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Barack Obama Speaks About Reforming No Child Left Behind, Announces Waivers for 10 States; Syrian City Under Siege; Five Big Banks Agree to Mortgage Settlement; $26 Billion Mortgage Settlement; First Lawsuit Over Contraception Rule; Center Of The Conservative Universe; Interview With Kardashian Mom Kris Jenner
Aired February 09, 2012 - 13:57 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(BEGIN LIVE SPEECH)
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Thank you very much. Please have a seat. Thank you so much. Well, hello, everybody. And welcome to the White House.
I want to start by thanking all the chief state school officers who have made the trip from all over the country.
Why don't you all stand up, just so we can see you all right here.
(APPLAUSE)
OBAMA: A great group right here.
(APPLAUSE)
OBAMA: Thank you.
And I want to recognize someone who is doing a pretty good job right here in Washington, D.C., and that is my secretary of education, Arne Duncan. Love Arne.
I've also got some outstanding members of Congress who are here who have always been on the front lines when it comes to education reform. But above all, I want to thank all the teachers who are here today.
Where are the teachers? Come on, stand up teachers.
(APPLAUSE)
There you go. We've got some teachers here.
You know, earlier this week, we hosted our second White House Science Fair. Some of you may have seen this on TV. I got a chance to shoot a marshmallow out of an air cannon --
(LAUGHTER)
-- which I don't usually get to do. (LAUGHTER)
But I met these incredibly talented young people. Kids who were working on everything from portable housing for disaster victims to technology that can detect smuggled uranium before it became a threat. This young man had built a prototype. And I asked him how he came up with this idea. And he said, I've always just been really interested in nuclear materials and I collect samples.
(LAUGHTER)
And I asked him, how does your mom feel about this?
(LAUGHTER)
He said she wasn't that happy about it.
(LAUGHTER)
But just unbelievable young people. It was extraordinary.
Before they left, I gave them some homework. I told them, go find a teacher who helped them make it here and say thank you. Because every single one of us can point to a teacher who, in some way, changed the course of our lives. I certainly can. I know Arne can. And the impact is often much bigger than we realize. One study found that a single good teacher can increase the lifetime earnings of a classroom by $250,000. Single teacher. A great teacher can help a young person escape poverty, allow them to dream beyond their circumstances. So teachers matter.
And in an economy where employers are looking for the most skilled, educated workers, a few people are going to have a bigger impact on that, the men and women who are in our classrooms. And that ultimately is why we're here today. It's about our classrooms and our children and what's happening to them and how they can perform.
In September, after waiting far too long for Congress to act, I announced that my administration would take steps to reform No Child Left Behind on our own. This was one of the first and the biggest "We can't wait" announcements that we've made because our kids and our schools can't be held back by inaction. I want to point out, by the way, that the members of Congress who are here, they're ready to act, but we haven't been able to get the entire House and Senate to move on this.
And I said back then the goals of No Child Left Behind were the right ones, standards and accountability. Those are the right goals. Closing the achievement gap -- that's a good goal. That's the right goal. We've got to stay focused on those goals, but we've got to do it in a way that doesn't force teachers to teach to the test or encourage schools to lower their standards to avoid being labeled as failures. That doesn't help anybody. It certainly doesn't help our children in the classroom.
So we determined we need a different approach. And I've always believed that each of us has a role to play when it comes to our children's education. As parents, we've got a responsibility to make sure homework gets done, but also to instill a love of learning from the very start.
As a nation, we've got a responsibility to give our students the resources they need, from the highest quality schools to the latest textbooks to science labs that actually work. In return, we should demand better performance. We should demand reform.
And that was the idea behind Race to the Top. For less than 1 percent of what our nation spends on education each year, we've gotten almost every state in the nation to raise their standards for teaching and learning, and that's the first time that's happened in a generation.
So when it comes to fixing what's wrong with No Child Left Behind, we've offered every state the same deal. We said, If you're willing to set higher, more honest standards than the ones that were set by No Child Left Behind, then we're going to give you the flexibility to meet those standards. We want high standards, and we'll give you flexibility in return.
We combined greater freedom with greater accountability because what might work in Minnesota may not work in Kentucky. But every student should have the same opportunity to reach their potential.
So over the last five months, 39 states have told us that they were interested. Some have already applied. And today, I am pleased to announce that we are giving 10 states, the first 10 states, the green light to continue making the reforms that are best for them.
Each of these states has set higher benchmarks for student achievement. They've come up with ways to evaluate and support teachers fairly, based on more than just a set of test scores. And along with promoting best practices for all of our children, they're also going to be focusing on low-income students and English language learners and students with disabilities, not just to make sure that those children don't fall through the cracks, but to make sure they have every opportunity to go as far as their talents will take them.
So Massachusetts, for example, has set a goal to cut the number of underperforming students in half over the next six years. I like that goal. Colorado has launched a Web site that will allow teachers and parents to see exactly how much progress students are making and how different schools are measuring up. So you know, nothing creates more accountability than when parents are out there taking a look and seeing what's going on.
New Jersey is developing an early warning system to reduce the number of dropouts. Tennessee is creating a statewide school district to aggressively tackle its lowest-performing schools. And Florida has set a goal to have their test scores rank among the top five states in the country and the top 10 countries in the world. I like that ambition.
This is good news for our kids, it's good news for our country. And I'm confident that we're going to see even more states come forward in the months ahead because if we're serious about helping our children reach their full potential, the best ideas aren't going to just come from here in Washington. They're going to come from cities and towns from all across America. They're going to come from teachers and principals and parents. They're going to come from you who have a sense of what works and what doesn't.
And our job is to harness those ideas, to lift up best practices, to hold states and schools accountable for making them work. That's how we're going to make sure that every child in America has the skills and the education they need to compete for the jobs of the future and to be great citizens. And that's how we're going to build an economy that lasts.
So to all the educators who are in the room, thank you for what you do every day. We are very proud of your efforts. We know it's not easy. We're proud of you. And working together, I am absolutely confident that, you know, year after year, we're going to see steady improvement.
I told the superintendents that I met backstage before I came out here, this is not a one-year project. This isn't a two-year project. This is going to take some time. But we can get it done with the kind of determination and the kind of commitment that so many of you have shown. So I'm proud of you. I'm proud of Arne Duncan. Let's make this happen.
Thank you very much, everybody.
(END LIVE SPEECH)
DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: All right, everyone. I'm Don Lemon. Brooke is off today.
There you see the president at the White House shaking hands right now. He's talking about No Child Left Behind, that law. It was left behind today, according to the president, in 10 states. He's giving them some freedom to do what they want. The states are Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Kentucky Kentucky, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Jersey, Oklahoma and Tennessee.
They were granted waivers to free them from parts of the law to do as they see in improving their schools, their teachers and their students. They're going to improve accountability and they're going to undertake essential reforms to improve teacher effectiveness, as well, being allowed to do what they want.
Now I want to get you caught up on everything else that's making news this hour, rapid-fire. So let's go.
All right, first up, the housing meltdown got a huge jolt today in the right direction. It comes in the form of a $26 billion bail- out for home owners. That's right, I said a bail-out for home owners, not the banks. The mortgage settlement deal includes up to $2,000 for home owners whose homes were foreclosed on. It also allows home owners who are underwater to refinance. Here are the banks participating in that settlement -- Bank of America, JPMorgan Chase, CitiGroup, Wells Fargo, Ally Financial.
One hundred and thirty-one people killed in Syria today, killed by their own government.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
"DANNY," SYRIAN OPPOSITION ACTIVIST: This is the life we've got used to -- rockets, bullets killing children in the street.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: Here's what we're talking here, constant relentless slaughtering of innocent lives. These are live pictures. We will be looking at live pictures. We'll take you there shortly in this broadcast. This are opposition groups protesting in the city of Daraa. President Bashar al Assad has repeatedly denied attacking civilians. Opposition groups disagree with that, though.
The Mississippi supreme court tackled a case today that fueled both outrage and nationwide manhunt -- and a nationwide manhunt, the last-minute pardons of some 200 criminals, four of them convicted murderers, by outgoing Mississippi governor Haley Barbour.
The state's attorney general says the pardons are unconstitutional.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JIM HOOD, MISSISSIPPI ATTORNEY GENERAL: The pardons -- they don't say -- the ones that I've reviewed do not say, you know, whether publication requirement was met. You know, there are pardons that do that we think are valid. So we contend that the pardons are facially (ph) invalid.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: Chief Justice Bill Waller (ph) said no decision would be announced today.
Women in the military will soon be even closer to the front lines of combat. The Pentagon says they can now serve on missile launchers and act as field surgeons in combat teams, just some of the 14,000 jobs now open to women. They still cannot serve in small units fighting on the ground, such as sniper teams or infantry units. The Pentagon made the move to allow women in the military to get credit for combat duties, which helps in promotions.
Pepsi says it is going to cut 8,700 jobs in 30 countries and spend more on advertising and marketing. Now, the cuts represent about 3 percent of the company's workforce. The soft drink maker says the job cuts are part of a plan to save $1.5 billion over the next three years.
You've probably heard the harsh parenting tactics of the "Tiger Mother." Remember them? Now, more outrage over a YouTube clip from a self-proclaimed "Eagle Father."
A father in Nanjing, China, shot video of his 4-year-old son crying, Hold me, running only in his underwear in the snow. Now, the father says it's part of a training regimen to strengthen his son, who was born premature and has health problems. Many in China are calling for the state to step in now.
An horrific killing in Lake Wales (ph), Florida, to tell you about. Police say a 67-year-old grandmother was stabbed 93 times, hit in the face with a pipe wrench and shot with a crossbow, her grandson charged with first degree murder now. Nineteen-year-old Jasper Smitty (ph) allegedly called his father and confessed. No motive has been given for the brutal attack.
Several organizations have been fined a total of more than $80,000 for the stage collapse at the Indiana State Fair last summer that killed seven people. Remember that horrific video of the -- the largest of the penalties, $63,000, went to Mid America Sound, which built that stage. Mid America Sound says it warned the state commission and the band Sugarland before the collapse that the stage couldn't handle high winds.
A naked man becomes part of the downtown Los Angeles skyline. The unidentified man took off his clothes as he climbed to the top of a 220-foot radio tower yesterday. He stayed there for five hours, shouting and whistling. Police climbed the tower last night and convinced him to come down. Finally, he was lowered to the ground in a basket. There's no word on why he climbed that tower.
A whale shark almost the size of a school bus pulled from the sea on Pakistan's coast. Fishermen say they spotted the 40-foot shark floating unconscious, but others question whether it may have been the victim of a whale shark hunt. Now, the shark was sold for $18,000. The meat will be turned into poultry feed.
Some folks in Vermont have been blaming the Yankee nuclear power plant for contaminating fish. Now the state health department has evidence clearing the plant. The same radioactive element found in fish near the plant has been found in fish in a Lake Carmi, 200 miles away. Health officials say the fish are safe to eat, and the slight contamination likely came from nuclear testing around the world decades ago.
We've got a whole lot to cover in the next two hours. Make sure you watch.
As the right battles President Obama over birth control, conservatives are gathering in D.C. to fire up the base. I'll speak live with right-wing star Tony Perkins and Congresswoman Michele Bachmann.
I'm Don Lemon. The news starts right now.
In Syria, people bury their loves ones at night to avoid snipers, and the stories get more and more haunting.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: An 11-year-old boy -- he had been hit in the face. I got a glimpse of his eyes. He was just silent and in shock.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: A man tries to kidnap a little girl inside Wal-Mart, and the terrifying moments caught on video.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's chilling to know that -- how quick something can happen.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: She's the new face of JCPenney. But a group of moms want Ellen Degeneres fired because she's gay. I'll speak live with CEO Ron Johnson (ph), the former Apple guy who's standing behind her and an American brand.
Plus...
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: There's a lot going on.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: ... Kourtney, Khloe and Kim Kardashian's mom talks to me about sex, her kids and her critics. Kris Jenner joins me live.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: Welcome back, everyone. Syrian government forces have slaughtered scores more people in the country's largest (sic) city. (INAUDIBLE) Syrian opposition is putting the death toll at more than 100 today in the surrounded city of Homs. The government says it is targeting armed militants, but the opposition says the dead today include 10 children. It's also accusing the government of attacking homes and hospitals.
I want you to watch this account from inside the city. It's from a Syrian activist who goes by the name of "Danny."
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
"DANNY," SYRIAN OPPOSITION ACTIVIST: (INAUDIBLE) We have more of bombs and tank shells and rockets. You can see they're (INAUDIBLE) in the buildings. Those are civilian houses. You can see it on the ground. You can see how the rockets have landed here. There's more than seven people dead just in this street, women, children, men. You can see the whole street. The bodies are in there. There's bodies in that house, pieces of bodies in that house. This is a civilian house.
This is a video of this. The pieces of bodies are still in here. (INAUDIBLE) These are bodies. These are civilian bodies. These are civilian bodies. This is isn't the army. These are children, men, women being killed.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: As you can see from that, it is relentless. And the Syrian government, by the way, has barred foreign-based reporters, so we're reporting on the story from Syria's neighbor Turkey.
I want to bring in CNN's Ivan Watson now. He's following things from Istanbul. Ivan, how much stock can we put in these reports from Syrian activists? They are saying that more than 100 people are dead today in Homs.
IVAN WATSON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Don, if you just take a step back from this story and you look at the video that is being shown, where you've got entire apartment blocks being pounded by artillery, residential neighborhoods where buildings are collapsed -- I mean, I think we have a fair amount of evidence to show that a city with a population of about a million people is being shelled indiscriminately with rockets and mortars and tank shells.
And I've been around these weapons. They are not very well targeted. If you fire that into a densely packed residential neighborhood, it will go through buildings and kill people. And those are the accounts that we are getting from residents, from doctors, a number of people I've spoken to. Their desperation is enormous.
One of the people who was wounded is an activist who attracted attention when he confronted Arab observers who were in Homs weeks ago and told them they're not stopping the violence there. And he's been wounded. And he paid a video appeal today for help from the international community, and he also had tough words of defiance for the Syrian president, Bashar al Assad.
Take a listen what he had to say.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (INAUDIBLE)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: Don, the Syrian government says it's attacking armed terrorists, but from the images we've seen, the multiple eyewitness accounts, it looks like civilians are bearing the brunt of this deadly artillery assault.
LEMON: Ivan, let's talk diplomacy here. Is there anything new on the diplomatic front to try to end this siege?
WATSON: Well, late last night, the U.N. security -- secretary general, Ban Ki-moon -- he said that there are talks now to possibly try to send another group of Arab observers, joined possibly by U.N. personnel, to Syria. And when I've asked the people who are besieged without electricity -- they can't get fresh food, they can't walk down the streets of Homs without being shot at by snipers, or worse, mortars, they laugh. They say, We don't need Arab observers. We need basic supplies. We need a humanitarian corridor to evacuate the civilians from this city, where more than 100 people were killed, according to them, today alone.
A doctor we talked to who said all he has to treat the more than 100 wounded he got this morning were rubbing alcohol, gauze, and sutures, he didn't even have antibiotics, he said, We're giving up. People are just sitting in their houses, waiting for that deadly rocket to fly in and kill them. And then the people are going to come in and dig their bodies out from underneath the rubble.
LEMON: Oh, my goodness! Thank you very much, Ivan Watson. We appreciate it. Make sure you stay safe. He's reporting from neighboring Turkey, by the way.
We mentioned that the Syrian government right now is barring foreign journalists, but early last month, CNN's Nic Robertson was granted a visa by Damascus and filed reports on the growing tension near the Syrian capital. Take a look.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: The level of anger and passion here is absolutely palpable. We're just a few miles from the center of Damascus. And this is a crowd here -- thank you. This is a crowd here of perhaps several thousand people. They've taken over this whole area. They've put rocks in the road to prevent the police coming in here.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: He joins me here in Atlanta. He's back from the region. Is there any way to tell just how worse things are today, one month later in Syria? You heard Ivan. There are -- he has no bandages, he says, no alcohol, no gauze, no sutures, no antibiotics.
ROBERTSON: It's significantly worse. It's become quantifiably worse since Bashar al Assad unleashed the full force of his military army on Homs, on places like Zabadani that we visited with the monitors. When the monitors were there, the army wasn't shelling these towns. They weren't using tanks this way. They weren't firing mortars into these civilian areas. That's begun in the last week or so, so all these injuries. and when we were there, there were perhaps 20 or 30 people being killed a day. Now the numbers are up in the hundreds. So it's quantifiably worse.
LEMON: So you were in the capital city of Damascus. How strong of support does the regime have in that capital city?
ROBERTSON: About 20 to 30 percent of the population support Bashar al Assad. There's 10 percent Alawite -- this is the sect that President Bashar al Assad is from -- about 10 percent Christian. And the message that Assad sells his people is that, You're only going to be safe under me. The Sunni majority, if they get power, you will be forced out of your homes and businesses.
LEMON: The interesting thing is that Bashar al Assad is opening up himself up for possible prosecution for hate crimes against humanity. Can he rightfully claim that he is defending his country from armed militants, as he says?
ROBERTSON: It wouldn't stand up in court. I mean, he is -- despite what he has said in television interviews, that he doesn't command the army, he is the commander of the Syrian army. I don't think there's any sort of international diplomat or army general around the world who tell you that's not the case. And Syrian politicians who've fled the country will tell you he is the commander of the armed forces. And the armed forces are killing civilians.
And that's what you need, the fundamentals for a prosecution. So he says that he's defending the country and the people from armed terrorists. Yes, the opposition now have some weapons. They have Kalashnikovs, rocket-propelled grenades, which are no match for his army. He has a very, very powerful and strong army. This is not an army that's in disarray.
LEMON: Yes. And the question, the one I asked you as we were watching Ivan Watson, we were watching the gentleman there showing, you know, civilian lives -- he says, These are civilian bodies -- is there any end in sight, knowing this region, knowing this story? Any end in sight?
ROBERTSON: Not at the moment. The U.N., as we heard Ivan talking about, is possibly gearing up with the Arab League to resend the monitors back in. Even if they were able to do that -- not all the monitors were in the country. Even if they were able to do that -- we saw this in Bosnia, where the U.N. and the monitors don't have the power to stop the army firing and shooting on people.
The monitors were in the country last month and they couldn't even get those tanks to pull back, never mind stop them shooting. What Assad is telling the international community (INAUDIBLE) is if you put a humanitarian cordon, security around these areas in Homs, for example, and you allow out all these wounded people, you do Assad's business for him, which is sectarian ethnic cleansing. You get rid of the opposition, you take them out of the town. Assad would love the international community to come in and remove his problem for him.
LEMON: Yes. Thank you. Nic Robertson, appreciate it, sir.
And coming up in the next hour here on CNN, Fareed Zakaria joins me live to talk about the bigger picture in that region. Make sure you stay tuned for that.
Meantime, millions of foreclosed homes, millions of home owners is underwater. Huge news for people struggling to keep their homes. Today federal and state officials announced a mortgage deal. Up And Next, find out exactly how you can get help and who is paying for the big bail-out.
But first, $179 million worth of counterfeit goods made their way into the country last year. U.S. Customs and Border Patrol is out with their list of the top counterfeit items, the top five. Number five on the list, clothing, particularly jeans and sports jerseys. Number four, CDs and DVDs. Number three, prescription drugs. Viagra is one of the most popular, by the way.
The top two counterfeit goods seized coming into the United States -- that's coming up right after this quick break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: Now back to the top two counterfeit goods seized coming into United States. Here's number two. Shoes. It's mostly Nike knockoffs and other athletic footwear, but they're seeing more luxury brands like Jimmy Choo and Uggs, as well. And the most seized counterfeit item, according to U.S. Customs, is this, electronics. The hottest items are smartphones, tablet computers and music players. So now you know.
The nation's five largest lenders today promised to make good by millions of struggling home owners. Now, these are the lenders -- JPMorgan Chase, CitiGroup, Wells Fargo, Bank of America and Ally Financial, formerly GMAC. In this deal announced at the Justice Department, the lenders agree to pay some $26 billion to help reduce -- help home owners reduce their principal and to help refinance at lower mortgage rates. Now, some of that money will go to state governments for direct aid to struggling home owners.
The president talked about the agreement just a short time ago.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
OBAMA: Under the terms of this settlement, America's biggest banks, banks that were rescued by taxpayer dollars, will be required to right these wrongs. That means more than just paying a fee. These banks will put billions of dollars towards relief for families across the nation.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: Let's drill down on this a little bit more. Joining me now from New York, CNN's Alison Kosik. So Alison, we also heard the attorney general say that these banks could still face civil and even criminal action. So it's not the end of the story, then, is it.
ALISON KOSIK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Exactly. You make a good point there, Don. You know, this is a civil settlement. So yes, further action is a possibility. Also, people affected by these banks that made these mistakes in the first place -- these people can still file suit, as can states. States can still pursue criminal investigations.
And I talked with one analyst, Don, who told me that, You know what? That's what's -- that's what's really needed at this point. There need to be a criminal indictment against these banks because that would give a stronger deterrent to keep the banks from doing it again in the states I'm talking about -- Don.
LEMON: Yes, $26 billion which homeowners qualify to receive some of that. Which ones do?
KOSIK: OK. It's broken into three groups of people who are really going to benefit from this settlement. Most of these people keep in mind were actually not directly affected by the robo signing scandal that prompted this settlement.
So the first group that we're talking about here are these homeowners who are underwater on their mortgages and late on their payments. They're really going to get the most relief in this deal adds up to about a million Americans who are going to get an average of $17,000 to $20,000 reduction in their principal on their mortgage.
It will basically cuts the size of their mortgage and they owe will he less on their homes. Now the second group includes up to 750,000 other homeowners also underwater, but they have remained current on their mortgages. What these people are going to be able to do is actually refinance their current loans at lower rates.
So they're going to get a savings in their monthly payment there. Now there's a third group. This includes some people who actually lost their homes to foreclosure. They're going to get checks. They're going to get payments of about $2,000 each.
If you're wondering if you're one of these people, if you're one of these homeowners, guess what, the banks have to divide a sort of way to contact people who are eligible in this settlement -- Don.
LEMON: Very interesting. Let's talk now, Alison, about impact here. How far will this go toward repairing the housing market?
KOSIK: All right. So it may help with the number of foreclosures that are out there because you know, think about it. By refinancing and reducing the principal on their mortgages for these homeowners that should help people stay up to date on their payments. So they have a better chance of staying in their homes.
But, you know, I talked with one securities attorney, Andrew Stiltman and and he says wait a minute on the settlement. This settlement actually helps the banks more than consumers because it winds up capping the bank's financial liability, which is a good thing for investors and good thing for the banks.
But the settlement actually winds up helping less than 2 million of the 11 million people currently underwater on their mortgages. He goes on to say that the banks really won't be paying all that much anyway, $6 billion in cash. The rest is going to be written off.
But they're also going helping people modify their mortgages. That's a good thing. That's something that's in the homeowners' interest and it's clearly in the banks' interest. It's going to keep people in their homes paying their bills.
Also we may wind up seeing, Don, is the biggest winner could be the overall economy because it could help stabilize the housing market and give more money for people to spend in the end -- Don.
LEMON: Let's hope it help something. Thank you very much, Alison Kosik in New York.
Birth control for Catholics, the race for the White House, gays and lesbians, all hot topics for Republicans this political season. One of the movers and shakers of the Republican Party is this man, Tony Perkins, the head of the Evangelical Family Research Council. I'll ask him about those topics and more next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: All right. We have some developing news just into CNN. We're going to put up a web site because we want to tell you about the first lawsuit now has been filed over the government's controversial rule to make companies offer contraception to employees.
EWTN, which is Eternal Word Television Network, it has filed suit today in Alabama calling the mandate unconstitutional. You see its web site there, EWTN sues government to stop contraception mandate. That is a homepage of its web site right there, the stop contraception mandate.
Now the network's president says the government had forced EWTN to make a choice either provide employees coverage for contraception, sterilization and abortion inducing drugs and violate their conscience or don't offer health insurance at all.
So, for further we have the next guest, I've just happen to have one of today's speakers at the Conservative Political Action Conference, which is the biggest and perhaps most influential gathering for the right.
Tony Perkins, the president of the Evangelical Family Research Council. He's at CPAC now. What's your reaction to this news now from EWTN?
TONY PERKINS, PRESIDENT, FAMILY RESEARCH COUNCIL: Don, not surprising. We've had other educational institutions that have also filed suit. Before this decision was handed down knowing that it was coming.
So this is to be expected. This issue goes beyond health care, contraception, this as many are seeing this across the country is an issue of religious liberty and whether or not the government can force people to violate the tenets of their faith.
LEMON: Let's talk about now what you're going to say. Is this part of what you're going to talk about when you take the stage this afternoon?
PERKINS: Well, Don, actually it is. There are very key elements of the conservative movement, strong defense, peace through security, free enterprise system, and a strong family -- strong families, the church that develop character.
And we have seen from this administration most profoundly in this past week through this mandate an attack on the church and the family being able to you know, order their lives according to the teachings of their faith.
This is a big deal as I'm hearing from religious leaders of all denominations across the country.
LEMON: There are people who work for these companies who may not be Christian employees. May not be Christian. Don't they have the right to the equal protection when it comes to contraception and all of that in their workplace?
PERKINS: Well, what we're talking about specifically are religious organizations that are being mandated. The only exemption, very narrow exemption provides for the church, a church, one that ministers to people of their same faith.
Here that's drawn in by this mandate are hospitals, schools, non-profit, religious organizations. So yes, they may, but they have statements of faith, most of them and when someone comes to work for them, they agree to that statement of faith. And so it is forcing them to violate that statement of faith.
LEMON: Three of the four Republicans still running for president are going to be at CPAC. You see Rick Santorum's wins on Tuesday as evidence that voters are more concerned with social issues? You may see it that way. How does that help conservative who have been out of work for months?
PERKINS: Well, Don, I don't think that it takes the economic issues off the table. I think you're absolutely right. I mean, the economy is still an issue. In fact, it was the predominant issue.
But even in the last week, we've seen where the jobs report came out and we've seen an uptick and many are saying, we might be climbing out of the recession, which is good news for the country but then it also enables people to maybe put some of these other issues higher toward the top for their consideration.
Of course, with these decisions it has put more of an emphasis on them. You have candidates pointing them out. Rick Santorum has been talking about this all along, but even Mitt Romney talking about it this weekend. Newt Gingrich, as well.
LEMON: Rick Santorum, is he the person that you think upholds the beliefs of your organization more?
PERKINS: Well, I mean, I have not endorsed a candidate. Our organization never has endorsed a presidential candidate, but we do endorse a set of ideas and principles. We do want to see this economy going well. We think though the way to a strong economy is a part of the culture and it's a part of strong families. If we want to shrink the size and scope of government, we have to first strengthen the American family.
And that has been a message of Rick Santorum, but it has also been a message of Newt Gingrich. It was a message of Mitt Romney four years ago. He's not talked about it much this time, but I do think he'll start talking more about it.
LEMON: All right, I want to talk about something that has been in the news for the last couple days. I want to play this for you and then we'll talk about it.
OK, I don't know if you're able to see that video, but it's a video, Mr. Perkins, of a young man being beaten in Atlanta while his attackers shouted gay slurs at him.
The reason I played it is because you and the Family Research Council believe homosexuality is a sin and you're against gay rights. But doesn't that young man have a right to his own personal safety?
PERKINS: Absolutely, without question. It's not -- we're not against rights for homosexuals or lesbians. It's special rights. Every American regardless and especially every young person in our schools have a right to go to school and be secure without being bullied.
That should not even be up for debate in our culture. But what should not happen is we should not pick out a certain segment and only protect them. You should not be able to bully a student based upon their religious background, what they do sexually. You're absolutely right.
So we have spoken out very clearly that we are adamantly 100 percent against physical violence or attacking anyone based on anything. It shouldn't be tolerated in our society.
LEMON: Here's how many people see it. When there's something that happens when it comes to gay marriage or what have you, you hear from the Family Research Council and others.
But when you hear what happened there on the street and you have gay slurs that those attackers are shouting, are you concerned though that you're not doing enough to mitigate this sort of hatred like this because when things like this happen, there is no press release from the Family Research Council that condemns this sort of behavior?
PERKINS: You know, Don, that's a good question. You know, but we have to talk about -- when we're talking about policies that would normalize behavior that many based on those moral convictions see as wrong.
Whether it's homosexual behavior or promiscuity, adultery but to normalize that and then to say look, we're only going to protect that, that's where the problem comes in.
I'm happy to sit down and talk about how we make our schools safer for all children. No child should go to a school fearing their going fob bullied for any reason.
LEMON: I don't mean to cut you off. I just want to get an answer to the question. I'm not talking about how you feel. You can feel how you want to about gay rights and about gay marriage. That's your perspective.
But what I'm saying is that when we talk about gay rights in the news and there are stories that come up, your organization is seen as condemning rights, marriage and those same-sex marriage and those sorts of things.
But when incidents like this happen you tend to back away from it. So I'm wondering if you feel that you're doing enough to mitigate violence and people having respect to be on the street and not get attacked?
PERKINS: Well, Don, I don't put out press releases when there's another crime committed. I mean, that's not what we do. That's not what we're focused on. We're focused on public policy as it pertains to the family.
You asked me what I thought about it. I think it's abhorrent. I don't think it should have happened. We would defend the right of that person to have their rights protected. But what we don't support in public policy is special rights for people based upon their sexual behavior.
LEMON: Tony Perkins, thank you very much. I appreciate you answering my questions. Thanks.
PERKINS: All right, Don.
LEMON: A little girl in a Georgia Wal-Mart snatched up by a stranger. Sounds like a horror story, right? Well, the outcome may surprise you. That story right after this quick break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: A store surveillance camera captured a Georgia girl who literally kicked and scratched her way out of a kidnapping. Take a look at this.
Her name is Brittney Baxter. She's 7 years old. Look at how the man in the video cannot keep his double arm hold on her. He has to let her go.
And police say this happened Wednesday while Brittney's mom was just a few feet down the aisle. Brittney says the man started talking to her while she was looking at toys and then grabbed her.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BRITTNEY BAXTER, ATTEMPTED KIDNAPPING SURVIVOR: I was just like, kick as hard as you can.
GEORGEANN BAXTER, MOTHER: She said that a man had tried to kidnap her. Had picked her up and put his hand over his mouth and she was kicking and screaming and he dropped her and then ran out.
CHIEF KEITH PESNELL, BREMEN POLICE: It's chilling to know how quick something can happen. It actually sent chills up when I saw that.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: Yes, and you know what? There's more good news. I consider this good news because police arrested this 25-year-old man, Thomas Woods, on an attempted kidnapping charge.
It turns out he's on parole after serving time in prison for manslaughter. He denies he was in the store, but the videotape will show everything, of course.
Unless you are living under a rock, you know about the Kardashians. Head of the Kardashian clan, Kris Jenner, aren't you glad I didn't call you Kris Kardashian because I'm sure people call you that all time.
She is standing by live right now to talk to me about sexuality and women. That's coming up in 2 minutes. Stay with us. We'll talk to you, Kris.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: Here we go. My Twitter feed is blowing up because of this. Pay attention, Valentine's Day is upon us and that means some of you may be out shopping for love potions this weekend.
And guess who has a new one to sell? I can't believe we have to talk to her about this, Kris Jenner. I know it's hard to imagine the self-proclaimed mommager of the Kardashian clan has a product to put -- yes, but it's true. She's joining us to talk about this from L.A.
Good to see you. How you doing?
KRIS JENNER, MATRIACH AND "MANAGER" OF KARDASHIAN FAMILY: Good to see you. I'm doing fantastic. It's almost Valentine's Day.
LEMON: I know. It's going to be a great one I'm sure for you and hopefully for everyone out there. So who are you targeting with this new line of, shall we say, intimate products?
JENNER: Yes, well, you know, it's I'm here to say that I wanted -- I live a complicated life. We're all busy and crazy. So I've stumbled across a product called Zestra -- that's the most amazing product to spice up your love life.
Now that it's Valentine's Day, you know, I've been sort of spreading the message that you can make every day Valentine's Day and women seem to love it. It's clinically tested and it's fantastic.
And you know what? Anybody in a long-term relationship or even a short one, but for me I've been married 21 years. So when I find something that can spice it up a little bit, I get really excited about it.
LEMON: All right, so what is this product then? Is it like a Viagra for women? I mean, what is it?
JENNER: Well, you guys have had all these products. You know, men for so many years that kind of help you out in the bedroom area. It's like our turn now. So this is a topical product, and it works instantly. I love instant gratification. It's kind of amazing.
LEMON: OK, all right. We'll leave it at that.
JENNER: It's fantastic.
LEMON: I have to say you're a pretty hot grandma, all right? I have to say yourself.
JENNER: Thank you.
LEMON: That's a compliment. Congratulations. I hear Kourtney is having a girl.
JENNER: I don't know what she's having.
LEMON: Really? You don't know. OK.
JENNER: Really. I don't. We don't know what she's having yet, but if you know something I don't know, you'd better share.
LEMON: All right, I'll check on that for you.
JENNER: OK.
LEMON: Listen, what's lacking in the love lives of women of a certain age?
JENNER: Well, you know, as women get older, you know, their bodies start to change and they aren't as confident about the way that they look or feel, especially in the bedroom.
And I think that some women just sort of think that after a certain age maybe it's not as spicy as it used to be and people get busy. We have really crazy lives where by the end of the day, you're exhausted.
And you know, for me, you know, especially I'm married 21 years, I want something that's a little bit different and you know, a little bit more sexy. I don't want to forget about myself.
I'm here to say that every woman deserves a great love life. You know, if you can find something that helps out like this then wow, you know, give it a try.
LEMON: All right. So listen, I grew up in a family. I'm the only boy in a family full of women. So I've heard these talks.
JENNER: So you know what girls talk about.
LEMON: I do. But I'm glad we got through the sex conversation. It's done, sex, check. We've done it. Thank you. You're a good sport.
JENNER: Are you nervous?
LEMON: I was a little nervous. I'm sweating. People are like you look so embarrassed talking to Kris about this. I want to talk more about your brand, if you will.
You've built an empire out of Kourtney, Kim and Khloe. Now you're a TV host. You're on the talk show circuit. You have a book and it's not just about your kids anymore. It's about you too and with fame, of course, you know comes criticism. There's also this.
JENNER: Yes.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I get the free one.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I know, right? Four sisters.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: All right. So does that hurt a little bit? I want to explore more when we come back. Don't answer. We're back in a moment.
JENNER: OK.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: All right, everyone, we are back with Kris Jenner, the driving force behind the financial juggernaut that is the Kardashians, of course.
Love them or hate them, the Kardashian family is a brand and a brand that is making sisters Kim, Khloe and Kourtney rich and infamous.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I feel fat. I feel bad for the guy. I changed his whole life and he fell in love with me and I fell in love with him and now my feelings have changed. You don't think I feel bad.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: First off, there's reality TV including Kourtney and Kim take New York. It's an offshoot of "Keeping up with the Kardashians" that brought in $65 million last year.
There are also fragrances, nail polish, clothing lines. The multimillion dollar rights to what you just saw, Kim crying about the engagement and wedding that resulted in her failed 72-day marriage.
Now, Kris is the brains behind the marketing of the Kardashian brand, are you seeing some fallout? Are you worried that the brand will jump shark with so much exposure?
JENNER: Well, you know what? Right now, we're so blessed. The brands like Sears and my Kris Jenner collection on QVC and the nail polish and you know, the fragrances and the books, everything's doing really, really well.
Sears sales have never been better and the ratings on the TV show are you know, fantastic. So you know, I think what we do is just keep our eye on the ball. We're working hard and you know, you have to kind of -- we're just working so hard every day.
That you kind of try to filter out the negative stuff that everyone, of course, is going to take a shot when they can. We're just trying to do our thing. I'm just trying to get up every day and do the best that I can do and be the best that I can be and I teach my kids to do the same thing.
LEMON: We all are. That's no criticism. Just wondering if you ever think about overexposure when it comes to the brand since you're the momager (sic).
JENNER: Well, of course. Yes, we definitely try to make really good decisions about the things that we put our name on like my new association with Zestra, something that I actually use and love and we are passionate about.
We try to make really good choices. When something isn't a good fit then of course, you know, we make that same negative decision not to do something. But right now --
LEMON: Before we run out of time, I hate to cut you off because we're getting close to the top of the hour --
JENNER: That's OK.
LEMON: I know you don't want to talk about Kim's wedding. You're not going to do that. That's been hashed and rehashed. But it's in the news today her ex-husband, Kris is asking cameras to be inside the courtroom to show the divorce proceedings.
He says he wants to reveal that the marriage was all about ratings for the Kardashians and this brings up a point that your critics seize on a lot, is there a part of your children's life that is sacred and that you stay out of?
JENNER: You know, there's a lot of stuff that you don't see in the 22-minute television show. So yes, there's a lot of stuff that the viewer doesn't get to see. And we have -- I think we have as much privacy as we actually need.
However, we love doing what we're doing. We love the show. We love working together. So you know, the viewers have been emotionally invested in our family since day one, episode one.
You know, season one so it's sort of a journey we've all been on together and they've seen the evolution of our family. And that includes weddings and birth of babies and my kids meeting new people and friendships and just everything that life is all about.
And, you know, Kim's not the first person in the world to ever go through a divorce, and she won't be the last.
LEMON: And it could also include a divorce proceeding. Are you OK with that if cameras are allowed into the divorce proceeding?
JENNER: I haven't heard anything about that, to be honest with you , at all.
What we're doing right now is living our lives. We're constantly filming and we're having a really, really good time doing what we're doing. My focus right now, to be honest, is the birth of Kourtney's new baby. We're really excited about that and just a whole bunch of new stuff that is going on in our lives.
And Zestra, as you have been to talk about your book and everything...
(CROSSTALK)
JENNER: And Zestra, yes, my favorite new thing.
LEMON: You're a great sport.
JENNER: I have a favorite new thing.
LEMON: You're a great sport. Thank you, Kris.
JENNER: Yes. Well, thank you. I hope everybody goes to Zestra.com.
LEMON: All right.
