Return to Transcripts main page
CNN Newsroom
Alabama Storms Kill 2, Injure 100, Rep. Giffords to Step Down; Mississippi Pardons in Question; Romney; Republican Race, Florida and Beyond; Does Prolonged GOP Race Help, Hurt Barack Obama; 8 Days Until Florida Primary
Aired January 23, 2012 - 11:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN ANCHOR: Live from Studio 7 I'm Suzanne Malveaux. Want to get you up to speed for this Monday, January 23rd.
Listen to the roar of the tornado. This is in Arkansas. Severe weather is now tearing across the southeast today. At least two people have already been killed near Birmingham, Alabama. Dozens of homes are destroyed. Another 100 people now injured.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We made it just in the nick of time. The Good Lord just blessed us and we're just glad we're here. We've lost our house but at least we have -- I'm sorry. We got our family, and that's all that matters right now.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MALVEAUX: Wow. That is tragic.
Chad Myers here to tell us about where the storms are right now and what caused this outbreak -- Chad.
CHAD MYERS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Well, it was just a big storm in the upper atmosphere. It was cold. Temperatures were only in the 50s and 60s. In Alabama and Mississippi, around 70. But that's in the spring. Sometimes in the spring you can get to be 80 degrees then you really get the juice going.
Storms went across parts of Birmingham, south of Birmingham as well. The biggest storm right now is headed into Columbus, Georgia. Not rotating enough to put a tornado warning on it right now but still a very large storm. When you see this much red all the way down even to the Gulf Coast and one storm just rolled right through Atlanta metro airport slowing down the airplanes there. Updates in a few minutes.
MALVEAUX: All right. Thank you, Chad.
MYERS: You're welcome.
MALVEAUX: Focus shifts to Florida and the race for the Republican presidential nomination. All four candidates are on the campaign trail today. Now the primary in Florida just eight days away. Mitt Romney stepping up his attacks on Newt Gingrich after a solid win by Gingrich in South Carolina over the weekend. Now Romney is also now promising to release his tax returns tomorrow.
After cheating death and inspiring a nation with her fight for recovery, Gabrielle Giffords stepping down from Congress. A year ago she was shot in the head while meeting with voters in an Arizona shopping center as one of her last acts in office. She plans to finish that event. She posted this message on her Web site.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. GABRIELLE GIFFORDS (D), ARIZONA: I have more work to do on my recovery. So to do what is best for Arizona, I will step down this week.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MALVEAUX: Grief, tears, and regrets at Penn State. Students and alum gather last night for a candlelight vigil honoring the late Joe Paterno. The former head coach also known as JoePa died from lung cancer at the age of 85. He was fired in November over his handling of a child sex abuse scandal involving his former defensive coordinator, Jerry Sandusk y.
Four convicted murderers pardoned by former Mississippi governor, Haley Barbour, will have their fate now decided by a judge. A hearing is scheduled today to decide if those and the others pardoned are actually valid. A state constitution says pardon requests have to be published in a newspaper 30 days before being granted. Mississippi's attorney general says many of the almost 200 people pardoned by Barbour did not meet that requirement.
And authorities say there could have been passengers who were not registered on that cruise ship that crashed often the coast of Italy. Meaning that the number of missing could actually be more than the 19 previously reported. Another 13 people are known dead and divers are blasting new holes in the sides of the ship to speed up the rescue operations. Officials want to get fuel off the ship before it becomes an environmental disaster.
New images of violence plaguing Syria. The head of the Arab League's monitoring mission is today rejecting criticism that his team failed to stop the bloodshed. Now he says the mission was not designed to immediately end the violence but to investigate and observe the situation. Now the Arab League has voted to extend the mission.
Back to our top story, deadly severe weather outbreak in the southeast. Alabama's governor, Robert Bentley, is joining us by telephone to explain what is happening on the ground.
So far, Governor, thank you for joining us. I understand that two people have already been killed, at least 100 injured.
GOV. ROBERT BENTLEY (R), ALABAMA: Well, the latest number that I have received is four unconfirmed fatalities, and I say unconfirmed because we want to make sure that that's accurate, but that's what I've been told as of just the last few moments.
MALVEAUX: Are there others who are missing?
BENTLEY: Well, we -- certainly we have some that are injured. We don't know about the missing at the present time, but we have our search and rescue people out working, and I declared a state of emergency this morning at 8:10 so that this could release our resources and our services from the state and so we have our search and rescue people out at the present time.
MALVEAUX: Where is the most damage? Is it in a concentrated area or is this a wide swath across your state?
BENTLEY: Well, it's not like it was on April 27th of last year when we had 62 long-track tornadoes. This time we have primarily the worst area is in Jefferson County which is just above Birmingham, and it is -- that is where we've had the fatalities. We have some damage in other parts of the state, but that's primarily where our worst damage is.
MALVEAUX: Are you expecting more bad weather or has this already -- the worst is already passed?
BENTLEY: I believe that the worst is -- has passed but we'll continue to monitor it.
MALVEAUX: What should residents of your state do now? Should they take cover? Should they look for relatives? How should they get information?
BENTLEY: The most important thing is let's allow the people that are our first responders to do their job. And if they allow them to do their job, we will take care of the search and rescue. We need to take care of people first, make sure those that are injured, those that are missing, those are taken care of first. Then we'll worry about the -- assessing the damage to the property.
MALVEAUX: And, Governor, you're still getting over last year's tornado outbreak, at least I believe it was 243 people killed in Alabama. It was the largest tornado outbreak in U.S. history. How is your state recovering?
BENTLEY: Well, actually we're recovering very well. We've made a rapid recovery, and today I was actually going to announce a commission that I had set up to talk about how we could improve response, but, unfortunately, because of this we had to cancel that. But we've made good progress, but it's primarily because we have great people in this state who have done a wonderful job, and I'm very proud of what they've done.
MALVEAUX: All right. Governor Bentley, thank you so much for joining us, and certainly we hope the very best to you and to the residents in your state there. We appreciate your time. Thank you. Now it's your chance to "Talk Back" on one of the big stories of the day. So nobody ever said you had to be polite in politics, right? Candidates, they step into the presidential race, they have to be ready for these attacks from all sides. But do the voters actually want someone who is downright mean?
Carol Costello, she's joining us with more from Washington.
And Carol, I remember the time in South Carolina when you had Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama going head to head, and the audience -- it was electrifying in those debates and it just went on and on and on. It was a fight to the end, and it really motivated them. Do we think that people want them to toughen up a little?
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, that's the question today. If you're wondering why Newt Gingrich shellacked Mitt Romney in South Carolina's primary, don't. It's simple. As one South Carolina voter told "The Washington Post," "I think we've reached a point where we need someone who is mean."
Another South Carolina voter put it this way, "I have a little bit of a problem with the divorces, but I need somebody to beat Obama. I like Romney, he's decent and moral, but I just don't see him beating Obama."
Many Republicans think Gingrich struck just the right tone when John King asked the former speaker about open marriage.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
NEWT GINGRICH (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I think -- I think the destructive, vicious, negative nature of much of the news media makes it harder to govern this country, harder to attract decent people to run for public office, and I am appalled that you would begin a presidential debate on a topic like that. ' (CHEERS AND APPLAUSE)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: And some voters cheered, they cheered Gingrich when he talked of beating Obama.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GINGRICH: I don't want to bloody his nose, I want to knock him out. OK?
(CHEERS AND APPLAUSE)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: Redstate.com, a conservative blog, says voters feel Gingrich's blunt talk works on another front, too. It says, quote, "Basically South Carolina's vote is about the Republican grassroots giving the Washington Republican establishment the finger. The base is angry, and right now only Newt is left to fight for them, as imperfect as he is.
So is Romney just not mean enough to put up a good fight? The governor seems to think so because today Romney sure sounds a lot more passionate when he talks about Newt Gingrich.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MITT ROMNEY (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: He's gone from pillar to post almost like a pinball machine, from item to item, in a way, which is highly erratic and does not suggest a stable, thoughtful course, which is normally associated with leadership.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: So is his tone angry enough? Is it mean enough? The "Talk Back" question for you today, do Republicans need someone mean to beat Obama?
Facebook.com/carolCNN, Facebook.com/carolCNN. I'll read your comments later this hour.
MALVEAUX: All right. Thank you, Carol.
Here's a rundown on some of the stories we are covering. Homes destroyed in a matter of minutes. Just listen to that. We are on tornado watch across the southeast.
And then Arizona Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords is resigning, but first she's going back to that shopping center where she was shot a year ago.
And then a woman who gets paid for sex, but there's more to it than that.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You're getting paid for sex.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: But I'm not getting paid for sex. I'm getting paid -- that is a piece of it, but more of the session we're doing communication skills, touching skills. It's not all genitally focused. It's the whole body.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MALVEAUX: A sex surrogate tells her story.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MALVEAUX: At least two people are dead and 100 injured from a line of severe storms in the southeast. Alabama's governor has declared a state of emergency.
And, Chad, I just talked to the governor. He says that they're using everything they can.
MYERS: Yes.
MALVEAUX: They've asked for federal resources, that this is pretty serious.
MYERS: It is. This is not the day they had last year that killed hundreds of people, this is not that day, but this was significant because it happened at night. 3:30 in the morning some of these storms hit, 4:00 in the morning, and the brand new pictures, really, we are just getting in brand new pictures.
This is Centreville. I can't even find some of the houses. I can't find the second story. That's an F-3 tornado. That's 130, 145-mile- per-hour storm right there, trees sheered off off the top. That house -- let's just hope people were not living, sleeping in those upstairs bedrooms because they were injured and at some point, you know, I know we have a couple fatalities and more that are sure to come in, but we have 100 people injured just from one storm alone in one community.
MALVEAUX: Do we have --
MYERS: You don't hear about injuries like that. One or two, five, but a hundred? That's amazing.
MALVEAUX: And do we think it's a concentrated area or is this a large area?
MYERS: It's almost like taking a rake -- taking a couple of tines out of the rake and then raking it across Alabama. There's a stripe of damage north of Birmingham, another stripe south of Birmingham. There's a stripe from yesterday across parts of Arkansas. There's a very big tornado in Arkansas, didn't kill anybody though.
And then down south of there, still tornadoes were on the ground this morning, just about two to three hours ago. And now the only storm that has any potential of rotating now is heading towards Columbus, Georgia. Not significant. Not a big tornado. But if it is I will jump back here and knock on these things. See, I'm here -- there's just a little bit of red there heading to Columbus, probably more like a little bit of a wind event, 50, 60 miles per hour.
Keep the kids and the pets inside.
MALVEAUX: All right. Thanks for the warning, Chad.
MYERS: You're welcome.
MALVEAUX: After a year of defying the odds and fighting back from a gunshot wound to the head, Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords says it is time to step down.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GIFFORD: I don't remember much from that horrible day, but I will never forget the trust you placed in me to be your voice. Thank you for your prayers and for giving me time to recover.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MALVEAUX: That is so touching. Giffords plans to step down later this week, but not before returning to the Arizona shopping center where she was shot and finishing her meeting with voters that she began a year ago.
Our Elizabeth Cohen takes a look at Giffords' road to recovery.
ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN SENIOR MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Suzanne, the doctors we've been talking to say they're not surprised that Gabby Giffords has opted to step down and that's because recovering from an injury like this is in and of itself a full-time job.
Now it's not so much the recovery from the physical parts. We see in the video that she's walking with her husband. She's really doing quite well physically. The issue here is something called expressive aphasia. Gabby Giffords, what she's going through is that she'll often know what she wants to say, her cognitive skills are really terrific.
The issue here is that she has trouble getting the words out and has trouble in speaking in more than a one or two or three-word sentence. However, the good news here is that over the course of the next couple of years, she will likely improve by leaps and bounds.
Her doctors have told me it is not unusual to see vast improvements at year one, year two, year three, year four. They really expect to see her get better and better. I've spoken with Gabby Giffords' doctors over the course of the year and I've asked them, will she be able to be a congresswoman again, and they say that is absolutely possible. They're very positive about it.
They say that over the course of the next couple of years, her speech will likely improve by leaps and bounds. That really this one-year mark doesn't end her improvements. They expect her to get better all the time -- Suzanne. . MALVEAUX: Thanks, Elizabeth. We wish her the very best.
Well, weeks after killers, armed robbers, and other convicts were set free in Mississippi, a judge decides whether or not their pardons will be revoked.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MALVEAUX: An effort to revoke the pardons of at least four murderers and other convicts in Mississippi is now front and center today. A judge is set to review this controversial pardons that were made by Haley Barbour during his last days as governor.
Our CNN legal contributor Sonny Hostin, she's joining us from New York to talk about this.
And Sunny, just setting the stage here. There were some 200 convicts who were pardoned by Barbour initially. People of Mississippi were angry and it caught the attention of all of us here. The state's attorney general came out quickly, pretty quickly, saying that these pardons violated the state's constitution.
What is this hearing going to decide today?
SUNNY HOSTIN, LEGAL CONTRIBUTOR, "IN SESSION" ON TRUTV: Well, the hearing is going to decide whether or not these pardons actually will be upheld. As you mentioned, there were about 200 pardons, four or five of them, these inmates, were released, and they were convicted murderers. And so there is a very nuanced constitutional requirement in Mississippi that requires that every single person that has been pardoned has to publish, has to provide notice in a newspaper, somewhere in the community 30 days before they are released that this pardon is coming up.
Well, they have to now prove in front of this court that they, in fact, met that publication requirement. If they cannot prove that, many people are saying that this judge could void those pardons and send them back to prison. The judge could then decide to free them, let them remain free, or he could in fact just take the ruling under advisement.
But I've got to tell you, Suzanne. This is so unusual because pardons typically can't be appealed. Once someone is pardoned, that is it, game is over.
MALVEAUX: Right.
HOSTIN: And so we're really in a legal quagmire here, right? This is something that lawyers just don't see very often, and I think that's why so many of us legal geeks are so enthralled today because you just never see it. You don't see it with presidential pardons. You certainly don't see it with pardons by governors, and this is really a very unusual case.
MALVEAUX: Right. And Sunny, how many pardons do we think are in jeopardy that we suspect they didn't follow in publishing in a newspaper?
HOSTIN: It's interesting, some people are saying more than half are in jeopardy. So we're basically in the 136, 137 realm, at least that's what I'm hearing. And you know, that's significant. Now the ones I think that most people are concerned about are the five convicted murderers in the trustee program that were released.
MALVEAUX: Right.
HOSTIN: My understanding, Suzanne, four of them are going to be in court today and so we could see them certainly go back to prison. One hasn't been tracked down and so he won't be there.
MALVEAUX: And real quickly here, Sunny, if these pardons are revoked, does it end there or can these convicts go back -- are they going to go back to prison or could they fight it even and take it another step?
HOSTIN: They're going to take it another step, there's no question about it. If they are sent back to prison, we are going to see an appeal in this case because it is just so unusual. And I think we're going to see a lot of changes in the pardon law.
MALVEAUX: All right. Sunny Hostin, yes, it's a fascinating case but already, you know, a lot of people very concerned for their safety as well. Thank you.
The Republican presidential candidates, they're descending on Florida now with the race, it is still up in the air, and while their fight is dragging on, does it actually help or hurt president Obama?
We're going to ask our political insiders.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MALVEAUX: Here's a rundown of some of the stories that we're working on. Next, the terrorist pivotal primary in Florida. What it's going to take to win that state.
Then a look inside the controversial world of sexual surrogates. And at 11:40 how to win in your next job interview. Good luck to you.
Well, the winner takes all in Florida's primary. The contest, it is now just eight days away. It's going to give the winning candidate a whopping 50 delegates. Now that is double the number from South Carolina.
The state is also a pretty good indicator of how a candidate will do across the country. It has a diverse population, almost a quarter of Floridians are Hispanic. About 1 in 6 African-American, 18 percent of Florida's population was born outside the United States. Unemployment 9.9 percent, which is higher than the national average.
Also, Floridians have been hit hard by the foreclosure crisis. They've got the fourth highest foreclosure rate in the country.
So the road to the Republican presidential nomination, of course, it swings through the critical Florida. And with GOP race still up in the air, spotlight even brighter on next Tuesday's primary.
Joining us to talk about Florida and beyond, Jamal Simmons, he's a Democratic strategist, principal of Arabian Group.
And Crystal Wright. She is editor and blogger with conservativeblackchic.com. So good to see you guys, again.
CRYSTAL WRIGHT, EDITOR/BLOGGER, CONSERVATIVE BLACK CHICK: Nice to see you, too.
JAMAL SIMMONS, DEMOCRATIC STRATEGIST: Good to see you.
MALVEAUX: It just gets more and more interesting. This is really historic. I want to start with you, Jamal.
This is a three-man race. There's no clear winner. The fight for the nomination could very well go beyond Super Tuesday. So the longer this thing goes, does it help or does it hurt President Obama? SIMMONS: Oh, I think this time it hurt -- it helps President Obama because it gives him the opportunity to stand on the stage like he's going to do tomorrow night at the State of the Union to be president of the United States, to be commander in chief, to be focused on jobs and the economy while the Republicans are involved in this sort of circus that's been taking place over there.
And so you've got all of these folks sniping and shooting at each other, going back and forth. Mitt Romney is still probably the favorite to become the nominee just because he's got money, organization that will last, but Newt Gingrich has surely decided that if Romney is going to win this nomination, he's going to have to go through Gingrich's body to do it. And they're really fighting it out.
MALVEAUX: Now and Crystal, let's take a look here. Mitt Romney who just went before reporters to answer some questions and he really went after Gingrich on this. I want you to listen to this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ROMNEY: I think as you look at the speaker's record over time, it's been highly erratic. You know, he voted in favor of establishing the Department of Education, and yet he gets in a debate and says we should get rid of the Department of Education and send all the education issues back to the states.
He's taken -- I mean he -- he's opposed vehemently to the Massachusetts health care system, and yet just a couple of years ago wrote about what a superb system it was.
GINGRICH: I think Governor Romney's core problem was that he governed as a Massachusetts moderate which by the standards of Republican primary voters is a liberal. And he can't -- he can't row axe and be candid.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MALVEAUX: All right, so, is this an effective line of attack for Romney?
WRIGHT: You know, watching that clip Romney can't even attack Gingrich with fortitude. He stammers, he stutters, I mean a week Romney is not an electable Romney. And we're seeing that over and over again. And Gingrich has pointed out the exact thing that I've said all along. Romney is looking solace. He's looking a wooden man, like a plastic Ken doll. He's going to have to break through in Florida and connect with the people.
And I think finally, you know, the only circus that's going on is the presidency of Barack Obama. Barack Obama, while the candidates, the GOP, the last four standing are talking about jobs and real issues, Barack Obama was in Disney World followed by four fundraisers. I think the one with Spike Lee was like $30,000 a plate then he had three others and then New York. And the day after the "State of the Union" Barack Obama is going to go to five swing states to raise money to protect his job. So I think if anything this battle between who our GOP nominee is going to be great for our nominee because they're putting a spotlight on Barack Obama, the campaigner in chief, more concerned with saving his own job than helping 13 million Americans find a job.
MALVEAUX: All right, we have to get Jamal in here real quick.
Jamal, one of the things Mitt Romney decided to do over the weekend, after he lost in South Carolina, was to go ahead and release his tax returns tomorrow. How do you think this is going to play out? Does it put this issue to rest or does it highlight his millionaire status and make it even more difficult to relate to him in terms of middle and working-class Republicans?
SIMMONS: Well, we'll see what's in the tax returns. And, remember, he's only releasing 2010 and an estimate for 2011. It will be interesting to see if people want us to go back further than 2010 and whether or not he has do this again when he has the final 2011 numbers.
But what's most interesting is something Crystal said a second ago, that Mitt Romney, when he's asked questions about this, he certainly does look uncomfortable. I wrote a piece that's going out today on govote.com about this. About how he has this Rotarian -- this Rotary Club president demeanor. He looks like he's standing in front of a bunch of businessmen. He can't really deliver these attacks while Newt Gingrich is sort of like a reformed rascal. He's sort of like one of these guys who -- you know, he's had a bad life before, got noon some trouble, but like Bill Clinton, like George W. Bush, he's trying to pull himself out of his negative traits and really trying to get back to the American people. And the American people are a forgiving bunch, which is why his personal life really doesn't have the same impact I think we thought it would be.
MALVEAUX: All right.
SIMMONS: So we'll see what happens when this fight goes on.
(LAUGHTER)
MALVEAUX: OK. A lot of fight left.
(LAUGHTER)
Jamal, Crystal, thank you very much.
A 67-year-old grandmother of two with an unusual line of work. That's right. She gets paid for sex. But she says there is much more to this, and she's telling us her story.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MALVEAUX: All right. A woman has sex for money. She says it's just one part of her job. She calls herself a sex surrogate. And her story is now inspiring a new movie debuting at the Sundance Film Festival.
Our Kareen Wynter met her.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CHERYL COHEN GREEN, SEX SURROGATE: I have had many people tell me, I have never been with anybody who talked so openly and comfortably about sexuality.
KAREEN WYNTER, CNN ENTERTAINMENT CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Cheryl Cohen Green doesn't just talk about sex. The 67-year-old grandmother of two actually engages in sex for money. Nearly 40 years ago, she became a sex surrogate. Today she's one of about 50 registered in the U.S.
(on camera): You're getting paid for sex.
GREEN: But I'm not getting paid for sex. I'm getting paid -- that is a piece of it, but more of the session, we're doing communication skills, touching skills. It's not all genitally focused. It's the whole body.
WYNTER (voice-over): Over the years, Cohen Green says she's seen more than 950 clients. Most of them here. inside her Berkeley, California, home. They're primarily men dealing with everything from impotence and other sexual dysfunctions to those dealing with physical disabilities.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR: I though of myself as the ugliest man in the world.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WYNTER: In this Oscar-winning 1996 documentary, the late author and poet, Margot Brian, who suffered from childhood polio, recalled visiting Cohen Green, desperate at age 36 to finally lose his virginity.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR: She kissed me on the chest after we had intercourse. I felt my chest was very unattractive.
UNIDENTIFIED ACTRESS: Take a deep breath.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WYNTER: Their story inspired "The Surrogate," premiering at Sundance this week.
This is where Cohen Green talks with clients. She says she talks with them about their bodies and instructs them on how to conquer their sexual hang-ups. The therapy sessions can include anything from fondling to actual intercourse, and range from six to 10 sessions, sometimes more. The American Psychological Association hasn't taken a position on the use of surrogates like Cohen Green, but some mental health experts think the practice is outrageous.
BETHANY MARSHALL, PSYCHOANALYST: You have a person holding themselves out to be an expert or an authority figure engaging in an act that puts another person in a position of tremendous vulnerability.
WYNTER: Cohen Green says the vulnerability goes both ways.
COHEN GREEN: This is a very vulnerable session we've had together. I had a vasectomy. I had a mastectomy. I had reconstruction. I had to introduce that to clients.
WYNTER: Her husband, Bob, supports what she does.
BOB GREEN, HUSBAND OF CHERYL COHEN GREEN: It doesn't bother me because I know what she's doing.
WYNTER: He was a client in 1979, struggling in relationships due to what he calls performance anxiety.
BOB GREEN: For me it was life changing. She provided a safe and secure environment where I was able to relax and calm myself, my mind.
COHEN GREEN: The more comfortable people are in any culture with their sexuality I believe there's less fighting. I believe they are happier people.
WYNTER: People she wants to feel as comfortable talking about sex as she does.
Kareen Wynter, CNN, Berkeley, California.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
MALVEAUX: It's an interesting story. You can hear more from sex surrogate, Cheryl Cohen Green, because our Brooke Baldwin will talk to her live tomorrow in the NEWSROOM, 2:00 to 4:00 p.m. eastern.
We're getting a lot of responses to today's "Talk Back" question. We asked: Do Republicans need someone mean to beat President Obama? Your responses up next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MALVEAUX: You have been sounding off on the "Talk Back" question. Carol Costello is here with some of your responses.
Hey, Carol, do people want to play nice or do they want the candidates to be mean?
(LAUGHTER)
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, let's see, today's "Talk Back" question: Do Republicans need someone mean to beat President Obama?
This from Pete. He says, "No, but they do need someone to intelligently, firmly, and passionately stand up for them. If firm, but kind is a political liability for Mitt Romney, that's a sad state of affairs for American politics."
This from Stuckey. He says, "You mean Republicans aren't mean already? Calling the president names and belittling every chance they get"?
This from J.M., "They don't just need someone mean for the Republicans, they need someone mean for the USA. Wake up America."
And this from Henry, "If Newt is so good, why did he get the boot from his own party"?
Please keep the conversation going. Facebook.com/CarolCNN. I'll be back with us in about 15 minutes.
MALVEAUX: All right. Carol, you're always nice. We like nice here.
COSTELLO: I try.
(LAUGHTER)
MALVEAUX: All right.
13 million Americans are now out of work. Others with jobs are looking for a promotion. The competition, as we know, very intense. So doing well in a job interview could basically make or break your chances of getting hired.
Felicia Taylor is joining us with some tips on how to navigate that process.
Some people can be very qualified but just bomb it in the interview. What can you do?
FELICIA TAYLOR, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes. You were talking about being nice. The job search isn't always so nice, Suzanne, but there are more than three million job openings out there, so says the Bureau of Labor Statistics. If you're frustrated because you're getting the silent treatment from a company you have applied to or interviewed with, you're not alone. Unfortunately, 90 percent of job seekers say getting feedback on their applications is making the process of applying quite frustrating. And 77 percent of job seekers think less of a company that doesn't respond to an application naturally. That's from a survey by Startwire, an Internet job search organizer -- Suzanne?
MALVEAUX: Felicia, obviously, it's frustrating if you're just waiting around. You have already done that interview. What do you do so you're not driving yourself crazy waiting for that call back?
TAYLOR: Exactly. It can take months to find a job. And on average, it takes six months, and in this economy, it can take even longer. It can be maddening.
But career coach, Caroline Ceniza-Levine, advises to be proactive. Don't be afraid to ask during that interview about what the next steps are, like when you can expect to hear from them. Who should you follow up with? Get a name and a contact number. If you're upfront about it, they may respect you more for that and you won't just be sitting by the phone. You will have a list of things to do. It's often a waiting game of at least a week or two, but Levine says even the best companies have candidates that sometimes fall through the cracks. Meaning it takes time. Or they need to wait for a key decision maker to come back with salary requirements or how long they can offer a contract and budgets have to be sorted out or they have to finish the roster of interviews. But make sure you're still in the mix. For instance -- this is an obvious one -- but send a thank-you note in the first 24 hours. And, yes, in this day and age, e-mail is fine. It doesn't have to be on paper. Then you can wait five business days to follow up with the person who actually interviewed you, and just check in with them and say, how is it going? I'm literally just checking in. Suzanne?
MALVEAUX: Within 24 hours, huh? That's quick turnaround. Just send it in, right?
(LAUGHTER)
TAYLOR: So you're still on their radar.
MALVEAUX: That makes sense.
Felicia, stick around for us because we want to find out how you can actually get the best deal if you have two job offers at the same time.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MALVEAUX: We're back with tips on landing that new job. So if you have advanced through the interview process you find yourself with maybe a couple offers. What do you do then?
Felicia Taylor.
Felicia, that's always the best scenario, right, when you can pit one against the other? How do you deal with that?
TAYLOR: Absolutely. In this job market, if you get two offers, you're really doing well. Career coach, Caroline Ceniza-Levine, says this is a great leveraging strategy. Give them specific details on when their deadline is. Be aware that the company may not be able to move as fast as you want them to. And they should also tell you that in return. So then you have to make the decision as to how long you're willing to wait and possibly risk losing that offer. So you have to kind of know where your best fit is and which company is really suited for you.
But be aware, if you try to stall a company's offer, they're going to suspect you're negotiating elsewhere naturally, and they might feel like they're a second choice. So don't use the strategy unless you really do have a second offer because it could backfire.
MALVEAUX: Yes, that is a risky strategy if you don't have two.
Felicia, thank you very much. Great tips. Good to see you.
TAYLOR: No problem, Suzanne.
MALVEAUX: Eight days until the next primary in Florida. But this race, it is going -- of course, a heck of a lot can happen in eight days.
Paul Steinhauser is joining us from Washington.
Paul, this is pretty amazing, over the weekend, it's all very exciting. You have four candidates but it's starting to feel like it could be a two-man race. How close do we think this is going to come in Florida?
PAUL STEINHAUSER, CNN DEPUTY POLITICAL DIRECTOR: It's getting very close in Florida. I would assume -- we haven't seen any brand new polls out of Florida. When we do, it's going to show a pretty close contest, Suzanne. Last week, the polls showed that Romney was way up. I have a feeling that because of what happened in South Carolina and Newt Gingrich's win there, it's going to be a tighter race.
Take a look at this though. This is a national poll from Gallop. This is registered Republicans across the country. Back on January 15th, right after Romney won New Hampshire, there was a 23 percent margin for him over Gingrich. Look at it now. That poll, the latest numbers can out Sunday, yesterday, down five points in this Gallop daily tracking poll. Again, this is national, not Florida. But it's showing the Gingrich momentum.
You want more about that Newt Gingrich momentum? In the last 24 hours after his big win in South Carolina, Gingrich's campaign says they raised $1 million. They did a money bomb. They say they raised $1 million in that 24-hour period. And they say that 500 people volunteered just in those 24 hours after Gingrich's big win in the South Carolina primary.
MALVEAUX: A money bomb? You've got to love that.
STEINHAUSER: A money bomb.
MALVEAUX: Money bomb.
STEINHAUSER: Yes, he's stealing from Ron Paul, I guess, from Congressman Paul. He does a lot of those money bombs. And we have two debates this week, Suzanne. We have one tonight and our CNN debate on Thursday night. These debates have been very, very influential. And I have a feeling these two will be as well.
MALVEAUX: Absolutely. And a lot could change in a week. Mitt Romney's now promising to release his tax records tomorrow, right? And he's also digging into some other things. STEINHAUSER: He sure is. Those tax records, that was a tough story line for him last week in the debates and elsewhere. That's one of the reasons why he did not do so well in South Carolina. He wants to go on the offense. He was on defense last week. He wants to go on offense. Tomorrow morning, he's going to release his tax records, the 2010 records and the estimate for 2011. You're right. He's going on the offense against Gingrich over Gingrich's time when he was with Freddie Mac, the troubled mortgage giant. Remember, in Florida, that's a big story. A lot of people with home foreclosures there.
Take a listen to what Romney said in Tampa this morning.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MITT ROMNEY, (R), FORMER MASSACHUSETTS GOVERNOR & PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I'm calling on Speaker Gingrich to do two things. One, release all of the work product associated with his work at Freddie Mac. And also, return the funds that he made from Freddie Mac. I wouldn't have normally suggested that, other than he was the one who said that, if you made money on this failed model, that you ought to return that money.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
STEINHAUSER: Looks like we're seeing a much more aggressive Mitt Romney -- Suzanne?
MALVEAUX: Thanks, Paul.
For the latest political news, you know where to go, CNNpolitics.com.
And President Obama is getting ready to outline his vision for the future. We'll get a preview of the president's State of the Union speech, the address. We'll also look at how well he did on some of last year's goals.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MALVEAUX: All right. If you want to compare President Obama to the Republican candidates when it comes to their jobs plans, it all comes down to the role of government. The Republican candidates all have different ways of saying essentially the same thing.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RICK SANTORUM, (R), FORMER PENNSYLVANIA SENATOR & PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Free markets, free enterprise, not top-down government control.
ROMNEY: We're going to get rid of a lot of programs, even some we like. We've got to cut back Washington.
REP. RON PAUL, (R), TEXAS & PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: They want to police the world and spin us into bankruptcy. NEWT GINGRICH, (R), FORMER HOUSE SPEAKER & PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: This is a country that has over spent. It's not under taxed.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MALVEAUX: So basically, they all want to limit the role of government by cutting taxes and regulations, slashing federal spending.
Mitt Romney's plan is to try to repeal President Obama's signature health care law. Then he would knock out the financial regulations that followed the Wall Street melt down. Now, Romney would also like to reduce the corporate tax rate from 35 percent to 25 percent.
Newt Gingrich is in the same camp. He would repeal the health care law and recent financial regulations. He says the country should move towards an optional flat tax of 15 percent. He'd cut the corporate income tax cut and eliminate the capital gains and inheritance taxes.
And Ron Paul takes the most aggressive approach. He wants to return to the gold standard, eliminate the Federal Reserve and the income tax entirely. He also would do away with most federal regulations.
Rick Santorum would specifically scrap taxes for American manufacturers, slash other corporate and individual income taxes to try to spur economic growth.
Well, tomorrow night, President Obama is going to outline his plans for the future in his State of the Union address. We want to take a look at how well did the president do on some of the goals he set in last year's speech?
I'm going to bring in our own Dan Lothian.
Dan, good to see you.
DAN LOTHIAN, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Good to see you.
MALVEAUX: Give us some examples of what the president promised to do, what he did, and what he did not do?
LOTHIAN: First of all, the president last of year had a very ambitious vision for the future, so we decided to highlight a couple of things where the president was not able to get what he wanted. First of all, we heard the president during last year in his address talk how wealthier Americans needed to bear more of the burden. That the extension of the tax cuts was not something that the American people could afford. Republicans pushed back hard so the president did not get his way. Another thing the president spoke about in that address last year that there need to be more jobs. He wanted to see jobs created for those who were working on roads and bridges, and that it should be fully paid for. We did see much of that vision included in the president's jobs bill sent up to Congress and, of course, we saw that that did not go anywhere.
On the flip side, there were those trade bills that the president last year talked about how he wanted Congress to approve quickly. It was held up. The White House had not sent those bills up to the Hill because they wanted to make sure that they were as strong as possible trade agreements that were sent up there. Eventually, all three of those agreements for Panama, Colombia, and South Korea were passed, everyone agreeing that it would lead to tens and thousands of jobs for Americans.
MALVEAUX: Dan, what do we expect to hear from the president tomorrow night?
LOTHIAN: The focus will be on economy and job creation. We got a hint of what the president plans to deliver from a video that the White House released to supporters over the weekend. Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We can go in two directions. One is towards less opportunity and less fairness or we can fight for where I think we need to go, building an economy that works for everyone, not just the wealthy few.
On Tuesday night, I'm going to talk about how we'll get there. I'm going to lay out a blueprint for an economy that is built to last.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LOTHIAN: That blueprint will focus on a few things. Manufacturing, how to get more products out there that are stamped "Made in America." Also, energy, making more domestic energy sources, and also alternative energy sources. Education, how to prevent -- rather prepare young people for the jobs of the future. And then finally again, middle class values, how to create a system where not just the wealthy can succeed -- Suzanne?
MALVEAUX: All right. We'll all be watching.
Dan, thank you.
Watch CNN for special coverage of the State of the Union address tomorrow night, 8:00 p.m. eastern, with "Anderson Cooper 360," followed by the president's speech at 9:00.
