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T.D. Jakes Talks the Economy; Sex Scandals; The War on Christmas; Answering Financial Questions; Ex-AAU Chief Accused of Molesting Boys; Critics: Romney's Bet Backfires
Aired December 11, 2011 - 18:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: Hello, everyone. I'm Don Lemon. Thank you so much for joining us.
We're going to begin tonight with new details in the child sex abuse allegations against the former head of the Amateur Athletic Union. Robert "Bobby" Dodd was dismissed from his post about a month ago. That's according to a P.R. firm hired by the AAU firm hired to handle this crisis.
The sports organization took the action after receiving unanimous emails and phone messages alleging inappropriate behavior by Dodd back in the 1970s and 1980s.
Dodd denied the allegations when confronted but the AAU saw fit to tell Dodd to leave his post and not return.
CNN's George Howell in Memphis for us where these incidents allegedly occurred.
George, good evening to you.
The AAU must have found something to force Dodd out. Do we know what that was?
GEORGE HOWELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Don, at this point that does seem to be the case, Don. In fact, we are learning some new details as we examine the timeline of events. How long did this group know about these allegations before making the call to contact police?
Now, what we do know is that two men spoke publicly to ESPN's "Outside the Lines" to share their story about the alleged sexual abuse that happened back in the 1980s when the men were teenagers.
What we learned today new confirmed through the AAU is that a third person may have also contacted that group with similar complaints. But it all goes back to the timeline. On November 7th and 8th, this group apparently received anonymous e-mails by a source only identified as "shrimp breath" and also anonymous phone calls.
Again, it took a little over a month before the group decided to contact police on December 8th. So, we asked the group's hired spokesperson, Ron Sachs, exactly why it took so long. Listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) RON SACHS, MEDIA REPRESENTATIVE, AAU: There was no specificity about an individual that they could contact -- no name, no phone number, no hard address. Neither was there an offer in those e-mails or phone messages to be contacted. They did what they thought was responsible. In retrospect, anybody could harm (ph) quarterback and second guess it. Perhaps, if they knew more, they would have called the police sooner.
They are very comfortable that they called the police when they believed they had adequate information to verify a need for a police investigation.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOWELL: And, again, Sachs makes the point that this group decided to remove Dodd from his post just days after getting these allegations. Also, they hired a P.R. firm to look at all of the information and then make the decision whether to contact police.
But, again, Dodd no longer the president of the AAU. They brought in a new interim president and say that they have not had any contact with him so far -- Don.
LEMON: And we have been reporting that Dodd was having cancer treatment. Did the AAU let Dodd go before or after they found out that he had cancer?
HOWELL: Well, there was some confusion, questions about that. And what we've learned, according to Sachs, is that the board learned about the cancer diagnosis after, after they made the call to remove him from his post. Again, they say that Dodd informed them and we may -- we learned from him that he may have already had surgery. That's what we learned from them just recently -- Don.
LEMON: Do we know where he is now, George?
HOWELL: That's a good question. You know, we've knocked on several doors here in Memphis. We've also checked in Orlando, at a home that Dodd lived at or lives at. At this point it's still unclear exactly where he is.
But again an active investigation right here in Memphis. And we should learn more from Memphis police. We expect to hear from them tomorrow about where they are in this investigation -- Don.
LEMON: George Howell, appreciate your reporting. Thank you very much.
The allegations against Dodd were reportedly prompted by the sex abuse allegations at Penn State and Syracuse. Former Penn State assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky will have a preliminary hearing on Tuesday. There, he will be confronted by accusers with harrowing stories of rape and molestation.
Sandusky was free from jail on bail. But is confined to his home and must wear an electronic monitor. Long-time Penn State coach Joe Paterno lost his job because of the Sandusky scandal. Now, we're learning Paterno is back in the hospital with a fractured pelvis. He apparently fell in his home last night. Paterno is also undergoing chemotherapy for lung cancer.
In Los Angeles today, we're learning a little bit more about Friday's shooting rampage in downtown Hollywood.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
(GUNFIRE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh, my God. Are you all right?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: This is Sunset and Vine. It's one of the most well-known intersections in the world.
Police shot and killed the gunman soon after this video was taken. He's identified as a 26-year-old. His name is Tyler Brehm. "The L.A. Times" reports that Brehm's ex-girlfriend said they had recently broken up after four years of dating. She said he recently started taking pharmaceutical drugs and had been very stressed out.
This video was shot by Christopher Johns from his apartment. As you're about to see, John is about to distract or able, I should say, to distract the gunman which may have saved lives. We're going to play the entire video for you now, up until the moment police fatally shout Brehm.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CHRISTOPHER JOHNS: There's a madman in the street.
(GUNFIRE)
JOHNS: Oh, my God. Are you all right?
There's a man mad that just shot people. He's shooting people at will. He's shooting people.
(GUNFIRE)
JOHNS: He's shooting people at will. There's a madman. There's a madman.
(GUNFIRE)
JOHNS: Madman, hey you (EXPLETIVE DELETED) mad man. (EXPLETIVE DELETED) shoot me. Come on. Hey, come on up here? Come on up here, buddy. Come here! Stop being a (EXPLETIVE DELETED). Come on up. Let's do some (EXPLETIVE DELETED).
Come on. I love you. I love you. I love you.
Shoot at me. I love you. I love you. I love you, man.
Kill me. I want to die. Please kill me.
I was just going to (EXPLETIVE DELETED) and I thought about you. I thought about you, I thought about a man shooting and you came. You came from God. You came from God.
I didn't have any, man. I'm so sorry.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Call an ambulance.
JOHNS: I'm so sorry, man. I thought of you and you came and you shot people. I thought of you just now.
Take him out. Take him out. Take him out. Take him out.
(GUNFIRE)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: Wow. Remember the guy you heard yelling at the gunman? After the break, we'll hear from him as he explains why he did what he did.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: Yelling at a deranged gunman may seem like a foolish thing to do. I asked Christopher Johns why he did it.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JOHNS: People down at point-blank range of the shooter were going to get shot. You know, they really -- they were kind of helpless to avoid being killed. You know, me, I'm four stories up. If I could take any of his attention and divert it towards me, any gunshots that he would shoot at me, I would have an opportunity to get out of the way.
So I thought -- you know, I just made a calculation and I thought it was a good one that any attention I could take away from the people in the street, you know, put it on me, I could probably save my own life and save other people's in the process.
LEMON: It's unbelievable that nobody died in this, Chris, when you know, there were people who were injured. He was shooting point-blank at cars and he was holding the gun.
Explain to the viewers how he was holding the gun, sort of hiding it until the cars got right up on him.
JOHNS: Yes, he was holding the gun kind of methodically and mechanically, kind of raising around, looking for kind, it looked like anything that was moving, you know. You could see the red car goes by, pop, he shoots it. I'm screaming out. Anything I can, you know? I told him that he was an angel, sent from God to kill me. I said that was what his mission was. I was -- I would stop at nothing to try to kind of get his attention and get it towards me. I mean, luckily nobody died tonight. I don't know if I could have done anything more but I wasn't at any moment afraid of somehow being shot or killed or wounded. I was worried about the people on the street and I had a much better opportunity to avoid death from my vantage point.
LEMON: He actually did engage you in conversation, even asking you for ammunition. Did he ask you for another gun? No, he wanted you to call an ambulance and he's asking you for more ammo.
JOHNS: Yes. He asked -- because I told him to kill me. And I said, please, kill me right now, I'm prepared to die, because I really -- I thought if I could engage him and at the same time make him feel like I wanted to die, it would kind of take the power away from him. Somebody in that situation, they gain their power over people by -- you know, they have a gun and they can take your life at any moment.
LEMON: He never told you why he was doing it, right?
JOHNS: No, no. We didn't get really deep. I was just saying crazy things and I wanted his attention and he didn't shoot any rounds at me.
LEMON: Well, Chris --
JOHNS: Some of the people in the building are mad. Hey, why are you trying to get us shot. I said, well, if we were near the windows looking, we'd have an opportunity to -- you know, if he's turning our way and pointing the gun at us, to get out of the way.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON: When I spoke with an LAPD sergeant, she said that Johns did do the right thing because he wasn't really in harm's way and he probably did save some lives.
It's one of those things that makes you ask, what was he thinking? During last night's GOP presidential debate, Mitt Romney tried to make a $10,000 bet with Rick Perry. What was that all about? We'll break it down with our political experts. That's next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: One down, 2,300 more to go. I'm just joking. I'm talking about the debate. Just one more debate to go before the January 3rd Iowa caucuses. We've had a dozen debates so far -- a dozen.
And last night in Iowa, the apparent frontrunners, Newt Gingrich and Mitt Romney, they went at it.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
NEWT GINGRICH (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Let's be candid. The only reason you didn't become president is because you lost to Teddy Roosevelt. MITT ROMNEY (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Now wait a second. Wait a second.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: All right. That was pretty brutal. There was more where that came from.
Let's talk about the debate and the final sprint of the primary season with two of our favorites, I guess.
All right. Analyst and radio host Lenny McAllister is in Chicago, and Democratic strategist and CNN contributor Maria Cardona is in Washington for us.
We're going to start with Maria.
That was a good line from Newt Gingrich. How do you feel that he did overall?
MARIA CARDONA, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: I think he did quite well. The interesting thing here, Don, is that Romney actually needed for this debate to be a game changer because his strategy of laying low and of going into this process as the front-runner and then not wanting to rock the boat at all, that whole process has been a game changer for him and the exact opposite direction that he wants it to be. So this debate for him need to be a game changer and it wasn't and the problem is, that momentum is now in Newt Gingrich's side and he is now the front-runner.
Mitt Romney did absolutely nothing at all to change that. And, in fact, I think he hurt himself with some of the comments that he made last night.
LEMON: Well, Lenny, let's follow up on that. Newt had to fend off some tough questions, including one about his personal life. How do you think he did?
LENNY MCALLISTER, REPUBLICAN STRATEGIST: He -- they handled it very well. I think everybody tried to come after newt. I think he handled it well. He basically said, listen, I'm contrite. I went to God about this.
Even the comments about the Palestinians, he took it from a perspective of -- listen, this is where I was coming from as a historian. I was correct. From that perspective, I was correct.
It's something that I have mentioned previously. You can speak from a historical perspective and not necessarily act that way from a geopolitical perspective. I think he did a good job of explaining that and not rocking the boat. He came out of that, this whole situation yesterday as being the clear front-runner and don't be surprised if the lead in New Hampshire starts to shrink even for Romney.
LEMON: So people are talking about when Romney and Rick Perry argued over Romney's views on health care reform and challenged Perry to put his money where his mouth is. Watch this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GOV. RICK PERRY (R-TX), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: You were for individual mandates, my friends.
ROMNEY: You know what? You've raised that before, Rick, and --
PERRY: It was true then.
ROMNEY: No.
PERRY: And it's true now.
ROMNEY: Rick, I'll tell you what, 10,000 bucks, $10,000 bet.
PERRY: I'm not in the betting business.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: Wow, Maria, $10,000. The first thing I would say is I don't have that kind of money just to bet. But maybe you do.
But what do you think? What was Romney thinking with that?
CARDONA: That would have been the exact perfect comeback from Rick Perry because it would have shown -- and I think even the comment itself shows that Mitt Romney is so incredibly out of touch with what reality is for most Americans, for middle class American families, for working American families.
And, frankly, you know, Twitter last night exploded on this and the #whatcan10kbuy was trending around the world, Don, because I think people realized, oh, my God, this guy has absolutely no idea how we live our lives on a day-to-day basis.
LEMON: Yes.
CARDONA: Ten thousand dollars can buy groceries for a family for a year. Ten thousand dollars is more than what you pay for a public university in a year. So, I think that really hurt him.
LEMON: Unless you have like 19, 20 kids like the Duggars, yes, you can buy groceries for a family for a year.
CARDONA: Exactly. For the average family.
LEMON: Lenny, have you ever bet anyone $10,000?
MCALLISTER: No, I've never bet anybody $10,000, but I bet you the Obama administration just loved that comment for Romney. There's a reason they would like Mitt Romney to be the nominee because he makes these types of mistakes. They know he's not relatable. They know that he squishes. They know that the Republican base is not in love with him. They do not want to face Newt Gingrich. So, when you see these types of gaffes by Romney, it just highlights why the Democrats want him to win the nomination. If he wins the nomination, President Obama is going to easily get a second term.
LEMON: Yes. That was --
CARDONA: As a Democrat, I would say we prefer Newt Gingrich. Look at the polls right now. Obama cleans the floor with him. So bring it on.
MCALLISTER: It's starting to change, Maria.
CARDONA: Bring it on, baby.
LEMON: "I bet you" line, that was pretty good. But I bet you the Obama administration -- you were thinking about that one, I'm sure.
Hey, let's move on now and talk about Donald Trump. Officially still going to host a Republican debate, at least for now, but it's on life support. Just two candidates plan to show up. Check out this Saturday night live skit on it.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Why do you think so many of the GOP has decided against attending?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, it's a question of cowardice versus courage. Newt Gingrich isn't afraid to come. He's got guts. Rick Santorum has even more guts because let's face it, the guy's a real loser.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hey!
UNIDNTIFIED MALE: Excuse me. He's a lightweight yet he still has the courage to come. Mitt Romney, Rick Perry, they should be ashamed of themselves.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: All right. I need you guys to be concise on this. First, Maria, what do you think? Is a Trump debate a good -- it's a funny skit. Is the Trump debate a good idea?
CARDONA: No, and I think it's great for all the Republican candidates who have refused to go. It's a complete sideshow. It is a bad reality show. That's exactly what Trump likes it to be. Everything that Trump does is about Donald Trump, has absolutely nothing to do with the presidential process and no one should pretend what it does. So, I think that Newt and Santorum are making a big mistake.
LEMN: What did they say -- life often imitates art, or art imitates life. What do you think here? Would a Trump debate be much like what you saw in "SNL," Lenny? Would it accomplish anything?
MCALLISTER: I don't know how much it would accomplish. It's similar to going after the Sarah Palin endorsement at this point of time. It attracts a lot of attention, a lot of buzz, but does it have real political meat? At this point in time, no.
LEMON: All right. Thank you, Lenny. Thank you, Maria. I appreciate both of you.
CARDONA: Thank you, Don.
MCALLISTER: I love you, mom.
LEMON: All right.
We've got developing news that we want to tell you about. You know they say home sweet home but maybe not so much. We are taking live pictures now from Panama City, Panama.
It's been 22 years since Manuel Noriega -- remember him -- has seen his native home of Panama. Not since he was accused of killing his political opponent and then he was convicted in absentia. Now, he's coming home to face that. He's been in France.
Next, find out why his trip back home may not be such a good one.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: Let's get you updated on your top stories now.
A sigh of relief from passengers on this United Airlines flight. The Denver to Los Angeles flight was forced to make an emergency landing in Grand Junction, Colorado, today, after one of its two engines failed. None of the 125 passengers and crew were hurt.
Syria's opposition warns a blood bath could be imminent in the city of Homs. Security forces surrounded the city and the government is demanding that residents hand in any weapons and turn in defectors from the military by Monday night. If they don't, the government warns of an all-out assault.
Still, the threats did nothing to stop Syrians from protesting today. An opposition group says 23 people were killed in clashes with security forces.
An earthquake is being blamed for two deaths in southern Mexico. Look at that video. People as far away as Mexico City, 100 miles from the epicenter, felt the 6.7 magnitude quake on Saturday. State media is reporting as many as 50 homes were damaged. There are no reports of deaths in the capital but several areas were left without power.
This is a developing news that we're following here on CNN. It is out of Panama City, Panama. Former Panamanian dictator Manuel Noriega has just arrived back in his homeland nearly 22 years after U.S. forces invaded Panama and removed from office. You're looking at the airplane now where he came over from France. And there were also shots of the prison where he is going to be staying until he goes on trial.
He was extradited from France after being convicted in absentia for the killing of a political opponent in Panama in the 1980s. He'll go right to prison but he could eventually be placed under house arrest because of his age. He's 77 years old. Noriega has spent the last 22 years in prisons for drug and money laundering. We'll keep an eye on that for you.
We're 90 minutes away from "CNN Heroes: An All Tribute". The show is hosted by our very own Anderson Cooper will honor those who have given so much of themselves to help others. Coming up, a behind-the-scenes look at how it all comes together.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: All right. Let's go live and show pictures, live pictures of the Shrine Auditorium. Buzzing right now. What a beautiful stage. Look at that. We're about 90 minutes away from honoring CNN's top-10 heroes and then narrowing it down to just one.
2009 finalist, Doc Henley, has your backstage pass to "CNN Heroes, An All-Star Tribute."
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DOC HENLEY, 2009 "CNN HEROES" FINALIST (on camera): It's been three years since I was actually up on that stage. I never really had a chance to see all what goes on behind the scenes.
I'm Doc Henley, and this is your backstage pass to "CNN Heroes, an All-Star Tribute."
(on camera): We're backstage at the historic Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles, California. This place is massive. For a show like "CNN Heroes," there are hundreds and hundreds of people that pool together months and months worth to make a two-hour show happen. In this room right here, we have media, P.R. --
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And here we go. We'll rehearse it again.
HENLEY: -- production going on behind the scenes. This is where all of the magic happens.
This is the first time "CNN Heroes" has put on a live show. How does that make it different?
HAMISH HAMILTON, DIRECTOR: You're microseconds away from what could be a complete and utter disaster so you've got to get it and get it the first time around.
ANDERSON COOPER, HOST, CNN HEROES, AN ALL-STAR TRIBUTE: You never know what's going to happen. Nothing goes as planned. And that's what makes it fun and that's what makes it interesting and exciting.
(CROSSTALK)
HENLEY: All of the honorees, they have he become so tight-knit.
(CROSSTALK)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: These guys' stop talking out there.
HENLEY: These guys' lives are about to change.
What was it like when you were looking at all of the celebrity faces that will be here?
TARYN DAVIS, TOP-10 CNN HERO: I love this show. You're really pretty. I know who you are, but I can't wait to meet you.
HENLEY: The post that you're presenting about, has it impacted you in any way?
CHRIS COLFER, CELEBRITY PRESENTER: Well, it made me cry.
HENLEY (voice-over): They are out doing this work for what they believe in and then they get here.
COOPER: The 2011 "CNN Hero" of the year --
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON: All right. That airs tonight. Make sure you tune in.
Southern California, other parts of the southwest bracing for a cold, wet start to the work week.
Meteorologist Jacqui Jeras is here to explain.
Jacqui, we've seen the Shrine Auditorium.
JACQUI JERAS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Yes.
LEMON: It said cold and wet out west?
JERAS: Well, it's coming.
(LAUGHTER)
The timing is going to be perfect because it's going to be beautiful for tonight.
(WEATHER REPORT)
LEMON: Do you have any good news, Jacqui? Any good weather news?
JERAS: It's gorgeous here. The sun is shining.
(LAUGHTER)
It's going to be 60 degrees.
LEMON: You looked at me like, what's wrong with you? Don't yell at me.
JERAS: We only talk weather where it's bad, Don. If I don't mention your city it's because your weather is awesome.
(LAUGHTER)
You've got to love it.
LEMON: It does say sunny up there.
(CROSSTALK)
JERAS: Oh, yes.
LEMON: Yes.
Thank you. Appreciate it, Jacqui.
He is the force behind best selling books, movies, and a church with 30,000 members. After the break, Bishop T.D. Jakes talks about the economy, sex scandals and what some call the war on Christmas.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: Bishop T.D. Jakes is one of the best known bishops. And his media empire includes the latest, "The Relationship Bible, Life Lessons on Relationships from the Inspired World of God."
I got a chance to talk to Bishop Jakes and I started by asking him about what seems like the annual debate over the so-called war on Christmas.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BISHOP T.D. JAKES, DIRECTOR, MEDIA EMPIRE & AUTHOR, THE RELATIONSHIP BIBLE, LIFE LESSONS: I think that people, first of all, are trying to be so politically correct that we're afraid to say anything to each other. And I think it's really unfortunate. And there are certainly some groups of people who are anti-any expression of Christianity and have been and probably always will be. And though that's disappointing, that's what makes America great. We have all of the diversity.
LEMON: Bishop, let's talk about all of the child sex abuse scandals that we've been hearing so much about recently, Penn State, Syracuse and on and on. There was another one today. What is going on in our society, in our country when you hear about cover-ups and things like this?
JAKES: You know something, Don, this has been going on for years and years and years. And just with cultural networking and 24-hour media cycles that we have today, it has come to the surface in a way that it has not done historically. But with one in six boys molested in this country before the age of 18 and one in four girls, this is not a new story. And these cases with Penn State and Syracuse and elsewhere highlight it, are important, but my concern, Don, is most of the abuse we see happening in this country is no highlighted or with big celebrities or with important or prestige people. It's down in the trenches with more nearly 50 percent of boys are being molested in homes by people that they know. I don't want to demonize these people as the epitome of evil at the expense of overlooking people in our communities and our neighbors and even our relatives who have access to our children. It's time for parents to really take a sharp wake-up call and build the kind of communication mechanisms with their children so that we can really check to make sure that this is not happening, not only at Penn State, where we really need to stamp it out, but also in our own homes and communities.
LEMON: I have to ask you this, Bishop. I have to ask you about Bishop Eddie Long. You're friends with him. He's a fellow pastor. He leads a mega-church here in Atlanta. He settled several misconduct cases filed against him. His wife just filed for divorce. Your thoughts on that? First, the misconduct allegations.
JAKES: Well, I think if there was actually misconduct. The young men involved -- and they are older men. And I think it's a little different from a 10-year-old who can't speak for himself. When you get these older boys who can make decisions, old enough to drive a car, to go to war, if they're is a deliberate action done here, we can't take a cash settlement when we really want justice done, because it leaves the public wondering what really happened. Because of the judicial system that we have today, none of us are -- our curiosities are not resolved. Because the only people who really know what happened between the boys and the bishop are the boys and the bishop. We will perhaps never know at this point.
But we can use it as a talking point to begin to deal with how we interact with leadership, how we interact with people, and what our expectations are of people. And in that way, I think that will dwell.
The most recent information that I have read is that Bishop Long has taken a sabbatical with his wife to rebuild his marriage and strengthen his relationship. I read, due to the pressure of all of the media --
(CROSSTALK)
LEMON: Yes, he's taking -- he said last Sunday in church he was going to take off time to deal with issues with his family. But his wife did file for divorce and said that she stands behind that. She said that it's irreconcilable differences, so that it's -- there's no chance of getting back together.
JAKES: Well, whenever I counsel any couple, Don, I try to see them resolve things because, at the end of the day, above our jobs and our careers, I think family is really important. And if you have --
(CROSSTALK)
LEMON: Do you know how he is doing?
JAKES: I do not know. I do know. I did not know that he had decided to take a leave of absence until I read it. But I'm hoping that they are using it as a time to cut off the phone, the TV, and really rebuild their relationship. For the people who are high profile, like yourself, like me, him, and others, it's very difficult to maintain a private life when you're living in a fish bowl all the time. Sometimes you have to cut out all the lights and put your priorities back into alignment. And my prayer is that the Longs will use this opportunity to get it done.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON: My thanks again to Bishop T.D. Jakes. His latest book is called "The Relationship Bible."
It's a tough economy this holiday season. You've been sending us tweets and Facebook questions how to boost your finances. Ahead, our financial expert, Nicole Lapin, will answer some of your questions.
Not so fast, Nicole. We have other news before you.
First, CNN's Dr. Sanjay Gupta has launched a new program called "The Next List." Each week, it profiles innovators from all walks of life and all fields of endeavor. This week, he talks with app developer, Scott Snibble.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
(MUSIC)
SCOTT SNIBBLE, APP DEVELOPER: So an app album is a brand new thing. The idea is to create a complete fully interactive experience that involved visuals, music and inner activity.
(MUSIC)
SNIBBLE: You used to take an album home and you'd have to play it on a record player. I think there's something almost, like, reverential, almost like spiritual, the way that we would bond with an album. So it app have the potential to bring that back. The way it does it is by demanding all of your senses at once.
(MUSIC)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: Make sure you tune in Sundays to watch "The Next List" or set you're your DVR to 2:00 p.m. eastern
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: It's that time again. Time to get your financial questions answered in plain English, your financial house in order. You've been sending us your tweets and Facebook questions.
And financial expert, Nicole Lapin, is ready to answer them.
She is champing at the bit.
NICOLE LAPIN, FINANCIAL EXPERT: Hi, Don. LEMON: She joins us now from New York.
(CROSSTALK)
LEMON: So let's get right to it, Nicole.
OK, Rhiner Saad (ph) asks, "Are dollars and treasuries, Nicole, the only safe havens besides gold"? Go.
LAPIN: Rhiner (ph), in a traditional sense, that's a great question -- and, yes. But lately, the wackiness of world markets has made gold, treasuries and the U.S. dollar pretty precarious.
Let's go through that. Gold right now is ridiculously expensive. and you have to add the sovereign debt concerns on top of that. You're have U.S. Treasuries and you're basically diddly squat for that. Good luck with that any way. You also have the risk of downgrading U.S. debt, which is also eating into the U.S. dollar, of course, and that's not as strong as you would like. So you say, oh, my god, where am I going to put my money for a safe haven? A lot of people are saying, it's looks to muni bonds. High quality muni bonds will get you about 2.5 percent tax free, and that's better than the zippo that you're going to get in the money markets or the banks anyway.
I said it before and I will say it again, Don, investment that include sweat equity, sweat, like the real stuff that comes off your brow and your face and whatever, are the best types of investments. So investment your money in a friend's company or, better yet, your own company. The best investments, the best safe havens are investments you make in yourself. I know that sounds cheesy --
(CROSSTALK)
LAPIN: -- but it is true.
LEMON: As the Howells said on "Gilligan's Island," perspiration -- listen, it doesn't get any better than diddly squat and zippo, or whatever you said so.
(CROSSTALK)
Next question. Zachary Russell tweet this, "Why hasn't China become more vocal and involved in the E.U. debt crisis" -- Nicole?
LAPIN: That is a great question. Right, China to the rescue. China is the only country with deep enough pockets to help Europe and also bring the continent together. Not only would it help Europe, it would help the rest of us and help the rest of us because we would have more certainty there. And Europe is also China's biggest export markets so it would certainly help them.
But why haven't you been hearing any from them? They have been courted like crazy by the Europeans. They've come out and said, yes, we have the largest foreign reserves, sure. But, guess what, most of the people are living on less than $1 a day so we have to get our own domestic house in order before we come to the rescue of the Europeans. So that's why they've been a little bit mum lately.
LEMON: All right. This one I think is a very serious question because Jeffrey is -- Jeffrey Marr says, "I am unemployed and maybe forced to take early retirement. I won't be 59 1/2 years old until next August. So am I not able to touch my 401K until I reach that age unless I incur a tax penalty" -- Nicole?
LAPIN: Jeffrey, that's a really good question. And, remember, you can't contribute to your 401K until you pay off that balance. Of course, if you don't repay that balance, you're going to get taxes on top of that 10 percent penalty that you're going to incur anyway. But there is an upside to this. The money that you will probably borrow from your 401K will be a lower rate than you'll get on a commercial loan.
And remember, Don, and remember, Jeffrey, that borrowing money from yourself is borrowing money from yourself. When you repay it, you repay it to yourself with interest.
LEMON: There you go.
Nicole Lapin, good answers.
LAPIN: Bring them! Send them on Twitter.
LEMON: I don't have to -- I don't have to say, you're fired!
(LAUGHTER)
LAPIN: No, you're not fired, you're hired, baby.
LEMON: If you want Nicole to answer your money questions, tweet her @Nicolelapin, and then she'll be back next week with the answers. You can tweet me as well, @donlemon, and I'll get them to Nicole.
Thanks, Nicole!
LAPIN: Thanks, Don.
LEMON: The Eurozone crisis threatens to send the world back into another global financial recession. Some are comparing Europe's potential threat of collapse to the collapse of Lehman Brothers in 2008. That's when the stock market started to tank.
With history like this, our Christine Romans asked Matt McCall, from Penn Financial Group, if you should get out of the market before it is too late.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MATT MCCALL, PENN FINANCIAL GROUP: We're not near the lows now, so we're not in that same type of predicament but there's a good chance we could have a major pullback if something doesn't happen in Europe. Even here in the United States, our political landscape right now is causing a lot of concern for investors. Our confidence has been falling. The housing market is still falling apart. So last chance to get out -- I don't know if I'm going to call it that. But you have to be nimble and start looking at your portfolio thinking -- if you're concerned and you're a little too risky, use that to start selling.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: Be sure to watch "Your Money" with Christine Romans and Ali Velshi every Saturday, 1:00 eastern, and Sunday at 3:00 p.m. eastern.
It was an interesting night for college hoops, to say the least. This is how the Xavier/Cincinnati game ended. It was almost reminiscent of the 2004 NBA basket-brawl between the Pacers and Pistons. We'll talk about it with "Sports Illustrated's" Jon Wertheim, next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: A college basketball game ends in a brawl and a feel-good winner brings home the Heisman.
Let's go behind the sports headlines with Jon Wertheim, the senior investigative reporter with "Sports Illustrated."
And here's this week's cover, featuring basketball coaching legends, Mike Krzyzewski and Pat Summitt, "S.I.'s" sportsman and sportswoman of the year.
Not a lot of sportsmanship yesterday at the Cincinnati/Xavier game. Take a look.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
(SHOUTING)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: So, sir, give us the background on this brawl. Why are they fighting? And is anyone going to be punished for this?
JON WERTHEIM, SENIOR INVESTIGATIVE REPORTER, SPORTS ILLUSTRATED: Not as much as you'd think. This was an inner-city rivalry in Cincinnati, Xavier, and the University of Cincinnati have had this rivalry. In the days prior, there had been this trash talk on the radio and on Twitter, and it continued during the game. What we saw is Xavier ended up winning the game, which became irrelevant, but what we had here was basically this sort of combustible moment. When we saw how quickly trash talk, which we think is sort of innocent and part of the game, can quickly metastasize into something ugly. So at the end of the game, this had been building for days, two players were face-to- face, and then in a matter of seconds -- if you watch the video, it's amazing how quickly happened. It was this ugly, ugly brawl.
LEMON: The whole thing got worse when a Xavier player was unapologetic after the game. But, by today, the player had a change of heart. Here's the player's comments from last night and from just a few hours ago. Listen to this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) TU HOLLOWAY, XAVIER BASKETBALL PLAYER: That's what you're going to see from Xavier and Cincinnati. And we was -- we got disrespected a little bit before the game. Guys calling us out, we're a tougher team. We're grown men over here. We've got a whole lot bunch of gangstas in our locker room, not thugs but tough guys on the court. And we went out there and zipped them up at the game. That's our motto, zip them up. And that's what we just did to them.
We're not thugs and we're not bad kids here at Xavier University. We're all going to get degrees and we're incredible young men, so I really apologize for what took place yesterday.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: OK, so we hear that. But really, Jon, how serious of an incident is this? Can it tarnish the schools, or does this just make it more interesting for the fans and just sort of riles things up more and make the game more exciting?
WERTHEIM: Sadly, both. This rivalry next year will be covered even more next year. I thought this was ugly stuff. And the punishments today -- afterwards, the coaches talked tough, this is a chance to really teach a lesson. They did teach a lesson. They did make a statement. The suspensions they gave out this afternoon ranged from one game to six, which is not a whole lot given that this is assault and battery. So it was ugly stuff.
And you know, unfortunately, this is what -- here he said he was disrespected, and it's amazing how many bad acts in sports are triggered by somebody feeling as though they haven't been given their credit. They've been disrespected. That's what happened yesterday. And you know, who knows what's going to happen going forward. But six games for cold-cocking someone is pretty minimal in my book.
LEMON: And I don't think that "disrespected" is even a word. So let's move on.
Let's talk about a positive story. We've been talking about so many negative stories when it comes to sports. Positive story in college sports. A new Heisman Trophy winner. Why is Robert Griffin III, at Baylor, such a popular guy?
WERTHEIM: If you watched the presentation last night, it spoke for itself. As you said, this has not been a great year for big-time college sports. Here we have a Heisman Trophy winner, he's on the dean's list, both his of parents are in the military, wants to go to law school. And such an endearing, outgoing guy. And even if you saw him for the first time last night, which a lot of people did, because Baylor's not a traditional big-time football program, even last night, he just sort of exuded good guyness. I know, it's a nice story. Andrew Lock, who came in second, is a good, worthy candidate as well. It was nice, especially with this backdrop of what we've had in big- time college sports recently.
LEMON: Is there something cool about his socks? Doesn't he wear like crazy socks? WERTHEIM: Yes. I think Superman got the call last night. Sometimes it's SpongeBob. No, you just listen to the guy, he comes off incredibly well, just an endearing guy, who is very serious, but has a quirky side as well. He stole the show last night.
LEMON: That's good. That's good. As we say, we hear so many bad stories, it's good to have a good, fun, quirky guy.
Listen, a surprise in baseball news. The reigning National League MVP, Ryan Braun, of the Milwaukee Brewers supposed tested positive for a high level of testosterone. The spokesman today gave a statement to CNN, and he denied a, quote, "intentional violation," intentional violation of the rules. did you notice that, Jon? How big a deal is this? What is an intentional violation?
WERTHEIM: We're all waiting to hear from Braun and not a spokesman. No, this is a very big deal. This is the first time -- this guy won the National League Most valuable Player Award a few weeks ago. This is a new-era star. This isn't one of the old guys testing positive. And you know, we'll have to see what he says, but not once has a positive test been overturned. There's never been a false positive in baseball. So Ryan Braun, looking at a 50-game suspension. On the one hand, it's good. It shows that Major League Baseball's testing really has some teeth if they get a player of this magnitude. But a player like Ryan Braun, a new player, in his 20s, not from the old steroid era, this is bad, bad news for baseball.
LEMON: Jon Wertheim, appreciate it. Good stuff, sir. Good stuff. Thank you.
WERTHEIM: Thanks, Don.
LEMON: I'm Don Lemon at this CNN world headquarters in Atlanta. Thanks for watching. "SHOWBIZ TONIGHT" is next.
