Return to Transcripts main page

CNN Newsroom

The Iranian Threat; Whitney Houston Investigation Continues; Crisis In Syria; Santorum Takes Lead In Ohio; Jeremy Lin's Incredible Story

Aired February 15, 2012 - 15:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

BROOKE BALDWIN, CNN ANCHOR: Here we go, top of hour number two. Welcome back. I'm Brooke Baldwin. I want to talk Iran here. We have hit on today's advances in the company's nuclear program. We're going to circle back to that here in just a moment.

But I want to talk now about a recent spate of attacks and attempted attacks against Israeli targets in India, in the Republic of Georgia and in Thailand as well. That car bombing Monday in New Delhi, it wounded at least two people. The Israelis seem to believe this is all part of a terror campaign by Iran and/or its ally Hezbollah

CNN's Brian Todd joins us from Washington to tell us about worries that Iran can strike right here on U.S. soil.

Brian, what do you know?

BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Brooke, even before this week's bomb plots in New Delhi, Georgia and Thailand, the Department of Homeland Security and the FBI put out a bulletin. This was last week, and it was intended for law enforcement agencies.

It says, in light of tensions with Iran over the nuclear program and economic sanctions, they remained concerned Iran might attempt attacks inside the United States given last year's foiled plot to allegedly assassinate the Saudi ambassador to the U.S. That bulletin encourages security officers to be vigilant, particularly around potential Jewish targets in the U.S.

But the bulletin also adds this -- quote -- "DHS and the FBI have received no specific threats to Jewish organizations, facilities and personnel in the United States as a result of recent heightened tensions with Iran."

But that certainly doesn't mean that couldn't change and couldn't change quickly. Last week, Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano even had a 45-minute conference call with Jewish groups to review security precautions and to urge them to be vigilant. But a homeland security officials tells CNN still no specific information indicating any attacks are planned. There has been no change in security posture in the last couple of days.

Also important to note here for overall context the director of national intelligence, James Clapper, said recently that Iran's leaders are believed to have become more willing to try to strike targets in the U.S. He said evidence of that was that recent arrest of the Iranian-American man accused of being involved in that plot to kill the Saudi ambassador.

I also spoke with former CIA Officer Reuel Gerecht. He tracked Iranian spy operations for 10 years. He talked about the locations inside the U.S. that could be at risk.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REUEL MARC GERECHT, MIDDLE EAST EXPERT: The truth in the United States is there are a lot of soft targets. The truth in the United States is there are certainly Jewish organizations where the Iranians have hit them abroad, in Latin America and in Europe, and that would be an appealing target. And they would certainly be easy to hit. Lots of targets probably could be hit.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

TODD: But Gerecht added that he thinks if Iran has any sleeper cells in the U.S., they would not likely be able to mount an attack on short notice. Still he pointed out Iran's proxy groups like Hezbollah and the militant group in Lebanon and Hamas in the Palestinian territories, they have successfully mounted attacks in Europe and South America, including bombings against Jewish targets. Iran does have a track record of accomplishing those kinds of attacks through its proxies, and so that is always a danger here in the United States.

BALDWIN: Brian Todd, thank you. You have been working the story I know today. We will look for more of your reporting coming up on "THE SITUATION ROOM." Thank you for that.

I want to move a ball just a little bit here and talk about the advance in Iran's nuclear program. I want you to take a look at some of these images here. You will see in a moment a lot of people in these white lab coats. In a second, you will see Iran's president, there he is, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad there, in a lab coat all of his own, live cameras in tow, the room full of nuclear scientists.

Today, Iran is claiming is has fired up some of these new nuclear centrifuges and loaded nuclear fuel rods they produced themselves.

Joining me now on the phone all the way from Marrakech, Morocco, is Matt Kroenig, Stanton nuclear security fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations.

Matt, looking at what happened today, is this a breakthrough? Are these major steps forward in Iran's nuclear program?

MATTHEW KROENIG, COUNCIL ON FOREIGN RELATIONS: They are major steps forward and Iran is very good at trying to make sure the international community is aware of these steps forward, because it wants to send a message that its nuclear program is a fait accompli, that there is nothing the international community can do to stop it, that it's making rapid advances. That's the message it's trying to send. Obviously, the rest of the world isn't willing to acquiescence to Iran's nuclear capability and is trying to do a lot to stop it.

BALDWIN: We look at these pictures and obviously so much of this story is visual. You see the president in this lab coat followed by I don't know how many cameras. He's all over this. He's sort of stamping his brand on this nuclear program.

My question is, why is he specifically so invested in the nuclear program, given the fact we talk about these strict sanctions very much so already hurting the Iranians, the Iranian economy?

KROENIG: Yes. Well, I think Iran sees the nuclear program as first a sort of prestige that they can master this advanced technology.

But I think most of all they're shooting for eventually to have a nuclear weapons capability, which they think would be able to protect it from outside attacks from a country like the United States or Israel. And it would allow it to become a more dominant state in the region. Iran has hegemonic ambitions in the region. It sees itself as the heir to the Persian empire, as a rightful great power in the region. And it thinks by acquiring nuclear weapons, it can help to achieve those goals.

BALDWIN: But as this is obviously a show to the world, Matt, how much is this also -- talk about the power struggle within Iran. You have Ahmadinejad. You have the Ayatollah Khamenei. You have the military.

How much is this is a proverbial chest-thumping to them as well?

KROENIG: You're absolutely right that there is lots of turmoil and tensions within Iran. But the nuclear program is one thing on which there is unanimity. The nuclear program is very popular with the public. Ahmadinejad supports it, the supreme leader supports it.

Unfortunately, this isn't something where we can exploit the differences within the regime to get them to give up this nuclear program. So it's going to be very difficult, I think, over the next coming months as Iran continues to move forward with its nuclear program to convince them to put serious curbs on the program.

I'm afraid very soon we will be facing a situation where have to acquiescence to a nuclear armed Iran or be willing to take serious measures, including possible military action, to stop the program.

BALDWIN: Looking at also within the country as well, we talk about these strict sanctions already hurting the Iranian economy. Are the Iranian people willing to pay the price for this program?

KROENIG: The sanctions are starting to hurt the economy, as you point out. And so, you know, in that sense they're effective.

But the point of the sanctions isn't primarily to hurt the economy, it's to convince Iran to come to the negotiating table and put serious curbs on its nuclear program.

(CROSSTALK)

BALDWIN: But what about the people of Iran, Matt?

KROENIG: The people of Iran are also suffering. The regime has support among some elements of the population, but not others.

That said, the people do see the right to produce nuclear technology as exactly that, a right. And so I think there is, you know, resentment toward the international community for putting pressure on Iran and trying to convince them to give us this program. So, again, the nuclear program is popular within the population. They're not happy with the sanctions, but they're not in a position either to compel the leadership to go to the negotiating table and give up the nuclear program.

BALDWIN: Matt Kroenig on the phone from Marrakech, Morocco, Matthew, thank you very much.

Still ahead here, hundreds of inmates are trapped. Many have been burned alive as flames rip through a prison. We're now hearing how some of them were able to escape.

Plus, investigators looking into Whitney Houston's doctors. But that is not all. This is brand-new information here. Jane Velez- Mitchell will join me live.

Also, how many times have you heard this?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Press one on your phone now to speak with a live operator.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: Annoying robo-calls, we all get them, usually at the worst times. But that may soon change.

We will be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: A couple stories we're working here.

First, the government warning about a fake cancer drug. Also, we have been talking about those annoying robo-calls. Good news, as changes are coming to those, and prison inmates burned alive.

Time to play "Reporter Roulette."

Want to begin again here with this counterfeit version of the bestselling cancer drug.

Senior medical correspondent Elizabeth Cohen has this warning on Avastin -- Elizabeth.

ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN SENIOR MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Brooke, the Food and Drug Administration has warned 19 medical practices that they may have fake Avastin on their shelves.

Avastin is used to treat colon and lung cancers, among others. Let me show you a picture of what the fake looks like, because other practices might have it and they also need to get rid of it. The fake packaging is in French. That's the first sign that this is a counterfeit, and also it says Roche on the label as the company that makes it. The real Avastin actually says Genentech on it.

If any medical practices have it, they need to get rid of it. Why counterfeit a cancer drug? The answer is simple. Money. These folks are making $2,400 for a 400-millimeter vial for Avastin. Brooke, we don't know if any patients were given this counterfeit drug, or if they were, if it damaged them -- Brooke.

BALDWIN: Elizabeth Cohen, thank you.

(STOCK MARKET UPDATE)

BALDWIN: Next here on "Reporter Roulette," I want to bring in Rafael Romo here on this horrendous story out of Honduras. Nearly 300 inmates have died in this fire.

As far as how it started, that's still unknown.

RAFAEL ROMO, CNN SENIOR LATIN AMERICAN AFFAIRS EDITOR: It's still under investigation, but there are two possibilities, one, that an inmate may have set a mattress on fire, and the other one is that a short circuit may have started the whole thing.

But think about it, 300 inmates in a massive fire dying while there is no real escape route and it's just so tragic. It talks about the conditions in which inmates, prisoners in Honduras live. Very, very tragic.

(CROSSTALK)

BALDWIN: Overcrowding...

(CROSSTALK)

ROMO: Overcrowded, exactly. This particular prison in Comayagua, Honduras, was housing 851 inmates and it was only built for 400, so that tells you a lot about what kind of conditions they were facing, unsanitary, harsh, not adequate at all.

BALDWIN: They couldn't get out, and all those family members, we saw the video of them showing up this morning wondering if their loved one was alive or dead.

ROMO: And there are still missing people.

BALDWIN: Rafael Romo, thank you very much there. That is your "Reporter Roulette" on this Wednesday.

The investigation into Whitney Houston's death just took a whole new turn -- why investigators are now looking into doctors and pharmacies. Don Lemon is standing by with some new information.

That's next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: The Whitney Houston investigation turns to the singer's prescriptions and whether they might have played a role in her death.

Don Lemon is our guy in Los Angeles on this one.

And, Don, I understand the Los Angeles Coroner's Office are the ones who issued these subpoenas. The question is for what, and is this also standard practice here as far as a death examination goes?

DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: Well, it's not out of the ordinary.

Let's just say that the coroner does have the power to do it, and I'm sure on occasion they do, do it. But for a star of this magnitude, no, they're going to make sure they dot all their I's, cross all their T's and to do it on two coasts. They are subpoenaing pharmacists and doctors from two coasts, the doctors and the pharmacists whose names were on the prescription medications found in Whitney Houston's hotel suite at the Beverly Hilton on Saturday after she was pronounced dead.

That's the new information today. They issued those subpoenas, they want to know who prescribed the medication, who filled it, so they can figure out if she took it as prescribed and to make sure she was not doctor shopping or pharmacy shopping. And they say so far, this is according to Ed Winter, who I spoke to, assistant chief coroner here, nothing seems out of the ordinary, Brooke, at this point.

BALDWIN: Where is the scope of the investigation taking authorities?

LEMON: Well, here in Los Angeles and, again, on the East Coast as well. Because what they say is -- just like most people, right, if you're an entertainer, you're going to be traveling so you will probably have a couple different doctors in a couple different cities, maybe in a couple different countries.

But most people will have a doctor, you go in the doctor and you say, my neck hurts. They will say what you really have is a dental problem, you need to go to the dentist. They will refer you to another doctor. That dentist may say, hey, you have something that has to do with your spine, you need to go see this doctor.

That has happened in this occasion at least with one doctor, and what they're trying to make sure is that you don't get a prescription at a doctor, then you go to a dentist and the dentist gives you another prescription, and then you go to the back specialist and the back specialist gives you another prescription.

They're just trying to make sure everything is above board and there weren't more doctors prescribing medications for Whitney Houston without their knowledge.

BALDWIN: So as they're dotting their I's, and crossing their T's, the big question, what's the official cause of death? You and I have been talking, those toxicology results aren't expected for six to eight weeks, but now we're learning they're expediting those results, are they not?

LEMON: Expedited. Right on you are. They're expediting it, and Ed Winter told me, he said, maybe we're hoping, Don, four to six weeks now, maybe even sooner.

As you and I have been talking about this, when we spoke yesterday, and as we spoke earlier today, sometimes they do get preliminary -- he calls them prelims where something will spike. They check for amphetamines and illegal substances first and prescription medications first.

Ibuprofen, that sort of thing, that's secondary. They get spikes. I asked him, I said, have you gotten any spikes, any prelims so far? He said nothing, but we are expediting this investigation.

Here's the weird thing. You know, Brooke, how you and I have been talking, and we know because we have been in the news for information that hasn't been quite accurate, not on our behalf, but warning people about that information and accurate reporting. Ed Winter says I have gotten calls from all over the world, Don, people hearing, hey, the DEA is going to be part of this investigation because prescription drugs are killing celebrities in Hollywood.

He said the DEA not involved. The rumors are out of control. What I just reported to you, you and I have just reported here, that's where it is at this point.

(CROSSTALK)

LEMON: Just the facts.

BALDWIN: Just the facts, sir. Thank you, Don Lemon. You're doing a great job out there. We will talk to you tomorrow, I'm sure.

Coming up next, though, as investigators are taking a look at Houston's doctors and medical records, Don was just mentioning those subpoenas, there is a disturbing rise in deaths in America involving prescription drugs and far too many people are starting with this addiction. And Jane Velez-Mitchell knows the harsh reality of the world all too well. She will join me live next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: "On the Case" today, it's certainly no secret that Whitney Houston had very much so battled addiction to illegal drugs. She was, in fact, in rehab just last May. But Houston was seen at a party with champagne in hand two days before she died.

Jane Velez-Mitchell is the author of the book "Addict Nation" and host of "ISSUES WITH JANE VELEZ-MITCHELL" on our sister network HLN.

Jane, nice to have you on. Obviously we will talk addiction here in just a moment, but just in terms of the news of this story today, what do you make of the fact that the L.A. County Coroner's Office now issuing these subpoenas, getting Houston's medical records, talking to doctors, talking to these pharmacies? Because so far, they say, it doesn't look like anything criminal, she wasn't doctor shopping.

JANE VELEZ-MITCHELL, HEADLINE NEWS ANCHOR: Well, tragically, Brooke, it doesn't have to be criminal, it doesn't have to be doctor shopping.

What's happening legally all over this country is causing people to die unnecessarily. The fact is that we know she had been drinking, her friends said that, and a close family friend told CNN that she was taking Xanax for anti-anxiety, for her anxiety as an anti-anxiety drug.

And here's my question. Why would a doctor ever prescribe a known addict something like Xanax? It is, according to critics, and I have been researching this since the word as Xanax first appeared up in this story, and I am a person in recovery, highly addictive, it's very mood altering, and it is extremely dangerous when combined with alcohol.

Earlier today, I spoke to a woman in recovery who did use Xanax and alcohol together recreationally. And she told me how each magnifies the effect of the other. And that's why it's really playing with fire when you drink alcohol and take Xanax at the same time.

So this is what we have to focus on, I think, is that it doesn't have to be anything criminal. It doesn't have to be doctor shopping. Just the fact that the coroner's office is saying, well, there weren't too many prescriptions. Well, I might have had even more in my home. That person is not an addict who has gone to rehab three times and repeatedly failed to remain sober.

(CROSSTALK)

BALDWIN: Let me just jump in. The onus, obviously, would you say, talking about Xanax, falls on the doctor, knowing that she has an addictive history?

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Yes, and if a doctor said, well, I didn't know, well, one Google search would reveal hundreds of articles on the subject of Whitney Houston and her battles with substance abuse.

And I would much rather see Whitney Houston alive today with some anxiety than her taking an anti-anxiety drug and being deceased. That's why there is just such ignorance in the medical community itself about the dating addictive nature of these drugs, and the fact that a person who has struggled with substance abuse and once an addict always an addict should not be prescribed anything like Xanax unless it's life or death, in my opinion.

BALDWIN: I want to show you some pictures because something else we thought about. Remember these images when she was just almost rail thin? This was 2001. She was performing at -- this is Michael Jackson's 30th anniversary celebration.

Is it possible -- let me throw this at you -- that after years of abusing herself, her body with drugs, alcohol, whatever, whatever caused this weight loss, is it possible that Saturday afternoon, Jane, that her body simply gave out?

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Absolutely, Brooke, it's totally possible.

It doesn't have to be an O.D., it doesn't have to be a drowning. We know she went to the throat doctor. So she may have, as some published reports claim, gotten some antibiotics. Then you add on maybe some over-the-counter stuff. We have heard Midol.

Then you add on the alcohol. We know she was drinking a couple nights before. There were reports that there were beer bottles and champagne bottles in her room. Then you add on the Xanax. Then you put yourself in a hot tub, and it is a prescription for disaster.

BALDWIN: You talk about the ignorance within the medical community, but there is also obviously this whole issue among the population when it comes to substance abuse and prescription drugs.

And, once again -- I was talking to Bob Forrest from "Celebrity Rehab" yesterday, saying hopefully, no matter what the physical cause of death, this was a wake-up call for so many people. People call it the silent epidemic. I have a couple facts and figures I want to push along here.

More and more people are dying from taking pills that are supposed to make them feel better. We have a chart, guys, let's pull this up. So, more people die from poisoning than from car accidents, and 90 percent of those poisonings were caused by drugs.

And when you look at this, the number of people dying from drug overdoses has increased six-fold in less than 30 years. It went from 6,000 back in 1980 to more than 36,000 in 1998.

Jane Velez-Mitchell, what's the solution? How do we flip the script? Reverse the trend?

VELEZ-MITCHELL: I remember the "New York Times" did an in-depth conversation with a psychiatrist who said that he wasn't getting insurance money anymore for the talking cure, to sit down and talk to a patient who comes in about what's really troubling them, so that he had to just prescribe them drugs.

So, if you have anxiety, I think what would be important and I discuss this in my book, "Addict Nation," needs to find out why you're anxious and deal with the root issues as opposed to just suppressing the anxiety symptoms with a drug, because the underlying problem remains and festers.

BALDWIN: But it's so much easier for some people to pop a pill, isn't it?

VELEZ-MITCHELL: It's our culture. We have an addictogenic culture.

BALDWIN: Yes. Jane Velez-Mitchell, thank you.

Coming up next, he is a country superstar recently busted for public intoxication. Now, we are seeing what happened when police confronted Randy Travis in the parking lot of a church.

Plus, the next time you are going through security of an airport, watch those trays. There could be a thief ready to grab your stuff. You got to see what this guy took, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: If it's interesting or happening right now, you're about to see it. "Rapid Fire," let's go.

Beginning with the president -- President Obama kicking off a cross-country trip with a stop in Wisconsin. He is calling for higher taxes on companies that move jobs overseas. So, today, he visited a Master Lock plant that has brought jobs to America.

At one point, he went off script. Watch this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I was thinking about the fact that I am a father of two girls who are soon going to be in high school, and that it might come in handy to have these super locks. For now, I'm just counting on the fact that when they go to school, there are men with guns with them. So --

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: Can't have that secret service forever. Maybe you can.

President Obama's next stop, California, for a little fundraising.

And in Texas, police released this video here. This is from a cruiser dash cam. You can see a moment here, walk in the middle of your screen.

You're going to see Randy Travis being arrested here for public intoxication the night of the Super Bowl. Officers say Travis' speech was slurred when they talked to him in the parking lot of all places, a Baptist church. He had no ID and was parked there with an empty bottle of wine in the car.

Travis told CNN he was just celebrating as so many other Americans did on that Sunday night.

Seventeen Texas Christian University students arrested today, including four football players. The students are charged with selling both prescription and illegal drugs to undercover officers.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHIEF STEVEN MCGEE, TEXAS CHRISTIAN UNIVERSITY POLICE: They included marijuana, cocaine, molly, which is a powdered form of ecstasy, ecstasy pills, acid and prescription drugs, which include but not limited to Xanax, Hydrocodone, and three different types of oxymorphone which is similar to the highly addictive painkiller OxyContin.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: Police say the arrests were made both off and on campus, including at fraternity houses.

And rescue teams, they are struggling to evacuate people trapped in homes, buried under several feet of snow here. We're talking about Eastern Europe. The video shows a man in Romania who spent hours digging to get snow off his house. Look at how thick it is.

Hundreds of people have died across Europe from this storm which cut off entire villages. In Romania alone, 74 people have died, and temperatures plunging to 45 degrees below zero.

And, oh, boy, watch out who is behind you in line at the airport. This guy apparently didn't realize he was on camera. Police say he took a $6,500 Rolex watch that another passenger left behind there in those little tubs, you know? The airport security, this whole thing happened, watch him put on his jacket, sees the watch in a minute -- wait for it, wait, wait, he sees it. He grabs it. Oh, that's a nice watch and walks away.

Yes. That happened on January 18th at the Ft. Lauderdale airport. Police believe the man may have boarded a flight to Charlotte. They plan to subpoena passengers on that flight in hopes of finding the suspect.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ARWA DAMON, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: A major put a gun to my head and said swatter him. He said, "I'm going to count to 10. He cocked the gun, fired it in the air and put it to my head again."

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: That is the voice of Arwa Damon. She is inside Syria where she spoke to an assassin paid to kill civilians. Those stories don't stop there. Find out what she saw inside the city of Homs.

Plus, you're going to hear who the regime is blaming after this massive oil pipeline explodes. Nick Paton Walsh all over that, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: Within the last hour, we have been able to see these protests. Here, this is Daraa, Syria. People out in public despite knowing thousands of Syrians have already died by simply stepping outside. The president of Syria, Bashar Assad, has for the most part kept journalists out of his country. But CNN's Arwa Damon was able to slip in and explains just how bad life is there -- Arwa.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DAMON: You know, it's a very intense situation here right now and it still continues to be incredibly difficult to try and get down to the bottom of the dynamics that are existing here. But as we have been moving around, we've been able to gain at least something of an understanding as to what these opposition activists and members of the Free Syrian Army have been going through. We continuously have to take dirt roads, travel through farmlands, avoid checkpoints, really living on the edge of this precipice of fear that for us means fairly a natural act to stage. But that has become the norm for those who are standing up to the regime, because they see a challenge.

They risk their lives at just about every single step of the way, whether it's trying to get into a neighborhood that is under siege or more critically trying to get medical supplies in and the wounded out. There's also been a fair level of frustration and an anger that has been growing and brewing amongst those members of the opposition because of what the regime is doing to them, because of what they perceive as being the international communities' inability or unwillingness to unite when it comes to Syria and take some sort of definitive action. There's also this growing sense that this battle that is taking place here is going to last a lot longer than many of them had anticipated.

And what they're hoping, of course, is for some sort of support so that they can, at vet least, militarily begin to stand up to the Assad regime, because they do truly believe that this is a fight to the death, a fight until the very end.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BALDWIN: And you saw how it's nighttime now in Syria. It's actually just before 11:00 there, 11:00 at night. But much earlier, darkness clouded the city.

This is the daytime. Look at the sky. Pitch black. That is because of this oil pipeline explosion. Opposition activists say the Assad regime is to blame. But the government has a different story.

CNN's Nick Paton Walsh has those details -- Nick.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NICK PATON WALSH, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Brooke, today, Homs woke up again for the 11th day in a row to heavy artillery. The particular district of Baba Amr, where so many of those shells have slammed in particularly in the past five days, they had another problem that's at work, because the oil pipeline from there which carried oil to the capital of Damascus were severed by what the civilian regime said were armed terrorists but what was one local described to me as artillery shells fired by the Syrian military. That caused locals there already finding their world uninhabitable because of this artillery bombardment, to also have to deal with a nasty black smoke, causing many of them to choke.

Of course, Omar (ph), we spoke to other activist, again, having to keep away from windows in case blasts hit his house, and his conversation always interrupted by that thud of artillery.

By today also, we had Bashar al Assad, the Syrian president, some attempt to show that his reform-minded in some say, saying that in just 11 days, he wants to see a referendum on a new constitution for Syria. Now on paper, that does allow some kind of reform. It stops his party from being the only party in the political system, allowing other parties to have a say.

But many are skeptical of what kind of referendum or democratic choice you can have on a country in 11 days time when right now, so many opposition strongholds are on the direct onslaught from Bashar al Assad's own military -- Brooke.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BALDWIN: Nick Paton Walsh -- Nick, thank you very much.

And if you blinked, you might have missed it. New polls suggest Rick Santorum is the new front runner in the Republican race for president. But one of the reasons behind the surge, he's got something Mitt Romney does not.

Joe Johns has that. He's standing by for us live. He's next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: If you are a political junkie, you're kind of excited about March 6th. Why? Because it's Super Tuesday. Less than three weeks away, 10 primaries and caucuses all in one single day. But out of all of those contests, Ohio is probably the biggest prize because it is a key battleground state.

And the numbers now there show -- look at this -- Rick Santorum leading the pack. This is a new Quinnipiac poll showing him -- count it -- seven points ahead of Romney, 36 percent to Romney's 29.

I wan to go to Washington and bring in Joe Johns here.

Obviously, you know, many a day until March 6th. This could swing back and forth. Santorum hoping he can sustain that momentum, I'm sure.

JOE JOHNS, CNN SENIOR CORRESPONDENT: That's for sure, Brooke. It's going to be a real challenge for him. We may learn by the end of the first week of March whether this is actually going to be a battle of regional candidates. You know, Santorum's big test is going to be if the pro-Romney super PAC Restore Our Future starts the attack machine, if you will, and how Santorum responds to that.

We think we got a hint today maybe Santorum is going to try to be creative -- for example, using humor to deflect some of the negative advertising. Santorum has a humorous ad out with a guy who looks like Romney shooting what looks like mud out of a machine gun. It's pretty funny, and the question is if that's the kind of thing that's going to do the trick when the pro-Romney ads start making the former senator look like, as they call him, the, quote, "ultimate Washington insider".

Newt Gingrich really didn't respond very well when the attacks started hitting him, and I think you'd have to say he's trying to get his sea legs back, Brooke.

BALDWIN: There's that ad, the humorous ad, he's hoping to bank on.

On the flip side, Mitt Romney -- how worried is he?

JOHNS: Well, you know, hey, we have this Ohio poll that shows Santorum up, but it's still within the margin of error for example. It's very close.

But I think what's inducing the heartburn for a campaign like this is numbers that show Romney's likeability dropping by double digits just in the last month. That is not good news.

Now, some of the other campaigns have claimed that his likeability problems have had to do with what's called the boomerang effect. When a candidate goes negative, it makes his own supporters like him a little bit less.

But I talked to two experts today who both said they don't think that boomerang effect, if it is in effect, really is going to stay in play for very long. So, they think there will still be time for Romney to bounce back, if it were happening.

BALDWIN: Three weeks away, who knows, looking forward to it. Joe Johns, thank you, sir. Appreciate it.

Now this --

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Haven't had like maybe an Asian guy play so well before. And, you know, kind of feel proud of him I guess I can say that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: All of two weeks ago, this guy was sleeping on his brother's couch. Now, just a couple hours from now, Jeremy Lin will step onto New York's biggest stage where he's undefeated streaks, whether it'd continue or crumble.

Coming up next, I'm going to speak live with a guy who used to play for the Knicks as well, actually also known as one of the basketball's bad boys. Any guesses? Here's a hint. He's best buds with Michael Jordan. Don't miss that conversation next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: Two words -- Jeremy Lin getting it done again for the New York Knicks on the road. The young phenom nailing, boom there it goes, the game-winning three-pointer with less than a second against Toronto last night. Look at that.

The Knicks have won six straight games since bringing the Harvard grad off the bench. Now, Lin has broken Shaq's record for the most point in his first five games as a starter. When the pressure is on, this guy wants the ball.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JEREMY LIN, NEW YORK KNICKS: I'm thankful that the coach and my teammates trust me with the ball at the end of the game. And, you know, I like having it at the end of the game, but, you know, I'm just -- I'm just very thankful.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: This young man has everyone talking, headlines, tweeting, you name it, going to be a while before the city of New York's papers one off puns for his name. Lin and prayer, thri-Lin, Lin-sanity -- I don't know.

Pablo, you can come up with something too. You wrote this week's cover story on Jeremy Lin for "Sports Illustrated" and you were a senior at Harvard when Lin was a freshman there. Also on the phone, Charles Oakley, who played 10 seasons with the Knicks.

But, Pablo Torre, I want to begin with you. It's kind of unique that you sort of (INAUDIBLE) at Harvard. When you were a senior, did you know who he was? Was he at all a blip on your radar?

PABLO TORRE, SPORTS ILLUSTRATED: Yes, he was -- Jeremy was the Taiwanese kid throwing the behind-the-back passes off the bench. That's who he was to me. He was notable for what he looked like, his flair, but nobody thought that at that point he would even star in the Ivy League that he was, let alone this national sensation certainly.

BALDWIN: You've talked to him in the last couple of days. I mean, how is he handling all of this? This is insane.

TORRE: Yes, I think Jeremy, you know, is so uniquely wired, you know? At Harvard even, he was selling out games in California when he traveled because of his fan base. He was this Asian-American superstar in that community.

So, as huge a stage as this is, Jeremy has had some degree of preparation for that. With the Warriors, it was the same deal. Now, he's actually having the talent and the production to back up so many hopes and dreams for so many people out there.

BALDWIN: Pablo, I want to come back to you in just a moment. Got Charles on the phone, as we mentioned, 10 seasons with the Knicks.

You've been critical of your old team in the past. Do you think Jeremy Lin has the chops to keep playing as he has been living off the hype? And also, we mentioned your buddy Michael Jordan, do you think he's regretting not drafting him?

CHARLES OAKLEY, FORMER KNICKS PLAYER (via telephone): Well, I think that he's doing a great job, the energy, the team. He's just on fire. And he's showing people like never quit, no matter where you're the 12th or 15th man on the bench, when you get a chance, take advantage of it. In this one, he does. He's playing great.

BALDWIN: You watched the game last night. What did you think of that three-pointer at the end?

OAKLEY: I watched the game. I watched the game because I knew I was doing interviews. And I was watching, they're knocking him around but he kept bouncing up. I think the key was the game when they put him on the two guard, and point guard, reserved the energy and had enough energy to make the big three at the end of the game.

BALDWIN: OK. What about Michael Jordan? You talk to him at all? Is he thinking, man, I should have picked Jeremy Lin?

OAKLEY: Well, you talked to him today, but he didn't say anything about it, but it was -- the last two, three days was really big game -- you've got a six-game winning streak, and this guy, people didn't expect out of this guy because you've got Carmelo and Stoudemire on the sidelines. So, I think --

BALDWIN: On the sidelines.

OAKLEY: Pardon?

BALDWIN: I said they're on the sidelines. Carmelo and Stoudemire.

OAKLEY: You have to give credit to the coaching staff and basically just the city for just, you know, follow him and giving him the energy going to the game. You know, the guy stays strong, without their best two players.

BALDWIN: Charles, stay on the line with me.

Pablo back to you, because, you know, you also have this interesting Jeremy Lin back story. This is a guy who was getting passed up to play college ball, getting scholarships. In fact, I heard an interview where you said that the Harvard strength trainer told him he was the weakest he had ever seen in the history of the Harvard program.

TORRE: Yes, and you can guess what the history of the Harvard program looks like, not a lot of Arnold Schwarzeneggers in the history of that.

So, yes, Jeremy was coming in that, you know, as a guy who didn't get a lot of opportunities. When he visited Cal Berkeley, you know, on his way out of the recruiting interview, they called him Ron. They didn't get his name right. You know, Stanford snubbed him. Landry Fields, actually his teammate, was the guy they chose several spots ahead of him.

And so, all of this storm and everything like that, Jeremy, you know, was a commodity, but people just passed on him. They did not know what to think of this kid who looked like this, played like this. They wondered who to compare him to, and there really wasn't anybody in NBA history.

BALDWIN: Charles, does Jeremy stack up against other guards you played against, do you think?

OAKLEY: I mean, he has a talent, he has a skill. I mean, he's a point guard and he can make people better. And I think that when you can do your job consistently what you have done in the six games, you have a chance to play, to show people that he can really, a true point guard, and the Knicks need a point guard.

So, my thing is I think he can stack up. I mean, last night he showed another big shot. He just has to work on his defense, and guys will come at him. So, he has to get stronger and know that other point guards will be coming at him, because everybody is building him up to be this guy. So, the Knicks are saying that, my hat goes off to him just because what he had done so far anyway.

BALDWIN: Charles Oakley, thank you.

Pablo, last question. All these sort of comparisons, Tebow/Lin comparisons, do you that Tebow vibe? I mean, talking publicly about religion, totally defying expectations, what do you think about that?

TORRE: Jeremy Lin is 1,000 times the story that Tim Tebow is.

BALDWIN: Yes.

TORRE: Tim Tebow, you look at him, he came from Florida, not Harvard, wasn't cut, didn't go to the D-League four times, didn't live on his brother's couch. Jeremy has faced odds that no other player in NBA history and maybe the sports history has really faced in terms of the demographics of his background and the path he took. It's just something we don't see very often, specifically in basketball.

BALDWIN: What about quickly, also look, this is happening in New York and there are other people -- I think one of your colleagues at "S.I." -- I was reading his piece today, saying, if this had happened, you know, in Memphis, without all these cameras around, and the epicenter of the media world, he may not have even been a story.

TORRE: I mean, New York has that amplifying effect, but by the same token, New York provides the spotlight that melts people. Jeremy Lin has withstood the spotlight at Madison Square Garden, celebrities courtside, Kobe Bryant, doing the MVP impression in his face, and he scores 38 points. And he does it on the road again and again.

BALDWIN: We'll see how he does tonight.

TORRE: So, as far as New York, he survived.

BALDWIN: We'll see how he does tonight. Pablo Torre, thank you. Charles Oakley, thank you.

Now to "THE SITUATION ROOM". Candy Crowley beginning right now -- Candy.