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Herman Cain to Open New Campaign Headquarters in Atlanta; Soldiers Return Home from Iraq; Country Singer Found Hiding with Son; Former Governor Rod Blagojevich Faces Sentencing; Decision Day for Herman Cain; Santa Ana Winds Batter California; Eight Year Old 200 Pounds; Man Sues Fertility Clinic; Cancer Patient Runs Marathons

Aired December 03, 2011 - 12:03   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Let's begin in Atlanta outside Herman Cain headquarters with the expected announcement that will take place today. Shannon Travis is there.

Shannon, there are an awful lot of people there who are clearly big supporters of Herman Cain who are hoping he's going to make the announcement that he is going to stay in this race. It's anyone's guess at this point. Do we know when he will be arriving?

SHANNON TRAVIS, CNN POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, it could be as early as 12:30 we're told that he actually speaks, Fred, although earlier we were told it could be 1:30. Now they are saying it could be as early as 12:30 because he it on a schedule.

In terms of the people you just referenced, I have to tell you it's a celebratory mood out here. There's food and burgers. They are selling Herman Cain paraphernalia, buttons and t-shirts. But depending what he says will determine whether the celebratory mood continues or whether it's sadness or not. We're expecting him to come out again as early as 12:30 and announce the result of his deliberation about this reassessment period. Will he drop out or forge ahead in this campaign, Fred.

WHITFIELD: So Shannon, the Herman Cain camp, are any of his supporters or any of his campaign folks giving you any idea as to what happened when he left the campaign trail and returned to Atlanta and went home to discuss with the family whether he should move forward?

TRAVIS: Yes. I mean, he had that meeting with his wife and we think probably maybe with his family as well last night for the first time meeting with his wife face-to-face since the latest allegation happened. You can probably hear over my shoulder some of the staffers inside the building keep coming out and giving little updates and pumping up the crowd.

So back to that meeting with his wife last night. That was obviously a private meeting, a little shared time between the two of them. He has said before that how she feels, her input into this matter would weigh heavily his decision about what he would do in the days ahead, Fred.

WHITFIELD: Shannon Travis here in Atlanta will we'll check back with you momentarily.

Meantime, also in Washington CNN's Candy Crowley and Joe Johns also joining us keeping a close watch on all that's unfolding in Atlanta outside Herman Cain headquarters.

Candy, you first. The celebratory mood we're seeing and hearing outside Cain headquarters certainly is sending a message that Herman Cain is digging in his heels potentially and he's staying in the race. What do you read from this?

CANDY CROWLEY, CNN CHIEF POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: We don't have any reason to believe they have any better idea what Herman Cain is going to do than we do. I mean, this clearly is a crowd, at least as described by Shannon, as some curiosity seekers but others who support him. If they still support him I'm sure the cheers are, hey, stay in the race, stay in the race. I'm not sure it's reflective of the decision, which as far as we know he certainly hand told Joe Johns or I at this moment, but we're working on it.

WHITFIELD: Let me bring you into this equation. What are his staffers to think and how are they to operate at this point? Is everything at a stop until this announcement is made or does he still have supporters spanning across the country, particularly in the first caucus and primary states knocking on doors saying Herman Cain needs you?

JOE JOHNS, CNN SENIOR CORRESPONDENT: OK. We'll start with supporters. There are still people out there who believe Herman Cain is a victim. They think he's a victim of the media. They think he's victim of a plot by Democrats or what have you. They don't believe this string of women accusers who say he did something wrong. So yes, there are people out there.

The question, of course, there is what kind of money are those people who support him willing to give to Herman Cain to keep that campaign sort of limping around the country while these accusations continue.

As far as staff goes, it's a really difficult situation because we've gotten so many contradictory signals from this campaign, even the legal team, that sometimes fly in the face of what the candidate itself is saying. It's almost impossible to believe when you get on the telephone with anyone what's really going on.

So Fredricka, I would say that's pretty much a toss-up as it stands right now. It is a difficult position because staffers when they are in limbo, big problems in the campaign. They have to decide whether to stay or go, tell the candidate to stay in the game or get out. But a lot of people will tell you, a lot of people who are analysts will tell you the candidate and the campaign, a lot of times just they don't really know when it's time to go even though a lot of people on the outside do.

WHITFIELD: So Candy, another indicator of full steam ahead for the Cain campaign was the launch of this website yesterday, "Women for Cain." What is the motivation there? CROWLEY: First of all in the polling there has been a drop-off. He's never been -- ever since the sexual harassment charges, Herman Cain's support among Republican women has started to fall off. That has continued. That's been the subject of much conversation in the media and elsewhere. So "women for Cain" comes from -- it reminded me a little bit of the "W. is for Women" when George Bush wanted to sort of showcase he had a lot of quote women issues in mind in his campaign. So this is an attempt to bolster a candidate following the sexual harassment charges and now this charge from a woman with a 13-year mutually consensual affair.

WHITFIELD: Candy Crowley, Joe Johns, thanks so much in Washington. We'll check back with you momentarily as we continue to watch the crowd forming outside Herman Cain headquarters in Atlanta. Will he be emerging to make an announcement that it is full steam ahead for his campaign? Will it end in its tracks or perhaps a suspension in that campaign? We'll talk with our best political team members as we also watch all that's unfolding there in Atlanta.

Meantime, still on the campaign trail, Republican candidate mitt Romney is rallying his supporters today in New Hampshire at a campaign stop in Manchester. Reporters asked him about the uncertainty over Herman Cain's campaign, and here is what he had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MITT ROMNEY, (R) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I don't know where Herman Cain's support will go. If he decides not to stay in the race, I wish him well. If he doesn't stay in the race, those folks are going to take a good hard look at all of us.

I don't think people haven't settled down in a final way to decide who they are going to support in the nomination process. I hope they give us a good, careful look, that they see the work we're doing and the commitment of our people, and recognize what America needs right now is a leader. I hope as they evaluate the various candidates they will find I'm the leader the world needs.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Romney comments on how many front-runners in the race. He said his campaign has been steady through the storm.

Donald Trump could still be a player in the battle for the White House. He says there's a chance he could run for president if he's not satisfied with the candidate who wins the Republican nomination. He says right now everyone will just have to wait and see. Trump will get a chance to question the Republican candidates soon. Has he agreed to moderate a GOP debate just days before the Iowa caucuses.

And now onto the Penn State child molestation scandal. Jerry Sandusky is speaking out again and giving his side of the story. He says he's innocent and never had sexual contact with young boys. The former Penn State assistant football coach sat down for an interview with the "New York Times." Asked why he did things like showering with kids, sleeping with them alone in hotel rooms, blowing on their stomachs, he said he saw them as his own children. Sandusky insisted he never sexually abused any child, but he confirmed details of some of the events prosecutors cited in charging him with the 40 counts of molesting young boys.

And the last of our brave men and women who fought in the war in Iraq are now coming home. We'll have today's emotional reunions from Fort Hood Texas.

And country singer Mindy McCready faces the music in her custody battle. She and her son were missing for three days. Where investigators found them after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Oh, what a happy moment for so many families there at Fort Hood, Texas, today. The last of our brave men and women who served in Iraq are now coming home. This was the scene in Indiana earlier this week as 100 soldiers returned.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

(SHOUTING)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: This homecoming happened yesterday for 60 National Guard troops in San Mateo, California. Pentagon Correspondent Chris Lawrence is at the reunion at Fort Hood.

CHRIS LAWRENCE, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: I know you've seen a lot of these homecomings, and it just never gets old. But the thing that makes this so special is a lot of these troops in the case of Iraq, there is no next time.

It's really hard to describe the emotion going on before the troops arrived. Kids were running around, jumping up and down. They had so much excitement, anticipation of the families. It's been a long 10 months. And then all of a sudden, this smoke starts coming out and the gate rises up and the soldiers come out like rock stars, literally. The crowd is screaming. Everyone tried to make the speeches very, very short because the highlight was seeing these troops rush into the arms of their loved ones hugging, kissing, trying to catch up over what's been missed over the last 10 months.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MICHELLE FREY, WIFE OF RETURNING SOLDIER: A lot has gone on. Our first one in preschool, our first one in high school. It's big. You know, we put one in college this year. It has been a very long 10 months but it's over.

MAJ. MIKE IANUCILLI, U.S. ARMY: There's a sense of peace knowing there's one less opportunity for us to be separated from our families. We know we still have our operations going on in Afghanistan, other contingency operations as they come up. To know what has consumed so much of our careers recently as a profession, to know that that's not there looming over us is certainly peace of mind.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LAWRENCE: So the troops have to report for reintegration training. Basically learning how to acclimate back home, to their families, like that. Then they get about 30 days leave to kick back, spend time with the family, and maybe let it sink in that they were some of the last troops to walk out of Iraq, and that for the United States the war there is over. Fredricka?

WHITFIELD: All right, thanks so much, Chris.

Before you deck the malls this weekend for more holiday shopping, just wait. You'll want to see our tips for avoiding that traditional credit card debt.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Conrad Murray is heading back to court. We'll tell you why straight ahead.

But first, black Friday and cyber Monday brought shoppers out and online in record numbers this year, but there's still several weeks of holiday spending straight ahead of us in today's "Smart is the New Rich," tips to help you avoid falling into that traditional holiday debt. Here is Christine Romans.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN ANCHOR: The debt danger signs are flashing everywhere, in Europe, in Washington, and in our own bank accounts where incomes are falling and Americans are dipping into savings to pay the bills. Yet everywhere you're being encouraged to spend money, lots of money for the holidays. The National Retail Federation says you'll spend $704. But where is all that money coming from, and have we learned nothing?

RICH NEWMAN, BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT, "U.S. NEWS AND WORLD REPORT": You see these numbers about how much money people are spending for the holidays and it reminds you back when people suddenly had expensive cars, boats, fancy vacations. You wonder, how are they affording all this? The fundamental situation is real income after inflation has been flat for the last year or maybe even down a tiny little bit.

ROMANS: That means you have to be very careful about putting new debt on your credit cards. People say they want to be good spenders. And 42 percent plan to spend less this year than last according to a new bank rate.com poll. But the road to debt is paved with good holiday intentions.

LYNETTE KHALFANI-COX, FOUNDER ASKTHEMONEYCOACH.COM: There's a lot of data to show there's a disconnect between what people say they are going to do and what they actually do. Even when people say intend to pay off credit card balances they don't pay them off. That's why we have 15 million people in 2011 who haven't paid off their holiday shopping bills from 2010. ROMANS: Don't be that person. A few smart things to consider before you spend a dime. If you can't afford it, put it down. Really think about your purchase and whether you need it. How do you know whether you need it? Make a budget. It sounds so simple, but make a budget and make a list. Think about what you want to buy and why and stick to it. You are smarter than the retail tricks. Stay to the list.

Also, use technology, comparison shop online, use coupon codes and, never buy into the hype these are the lowest prices you'll see all season. There are always lower prices and more sales ahead.

And take a time-out. If you see something not on your list you want to buy, wait 48 hours and go back later. You would be surprised how often the urge fades with time.

And a little advice from toy expert Jim Silver -- shop in person on Fridays from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m. at the toy store. That's when toy stores restock for the weekend. That's when you have the best chance of finding that hot toy that no one else can.

For this week's "Smart is the New Rich," I'm Christine Romans in New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: All right, so what we're going to talk about straight ahead, she has a list of personal problems that reads like a country song, but it's real life for Nashville's Mindy McCready. Police found her hiding in a closet today. Our legal guys weigh in next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Right outside Atlanta, Herman Cain headquarters there. Live pictures right now a number of his staffers have gone to the stage there. The expectation is Herman Cain, the Republican candidate for president himself, will be emerging at some point and will have an announcement to make.

Still unclear what that announcement is, whether he is continuing his bid for the White House, suspending it, still unclear, but highly anticipated moment there at the Cain headquarters in Atlanta. A very large crowd. You can't see them in this shot, but if it were a wide shot, looks like quite a few dozen people have turned out there. They are looking rather excited. You heard one of the reporters describe it's a celebratory mood there. So we'll continue to keep a close watch on it.

Meantime, let's talk legal matters now. In the Michael Jackson death case a decision by Dr. Conrad Murray to appeal his conviction. He filed the notice to appeal yesterday in Los Angeles superior court. Murray was convicted last month of involuntary manslaughter in Jackson's death. He was sentenced to four years in the Los Angeles county jail. Murray's lawyer said his client disagrees with the findings and the court's pretrial rulings.

Authorities found country singer Mindy McCready hiding in Arkansas earlier today with her five-year-old son Zander. The boy's grandparents have legal custody of Zander and he will be returned to their home in Florida. McCready took the child from her parents' home earlier this week. It's not clear whether she will face any charges.

Let's bring in our legal guys Avery Friedman, a civil rights attorney and law professor in Cleveland. Good to see you. And Richard Herman, a New York criminal defense attorney and law professor joining us from Las Vegas. Good to see you as well.

Avery, it's still not clear there's any charges. One would expect among those charges, if it were to happen, would be kidnapping, because McCready's parents had full custody of this child, Zander.

AVERY FRIEDMAN, CIVIL RIGHTS ATTORNEY: Yes, I think so. The judge's order that was entered this week, Fredricka, simply required the return of Zander, the 5-year-old. But the question the prosecutors now will face was the behavior was so blatant, I think she'll need 10,000 angels. She'll need help because she should face kidnapping charges. All she had to do was petition the court on the custody issue, and what does she do? She takes off and says I can't come back because I'm seven months pregnant. She just took off with her child and she's seven months pregnant. She's got a big problem and looking at felony charges coming up.

WHITFIELD: Richard, she's alleging her parents were abusive to her son and that's why she took the child. How far does she have to go to try to now prove that?

RICHARD HERMAN, CRIMINAL DEFENSE ATTORNEY: She may have an opportunity to do that, Fred. But Avery says cavalierly, she should petition the court. That whole procedure could take a year or more. She claims the kid is abused by the parents so she took the child. I don't think there will be felony charges. The judge directed her to return the child by a certain date. The child is returned by that date. She did have a physical situation. She has issues, no question about it. But to bring felony charges against her, I don't think that's right. The kid is happy, healthy, nothing happened with the child wrong. Let's get on with the process. The kid will be returned to Florida under Florida jurisdiction and we go from there.

WHITFIELD: Avery, what portion do you disagree with? You're shaking your head.

FRIEDMAN: Most of it. I don't know why Mindy McCready, who is a big a country star, gets a free pass. Richard will agree with this. Every day people who do things like this wind up in the hoosegow because they are obviously intentionally violating a court order. She needs help from a whole bunch of people, psychologists, alcohol dependency people. But I don't think she gets a free ride. How she gets a free pass is beyond me.

HERMAN: We'll see.

WHITFIELD: Former NFL star Lawrence Taylor, he's being sued now after already last year he was sentenced. He was found guilty for having sex with a teenager, Richard, and so now he's being sued by this young lady for assault and battery.

HERMAN: Well, we know he was charged with multiple felonies. They were ultimately reduced to two misdemeanors and probation because he became a rat in some other cases. This victim has aligned herself with chalk on the blackboard Gloria Allred.

WHITFIELD: I knew you'd love that part.

HERMAN: When you hear her name is it like --

(CROSSTALK)

HERMAN: You know there's a TV deal, a book deal, some kind of self- promotion here. Enough is enough with Miss Allred. She brought a case which ultimately I think is going to dismissed. It's never been brought before. How are they going to prove Lawrence Taylor induced his woman into a sex trade is beyond me. It's under a federal statute. It's the first time it's brought against the purchaser of the sex.

FRIEDMAN: That's right.

HERMAN: I think it's going out the window. Ridiculous.

WHITFIELD: That's why this is so unusual, Avery.

FRIEDMAN: Right. I represent victims in sex slavery. The law that's involved here, Fredricka, is a very important one. It involves going after the traffickers. If you look at the Congressional history, that's the focus. There's clearly nothing in the law that deals with consumer likes LT. And so I think a federal district judge will likely dismiss it.

It's troubling because her name was confidential. But by filing it, instead of filing Jane Doe she identified her name. So that's exactly right. I think it will be dismissed. Again, chalk on the blackboard might be exactly right.

WHITFIELD: You, too?

FRIEDMAN: Absolutely.

WHITFIELD: What happens when I men's the name former Illinois governor Rod Blagojevich?

FRIEDMAN: Chalk on the blackboard.

(LAUGHTER)

WHITFIELD: OK. Now we'll talk about him in terms of sentencing. That's what he is facing next week. He was found guilty of bribery and corruption last June. Richard, am I hearing a little empathy and sympathy because you used to be hard on the man?

HERMAN: You know, I was very hard on him. But at this point in time, his team is looking for 51 months in prison. The prosecution is looking for a five and one just reversed. They want 15 years to 20 years. Blagojevich, he doesn't know, he doesn't even realize how serious this is. He could easily get 15 years here, Fred, easily. And he doesn't deserve it in this case. He did not get one dime to him. He did not profit monetarily by one dime. They couldn't prove one dime went to him.

FRIEDMAN: Wow.

WHITFIELD: I have not heard this compassion, Richard, from you before, for Blagojevich. This is shocking me.

HERMAN: Five years, a lot of time. The prior governor got six years. Don't give this guy more. It's just ridiculous. Prosecutors have lost sight here that they want 15.

WHITFIELD: Real quick, Avery, 10 seconds.

FRIEDMAN: Way off. Way off. It's 15 to 20 years, he deserves it. I appreciate your compassion, Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: Not mine. I'm talking about Richard. I'm down the middle.

FRIEDMAN: He tried. All right, I understand. But it seemed like your heart was exposed on that. I actually think he's a bad guy. Just because he didn't get any money doesn't mean he doesn't have to go. And 15 to 20 is appropriate right here. Right here.

WHITFIELD: Interesting.

FRIEDMAN: On the blackboard, Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: All right, you guys are full of emotion today. I like. Emote, emote. We'll see you in a moment because we're not done. We'll see you in 20 minutes or so. We're going to talk about a Houston man suing a fertility clinic. This case is really interesting. I can't wait to see how our guys respond to this one.

So will he or won't he? Now we're talking politics outside Herman Cain's headquarters in Atlanta. Look at the crowd there. Will he continue in the race or not? Is it over? We'll find out after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: All right, quite the buzz of activity outside the headquarters, Atlanta headquarters, for candidate Herman Cain. Dozens of people have showed up there because he's expected to make an announcement momentarily. Our Shannon Travis is there.

And, Shannon, you have some news for us about this candidate and who he's been communicating with.

TRAVIS: Absolutely, Fred.

A few developments that I just learned about. Number one, I just got off the phone with Alice Stewart (ph). She is the campaign spokesman for Michele Bachmann. She tells me two things.

Number one, that Michele Bachmann and Herman Cain spoke on the phone. She didn't say exactly when this occurred, but it was definitely clear that this was recent. Number two, Alice Stewart tells me that a number of Herman Cain supporters have reached out to Bachmann's campaign to say that they would be willing to support her.

Now, obviously, we don't want to read too much into this. We do not know exactly what the decision will be that Herman Cain will announce when he comes out. Whether he'll stay in the race, whether he'll get out of the race. But if we're reading the tea leaves, as we have been doing all day about where he might go with this, this is certainly a significant development in that they share a lot of the same supporters, Tea Party supporters, social conservatives. So it's curious that a number of his supporters, excuse me, would reach out to the Bachmann campaign according to Alice Stewart.

So if we're reading the tea leaves, as we have been all day, that's another sign in one direction that Herman Cain might be pulling out. But again, we do not know that for sure -- Fred.

WHITFIELD: All right. We will have to wait for his official announcement, which should be momentarily. We're not clear exactly when in the next hour or two it might happen. We know it's just going to happen this afternoon.

All right, Shannon Travis, thanks so much. Appreciate that.

All right, from stormy politics to some stormy weather out west. Strong winds hitting southern California. The strongest in years, in fact, which have left widespread damage across the region. Take a look at the damage right here. In Los Angeles, Santa Ana winds are being blamed. And in places they have seen some winds that are as strong as hurricane strength.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And we're so busy. My crew is on a couple other jobs right now. And we get another call on this giant fir tree right on the house. The lady was really lucky. She was laying a foot and a half away from where it hit.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Wow, lots of stories of, you know, brush of luck like that. Reynolds Wolf in the weather center.

So, are these winds over or this is kind of the season of Santa Ana winds, they come and they go, they come and they go?

REYNOLDS WOLF, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Well, I mean, this is definitely the season now. The atmospheric setup for these winds to really be quite prevalent and really strong. It's going to last again today. So it's no time for people in California to really let their guard down.

You know, when it comes to wind and wind damage, think about whenever you have a tropical storm or a hurricane this hits the Gulf Coast. You have a lot of tall palm trees. Well, those trees are designed to really withstand a great deal of wind. A lot of times they'll lose the fronds, but the trunks remain in decent shape.

In parts of southern California, you've got those beautiful California oaks. They don't handle the winds quite as well when you have the winds that roar through those mountain passes. Some anywhere from 40 to 60. Some gusts may actually be stronger. You often have a lot of limb damage. Where you have the limbs that break and snap.

Well, they happen to hit some of the power lines. The power lines toppling. Well, that causes widespread power outages. And the big cleanup in going to have to be store for many people in southern California today, tomorrow and possibly the rest of the week. Although we do expect the wind to drop, the clean-up is still going to be there.

Downed trees and power lines could be a problem. Not only that, but when you have very low humidity, these strong winds that roar through the San Gabriel mountains, there is the potential, if there was, say, a fire, to spread rather quickly. So certainly a tremendous concern.

A bit farther to the east, the situation is very different. Yes, we have the wind in parts of the Rockies and southern Rockies, but the other issue is the moisture. And in the highest elevations, we have snow. Some locations up to a foot of snow falling in some spots, especially in parts of 4925 (ph), you might have whiteout conditions. So anyone traveling in that neck of the woods, please be careful out there.

Temperatures, well, to have the snow, you obviously have to have cold air. And there's a big surge of it moving down through the Rockies for much of the great west and into portions of the Great Basin. But back out east, we've got more mild conditions, 49 degrees the expected high in Washington, D.C., 62 in Atlanta, 44 in Boston, 50 in Chicago. Scattered showers. Maybe some frozen precipitation, to say the very least, in Minneapolis/St. Paul. You're going to see snow there today. And 22 in Denver. In Kansas City, 48. For the central plains, you can also expect a chance of some snow across much of Kansas, even into Oklahoma. Possibly heavier snow, Fredricka, as you get into the start of the work week for Oklahoma City.

WHITFIELD: Oh, my goodness.

WOLF: We're going to watch that very carefully.

WHITFIELD: Volatile stuff.

WOLF: Absolutely.

WHITFIELD: Thanks so much, Reynolds. Appreciate that.

All right, we're going to have another legal case ahead, which just might raise an eyebrow or two. A mother loses custody of her 200 pound eight-year-old son. Did child welfare workers overreact? Our legal guys will talk all about that. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: A Cleveland area mother has lost custody of her eight-year- old son because authorities say she wasn't doing enough to control his weight. Our legal guys are back. Avery Friedman in Cleveland, Richard Herman in Las Vegas.

All right, gentlemen, this is a very touchy topic and a very disturbing one for this family in particular.

So, Avery, the Cleveland's Children and Family Services takes away the child saying that he's 200 pounds, he's eight years old. He should be weighing, on average, about 60, 65 pounds. And this is putting his life, his health in jeopardy and they had to intervene. How common is this for child protective services to do this?

FRIEDMAN: Like never. I mean I don't know that I've ever seen a case. And I've been in courts with these child care workers, or whatever they call themselves.

Your visceral reaction is, having the government break down the door to pull out a heavy kid and pull them away from their parents, throw them into foster care is really outrageous. But when you think -- and there are over 2 million American kids that are extremely obese, Fredricka. So it's an epidemic.

But when you think more deeply, there are circumstances where the standard is either abuse or neglect. Did the mother medically neglect this child to require this, you know, removing the child to put the child into foster care in order to save his life? And we'll find out the answer to that this month when there's a hearing actually right down the street here on whether or not the child goes back. That's what's going to happen.

WHITFIELD: OK. So, Richard, the premise is, according to protective services, that this is neglect. In their view, they say, quote, you know, "the child's weight gain was so severe that we had to take custody."

HERMAN: Who are these people, these inept, subcretonic (ph) morons with skills, with no education, to unilaterally decide to remove this child from his birth mother and throw him into the foster care system, which has got its own set of problems.

Is this in the best interest of the child, Fred, Avery? This is ridiculous. This young man, he's got a sleeping problem. He's got the machine for sleep apnea. He's got an -- he's an honor student at school. He participates in activities. This is not neglect. This is a health issue. He needs to deal with it with his doctors. The mother will support that. This is just an outrageous decision. And these people should be all terminated for abuse of process.

WHITFIELD: And the mother acknowledges they did try -- the child was put on a diet. He lost 10 pounds. But then apparently started gaining the weight. The mother saying, quote, "of course I want him to lose weight. It's a lifestyle change, and they are trying to make it seem like I am not embracing that. It is very hard and I am trying."

So one has to wonder, how long will they keep the child in custody or in foster care? What kind of measures of improvement, weight loss, will have to take place before he can be returned to his home? How do we know the answer to that?

FRIEDMAN: We'll know this month.

WHITFIELD: OK.

FRIEDMAN: No, we'll know this month, Fredricka. We'll know.

WHITFIELD: Yes. OK.

FRIEDMAN: The hearing's this month. So, we'll see.

WHITFIELD: OK. Let's move to another case. This in Houston. This one is a really tough one in which to talk about. So, be careful, gentlemen. Now we have a case of a man in Houston --

HERMAN: Tough for you, Fred.

FRIEDMAN: Tell him.

WHITFIELD: Yes.

FRIEDMAN: Tell him.

WHITFIELD: OK. So this is gentleman says, wait a minute, he unwillingly impregnated his ex-girlfriend. He says his sperm was taken without his consent. Taken to a fertility clinic. The next thing you know, his girlfriend is pregnant, has a child and he now says all of this was done without his consent.

So, Richard, where do we begin on this one? No signature. Doesn't a fertility clinic need to whether -- you know, see this person?

FRIEDMAN: Oh, come on.

WHITFIELD: Aren't there exams that take place? They just accept someone's sperm?

FRIEDMAN: This is easy.

WHITFIELD: Huh?

HERMAN: He was listed as the patient on the records there. So she obviously went in there, forged his name, put the paperwork in.

FRIEDMAN: Right.

WHITFIELD: People are giggling here in the studio. Uh-huh.

HERMAN: That's Avery. Avery's giggling. I mean this is a --

FRIEDMAN: No, look, very simple. HERMAN: Look at it --

FRIEDMAN: Very simple.

WHITFIELD: What? What's simple about this, Avery? It sounds complicated.

FRIEDMAN: I mean I think what's simple is she took a load of it over there out of a condom.

HERMAN: A load.

FRIEDMAN: She said, you know, it was OK, that they were married. I think -- I think the clinic's going to be paying child support for the next 18 years. And that's -- because the guy couldn't figure out -- he said the kids look just like me. He couldn't figure it out. And then finally this whole thing comes out by accident.

HERMAN: Hey, Fred.

FREIDMAN: And he's going, let's go after the clinic.

WHITFIELD: Oh, my gosh.

FRIEDMAN: And I think he's right.

WHITFIELD: Huh.

HERMAN: No.

FRIEDMAN: I think that's right.

WHITFIELD: Well, it would seem that the clinic --

HERMAN: We have some issues here --

WHITFIELD: It would just seem like there has to be some consent that he would have to comply --

FRIEDMAN: That's right.

WHITFIELD: I mean he would have to show up at some point in person so they can see that this is the person, he's healthy and --

HERMAN: She forged his name.

WHITFIELD: Doesn't it seem?

HERMAN: Fred, she forged his signature. She forged his signature on all the papers.

(CROSS TALK)

FRIEDMAN: (INAUDIBLE) over there. She's walking in there with condoms.

WHITFIELD: So a fertility clinic, you can just go -- you can just get some sperm and just go to a fertility clinic and say, I want to use this? It's that easy?

HERMAN: Apparently here it is, actually.

FRIEDMAN: In Texas, I guess.

(CROSS TALK)

WHITFIELD: Not that this is a how-to segment. Oh, goodness.

FRIEDMAN: You know what, you can't make this stuff up, Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: No, you can't.

FRIEDMAN: These cases are --

WHITFIELD: It's a bizarre case.

FRIEDMAN: The truth is stranger than fiction.

WHITFIELD: We all are in agreement on that one.

All right, Avery --

HERMAN: Absolutely.

WHITFIELD: Richard, thank you so much. Y'all have a great weekend.

HERMAN: We'll see you soon.

FRIEDMAN: You as well, Fred.

WHITFIELD: All right. See you soon.

FRIEDMAN: Take care. All the best.

WHITFIELD: OK. So America has been on this flash mob bandwagon for quite a while now, but Mumbai, India. Well, it has just experienced its very first flash mob and it all went viral, right after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: All right, Reynolds with me now. So it's been three years since the terrorist attacks in Mumbai.

WOLF: Uh-huh.

WHITFIELD: Two hundred people killed.

WOLF: Yes.

WHITFIELD: Pretty tragic. But instead, folks in Mumbai, India, decided, you know what, we are going to mark this occasion in a happy, fun, kind of orchestrated way with a flash mob.

WOLF: OK.

WHITFIELD: Very different.

WOLF: Sure.

WHITFIELD: And this is a first for that country as well. And there you go. You know the Bollywood theme (ph). You've seen those with the timed (ph) choreographed dancing. It's kind of like a spin off that.

WOLF: That's kind of -- you know, that's a cool thing.

WHITFIELD: It is.

WOLF: You know, it's (INAUDIBLE) one person dance. But to get, what, 200 -- you said 200 people (INAUDIBLE)?

WHITFIELD: Yes.

WOLF: That's -- to match step for step. That is not an easy task.

WHITFIELD: Nope. Not at all. But they're having a good time there and it's fairly coordinated. This taking place at a train station there in Mumbai. So what were rehearsals like in order to make this happen?

WOLF: They had to be long and tough, no question about it.

WHITFIELD: I know. Very exciting. OK, 1 million views on YouTube. This is how exciting this has been for people. It's really gone viral. Lots of fun.

WOLF: A beautiful thing. Got to love it.

WHITFIELD: I know. I know. And you're going to be grooving just like that in front of the television set with football today, right?

WOLF: Who says I haven't already? (INAUDIBLE).

WHITFIELD: OK. That's right.

WOLF: I mean I continue (ph) to do that now, but, you know.

WHITFIELD: I could see you grooving (ph) just like that.

WOLF: Oh, yes.

WHITFIELD: All right, Reynolds, thanks so much.

Also we're keeping a close watch on what's taking place in Atlanta. Live pictures right here outside Herman Cain headquarters. When he hits the microphone there, is he going to say that his campaign is full steam ahead or is it going to stop in its track. We'll be listening and watching right after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Each week we profile someone who has accomplished something remarkable despite having to overcome a major obstacle. In today's "Human Factor," Dr. Sanjay Gupta introduces us to Don Wright who refuses to let cancer get in the way of his passion for running marathons.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Don Wright's career spanned engineering, being a company vice president, and the law. And at age 62, he discovered a new passion, marathons. Eight years ago, just days after running his first 26-mile race, though, he got some devastating news.

DON WRIGHT, MARATHON RUNNER: I had gone to the doctor a couple of times for pain in my back. It was multiple myeloma.

GUPTA: This is a cancer of the blood where the white blood cells invade the bone marrow causing pain, usually in the back or the ribs. And patients are rarely cured. But Wright refused to let that slow him down, even qualifying for the Boston Marathon.

WRIGHT: I got this devastating diagnosis and we just -- my family and I, we just kept on going. You know, there wasn't any reason to stop and be sorry, you know. We kept running marathons.

GUPTA: Incredibly now, in the last eight years, Wright, who is now 70, has run 60 marathons in 41 states. And his wife and daughter have been by his side for most of them. His goal is to run a marathon in every state.

WRIGHT: Finally after Boston, we started to pick-off states, never imagining -- well, imaging, yes, but never expecting to be able to finish all 50. Now I'm really hoping for it.

GUPTA: Never expected that he could fulfill his dream, because the median survival for his cancer is just five years. He's had a number of treatments that failed. But for the last three years, Wright's taken an experimental drug. It's just one pill at night, and it's kept the cancer at bay.

WRIGHT: And it doesn't cure the cancer, but it keeps it stable, so it's not hurting me. And I can still run. And I can still enjoy life. And I'm riding that for all it's worth.

GUPTA: He has advice to others facing what seemed like insurmountable odds. Take charge of your own destiny and never give up hope.

Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN reporting.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: A scary find in the waters off a German city. A huge two- ton bomb dating back to World War II. Now the race is on to make sure it doesn't explode.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Checking other major news from around the world. Tough words and a push for Mid East peace talks from Defense Secretary Leon Panetta. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LEON PANETTA, DEFENSE SECRETARY: The problem right now is we can't get them to the damn table to at least sit down and begin to discuss their differences. You know, we all know what the pieces are here to a potential agreement. They've been talked about. They've been worked through. We understand the concerns. I understand the concerns of Israel. I understand the concerns of the Palestinians. If they sit at a table and work through those concerns, and the United States can be of assistance in that process --

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Panetta said the push for peace is also on hold because Israel is becoming more isolated in the region.

And 45,000 people in western Germany are on alert after a two-ton bomb was discovered in the Rhine River. Half of them are being told to evacuate. The World War II explosive will be diffused tomorrow.

And I'll be back later on in the afternoon, in the 2:00 Eastern Hour. We'll show you how you can shop this season and give to a charity at the same time. And, right now, we're also getting ready to go to Candy Crowley for a special political hour on the Herman Cain announcement.

Meantime, "YOUR MONEY" will return in the 3:00 Eastern Hour.