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Pardoned Killers' Files Missing; Mitt Romney, Newt Gingrich Trade Blows at GOP Debate; New Law in Brazil Makes Workers Eligible for Overtime Pay; The Color Of Politics; FBI Searches For Hero's Killer; Funding A Campaign
Aired January 27, 2012 - 12:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN ANCHOR: Top of the hour. I'm Suzanne Malveaux.
Want to get you up to speed.
The fight for Florida heads into the final rounds after the Republican candidates traded blows last night. The CNN debate, it was the final match-up before Tuesday's Florida primary.
Mitt Romney was in top form. When Newt Gingrich went after Romney on immigration, Romney fired back.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
WOLF BLITZER, MODERATOR: Is he still the most anti-immigrant candidate?
NEWT GINGRICH (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I think of the four of us, yes.
MITT ROMNEY (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Mr. Speaker, I'm not anti- immigrant. My father was born in Mexico. My wife's father was born in Wales. They came to this country. The idea that I'm anti- immigrant is repulsive.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MALVEAUX: With just four days until the Florida primary, candidates are making their final push for votes. Three of the four campaign stops in Florida today.
Mitt Romney has a stop in Miami. That is this hour. Rick Santorum is there in the next hour. Ron Paul has moved on. He's campaigning in Maine today. Newt Gingrich holds a rally in Delray Beach, Florida, this afternoon.
President Obama, he's on the road as well. He speaks at a Democratic retreat. That is happening next hour.
Earlier, the president was at the University of Michigan talking about ways to help keep college affordable. He says that putting colleges on notice not to jack up tuition every year. And he talked about the importance of college for his own family. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: My mother was able to raise two kids by herself because she was able to get grants and work her way through school. I am only standing here today because scholarships and student loans gave me a shot at a decent education.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MALVEAUX: In Utah, two high school students have been arrested for allegedly plotting to explode bombs during a school assembly, also steal a plane to make their getaway. Police say it's not even clear if the 18-and-16-year-olds had the ability to pull this off, but they did have maps of the school and elaborate plans.
Well, everyone who got off the sinking Italian cruise ship is about to get paid more than $14,000 to each survivor. It's a deal reached between the Costa cruise line and consumer groups. Everyone will also get their money back for cruise tickets and other expenses. The captain who steered the ship into some rocks, well, he is still under house arrest.
And a mayor's racial inflammatory "taco" comment sparking outrage around the country, not to mention now taco deliveries. In case you missed it, here's what the mayor said.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What are you doing for the Latino community today?
MAYOR JOSEPH MATURO, JR., EAST HAVEN, CONNECTICUT: I might have tacos when go home. I'm not quite sure yet.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MALVEAUX: So, Mayor Joseph Maturo made the remark after four police officers were arrested in a federal investigation of racial profiling. This happened in East Haven, Connecticut.
Well, the mayor, he got his tacos. Latino activists carried 500 of them to the mayor's office. They had asked supporters to text the word "taco" in protest, promising to deliver a taco for every text.
So the group received more than 2,600 texts. It plans to donate the remaining tacos to soup kitchens.
New outrage in Mississippi. Files are missing for 10 pardoned criminals, including four murderers. Now one of the murderers is also missing.
CNN's Ed Lavandera, he is joining us by phone from Hernando, Mississippi.
Ed, this story just seems to get more bizarre. First of all, what do they make of the fact that these pardoned documents are now missing? ED LAVANDERA, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, this is information coming from the attorney general in Mississippi, Jim Hood, a Democrat, who obviously doesn't care much for what Haley Barbour, the former Republican governor here of Mississippi, has done. And Jim Hood saying yesterday that there are 10 files of pardoned inmates, including the four murderers who worked as trustees on the grounds of the governor's mansion in Jackson, Mississippi. And they say that those files are missing.
In court filings, Haley Barbour's attorney wrote that these files didn't exist, that essentially these men, especially these four pardoned men, the four murderers, were living files, people that they could witness up close every day for almost a year, and that no files were needed. Haley Barbour is going to be a guest on "JOHN KING USA" tonight, Suzanne. So, clearly, these will be some of the questions we'll be asking him later tonight. But that's the information we have and the reaction we have so far from what Haley Barbour is saying.
MALVEAUX: Ed, what do they suspect are in these documents that could raise more concerns about the pardons? Do we know?
LAVANDERA: Well, the question is really to kind of get to the bottom of what kind of recommendations Haley Barbour received before issuing these pardons. Was there a trail of people telling him, look, these aren't the four guys you want to pardon, don't do it, don't do it, and did he go against those recommendations? Or was -- what was the background on them? What was he told leading up to issuing these pardons?
That's why many people want access to them and want to be able to see them, to kind of get that history of what he was told, Haley Barbour was, as people are looking for some sort of explanation as to how all of this happened.
MALVEAUX: And Ed, two more things here. We mentioned that one of these pardoned killers is still unaccounted for, on the loose. Do we have any sense of progress, whether or not they're finding this guy or getting close to finding him? And secondly, what is it about this reward money that is being offered?
LAVANDERA: Right. The attorney general, Jim Hood, says there's one of the murderers that they still have not been able to locate.
And remember, depending on who you ask in legal circles, there's a lot of confusion and debate as to whether or not these men should even have to cooperate with what is going on, and as the attorney general is trying to overturn these pardons. But one of them, a man by the name of Joseph Ozment, who pled guilty to murder back in 1994, they have not heard from him, they have no idea where he is.
The attorney general is now offering a reward for information that leads to them kind of tracking him down. Not to his arrest, because they can't arrest him, but being able to track down where he's at. The attorney general won't say how much that reward is for. And that's what we're working on today, is trying to figure out where Joseph Ozment might be. MALVEAUX: All right. Ed Lavandera, thank you.
As Ed mentioned, you can hear directly from Haley Barbour today on why he handed out all those pardons. The former Mississippi governor, he's going to be a guest on "JOHN KING USA." That is at 6:00 p.m. Eastern, right here on CNN.
Here's your chance to "Talk Back" on one of the big stories of the day. You know the names of the four Republican candidates still in the race for the party's presidential nomination, but there's another name that you're probably hearing pretty often on the campaign trail.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ROMNEY: I remember the great line from Ronald Reagan. He said, "It's not that liberals are ignorant, it's just that what they know is wrong."
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GINGRICH: I worked with Ronald Reagan to create jobs.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
REP. RON PAUL (R-TX), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I was one of four in Texas, one of four members of Congress that supported Reagan in '76.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RICK SANTORUM (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: When Ronald Reagan came down here to Florida, everyone said, oh, no, you've got to pick this other guy.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MALVEAUX: All right. Ronald Reagan. So, we're hearing a lot about the former president. He hasn't held office for more than 25 years, but it brings us to today's "Talk Back" question and Carol Costello with more about Ronald Reagan.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The Reagan mantle.
Newt Gingrich claims it often with pride, telling voters he worked closely and cooperatively with President Reagan back in the day. But conservatives ranging from columnist and author Ann Coulter, to former Senate majority leader during the Reagan years, Bob Dole, say Gingrich is exaggerating. There's even a super PAC ad out now asserting Reagan was no Gingrich lover.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
NARRATOR (voice-over): Reagan criticized Gingrich, saying Newt's ideas "would cripple our defense program." Reagan rejected Newt's ideas on leadership on character, and Gingrich is no Ronald Reagan.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: Gingrich blamed that on the Romney attack machine.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GINGRICH: The fact is, I'm thrilled that Michael Reagan has endorsed me and will be campaigning with me here in Florida. I remember very fondly in 1985, when we were at the Goldwater Institute, and Nancy Reagan said, "You know, Barry gave Ronnie the torch and now Ronnie is passing the torch to Newt and his team in Congress."
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: Gingrich isn't the first politician to fight over who carries Reagan's mantle best, but does it really mean anything? Ronald Reagan is an icon, but he was elected president in the disco era -- what, three decades ago? Many young Republican voters scratch their heads. They're into Ron Paul, and he barely mentions Ronald Reagan.
And you could argue President Reagan dealt with the economic woes of his time in a way Republicans are not willing to do now. Mr. Reagan raised taxes.
At the University of Virginia, Larry Sabato says, "Invoking Reagan's name doesn't tell you anything about what a candidate might do, because Ronald Reagan has become everything, even things he wasn't." Kind of like JFK.
So, the "Talk Back" question for you today: Does invoking Reagan help a Republican candidate today?
Facebook.com/CarolCNN. I'll read your comments later this hour.
MALVEAUX: All right. Thank you, Carol.
(NEWSBREAK)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MALVEAUX: The final push is on in Florida. Candidates have just four days left before the Florida primary.
Last night they traded blows in the last debate before voters head to the polls. Mitt Romney seemed to be re-energized after his loss to Newt Gingrich in South Carolina. When Gingrich went on the attack, Romney was quick to fire back.
Want you to listen to this exchange over money and those troubled mortgage companies.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GINGRICH: And we began digging in after Monday night because, frankly, I had about enough of this. We discovered to our shock Governor Romney owns shares of both Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Governor Romney made a million dollars off of selling some of that.
ROMNEY: I don't own stock in either Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac. They are bonds that the investor has held through mutual funds.
And, Mr. Speaker, I know that sounds like an enormous revelation, but have you checked your own investments? You also have investments from mutual funds that also invested in Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MALVEAUX: The stakes are high in Florida. Fifty Republican delegates up for grabs, winner takes all.
Want to bring in Wolf Blitzer, moderator of last night's debate.
Wolf, great to see you. And, as always, excellent job.
BLITZER: Thank you.
MALVEAUX: You know, it was odd to see Gingrich kind of just nodding his head. He seemed pretty flatfooted. I mean, he must have known this was coming.
Do you think he was just getting too confident or cocky after his last debate performances?
BLITZER: I was sort of surprised, because I thought he would come out swinging. He missed many opportunities in the earlier Florida debate on Monday. This was Thursday, last night, and he was criticized because Romney was really on the offensive Monday night, and everyone said, well, where was Newt Gingrich? Why wasn't he responding? Why was he trying to take the high road?
He may have been a little overconfident after his lopsided win in South Carolina, and he thought that things were moving in his direction and he could be almost presidential, if you will. But his numbers began to go down after that relatively weak Monday night performance. So I assumed he would be tougher last night, but he missed several opportunities. And he's being criticized, even by some of his supporters, who are suggesting he could have been more forceful in responding to Romney last night.
MALVEAUX: And earlier in the day, it was Gingrich who said that, who needs a president with a Swiss bank account, Cayman Island accounts, these type of things?
Mitt Romney responded to those charges in the debate. I want to listen to this clip.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ROMNEY: I have earned the money that I have. I didn't inherit it. I take risks, I make investments. Those investments lead to jobs being created in America. I'm proud of being successful. I'm proud of being in the free enterprise system that creates jobs for other people. I'm not going to run from that.
I'm proud of the taxes that I pay. My taxes, plus my charitable contributions this year, 2011, will be about 40 percent.
So, look, let's put behind this idea of attacking me because of my investments or my money, and let's get Republicans to say, you know what? What you've accomplished in your life shouldn't be seen as a detriment, it should be seen as an asset to help America.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MALVEAUX: Wolf, does Romney seem to be more comfortable now in defending his wealth? Is he successfully making this less of a liability now?
BLITZER: Yes. The answer is yes.
And I think what we heard from Romney last night, if he does get the Republican nomination, is something he'll be saying if this issue -- and I assume it will -- comes up once again in the general election. Remember, Suzanne, in the fall there are going to be three presidential debates between President Obama and whoever the Republican nominee is. So if this comes up, what we heard last night was a little indication of what we'll hear throughout the course of a general election campaign if Romney were to win the nomination.
MALVEAUX: And Wolf, finally, Rick Santorum, he went after Mitt Romney on the Massachusetts health care plan, Romneycare, as he called it. He was very strong in this. I want you to listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RICK SANTORUM (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: This is the top-down model that both of these gentlemen say they are now against, but they have been for. And it does not provide the contrast we need with Barack Obama if we're going to take on that most important issue. We cannot give the issue of health care away in this election. It is too foundational for us to win this election.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MALVEAUX: So, is this what many conservatives were waiting for, going after Romney's Achilles heel? Does it come too late here to help Santorum or damage Romney at this point?
BLITZER: It might come too late to help Santorum, although he really was at his bate last night in the debate performance. He's not going to do well Tuesday in Florida. He himself knows it.
He's not spending money really advertising in Florida. It's winner take all, as you yourself point out.
I suspect he's going to keep on running. Earlier in the debate, he was taking the high road. And I said, well, maybe he's positioning himself to be nice to both Romney and Gingrich, trying to seek the vice presidential nomination, if you will, but then he came out swinging against both of them on health care. He really hit hard.
I'm going to be speaking, by the way, to Rick Santorum later today in "THE SITUATION ROOM."
MALVEAUX: Oh, good.
BLITZER: We'll talk about all the fallout from what's going on. But he was very forceful on health care and, as you correctly point out, potentially, this is a weak spot for Mitt Romney if he gets the nomination. Will he be able to really go after the president's health care reform law considering the fact that he has some similar aspects of it that he enacted when he was governor of Massachusetts?
MALVEAUX: All right. Thank you, Wolf. We'll be watching later, you and Rick Santorum. Thanks.
Tuesday, all eyes are turning to Florida. As the political year heats up, make the best choice for politics, CNN, "America's Choice 2012." Join Wolf Blitzer, Erin Burnett, Anderson Cooper, Candy Crowley and John King for live coverage of the Florida primary, CNN, Tuesday night, 6:00 p.m. Eastern.
And working 9:00 to 5:00 -- don't we wish. Thanks to smartphones, it seems most of us are working around the clock, always tied to the e- mails, the after-hour phone calls.
So, what if you got paid overtime for all the e-mails and the calls? It is happening. I'm going to show you where.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MALVEAUX: All right. You do it. I do it. We live work only to spend a good chunk of our day answering work-related phone calls, e- mails. Well, in Brazil, that would actually qualify us for overtime. Wow.
Shasta Darlington, she has the details.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
(PHONE RINGING)
SHASTA DARLINGTON, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Not the sound most people want to hear in the middle of dinner, a phone call or e-mail from the office.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Hello?
DARLINGTON: But in Brazil, employees might now be a little more likely to respond. A new law says work e-mails and calls make Brazilians eligible for overtime.
Labor lawyer Rodrigo Zacchi says the law is a response to reality. "It's technological slavery," he says. "Virtually 24 hours a day, employees are connected to their phone or e-mail, always at the disposition of their employer."
We went out and talked to people on their lunch break. This telecom's worker says it's necessary. "We have a set number of hours that we're contracted for," he says, "but we end up on call 24 hours a day."
Others are critical. "I think it's going to be hard because it's kind of expected," she says. "A lot of times the company gives you a phone exactly so you can answer an e-mail, even on a weekend." Yet another headache for companies in Brazil that already complain they pay hefty retirement compensation and other worker benefits as they increasingly compete with cheap imports.
Many workers are concerned that companies will take preventative action.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: From what I hear from friends in other offices is that there is attempts to shut down the servers so people don't even have access to their e-mails after hours to ensure that they will not have to have overtime in those situations.
DARLINGTON: Experts say it's still not clear how the law will be enforced. The Supreme Labor Court takes up the issue next month.
For the most part, they don't expect companies to voluntarily start counting up all those hours spent answering e-mails after work.
(on camera): In the meantime, lawyers say all those phone bills and e-mails will definitely come in handy if you get laid off and want to go after your bosses for extra compensation.
Shasta Darlington, CNN, Sao Paulo.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
(BUSINESS REPORT)
MALVEAUX: Well, African-American and conservative, not a common combination, but it is crucial to winning the race in the White House. I'm going to talk to two black conservatives, up next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MALVEAUX: Here's a rundown of some of the stories we are working on.
Next, I'll talk to two black Republicans about who they'd like as the next president.
And then the FBI gets involved in the search for the man who killed a New Orleans father while he was stopping a carjacking.
And later, where do the hundreds and millions of dollars come from that are funding the presidential campaigns? We're going to take a look in about 15 minutes. Republicans, days away from the Florida primary hoping to pick the man who is going to get President Obama out of the White House. This time around, black Republicans could play a big role.
Recent high profile black Republicans are shattering the stereotype that African-Africans are exclusively within the Democratic Party.
In his recent failed bid for the White House, Republican Herman Cain certainly challenged the status quo.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
HERMAN CAIN, FORMER PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Many African-Americans have been brainwashed into not being open-minded, not even considering a conservative point of view.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MALVEAUX: All right, joining me, two folks embracing the conservative point of view. Crystal Wright, the editor of conservativeblackchick.com and Richard Counts, he's the former chairman of the D.C. Young Republicans. Thanks for being with us here.
First of all, I just want to ask you straight away, what does it mean to be a black conservative, a black Republican, Crystal?
CRYSTAL WRIGHT, EDITOR, CONSERVATIVEBLACKCHICK.COM: I don't think it means anything different than it means to be a white conservative or a Hispanic conservative. We believe that -- you know, we want jobs.
We believe in entrepreneurship and opportunity, family values, and this is why many blacks, if you put all of these things on a piece of paper without the label of a Republican or Democrat, many black Americans would find that their natural home is actually with the Republican Party, the party of opportunity. And that's why I'm a conservative.
MALVEAUX: Richard, how so? What's the most important issue for you in this election year?
RICHARD COUNTS, FORMER CHAIRMAN, DC YOUNG REPUBLICANS: I think the issue that is most important for me is the same issue that is important for African-Americans. It's most important for the public at large and that's getting this economy back on track.
Actually, if you look at African-Americans, we're being hurt by this recession more than any other group. And so while it is the main issue for all Americans, it's also an issue that has hurt African- Americans disproportionately.
And I think African-Americans are really going to this year look out to other parties and other ideas to try to solve this economic problem. MALVEAUX: All right. I know you guys get a lot of flack sometimes. There are only 5 percent of Republicans that are African-American. I want you to listen to this. This is President Obama and he's addressing the former Republican National Committee Chair Michael Steele.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: Michael Steele is in the house tonight or, as he would say, in the heezy. What's up?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MALVEAUX: All right, I have spoken to Michael many times. He's very good natured about all of this back and forth. Does it bother you, Crystal, sometimes that you get flack for being black and conservative?
WRIGHT: Yes, it does bother me. I think what Michael Steele got from President Obama pales in comparison from black conservatives hear from actually black Democrats ironically, a lot of which I could not repeat on your program because it would be quite offensive.
But, you know, while it's all fun and games, Rich pointed out that many conservatives are black and they are finding more and more when they look at Herman Cain, Allan West and Tim Scott and J.C. Watts.
They're saying, you know, I'm going to speak out. I'm going to be proud because really the Republican Party is really where I can get the most bang for my buck, my vote.
And if I'm pursing a job and I want to start a small business, less government is better than more government. So I think more and more we're going to see, especially during this election cycle with the black president.
And you have Herman Cain running and many elected black members of Congress are prominent, you're going to see the black conservative vote coming out strongly in 2012.
MALVEAUX: Richard, do you have any misgivings that this is the first African-American president that if the Republicans win, you would unseat?
COUNTS: Well, I think the thing is that when Obama was elected I think that that was good in the sense that it gives African-Americans a leader to look up to. It's good in the sense that it re-instils the idea that anyone can be president of the United States, that the American dream is still well and alive.
But I think that four years after that, African-Americans really have to look at this president like any other president and say, you know, we're unemployed. We need jobs. And I think you heard the head of the GOP Black Caucus say that if the president was white, African-Americans would be riding in the streets right now.
MALVEAUX: Right.
COUNTS: And I think the problems in the African-American community are so stark right now that we've got to look at other options and we've got, at the very least, to hold this president accountable.
MALVEAUX: All right, we've run out of time. We'll got to keep this discussion going at a later date, but thank you so much, Richard and Crystal. Appreciate it. Have a great weekend.
A New Orleans loses his life rescuing a woman who was being carjacked, the 20th murder in New Orleans in just 25 days. We're going to tell you why the FBI is now getting involved.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MALVEAUX: The FBI has now joined the search for a man who was killed the Good Samaritan in New Orleans. The 44-year-old Mike Ainsworth was shot in the chest while rescuing a woman from a carjacking.
His two young sons lay next to him as he was dying. David Mattingly joins us now. Tell us are there any leads about the killer, the suspect and why is the FBI is now involved?
DAVID MATTINGLY, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Suzanne, the police chief in New Orleans was speaking to a public gathering just last night. He was trying to reassure them saying that the investigation was going well.
He's not giving up a whole lot of details about what kind of leads they have or where this investigation is taking them, but he was clearly trying to let this neighborhood know that they are doing everything they possibly can.
Right now, there is a composite of the suspect that has been released. He's described as in his 20s between 5'6" and 5'8" between 140, 150 pounds.
There's a $5,000 reward out for any information that might lead to his arrest. Expect to see that go up as this investigation goes on much longer. But Suzanne, as you said, the FBI is involved and it starts with this case because carjacking is a federal crime. Listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DAVID WELKER, FBI SPECIAL AGENT IN CHARGE: Initially carjacking is a federal crime so we have reached out to NOPD and offered our assistance in the investigation. They have -- NOPD has taken up us on our offer.
And right now, I have some agents over working hand in hand with NOPD to see if we can identify the perpetrator and hopefully further this investigation.
(END VIDEO CLIP) MATTINGLY: Got some more details talking to the FBI today. They actually had agents going door to door in the neighborhood with homicide detectives trying to gather information in this case.
This is not a one-time thing for the FBI and the New Orleans Police Department. They've had such a spike in violence there recently that the FBI is routinely involved, assisting the New Orleans Police Department trying to get a handle on this wave of violence -- Suzanne.
MALVEAUX: David, thank you.
There are big bucks at play in the race for the White House. So where do all those millions come from? Our Tom Foreman follows the money.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MALVEAUX: As election heats up, everybody is scrambling to pull together cash for the campaigns. Our Tom Foreman, he is following the money.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
TOM FOREMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Barack Obama, Mitt Romney, Newt Gingrich, Ron Paul and Rick Santorum have collective raised tens of millions of dollars already in the 2012 presidential campaign and the race is only now beginning to heat up.
So where does this money come from? Candidates like to brag about all their small donors pitching in their crumpled up 20s, but the big money people are really the forces to be reckoned with.
For example, in 2008 run, Barack Obama raised about three- quarters of a billion dollars. Only one quarter of that came from people who gave less than $200. About half came from people who gave $1,000 or more.
Still, there are limits on how much you can give to a candidate, $2,500 in the primary, the same for the general election. So the question remains. Where does the rest come from? That's where the math gets murky.
For starters, there's no limit on how much you can give to yourself. So wealthy candidates, and let's face it, a lot of them are pretty well off, can pour cash into their campaigns. The political parties can also flex their financial muscle on behalf of their choices.
That's one reason presidents speak at those $1,000 a plate dinners to help the parties, because they know that money is ultimately coming back to their own plate.
And that's just the tip of the cash-berg. Next comes a bewildering array of other entities that can help a campaign. PACs, super PACs, 527s, 501 C4s, joint fundraising committees, you name it, they all have slightly different rules governing how much they can take and whether they must disclose their donors.
Labor unions and corporations, like Microsoft and Goldman Sachs, work through such organizations. Most of this money does not go directly to the campaign, but rather to shadow campaigns, funding ads and flyers and robo calls that build up the candidate or tear down his opponents. Legally, such efforts cannot even be coordinated with the official campaign, but it's widely believed political operatives have found ways to get around such rules.
There is a way of getting public financing, tax money, to run for the White House. To do that, a candidate basically pledges to raise only a limited amount, which the government will then match. But the price of winning the presidency is now so high, many political analysts think that practice is history.
And by the time the 20102 race is done, it could make history by breaking the fundraising record set by the candidates in the last presidential dash for cash.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
MALVEAUX: All right, so that's where the money comes from. Tune in to the CNN NEWSROOM again on Monday. We're going to show you how the money is spent.
We're getting a lot of responses to today's "Talk Back" question. We asked, does invoking Ronald Reagan help a Republican candidate today? Carol Costello, she's coming up with your responses.
POPPY HARLOW, CNNMONEY.COM: Time now for "The Help Desk," where we get answers to your financial questions. Joining me this hour, Manisha Thakor is a personal finance expert, and Lynnette Khalfani-Cox is the founder of the financial advice blog askthemoneycoach.com.
Ladies, thanks for being here, as always.
Lynnette, interesting question for you from Betsy in Florida. Betsy wrote in, "my husband and I are both self-employed. Our income is $30,000 to $40,000 a year. We have about $500,000 in investments. How can we get a low rate to refinance?"
LYNNETTE KHALFANI-COX, FOUNDER, ASKTHEMONEYCOACH.COM: A great way to get a refinance loan that's affordable for you is to shop around. You want to go to a site called hsh.com. HSH is a free mortgage comparison site. And, essentially, you'll be able to get lenders to compete for your business. Having that $500,000 on hand will show a lender that you have cash reserves.
The income is modest, but you really do need to make sure that your house has a sufficient amount of equity in it. If it doesn't, in order to do the refinance, you might need to take some money, maybe not from those investments, maybe from other places, but pay down the loan a little bit if you need to in order to get that re-fi done. But HSH is a good place to comparison shop.
HARLOW: And, remember, a re-fi is always going to cost at least a few thousand dollars.
KHALFANI-COX: That's right.
HARLOW: So you've got to factor that in too.
Manisha, your question from KP in Utah. KP wrote in, "my wife and I need to relocate. I have a credit score in the low 500s and have never been late on a mortgage payment. The house is $25,000 underwater and I can't afford to continue paying the 7.25 percent interest. Is it better to try a short sale or should we walk away?"
MANISHA THAKOR, PERSONAL FINANCE EXPERT: This is a gut-wrenching question because with that credit score in this kind of tighten environment, it's going to be nearly impossible to get a positive outcome if he continues on the refinancing path. My personal feeling is, I prefer to see people try the short sale. It's a real tough moral judgment. But on the margin, I feel, for a variety of reasons, first and foremost impact on your credit score, but also the way people feel. A short sales is what I vote for rather than walking away.
HARLOW: Right, try it at least first.
THAKOR: Yes. Yes.
HARLOW: And if it doesn't work, you can go from there.
Thank you, ladies.
Folks, if you have a question you want answered by our experts, just send us an e-mail any time to cnnhelpdesk@cnn.com.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MALVEAUX: You've been sounding off on our "Talk Back" questions about the Republican candidates and Ronald Reagan. Carol Costello is here with your responses.
Hey, Carol. What are folks saying?
COSTELLO: Oh, Suzanne, the "Talk Back" question, does invoking Reagan help a Republican candidate today?
Paul says, "Of course it helps a candidate. Conservatives claim the founding father in their core values. These are the things that made America the hope of the world. Some things are timeless."
This from Tim. "Democrats invoke JFK all the time, too. At this point, invoking any president is meaningless."
This from Alysson. "As a young voter, the mention of Reagan's name in these GOP statements has no effect on me. I have no interest in who these candidates are like but in who they are."
This from Wendell. "It depends on who you ask. For the baby boomers and those who have seen 'Bed Time For Bonzo' it may be, but everyone else, not so much." And this from Robin. "If they could do just one thing that Ronald Reagan did, they need to speak up and declare Mr. Speaker, tear down these walls of mistrust between Republicans and Democrats and start acting like Americans and do what they were elected to do."
Keep the conversation going, facebook.com/carolcnn. And thanks, as always, for your comments.
MALVEAUX: I like that last one, Carol, that was good. Tear down these -- the Republican and Democrat --
COSTELLO: Tear down this mistrust.
MALVEAUX: Oh, that's good.
Carol, I want you to check this out. There's a puzzle on the screen. I want to see if you think you can solve it without buying a vowel. Do you see it?
COSTELLO: Oh, Pat and Vanna were blasted while they did the game show?
MALVEAUX: Well, tipsy, pretty close. Yes, that's right. Pat Sajak and Vanna White they say they used to knock back a few margaritas between tapings of "Wheel of Fortune." Listen to this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PAT SAJAK, "WHEEL OF FORTUNE" HOST: Vanna and I would go across and have two or three or six and then come and do the last shows and have trouble recognizing the alphabet. They're really good tapes to get hold of.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MALVEAUX: Wow. I mean like not recognizing the alphabet. These two, they hosted together for, what, 30 years and Sajak says they used to sneak these drinks when they were younger when the show, in his words, was somewhat of a snooze.
COSTELLO: I understand he's trying to walk back these comments now. He's trying to do damage control.
MALVEAUX: Oh, really?
COSTELLO: So, maybe he was just joshing.
MALVEAUX: He was just joshing.
COSTELLO: Or maybe he was drunk when he said it.
MALVEAUX: I don't know. We drink coffee on this set, OK, Carol. Coffee only here, all right?
COSTELLO: Gotcha.
MALVEAUX: Gotcha. We do cocktails later. Coffee here now.
All right, have a great weekend, Carol.
COSTELLO: You too, Suzanne.
MALVEAUX: All right. We'll have more after the break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MALVEAUX: A Colorado family blames the U.S. government and immigration red tape for the death of their son south of the border. Now, here's the reason. There's only one American consulate in Mexico that handles certain visa issues. And that place happens to be the murder capital of the world. CNN's Jim Spellman has the story.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
TANIA NAVA, HUSBAND KILLED IN JUAREZ: He was really cute. He was like -- there was just something about him that I knew he was like the one.
JIM SPELLMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Tania Nava and Jake Reyes-Neal met in a Colorado high school and quickly became inseparable. And shortly after giving birth to their son, Anthony, the couple married.
NAVA: We wanted to be together, so we tried to do everything we could to make it happen.
SPELLMAN: But when Tania was seven years old, her parents illegally brought her from Mexico to the U.S.
NAVA: I was raised here. I didn't feel like I was from Mexico.
SPELLMAN: Despite being married to an American citizen, immigration law required her to leave the U.S. and go to one of the most dangerous cities in the western hemisphere, Juarez, Mexico. A place where nearly 2,000 people were murdered in 2011. First, Tania went alone. When it became too difficult for the young family to stay apart, Jake, who didn't even speak Spanish, came to Juarez with Anthony.
MATTHEW REYES-NEAL, VICTIM'S BROTHER: Said just like this, bro, come back, man. You know you can make more money here, you can provide for him and his answer was always the same, it never changed, no one can protect my wife and my son better than I can.
SPELLMAN: But no one could protect Jake. His family says they don't know why, but in March of 2011, gunman broke into their home.
NAVA: The last thing I heard was him saying, I don't speak Spanish, (speaking Spanish) and that's it. And then I just heard the shots.
SPELLMAN: Jake was dead, shot 80 times.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Parents aren't supposed to bury their children. That's not supposed to happen. SPELLMAN (on camera): Who do you blame for his death?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The United States.
REYES-NEAL: The United States. One hundred percent. I mean --
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Our broken immigration system.
SPELLMAN (voice-over): Every year, more than 100,000 people travel to Juarez to obtain legal status. The U.S. consulate there was set up years ago to handle the cases, before the city became so violent.
REP. JARED POLIS (D), COLORADO: If to follow the law and wait in line, you're going to have to live in a city that's plagued by gang violence and that you have no family ties to and move your entire family to, you're encouraging people to skirt the law.
SPELLMAN: The Obama administration has proposed a rule change that would reduce the time family members of U.S. citizens would have to spend in Juarez.
ALEJANDRO MAYORKAS, U.S. CITIZENSHIP & IMMIGRATION SERVICE: The greatest criticism is not directed at our agency, but rather the laws that we administer. There is great concern that the immigration system is broken.
SPELLMAN: Even if those rules are changed, it will be too late for Jake's family who are left with grim souvenirs --
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: These are the bullets that were taken out of Jake's body when he was cremated.
SPELLMAN: And photographs from better times.
NAVA: Anthony looks just like him. When I look -- sees pictures of him -- (INAUDIBLE) it's really hard that he's gone. I'll never get to see him again.
SPELLMAN: Jim Spellman, CNN, Aurora, Colorado.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
MALVEAUX: CNN NEWSROOM continues right now with Randi Kaye.
Hey, Randi.
RANDI KAYE, CNN ANCHOR: Hi, Suzanne.
