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American Kidnapped by Al Qaeda; Sex, Lies, And Campaign Cash; Socialist Hollande Wins French Presidency; Kentucky Derby Death Stumps Police; Ron Paul Not Going Away; Fact Checking Political Comments; Vanessa Williams, Mom, Discuss New Book, Career; Stock Market Dips after French Elections

Aired May 07, 2012 - 13:00   ET

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

SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN ANCHOR: The American kidnapped by Al Qaeda makes a desperate plea for President Obama to save his life. 70-year- old Warren Weinstein was abducted last August from his home in Pakistan. In a video posted on several Islamist Web sites, Weinstein says Al Qaeda will release him if the president accepts Al Qaeda's demands.

Military investigators now say they do not suspect foul play in the death of a soldier suddenly collapsed during a video chat with his wife. It happened in Afghanistan. The wife of Army Captain Bruce Kevin Clark says her husband fell forward and she saw what appeared to be a bullet hole in a closet behind him. The military officials, they say there are no wounds on his body. His family is still trying to make sense of it all.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MARIANA BARRY: He loved being in the military, and he loved serving his country. He was absolutely willing to make any sacrifice and it's just horrible that this is the sacrifice he ended up making.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MALVEAUX: 911 terror attack suspects turned the arraignment into a circus and victims' families, they don't think it is funny. The five men including alleged mastermind, Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, appeared at a military tribunal, that in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. One entered in shackles, another took off his shirt, another blurted out, maybe they'll kill us. One man who lost his sister on 911 said he wanted to see the suspects face to face.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

EDDIE BRACKEN: I know the world hears me, and I'm sure you hear me. I came a long way to see you eye to eye, Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and your four dominions.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MALVEAUX: People are cheering in France, but here in the United States investors are worried. Francois Hollande, a socialist, defeated conservative president Nicolas Sarkozy in a runoff election. Hollande says he will boost government spending in France and now the world is afraid that the European debt crisis is going to continue. We're going to keep an eye out on how this election impacts your 401K as well as well as other investments.

As you can see, the Dow Jones industrial average has been down all morning. Right now, it is sitting at about 14 points down. European markets were also down sharply to begin the day but recovered a fair bit of the loss by the day's end.

The controversial ballot initiative to ban same-sex marriage comes to a vote in North Carolina tomorrow. Three members of the Obama administration have come out supporting same-sex marriage. Secretary of education, Arne Duncan; secretary of housing and urban development, Shaun Donovan; and vice president, Joe Biden. I want you to take a listen to the vice president on this weekend's "MEET THE PRESS."

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOE BIDEN, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Men marrying men, women marrying women, and metro sexual me -- heterosexual men and women are entitled to the same exact rights, all the civil rights, all the civil liberties.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MALVEAUX: President Obama, who once opposed same-sex marriage has taken the official position that his views on the issue are, quote, "evolving." It's unclear whether or not these are signs that his opinion is also changing.

Billionaire donor whose money is at the center of the John Edwards' corruption trial, he knew that the money she gave him wasn't a campaign contribution. The attorney for Rachel Bunny Mellon is testifying today. I want to bring in Diane Dimond, she is covering the trial in Greensboro, North Carolina to -- tell us a little bit about what you've seen in the courthouse today.

DIANE DIMOND, SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT, "NEWSWEEK" AND "THE DAILY BEAST": Well, I'll tell what you, this should give you a hint. John Edwards stood up at the morning break and whispered to his daughter, it's a good morning for the hometown team. And, indeed, the defense did win a couple of big ones today. I caution everyone that it's like a baseball game. It's only in the third or fourth inning and we don't know who is going to win yet but here is what happened. The attorney for Bunny Mellon, a very distinguished man named Alexander Forger, took the stand again today. And he testified, in effect, that Bunny Mellon had given Senator John Edwards money not because he was running for president but because she liked him. She's loyal to her friends and it just so happened that his cause at the moment was running for president of the United States.

Now, the feds were flabbergasted I think at this and they pulled out some of Forger's old Grand Jury testimony. In that testimony, Alexander Forger was asked, is it fair to say when she gave the money, she gave it through the campaign? And his answer was everything was to get him elected. Forger sort of bristled that they would even bring up this old testimony but there it was. I think we've had five people on the stand today. The second one after Forger I think went a long way to mitigate this, and I'll tell you about that in a minute.

But the second big win for the Edwards' defense team was this, the federal government has a letter that Bunny Mellon dictated to her librarian. He typed it up. It was dated May 2011, and in it she was saying to senator Edwards, I'm sorry I can't help you. I know that you want $3 million more, but I just can't help you, but I still believe in you. The letter was never sent, and so there was a great round of objections, the jury was taken out of the room, and the judge ultimately agreed that the jury should not hear that many years after this alleged conspiracy was taking place, John Edwards was still back at the Mellon trough asking for $3 million more. So, that's the bulk of what's gone on so far.

MALVEAUX: And Diane, any sense of how the jury is responding to all of this? You say there were five different people who took the stand. Do they look like they're still engaged in this or are they kind of caught up in all the minutia when you talk about some of the financial aspects of this trial?

DIMOND: I think that they are engaged today, Suzanne, for the simple reason that there's been five witnesses. So, they've come and gone fairly quickly. After Forger was a woman named Aileen Laws, who is Bunny Mellon's secretary. She often wrote out some of these checks, kept her daily correspondence and what not. Then there was the testimony of the librarian. Then we had Bunny Mellon's grandson take the stand, and he, too, talked about how excited his mother was to know John Edwards and even after the race for president was over, she was excited that he might be the attorney general.

Now, I'll tell you, the librarian testimony was very important and countered the testimony from Forger in this way. He said, I talked with Bunny Mellon almost every single day. She wanted to help the senator. She wanted to make him be the president. So, you know, it all sort of comes down to what was this money for? Was it because she was a good old gal and gave $6.3 million to her friend? Or was it to help elect him to higher office? That's the big question.

MALVEAUX: Good questions. All right, Diane, thank you as always. Pulling back the curtain for us there in the courtroom.

Here is a rundown of some of the stories that we're covering over the next hour. First, a mysterious death at Churchill Downs. A body is found in the stables just hours after the Kentucky Derby.

And the election of France's new socialist president is affecting your bottom line right now at the stock market.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

VANESSA WILLIAMS: Just when I thought our chance had passed you go and save the best for last.

(END VIDEO CLIP) MALVEAUX: "Saving the Best for Last," superstar, actress, and singer Vanessa Williams joins me in about 30 minutes to talk about how she overcame the odds to become just as relevant forever.

And don't forget, you can watch CNN live on your computer while you're at work. Head to CNN.com, slash, live.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MALVEAUX: There's a pretty big shake-up in French politics over the weekend. Francois Hollande, a socialist, defeated conservative president Nicolas Sarkozy in a runoff election. Sarkozy lost his job after failing to reign in unemployment and making the kind of deep budget cuts that have become the norm after many countries across Europe. Jim Bitterman is in France and says Hollande isn't wasting any time.

JIM BITTERMANN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Suzanne, the president elect today started pretty early this morning. He got in the office about 9:30 after only getting to bed after 2:00 in the morning after all the celebrations. The fact is he's hit the ground running because there are an awful of things on this new president's agenda. Basically, he's got to put together a government.

He's got to pick the prime minister and the various other ministers that are going to be in the cabinet. He's got a number of international meetings he's got to -- he has to attend to. There's a G-8 summit coming up on Camp David on the 19th and 20th. There is the NATO summit coming up in Chicago on the 20th and 21st. He's got to fly off to Germany. He's already said that's going to be his first international trip to Germany to meet Madam Merck and it's all important because of his disagreement with her about the Euro stability pact.

And the most important thing is he's going to have to work on the legislative elections which are upcoming in June. If he wants to govern and create the kind of change and atmosphere for change he says he wants to, he's going to have to have the national assembly, the parliament here on his side. And so, he's going to have to win a majority of seats in that parliament. Now, Hollande said to his followers last night that his agenda was going to stay the same, that his political agenda was going to stay the same, and there was going to be no change in what he's already said about the need to get away from austerity in the European thinking and move more towards growth.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIPS)

FRANCOIS HOLLANDE, PRESIDENT ELECT, FRANCE (translator): The idea that finally austerity can no longer be something which is inevitable, and that is the mission which from now on is mine. That is to say, to bring about a dimension of growth, prosperity, and future to Europe.

(END VIDEO CLIPS)

BITTERMAN: So, Hollande already off to a very quick start here. He's had visits by a number of different ambassadors from various countries, calls from prime ministers and presidents all around the world. One of the first visitors was Charles Rifkin, the ambassador -- the American ambassador here who is making arrangements for Hollande's trip to the United States -- Suzanne.

MALVEAUX: Thank you.

It has all the elements of a hardboiled detective thriller, horse racing, gambling, a mysterious death. I'm going to tell you more about what happened this weekend at the Kentucky Derby after the fans left the stands.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MALVEAUX: A mysterious death at the Kentucky Derby has people talking. Long after the race, police found the body of a worker in the rear stable area. They call his death suspicious. Deborah Feyerick, she's following developments from New York.

And, Deb, first of all, do we know if there are any suspects? Do they have any idea how this happened?

DEBORAH FEYERICK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: No, not just yet. And that's what they're looking for. They are in search of the killer right now. Louisville police calling this a tragic, isolated incident. Right now they do not believe it is directly related or linked somehow to the Kentucky Derby. That famous race that took place just hours earlier.

The victim is 48-year-old Adam Fabian Perez. And a spokesman for Churchill Downs tells CNN Perez worked as a groomer for trailer Cecil Borel, whose brother is a three-time derby winner, Calvin Borel. They are apparently devastated by the murder of somebody that they had worked alongside for several years.

Mr. Perez's body was discovered by workers early Sunday hidden in the back of a different trainer's barn. And police say his location and the nature of his wounds suggest this was a homicide. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LT. BARRY WILKERSON, LOUISVILLE POLICE: I have to look at it from the mindset of the individual himself. Mr. Perez was a father, a brother, obviously the son of someone. That's the purpose and the way we investigate the case. I know others have (INAUDIBLE) the derby, Churchill Downs. I believe this is an isolated incident of a tragic situation that took place and that's the way we're going to approach it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FEYERICK: And, Suzanne, Louisville detectives, they're now scanning surveillance tapes to see if the killing was recorded. It appears that leading up to the derby there had been several arguments, what police are calling altercations. And so police are really trying to determine whether Perez was directly involved in those arguments. And like everybody who works behind that racetrack in what's called the back side, this very elaborate, almost mini city, Mr. Perez did have to present qualifications and I.D. to be licensed by the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission.

Suzanne.

MALVEAUX: And do we know if witnesses -- they say that they heard an argument taking place in the barn. Do we know if -- what kind of role that plays in all of this?

FEYERICK: Yes, that's crucial because they don't know whether this was -- again, this was such -- think about the day. This was the day of the Kentucky Derby. There was all this excitement. There was enormous pressure to get the horses ready, to get them out. Churchill Downs can accommodate up to 1,400 horses during peak times. The Kentucky Derby being one of them. So whatever was going on, why this altercation, whether it was an argument or a fight, whether that broke out, that is critical, and they want to know whether Mr. Perez was involved or what role he may have had in that.

One of the problems, Suzanne, in the investigation is that, you know, some of these grooms, the guys who take care of the horses, they water, they feed, they clean out the stables, not all of them speak English and so investigators are bringing in translators just so they can kind of make some headway.

MALVEAUX: Do we know if surveillance tapes show us anything?

FEYERICK: Well, it's very interesting. Clearly, a lot of the folks who work back there, they know where the surveillance cameras are. The location of the body, the fact that it was found in this back part of the barn, that's kind of interesting because it's not a place where he should have been. It's not a place that people normally go. And certainly the stable workers don't normally sleep there. So that he was sort of in that back location suggests that either it happened there out of sight or perhaps was put there. So a good question. Something that detectives are looking into, Suzanne.

MALVEAUX: All right, Deb, thank you. Appreciate it.

FEYERICK: Sure.

MALVEAUX: You think Ron Paul is out of options? Think again. Libertarian long shot has a strategy that has the potential to seriously -- actually mess with Mitt Romney's head. Maybe even change the narrative at the Republican National Convention.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MALVEAUX: Here's a rundown of some of the stories we're working on. Don't count Ron Paul out just yet. We're going to show you how he can be trouble for Mitt Romney and the Republican Convention.

And then we're fact-checking the latest campaign ads. And in 15 minutes, superstar singer and actress Vanessa Williams joins us to talk about her new memoir with her mom. How she was able to overcome scandal. And some intimate details of her life that she has not shared until now.

And don't forget, you can watch CNN live on your computer while you're at work. Head to cnn.com/live.

All right, let's talk about Ron Paul. Remember him? Maybe you haven't heard his name for a while, but the Republican candidate still has got an ace up his sleeve. A chance to really mess with Mitt Romney's head at the Republican National Convention. Want to bring in Paul Steinhauser. He joins us from D.C. to talk a little bit about this.

Explain to our viewers exactly the kind of influence that he still has now.

PAUL STEINHAUSER, CNN POLITICAL EDITOR: He's the last man standing, I guess you could say, Suzanne. Newt Gingrich, gone. Rick Santorum, gone. Both of them suspending their campaigns. But Ron Paul, the long time congressman from Texas, he continues on. I mean, listen, we know, it is over. Mitt Romney is the presumptive GOP nominee. He will get -- win the nomination officially in Tampa for the Republican Convention.

But Ron Paul continues to campaign out there. And over the weekend, Suzanne, this is fascinating. In two states, Nevada and in Maine, they had their state conventions. They've earlier held their caucuses, but they had their state conventions and Ron Paul won the majority of convention delegates in both of these states. And that is interesting and troublesome I guess for the Romney campaign.

Listen, Ron Paul's got devoted, energetic, enthusiastic supporters and they really crowded these two state conventions and now Ron Paul has won the majority. That may be contested by the Romney campaign. Stay tuned on that one. But, you know, Ron Paul's going to have -- no doubt about it, he's going to have some influence at the Tampa convention, Suzanne.

MALVEAUX: Paul, talk a little bit about that influence because on the one hand you look at this and it could disrupt things at the convention. But, on the other hand, maybe it's just changing the agenda, if you will, when you see all those Ron Paul signs, those supporters who are going to be out there in those numbers. Perhaps Romney will adjust his agenda and talk about some of the issues that Ron Paul is interested in.

STEINHAUSER: And that's really what Ron Paul is all about. You know, I think his campaign is less a campaign for the White House and more of a campaign for a movement to really -- you know, and his movement, we've seen it, he's proselytized this over and over again. A smaller federal government, less taxes, less government spending, more of a libertarian approach to things.

And, yes, even though Mitt Romney won over 50 percent of the vote in those Nevada caucuses back in early February, Ron Paul will now have a majority of the delegates out in Nevada unless things are overturned. But they're going to have to vote for Mitt Romney, at least on the first ballot.

I guess -- you know, I talked to some Ron Paul advisers and maybe there's a little bit of hope that this will go past the first ballot. It's not. But Ron Paul will have some influence at that convention. He will have a speaking role.

And one other thing to look at. Tomorrow we've got primaries in three states.

MALVEAUX: Right.

STEINHAUSER: Indiana, Nevada -- I mean -- Indian, I'm sorry, North Carolina, and West Virginia. It's over for the nomination, but look at the vote totals Ron Paul gets. And if it's higher than the 15 or 16 percent he's been averaging, that will be interesting, Suzanne.

MALVEAUX: And what about the independents here? Ron Paul really does have the possibility of attracting some of those independents and holding onto them. Maybe they're not even going to be supporting Romney because they are Ron Paul supporters.

STEINHAUSER: That's a good point, too. And that's why I think you're really going to want to see Mitt Romney have good relations with the Paul camp because Romney's main objective now is going up against President Obama in November, of course, obviously, and he wants his house unified. And that's why I think you're going to have to see some kind of relationship between the Romney and the Ron Paul camp.

One other thing out there, Rand Paul, Ron Paul's son. Of course the freshman senator from Kentucky. Who know what is his future is. Who knows if, you know, Mitt Romney does not win in November, if Rand Paul will make his own bid, follow in his father's footsteps, make his own bid for the White House in 2016. Stay tuned on this one, Suzanne.

MALVEAUX: All right, staying tuned as always. Paul, thanks.

STEINHAUSER: Thank you.

MALVEAUX: "Fortune" magazine releasing its list of the top 500 companies today. And all this week we're going to be taking a look at some of the businesses that are making the cut. Today we are talking about number one, a company that definitely is hitting the gas.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MALVEAUX (voice-over): One of the world's largest oil companies takes the top spot on the Fortune 500 list. It beat out Wal-Mart, which held the position for the two previous years. Exxon Mobil pays the highest corporate dividends in the country. The company reported a profit of more than $41 billion last year. And with gas prices hovering around $4 a gallon, that's become the focus of some criticism. Rex Tillerson has been CEO of the company for the past six years. He's also the national president of the Boy Scouts of America.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MALVEAUX: This just in. We have new pictures of a train derailment. It looks like it hit a tanker truck. It's in -- this is in Harris County, Texas. We understand there are no injuries out of this accident that's being reported but, again, officials on the scene trying to get more information. But so far, no injuries on that crash.

Well, with all the political rhetoric flying back and forth, sometimes it's pretty hard to separate fact from fiction, so we're putting some of those political claims to the fact test.

Angie Holan is joining us from Tampa, Florida.

Angie, first, I want to talk about the claim from President Obama's campaign web site. It says that "Under the Romney/Ryan budget, interest rates on the federal student loans would be allowed to double." What do we know?

ANGIE HOLAN, EDITOR, POLITIFACT, FLORIDA: We rated this one false. Now, this comes from a little web cartoon they've put on their campaign website. They say a young woman who graduated from college -- they call her Julia -- would see interest rates go up. But that is not the Romney position. It's not the position of Republicans in Congress. Now, this week we're seeing the president and Congress try to negotiate how they're going to do this, about you we rated the statement false.

MALVEAUX: Let's talk about this one, a campaign ad from American Crossroads. Quote, "After four years of a celebrity president, 85 percent of recent college grads are moving back in with their parents." What do we know, true, false?

HOLAN: We rated this one false, too. With this one -- this is based on an old poll that has just been repeated recently in the media. As far as -- we can't tell anything about its methodology. And then when we consulted our newer polls, we found that the number was much lower, about half that. And we've got a really interesting story on our site about how this number is making its way through the media.

MALVEAUX: All right.

HOLAN: But it's not accurate. We rated it false.

MALVEAUX: We're going to read that story. Finally, TV ads for Americans for Prosperity says, "The stimulus bill sent tax credits overseas such as $1.2 billion to a solar company that's building a plant in Mexico." Angie?

HOLAN: This one got even worse, Pants on Fire.

MALVEAUX: Oh, geez.

HOLAN: Now, yes, it was a very convoluted explanation, but the bottom line is that it was a loan guarantee that went to building an electricity plant in California, not Mexico. Now, one of the companies involved separately had a plant in Mexico, but that wasn't connected to this stimulus project. So Pants on Fire. MALVEAUX: All right. Angie Holan, thank you very much. Keeping them honest there.

HOLAN: Thanks.

MALVEAUX: Up next, the beautiful and talented Vanessa Williams went from scandal to the top of the R&B charts on the stage as well as the screen. We'll talk to her live about her new tell-all memoir with her mom.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MALVEAUX: It would be a major incentive to reducing the rate of obesity in the United States. Medical bills are expanding as fast as our waistline. By 2030, one to 10 Americans could be listed as obese. That puts them at higher risks for health problems, medical costs and absenteeism. A study in the "American Journal of Preventative Medicine" says 32 million more Americans could join the ranks of the obese in the next two decades, but if we can just keep up the obesity rates level during that time, we can save $550 billion in medical expenses."

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

(SINGING)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MALVEAUX: The voice, the face, the undeniable talent, triumph over scandal. Award-wining actress, producer, dancer, now author, wow. Vanessa Williams. She has sold more than 20 million albums worldwide, starred on Broadway, in movies, on TV, most recently "Ugly Betty," "Desperate Housewives."

She's joining us with her mother, Helen Williams.

That's a long list there. I can't keep up with you.

(LAUGHTER)

VANESSA WILLIAMS, PRODUCER, DANCER, SINGER, ACTRESS & SINGER: I'm happy to be still in the game after almost 30 years.

MALVEAUX: And we've been waiting 30 years for this to come out.

VANESSA WILLIAMS: Yes, yes.

MALVEAUX: Cover to cover, you can tell I have all the little stickies, the Post-Its here.

VANESSA WILLIAMS: That means you read it. Thank you.

(LAUGHTER)

MALVEAUX: I read the book yesterday, as a matter of fact. Tell us why, why are you telling your story now? VANESSA WILLIAMS: Because I think as a mother of four, looking back, I have a lot of people that didn't know anything about my past. For instance, as Renee on Desperate Housewives," I sang at Mike Delfeno's (ph) funeral and I sang maybe one verse of "Amazing Grace" a cappella. And my Twitter feed said, I had no idea you could sing. Can I download it on iTunes?

(CROSSTALK)

VANESSA WILLIAMS: Yes.

MALVEAUX: You were like, wait a minute, I was a singer first.

VANESSA WILLIAMS: Hello. Yes. Besides that, a lot of people ask, how did you get into the industry? Is it because you're famous? Oh, you're a beauty queen and that's what opened doors for you. It's my terms and my words. And my mother wrote her words. And this is the story of my life and it's not all easy breezy.

(CROSSTALK)

VANESSA WILLIAMS: No, it's not. It's a little TMI.

Mom, I don't know if you agree with that.

It's graphic.

VANESSA WILLIAMS: Yes.

MALVEAUX: There are times you shake your head. There are times you cry. Sometimes you laugh. One of the segments you just go right there to the moment where you became Miss America. That was a very -- it was an incredible moment for so many people, and you write about at that time in your life you were, what, 20 years old?

VANESSA WILLIAMS: 20 years old.

(CROSSTALK)

MALVEAUX: You were a rebel. You say you were smoking pot, you were drinking, sex with your boyfriend.

VANESSA WILLIAMS: Yes. It was early '80s and I was that girl who was a normal kid, who was a junior in college. And I named the book "You Have No Idea" because, partly when I won Miss Syracuse at 20 years old, it was something that I had no intention of doing. I needed scholarship money. I never thought I'd win. I ended up winning it. And when I was crowned and brought my silver tray back to my apartment, hanging out with my friends, they go, they have no idea who they just chose.

(LAUGHTER)

MALVEAUX: And it just started from there. I was one of those little girls who watched the pageant back then, who was so happy and so proud of that moment. And you went from that moment -- and, Helen, you talk a little bit about this, where you call it a reign of terror because there were people who sent you a lot of racist letters after this amazing triumph. What kind of things did you get that you were protecting Vanessa from?

HELEN WILLIAMS, MOTHER OF VANESSA WILLIAMS: It was a very difficult time for us. We wanted Vanessa to enjoy her year as Miss America. And so we would get letters in the mail with all kinds of disgusting contents. We would get letters that would threaten us, threaten her.

MALVEAUX: You said you wore gloves. You had to wear gloves --

(CROSSTALK)

HELEN WILLIAMS: Yes, the FBI --

(CROSSTALK)

MALVEAUX: Let's be graphic.

VANESSA WILLIAMS: Pubic hair --

MALVEAUX: Semen.

(CROSSTALK)

MALVEAUX: All kinds of things mailed to your home. And you didn't talk to Vanessa about this at this time. You were trying to protect her.

HELEN WILLIAMS: We wanted her to enjoy her year. We knew this was an exciting time in her life and we wanted her to enjoy the experience. We were very, very conscious of the kinds of things that could happen. The dangers that were in store for her if she wasn't careful. And we were very protective.

(CROSSTALK)

VANESSA WILLIAMS: And I was on the road so, you know, someone knocks on your door in a particular area, do not answer the door, even if they say they're room service. When you do this particular parade, you're going to have to stay inside the car and not be outside exposed. So I had an idea that, why are there sharp shooters on the roofs over there? Maybe there's some issue here. But they wanted to shelter me from the fact that I could be assassinated, which is crazy.

MALVEAUX: That does sound absolutely crazy when you think about it, at the time, but it really was such a historic occasion. Talk a little bit about -- Vanessa, you talk about in your book, it wasn't just the white community, but there are some blacks who were upset with your win.

VANESSA WILLIAMS: Some -- there were some people that felt that I didn't truly represent the black community, that I wasn't black enough, that I wasn't from the inner city, that I didn't look truly black enough, so, therefore, I wasn't a representative. And that -- you know, I am who I am. I had the experience that I did. I grew up in a black family in a predominantly white neighborhood and that was my life.

MALVEAUX: Get over it, huh?

VANESSA WILLIAMS: Yes.

HELEN WILLIAMS: Yes, exactly. And it was a very, very small portion of the black community that didn't support her.

MALVEAUX: But it still hurt.

VANESSA WILLIAMS: Yes.

HELEN WILLIAMS: But they still there were there and they made themselves very vocal.

MALVEAUX: Let's talk about the moment perhaps was the lowest, that had to hurt the most. You both write about it quite eloquently. The moment you knew those nude photos in "Penthouse" were going to come out. You had 72 hours to relinquish your crown. And this was the announcement that you made.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

VANESSA WILLIAMS: The potential harm to the pageant and the deep division that a bitter fight may cause has convinced me I must relinquish my title as Miss America.

(CROSSTALK)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VANESSA WILLIAMS: I sound so young. I was 21.

(CROSSTALK)

(LAUGHTER)

MALVEAUX: You were very young.

VANESSA WILLIAMS: My voice is up like this.

MALVEAUX: I was really surprised when you said, you know what, they don't know me. They don't know the real person I am. I'm going to be back and I'm going to prove that I'm not this person that you've seen in these photos. How was it that you had that confidence? Where did that come from?

VANESSA WILLIAMS: I think I had a career before that, and career -- not professional career but I had done theater my entire life and danced my entire life. People knew they could expect me on Broadway. Even in my high school yearbook, at the end, it said I'll see you on Broadway and I was in a top hat and tails. The fact that there were -- I was known as a scandalous beauty queen where I was an actual accomplished theater major already, I knew that once the dust settled, they get a chance to see me act and sing --

(CROSSTALK)

MALVEAUX: How did you know that? You were just a young girl trying to make your way?

VANESSA WILLIAMS: I don't know. Maybe it's dumb luck. Maybe it's having parents that were supportive, or maybe it's just being an optimist.

HELEN WILLIAMS: And also because she was prepared. She had been -- had the training. She's a hard worker. She had a goal set for her life. And, you know, when you have those things in place, you can only move forward.

(CROSSTALK)

VANESSA WILLIAMS: And also my goal was not to be Miss America, so it was kind of a detour, even though I was appreciative that I got a chance to create history, and I got a chance to have ten amazing months as Miss America, the goal was to be on Broadway. I was preparing for that anyway. It took me 10 years to get there, but I got there.

(LAUGHTER)

MALVEAUX: You did. You absolutely did get there.

Helen, you talk a little bit about that moment when you realized everything was going to change.

Vanessa, your father never saw those photos.

You did. And when you looked into those photos, you saw something very different than the rest of the world. Can you describe for us what that was like.

HELEN WILLIAMS: Her dad did not want to see them and did not see them. I wanted to see them because I was curious about what all the concerns were. When I looked at them, I looked at her eyes, and I could see that she was not comfortable, that it was something that she was -- it was not something she intended to do for national exposure. And I could see the person who Vanessa was. A lot of sadness in those eyes at that point.

VANESSA WILLIAMS: And part of the journey that I map out in the book, and I know people say, why now, why are you telling the same old story which we have heard over and over again. One of the things I divulged in the book that had to do for me fighting for the crown, a lot of people thought you should fight for the crown, there's no reason why you should be -- not keep your crown. Part of the reason I decided not to continue, my parents were paying for my legal fees, I was suing "Penthouse" magazine, and I decided not to because I didn't want to have any more of my past dredged up. And there's a portion that I mention in the book about being molested by a woman. And my attorneys asked me before we went to trial, said, by the way, everything is going to come up, so have you ever been with a woman before. I said only when I was 10 years old and when I was molested. He said, well, that's going to come up so just be prepared. At that point, at 21, 22 years old, I said, I'm done. It's enough. I didn't tell my parents. I didn't tell anybody. I just kept -- dropped the suit and wanted to move on with my life.

MALVEAUX: Did you think that people would understand because that sounds like such a strange thing to happen, being molested by a woman. That anyone would believe you or --

(CROSSTALK)

VANESSA WILLIAMS: There have been so many people who have come up to me since reading the book. It's almost alarming the amount of people that have been abused and molested that are friends of mine and people -- acquaintances and people that come up and confide in me. It's really disturbing, the amount of people who have been affected.

MALVEAUX: Helen, you say you had no idea this happened to Vanessa --

HELEN WILLIAMS: No.

MALVEAUX: -- until you wrote the book together.

HELEN WILLIAMS: Yes. No, I had no idea.

MALVEAUX: Hence the name of the book, "You Have No Idea."

VANESSA WILLIAMS: "You Have No Idea." Never judge.

MALVEAUX: So appropriate.

We're going to have a lot more to talk about after a quick break.

All right, thank you.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MALVEAUX: We're back with award winning singer, actress, dancer, model, and author Vanessa Williams. She's sold more than 20 million albums worldwide and she's the mother of four as well.

She joins us with her own mom, Helen Williams.

We were just talking in the break about how it was me and my twin sister watching you get crowned Miss America in our pajamas, screaming up and down with my mom. It was one of those special moments. You have since moved on. There are a lot of other things that you have done, a lot of things that you reveal here in the book.

I want to take us to a clip here, if I can, "Ugly Betty" and that character that people just love, love to hate maybe. Let's take a look.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) VANESSA WILLIAMS: I wonder who started that rumor.

UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR: Oh, my god. It's happened. The Botox has finally seeped into your brain. What are you doing?

VANESSA WILLIAMS: I took lemons and made a lemon martini.

UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR: So you want to destroy mode?

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MALVEAUX: All right. Wilhelmina, she is fierce.

(LAUGHTER)

VANESSA WILLIAMS: I miss her so much.

MALVEAUX: All right. So Vanessa, you have a confession to make. Where do you channel this Wilhelmina character from? Where does it come from?

VANESSA WILLIAMS: I started her off as, you know, as a fashion maven and used all my tidbits from people from photo shoots. But once I got into the character, I started to give these looks. And my mother's friends would call her and say, Helen, she really has you down. That's one of your looks. So I think my mom helped a lot to create Wilhelmina because she has patented the icy stare.

MALVEAUX: I have not seen this icy stare. You've been very quiet.

HELEN WILLIAMS: Because I like you.

(LAUGHTER)

MALVEAUX: That's a good thing. So she gets the character from you a little bit.

HELEN WILLIAMS: That's what she tells me. I don't see it. I see myself as a kind, gentle, sweet person.

(LAUGHTER)

MALVEAUX: We have to talk a lit bit about the kind, gentle, sweet person who has the list. You have a list you created. Tell us about this list.

HELEN WILLIAMS: Through the years, there have been times people said things on TV or Vanessa has been teased or joked about. I don't like it. As a protective mom, if I could say to them, I don't like what you said, and this is the reason I didn't like it and it's not true, but you don't always have that opportunity. I would either write a letter but I also created a list so if I ever saw those persons. It made me feel better because it freed my inner emotions.

(CROSSTALK) MALVEAUX: Who's on the list? Who's on the list?

HELEN WILLIAMS: Joan Rivers is on the list.

MALVEAUX: She's on the list, OK.

(CROSSTALK)

MALVEAUX: She's OK now. Is she off the list?

HELEN WILLIAMS: I love her jokes. I think she's very, very funny. But I don't like it when she talks about my daughter in a joking manner that I don't approve of.

VANESSA WILLIAMS: Always a mother.

MALVEAUX: Yes, always a mother.

(LAUGHTER)

So you're a mother of four as well. And your mom says you're a hopeless romantic. You were just so in love with your first boyfriend, Ramon, so in love with your first husband, Rick Fox, the second one. Love, love, love, love, love. You didn't approve of these, did you?

HELEN WILLIAMS: It's not that I didn't approve of them but I saw obstacles in her future with them. That concerned me.

MALVEAUX: What was -- she's being too polite. The book, not so polite there.

VANESSA WILLIAMS: You'll know the difference.

MALVEAUX: What is your future now? Your kids? You're looking great.

VANESSA WILLIAMS: My kids are doing great.

MALVEAUX: Looking for another husband or --

(CROSSTALK)

VANESSA WILLIAMS: Always looking. My kids are great. I've got 24, 22, 19 and 12. My son is a freshman in college. The other girls are out, and Sasha is sixth grade and graduates next month out in L.A. They're doing wonderfully. And they're always up for the next adventure.

MALVEAUX: Which one is payback, the child you were to your mother? The one that gave you so much grief? Which one is it?

VANESSA WILLIAMS: They're all really good. I have to say.

MALVEAUX: Nobody like you?

VANESSA WILLIAMS: No one is near me at all. You know, I do give grief, but as a mother of four girls I don't take it personally.

MALVEAUX: Three girls.

VANESSA WILLIAMS: Three girls, one boy. Going through it four times with kids going through adolescence -- my youngest is just about to go through it -- and you realize you don't take it personally when they have their outbursts because their hormones, their brain is not fully developed and you have to -- you know, when they say they hate you and slam the door, you have to realize one day on the other side it will come out and they'll be back to themselves again.

MALVEAUX: If there was one thing that young girls, young women could take away from your experience, your life journey, what would it be?

VANESSA WILLIAMS: In those pages, I would say the biggest lesson is you are not the events in your life. It's how you view them and choose to move on with your life that is rewarding. That does not define who you are.

MALVEAUX: What's your next big adventure?

VANESSA WILLIAMS: In the studio, doing an album. Just did a pilot in New York. Might be another series happening.

MALVEAUX: Another series happening?

VANESSA WILLIAMS: Yes.

MALVEAUX: And for mom?

HELEN WILLIAMS: My advice for young women or for mothers is just to know that there is light at the end of the tunnel. You will get through those adolescent years and you will learn to love your children regardless.

MALVEAUX: You can tell there's a lot of love in this room here. It's an excellent book it. Really is very inspiring.

Thank you both, Helen and Vanessa. Really appreciate it.

Stock market bouncing back after taking a dip. We're going to take a look at the election of the new French president, what it has to do with all of this on Wall Street, up next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MALVEAUX: Shake up in France. President Nicolas Sarkozy defeated by Socialist Francois Hollande. The response around the world, financial markets are selling off.

But Felicia Taylor, she's at the New York Stock Exchange.

We are seeing a turnaround right now. Tell us what investors are doing. FELICIA TAYLOR, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It's kind of an interesting day. The Dow is up slightly. NASDAQ is up half of 1 percent. The S&P is up one-third of 1 percent. Markets did fall after the French election results, but have recovered except for the German markets. Asia dropped more than 2 percent, but that was also in part because of reaction. It was the first day it had a chance to react to that less- than-stellar jobs number we got on Friday in the U.S. The head of Pimco said the markets are behaving in a mature fashion, which I think is an interesting way to talk about the market. I guess the markets are reacting to the news in the sense that they kind of now know what the outcome is for the French elections.

MALVEAUX: The French election is an ocean away. What is the big concern for investors here in the United States?

TAYLOR: Well, it brings that word uncertainty back in the market. A change in government during a debt crisis makes for a lot of uncertainty. We have a new leader in France who wants to change policy. Hollande isn't a fan of austerity measures or spending cuts, which we've been talking about for months in the Eurozone. It puts the Franco-German relationship into jeopardy. Hollande favors spending to create jobs. And that's going to increase their debt. That's not good for its debt rating. A lot of concern on how this will all play out.

MALVEAUX: A lot of people still watching and wondering how Europe and new European leaders will impact our markets here and they're watching in case.

TAYLOR: Absolutely.

MALVEAUX: Felicia, thank you so much. Appreciate it.

TAYLOR: Sure.

MALVEAUX: Don't forget, you can watch CNN live on your computer. Head to CNN.com/live.

CNN NEWSROOM room is continuing right now with Ashleigh Banfield.

Hey, Ashleigh.

ASHLEIGH BANFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Hey, Suzanne. Nice to see you. Thanks so much.