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President Obama Marks End of Iraq War; Jailed Afghan Rape Victim Freed; New Trouble for Florida A&M; Ron Paul Surging in Iowa Polls; NTSB Seeks to Ban Cellphone Use in Cars; Video of Woman Beaten in Turkish Prison Causes Outrage; Hundreds of News Specials Discovered in Southeast Asia

Aired December 14, 2011 - 14:00   ET

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

BROOKE BALDWIN, CNN ANCHOR: Hi, everyone. I'm Brooke Baldwin. Let's go. Let's get you caught up on everything making news this hour, "Rapid Fire."

Let's begin with the president. The president today welcoming troops home from Iraq in Fort Bragg, North Carolina, really marking the symbolic end of the current war.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: As your commander-in- chief, and on behalf of a grateful nation, I'm proud to finally say these two words, and I know your families agree: Welcome home. Welcome home. Welcome home.

(APPLAUSE)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: December 31st is the deadline for most U.S. troops to be out of Iraq.

Also something we're counting, 18 days here. Eighteen days until your taxes go up, and Congress is still bickering over the payroll tax cut. The House passed a deal late last night. The Senate Democrats in the White House will not sign off on it. A vote in the Senate expected tonight. We're going to take you live to Capitol Hill for the latest there coming up in just a little bit.

Newt Gingrich's campaign director in Iowa, gone. Craig Bergman stepping down over a comment he apparently made about Mormons. He repeatedly called the religion a cult. As you probably know, two of Gingrich's opponents, Jon Huntsman and Mitt Romney, are both Mormons.

And embarrassment and apologies today from the U.S. Marine Corps. They mistakenly sent Purple Heart Christmas ornaments to the families of more than 1,100 fallen Marines and soldiers. These ornaments are meant for living recipients of the medal. The Purple Heart is given to those wounded in combat, along with ornaments.

There was a letter of thanks and a document with details about a physical conditioning program. The Marine Corps says it regrets the mix-up.

In California, growing outrage and fallout over two receipts that Asian customers received at a Chick-fil-A in Irvine. The company fired the employee, it says, who typed the words -- you see it there -- "Ching" on the left and "Chong" on that right receipt instead of using the customers' real names. Chick-fil-A says the employee showed immaturity and a lack of judgment.

And if you're just listening to me, if you're away from the TV, come on back, because I want you to see this. We're going to rerack it and watch it again.

You see this truck. No one was hurt. That's why we're able to show this to you.

Watch this. A pickup truck crashes through the glass. This is a convenience store. This is from Friday in Columbia, Tennessee.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm right behind him. He drives all the way down, and I see him go across that curb and take that tree out. And at that point I'm on the phone with 911, and I see him hit the white Cadillac and drive through the store. And I'm like, oh, my God, he just drove through the store.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: Police told reporters the man driving that truck was actually aiming for a woman inside the store. Aiming for her. He has now been charged with attempted murder. Again, incredibly, no one was hurt after that crash.

They came, they picketed, and now, take a look. They are on the cover of "TIME." The magazine naming "The Protester" as this year's Person of the Year. From the Middle East to Wall Street, folks, we've seen them month after month, filling the streets, speaking out against government, against power and brutal regimes. We will reveal who else made the cut here coming up.

And monkeys being used to measure radiation levels. How can we forget the nuclear crisis at the Fukushima plant in Japan following that horrific tsunami and the earthquake there? Scientists want to see how far the radiation actually went. So they are putting little GPS collars on wild monkeys this upcoming February and hope to get results about a month later.

And this next story, you can already imagine the smoke coming out of Alec Baldwin's ears over this one. Here's the deal.

According to "The New York Times," the FAA has approved the use of iPads containing charts and maps in the cockpit of American Airline's airplanes. Even -- it's OK to use them during takeoff and landing. We all hear the flight attendants' warning. Passengers are banned from using iPads and any other electronic games, including word games, during those times. And then there's this --

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I've never seen nothing like this except on video games. I never ran a car up a pole, but not in real life.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: -- an awkward predicament for a police officer in Miami. Yes, that's a patrol car up a pole. Ran that car.

That was a guide wire of a power pole. Give him points for placement, I guess.

The car was perfectly balanced against the wires, so it amazingly didn't tip over. The officer who was not hurt says he momentarily took his eyes off the road to pick up a pen he dropped in the patrol car.

Search engine Google now fighting slavery. It's giving millions of dollars to the cause to fight human trafficking. They estimate the money will help free 12,000 people. In total, Google is giving away $40 million this holiday season.

And check this out in a minute. A 50 carat pearl once owned by Elizabeth Taylor set an auction record for a gem of its kind. Here you go.

The white pearl is the showpiece of a diamond and ruby Cartier necklace known as La Peregrina. It's internationally famous. The pear-shaped pearl has been valued to $2 million to $3 million.

We've got a lot more for you the next two hours, including this --

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BALDWIN: Tension is running high in the firestorm over this TV show about Muslims, and I've spoken with both sides.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We believe it was inappropriate.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're going to start to call for the CEO's head.

BALDWIN: We'll get reaction straight from the place where most Muslims live here in the U.S.

I'm Brooke Baldwin. The news is now.

(voice-over): Her story sparked uproar all around the world. A woman is raped by her relative, but she's behind bars for adultery.

NICK PATON WALSH, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: To her, there's only one way out. A dreadful choice.

BALDWIN: Now she's free. CNN's Nick Paton Walsh broke this story. He'll join me live.

A mom gives birth, then finds out that the baby she's been breast- feeding and bonding with isn't hers.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They brought back Henry's (ph) crib to me, but it was a different baby.

BALDWIN: Find out what happened during this nightmare hospital mix- up.

Plus, it affects all of us. The government says no one should be allowed to text or talk on the cell phone while behind the wheel. So we're asking, how the heck would police enforce this?

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: The deadline for most U.S. troops to get out of Iraq is now a mere 17 days away. So, this is obviously turning into a pretty busy month for troop returns.

There they are, just last hour in Fort Bragg, North Carolina. The president and first lady Michelle Obama were among those welcoming home our brave men and women.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

OBAMA: We knew this day would come. We've known it for some time. But, still, there is something profound about the end of a war that has lasted so long.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: We should point out this was very much so more than just the end of a welcome home. The president's speech today marking the end of the Iraq War.

I want to go to CNN's David Mattingly. He is there live for us at Fort Bragg, where the president just wrapped up his visit.

And David, I know you've been talking to multiple Iraqi war vets. Were they pleased with the president's words today? I mean, what were they hoping to hear?

DAVID MATTINGLY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, what they were hoping to hear, first and foremost, was a recognition for their sacrifices. And the president, in detail, went through all of that about the dangers they faced, about the lives that were lost, about the blood that was spilled in Iraq to make that mission come to fruition. So they were satisfied and walked away feeling that their work was duly recognized. But they also wanted to make sure that the president was going to rally the American public to stand by them in the months and years to come for the needs that they might have as a consequence of their service in Iraq.

They also got some very strong words from the president about that as well. Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

OBAMA: We know too well the heavy cost of this war. More than 1.5 million Americans have served in Iraq -- 1.5 million. Over 30,000 Americans have been wounded, and those are only the wounds that show. Nearly 4,500 Americans made the ultimate sacrifice, including 202 fallen heroes from here at Fort Bragg.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MATTINGLY: Now, Fort Bragg has had pretty much a revolving door here of deployment since this conflict began. It's the home of the 18th Airborne, the 82nd Airborne, the Special Ops. They have all been in the forefront and in the thick of things throughout the conflict in Iraq.

In fact, it was about eight years and one year ago today that soldiers from here were part of the operation that actually captured Saddam Hussein. That was a profound moment for the conflict. Well, today was also a profound moment as so many of these soldiers are now home for Christmas.

BALDWIN: Yes. I heard the president say, "Welcome home. Welcome home," four times. Huge applause. But I know, as you've been talking to some of these men and women there today at Fort Bragg, David, they have to have some concerns, some long-term concerns.

MATTINGLY: Well, long-term concerns that anyone would have. They are coming home at a time when there are budget cuts, and they know that they are not going to be in the forefront making those sacrifices on the front lines day in and day out. So they want to make sure that the public remains behind them in the years that come as they continue to deal with the problems that they might have from their service.

They are also concerned because they have so much invested in this country of Iraq, this fledgling country. They have spilled so much sweat, so much blood. So many lives have been lost there. They really want to see this country succeed. No one at this point willing to say what they think that success will look like, but they feel like they've given that country a chance, and they are eager to see it move forward.

BALDWIN: David Mattingly at Fort Bragg.

David, we appreciate you. Thank you.

Coming up, she was raped, impregnated, and forced to sit in prison, and told to marry her accused rapist. We have big, new developments in the story today. We're going to take you back to Afghanistan, live, for those details. Please do stick around for that.

Plus, I know many of you, myself included, used your cell phone this morning, perhaps on the way to work this morning. You talked on the phone, let your thumbs do the talking by sending text messages. Ahead this hour, find out how the government wants to keep you from using your cell phone in your car.

And later this hour, big developments in the Florida A&M University scandal. We have just learned that while investigators were looking into the hazing issue, they uncovered possibly something else.

Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: I am proud to sit here and tell you that there is a glimmer of hope today, a glimmer, for the future of women in Afghanistan. We have told you about the nightmare of Gulnaz. It's a story that should never have happened in a post-Taliban society.

Gulnaz, still just a teenager, who was raped by her cousin's husband, ended up getting pregnant, having a child as a result of that horrific attack. So she reported the rape. She was then sentenced to 12 years in prison for adultery. She was offered release in exchange for marrying her rapist.

And today, Gulnaz is out of jail. But -- there is a but -- she is not totally free.

I want to go to Nick Paton Walsh. He has done tremendous reporting on this. He broke her story, joins me live in Kabul once again.

Nick, first off, where is she now? Is she safe?

NICK PATON WALSH, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: I think it's fair to say she is safe. She has left prison. She is at a woman's shelter here in Kabul, at a location that is not sensible for me to disclose.

She is with women who are good at advising people in the next stage of their life after something like that. And I think she feels safe.

I think she's confused about what comes next. She is very clear that she was raped. This was not, as some people in Afghanistan have suggested recently, some form of adultery. And certainly, she's absolutely clear in her mind that if she had her complete free will in this situation, she would not marry her attacker, as many here are pressuring her to do.

But we had a long interview with her, where she made those opinions clear, also her delight at the intervention of the presidential palace here signing a pardon that led to senior officials going to her cell last night and moving her to this woman's shelter. And also, I think, some trepidation as to what comes next for her and her daughter. She's not sure how her family are going to accommodate her from now on, because there have been suggestions that they've been a little bit ashamed of what the sexual assault means for them in some traditional parts of society here, but certainly I think looking forward to a very different future than the one she had a week ago -- Brooke.

BALDWIN: So this is very fresh. This happened last night.

Nick, remind us what led to her release, because I know when I spoke with her attorney last, she said that the release was conditionless. Was it really conditionless?

WALSH: Absolutely. Absolutely.

I mean, there were suggestions, I think really from confused translations of the initial presidential press release announcing her pardon, that she may have to marry her attacker as a condition of her release. And that was seized upon by some conservative parts of society here who consider that to be the way of absolving everybody over the dishonor between families in Pashtun society, part of one of the tribes here in Afghanistan, because of an attack like this.

But the presidential decree, which we've seen, very full of technical terminology, but absolutely absent from that is the demand that she marries her rapist in order to be free. President Karzai here clearly saying she must be released unconditionally, which her lawyer, Kim Motley, suggests is a precedent now for many of the women held in jail for what has been referred to as moral crimes, which you and I would simply consider sexual assault -- Brooke.

BALDWIN: Let me ask you about that, because I spoke with Kim Motley about that as well, and that was one of the reasons why this story was so precedent-setting, is because of this presidential judicial committee, sort of Gulnaz serving as this catalyst, now they will be looking at these women. She told be that about a third of the women in this particular prison were in there for moral crimes, be it escaping a bad situation at home or some sort of rape.

Have they spoken with these women yet?

WALSH: No, I do not believe there has been an extensive investigation yet, but I can tell you that as far as we understand from the palace, this Thursday President Karzai will again meet with the judiciary committee to further address this case of Gulnaz. She's out, her case is finished. The attorney general has dropped all actions related to her supposed crime of adultery, but they will be looking at what else they can do for other women in this country.

This is a deeply divisive issue, because there are, as I say, conservative parts of society who don't necessarily come to grips with crimes like this as easily as the more liberal elements of Afghan society. And I should point out, there are many Afghans sickened by what happened to Gulnaz. But at the same time, many Afghans also who think she should marry her attacker -- Brooke.

BALDWIN: Nick Paton Walsh, thank you again for your reporting.

And again, we mentioned, just a glimmer, sliver of hope for women in that country.

Thank you.

Possible fraud and misconduct at Florida A&M University. This runs deep. We are talking about possible problems with employees and others connected to this university.

Don't miss the details two minutes away. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: Now to Florida A&M University, where a college freshman says her fellow band members beat her in this alleged hazing ritual, a beating so bad, she suffered from blood clots and a cracked femur.

Take a look. These are the mug shots.

Then, three weeks later, a different band member dies, also from suspected hazing.

Well, now, brand-new developments reveal several employees at the school could be in big, big trouble.

George Howell following this one for us. He's on the phone with me now.

And now, George, we're hearing the word "fraud," we're hearing "misconduct" being thrown out there involving the school. What's up?

GEORGE HOWELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Brooke, indeed, a complicated case. And the Florida Department of Law Enforcement promised to conduct a very thorough investigation since the death of Robert Champion. Again, that on November 19th in connection to alleged hazing incidents.

According to the FDLE, through the process of looking into all of the matters involving Mr. Champion's death, they came across a situation of financial fraud, they say, there at FAMU, saying that they are looking into the actions of several employees, misconduct by employees at the university, saying that they found financial irregularity. So, if you look at it, keeping it in perspective, we're looking at the investigation into Robert Champion's death, we are looking at this investigation into possible employee fraud, and also, as you mentioned, the other student, Bria Hunter, who was injured. Again, three people arrested in connection with that case.

So, a very complicated situation right now -- Brooke.

BALDWIN: Right. And you reported on Bria just yesterday, saying she is going to leave the university and leave her full ride -- or full scholarship -- as a result of this.

I do want to point out, we normally see you. We're not seeing you. You're on the phone because you're actually en route to a news conference about more hazing.

What can you tell us?

HOWELL: Indeed. And this is very interesting. Not directly connected, but indeed connected.

I just spoke with the PR person for DeKalb County schools here in the Atlanta area, and many students from this district go to FAMU. It's something that many students want to do. A lot of pride in that university and the band. But in this case, DeKalb County schools making the decision to suspend all band activity. Certainly an interesting case.

I'm told that that is in connection to what was discovered last summer as an inappropriate -- some sort of inappropriate band behavior. And again, that's this summer, rather.

So, band activity suspended. Four bands will be able to continue marching for Martin Luther King Day celebration, but 20 bands in this district, 20 bands that will, again, face this disciplinary action.

BALDWIN: So, perhaps this stems not just at the college, but in high school, according to some of these report's allegations.

George Howell, thank you so much. Keep us posted.

And now to this. We've all done it. You grab your cell phone, you hop on the phone while you're behind the wheel.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think it would be hard to enforce though.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Actually, I really shouldn't. I know I shouldn't. It's just out of habit, and I don't know why. And I actually have the voice system on my phone. I don't know. I still do it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: She still does it. Maybe you do, too. Well, now the federal government wants to ban all use of cell phones in cars. I'm talking texting, talking, Facebooking, everything while driving.

We've got the details for you, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: Look, this is something many of us can relate to. You see them everywhere, steering wheel in one hand, cell phone in the other. Absolutely no awareness of traffic around the driver.

According to the NTSB, the National Transportation Safety Board, at any given moment in time there are more than 13 million drivers either talking or texting behind the wheel. Obviously, that's a lot of distraction. It puts you, your loved ones, other people on the road at risk.

NTSB chairwoman Deborah Hersman calls it the new DUI.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DEBORAH HERSMAN, NTSB CHAIRWOMAN: I used to talk on my phone as well until I understood the dangers of it. And two years ago, we put a ban on all of our employees from talking or texting handheld or hands- free. And I'll tell you, when I hung up my phone, and I stopped talking on the phone while I was driving, it was like becoming sober and seeing that everyone around you was drinking.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: The NTSB says more than 3,000 traffic fatalities each and every year are caused by people using cell phones while they're driving. They say that is certainly reason enough to ban all cellphone use behind the wheel, even hands free models. So I want to bring in HLN law enforcement analyst Mike Brooks. Let's just go back to what we heard from the chair of NTSB saying this is the new DUI. Do you agree?

MIKE BROOKS, HLN LAW ENFORCEMENT ANALYST: I think it's a great analogy, because if I'm a cop and I'm driving behind you and I see you swerving, going across the yellow line, what's the first thing I'm going to think? It's a possible DUI. You pull that person over and what do they have? They had their phone in their lap and -

BALDWIN: Cellphone.

BROOKS: Exactly, because it takes away from your full time and attention from driving, what you're supposed to be doing when you're behind the wheel.

BALDWIN: I know this is something that the NTSB yesterday was saying this would be great nationwide if people were doing this. But you were a cop for many, many years.

BROOKS: Sure.

BALDWIN: How do you enforce this?

BROOKS: In the District of Columbia, for example, you can't text, you can't drive with a phone up to your ear. If I pull up next to you and I see you with that, I'm putting the red lights over and pulling you over. Now, are you going to write a ticket? It's up to the discretion of the officer.

But I tell you, if someone is involved in an accident, and the first thing I ask, it's called the new DUI, have you been drinking? Were you on the phone at the time of the accident? These are things that can play into it.

But a nationwide ban is going to be tough. You know, there are bans right now. School bus drivers -- how many stories do we see on CNN about school bus drivers, especially when there's cameras in the school bus?

BALDWIN: But think of all the kids in the school bus. Of course they shouldn't be doing anything with a cellphone.

BROOKS: But 3,000 fatalities involved in the use of cellphones.

BALDWIN: At the same time -- I posed this question and got all kinds of responses. And some people are saying, I'm perfectly responsible with my cellphone. Why should I be penalized for the other idiots on the road who are distracted and causing accidents? If it's used in the case of an emergency, it's a mobile phone for a reason. That's a lot of people's perspective.

BROOKS: Sure. Now, if you can say -- if you can prove to the law enforcement officer who pulled you over that it was an emergency, I don't have a problem with that. But to and from every single day in Atlanta, I want to roll down my window and yell "Hang up and drive" because it drives me crazy.

BALDWIN: I know.

BROOKS: And texting, that's even worse, because you can tell when people are texting. You see them driving and looking down and let go of both hands.

BALDWIN: I talked to a mother who lost her little one, we talked on TV, because she was saying please don't do this. And she said it's the equivalent of imagine driving and just close your eyes for nine seconds. That's like leaning down and texting someone. Don't do it. I guess my other question would be, how long would it take, if this could happen nationwide, how long would it take for every state to comply?

BROOKS: You're going to have to pass legislation. Some states already had legislation so they could probably get an add-on to that to that particular law. They could get it done probably within a year, if they want to, depending on how many state legislators when they meet and that kind of thing. But it could be done for over a year because you've already got 35 states ban text messaging altogether. You've got 35 right there and tack on a little bit, a piece legislation for hand held or even hands-free. Some places don't want you to use hands-free at all.

BALDWIN: That's what the NTSB was saying, not even talking or texting but even hands free.

BROOKS: It's going to be tough to enforce but it's up to the states. That's the bottom line.

BALDWIN: It's a talker.

BROOKS: It is.

BALDWIN: Mike Brooks, thank you.

BROOKS: Brooke, thank you.

BALDWIN: Coming up, a man in California is running an online sperm bank out of his own house. But what's really bizarre, he's the only donor.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRENT ARSENAULT, SPERM DISTRIBUTOR: The sperm that I donate is immediately given to the recipient. It's immediately transferred. It's fresh sperm, so it's not frozen.

(END VIDEO CLIP) BALDWIN: And you'll never believe how many children he's fathered.

(LAUGHTER)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: Under another set of circumstances, you might label this as a mom and pop operation. But this one is strictly pop, and how the guy, Trent Arsenault of Silicon Valley, California, runs a one man sperm bank, and he is believed to have fathered more than a dozen children. You can see he keeps himself physically fit, even posts his vital statistics on a Web site, including photos of children he says he fathered. Drop by his home, select the product, and you're good to go.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ARSENAULT: It's sort of like my way of helping 99 percent, those couple which are childless couples wanting to have a baby, helping them have a baby. And there's no money or financial motive behind it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: Now, this story does not prove the Food and Drug Administration. They have told him cease and desist. They have threatened to fine $100,000 and jail time. But his supporters include this customer.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We just made arrangements to meet with him when I was in my cycle and of ovulating and to pick up the donation and do the insemination at home. Everyone has a right to choose how to create their family. Not everybody can do it the same way. But this an issue of privacy.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: We are told four of Arsenault's clients are pregnant. As I speak he's running this operation since 2006. The oldest child he's fathered is four-years-old.

Coming up neck, the Iowa caucus is less than three weeks away. Is Ron Paul the x-factor there? We'll speak with Wolf Blitzer about the GOP race ahead.

Plus, this next one is tough to describe tastefully. So I will just say this. We have a doctor coming up live who is going to tell us about a certain body part that can fall off if you smoke. I'm serious. You're going to want to hear this one, and other medical secrets, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: Well, if you're thinking about plastic surgery, specifically a breast lift, and you are a smoker, you have to hear this story. Do you know that smoking can make a certain part of your body fall off? I'm not making this up. Dr. Antony Youn, A plastic surgeon in Michigan, writes about this cringe-worthy side effect in his new funny book called "In Stitches." Dr. Youn joining me live from Michigan. Doctor, I'm leaving this one wide open for you to please explain the smoker side effect. So the floor is all yours.

DR. ANTHONY YOUN, AUTHOR, "IN STITCHES": Well, I do a lot of breast surgery. And in all of my patients who have either breast reductions or breast lifts, I tell them, if you're a smoker, it can cause major healing problems. Unfortunately just telling them healing problems wasn't enough. I still had smokers who would continue to smoke before their surgery. So then I had to be really honest with them and tell them, look, it's true. Your nipples can literally turn black and fall of if you smoke. So I've written an article about this that has since then gotten a little bit of attention.

BALDWIN: A little bit. We read it and said let's book this guy to explain why. Why does this happen, doctor?

YOUN: Well, the nicotine and the carbon monoxide in the tobacco, that can actually cause constriction of blood vessels and acts as a virtual tourniquet. And that's like taking a string and tie it around your finger. You leave it on tight enough you're finger's going to turn black and fall off one day. Same thing with surgery. We deal in breast surgery with lifts and reductions, decrease the blood supply to move things back up into a higher position. And if you combine that with smoking, I have seen it, thank god in none of my patients, but other patients have come to see me afterwards. Nipples can literally die. They turn black, they fall of, and there's no nipple afterwards.

BALDWIN: Did I read that sometimes when you see smokers in this condition you have to use leeches?

YOUN: Yes. So if we get in a situation, one of the things that I have, and I mentioned in my book is one of the things that plastic surgeons have in our arsenal, if all else fails, is to pull out the leeches. And leeches actually act as an attachable vein. So the first thing that goes with blood supply are the veins, and if add a leech, sometimes that can salvage it. So there have been countless stories of women have had breast reductions and lifts, they have smoked, and their nipples start turning purplish. Purple is a precursor to black. If you throw a leech on it you can turn that purple back to pink sometimes.

BALDWIN: This is a heads up, if you've had that sort of augmentation or a facelift, I've read that your cheeks can fall?

YOUN: It's the same thing. So with facelifts, we lift the skin up off the face. That skin has been altered, the blood supply to it. You add smoking to it, that skin can literally die off. And I wrote an article on CNN.com that you can have part of your face look like Two-Face from the movie "Batman." Smokers, you're definitely warned. If you're going to have plastic surgery, you've got to quit smoking at least three, even four weeks before surgery and afterwards.

BALDWIN: Since we have you on, I wanted to ask what are the wacky tidbits that you across in your book?

YOUN: I included a couple of little stories as well. People don't know, but if you meet a medical student before a surgery, there's a good chance that they will practice suturing on you while you are sleep. As doctors we all need to learn how to suture.

And with the advent of the Internet and iPads and everything, a lot of doctors are using Google and Wikipedia to diagnose medical conditions.

BALDWIN: Are you serious?

YOUN: So instead of looking it up in big textbooks, some of us will jump over to Wikipedia. Some of these medical websites are just as good, if not better, than the encyclopedias that we used to have.

BALDWIN: And one of the things that I did know, a little music in the OR does the doctor good, apparently he?

YOUN: Yes. I like Lady Gaga. It depends on what I'm doing. If I'm doing a facelift, maybe a little Billy Joel. I have some colleagues who will put on Metallica while they're doing orthopedic surgery. It depends on the personality of the surgeon.

BALDWIN: Is it a way to pass the time or keep the mood up?

YOUN: Studies are showing that playing music in the OR can help or be beneficial to the actual surgeons, and they find their techniques are better, and strangely enough it seems to show that patients seem to recover a little bit better when there is music playing when they have a procedure done.

BALDWIN: Dr. Anthony Youn, you and your book is "In Stitches," I really appreciate you coming on and sharing your wealth of knowledge. Thank you so much.

YOUN: Speaking of Gaga, let's talk to someone else who is also a big Gaga fan. Wolf Blitzer with our America's 2012 politics update. Let's talk politics. Newt Gingrich continues topping these polls. But there is another story percolating in Iowa, Ron Paul?

WOLF BLITZER, CNN HOST, "THE SITUATION ROOM": Ron Paul is huge. He has a lot of momentum going on right now. He could surprise a lot of people and win the Iowa caucus in less than weeks from now. He's got a fabulous organization on the ground, retail politics being very, very important.

And remember, Brooke, when you go to the Iowa caucuses, it's not like voting in a voting booth, you go in for a minute or two and push a little button. You have to make a major commitment for an hour or two hours or even three hours. You've got to listen to speeches and go into various corners of the room. Then there are runoffs. It could take a while. So you really have to be committed to the Iowa caucuses. Anyone who has been there over the years has seen that. I have. Look at this, Gingrich, he's still ahead, but within the margin of error. Romney and Ron Paul at 17 percent. I've got to tell you this, based on everything that we are seeing, and we're going to have a full port in "THE SITUATION ROOM," Gingrich and Romney do not have the on-the-ground organization that Ron Paul has. If you go to the Ron Paul offices, the headquarters in Des Moines, you see a lot of people working and they are on the phone and doing stuff. So he could shake things up.

He's going to be joining us live in the 4:00 hour. We'll be talking about this and a whole lot of substantive issues out there. Why is he generating this kind of momentum? We'll go in-depth in "THE SITUATION ROOM."

BALDWIN: Wolf, one word that we've been reading about this poll, you keep seeing the word "surge" attached to Ron Paul's name, a sudden surge. Do you really think that 17 percent is a surge?

BLITZER: He's doing well in Iowa. There's still six, seven potential winners out there. And we'll see how he does. But if he wins in Iowa, it shakes things up for New Hampshire. Right now everyone assumes Mitt Romney, who almost lives in New Hampshire, is going to win.

But if Jon Huntsman, for example, if he continues to move up and slowly but surely steadily he's moving up from five, six, seven, eight, nine percent, a lot of people believe it could go to Mitt Romney, and if Mitt Romney does not win in New Hampshire and doesn't look like he's necessarily going to win in Iowa, you know what, South Carolina and Florida, those will be big challenges for Mitt Romney.

The only other thing that somebody like Mitt Romney and some of the other candidates who have money have going for them this time is they changed the Republican contest in most of the states. It's no longer winner take all. It's proportionate. So if you can keep on going and going and going building up delegates to the Republican convention, if you've got the money, the organization, you can do that.

Rick Perry, continue to look at him. He's got potential because he's got millions and millions of dollars.

BALDWIN: Wolf, as you mentioned, you have Ron Paul coming up in "THE SITUATION ROOM." We'll talk a little bit more about that in the next hour. Wolf Blitzer, thank you very much.

And let's stay in Washington. Major squabbling in our nation's capital today all over that tax cut that puts $1,000 back in your paycheck each and every year. They are also, though, fighting over legislation just to keep the government funded past Friday. We'll take you live to Capitol Hill to see what is happening with that brouhaha.

Plus, a woman is beaten allegedly by police officers in a police station at one point while she was in handcuffs. The whole thing, you can see it there, caught on camera. That story is two minutes away. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: National outrage in Turkey after a disturbing video surfaces showing several police officers repeatedly slapping a woman in handcuffs. The video is silent, but it was taken inside the police station just this past summer. And police who have watched it say Turkish police not only crossed the line, they took steps to cover their tracks. Ivan Watson shows us what happened.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

IVAN WATSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: The video is silent, but the evidence of abuse is indisputable. Two plain clothes police officers slap and beat a detained woman inside a Turkish police station. It was all caught on tape by a security camera mounted inside this police station in the western city of Ismir. Filmed on the night of July 16th, the video triggered outrage when it was broadcast by the Turkish media last week. It showed a uniformed cop casually closing the blinds. Seconds later officers resumed beating their handcuffed suspects. Human rights activists call this torture.

EMMA SINCLAIR WEBB, HUMAN RIGHTS WATCH: This amounted to torture because it went on and on and it was in a closed space. That's torture.

WATSON: The woman says police detained her during a raid on a nightclub because she didn't have her I.D. Months after her release, she says she's still traumatized by the ordeal. Police in Ismir haven't responded to CNN's request for a comment, but a top government official announced the police officers in question would be suspended.

FATMA SAHIN, MINISTER OF FAMILY AND SOCIAL POLICY (via translator): The perpetrators should be punished. There is political will to take swift action. Violence in a police station, especially against a woman, is unacceptable.

WATSON: Sadly, violence against women is all too common in Turkish society. According to a 2009 government study, 42 percent of Turkish women surveyed said they were victims of either physical or sexual abuse by their husband or partner. Human rights activists say this case also highlights a culture of impunity within Turkish security forces.

WEBB: There are lots of efforts by the police themselves time and time again to cover can up their own abuses. One of the ways they do that is by instantly filing a countercharge.

WATSON: The woman being beaten here is currently on trial for charges for resisting arrest and reckless behavior. She faces up to six years in prison. Meanwhile, these police officers are expected to go on trial in February on charges of excessive use of force. The maximum jail sentence, lawyers say, one-and-a-half years in prison.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BALDWIN: I want to bring in Ivan Watson from Istanbul. Ivan, I know that these police officers are us suspended and face trials. Here we are in the year 2011 where it seems so much is on video, but I imagine that wouldn't have happened if this video had not been taken and released.

WATSON: You're right, Brooke. Those police officers weren't suspended until the video was released last week on Turkish news channels and it triggered this outrage. The incident took place last July. So this case was languishing and, in fact, the criminal charges against the woman who was beaten were in court. She was being taken to court long before the men were.

Human rights activists that we've talked to say this is a typical case, that often if somebody tries to lodge a complaint, that the police will immediately start intimidating by launching countercharges against them. Since this video came out, the governor of that city has apologized to the woman, and the central government has come out demanding the punishment of these two police officers. This is a rarity when the video actually comes out in cases of this abuse. Brooke?

BALDWIN: Also, Ivan, something that jumped out at us, there's a huge issue with women in Turkey but also in the U.S. What do you mean?

WATSON: Well, absolutely. Domestic violence is endemic here -- 42 percent of women surveyed in Turkey say that they had experienced physical or sexual assault from their partners. But the Centers for Disease Control in the U.S. has just come out with a report yesterday and says that of the women surveyed, nearly one in five American women has been raped at some time in her life, one in four American women surveyed has been a victim of severe physical violence by an intimate partner in her lifetime. We have this problem, too, and it's a big one in the U.S., Brooke.

BALDWIN: Ivan Watson in Istanbul, Ivan, thank you.

And as we approach the top of the hour, let's talk about something that a lot of you are talking about, and for that let's go to Chad Myers, our go-to guy for all cool science things. So 200 new species discovered in southeast Asia, the greater Mekong Delta region.

CHAD MYERS, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: Right.

BALDWIN: Let's begin with the Elvis monkey.

MYERS: It's the Elvis monkey because of the hair. It's cute. But the issue is it has no nose, literally, no nose. There is just a hole there, right straight into the sinuses of this new mammal we found. And 145 plants, 28 reptiles, 25 fish, seven amphibians, to mammals, and a bird they found. Take a look at this. That is the eldest monkey. The next thing, the gerkin fish. And a great looking little bird. That was the only bird they found. Birds, they found them easier, quicker. Nothing hiding here.

Something else that I've found very cool, how about plants that eat things. And this is called the picture plant. This is the psychedelic gecko. And that's a picture plant. And it has a very sweet smell on the inside. Things crawl inside. And just like a fly trap, it will close up and devour a real thing inside of it. It is a carnivorous plant.

BALDWIN: So avoid those.

MYERS: And then the frog you can't see.

BALDWIN: Where is it?

MYERS: It's right in the middle of the picture. You can see the back from right to left or left to right. And you can't see the legs at all, completely camouflaged. There's actually a real picture of the Elvis monkey, and you can really see --

BALDWIN: There's no nose?

MYERS: There's no nose. There's just a hole there. So when it rains, it puts it is head down and the rain hits the back of the head and it doesn't go -- exactly.

BALDWIN: World Wildlife Fund. We'll check that out. Chad Myers, thank you. Always fascinating conversations with you.