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Nevada Caucuses Today; Susan G. Komen Will Continue to Fund Planned Parenthood; Victims in Syria Uprising Continue to Increase; Unemployment Rate Improves; Don Cornelius Dead; Overweight Pets A Concern
Aired February 04, 2012 - 16:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Another day of violence in Syria. Opposition activists say at least 90 people died today in clashes with government troops. That is just a day after at least 260 people were killed when Syrian forces reportedly shelled the city of Homs. The U.N. Security Council tried to pass a formal condemnation of the Syrian government just a couple of hours ago. That draft resolution failed. The Russian and Chinese ambassadors voted against it. We'll have angry American reaction from the United Nations in just one minute.
And we're also watching Nevada because in a few short hours Nevada will announce which --
failed. The Russian and Chinese ambassadors voted against it. We'll have angry American reaction from the United Nations in just one minute.
And we're also watching Nevada because in a few short hours, Nevada will announce which Republican they want to run against President Obama in the fall. Right now Nevada Republicans are meeting in caucuses across the state. The latest polls give Mitt Romney a strong lead. Our Wolf Blitzer is right here and he'll be joining me in just a few minutes to talk about the importance of today's decision.
And there will be a court-martial for the Army private accused of leaking classified military documents to Wikileaks. Bradley Manning is charged with handing over thousands of classified military documents. It's considered the biggest intelligence leak in American history. The Army will put Manning on trial for aiding the enemy and transmitting defense information. He could get life in prison.
Friends and colleagues of Don Cornelius are paying tribute to the founder of the ground breaking television show "Soul Train." They are making that tribute unfold today in Harlem. Cornelius was the legendary deep voice, host and founder of that show. Al Sharpton, singer Roberta Flack and others honor Cornelius for changing the way America listened to soul and R&B. Cornelius died Wednesday of a self- inflicted gun shot wound. On to the nation's capital now, where police are removing tents from an Occupy camp downtown. U.S. Park Police Service officers are in hazmat suits there taking away tents that contain camping gear. Earlier police clashed with protestors and six people were arrested. A federal judge Tuesday upheld the ban on camping in McPherson Square and another park a couple of blocks away from the White House.
U.N. ambassadors from the United Nations, Britain, France and India, they all say they are furious at China and Russia today because those two countries vetoed a draft resolution that would have strongly condemn the government of Syria. And insisted that country's president step aside.
CNN's Richard Roth is at the United Nations.
RICHARD ROTH, CNN SENIOR UNITED NATIONS CORRESPONDENT: The U.S. ambassador and others are deeply disappointed. India's ambassador said he was surprised at the double veto. I asked Susan Rice why the diplomacy broke down.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SUSAN RICE, U.S. AMBASSADOR TO U.N.: At the 11th hour, Russia tried to introduce amendments that would have gutted the text that were unacceptable to the other members of the council. The one silver lining in this is that 13 members of this council supported the resolution, made strong statements in its favor. Countries that had originally not supported the resolution last time changed their position and voted in favor.
ROTH (on camera): South Africa, countries such as that. Take us into the back rooms, if you can. Do you feel Russia was stalling all along? They were presenting a more conciliatory front, working together, sleeves are being rolled up. Do you feel they ever intended to either abstain or vote yet?
RICE: I can't speak for Russia, Richard. I think our colleague, Ambassador Churckin was negotiating in good faith. But I also think that at the end of the day, the decisions were made in Moscow and Moscow decided that it would rather stand (INAUDIBLE) against the people of Syria than do the right thing.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ROTH: Despite last minute talks in Germany between U.S. secretary of state Clinton and Russian foreign minister Lavrov, the Russians still vetoed just like they did in October along with China.
WHITFIELD: We lost Richard Roth there. We'll try to re-establish connection with him a little bit later.
Meantime, President Barack Obama released a very strongly-worded statement today shortly before the U.N. security council vote. He urged to stop what he called the Syrian leader's "killing machine." He said, "any government that brutalizes and massacres its people does not deserve to govern." He added, the international community "must work to protect the Syrian people from this abhorrent brutality." So a very direct statement from the president. Not enough to prevent however China and Russia from splitting with the security council on today's draft resolution.
All right. We are also watching the political race unfolding caucus style in Nevada. We could learn soon which Republican candidate Nevadans want to face of against President Barack Obama in the fall. I want to bring in Wolf Blitzer will be hosting our political coverage this evening. Maybe some of those results could start emerging as early as 8:00.
WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: Right.
WHITFIELD: It's going to be an exciting day.
BLITZER: Some of the caucuses will close as early as 8:00 Eastern time. Clark County which is Las Vegas will close (INAUDIBLE) one precinct specifically at 10:00 p.m. Eastern. But we'll start getting a flavor of what's going on. Our special coverage begins at 6:00 p.m. Eastern with a special "Situation Room."
WHITFIELD: Perfect. And this is very interesting, too. Because this really might be the race that Romney, you know, really can't afford to lose.
BLITZER: It would be a upset if he were.
WHITFIELD: He won this in the caucus in '08.
BLITZER: He crushed everyone else.
WHITFIELD: What is it this time for him?
BLITZER: He crushed Ron Paul, John McCain, Mike Huckabee, all the other candidates four years ago in Nevada. And by all accounts, if you believe these most recent polls in Nevada, he will do very, very well tonight. You know, it's sort of tailor-made for him. About 1/3, maybe 25 to 30 percent of the Republican turnout tonight will be Mormons. Nevada has a large Mormon population. Four years ago he got about 95 percent of the Mormon turnout in Nevada. He'll do well. So he's got a base that he begins with. But he's going to do well across the board, presumably. So this should be a huge night for Mitt Romney. If it isn't, he's in trouble.
WHITFIELD: Yes, and that bodes well in his favor in term of the Mormon vote, but there is also a pretty significant Latino vote there. And he's kind of, you know, ruffled a few feathers as it pertains to his position on the Dream Act.
BLITZER: Yes.
WHITFIELD: And that could really backfire for him in Nevada.
BLITZER: A lot of the Latinos though in Nevada are Democrats and they can't vote. This is a closed caucus tonight. So it's only registered Republicans who will be able to show up. But there are plenty of Latino Republicans as well and they'll have to make a decision, do they like - and it's not just on immigration, which Latinos are going to vote on. They're going to vote on the economy, jobs and all sorts of other issues like all Americans. But immigration will be an important issue. We'll see how he does with Latinos.
WHITFIELD: This is a state that leads in foreclosure rates and bankruptcies. So the economy is a huge, huge issue. Newt Gingrich, perhaps he was feeling a little confident that he had the backing of big casino owner there by the tune of $10 million plus. Will that be influential for the electorate there?
BLITZER: Nevada has the highest unemployment rate in the country and I think the highest foreclosure rate in the country, as well. The construction industry, you know, all those big buildings, all those huge new hotels, has really gone down over these past three or four years. So a lot of people are unemployed. They are looking for jobs, jobs, jobs.
Sheldon Adelson, the owner of the Venetian Hotel, did give the pro Newt Gingrich super pac at least $10 million. If you get in some of his relatives even more and arguably it was that money that kept him alive in South Carolina, didn't let his campaign collapse after Iowa and New Hampshire. South Carolina was a big win for Newt Gingrich. Florida not so much. But he's in it. (INAUDIBLE) yesterday and he says he is not going anywhere. He is looking forward to super Tuesday. I think the Gingrich folks know that February is not going to necessarily be a good month for Newt Gingrich. It's going to be a good month probably for Mitt Romney.
With 10 or 11 contests on March 6th, super Tuesday, including several in southern states that should potentially be more fertile ground for Newt Gingrich.
WHITFIELD: And before we get there there is even this Tuesday coming up. You and I are going to talk about what's at stake. We're talking about Missouri, Minnesota, Colorado and then next Saturday, Maine caucusing.
BLITZER: I know. It never ends.
WHITFIELD: Oh, boy, there is a lot.
BLITZER: We had good practice four years ago. The democratic primaries and caucuses went until June.
WHITFIELD: Oh my goodness.
BLITZER: Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama.
WHITFIELD: Yes.
BLITZER: You didn't know until Puerto Rico came in in June.
WHITFIELD: We're all pacing ourselves.
BLITZER: We're ready for it. WHITFIELD: Have patience. All right. Thanks so much, Wolf. See you in a bit.
All right. Let's also talk about after decades in Germany, two U.S. bases are soon to be closing their gates. Why?
AN cute, cuddly and over weight. I'm talking about your house pets. Why they are now going on a diet.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: All right. Let's talk some more about the GOP race. Wolf Blitzer is back with me. We are watching Nevada where they are caucusing today but today is the only day that matters. Right around the corner, we got primaries and caucuses in other states, Missouri, Minnesota, Colorado and then Maine.
BLITZER: On Tuesday.
WHITFIELD: Yes, on Saturdays. So let's talk about how these candidates are going to cover so much right now.
BLITZER: So what you're saying is I have to work on Tuesday and then next Saturday.
WHITFIELD: Right. You never have a day-off anyway.
BLITZER: Right. (INAUDIBLE). Look these are all important races but as I said earlier, I think these are good races for Mitt Romney. He's going to have a good February but you know what, these other candidates, I don't think Newt Gingrich is going anywhere.
I know Ron Paul is not going anywhere. I don't think Rick Santorum is about to leave. I think they're all going to stay in -
WHITFIELD: Well, they want to -
BLITZER: At least until super Tuesday on March 6th. You know money is one thing and Mitt Romney has a ton of money. They all have their pros, super pacs. They can stay in. They'll work their way. And they're all trying to get what they call free media. In other words, go on TV shows and talk about themselves. And so they'll be able to stay in, I think, through the month.
WHITFIELD: So even if they don't have face time in any number of those states leading up to March 6th. By way of the super pac money, those television ads.
BLITZER: Yes.
WHITFIELD: That is going to help keep them in the race even if the debates - for some reason cease or no longer generate -
BLITZER: If Gingrich and Santorum, for example, don't think they have a shot in the state, they're not going to spend any of their money in Nevada, for example. The only campaign that spent money advertising in Nevada were Romney and Paul. The other two candidates didn't spend any money in Nevada because they knew they don't have a shot. Why waste money in a state where they're not going to have a shot at.
WHITFIELD: OK. Are we soon going to be seeing some drop-offs? What of these races whether it's right before Tuesday or before, you know, Saturdays, main caucus results. Is it likely that we may see a drop- off in any one of these candidates.
BLITZER: I don't think so. I think that Newt Gingrich is a fighter. I think he's determined to stay in and I think he'll stay in. I'll be shocked if he drops. Same with Santorum and with Ron Paul. Now you asked and you are asking me -
WHITFIELD: Yes.
BLITZER: Why would Santorum stay if he's not doing well?
WHITFIELD: Yes, we talked about it in the break. Let's continue that conversation.
BLITZER: I think he and his folks believe there is a shot, a chance that Newt Gingrich might decide on his own to drop out and if he were to drop out, he would then position himself as the non-Mitt Romney, the real "conservative" Santorum, if you will. So I think that's why one of the major reasons he's staying in a sense that maybe Newt Gingrich will give up and drop out and then Santorum could challenge Mitt Romney. Ron Paul is staying in because he's got his own agenda. He sure would like to win but he also wants to make sure that the issues he's passionate about whether the Federal Reserve of bringing home all the U.S. troops from around the world, those kinds of issues, are front and center in this campaign.
WHITFIELD: Fantastic. Wolf Blitzer. Thanks so much. We'll see you again this evening, beginning your special edition of "The Situation Room" at 6:00 Eastern time.
BLITZER: Six o'clock p.m. Eastern.
WHITFIELD: Thanks so much.
BLITZER: Good to see you.
WHITFIELD: Excellent.
And of course, you want to join us every Sunday afternoon, 4:00 Eastern, when we dedicate an entire hour to the presidential contenders in 2012. This election season, of course you're going to be making another cameo appearance in that. did you know that?
BLITZER: Yes.
WHITFIELD: All right. Hard to believe after 70 years, two U.S. military bases in Germany will soon be closing their gates. Diana Magnay looks at this bittersweet goodbye.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) DIANA MAGNAY, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Bamberg, in the heart of Germany's Bavaria is a world heritage site, an early medieval town steeped in history. It is staggeringly beautiful but it's about to let loose a piece of its most recent past.
Since World War II Bamberg has been a home from home for thousands of U.S. servicemen.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is the Armed Forces Radio and Television service.
MAGNAY: Armed Forces on the airwaves, American voices on the streets.
MAYOR ANDREAS STARKE, BAMBERG, GERMANY (THROUGH TRANSLATOR): On Thursday we had a conversation with the top commander in Europe, General (INAUDIBLE). And he made clear that the U.S. bases at Bamberg and (INAUDIBLE) would be closed.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Stand back. Roger.
MAGNAY: The U.S. is cutting its forces across Europe as the Pentagon shifts its focus to Asia and the Middle East and tries to save half a trillion dollars over 10 years. Two heavy brigades will go. Troops in Germany at the height of the Cold War around 270,000 down to 40,000 now and soon due to be cut by a quarter again.
DAN PLESCH, CENTER FOR INT'L STUDIES AND DIPLOMACY, UCL: Removing these 8,000 troops with their tanks (INAUDIBLE) just continuing to move beyond the Cold War but people should be aware that America is an even more powerful military machine than it's ever been. And this really is removing yesterday's forces for yesterday's wars.
MAGNAY: About an hour away, at the U.S.'s multi-national training facility at (INAUDIBLE), you get a sense of how powerful that military machine still is and how its mission is changing.
On the outside, trailers. Inside, simulations of Afghan terrain where these troops will deploy to.
(INAUDIBLE) NATO forces train in. Maneuvers like this carefully rehearsed before a shot is fired.
(on camera): It's amazing having a bird's eye view of an operation like this even if it is just a practice run. How is that? Did they do the right thing?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No.
MAGNAY: No, what did they do wrong?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: A couple of things. They'll work on it. Again (INAUDIBLE) right now.
MAGNAY (voice-over): The Pentagon says the European drawdown won't compromise training with other NATO partners as U.S.-based units will continue to rotate through Germany. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: She's talking about a timeline in the unit history that I read about -
MAGNAY: But that doesn't remove the nostalgia many old timers feel. Audre Binder came to Germany in 1980 as an 18-year-old soldier and never left. She remembers clearly how it felt to be in the frontline during the Cold War.
AUDRE BINDER, ARMY CIVILIAN EMPLOYEE, GRAFEWOEHR: As soldiers, as an American soldier, you stood across the border and looked in to what was described to you as the enemy space. You knew who they were, you saw them and I would tell you some of the first impressions that I had was well they're very young.
MAGNAY: Like many U.S. servicemen and women, Binder married a German and stayed. There is still deep emotional ties between towns like Bamberg and little patches of America on their doorsteps. As an almost 70-year relationship (INAUDIBLE) towards a close.
Diana Magnay, CNN, Bamberg, Germany.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: Each week, CNN's Dr. Sanjay Gupta profiled innovators from all walks of life and all fields of endeavor. The program is called "The Next List." Well, tomorrow Sanjay talks to a molecular gastromener who is obsessed with experimenting with food, flavors and design.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We serve an edible menu here. We have almost since day one and that's because serving edible menus makes a lot of sense. Every month about 20 tons of paper are wasted in restaurant use alone. And so you just by that rationale, you just eat your menu that was made from organic local product, you could eliminate that paper waste.
It looks like a sushi roll, tastes like a sushi roll but it's (INAUDIBLE).
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: All right. Tune in to watch the "Next List" or set your DVR for 2:00 p.m. Eastern time Sunday.
And then tune in tomorrow afternoon and we'll also tell why hundreds of alleged sex abuse victims are furious with the archdiocese of Milwaukee. This as the Catholic Church gets ready for a global conference on the priest sex abuse scandal and how to move forward. We'll talk to our Vatican analyst John Allen, Sunday 2:30 Eastern time.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: A look at our top stories now, including the fallout over the Susan G. Komen Foundation pulling donations from Planned Parenthood. The charity reversed the decision, but some people are still upset. More on that in a moment.
All right. First, women take work stress home with them while men seem to leave it at the office. How come? That's according to the "Journal of Health and Social Behavior." So how can you avoid taking job-related stress home? This goes to everybody now. Every week we focus on ways to jumpstart, get a jumpstart in the work force.
Valorie Burton, author of "Successful Women Think Differently." New nice book cover. All right. This is your latest book. She's joining me now. So Valorie, why is it that women tend to take the work home more than men who leave it at the office?
VALORIE BURTON, AUTHOR "SUCCESSFUL WOMEN THINK DIFFERENTLY": Well, you know what? There are a few things here. But the biggest thing about this study is that women feel more guilt. And that's what causes more stress. You know, I think part of that is women a lot of times we feel a lot higher expectations about what we do at home right? Than men do. And so for a lot of women, when they have those work place intrusions at home they feel particularly guilty about maybe not being with their kids.
Truthfully, it applies both to single women as well as married women, mothers as well as those who don't have kids.
WHITFIELD: Yes, because it seems like most people are probably taking the work home because we've got Blackberries, we've got computers, all that stuff where you can just simply bring it home. So is there a way to manage the volume of responsibilities and the stress?
BURTON: Yes. One of the first things we have to do is find ways to be more productive. And I think one of the most fundamental changes that's happened because of the recession is that companies figured out that they don't need as many people to do the same job. So a lot of people feel like they are doing two or three jobs. If you could find those ways to be more productive, to be really disciplined, so for those perfectionists and procrastinators, that might be finding some ways to really know that good enough is good enough that you can move on to the next thing and to make sure that you're not wasting time during the day.
WHITFIELD: So time during the day. So that means you got to really time manage. There are things you need to be doing at work to make sure you get it all done at work so you're not carting it off -
BURTON: That's right.
WHITFIELD: Home.
BURTON: That's right. And you want to make sure that you reduce some of those self-imposed deadlines. I don't know if you're like this.
WHITFIELD: Well, I (INAUDIBLE) because I remember we talked a few times, you know, back - talking about - you've got to impose deadlines so you can a little bit more productive but now some of us tend to do it too much.
BURTON: If you're stressing yourself out about deadlines that aren't real, right? So you're completely stressed out, completely overwhelmed. When you actually have the opportunity to take a breath. You know, I said I wanted to get this done by 5:00, but there are no real consequences to getting it done tomorrow at noon.
WHITFIELD: OK.
BURTON: So you need to ask yourself, is this a real deadline or is it a self-imposed deadline when you find yourself getting overly stressed about it.
WHITFIELD: How flexible is it?
BURTON: Absolutely. OK. Now, is there a way to kind of cut a deal or compromise with your boss without looking like you were trying to shave your responsibilities, (INAUDIBLE) your responsibilities?
BURTON: I think this is a really big one. A lot of people are intimidated to even go talk to the boss may feel overwhelmed. At some point, one you need to evaluate just how productive are you? You want to make sure you're productive in getting the essential things done that you need to get done but if you're getting calls and e-mails at 8:00, 9:00, I'm not talking about doctors that always have to be on call. I'm talking about people that have jobs where it you know what it will be OK if we discuss this at 8:30 in the morning as opposed to 8:30 at night. Being able to have those conversations and say, you know, there are some off periods I really need to have in order to take care of things at home so I can be fresh and productive during the day.
WHITFIELD: All right. And then you say set, you know, you got to set some limits. There have to be some nonnegotiables. What do you mean?
BURTON: So if you're going to be happy and you're going to have a healthy and well-balanced life, there has got to be some things that are not negotiable. It might be dinner time with your family. It maybe that, you know, on Saturday afternoons is always for your kids. Whatever it is for you, you've got to find those things that you will not negotiate no matter what.
WHITFIELD: All right. And then you keep moving.
BURTON: That's right. Exercise. Lowers your cortisol levels and 20 minutes of exercise will actually boost your mood for 24 hours.
WHITFIELD: And you'll sleep better.
BURTON: That's right.
WHITFIELD: All that's good. And like you said, take a deep breath in the end. Exhale. So much better now. Thanks so much Valorie.
BURTON: You bet.
WHITFIELD: Good to see you.
BURTON: Me too.
WHITFIELD: All right. I bet you didn't know that your pets need a plan too. Do you have any pets.
BURTON: I've had them. They caused me stress.
WHITFIELD: All right. Well sorry. Maybe this might reduce some stress for a lot of other pet owners out there who are stressed out because their pet's are overweight.
That's a problem out there. A big one.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What do you think? Should you eat less? Get more exercise? What do you think?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: OK. Time to walk the dog. Seriously. Our Josh Levs has information you need to know to get your pet in shape. You're going to get in shape too.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: OK. We all love our pets. Maybe too much. Maybe too many treats. Guilty. All right. Josh Levs is here to talk about how we need to be treating our pooches and our kitty cats, maybe don't overfeed them.
JOSH LEVS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Don't over feed them.
(CROSSTALK)
LEVS: You know, just the Super Bowl commercial.
WHITFIELD: Oh yes. I love it. I love it.
LEVS: That deals with this. Let's show everybody that quick.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
(MUSIC PLAYING).
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEVS: It starts with the dog wanting to get inside a car but can't fit out the little hole in the door.
WHITFIELD: So cute.
LEVS: (INAUDIBLE) from Volkswagen. This is a huge problem. (INAUDIBLE)
WHITFIELD: They feel so much better once they are in shape.
LEVS: I know. That's the idea.
WHITFIELD: Yes.
LEVS: Let me tell you this new report that looks at this in a serious way. And we were given here at CNN. It comes out next week and it's actually very serious. It shows that the majority of dogs and cats in homes in America are now overweight or even obese.
WHITFIELD: The majority?
LEVS: Yes. It's a growing problem. And what's happening is they are coming out with serious illnesses and some serious complications as a result. So I went outside to the park. Take a look.
WHITFIELD: Oh good.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
LEVS (on camera): This is dodger, he's a mixed breed rescue dog. This is his owner Kim Stevens. Talk to me about him. What's his weight right now?
KIM STEVENS, DOG OWNER: His weight is about 82 pounds right now. And he should be 62 pounds.
LEVS: So that's a lot of extra weight.
STEVENS: Yes, that's obese.
LEVS: How does this happen? How does this dog become so fat?
STEVENS: Too much food, not enough exercise.
LEVS: What do you think? Should you eat less? Get more exercise? What do you think?
So we're now going to talk to a vet who is an expert at this and get some advice for Kim.
OK. So this is Ernie Ward, he is a veterinarian and the head of the Association for Pet Obesity Prevention. And you're going to talk to us about what's going on with Dodger here.
ERNIE WARD, VETERINARIAN: This is one of those case where they are deceptively obese and overweight. He is a big dog to start with, but the fact is he's carrying a lot of extra fat in his abdomen. This is what gets us all in trouble. It's the belly fat that is the most dangerous. Because that's the type of that the that secretes the harmful chemicals. The food we are eating today are so different than 40, 50 years ago. Certainly, what we fed our pets. They have more calories in a smaller amount.
And the other part of the equation is we think exercise - gosh, let's go walk Dodger for 30 minutes. That will burn off all that extra energy. Well, the problem is output does not beat input when it comes to losing weight. You are not going to get in this type of shape, Josh, if you just exercise every day. It also has to be what you eat.
LEVS: OK. What about treats during the day? Like the dog learns a trick, you want to give it a little treat. What is the right way to reward a pet if it's not a treat?
WARD: Yes, you know what I call treats, these are calorie grenades. They jut blow up in excess weight. So we got to be careful. Think about single-ingredient treat. Crunchy vegetables like baby carrots, broccoli, celery, asparagus. We got to calculate up the number of calories and then we had to gradually reduce those calories so that Dodger, you know.
Diet is not about starvation or deprivation. It's about a gradual safe weight loss. I want you to commit, both of you to commit to a 30-minute brisk walk per day. If you can do that, you'll see Dodger lose weight and you'll be fitter, for sure.
LEVS: In the end, what do you think will be your motivation? What will motivate you to help him turn around?
STEVENS: Well, I need to turn myself around, too. So we'll work together as a team. You know, just because he is a really awesome dog. I don't want to lose him. I love you.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LEVS: That's how pet owners feel. I know you have a lot of questions. I have tons of info for you up at my page, Cnn.com/josh. On Facebook and Twitter, Josh Levs CNN. In fact on Facebook, you can post questions and the veterinarian you just saw answering them there at Facebook.
Fred, one in three homes have a dog, one in three homes have a cat. Lots of people dealing with this problem.
WHITFIELD: I know. I love those. I love those pet poochies.
LEVS: And they are so sweet and so cute. (INAUDIBLE)
WHITFIELD: I know. You inspired me. I'm going to walk the dog after we get off the air.
LEVS: Nice. Let's go walk the dog.
WHITFIELD: All right. Thanks so much, Josh. We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: It's the first contest of this season in the west right now across Nevada. GOP voters are meeting in caucuses. And we have our people on the ground.
Joining me from Las Vegas, CNN's Brianna Keilar, with the Gingrich campaign. And Jim Acosta who is following the Romney campaign. Let's begin with you, Jim. What is that last-minute campaigning like? How is the polling looking so far?
JIM ACOSTA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I think Mitt Romney Feels like he has it in the bag here in Nevada because, you know, look at what his schedule is showing us today. He's up in Colorado sort of getting ready for those caucuses coming up on Tuesday. And let's face it, Fredricka. The deck is stacked in his favor, if I could join the long list of people making gambling puns today. You know, he has a built- in presence here. That's been employ since 2008. He won these caucuses back in 2008 with 58 percent of the vote. It will be interesting to see if he matches that performance this time around.
And a huge part of that victory for Mitt Romney four years ago was the Mormon vote. They made up 25 percent of those caucus goers for year ago. He got 95 percent of that 25 percent of the vote. So, that's a big advantage that's already built in for Mitt Romney.
So really, what's happening out here in Nevada today is sort of a race for second place. And it's going to be interesting to find out. Does Ron Paul somehow beat Newt Gingrich in this state? If he does, that is a major blow to the Gingrich campaign and big boost for Ron Paul. And it also is good news for Mitt Romney. If Ron Paul finishes second in Nevada and puts some distance between Mitt Romney and Newt Gingrich. That is good news for Mitt Romney -- Fredricka.
WHITFIELD: Alright, so let us keep those game win punch going. I bet, Brianna said that Newt Gingrich is rolling the dice and hoping for a strong second at the very least.
BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Or you might be able to say perhaps, and, you know, I hesitate to say this too much, but perhaps he's folding a little bit, right, because if you look at his schedule for the day, it is conspicuously sparse. He has not - you, know, he doesn't have anything on his public schedule today, two campaign events yesterday in Las Vegas, nothing today until he talks to the media tonight. And at that point, caucus goers in Nevada will have pretty much said their peace. So, he hasn't - Jims said, it's really a race for second place here.
And even though when you look at the polls, Newt Gingrich is doing pretty well compared to Ron Paul. You can't say it's a foregone conclusion because the polls don't always show what's going on here in Nevada with Ron Paul. He's had organization here that Newt Gingrich has not had.
Si, I think best-case scenario for Newt Gingrich is that he is hoping that he does come in second with a lot of conservative support. And he is expected to get certainly more support than Mitt Romney among those voters that are tea-party identified, Fred.
WHITFIELD: All right. All four hoping they have luck on their side. Brianna Keilar and Jim Acosta joining us from Vegas. We'll watch your coverage as you keep us posted throughout the evening.
Thanks so much. All right, after getting a lot of criticism, the Susan G. Komen foundation says it will continue to fund grants for Planned Parenthood. Susan Candiotti is in New York with details on this one -- Susan.
SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Fred. You know, it may be some time before Susan G. Komen for the cure can cure the hard feelings that were generated this very week. The controversy arose when word got out that Komen was pulling back breast cancer funding to Planned Parenthood. That of course is an organization that provides health care to women, and also performs abortions.
Now, after a huge uproar, Komen reversed its decision. Groups on the left and right are weighing in. National right to life, which opposes abortion, is coming down hard on Komen, urging its supporters to stop writing checks to the breast cancer group.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: People and women want to run in races. People want to donate to cancer research organizations. They want to support the work they are doing, but they ultimately want to make sure that their donations, their hard-earned money is not going to the nation's largest abortion provider Planned Parenthood.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CANDIOTTI: Now, Planned Parenthood says grants for Komen paid for breast cancer screenings, not abortions.
Now, there is another group called the breast cancer action group which in part fights misinformation about disease. Now, it's been critical of Komen, but in this case thinks Komen did the right thing.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KARUNA JAGGAR, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, BREAST CANCER ACTION: I don't think Komen's job is to make everyone happy. I think our job as breast cancer advocate is to ensure that women's health comes first. Women's health needs to come before politics. It needs to come before religious pressure.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CANDIOTTI: Komen's president denies it bowed to political pressure by pulling or restoring funding to Planned Parenthood.
The question is how the Komen organization will go forward having alienated abortion rights supporters earlier this week and now making anti-abortion organizations unhappy. You know, Komen has been such a juggernaut in the breast cancer world. It will be interesting to see what the future holds for it and that well-known pink ribbon.
WHITFIELD: It will be fascinating. All right, thanks so much, Susan Candiotti. All right, the older you get, the more fragile your bones may be. Our Elizabeth Cohen tells us one thing you can do to protect yourself -- next.
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WHITFIELD: Madonna, the material girl, she's graced stages around the globe in front of massive audiences more than 30 years now. But, she told our Anderson Cooper that she has butterflies over headlining the halftime show at tomorrow's super bowl.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MADONNA, SINGER: My God. I'm so nervous. You have no idea. I have to put on the greatest show on earth in the middle of the greatest show on earth. I have eight minutes to set it up, seven minutes to take it down and 12 minutes to put on the greatest show on earth. OK, that is a lot of pressure.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: Maybe her anxiety is justified. Some are predicting tomorrow's game will be the most watched ever. Something tells me she'll probably nail it still.
All right, it has been 30 years since the hit television slow "Fame" debuted making us all believe there is a singer/dancer inside us all. Remember the tough-talking teacher and Lydia, played by Debbie Allen? Well, she is still tough talking, directing, choreographing, acting - she does it all.
Next week, she and I talk face-to-face about a lot of things, including her new role on the TV show "Grey's Anatomy." Her dance studio and the future she sees in the performing arts.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DEBBIE ALLEN, ACTRESS: Do you know where you're going to -- I need Diana Ross to come and tell me. I love here. I do have her number in my cell phone.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: She knows everybody and everybody knows Debbie Allen, face to face with Debbie Allen. And she also is talking about missing a best friend, opening up about one of her best dance students ever, pop icon Michael Jackson.
Alright ladies, a question for you. Do you know how strong your bones are? One way to tell is with a bone density test. It's recommended for all women aged 65 and older and for younger women with certain risk factors. Elizabeth Cohen has more in today's "health for her."
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ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Until Katie Kelly got a bone density test in her early 50s; she didn't realize she had the beginnings of osteoporosis or thinning bones.
KATIE KELLY, PATIENT: I can't believe it. It came as a shock.
COHEN: Especially since she's been doing the right things to help keep her bones strong.
DR. SUJATHA REDDY, OB/GYN, EMERY SCHOOL OF MEDICINE: Regular weight- bearing exercise, taking adequate calcium and vitamin d can help you prevent bone loss.
COHEN: Like many women, Katie has certain risk factors that increase the odds her bones might fracture.
REDDY: Being a petite thin woman is one, being Caucasian is another risk factor. Some medical conditions put you on higher risk.
COHEN: As does a family history and menopause.
REDDY: We really think when a woman goes into menopause; it's the drop in estrogen which allows the accelerated bone loss.
COHEN: This is what healthy bone looks like as opposed to a more fragile bone with more empty spaces. Katie will take medication to help build up her bone and come back for another bone density test in about two years.
In the meantime, she'll up her amount of exercise to three to four days a week and continue taking her calcium and vitamin D. Good advice to help women of all ages, maintain healthy bones. With this week's help for her, I'm Elizabeth Cohen.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: The January jobs report gave us a boost of good news with a drop in unemployment. But what does that mean for the broader economy, straight ahead to look at the big picture.
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WHITFIELD: More than 320 people have died in the Syrian City of hours in Homs in the past 48 hours. That's according to the opposition towards. Syrian troops bombed and shelled apartment buildings at random. Some anti-government protests recorded the violence uploading the video to the internet. And some even streamed the footage live on the web. One activist in Homs identified only as Danny spoke to CNN's Anderson Cooper.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DANNY, HOMS ACTIVIST: These aren't animals lying here. These are human beings being bombed by mortar bombs, being bombed by tank shells. And no one is doing anything about it. We are going to sit here and get killed. There is one message I want to get out. That we are not going to stop. The Syrian people are not going to stop if they kill millions. We will remember that no one did anything about this. (END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: The violence in Homs triggered the U.N. Security Council to hold an emergency session today trying to adopt a resolution condemning the Syrian government. That resolution failed.
The January jobs report showed a drop in unemployment, but what does that mean for the broader economy in the future? CNN's Christine Romans looks at the big picture.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: A very strong jobs report. Businesses were ramping up their hiring in January and the unemployment rate drifted down. This is what it looks like for the year. For all of last year, some revisions are in and we know 1.82 million jobs were created last year. And we know that the hiring starting this year was pretty broad based. You had professional and business services about 70,000 jobs created there. Leisure and hospitality, manufacturing and health care. Health care has been a steady performer for job creation for more than a year now.
The unemployment rate has now dipped to 8.3 percent. That is the lowest since the second month President Barack Obama was in office. You have the jobless rate spiking after he was in office, even before he was in office. Got all the way up to 10 percent and is drifting lower, again, the lowest since February 2009.
One thing that is important to note here as well is the drop in the unemployment rate for African-Americans. A big drop quite frankly, 13.6 percent is now the level there down from 15.8 percent. For Hispanics, it was mostly steady at 10.5 percent and for whites 7.4 percent.
Now, economists are saying today they want to see more months of this kind of job creation. It's been difficult to sustain 200,000 plus jobs created every month. They would like to see that again and again to really show the labor market is healing.
And remember, 8.3 percent that, is still an unemployment rate unacceptably high, still a lot of work to do.
Christine Romans, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: High water and heavy snow. We will look at extreme weather across the nation, coming up.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DON LEMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Don Lemon. Coming up tonight on CNN, remembering a "Soul Train" legend. Don Cornelius, creator and host of one of television's longest running dance shows. We are going to speak with singer and dancer Jodi Watley. She is an original "Soul Train" dancer tonight, when you joins as at 6:00 p.m. Eastern on CNN. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: Alright, turning ideas into innovations. Ali Velshi brings us this week's fortune bran storm.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ALI VELSHI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: You may not have heard of my next guest but we want into the deuce you to Ankur Jain. He founded an organization that helps student entrepreneurs turn ideas into innovative businesses that tackle some of the world's most pressing issues. Not issues you would normally associate with students.
It's called the Kairos society. It puts the most promising student entrepreneurs from around the world in contact with global business leaders.
Ankur, thanks for joining us. What do you think these groups of students can do that hasn't already been tackled?
ANKUR JAIN, FOUNDER, CHAIRMAN, KAIROS SOCIETY: This generation is not only more interconnected than any previous one.
VELSHI: Right.
JAIN: But they are able to look at problems from new angles and new ways. Did you know 40 percent of health diagnostics are incorrect today? Education is not personalized to the individual.
VELSHI: Right.
JAIN: Let's take the specific problems and take these students, put them in a room not only with their peers, but with leaders of today. So, we can take the wisdom of what's happening today and merge that with a new way of thinking.
VELSHI: What's the better hostage, is it just the nature of these entrepreneur that they don't look at things the same way?
JAIN: You're seeing 21-year-olds saying why are we treating cancer with this? Why can't we take targeted approaches genetic secretes and approaches to individual cancer cells to identify what type of cancer they have and make it --
VELSHI: So, the idea is they are not invested in whatever system is not working insufficiently. They can start with the blank slate.
Ankur Jain, thanks very much for joining us. Ankur is the founder of the Kairos society.
I'm Ali Velshi with this week's fortune brain storm.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: All right. Thanks so much Ali. Let's talk weather now. Finally, it feels like winter in some places. But, God, when it snows, it really snows, Jacqui Jeras, with us now, my goodness. Colorado should be happy.
JACQUI JERAS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: They should. But you know, it's a lot at one time for anybody really. This is record-breaking snow. Denver, this is the greatest three-day total they had. And they also had a 24-hour record yesterday, more than a foot. So, it does take a little bit to clean up from this. In fact, they had to shut i-70 down yesterday for a while between Denver and Lyman because the winds were so badly.
(CROSSTALK)
WHITFIELD: Colorado right? They are ready.
JERAS: look at the some of the totals so skiers delight here in places like Pinecliffe, Colorado, more than 50 inches. That was the biggest number that I could find. Now, the storm system is on the move at this hour. And we are going to continue to see heavy snow. In fact, Nebraska has been one of the worst-hit places. Lincoln, Nebraska, just reporting more than a foot of snow. Yes, a foot in Lincoln. If I can just get a tweet, Fredricka, from a guy who is the mail carrier in Lincoln, Nebraska, that says, we didn't do it today.
WHITFIELD: No.
JERAS: Yes.
WHITFIELD: So much for the, you know, neither sleep nor snow.
JERAS: He said it's the first time in memory that he ever remember of (inaudible), the mail there in that Lincoln. Let's show you where the heavy --
WHITFIELD: We understand.
JERAS: We too. Yes, everybody gets a snow day once in a while, right? Heavy across parts of Iowa, we've got a little snow into western parts of Pennsylvania. There, you can see the winter storm warning. So, its kind a constant rain today as this storm system continues to move eastern, it is going to weaken a little bit and there is going to be less cold air to go along with it.
It is also done quite a punch in terms of rain and heavy flooding. Take a look at this video we have for you out of Texas. This is just outside the college station area in Burleson County there, five to seven inches of rain. Dozens and dozens of roads are closed, still a flood threat today in parts of Louisiana. But we will just see some rain that we need in parts of Alabama and Georgia and the Carolinas.
WHITFIELD: OK. Mixed bag there, got a little bit of everything. Alright, thanks so much, Jacqui.
Much more straight ahead with my colleague, Don Lemon. And then after that, 6:00 eastern time, our special political coverage, a special edition of "THE SITUATION ROOM "with Wolf Blitzer, result of the Nevada caucuses. I'm Fredricka Whitfield. See you later.
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