Dr. Conrad Murray's mother through all of this. And we have seen her inside the courtroom throughout the trial. She keeps to herself, doesn't want any media attention. We understand that she doesn't want the camera shown on her if the judge allows these proceedings right now to be televised. So clearly, she wants to stay out of the spotlight.
But this is the first letter we've seen and heard in her own voice, saying that her son is a compassionate man, that's why he got into all this trouble in the first place, and that she's extremely sorry to Katherine Jackson for the loss of her son.
She understands that, as a mother, and she said that throughout the trial, she wanted to go up to her personally to say sorry for her loss, but of course, because of court rules, she didn't want to infringe on those rules. So that was all laid out, obviously showing her compassion as well through this letter. And pleading to the judge for leniency, really, saying that, please show mercy on her son.
MALVEAUX: Is there any of that kind of circus atmosphere that Randi was talking about that's outside the courtroom today?
ENDO: Very far less than we've seen in normal day-to-day operations outside the courthouse, if you will, throughout the trial. Obviously, this is sentencing day. A lot of the fans, those very voracious -- actually, Michael Jackson fans, who have been a mainstay throughout every day of the trial, aren't really here today. As the fancy cars pulled up carrying the Jackson family, of course, a little crowd assembled, but there is also security here as well.
Just a few steps away, there is the Occupy L.A. Protesters, so clearly a mix of people here in front of the courthouse.
MALVEAUX: OK.
ENDO: But obviously, the main show is inside the courtroom right now.
MALVEAUX: All right.
ENDO: And I can see the defense sitting around a table and Conrad Murray himself.
MALVEAUX: We're going to get back to you, Sandra.
I want to bring in really quickly, criminal defense attorney, Richard Herman. He's out of Las Vegas.
Richard, we've been watching this very closely here. What do you suspect the judge is going to do here? Do you think he'll slap him with four years in prison, or do you think he'll do community service with probation?
(LAUGHTER)
RICHARD HERMAN, CRIMINAL DEFENSE ATTORNEY: You can take it to the bank, Suzanne, he's getting four years. This is the man that killed Michael Jackson. This is a judge who has to run for elective office. It's absolutely going to be four years maximum state prison, reduced immediately to two years county prison.
And because this is deemed a non-violent felony under the statute and because Dr. Conrad Murray has no prior criminal history, he is entitled to immediate home confinement due to prison overcrowding. That's where I see it. Maybe a month in county prison and then sent home for home confinement.
MALVEAUX: Do you think that that's the likely outcome, that's the way he's -- he's just going to be confined to home because of the California laws now?
HERMAN: Yes, we saw what happened with Lindsay Lohan and Paris Hilton. They get sentenced and all of a sudden they're out hours, in a matter of hours. The overcrowding is enormous. The legislature has acted in California due to the overcrowding. He's absolutely entitled to home confinement and that's what should be handed out unless he's treated differently than others similarly situated. I hope that's not the case here -- Suzanne?
MALVEAUX: Tell us a little about the defense. They also want him to pay some big dollars here. We're talking $100 million to the Jackson children for what they thought would be the money he would have gotten from his concert tour and there are other expenses as well. How did they come up with this?
HERMAN: Lost profits and wages as a result of the tour had he been able to do it. So they're asking the judge to award $100 million to the children of Michael Jackson for that and another $1.8 million to cover the funeral expenses, et cetera. I don't believe this judge is going to do that. He has the power to do it. I think that's more rightfully set for the civil wrongful death actions that are being brought against Dr. Murray. I would be a little surprised if the judge made those awards. In any event, there is no way Dr. Murray can pay these awards and he will probably be forced to discharge them in bankruptcy.
MALVEAUX: The defense is arguing he's paid enough here. He's not going to be able to practice medicine. He's been disgraced here. What kind of future does this guy have?
HERMAN: It's not very bright, Suzanne. I think, first, he'll be in home confinement for two years. Then he has no ability to practice medicine. His license will be stripped not only in California but in Nevada as well as Texas. He's never going to be able to get licensed again because of his actions in the case. So unless he can do a book deal or get some sort of celebrity status here from this case, that's going to be his only form of revenue, I believe.
MALVEAUX: Do you think that this judge and this trial, that they're trying to set an example for some of these other celebrity doctors that prescribe, provide drugs irresponsibly to some of these mega- stars? What do we think is going to come out of this particular case?
HERMAN: What great insight, Suzanne. We've been hearing, since the Anna Nicole case, about doctor-shopping and about prescription meds causing the death of people, and people getting meds from all different doctors, all kinds of painkillers, et cetera, et cetera. Look, it's here. It's here to stay. And California, by this case, is stepping up and, I think, setting an example. I think there is a lot of doctors in California who are quivering right now based on their conduct and prescribing prescription meds to various patients.
MALVEAUX: All right. Richard Herman, we're going to get back to you.
We're going to keep an eye on the sentencing of Michael Jackson's doctor. We'll bring you more on that just ahead. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MALVEAUX: We're watching live pictures out of the courthouse in Los Angeles. That's where we're waiting to hear the judge's sentencing of Conrad Murray, Michael Jackson's doctor, who was convicted of involuntary manslaughter in his death. We're going to bring that to you as soon as that happens, so we're going to keep a close eye on those pictures out of the courtroom.
Also want to go to -- putting scandals and sound bites aside for a sec -- what do the candidates really stand for when it comes to the main issue, issue number one -- the economy?
Christine Romans is joining us from New York to break down for all of us the promising -- your economic future.
Christine, all of them agree that they don't like Obama and his plans, but they do have some plans of their own and some of them overlap. How do they distinguish themselves?
CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right They put themselves together, you're right by saying the president is doing a terrible job on the economy and that they would be better, each of them. Where they come together, they all want to cut -- all of the presidential candidates on the Republican side would like to cut the corporate tax rate, cut it pretty dramatically. They think that would make the United States more competitive around the world.
They want to repeal the Obama-care, the president's signature health care reform victory, which to Democrats, it was a victory. The Republicans see it as an abomination. And they want to shrink government. They want to shrink government a lot. Depending on who you ask, Suzanne, it means eliminating two or three government agencies or eliminating pretty big new management tactics that would balance the budget and cut lots of workers. That's where they agree right there.
MALVEAUX: And the new guy to beat is Newt Gingrich. Can you give us some specifics about Newt Gingrich's plans?
ROMANS: That's right. Suddenly, he's moving up the polls. And everybody is scrutinizing again what his plans are for the American economy. He's been around an awful long time. He's seen the economy up and he's seen it down.
What he would like to do, he would like to scrap the state and capital gains taxes. He would like to extend the Bush tax cuts. And he proposes an optional flat tax on income of 15 percent, sort of like Rick Perry's 20 percent optional flat tax, but you could pick either your current tax rate or a flat tax on your income of 15 percent.
He also wants to balance the budget, and doing that, of course, is difficult. It would be hard to do very quickly but he's promising he could get that done. He wants to break up Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. He wants to reform the Federal Reserve.
And you've heard of Six Sigma, I'm sure, but it's this corporate management technique where basically it honors efficiency at all costs. You're constantly kind of firing the least productive workers and really promoting any kind of policies that's going to cut costs. He would say put Six Sigma to work in the federal government. You would save billions.
MALVEAUX: Wow. That's a bold plan. What happens -- when you say flat tax, what does that mean for the average, middle-income family under a flat tax? Does that benefit them in any way?
ROMANS: The flat tax is supposed to be simper. It's supposed to cut all kinds of compliance costs out of this system. But you think about Newt Gingrich's plan, for example, and some tax experts say, well, if you could pick one or the other, you might do your taxes twice to figure out the least expensive for you. So it might not cut much out of that. Newt Gingrich wants a 15 percent; Rick Perry, 20 percent; Herman Cain says a 9 percent mandatorily. But if you fall below a certain income, Herman Cain says you wouldn't pay that over all.
Look at it this way, a flat tax many say hurts more in the lower end of the income spectrum more than anything else because, if you take a flat tax, say, you owe $20,000 a year, a 20 percent flat tax, 4 percent tax hurts you more than a $20,000 tax for somebody making $100,000 a year. Right now there are a lot of exemptions and tax credits for people who are at the lower end of the income spectrum. If they lost those, a flat tax would hurt them more.
MALVEAUX: All right. Christine, thank you.
I want to go to Wolf Blitzer, who has some new information coming out of the Herman Cain campaign.
Wolf, what do we know here?
WOLF BLITZER, HOST, THE SITUATION ROOM: What we know is that the Republican presidential candidates, Suzanne, had a conference call with his senior staff. A lot of people were on that conference call, and during the course of that conference call, he said he was going to reassess his position right now in the Republican race for the White House.
Not necessarily drop out, but wanted to reassess. He gave a couple of earlier examples of where he had reassessed in the past. After the Iowa straw poll, Michele Bachmann won that Iowa straw poll back in the summer. In August, he reassessed his campaign. He pointed out earlier, there were some financial problems that the campaign faced. He reassessed his campaign then.
No, in the aftermath of this allegation from this woman in Georgia that he had a 13-year affair with her, he's once again reassessing. But he has no intention of dropping out. He wants to see how this plays out, first and foremost, with his family, this cloud now hanging over his campaign. He's going to go forward with a schedule today, leaving Washington for Michigan. He's going to give a foreign policy speech at Hillsdale in Michigan later tonight. But he's taking a very close and hard look at where he goes from here. A source close to the Herman Cain campaign said he did not expect Herman Cain would drop out, but he's taking a very close look at how all of this is playing out right now. He wants to make sure that he can continue.
What he said in the conference call today, Suzanne, to a senior staff is clearly different than what he said to me yesterday when I interviewed him here on CNN in "THE SITUATION ROOM." He was adamant. He was moving full speed ahead. He was not going to let this latest accusation deter him.
Today, there was a little bit of a pause as a result of these serious allegations that this woman, Ginger White, made in Atlanta. He's reassessing where he stands, but he's at least in the short term going to go ahead as scheduled, pretty much. But he wanted to take a close look at what he's doing, especially, one source told me, his media schedule. He's going to be very cautious, apparently, in the aftermath of what has happened over the past 24 hours.
MALVEAUX: Wolf, do we think because he's reassessed before that some of this reassessment means he might be firing people, he might change his team, or maybe switch and focus on a different message out of the campaign? Do we have any idea what this entails?
BLITZER: I don't think it means anything along those lines, like firing staff or anything along those lines. I think what it does mean is that he wants to have a real closer sense from his wife and his family that these latest accusations won't put this enormously sad cloud over the family, and whether or not he can go forward as a result of the accusations, which, by the way, on the conference call today, he flatly denied once again, as he did yesterday in "THE SITUATION ROOM." He flatly denied this allegation that they had a 13- year sexual affair. He said they were friends and he helped her financially because she was destitute, if you will, she needed the money. But he didn't -- he flatly denied there was an affair, if you will. He's remaining very firm on that specific point.
MALVEAUX: Wolf, we've kind of seen his strategy change from time to time. First, when those sexual harassment allegations came forward, he seemed to be quite behind the story, and his story seemed to change over the course much a day or two. For this case, he was ahead of it when this woman said they had this 13-year affair.
Do we think he's going to go back to hunkering down and not really speaking out about these things? Is he reassessing his media strategy or how he's going to present himself to the public, and whether or not he's even going to address these accusations?
BLITZER: Yes, he is going to reassess. He's going to refer -- the campaign will refer all media questions on this alleged affair to Lin Wood, his high-profile attorney in Atlanta. Lin Wood will be speaking on behalf of Herman Cain when any questions come up as far as this alleged relationship with Ginger White in Atlanta.
So he's going to stop talking about it. The campaign will stop talking about it. They're going to make the point they've said everything they need to say. If you have more questions, those of us in the media and others, speak to Lin Wood, his attorney, and he'll answer the questions.
MALVEAUX: Wolf, you spoke to Herman Cain yesterday and he seems like -- he's very emotional and personal about his own family, his concerns about his wife and how his kids are taking all of this. His wife has not spoken out publicly much at all. She came forward that one time to say this did not sound like her husband, these allegations of sexual harassment. Do we suspect maybe he's going to try to protect his family more from some of these more salacious things regarding the campaign?
BLITZER: Yes, and if you look at the interview he did with me, yesterday, Suzanne, near the end, there's an exchange that we had, and I pressed him hard, are you going to continue with the campaign? Do you think you might drop out? He said he's going to fight and continue.
But he did raise the possibility of dropping out if there was too much of a cloud hanging over his family. His family and wife come first. He made that point -- I'm paraphrasing -- to a certain degree. But if you look at the transcript and look at the videotape of what he said, he did leave open the possibility that, if this continues, these accusations, he wants to do what's best for his family, and that could open the door to that kind of dramatic decision.
But he was pretty firm yesterday and said he wants to fight. He wants to run for the Republican presidential nomination. He's not going to drop out, although he did raise that one caveat in the interview yesterday that he could. Today, he seemed to go a little further by saying he's reassessing his strategy in the coming days based on the latest allegations. But at least for now, he's going to go ahead with the schedule as it's been planned.
MALVEAUX: All right, Wolf, thank you very much for bringing us up to speed on the breaking news on Herman Cain, reassessing his presidential campaign.
We'll have more after the break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MALVEAUX: We are watching inside the courtroom in Los Angeles where they are preparing to announce the sentencing of Dr. Conrad Murray, Michael Jackson's doctor, who was convicted of involuntary manslaughter for his role in Michael Jackson's death.
Understand there is prosecutor, David Walgren, who is speaking now. We're going to keep a close eye on that. He could get four years in prison, the maximum sentence, to possibly the least amount, which would be probation at home. So we're going to find out the fate of Michael Jackson's doctor.
We're also following another story here. This is a breaking news story about Herman Cain, who is one of the presidential Republican candidates. and news now that he is reassessing his campaign and where he moves forward.
I want to go to Gloria Borger out of Washington to explain what we know about this process.
Where is he now? What is he doing? I understand he had this big gathering with his staff. What is his future?
GLORIA BORGER, CHIEF POLITICAL ANALYST: Well, Suzanne, I just got off the phone with Steve Grubbs, who is Herman Cain's honorary Iowa campaign chairman. He was on this conference call in which the entire national staff for Herman Cain was invited. And he described it to me saying that, look, again, Herman Cain reiterated that he had what he called a long-term quote, "friendship with this woman." He was trying to help her out financially. He reiterated that nothing inappropriate occurred. And he also said, in the court of public opinion, people have to decide who they are going to believe. Sometimes the judgment is correct and sometimes it's not correct.
Mr. Grubbs said that when he heard Herman Cain say that he was going to reassess his campaign, it was in this context, "That Herman Cain said, just as we reassessed after the straw poll in Iowa and after Florida, we're going to reassess the campaign in the next few days."
What Mr. Grubs said to me is that he read that to mean that they are going to have to see how their fundraising is going. He didn't take it to mean that Herman Cain was necessarily going to withdraw from the race at all but that he was going to have to reassess where he is.
Now, Mr. Grubbs is obviously someone who is very tuned in to what would be happening in the Iowa caucuses. As you know, Suzanne, the Cain campaign has been losing altitude. He said, look, this certainly makes it more difficult. The hill gets a little steeper. And he said, look, the good news for us is that we do have a fairly sizable organization in Iowa.
But he did say, Suzanne, that Herman Cain said that this has been difficult, that these stories have taken an emotional toll on his family.
MALVEAUX: Is it possible, Gloria, it might be just the opposite what people expect when he says reassessing? We're thinking, well, maybe he's going to drop out or he'll pull away from this and they might double down and might actually be trying to reorganize and raise more money and they're now emboldened by all of this or is that naive?
BORGER: Well, Steve Grubbs made it clear to me that this is his read on the call, which is essentially that the campaign will continue. I asked him how Mr. Cain sounded, and he said he sounded strong but clearly disappointed. He made the point that he's going to go on and give his foreign policy speech later this afternoon.
So I think it was one of those calls where you can't ask any questions, that the staff was just -- that Mr. Cain was speaking to his supporters. So it wasn't open to a Q&A, where somebody might have asked the question about whether he was thinking about possibly withdrawing. So I think it's one of those situations where the word "reassessing," you can take it to mean whatever you want at this point.
MALVEAUX: Gloria, it seems to me as if it was obvious that, in leaking this, they wanted us all to find out about this, to know about this big meeting and the fact that he's reassessing. Why do you suppose that's the case?
BORGER: Well, when you have a conference call with 90 people or so, chances are we're going to hear about it. Someone in the press is going to hear about it.
I'm not so sure they wanted us to, but I think that the Herman Cain campaign felt the need to reach out to all of their supporters nationally in key positions to let them know what the campaign was thinking and what the candidate himself was thinking after this story yesterday. But again, the important thing that occurred here, in addition to the campaign saying they are reassessing, is that Herman Cain again said that he had only had a long-term friendship with this woman and that it was nothing more than that.
MALVEAUX: This might be reading the tea leaves a little bit, but do you think that he might be using this as an excuse, the fact that there's this latest allegation, this has caused a problem with his family, to drop out of the race or to reassess now when the poll numbers are low, the fundraising is low, and he's not doing as well as he was a couple of weeks ago?
BORGER: Well, you know, it's interesting, Suzanne, because, don't forget, after the first charges of sexual harassment came out, his campaign started raising money like gangbusters. Remember that?
MALVEAUX: Right.
BORGER: He did raise an awful lot of money after those charges. I think this is a different situation.
This is a situation where it's another he said/she said, no charge of sexual harassment, no charge of sexual assault, just a charge of an illicit affair. But you have a situation where the candidate, yesterday, said to Wolf Blitzer, this did not occur, and reiterated it again today. And I think that's going to be the real issue going forward for the Cain campaign, and we'll have to see if he continues to raise money.
As you know, he's headed in the wrong direction with the polls. He wasn't doing well with women voters before. This will certainly affect him negatively with women voters. And Newt Gingrich is taking a lot of those Cain supporters.
MALVEAUX: All right. Gloria, thank you.
BORGER: Sure.
MALVEAUX: We're going to be following this breaking news story, as well as many others.
