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Violent Images Emerge from the Deadly Riot in Egypt; U.S. Troops Have Left Iraq
Aired December 18, 2011 - 17:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: A disturbing and violent image emerges from the deadly riot in Egypt. CNN has acquired this video that shows riot police in central Cairo throwing a woman to the ground, dragging her, beating her with the tons partially ripping off her clothes then kicking and stamping on her.
It happened during deadly street clashes this weekend. Ten people were killed, about 500 people injured. As for the woman beaten and kicked in the video, we're working to learn her identity and condition today. And I'll be talking live with a journalist in Cairo in a couple of minutes.
A historic sunrise over Iraq this morning, signaling the end of the U.S. war there, just after dawn today, 110 armored vehicles and supply trucks crossed a line in the sand from Iraq to Kuwait. They were the last remaining combat units in Iraq.
CNN's Martin Savidge reports from camp Virginia in Kuwait.
MARTIN SAVIDGE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Fredricka, camp Virginia here has been one of the primary staging areas for troops that have been coming out of Iraq. Here is where they drop their equipment, it is also where they board the planes and head back to the United States. In between they get a little R and R.
Right now, on the stage you have the cheer leaders for the Washington redskins. Two days ago it was the cheer leaders from the Philadelphia eagles. They had rock bands. It is really a chance for those soldiers coming out of Iraq to sort of decompress a bit before they go home. There also isn't a lot to do while they wait for their flights.
They have been able to speed up the process. A couple of weeks ago this place was slammed. And you might wait five to eight days if you were a soldier hoping to fly back to the states. The crew that I came in on the convoy last night with said they expect it to be state side at least within the next two days. As they told me, they plan to be the biggest holiday gift their family has ever had. And that's probably true, a lot of happy homecomings now being planned. The soldiers themselves looking forward to going home.
(BEGIN VIDE CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE SOLDIER: We came here to do a job. We did it. Now we're going home and this is a good feeling to be going home.
SAVIDGE: Is it time?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE SOLDIER: Yes, it's time. Definitely time.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SAVIDGE: As for the numbers of soldiers that are probably here now, it actually got quite a couple of days ago. But it is now quickly picked up. Several thousand here, most home for the holidays -- Fredricka.
WHITFIELD: Alright, thanks so much Martin.
And now to Baghdad where CNN's Arwa Damon reports on live in the Iraqi capital. Now the U.S. troops are gone.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ARWA DAMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT (on-camera): For the first time in nearly nine years, night has fallen on an Iraq that in the view of so many here is no longer under a U.S. occupation. This is the predominantly Sunni neighborhood of Abdamiya. It was here that Saddam Hussein made his final public appearance in 2003 and for the residents here, the withdrawal of the U.S. military stirring up many conflicting emotions.
A man came up to me and said you need to understand we're afraid. We're very afraid. People -- they're incredibly tense now, he said. And we're all worried about Iran's influence. He wouldn't say this on camera, though, because he said it is a sensitive matter. Especially when it comes to speaking about Iran and the grip it has on Prime Minister Nuri al Maliki's government.
The departure of the last American convoy has been surprisingly underplayed in the Iraqi media. We're across town in a predominantly Shia neighborhood where out of this group of men who we have been talking to only two of them had actually heard the news.
Now, one of the young men was telling us he was grateful to the Americans for coming in and toppling Saddam Hussein. He was saying he did have faith in the Iraqi army and the current government. But he had a very different opinion.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: U.S.A. wanted to invade Iraq, this country. And now they're going and take this country down, more troubles come.
DAMON: Yes. Many Iraqis did celebrate the fall of Saddam Hussein. But few anticipated that they would be held hostage by policies over which they, the Iraqi people, had no say in. One is hard pressed to find a family in Iraq that has not lost a loved one, be it to American bombs, al Qaeda's violent attacks or the sectarian bloodletting that grape gripped this country.
Iraqi say that they dreamed the U.S. invasion return their cities into ones of thriving prosperity, that they would have true democracy and the reality they have been left with, they say, it hardly that.
Arwa Damon, CNN, Baghdad.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: And one of the leading anti-communist dissidents of the 1970s and '80s has died. Vaclav Havel was a Czech playwright turned political activist. He was a leader of the velvet revolution, which ended soviet control of Czechoslovakia and he went on to be the country's president. Vaclav Havel was 75.
In New York, an arrest in a vicious crime, an elderly woman was set on fire and killed in the elevator of her apartment building in Brooklyn. Police released the surveillance photos taken at the time of the attack. Officers say the man dressed as an exterminator doused the 73-year-old woman with a flammable liquid. Horrified witnesses say they heard screams and saw smoke.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I smelled smoke like (inaudible) fire. I go back outside. I see smoke pouring out of the elevator. I go back to my apartment. I called 911. My sense is someone from the sixth floor. We're running down and knocking on everyone's door to get out.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: And the alumni association of Florida A&M University is lashing out at Governor Rick Scott over his move to have the school's president suspended. Scott has asked the board of trustees to take action against James Amens because of a hazing scandal involving the school's marching band. Police say drum major Robert Champion died as a result of the hazing. The alumni association says suspending Amens could put the university's accreditation at risk.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TOMMY MITCHELL, PRESIDENT, FAMU ALUMNI: If we decide that hazing, which is a national problem, and when someone dies we suspend a president, then how many presidents will we have?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: Controversy has swirled since champion's death and there have been three arrests tied to unrelated hazing accusations a few weeks earlier.
A third day of hearings for the army private accused of being behind the biggest intelligence leak in U.S. history. Today, a military supervisor testified that she had recommended Bradley Manning's removal from a secure computer room well before he was under suspicion. Private Manning is accused of providing defense and state department documents to wiki leaks which then made them public.
Alright, it's a pretty nasty weather, just in time for the holiday rush home. Jacqui Jeras and the severe weather center and my goodness, this timing is terrible. JACQUI JERAS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: It is not great. The later in the week you travel, the better off you're going to be, we think of as a whole. But this is certainly quite a powerful winter storm with many impacts to go along with it. We think the worst of the conditions are going to become a sandwiched in between here, along i-25, along i-40, and then between there and inner state 70. So, that's where blizzard watches now have been upgraded to blizzard warnings and that's what you're seeing in that bright red. But these don't take effect, by the way, until tomorrow morning, between 6:00 and 9:00 a.m. So, know that you still have time to travel if that's what you're trying to do and get done yet today.
You need to take a look at this storm on the satellite and radar picture now and it doesn't look like much. But as it moves across southern parts of Arizona, and heads across New Mexico, it is going to begin to intensify as it heads into the plains states, it is going to start to pick up more of that moisture, so the timing is all working out for this to really be a high plains event here across parts of the south. And the snow impact we think will be greatest because the winds will be so strong to go with it and travel is really not recommended in those blizzard areas tomorrow. If you can help it, just stay home. I'm sure lots of schools are going to end up being closed with that anyway.
Now, ahead of this system, it is going to pick up moisture from the Gulf of Mexico. It's also going to bring those temperatures up and the conditions will be rather unstable. So, some of these thunderstorms could be severe. That includes you in the Houston area, keep that in mind.
And for all of you that live along the east coast, and say no big deal for me, well, come Wednesday, it will be your turn. But we'll end it on a happy note, Fredricka. And that is there for about 5800 planes in the air now and the FAA not reporting they delays at this time.
WHITFIELD: Ok. So, they're all up there on schedule and everything is good.
JERAS: IT WILL BE GREAT.
WHITFIELD: Alright, thanks so much Jacqui.
JERAS: Yes.
WHITFIELD: Alright, secret Santas are turning up across the country or should we say layaway angels? What inspired a small time town businessman to pay off the layaway bills of 260 people?
And the new modern family. More Americans saying I don't to marriage. Why the change of heart?
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: It is our top story this hour on CNN. The brutal beating of a protester in Egypt captured on video. It is a violent beating made more alarming when you see that the person being dragged and kicked is a woman there, unarmed. She's knocked to the ground, her clothes partially ripped away and then what appears to be a uniformed security officer kicking and stomping on her.
On the phone now from Cairo is a journalist, Mohamed Fadel Fahmy. Mohamed, do we know anything more about who this woman is and what preceded that beating? How did this happen?
MOHAMED FADEL FHAMY, JOURNALIST (via telephone): Well, the clashes have been ongoing for three days since Friday. And the death toll has been ten protesters killed by live ammo according to a ministry of health.
Just now, we found out that one more protester died in police custody. He was arrested on Saturday. The lawyer spoke to me and asked me to tell the media exactly what happened. Of course, there is a lot of rage and the video you see of the woman that has been beaten and stripped by the army has caused a lot of rage on the streets. People are angry. They're not used to seeing their military beat people like that and that actually what is happening now is that the talk shows are all over this story here in Cairo even on the front page of several newspapers and the people are really outraged.
I tried to find out more about this girl, but it seems she has disappeared. The military is not apologetic. They're saying what is a woman doing in a conflict zone like that, unless she's actually involved in the attacks on the military and the finger pointing is ongoing, the protesters say the military used aggression in evict in evicting open sit in outside the cabinet. It is just ongoing and escalating as we speak -- Fredricka.
WHITFIELD: And so, at this point too, how many are people feeling like this -- that the military rule right now and how it is going about controlling the crowds or protests, that it has gotten out of hand, is it more of the same? Is there some concern that this is about to worsen as opposed to get better?
FHAMY: Well, the elections are ongoing, you know, and people are trying to be optimistic. But these clashes are not doing any good. Today the stock market lost $1 billion and many people are angry. They're saying that these protests continue, the economy will never improve and the protesters also come with their own ideology saying that the prime minister appointed by the ruling council was one of Mubarak's men. He was -- for 18 years in Mubarak's cabinet and they're not happy about having him in the seat. So, it is just a lot of issues going on in Cairo here. And we will see what will happen at the end of the elections by mid-January.
WHITFIELD: All right, Mohamed Fadel Fhamy thanks so much for your time. Appreciate that for keeping us posted.
Alright, checking headlines -- other headlines overseas now, the death toll rises in the Philippines. There more than 650 people are confirmed dead, hundreds still missing. A tropical storm, a flash flood hammered towns in the southern islands this weekend, ten straight hours of rainfall sending rivers out of their banks. And in far eastern Russia, an offshore oil rig has capsized. There were 67 people on the platform and so far at least 14 people have been rescued. Crews and boats and helicopters are still searching.
About 550 Palestinians are being released from prison in Israel today. It is the second part of a two-phase prisoner swap that began in October when Israeli soldier Julad Shalit (ph) was freed from Hamas custody.
And did you miss the Sunday morning talk shows? Don't worry, we have you covered. Political round-up including the latest back and forth on the payroll tax cut debate.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: Alright, we made the Sunday morning talk show rounds so you don't have to. Among the big issues, the back and forth on the payroll tax cuts and GOP candidates for president going after Newt Gingrich, here are the highlights.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Under the previous (inaudible) hr 36-30, as amended, is passed.
JOE JOHNS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: You know, waking up this morning, hearing from people in the house side, they're saying, they're not so sure this two-month deal is good enough. They would like to see a 12- month deal and I think I've been told it is unlikely this bill has been passed by the Senate is going to pass the house.
GENE SPERLING, DIRECTOR, NATIONAL ECONOMIC COUNCIL: I really think it is very unlikely that the house would disrupt this compromise, overwhelming compromise six days before Christmas.
REP. JOHN BOEHNER (R), HOUSE SPEAKER: How can you do tax policy for two months? We really do believe it is time for the Senate to work with the house, to complete our business for the year. We have got two weeks to get this done. Let's do it the right way.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE REPORTER: So, you're suggesting start over, make this a one-year extension, should the Senate start from scratch?
BOEHNER: No. What I'm suggesting is this. The house passed its bill. Now the Senate passed its bill and, you know, under the constitution, when we have disagreements there is -- there could be a formal conference between the house and Senate to resolve our difference differences.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE REPORTER: What's your basic argument against Newt Gingrich?
MITT ROMNEY (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Well, we're different. And in a campaign is about pointing out differences. Republicans came together and proposed a program to make sure that Medicare is sustainable. And the speaker said this is right wing social engineering. Talk about unreliable at a critical time. He cut the legs out from underneath a very important message.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE REPORTER: You said that you singling you out you also said this week that, you know, sometimes he talked to you as if you were a student of his. Do you think sexism motivates him?
MICHEL BACHMANN (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: What he said sounded very condescending and it sounded like he was talking down to me as though I was one of his students. I'm not one of his students. As I said, I am a serious candidate for the presidency. If he disagrees with my assertion, then he needs to make that claim and put it on the table.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE REPORTER: The Des Moines register, this morning, endorsed Mitt Romney. I have to get your reaction.
NEWT GINGRICH (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Well, I'm actually delighted because the Manchester union lead, a reliably conservative newspaper endorsed me. The Des Moines register which is a liberal newspaper, did not endorse me. I think that indicates who the conservative in this race is.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: And for the latest political news, you know where to go, CNNpolitics.com.
Alright, people in need during the holiday season. And the massive traffic jam that followed when a church offered to give away 6,000 free meals. The story next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: Alright, this next story is not just about another pre- Christmas shopping related traffic jam. But it is a traffic jam nonetheless. All because of church in suburban Atlanta was giving away free food to 6,000 unemployed families yesterday. It was a giant draw. So many people lined up for the free food that traffic backed up on interstate 85 for miles.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Just amazing when you look at just the expression of need.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This is (inaudible).
(END VIDEO CLIP)
DAMON: Those who weathered the wait received not just a meal, but a week's worth of groceries.
So several secret Santas or in this case layaway angels have been at work this holiday season. They have been doing their bidding in stores and shopping malls around the country.
In secret, these angels have been paying of the layaway accounts for hundreds of people. One such layaway angel has been at work in southern California in the city of Costa Mesa for some time now.
And Trisha Lawrence is the manager of the K-Mart that benefited from someone else's generosity. She's joining us from Irvine, California. And that layaway angel who wishes to remain anonymous is joining us on the phone from Laguna Beach.
So first to our secret donor, our layaway angel, what inspired you to do this?
ANONYMOUS LAYAWAY DONOR, LAGUNA BEACH (via telephone): Well, good afternoon. I had heard about it on our local news station on Friday morning, about a woman I believe did this in Michigan. And it seemed like such a -- just such a terrific idea on many levels. It is not kind of potluck charity, it was where someone has gone to a store, they picked out what they want or need, made a down payment on it, have equity in it, and then in many cases are going to -- once they pay for it, give it away themselves. It seemed like a real win-win or give-give situation and inspired me to do the same.
WHITFIELD: And you worked hard to make this happen because you thought you would call, K-Mart you thought was in your general area, turns out it was closed down, then you went to another one, and kind of a nearby community, it too was gone and then you reached out to the neighboring county before you finally found one that was still up and running.
So, what did you do when you called them, or made your offer? Did they think you were crazy or did they just, you know, welcome your idea right away?
ANONYMOUS LAYAWAY DONOR: Well, that's actually what I kind of expected. But K-Mart's credit and Miss Bilingsley (ph) credit, she was very sweet on the phone and for the first minute or two, you know, had no idea why I was calling. And when I suggested that I would like to pay off some of the accounts like I had heard about happening around the country, she said, well, how many? Do you have a budget? I said, I do, but I don't know what it is. What I would like to -- how many accounts do you have? How many -- what I would like to do is pay off everybody's account that has a balance of under $100 or less. I don't want to make someone's third payment on a vacuum that they may or may not get in February. I'd like to pay off everybody's account that owes $100 or less.
WHITFIELD: And then in the end, that amounted to what?
ANONYMOUS LAYAWAY DONOR: She told me right away it would be 260 families, but she didn't know how much it would be. And half an hour later called back and said, we're only through a fourth of it and it is $3500. I said you haven't reached my budget yet, call me back when you add it all up. It came to I think $15,919.61.
WHITFIELD: My goodness. Incredibly generous! How did that make you feel in the end knowing you have completed the Christmas, really made a Christmas or holiday season for so many families who perhaps were not going to be able to pay the balance on their layaways? ANONYMOUS LAYAWAY DONOR: Well, it just reminded me what kids really need is a happy household. I hope this makes a lot of households happy for the holiday season.
WHITFIELD: Something tells me you've made them happy.
Ok, so Trisha, back to you now. You had a chance to have some real contact with a lot of those people who are benefiting from his gift. What do they say to you? Do they believe you right away that their accounts have been paid off?
TRISHA LAWRENCE, MANAGER, K-MART COSTA MESA CALIFORNIA: No, I haven't been called a liar so often and then so many minutes of my entire life. That's the first thing out of their mouth is you're lying.
WHITFIELD: You're kidding.
LAWRENCE: There are so many emotions that are just running through there. I can't describe it in words. That's just amazing.
WHITFIELD: That's just so incredible. You had something in place with these, you know, these layaway angels, but I guess never did you or anyone at your store or any other store imagine that someone would be this generous all at once.
LAWRENCE: Not at all. We had people calling and people have been coming in. But the total amount that this came to, it was -- the generosity is just incredible.
WHITFIELD: Fantastic. Trisha Lawrence of K-Mart thanks so much. And Mr. Layaway angel thanks so much for your time and your generosity. We know you made so many people happy and have made this a very special season for so many. Thanks so much.
And we're going to have much more right after this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: Alright, checking our top stories, the U.N. secretary- general said he is highly alarmed at the events unfolding in Egypt this weekend. Three straight days of clashes there have left ten people dead and hundreds more injured.
One especially disturbing piece of video acquired by CNN, showing uniformed Egyptian security forces beating and stomping on a woman demonstrator. A CNN news crew caught in the chaos says that they saw riot police beating children and elderly people.
And no more U.S. combat troops in Iraq this morning. The remaining American units deployed to Iraq drove across the border into Kuwait in a convoy. That ended the largest U.S. military withdrawal since Vietnam.
The payroll tax cut debate enters another week. Now that the Senate has voted to extend the cut for two months, it is the house's turn to weigh in. But anger among some house Republicans could scuttle the deal.
CNN's Athena Jones has that.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ATHENA JONES, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): House Republicans are bulking at an effort to push through the payroll tax cuts passed by the Senate.
BOEHNER: Two months has just kicking the can down the road. The American people are tired of that. And frankly, I'm tired of it.
JONES: Fearing more wrangling over tax cuts next year could benefit the president, house Republicans say they want to pass a year-long extension now.
BOEHNER: It is time to just stop, resolve the differences and extend this for one year.
JONES: Republican aides say how leadership will likely to do change the bill, which will lead to another showdown of the Senate and more disagreement over how to pay for the extension. The White House thinks house Republicans will pay a political price, if 160 million workers see their payroll taxes go up after the New Year.
SPERLING: The compromise to extend the payroll tax cut, unemployment, for 60 days into next year had 90 percent support. The only things that get 90 percent support in the United States Senate these days are mom, apple pie and chocolate ice cream. So, I really think it is very unlikely that the house would disrupt this compromise, overwhelming compromise.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: And Athena Jones joining us live, from Washington. So, what's next?
JONES: Well, really it is anyone's guess. We know there could be votes as early as tomorrow night, Monday night in the house. Possibly a vote on Tuesday as well, that's what majority leader Eric Cantor's office has said. We don't know what is going to happen though there has been a real war of words today, a lot of people battling back and forth on the Sunday talk shows and a lot of statements flying around. You have Republicans who say that this creates uncertainty, going ahead and voting for the two-month extension creates a lot more uncertainty. People won't know what's going to happen after this to months.
There are also concerns of course as I mentioned that the president will have another issue to talk about next year if they continue to be able to talk about -- tax cuts for working families. You have Democrats who say, look, go ahead and pass this two-month extension. We'll keep talking about the year-long extension.
You have people like Nancy Pelosi, Representative Pelosi, saying calling this a Republican tea party blocking this move and so they're trying to show the Republicans will be blamed if on January 1st they haven't gone ahead and extended this two-month extension and people see their paychecks fall -- Fredricka.
WHITFIELD: Alright, Athena Jones. Thanks so much in Washington.
JONES: Thanks.
WHITFIELD: Alright, thousands take Christmas plight to a courthouse in Texas. I will tell you why people gathered in support of a nativity scene.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: The president of Afghanistan personally freed a woman from prison this week. The woman had been sentenced to 12 years after claiming she had been raped by a relative. Afghan President Hamid Karzai intervened calling the woman's case "a misjudgment."
He talked about it with CNN's Fareed Zakaria.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PRESIDENT HAMID KARZAI, AFGHANISTAN: When I came to office and upon coming to the office I convened a judicial meeting in which the issue was discussed in detail and the right inquiries made. We on advice from the chief justice and the minister of justice decided that this was a case perhaps of misjudgment and that it has to be resolved and dissolved by giving her a pardon immediately. That's what I did.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: The woman's plight attracted international attention when she reportedly agreed to marry the man she says raped her. President Karzai tells CNN that she has the right to do that if she does decide.
The Iraq war produced more wounded women service members than any military conflict in U.S. history. CNN's Kyra Phillip has one woman's story.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: June Moss and her 15-year-old daughter Brianna are tight. Laughing, dancing, healthy competition, but just five years ago, this almost ended.
PHILLIPS: When you attempted suicide by cutting your wrists.
SERGEANT JUNE MOSS, IRAQ WAR VETERAN: Yes.
PHILLIPS: And what you told me about your kids and what they said to you.
JUNE MOSS: The ambulance came and my kids asked me, mommy, why did you do that? And the only thing I could say at the time was I had a bad idea. That was, one, a stupid mistake. Two, I thank God I wasn't successful. PHILLIPS: What do you do now when you have a bad day?
JUNE MOSS: I try to limit the bad days for one.
PHILLIPS: When we first met, retired staff sergeant June Moss two years ago, she was confronting PTSD head on. As a U.S. army vehicle mechanic, June went into Baghdad in 2003, the start of operation Iraqi freedom. She had an incredible attitude. She wanted to win this war. But after a few months of doing checkpoint security, and driving in country, a patriotic June Moss went from this to this. She had become a soldier, mentally battling the brutal realities of war.
JUNE MOSS: Decapitations, you saw the charred bodies from the explosions, and from seeing all the debris.
PHILLIPS: Does that still come back?
JUNE MOSS: It comes back, but only when my stress level is high. So I try to minimize as much stress as possible. But I do notice when I'm stressing out, then I start having dreams about what I saw and the fear and just the all around experience. It does come back as if to haunt you.
PHILLIPS: PTSD doesn't go away, does it?
JUNE MOSS: Unfortunately, no. PTSD does not go away. It is not that simple. You're always one incident from spiraling out of control back to where you were at, being depressed.
PHILLIPS: What I remember from our last interview, you talked about anger being a problem.
JUNE MOSS: Sometimes when you have PTSD, you just lash out. I was angry ball of mess back then.
PHILLIPS: Is anger still a problem now?
JUNE MOSS: Anger is still an issue. Yes, anger is still an issue. And --
PHILLIPS: Why?
JUNE MOSS: It is funny, just a year ago, I had punched somebody in the face and --
PHILLIPS: You punched somebody in the face?
JUNE MOSS: Yes.
PHILLIPS: At work?
JUNE MOSS: At work because of my anger. And I'm not proud of that.
PHILLIPS: What happened?
JUNE MOSS: I let them push my buttons. And they pushed one too many buttons.
PHILLIPS: Was that a gut check for you?
JUNE MOSS: Definitely, that even I, too, have to keep my anger in check and keep me mindful.
PHILLIPS: She was suspended for three days without pay. But now, committed to weekly therapy, and thanks to her employer, the chaplain at the Palo Alto California VA, she's embracing her faith and her family in a whole new way.
How do you remember your mom when she first got back from war?
BRIONA MOSS, JUNE MOSS' DAUGHTER: She was overly protective. She said she had nightmares about people taking us away or hurt in war.
PHILLIPS: So, what is your mom like now?
BRIONA MOSS: Mommy is just wild and just my mother. She's always --
PHILLIPS: She's back?
BRIONA MOSS: She's back, she's back.
PHILLIPS: Back, but continuing to fight her fears.
JUNE MOSS: I just couldn't do -- it reminded me of when we were in marketplace and we didn't know if somebody was out there to kill us. And I know I'm back home, I don't have to worry about a suicide bomber, but I still felt there was one lurking at the mall or the grocery store.
PHILLIPS: But just over a month ago, June took a huge step. June took a huge step. She took her daughter to a concert. You were afraid of crowds, noises.
JUNE MOSS: Yes.
PHILLIPS: And you took your daughter to see Chris Brown.
JUNE MOSS: Yes, to see Chris brown. We went to the concert, and it was amazing. And I was so glad that I am in my therapy now that I was able to do something like that because that crowd was massive. Those kids love them some Chris Brown.
PHILLIPS: So, would you say your mom's better, healthier, happier?
BRIONA MOSS: All of that. She's just how she used to be and I like it.
JUNE MOSS: It is a big deal to know that, you know, from then to now I've come a long way.
PHILLIPS: Are you a better mom?
JUNE MOSS: I am a better mom, a better person. I'm a better me, you know, from head to toe, I'm a better me.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: We wish her well and the whole family. June Moss encourages the troops coming home to seek some type of therapy because she says there are a lot of emotions tied to combat and says without treatment, the anxiety and nightmares could get the best of them.
Alright, some are calling it a holy war. We'll tell you why thousands of people turned out in Texas to support a nativity sign -- scene.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: Time for a CNN equals politics update. Here is what is crossing right now.
Some key endorse s for Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney. The latest comes from former GOP presidential nominee Bob Dole. Dole announced his choice in an advertisement in today's Des Moines' registered newspaper. Dole's public backing comes a day after the Des Moines paper announced hiss its support for Romney.
And presidential candidate Michele Bachmann has been on the defensive this weekend saying repeatedly on the Iowa campaign trail that she doesn't hate Muslims. Bachmann's statements come in response to an escalating feud between her and presidential contender Ron Paul over Iran.
And for the latest political news, you know where to go, CNNpolitics.com.
Alright, some people call it the fight for Christmas. Thousands of Christians turning out to support a nativity scene at a Texas courthouse after atheists ask it be removed.
Jonathan Betz of affiliate WFAA has the story.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JONATHAN BETZ, WFAA: By the thousands the faithful arrived in Athens town square for what many call a holy war.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What god's done for me, this is certainly what I can do for him.
BETZ: Up to 5,000 people rallied around a Christmas nativity scene in front of the Henderson county courthouse, blasting a Wisconsin atheist group's efforts to get it removed.
NATHAN LORICK, PASTOR: Our fight, our relentlessness and our courage, everything is bigger in Texas.
BETZ: For many here, though, this is about far more than decorations. It is about what they feel is a continued attack on their Christian faith. DEREK ROGERS, PASTOR: It is time for us to stand together and protect the very principles that made this nation great from its birth. We have become so busy with our lives that we have forgotten our first love.
BETZ: Resembling more church service than protest --
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And what we need Christians to stand and say, Jesus Christ is the only way.
BETZ: Thousands prayed in the town square.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The name of Jesus Christ, your son.
BETZ: The display's critics feel the scene is offensive and believe church should be separated from government. The freedom from religion foundation threatened to sue. Other towns have scrubbed religion from their displays.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Anyone who would like to sign our petition to be --
BETZ: Yet, Henderson County shows no sign of backing down, a clear display of its faith.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Never expected God to send a message from Athens, but that's what he's doing. He's sending a message.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: And the new modern family, more Americans saying I don't to marriage, so why the change of heart?
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: More Americans saying I don't to marriage. During the 1960s, 72 percent of Americans were married. But as of 2010, only 51 percent of adult Americans were married.
Earlier I spoke with clinical psychologist Jeffrey Gardere about the big drop in marriage.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: What's going on? Why is it falling favor with people?
JEFFREY GARDERE, CLINICAL PSYCHOLOGIST: Well, Fredricka, we think there are a couple of things going on, first and foremost, the economy. A lot of people are saying they can't afford to either get married or that they have to co-habitate even if they want to divorce. So, the economy is certainly a factor.
The second factor is we're seeing that young people 18 and over really do want to pursue their education and want to pursue a career first before getting married. And finally we know that a lot of these kids are scared to death of these 50 percent divorce rates so they're saying, hey, wait a minute, maybe we need to slow down just a little bit, take care of our careers first as I said and then look at getting married instead of jumping in as they were doing in the '60s.
WHITFIELD: So, do you to think this is temporary? You know, because things come in waves. Right now, maybe marriage isn't popular but maybe there will be a swing towards its popularity in the near future. Do you see that?
GARDERE: It is hard to say. But the pew research center who did this survey are saying they think the rates, marriage rates, is going to drop even further in the next couple of years and we can see something around the 49 percent rate of people 18 and over who are married in America.
I think part of what is also happening with this is this nation as well as post industrial nations now see co-habitation without marriage as something that is much more acceptable, more than it has ever been.
WHITFIELD: So this really does say something or quite a bit in your view about just American society, how Americans view marriage in terms of what is acceptable today versus what may or may not have been acceptable a couple of decades ago.
GARDERE: Well, that's why I say that people really shouldn't be upset, especially if you believe in the institution of marriage. Really our views are evolving. We're looking at now people partnering and dedicating themselves to eye relationship. They don't necessarily have to have the paper or walk down the aisle of a church, for example.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: The discussion about that topic preceding Don Lemon comes with some risk, great risk. Keep drinking your coffee.
DON LEMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: He did say institution, didn't he?
WHITFIELD: It's a relationship.
LEMON: I don't know. I think you can be just as committed, if not more, to someone without getting married. I think many people who are together for years have more of a commitment than when you walk down the aisle and all those things.
WHITFIELD: You talked about that's one of the reasons why some people feel they don't have to get married, they can have a relationship, live together, do whatever and not necessarily walk down the aisle.
Well, the marriage part is not tough. Living together, for me, that's tough.
WHITFIELD: My goodness. We need our sofa because when you're on the sofa, you feel a lot --
(LAUGHTER) LEMON: I'll give you the $75 when I'm done. I know I need some therapy. But you know we're talking about marriage. What was wrong? No pre-nup? You know what I'm talking about.
(CROSSTALK)
LEMON: It is sad that they are getting a divorce but papers were filed, Fred, this week by Vanessa Bryant. Reportedly the couple had a no pre-nup. So, no prenuptial agreement. So, we are going to be talking to a divorce attorney about the case. And what that means, she's going to get half probably.
WHITFIELD: And that's usually -- generally the law in California, ten years after ten years, it could be -- your state could be split right down the middle.
LEMON: Two kids, child support.
WHITFIELD: But I'm sure your expert would tell you about it.
LEMON: Two kids, child support.
WHITFIELD: I know just what I read.
LEMON: College fund, all that stuff. Kobe.
WHITFIELD: Yes. Ouch! Babe.
LEMON: Also.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You're bringing a video game to life?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes. I mean, it was one of those meetings where I took and said can I do this? Can I turn a digital video game like that my kids play into real life?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: What are -- are those real cars?
LEMON: Yes, look at that?
WHITFIELD: That's bumble bee? That's looks fun.
LEMON: That's a real live Mario car from the popular video game. And that's Katie linen doll. She takes us on a ride. You don't want to miss the report coming up.
WHITFIELD: That is cute. I like that bumble bee mobile.
LEMON: Yes, institution.
WHITFIELD: My goodness. I knew it was going to be dangerous.
LEMON: Don't do it, people.
WHITFIELD: Don't say that!
LEMON: You should do it. But you shouldn't be like when I see those crazy brides -- when I see people spending -- seriously, being quite honest here, when I see people spending tons of money into a ceremony when they could be putting it in a college fund, investing in a home, giving it to charity. It's like - I know it's every little girl - it's also --
WHITFIELD: That's the beauty of this country. You can do whatever you want, just about.
LEMON: It's also marketing.
WHITFIELD: That includes if you want to dance in the store to a little "Jingle Bell Rock" or whatever. It can happen. Just take a peak.
LEMON: Where is it?
WHITFIELD: Take a look at what happened in Lawrence, Kansas. And this was a flash mob. Isn't this suite? Do you recognize the song? Isn't that cute? And so then they all kind of, you know, chimed in there. They started rocking to the tunes.
LEMON: Where is this? Is this Wal-mart?
WHITFIELD: This is Lawrence Kansas. And unfortunately, I don't know the store -- it's Target.
LEMON: Target.
WHITFIELD: Target. And they're having a good, cute time. I love this.
LEMON: We love Target. I have to cut up my Target card.
WHITFIELD: And I love the heart she's holding there. So, love is in the air no matter what age, no matter what season. So there, Don.
LEMON: That happens when you go to Target. I had to cut up my target card because I would be in there every day just find stuff. I love the Target.
WHITFIELD: Well, we are going to see you straight ahead.
LEMON: Hey, last time I see you on TV. Merry Christmas.
WHITFIELD: OK, we'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: OK. So what do you get when you see pandas, snow? A whole lot of cuteness. Take a look, heavy snow bringing a lot of happiness to these pandas. They're so happy. (CROSSTALK)
WHITFIELD: These big multi-hundred pound, whatever they way, they look like cute little things, Jacqui. It's fun. They're making their own versions of snow angels. That's so cute.
JERAS: My gosh.
WHITFIELD: Even better, they feel like they're in their natural habitat.
JERAS: I could so watch that all day.
WHITFIELD: I know. That's why they have those panda cams in so many zoos because you feel like you want to watch them all the time.
JERAS: You do. Well, if you feel like doing a somersault in the snow --
WHITFIELD: Or making a snow angel of your own.
JERAS: Yes. Two places for you, the southwest and into the southern high plains, you've got a major winter storm brewing here. This is really going to kick in for you tomorrow. And blizzard warnings have already been posted in advance of this storm. They don't go into effect until 6:00 tomorrow morning.
This is the area we're watching, New Mexico through the panhandles of Texas and Oklahoma, into Kansas and the southeastern corner of Colorado. So, this is the area we're most concerned about for the heavy accumulation and winds gusting from 35 to 45 miles per hour. It is going to be nearly impossible to travel tomorrow on parts of i-25 and parts of i-40. Keep that in mind. This is a big travel week for a lot of people. The storm is going to make its way all the way into the northeastern parts of the country.
We'll continue to track it for you. A chance for severe thunderstorms in southeastern Texas and that includes folks in Houston -- Fredricka.
WHITFIELD: Very good, alright. Well, good and bad. You know, good part can be snow. Not so good rain.
JERAS: It can be fun if you don't have to go anywhere.
WHITFIELD: Alright Jacqui, thanks so much. Don lemon is on his way right now, much more of the NEWSROOM straight ahead. You'll take us into the rest of the holidays, aren't you?
LEMON: I will try. Those pandas are happy because they're single.
(LAUGHTER)
WHITFIELD: My God. I cannot believe - He is already getting started. More of Don Lemon. And happy pandas after this.
LEMON: I'm in the dark room -- (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
