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Romney Attacks Obama Record; Taxing The Rich More; Penn State Honors Paterno; Southeast Cleans Up From Storms; New Home Video From Italy Cruise Ship; 115 Misplaced Headstones; Waiting For Solar Storm's Fallout; Oscar Nominees; State Of The Union Secrets; Gingrich Reaches Out To Florida Voters
Aired January 24, 2012 - 13:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
RANDI KAYE, CNN ANCHOR: And hello, everyone. I'm Randi Kaye. It's 1:00. We've got a very busy hour ahead, so let's get straight to the news, everyone.
His tax returns are public and attacks from his rivals keep coming. But on State of the Union day, Mitt Romney wants to talk about President Obama. In a pre-buttal to tonight's presidential address, the onetime GOP presidential front-runner attacked the incumbent for, quote, "high unemployment, record foreclosures, debt that's too high, opportunities too few." Newt Gingrich, meanwhile, doesn't think it's an opportunity to slam Romney as he did here in St. Petersburg, Florida.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
NEWT GINGRICH (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I discovered, I guess, that Romney has a new debate coach, whose specialty is to say as many untrue things as fast as you can, and we (ph) get them all into one or two quick statements. So, I thought it was kind of wild.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KAYE: Here's a snapshot of Romney's tax details. For 2010, he and his wife reported income topping $21 million, mostly from investments on which they paid less than 14 percent in federal tax. The Gingriches and the Obamas earned far less and paid, percentage wise, far more.
Tax rates are sure to come up in President Obama's third State of the Union speech. Here's one tip-off. We're told Warren Buffett's secretary will be a guest of the first lady. You'll remember in calling for higher taxes on millionaires, billionaire Buffett remarked that his secretary pays a higher rate than he does. In just a few moments, we'll go behind the scenes of the biggest presidential speech of the year with man who's been there time and again. Michael Waldman joins me in Facetime about six minutes from now.
As we speak, fans and friends of Joe Paterno are getting their first chance to say their final good-byes. A public viewing getting underway on the Penn State campus for the winningest major college football coach of all-time. Paterno passed away Sunday at 85, just weeks after coaching his final game and being fired in a child sex abuse scandal involving his former assistant. A private funeral is planned for tomorrow and a public service for Thursday.
Now to the Southeast, where people are trying to come to grips with the aftermath of devastating storms. Tornadoes touched down yesterday in Arkansas and Alabama, damaging or destroying more than 400 homes. An 83-year-old man and a 16-year-old girl were killed in Jefferson county, Alabama. The teen's body was found 40 feet from her home, still on her bedroom mattress. Her father said, quote, "She just looked like she was sleeping like a baby. But she wasn't sleeping. She was gone."
Rescuers in Italy have found another body aboard the Costa Concordia, bringing the number of dead to 16. Another 16 people are still missing. The cruise ship crashed more than a week ago and survivors are still sharing their stories. You're looking at video shot by Denise and David Saba of Miami. They were on the ship for their honeymoon. They were among the first passengers to evacuate and say crew members were clearly not prepared for this type of emergency.
New developments in a shocking story that we've been following. Scores of misplaced headstones found at several military cemeteries across the country. In addition, eight people were buried in the wrong spot. Veteran affairs department says a review was ordered last October after workers at Fort Sam Houston National Cemetery in San Antonio discovered over 40 headstones in the wrong spot. This report follows the revelation of widespread burial problems at Arlington National Cemetery.
Turning now to a massive solar storm that could reach the earth later today. According to NASA, it is the largest in years, and it is expected to send a shower of radioactive solar particles racing toward earth. It could possibly impact power grids, satellites, navigation systems like your GPS, even possibly air travel. NASA says solar flares are our solar system's largest explosive events and can last from minutes to hours.
Well, the Oscar nominations are out. Golden Globe winner "The Artist" nominated for 10 academy awards, including Best Picture. Here's a look at the other movies also up for best picture, "The Descendents," "The Help," "Moneyball," "Hugo," "War Horse," "Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close," "The Tree of Life," And "Midnight in Paris." And a surprise to many, a Best Supporting Actress nod (ph) for Melissa McCartney in the comedy "Bridesmaids." You get to find out who the winners are Sunday, February 26th.
Ever wonder what it's like in the White House on State of the Union day, last-minute edits, word changes, additions, you name it. Well, this guy knows all about it. He's written four of them for President Clinton and he is spilling all the secrets, next.
But first, today's Rock Stars. Kudos go out to a group of friends, all snowmobilers, who saw their pal get buried alive in an avalanche. One of the guys was wearing a helmet cam that captured the whole thing as it happened and here's what they did.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) UNIDENTIFIED MALE (voice-over): I knew that I was buried enough in snow that I couldn't move. So, I mean, I just was suffocating in the snow.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And when they were digging, then I was like, oh, this isn't good. You know, so I was grabbing a shovel while, you know, the guys were in there with their hands.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Can you breathe?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We got you.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We got you, buddy.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We got you, you're good.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They knew where I went in the snow, and that was the saving grace is knowing exactly where I went in the snow.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAYE: As we look ahead to what's usually the biggest presidential address of the year, we remember last year's State of the Union and wonder what became of all those big ideas. Tom Foreman did some checking.
TOM FOREMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Republicans have never liked the president's health care reform plans, no secret there. So, he invited them last year to tell them how it should be changed and made one proposal of his own.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BARRACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: If you have ideas about how to improve this law by making care better or more affordable, I am eager to work with you. We can start right now, by correcting the flaw in the legislation that has placed an unnecessary bookkeeping burden on small businesses.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FOREMAN: That part about giving small businesses a break, Republicans, Democrats, pretty much everyone liked that, at least enough to pass a bill to remove that requirement for expanded reporting to the IRS by such companies. The president signed it in April, that's a proposal accepted and a promise kept.
KAYE: And as we like to point out every year, the Constitution requires presidents to, and I quote, "give to the Congress information of the State of the Union." It does not say he or she has to give a speech, nor that it has to be an annual event, equal parts pomp and politics. But it's all that and more. And sometimes the real drama takes place offstage.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, you don't see that every day of the week.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He's got the whole White House press corps. (INAUDIBLE.)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Better call the (INAUDIBLE.)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, we've got to rewrite the State of the Union.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Every word, kid. It's a whole new ball game. You have exactly 35 minutes.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh, good. I thought I was going to be rushed.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KAYE: OK, that's a movie, but the stakes and the pressures are very real, just ask Michael Waldman. As head speech writer for President Clinton, he oversaw four State of the Union addresses and two inaugural speeches. He now heads the Brendan Center for Justice at NYU Law School. Mr. Waldman, nice to have you on the program. To borrow another famous phrase, it takes a village to craft a State of the Union, does it not?
MICHAEL WALDMAN, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, BRENDAN CENTER FOR JUSTICE, NYU LAW SCHOOL: Well, it's really true that a speech like this is not just to get applause from the audience or even to look good on television, but it's really a statement of policy and of political aims by whoever the president is. So, everybody has a view of what a president ought to say and we used to joke that sometimes you need a round keyboard so everyone could type at once.
KAYE: That is a great visual. Let me play a clip for you from President Clinton's 1996 address that we know resonates in your memory.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BILL CLINTON, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: The era of big government is over. But we cannot go back to the time when our citizens were left to fend for themselves.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KAYE: What do you think? Might we expect to hear some similar statements tonight?
WALDMAN: Well, like that speech -- in that speech, President Clinton was launching his re-election campaign, and he was doing it right after the very bruising fight over the government shutdown that he had with then-speaker Newt Gingrich. And he was claiming the center and saying, really, that he had won in a -- in a battle over the role of government. I think President Obama is launching his re- election year in a slightly different position. We're really going to hear a very grand debate in this country over how to fix the economy, how to help the middle class, and what the role of government should be. So, I think with we can expect to hear some big ideas from the president, not just ones that maybe miss Congress, with all its troubles, would pass, but what he thinks he might want to do over the long run.
KAYE: And speaking of Congress and all its troubles and all the gridlock in Washington, if you were in speech writer Jon Favreau's shoes today, who's writing this speech for President Obama, what approach would you take?
Well, first of all, he needs to, and I'm sure he will, lay out a big economic vision, a big sense of how we not only deal with the current crisis, but get out of this make-or-break moment, as he's put it, for the middle class. And I think the timing of Mitt Romney releasing his tax returns and showing that he, himself, also pays more than Warren Buffett's secretary couldn't be better for a big discussion of those fairness issues.
But I also hope, and if I were there, I would encourage the president to talk about how government works. To talk about the paralysis in government, and really talk about things like the role of money in politics, the super PACs and how they're flooding the system with new secret funds, and that's going to make it even harder to make any change and make any progress in Washington. I think people are hungry to hear that kind of reform message, as well as talk about the economy.
KAYE: I don't have to tell you this, but you do know that President Clinton took some heat for the length of his State of the Union speeches, but you say, long isn't such a bad thing?
WALDMAN: Well you know, every time President Clinton gave one of those speeches, they went on a long time, forever and ever, and a lot of the pundits would go on T.V. and say, oh, that was too long, it showed a lack of self-discipline, but the public loved it. In fact, President Clinton's ratings went up as the speech went along. And what that says to me, and it's true for President Obama too, voters, even now, are eager to hear from their president directly about what vision he has for the country, what he thinks people ought to be doing and what we need to do. You know, even in this crazy media environment, with everything that's happening, people have a hunger to hear from their elected leader about what's going on and what to do. And you know, it's one of the few remaining civic rituals.
KAYE: And tell me, at this point, the speech will happen at 8:00 Eastern. At what time do they finally say, OK, this is the final -- or 9:00 Eastern. What time is the final moment where they're done with the finishing touches? Well, you know, that kind of thing, of course, very much depends on who the president is. I know that president George W. Bush liked to have these things done pretty far in advance. President Clinton, as everybody knows, often was writing and rewriting in the limo, up to Capitol Hill. And President Clinton would do something, which was very hard, which was he'd actually ad lib off a teleprompter.
My sense is that President Obama is deeply involved in the writing and rewriting of the many drafts of a speech like this. And I am sure that they are fiddling with it up until the last minute. You can -- this kind of speech goes through 10, 20 or more drafts and any president who gets up there is really going to own it and know it backwards and forwards.
KAYE: Do you remember sweating it out with President Clinton? I'm just curious what time he made his final edit on your work?
WALDMAN: Oh, you know, as I say, it was -- it was often a wonderment to know what was going to be actually up there, and very often, there were challenges with the prompter, where the military officers who ran the teleprompter and still run the teleprompter for presidential speeches had to wonder if there was some computer glitch that was going to mess the whole thing up. So you know, it can be pretty high stakes. But I just think it's a wonderful event, because I don't mind everybody jumping up and clapping and the sort of showmanship of it, compared to the audience at a Republican presidential debate, there's decorum in the Congress. It's going to look tame compared to what we've been seeing.
KAYE: Well, we'll see. We'll hold you to that prediction. Michael Waldman, great talking with you. Thank you.
WALDMAN: My pleasure.
KAYE: Country singer Garth Brooks is back in court. He's suing a hospital for allegedly misusing a donation he made in honor of his mother, but now he's singing a different tune and faces his most important audience yet, the jury. More on his legal battle, next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAYE: There are a lot of stories we want to update you on for today's "Crime & Consequence."
Seven years after U.S. Marines were accused of brutally killing 24 civilians in Haditha, Iraq, their squad leader learns his fate for his role in the deaths. Staff Sergeant Frank Wuterich is expected to be sentenced today. The hearing is going on as we speak. On Monday, Wuterich agreed to a plea deal and pled guilty to one count of negligent dereliction of duty. The maximum he could face is three months. He originally faced up to life for several counts of manslaughter, assault, and dereliction of duty. Wuterich is one of eight Marines charged for shooting deaths in Haditha. The cases were dropped for the six other Marines, while one was acquitted.
A former CIA officer faces charges for leaking classified secrets to journalists. The Justice Department says John Kiriakou revealed the names of covert CIA officers and details about top-secret operations. The charges center around the series of events and his book, "The Reluctant Spy," that the Justice Department claims violates the espionage act to protect the nation's secrets. Kiriakou spoke openly to several media outlets, including CNN, about the capture and interrogation of one of the agency's key detainees, Abu Zubaida, who was al Qaeda's chief military strategist. Back in 2007, Kiriakou was the first to acknowledge Abu Zubaida was subjected to waterboarding.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOHN ROBERTS, FORMER ANCHOR, "AMERICAN MORNING": How valuable was the information that the CIA gleamed from waterboarding?
JOHN KIRIAKOU, FORMER CIA AGENT: I have no doubt that the information gleaned from Abu Zubaida in those early days stopped terrorist attacks and saved lives.
ROBERTS: Did it also lead you to other suspects?
KIRIAKOU: It did. It did indeed.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KAYE: Kiriakou appeared in federal court and was released after posting $250,000 bond.
Garth Brooks could soon learn if an Oklahoma hospital in his home town will have to return his $500,000 donation. According to affiliate KOTV, jurors could begin deliberating on the civil lawsuit as early as today. Brooks is suing the hospital claiming it promised to name a building after his late mother in exchange for the donation. The hospital says Brooks' gift was, quote, "unconditional."
You may think driving a car is easy or even fun, but many veterans returning from war are having a hard time staying calm behind the wheel. After the break, I'll talk with one veteran who is now afraid to drive.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAYE: Consider this terrifying thought. You're driving on a highway and suddenly you're so overcome by fear that you slam on the brakes or pull to the side of the road. That or something similar to it is happening to thousands of combat veterans who have returned from Afghanistan and Iraq. According to "The New York Times," car accidents in which service members were at fault soared by 13 percent after deployments. "The Times," citing army figures, says 48 off-duty soldiers died in car accidents last year, the highest total in three years.
Former Army Reservist Susan Max is an Iraq War veteran diagnosed with PTSD, and knows the fear of driving firsthand. Marc Samuels is a driving rehabilitation specialist who's helping Susan overcome those driving fears.
Welcome to both of you.
First, Susan, let me start with you here. Tell us what you did in Iraq and how that experience might have contributed to some of the driving issues that you're having today. SUSAN MAX, IRAQ WAR VETERAN: I was a civil affairs officer over there, 2007 to 2008, which was during the surge. I did primarily economic issues over there, reconstruction and stabilization. Part of my job was to be a page. And I essentially paid Iraqi contractors for work they had done at a commander's emergency response program. And that required me to go outside periodically and pay them or bring them back inside. And there were a couple of instances where it was pretty dicey, take a --
KAYE: And what is it like for you at home now? What has that experience caused?
MAX: Well, you know, there's quite a few things, but in terms of the driving, driving is not a very pleasant experience. It's very frightening at times. I'm very hyper vigilant. I'm not a particularly aggressive driver or an erratic driver. I'm a very safe driver in a lot of ways, but very, very hyper vigilant. And I'm aware of what's going on around me all the time.
You know, a lot of anxiety while I'm driving. And frequently, you know, it's very exhausting, as well as, you know, there's some physical manifestations with, you know, shoulder pain and neck pain and what have you because I'm gripping the steering wheel.
KAYE: Right.
Marc, let me ask you, because, you know, from what I understand, a lot of these folks coming back, they'll race through intersections because they're used to doing that at checkpoints. They'll stay away from the sides of the road, because they think maybe there's a roadside bomb. They'll avoid a crowded parking lot, in case they might think they can't get out. Is that what you're seeing with Susan and others?
MARC SAMUELS, DRIVING REHABILITATION SPECIALIST: Yes. Actually, Susan, in particular, is, as she said, a very good driver, to the point of being hyper vigilant. A lot of the drivers I'm working with, a lot of the drivers I see at the VA, are demonstrating those triggers. They're triggered by overpasses, people on the side of the road on cell phones, slowing traffic for no apparent reason. The things that we kind of take for granted and get frustrated with, they see as a possible trap and a risk to their lives. So their reactions very often will be speeding up, crowding other cars, even to the point of going up on to the sidewalk or going literally off-roading to get around something that they think might be a potential danger.
KAYE: And how are you helping Susan and the others overcome their fears?
SAMUELS: Well, we work with the Palo Alto VA. We have a program where we work in conjunction with the psychiatrists and psychologists to identify what triggers might be occurring on the road so that way I get on the road and I'm able to kind of periodically increase their stimulus and I'm watching their eyes, I'm watching their heart rate, because we have heart rate monitors on them. I'm watching how they grip the wheel. And I can see as their stress levels go up, we're able to identify and work through, OK, why are you feeling this way? How can we change that reaction to what you're seeing or doing? And then, therefore, have a more constructive driving experience and more positive driving experience.
KAYE: Susan, how much do you drive these days and how does your family feel about it? Will they get in the car with you?
MAX: They would prefer not to. I, you know, either way, either as a passenger, they can't stand me because I'm as vigilant as a passenger as I am when I'm driving and it drives them nuts. They would prefer that I not drive because of my hyper vigilance. It's just not a pleasant experience for anybody. And I do drive extensively as part of my job. And so I am on the road a lot. So it's not the best experience for me. Marc has helped me tremendously and I am very appreciative. Thank you very much.
SAMUELS: My pleasure. That's why we're here.
KAYE: It sounds like you're in good hands there with Marc. And, Susan, keep us up to date, if you would. Keep us posted on how you're doing and how your driving is working out for you. Thank you both very much.
MAX: I sure will.
SAMUELS: Thank you so much.
MAX: Thank you.
KAYE: At last night's debate, Mitt Romney tried to put a stop to Newt Gingrich's momentum. Did his attack plan work or did Romney just give Gingrich the ammunition he needs to take Florida. That is "Fair Game," next.
And now for our political junkie question. Listen up here. Who was the first president to deliver an annual address to Congress? You can tweet the answer to me @randikayecnn. I'll give a shout-out to you if you are first with the right answer.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAYE: Before the break, I asked you which president gave the first annual address to Congress. The answer is George Washington, way back in 1790. He had to, because it's in the Constitution. And a big congratulations to Dr. Ken from Miami for tweeting me the right answer first.
This is the part of the show where we get to the heart of the political debate, where all sides are "Fair Game."
First up is the Republican presidential race in Florida. If you missed last night's debate, here it is.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MITT ROMNEY, (R), FORMER MASSACHUSETTS GOVERNOR & PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: The speaker was given an opportunity to be the leader of our party in 1994, and at the end of four years, he had to resign in disgrace. In the 15 years after he left the speakership, the speaker has been working as an influence peddler in Washington.
NEWT GINGRICH, (R), FORMER HOUSE SPEAKER & PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: And I just think this is the worst kind of trivial politics.
ROMNEY: I made to point out things I think people ought to know.
GINGRICH: You have all this stuff just jumbled up. Apparently, your consultants aren't very good historians. What you ought to do is stop and look at the facts.
RICK SANTORUM, (R), FORMER PENNSYLVANIA SENATOR & PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: The path to victory is to tell the people of Florida and to the people of this country of someone's here that presents a very clear contrast with the president of the United States. Someone that will make him the issue in this race, not the Republican candidate.
ROMNEY: Well, this is going to come down to a question of leadership.
GINGRICH: I think as a party builder. The 20 years I spent building the House Republican Party stands pretty good as an example of leadership.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KAYE: Joining me now is CNN contributor, Maria Cardona, and Republican strategist, Doug Heye.
So who did the best job of getting their message across?
Maria, I'll start with you.
MARIA CARDONA, DEMOCRATIC STRATEGIST & CNN CONTRIBUTOR: Actually, I think in total, Randi, the whole debate was sort of a snoozer, to tell you the truth, compared to the other ones. I don't know if it's because the audience was told that they couldn't chime in. And if that's true, I think that they did Newt Gingrich a disservice, because he looked very uncomfortable during some of his supposed one-liners, when he would sort of pause for the applause, and there was no applause, and there was no standing ovation.
Mitt Romney went on the attack, which is exactly what he needed to do in order to slow down Newt Gingrich's momentum. But he looked so uncomfortable doing it that it was almost -- it was -- I cringed in watching it. Because he clearly -- that is not a role that he likes. It is not a role that he is good at. And Newt Gingrich, frankly, was not in the role to be subdued, which is actually what he was. So I don't think either of them succeeded in getting the message out to Florida voters that they needed to.
KAYE: Doug, what do you think? It seemed to me almost if the two had changed personalities? Romney was on the attack and Newt Gingrich was just sort of standing there and saying -- sort of trying to be above the fray. DOUG HEYE, REPUBLICAN STRATEGIST: Right. Certainly, this is the first time we've seen them in this role during this campaign, and it is kind of a switch. But this is something that was inevitable. No candidate was ever inevitable, really.
But as we've gone through trying to keep this focused on President Obama, as this race has gone on and on, at some points, the candidates are really going to have to contrast themselves with each other. That's what we saw last night. It's not a role, from what we saw last night, that I think either expected, but it's necessary for these candidates, as they hope to move forward, to continue that. And we'll see that in the next debate coming up later this week.
KAYE: Let's talk about Mitt Romney and his taxes. He released his returns from last year, and the estimate for this year, if we take a look here together, in 2010, he made more than $21 million, paid $3 million in taxes. Some of his money is also in banks in the Cayman Islands, which of course has raised some eyebrows. But the man who runs the blind trust managing those funds says that Romney pays the same amount of taxes as if the money was in the U.S.
So is this a dead issue or is this whole tax issue going to follow him and continue to be fodder for Gingrich and the Democrats, Maria?
CARDONA: Well, it's certainly going to follow him if he ends up being the nominee, Randi, because what he's done, certainly, is not enough. He needs to take a page from his own father, who released 12 years of tax returns. We need to see the tax returns from when he was head of Bain Capital to see what's there, to see what it is that he doesn't want us to see. And I think it's all an issue of perception. And as we all know in politics, perception is reality.
And then, also, an issue of hypocrisy. Hypocrisy on the fact that Mitt Romney wants to talk about not wanting any government subsidies, wanting to get government out of the way completely. And guess what, when he was head of Bain Capital, a lot of the companies that he invested in got government subsidies. When he was governor of Massachusetts, he counted on government subsidies to attract business to the state.
And then in terms of perception, he clearly continues to be one of the candidates who is so out of touch with middle class and working class families that they will go into the voting booth and say, here is somebody who will never get what we're going through, never understand, and frankly, never care.
KAYE: All right. Let me stop you right there.
I want to ask Doug about the State of the Union address. This could be President Obama's last State of the Union address. How bold does he have to be? And how does he pull this of without it sounding like a campaign speech?
HEYE: Well, it, by definition, will be a campaign speech. It's been framed as such over the last few weeks leading up to this. I would love to see the president be bold. I would love to see new ideas. And I would love to him come out and not just attack a do- nothing Congress and expect that to just be Republicans.
I would to see some leadership and have the same president, who stood on that roster and said pass this bill, to look Harry Reid in the eyes and say, pass a budget. It's been more than 1,000 days since the United States Senate passed a budget. Brian Walsh at the National Republican Senatorial Committee put out a video highlighting that. And that's why the man who really ran to remove all types of just hate towards politics has actually caused even more hypocrisy in politics. It's why people are as cynical as they are. He can stop that. Gabby Giffords, tonight, is a great example of how he can change that. But I doubt that we'll really see much from the president substantively.
KAYE: Doug Heye, Maria Cardona, that is all.
That is "Fair Game" today.
Thank you both.
CARDONA: Thank you.
HEYE: Thank you.
KAYE: At last year's State of the Union address, this woman was singled out for going back to school. She was even caught on camera saying, "That's me." Well, now it is one year later. Did she stay in school and what does she think of our president now? She joins us live to explain, next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAYE: If you watched President Obama's State of the Union address last year, you may remember one moment in particular, a moment when the president singled out a very special guest. Watch.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Last month, I saw the promise of these schools at Forsythe Tech in North Carolina. Many of the students there used to work in the surrounding factories that have since left town.
One mother of two, a woman named Kathy Proctor, had worked in the furniture industry since she was 18 years old. And she told me she's earning her degree in biotechnology now, at 55 years old.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KAYE: You've got to love that moment.
You saw Kathy Proctor there, proudly proclaiming, "That's me," when Mr. Obama referred to her. Hard to forget, right? So how did she score a coveted seat in the first lady's box? We'll go back to 2010 here, when Mr. Obama was touring a community college in North Carolina. That's where he met the mother of two, who, at 55 years old, who had decided to go back to college to train for an entirely different career. How'd it all work out for her?
Kathy Proctor joins me now from Winston-Salem, North Carolina.
Kathy, what a great clip of you at last year's State of the Union. Does it make you chuckle just a little bit? What was that moment like?
KATHY PROCTOR, COLLEGE GRADUATE INTRODUCED DURING SOTU: Yes, it still makes me chuckle and laugh. I was in a state of shock and amazement, you know, to be there with all those people and it was such an honor. But I knew he would probably mention Forsythe, Texas, but I did not he was going to tell my name and my story. And that's why I said, oh, that's me.
KAYE: You worked in the furniture industry for about 18 years and then you left to get a degree in biotechnology. Update us on your life now.
PROCTOR: Well, I graduated this past July and I acquired a job with Vitacost (ph), a company in Lexington, where I work with quality control. I do some volunteer work still at Forsythe Tech with the Math and Science Technology Club. I volunteer there. And I've did a couple of interviews, one with George Packer with "The New Yorker." He's writing a book on the North Carolina economy.
KAYE: Some people who are in a similar situation, you know, they might be afraid to make that leap. Do you have some advice for them?
PROCTOR: Well, you just have to make it. You know, I'm no exception. I'm just like all the other students or people in North Carolina that's lost their job. And the manufacturing jobs have dwindled away. There's not many of them. But you just have to pick something and go for it. And you know, stay with it, and finish it.
KAYE: When you attended the State of the Union last year, you also got to visit the White House. You met the first lady. Tell me about that.
PROCTOR: Well, we had a private reception before the State of the Union address at the White House. And we was in there. They flew my daughters up with me. They were twins then -- I mean, they were twins and seniors in high school. And she came down and made a little speech and went around and spoke to everybody, and we met her, and she met my daughters. And she just went around and talked to everybody.
KAYE: And I understand you met the first dog as well. But I want to listen to something else that the president --
PROCTOR: Yes.
KAYE: -- said during his address last year about you.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
OBAMA: She wanted to inspire her children to pursue their dreams too. As Kathy said, I hope it tells them to never give up. (END VIDEO CLIP)
KAYE: Have you inspired your children?
PROCTOR: I think so. Like I said, they both graduated this past June from high school, and they're both in college. I have one daughter that works a full-time job, and then she goes full-time to a community college. And the other one is in Raleigh at Meredith and N.C. State, so I think I've inspired them. I think I've -- you know, they see the importance of getting an education.
KAYE: And what will you be listening for tonight in the president's speech?
PROCTOR: Well, I'd like to hear him talk about jobs. You know, jobs that are going to stay here and not where people will lose their jobs in six months. That and education, making it affordable and accessible to people that want it and need it. And that, and health care. You know, I think people need health care and insurance and making that affordable for people.
KAYE: Kathy Proctor, nice to have you on the program. Thank you very much.
PROCTOR: All right, thank you.
KATE: And you can watch CNN's special coverage of President Obama's State of the Union address starting tonight at 8:00 eastern.
A hard hit on the football field brings one high school star's career to an end.
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Here he is, my little brother. He's not moving. He needs help breathing. I mean, I just lost it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KAYE: A look at concussions and other hazards that impact kids across the country when Dr. Sanjay Gupta joins us live.
But first, looks like Disney finally got the memo. Beards are the new black. After a near 60-year ban on facial hair, the company says beginning next week, employees at its two theme parking will finally be allowed to grow their beards. The "Orlando Sentinel" says the ban was imposed by Walt Disney himself back in 1955. Clearly, a ban that didn't include six of the seven dwarfs, though. So to Disney, on behalf of three of my bearded producers and my colleague, Wolf Blitzer, we say thank you. We're glad the ban's 15 minutes is finally up.
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(COMMERCIAL BREAK) KAYE: Time now to check stories that's making news at "Street Level."
Let's start in Madison, Wisconsin, where we want to introduce cow to this new multi-millionaire and his amazing story. Napoleon Elvord is a military vet who suffers from kidney failure. He recently hit a $14.3 million lotto jackpot. Elvord plans to buy health insurance, pay for a kidney transplant, and more importantly, help others with his winnings.
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NAPOLEON ELVORD, WISCONSIN LOTTERY WINNER: I would like to work with people with kidney failure. I mean, I know that there's a lot of people out there sick, and until you dealt with it yourself, you don't really know how bad things really can be.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KAYE: GOP presidential candidate Rick Santorum didn't exactly get the welcome he expected at a campaign stop in Lady Lake, Florida.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
(SHOUTING)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Mic check!
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Mic check!
(SHOUTING)
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KAYE: You can't see it from that angle, but Santorum was just glitter bombed moments before that. According to affiliate WESH, three of the four protesters identified themselves as members of Occupy Tampa. A bit of deja vu. You can see protesters in South Carolina glitter bombed Santorum just this weekend.
Finally, we're taking a pit stop at Candlestick Park, back to the NFC championship game this weekend. According to several reports, the New York Giants admit they honed in on San Francisco 49er's punt returner, Kyle Williams, whose fumble led to the Giants' win. Giants player, Devon Thomas, said, "He's had a lot of concussions. We were just, like, we've got to put a hit on that guy. Sash did a great job of hitting him early and he looked kind of dazed when he got up. I feel like that made a difference and he coughed it up."
Concussions don't just impact the pros on game day, but also kids across the country. CNN Chief medical correspondent, Sanjay Gupta, will be with us. His upcoming documentary, "Big Hits, Broken Dreams," premieres this Sunday. And here's a preview.
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Football in North Carolina is really big.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If you're from around this area, you know J.H. Rose, a four-time state champ.
(SHOUTING)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Pumped up, excited, ready to go.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's all I thought, every single day, football, football, football.
(SHOUTING)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Football's a tough sport. You know, it ain't for everybody. There's collisions in this sport.
(SHOUTING)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Here it is my little brother, he's not moving, he needs help breathing. I mean, I just lost it.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Waller was tackled, walked to the sidelines and then collapsed.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Friday night's death of LeQuan Waller is being felt across --
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It was a tough time for the whole community. I remember getting hit hard. That actually rang my bell.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: For the first three weeks, it was just a constant headache.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The trainer was asking me questions and I was answering them all wrong.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There are a small percentage of impacts that simulate a car crash.
(SHOUTING)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He does have symptoms of a concussion.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If a parent came to you and said, coach, my kid really wants to play football but I want you to tell me that he's going to be safe --
UNIDENTIFIED COACH: I can't guarantee that.
(SHOUTING)
DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: It is a violent game that's always going to be there. Can you make this game safer?
(END VIDEOTAPE) KAYE: And Sanjay joins us now.
Sanjay, you've been covering this topic a couple of years now. What made you want to focus on the youth football?
GUPTA: As a neurosurgeon, but also a sports fan, this is something I've been interested in for some time. What we're realizing is, you talk about the professionals and you see those hits, a lot of people pay attention to that. But that culture of why people hit like that, where they're taught this, starts much younger. Also I think the last couple of years now there's been real science that has come out in this area, not just anecdotal like that must hurt, that must cause long-term problems, we know what those long-term problems are now. So I thought it was the perfect time to talk about it.
KAYE: So any parent watching this is probably wondering are our kids' brains more vulnerable to injury?
GUPTA: Yes. This is a little counterintuitive. Typically, you think kids are just more resilient to everything.
KAYE: Right.
GUPTA: They're just going to bounce back from things. The problem with the brain, Randi, is that at that age, in high school, for example, it's still developing. As a result, if you have some of these blows to the head, you can cause permanent changes in the brain that make it much harder for the brain to develop the way it should. So what would otherwise be a relatively minor problem could turn into a lifelong problem with memory, emotional issues, such as anger, such as depression, so it can be a big issue, especially in these young people.
KAYE: I know we talk a lot about concussions, but you found out it doesn't really take a concussion to cause this type of injury?
GUPTA: That was the most fascinating thing for me. First of all, there's a lot of misconceptions about concussion. You don't have to be knocked out to have a concussion, but someone does disturb their sensation for a period of time but it's those sub-concussive blows that lead to longer term damage in the brain.
The changes in the brain are the same sort of changes you se with someone with Alzheimer's disease but these are people in their 20s, 30s, 40s. I saw these changes in a person as young as 17 years old, which just goes to show that these blows to the head, we've long thought them to be a problem, but now there's objective evidence of what that problem is.
KAYE: I'm curious if they can reverse it. But we'll save that for the details.
GUPTA: There you go. But I think there are some real strategies on how to keep kids safe and I was interested as a parent and as a doctor.
KAYE: I'm sure. I'm sure it will be great. We'll, of course, tune in for it.
Sanjay, thank you, and nice to see you.
GUPTA: Thank you. You, too.
A reminder, Sanjay's documentary, called "Big Hits, Broken Dreams," happens on Sunday, January 29th, at 8:00 p.m. eastern.
Newt Gingrich is reaching out to potential voters in Florida today, but is his message hitting the mark? A live report from Sarasota, where Gingrich is holding a rally next.
Now for our "Political Junkie" question. Which former president was the first person to deliver a rebuttal to the president's State of the Union address? Tweet the answer to me. If you get it right and you're first, you get a shout out.
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KAYE: Before the break I asked you which former president was the first person to deliver a rebuttal to the president's State of the Union address. The answer is Gerald Ford in 1966. He was the House leader at the time. He and Senate Leader Everett Dirkson gave the response to Lyndon Johnson's State of the Union.
We'll give a big congratulations to our producer, because nobody watching got it right, so you can tweet him congratulations on Twitter.
Let's check in with Shannon Travis for a political update. He is in Sarasota waiting for Newt Gingrich's event to begin.
Hi there, Shannon.
SHANNON TRAVIS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey there, Randi. We're waiting for Newt Gingrich to step up to the stage at any moment but his supporters are already here. This is by far one of Newt Gingrich's biggest crowds so far, maybe his biggest in Florida. We're at an airport hangar in Sarasota, Florida.
There are a number of Republicans here in this area so it would be understandable that he has a lot of supporters, but I have two of his supporters here with me. This is Ashley Hancock and Chaz Toms (ph). Chaz is 10 years old. He made sure to mention that he'll be 11 in two weeks.
I want to start off with you, Ashley, and ask you why you're here?
ASHLEY HANCOCK, NEWT GINGRICH SUPPORTER: I'm here to show my support for the speaker and to come out and try to teach my son some of the things my mother and father taught me. How important it is to be active and to be involved in this election and this primary especially.
TRAVIS: And similar question for you, Chaz. You're only 10 years old, man. Why are you here?
CHAZ TOMS (ph), NEWT GINGRICH SUPPORTER: I'm here just like she said. I'm here to support Newt. And I'm just here to support who I believe should be president.
TRAVIS: And you think it should be Newt Gingrich?
TOMS (ph): Yes, sir.
TRAVIS: And what is it that you've heard or learned about Newt Gingrich that makes you think that he should be president?
TOMS (ph): I heard that he is not afraid to take action for what he believes in. And he can't just -- he's not just a speaker. He's not one of those people who speaks without doing.
TRAVIS: Understood, understood.
Ashley, you must be pretty proud of Chaz here. You were saying earlier that you've been involved with some Tea Parties here in the area and the adherence to the Constitution and a few other issues that Newt Gingrich specifically identifies with.
HANCOCK: Absolutely. I think what he stands for is he's absolutely the man for the job. He's going to take this country where we need to be and he's going to stick to the Constitution. You know, I worry being a parent, my son having to pay the debt that this country has been placed in during President Obama's administration. I mean this is falling on him. He's the future. And I'm here to show my support.
TRAVIS: Understood.
Ashley, Chaz, I appreciate you being here.
Two supporters, one of them only 10 years old, Randi, here to support Newt Gingrich.
Some of his rivals hope they keep him out of the White House but you have two people here who say that he should be -- Randi?
KAYE: Shannon, nothing will surprise me. I'm sure we're going to end up seeing Chaz maybe in one of those campaign ads for Newt Gingrich sometime soon.
(LAUGHTER)
Shannon, thank you very much. Shannon Travis for us.
Thank you, everyone, for watching. As always, I'd love to hear what you think of the show. You can continue the conversation online. You can find me on Facebook or Twitter, @Randikaye/CNN.
CNN NEWSROOM continues right now with Brooke Baldwin.
Hi, Brooke. BROOKE BALDWIN, CNN ANCHOR: Hey, Randi, thank you so much
