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Dow Down More Than 134 Points; Ballot Battle Over Gay Marriage; FBI Dissecting Al Qaeda Bomb; Romney to Detroit: You're Welcome; Members Of Congress Are The 1 Percent; Mitt Romney In Michigan; The Help Desk
Aired May 08, 2012 - 12:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN ANCHOR: Live from CNN headquarters in Atlanta where it's 12:00 noon, 9:00 a.m. on the West Coast, I'm Suzanne Malveaux.
I want you get you up to speed, for this Tuesday, May 8th.
First of all, Wall Street, we begin in Wall Street. We are watching a major sell-off right now.
I want to bring in Alison Kosik. She's live at the New York Stock Exchange.
We're talking about -- what are these numbers that we're looking at here at the big board?
ALISON KOSIK, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Dow down about 134 points, we're just about 2 1/2 hours into the trading day and yes, stocks across the board are sinking, Suzanne.
Now, here's the interesting thing. We were expecting a huge sell-off to happen Monday because we expected investors to react to the European election results that happened over the weekend. Clearly, that didn't happen on Monday. Markets were pretty stable.
So, what you're seeing today is sort of a delayed reaction to those elections that happened. What's happening is investors are rattled today, Suzanne. You know, Greece is trying to form a new government. No one is really sure how the political situation there is going to pan out.
There are two worries. Number one, will the new leadership that is finally put in place -- will it blow up the debt deal that took so long to put in place?
There is also a lot of buzz whether Greece may drop out of the eurozone all together in the next 18 months.
As for stocks specifically, we're watching shares of Alcoa and Caterpillar that had big interests in Europe. They are falling more than 2 percent, dragging down the Dow.
But keep in mind, although we're seeing the Dow down 138 points, the Dow is off its lows of the session, though. It is still pretty ugly -- Suzanne.
MALVEAUX: Wow. OK. Alison, we're going to be keeping a close eye on that throughout the next couple of hours. Thank you.
About to show you something that is quite frankly hard to see. This is a homeless man who is yelling and pleading for help as he is kicked, punched and repeatedly tasered by police.
(VIDEO CLIP PLAYS)
MALVEAUX: This is awful. The man died last July, five days after the beating.
Well, now, one of those Fullerton, California officers, he is charged with second-degree murder and manslaughter. The other is charged with manslaughter and excessive force. Both pleaded not guilty. A judge is deciding now whether or not there is even enough evidence for them to be tried.
U.S. experts, they are trying to determine if the latest al Qaeda bomb could have slipped through security. The device contains no metal and showed a new level of sophistication. It was seized by the CIA after a tip from the Saudis.
Apparently, al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula dispatched a suicide bomber from Yemen. Now, he was meant to board a flight to the United States with that device under his clothes. Authorities believe that Ibrahim Hasan al-Asiri was behind this plot. He was also behind the so-called underwear bombing attempt on Christmas of 2009.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
HILLARY CLINTON, SECRETARY OF STATE: The plot indicates that these terrorists keep trying -- they keep trying to devise more and more perverse and terrible ways to kill innocent people. And it's a reminder why we have to remain vigilant.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MALVEAUX: In Texas, there is now a $45,000 reward for information leading to those responsible for the death of a rare white buffalo. The calf was less than a year old when it was slaughtered and skinned last week.
Here is the owner of the Lakota Ranch where the calf was born.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ARBY LITTLE SOLDIER, RANCH OWNER: My people, my brother, my sisters are hurt for what has happened here on this ranch.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MALVEAUX: The white buffalo is considered sacred by the Lakota. Instead of a birthday celebration, the ranch will hold a memorial this week.
And the lives of two girls could be at stake right now, as police are frantically searching for the man suspected of abducting them. The situation now is so desperate because the bodies of their mother and older sister were found in a shallow grave at a home linked to this man, Adam Mayes.
Police think he abducted the mother and those three girls. He is still out there somewhere.
And let you know, this quote, "Let the wild rumpus things begin." Well, who wrote that? The man Maurice Sendak. He has now died, millions read "Where the Wild Things Are" as kids.
Sendak was 83, had a 60-year career as a writer and illustrator. In January Stephen Colbert talked to him about his famous book which everyone asked him about.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
STEPHEN COLBERT, COMEDIAN: Let's talk about "Where the Wild Things Are." Why not do a sequel to this? It's a natural.
MAURICE SENDAK, AUTHOR: Because it is the most boring idea imaginable.
COLBERT: "Where the Wild Things Are II, still wildin'.
SENDAK: Featuring Vin Diesel.
COLBERT: Featuring Vin Diesel.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MALVEAUX: I love that book.
Sendak's last book inspired by his brother will be published next year.
The personal and political issue of same-sex marriage is on the ballot in North Carolina today. Some high profile people are taking sides for and against the measure. Amendment One would change the state constitution to say that "marriage between one man and one woman is the domestic legal union that shall be valid or recognized in this states."
Opponents say it's discrimination, and would also hurt the state economically. Former President Bill Clinton recorded a robocall, urging people to vote against this amendment.
(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)
BILL CLINTON, FORMER U.S. PRESIDENT: The real effect of the law is not to keep the traditional definition of marriage. You've already done that. The real effect of the law will be to hurt families and drive away jobs.
North Carolina can do better. Again, this is Bill Clinton, asking you to please vote against Amendment One.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MALVEAUX: On the other side, evangelist Billy Graham took out full page ads in 14 newspapers urging people to vote for this amendment. He says, quote, "The Bible is clear. God's definition of marriage is between a man and a woman."
Joining us is Reverend William Barber. He is pastor of Greenleaf Christian Church. He has been an opponent of the measure for months now.
Thank you for joining us.
First of all, I want to say the news conference with the clergy that were assembled around the state -- essentially that video has gone viral. A lot of people watching and in that you made the point here that this amendment you do not believe is about whether or not you believe in same-sex marriage, the morality of it. But it really is about whether or not the majority can determine the rights of the minority.
Can you explain your position?
REV. WILLIAM BARBER, GREENLEAF CHRISTIAN CHURCH: Thank you so much, Suzanne. Yes. The NAACP, the 102 branches here in our state, and our people's coalition, more than 25 organizations, early on we said that this matter was not a matter of conscience -- constitution, but a matter of conscience, that we should not try to put discrimination, hate and division into the framework of our Constitution.
The reality is when you look at who is behind this, the Family Research Council listed as a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center, the National Organization for Marriage. That said by their own document that this was not so much about marriage but about the strategy to divide certain Democratic allies, in their mind. A division that's dividing (INAUDIBLE).
When you look at the ultra conservative Tea Party wing in our legislature that pushed this amendment, they allowed no public comment, they didn't allow family lawyers to comment (INAUDIBLE) the law, the same persons who cut a billion -- $1.6 billion from public education, $2 billion in Medicaid, they passed the most aggressive voting rights we've seen in the 19th century.
So, what you have is not so much a focus on same-sex marriage but a marriage between ultra conservative right wing ideology and money. It's wrong to attempt, Suzanne, to use a state's rights agenda to trump the 14th Amendment.
MALVEAUX: Sure. I understand your position. How do you convince other black clergy, when we saw the case in Maryland, it really was at the forefront. It was the black clergy who said you know what? We are not for same-sex marriage, we're going to -- we're not allowing this in our state. How do you convince them that this is a moral issue for some people?
BARBER: Well, right. There are people on both sides. What you saw the other night at that rally, we had persons who in their religious conviction are against same-sex marriage, some were for. But when it comes to the Constitution, this dangerous precedent of allowing a majority to vote on the rights of a minority -- you know, we did that at the beginning of the Constitution, we broke black people out. It took 100 years of slavery and 100 years of Jim Crow.. And we still haven't gotten on role (INAUDIBLE).
We wrote women out. We wrote white men who work four years.
So, were understands, you ask the right question. The question is not what black churches would do, because that was a diverse people from five different cities. The is what will North Carolinians do and in the South, will we go down this road that we have not tried since 1875 when we outlawed interracial marriage? Will we go down the road of actually attempting to codify discrimination, hate and division in the Constitution through a popular vote?
That is a soul sickness that American has often wrestled with. We say we the people on one hand, we say equal protection under law on one hand. But in the footnote we begin to write out certain people and other certain people.
So, the question is not just what black people will do, what American will do, (INAUDIBLE) what will all of us do, will we go back or forward. Whether you agree same-sex marriage or you disagree with it personally or religiously, you should always be against discrimination, hate and division being codified in the classroom.
ROMANS: Reverend, who is that -- how is that being received by the clergy in your state? Because you have Billy Graham, you have many very prominent people weighing in and they do not take that position, they do not see this as a human rights, civil rights issue.
Are you being received well here? Do you think you're on the winning side of this argument?
MALVEAUX: Well, what I know is that when people find out who is behind it, why, that same-sex marriage is legal in North Carolina when they get the truth about why this trick amendment was put up we have a different response.
Yes, we have 125 organizations in our people's assembly, 120 branches of the NAACP, we have five different cities of clergy, Christian and Jewish and Muslims come together. When people are asked the right question, we are not voting on same-sex marriage. That's a religious question.
We have a right in our Constitution freedom from and of religion. Now, the ultra right, its' true, they try to make it about same-sex marriage but we know their policies -- cutting education, trying to repeal health care, undermining voter right are anti-family in some ways.
S, when people get the right information, when they find out who is behind it --
MALVEAUX: All right.
BARBER: -- how it will hurt even heterosexual families, there is a different answer. And that's what we're finding across the state.
MALVEAUX: All right. Reverend Barber, thank you for your time. We're going to see how North Carolina voters decide on this. We're going to wait for them to cast their ballots.
Take a look at where the rest of the country also stands on the same-sex marriage issue. It's legal in New York, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Iowa, Connecticut and Washington, D.C.
Aside from North Carolina, the issue is also going to be brought to Minnesota later this year, possibly as many as four other states as well.
Here's a rundown of some of the stories that we're covering this hour. Authorities say that this man built a bomb intended to bring down a flight that was bound for the United States. We're going to take a closer look at the plot and why the Secretary of State Hillary Clinton says the terrorists will keep on trying.
And Rick Santorum criticized Mitt Romney for months, now he's endorsing his former rival.
(BEGIN VIDOE CLIP)
RICK SANTORUM (R). PRESIDETIAL CANDIDATE: He's the person that is going to go up against Barack Obama. It's pretty clear. And we need to win this race.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MALVEAUX: Also, the 1 percenters -- we'll tell you how much the average member of Congress makes a year. You can guess who is richer, Democrats or Republicans.
Don't forget, you can also watch CNN live on your computer, while you're at work. Head to CNN.com/live.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MALVEAUX: New details now on al Qaeda's latest attempt to blow up airplane headed to the United States. The device was to go undetected by screeners, had no metal parts. The FBI is dissecting that. CIA operatives seized the bomb in the Middle East.
Nic Robertson, he's working at sources overseas. He joins from London to talk a little more about what we've learned here, Nic.
First of all, how was this operation supposed to go down?
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: It was supposed to go this way. The bomber would take this new bomb that's more sophisticated than other bombs built by Ibrahim al-Asiri, and he was going to select a flight, direct to the United States from a destination we don't know or from a point of origin we don't know. He was going to choose the flight, get on the plane and detonate his explosives on the plane.
It was a suicide mission. But his intent was to bring down a passenger jet flying into the United States with everyone on board.
MALVEAUX: Nic, do we know this bomber saying she no longer of concern, has he been killed?
ROBERTSON: It's not clear. That statement means one of two things. Either been killed or is now in custody.
Sources from that region, the Middle East who are familiar with some elements of what has taken place seem to indicate that he may still be alive, that this person was providing information and now he may still be alive. But that's not clear to us.
It's also not clear which country this bomb was actually picked up in. But the thing that is really clear here is that al Qaeda made an effort to circumvent everything that counterterrorism officials are doing to make this new bomb get through and get on an aircraft.
MALVEAUX: If this bomber, the suspected 50 is still alive, do we have any idea where he might be?
ROBERTSON: It's going to be guesswork. In all likelihood he will possibly be in Saudi Arabia. If he wasn't there, possibly he might be in the United States. But it really isn't clear. But the piece of information that I have, we perhaps might surmise that he is in Saudi Arabia. The Saudis said that they provided the information that kind of lead, investigation guesswork at this stage. From the pieces of information that I have --we perhaps might surmise, that he is in Saudi Arabia. The Saudis said that they provided the information that led to this investigation and led to thwarting of this plot -Suzanne.
MAVLEAUX: Do we have any idea how strong al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula is?
ROBERSTSON: In terms of being able to make bombs, having the technology, access to the laboratories, to the chemicals, to having the sort of physical space to do this securely, they have it all. What they don't have is a way to get this bomb, if you will, from their factory floor to, if you will, the market, where they want to detonate it to planes flying into the United States.
Yemen, because of everything that's happening -- thinks close to civil war situation has been going on, change of presidency, is very isolated from the international -- the rest of the world right now. And that means that counter terrorism officials can focus on keeping the problem therein.
And that's what they have done. They've stopped this bomb getting out and getting to this aircraft. But for al Qaeda in Yemen, that's a hurdle they will be focusing on, how to get the bombs out and onto the planes.
MALVEAUX: All right. Nic Robertson -- thank you, Nic.
The question is al Qaeda getting more sophisticated. The terror group went from the shoe box bomb back 2001, to a bomb hidden an underwear, the Christmas Day the 2009 plot.
Here's what officials say Al Qaeda's devices are now evolving.
House Homeland Security Chairman Peter King tells CNN the terrorist group is determined to keep up the threat against the United States.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. PETER KING (D-NY). HOLEMAND SECURITY CHARMAN: Al Qaeda and its affiliates can metastize or morph and they are constantly adapting, they are tryi8ng trying to catch up, whenever it appears we have them boxed in, they find a new method, they are very able scientists, doctors working for them, these are sophisticated people.
They never stop. That's why it's so wrong when people in the national arena say the war on terrorism is over or al Qaeda is defeated. Certain facet of al Qaeda have been knocked back. On the other, just when you get to one place they start somewhere else. This is a very, very sophisticated deadly organization and they have one goal in mind, to destroy western civilization particularly the United States.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MALVEAUX: Next hour, I'm going to talk to CNN security contributor Fran Towns. She's also a member and CIA homeland security advisory. We'll have and the evolution of that terrorist bomb plot.
And Russia's President Vladimir Putin, celebrating on ice, playing hockey, while hundreds were in the streets protesting his return to the presidency. We're digging deeper into his brash style and the election that many protesters say was a sham.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MALVEAUX: Russia's Vladimir Putin is sworn in as president again after winning his third bid with 63 percent of the vote. Not everybody is happy about it, of course. Massive demonstrations in Moscow against perceived fraud in the election have now turned violent. Police are clashing with protesters. More than 750 people have been arrested since Sunday.
While thousands battling it out in the streets. The new president found time to lace up, play ice hockey.
Michael Holmes is joining us to talk about this.
And Vladimir Putin, he is a trip. I remember -- when I was covering Obama they started to get to know each other. It was at his -- what's the equivalent of Camp David if you will, and at this press conference he would not look President Obama in the eye, for nearly an hour during this press conference.
And behind the scenes we're told that literally he went on this diatribe for several hours as the president just listened to him. I mean, this is somebody who is arrogant, and he's now seized power.
MICHAEL HOLMES, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Yes, it's all about power with him. He's a man of some vanity as well.
And not a little paranoia it would appear. You're going to figure, he came into power 12 years ago now with his first run. The constitution says you can't run for more than two consecutive terms so once his second term was up he got Dmitri Medvedev, he's now deputy again, took him from prime minister, him president, Putin moves to prime minister, they do a term, bang, back again. Just did swaps again.
So now you've got Putin back as president and Medvedev is one as prime minister. This is angering people.
MALVEAUX: What does this mean? Because this is so different than the way our own government is set up here. Literally, you have this switch but a lot of people believe it was Putin who was really in charge all along.
HOLMES: Of course. Yes.
MALVEAUX: Medvedev was certainly kind of a shill if you will.
HOLMES: Yes, a fill-in. And the president's role. It was still Putin pulling the strings as prime minister and just waiting his time until he could come back in and run again so.
Yes, a lot of people think -- it's almost a czar situation. These pictures of when he was inaugurated, that was another of the criticisms. If you watch video that from start to finish, it's more coronation than inauguration. I mean, it's like the queen is brown.
They are walking down the red carpet that seemed like miles and making the big speech in front of everyone. There is a lot of vanity. We were talking before we came on, there are a lot of rumors that he had work done.
MALVEAUX: Really?
HOLMES: If you look at photos from 10 years ago and photographs now, he looks an awful lot, better now than he did back then. And when some of the protesters, the critics tweet, they will sometimes but their tweet and do #Botox.
MALVEAUX: Really?
And we're looking at some pictures with his kill if you will t lion that he killed, appeared shirtless, this is something he put out there.
Now that you have a society, you have people who are taking to the streets, do they have much power? Do they have much say at all? Or do they kind of hold their nose and realize this guy is just -- he's going to be in charge for a long time.
MOORE: Tat is a growing anger on the streets. We saw that with the protests. Even about the opposition forces, talking about civilian people who are against him and do feel that the election was not representative, let's say, not entirely free and fair, all sorts of allegations of ballot stuffing and the like. Even those organizing the protest didn't think they'd get that many people out because they had been cracking down on dissent.
So, Ashleigh, they got up to 70,000 people out on the streets. And you know, Putin has said he makes it clear he believes nothing less than dark forces and Western stooges of behind these sorts of demonstrations. When in fact probably are troublemakers in the crowd, no doubt about that.
But the vast majority are regular people fed up with what they see as a corrupt system that kept him in rolling power all these years. And they're fed up with what they consider political prisoners that are in Russia. They want a genuine system and fair elections. And they don't feel they are getting that.
Putin meanwhile says all of these guys are just troublemakers.
MALVEAUX: And it is a difficult balancing act for the Obama administration. You have from one administration to the next trying to figure out this guy, whether or not things have gotten a lot better the last four to eight years, when you look at trade and it's opened up and security and things of that nature -- blogging, things like Iran and some of the things that the U.N. Security Cooperation. But still, it's been a leading force when it comes to blocking things like Iran and some of the things that the U.N. Security Council is trying to do.
HOLMES: Yes, and what we're seeing in Syria as well. But, you're right. Back when you were doing al of this coverage yourself, you had in a way, we had this detente, a warming of relations between and the United States ,and a lot of people see that as having gone away, that there is increasing frostiness and it's partly because of his style of leadership and how he's running things, and wanting to be seen as tough -- not just physically tough but politically tough as well.
You saw that mainly with Syria recently where it was Russia and China that blocked the U.N. Security Council .
So, yes, it's a warring sort of I don't know, scene before us when it comes to the Russian leadership.
MALVEAUX: He's back in charge.
HOLMES: He's back.
MALVEAUX: We'll see how this goes. Thank you, Michael.
HOLMES: Good to see you.
TANTAROS: Always, good to see you. He once made a case for letting Detroit go bankrupt. Well, now, Mitt Romney says the auto industry has him to thank.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MITT ROMNEY (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: The auto companies needed to go through bankruptcy before government help.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MALVEAUX: Hear why the Republican presidential candidate says he deserves a lot of credit for the auto industry's comeback.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MALVEAUX: Mitt Romney getting slammed for saying he deserves credit for saving the auto industry. Hear why some Democrats and Republicans are angry.
A police beating caught on tape in California. A man is dead. Now a court is deciding whether the police officers should face trial.
Later, a car that drives itself licensed to hit the road for the first time in one state.
Tough times leave France to kick out their president, so what does it mean for the White House? Jimmy Fallon with the punch line.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JIMMY FALLON, HOST, "LATE NIGHT WITH JIMMY FALLON": Everyone's talking about this after one term in office, French president Nicolas Sarkozy lost his re-election bid unable to fix his nation's economy or as Obama put it, boy.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MALVEAUX: Mitt Romney's taking heat for opposing the auto bailout after writing the editorial with the headline, "Let Detroit Go Bankrupt."
Well, now Romney has a new message for the motor city. You're welcome. He says he deserves a lot of the credit for the auto industry's comeback. The Obama campaign says, are you kidding?
Joining us to talk about that and more Democratic strategist and CNN contributor, Maria Cardona. Good to see you, Maria, and Republican strategist Alice Stewart. Good to see you as well, former spokeswoman for Rick Santorum.
So you're going to be on the hot seat a little bit today. I want you to listen to what Romney said to what President Obama said to auto workers as well as President Obama back in February. Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MITT ROMNEY (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: The auto companies needed to go through bankruptcy before government help and frankly, that's finally what the president did, he finally took them through bankruptcy. That was the right course. I argued for it from the beginning.
It was the UAW and the president that delayed the idea of bankruptcy. I pushed the idea of a managed bankruptcy. And finally when that was done and help was given the companies got back on their feet. So I'll take a lot of credit for the fact that this industry's come back.
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: Could have just kicked the problem down the road. The other option was to do absolutely nothing and let these companies fail. And you will recall there were some politicians who said we should do that. Some even said we should let Detroit go bankrupt. You remember that.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MALVEAUX: All right, Alice, so how does Romney do this? On the one hand he says he should get the credit for it. President Obama is saying look, I'm calling you out on this one. What is going to resonate here?
ALICE STEWART, REPUBLICAN STRATEGIST: Well, the truth will resonate. What Governor Romney did back in 2008, he called for a managed bankruptcy of the auto industry in order for them to go through managed bankruptcy is the smart economic thing to do.
Streamline the company, make it more sustainable in the future, more it more profitable, make it a better stronger company in the future. What Obama wanted to do was a taxpayer funded bailout from the git-go with the insistence from Governor Romney and others.
Obama came around to the managed bankruptcy idea which made the company stronger, a better deal for the taxpayers, guaranteed the warranties of the cars, and made the companies stronger in the end.
What we're seeing now is nothing more than liberals and Democrats focusing on this when if you look at the truth, Governor Romney gave the right recommendation that's better for the auto industries.
But they are trying to distract with this as opposed to looking at the bad economic numbers, the bad unemployment numbers, the rising gas prices and that's what we need to focus on.
MALVEAUX: It's all the focus is the economy, the jobs as well as those jobs coming back from the auto industry. So Maria, does the president come out on top when it comes to this issue here?
MARIA CARDONA, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: Of course, he does, Suzanne. When I heard what Mitt Romney said, I had that same reaction I do when my children try to tell me a lie, which is I'm sorry, what? Do you really want to stick to that ill-conceived and misguided mem, children?
I mean Mr. Romney? Because that is exactly what this is. Let's not forget and my friend, Alice, tried to do a great job at spinning this, but Romney did say let Detroit go bankrupt.
When he talked about a managed bankruptcy, he meant and he said this actually, it was private capital that he wanted to help the auto industry. He said very clearly during the most recent debates on the -- during the Republican primary he was opposed to any taxpayer funded bail-out.
Zero. Even Republicans are now saying that what he is saying was completely unreasonable because at the time there was zero private sector money. So, if we had actually followed Mitt Romney's advice, Detroit and the auto sector would not exist today, period.
MALVEAUX: Alice, do you want to comment on that and we'll talk about your guy.
STEWART: Sure. The truth is that they ended up following Governor Romney's advice. He requested a managed bankruptcy. This is the economically smart thing to do. It allowed the car companies to streamline.
It guaranteed the warranties that they ended up being able to provide the customers. And that was the best economic advice and we're beginning to see Americans have trust in Governor Romney, to handle the economy, he's a strong business man and handle the economy as well.
CARDONA: And now they are going to see him as a liar, frankly.
STEWART: That's not true.
MALVEAUX: Let's see if this is a problem or a good thing for Mitt Romney. The endorsement of Rick Santorum, an e-mail that was sent from Santorum, a lot of us looking at this you know, kind of laughing a little bit because it's down in paragraph 13 in this e- mail.
The main goal saying he is defeating President Obama. The task will not be easy, require all hands on deck if our nominee is to be victorious. Governor Romney will be that nominee. He has my endorsement and support.
Even Howard Kurtz he tweeted this. He said Santorum endorses Romney by e-mail. Isn't that one notch above breaking up with someone by text message?
Alice, you were the former spokeswoman for Santorum. Couldn't he have done more of a robust endorsement? He looks like he's holding his nose.
STEWART: This was an e-mail sent to supporters that helped him throughout the campaign and it was his way of thanking them, letting him know, I've been listening to what you've said since I suspended my campaign, the issues you brought to me I presented to Governor Romney in terms of American family being the strong backbone of this country and the importance of manufacturing, the importance of restoring freedom and replacing Obama care.
MALVEAUX: You think it was tough for him to do?
STEWART: No, because job number one is to defeat Barack Obama. After he had the meeting with Governor Romney and presented these issues that he felt were important to be folded into the Romney campaign.
And ultimately the Romney presidency, he had confidence that Governor Romney would do the things that he reassured Rick that he would do and that's why he supported him and offered the endorsement.
What he does from here on out in terms of speaking for him and a more public media savvy way of issuing the endorsement will come in days to come. This was a personal letter from Rick thanking them and letting them know I endorsed Governor Romney.
MALVEAUX: Maria, I want to talk about a little bit about the Senate's longest serving Republican, it's going to be a tough primary today.
Thirty six years, he could actually be defeated. We're talking about Dick Lugar, of course, conservatives and the Tea Party are backing his opponent. Lugar is known for his foreign policy expertise, but also one of the last moderates here.
Does this say something about where we are in this election cycle, the tone, the mood of this campaign and our country right now?
CARDONA: Absolutely, Suzanne. It speaks volumes of the problem that, frankly, the Republican Party has been facing since the rise of the Tea Party. That is that there is no more room for moderates.
You know, he's not the first to have faced this. There have been several long standing members of Congress who were defeated in 2010 by ultra right wing conservative Tea Partiers who came in on the right basically defeating them.
Because the Tea Party basically believes there is no room for moderates. There is no room for compromise. Compromise to them is a bad word and I think that unfortunately, it really adds to what in voters' minds is wrong with Washington.
People need to work together to come together with solutions. The Tea Party has no interest in doing that.
MALVEAUX: Maria, Alice, we're going to have to leave it there. Good to see you both. We'll see you again soon. Thank you.
Any minute now we're going to hear from Mitt Romney in his own words live from the campaign trail in Michigan.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MALVEAUX: All right, this might not come as a surprise, but members of Congress, they are richer, of course, than the rest of us, but how much richer? It turns out a lot.
Alison Kosik joining us from the New York Stock Exchange. Wow, Alison. I think these are pretty big numbers, yes?
ALISON KOSIK, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: They really are. Sort of, you know, "Occupy Wall Street" dynamic that's been going on in Congress for a long time, you know, between the 1 percent and the 99 percent.
Then you look at the difference between lawmakers and the rest of us, it's huge. Now the Center for Responsive Politics took a looked at the median net worth of lawmakers and they found out that Republicans make more than Democrats but not by much.
Their median net worth talking about Republicans is just under $1 million. Democrats in Congress are worth about $900,000. But the real comparison is when you look at the median household net worth of Americans, $96,000. You compare that to the other figures I gave you.
Now when I talk about net worth, I'm talking about the stuff you own like investments, your car, your salary minus debt. But in this case the way these numbers were crunched, the net worth of the lawmakers does not include their house.
Keep in mind the net worth of the average American does include their house so that means if you factor that house in, the disparity would be even bigger.
MALVEAUX: They are even richer than what we learned. Wow. Is this anything new here, Alison or have members of Congress always been a little bit better off than the rest of us?
KOSIK: Yes, they just have been better off. You know, lawmakers, it's been that way. One analyst says, you know what, only 2 percent of members of congress come from the working class and really, that's the way it's been for about 100 years because think about it.
Before they run, most lawmakers have these really big money making careers. They're lawyers. They're business professionals. They make higher salaries. Also keep in mind, it takes a lot of money to run. It takes millions of dollars to run for office so if you don't have the money you likely are not going to run for office -- Suzanne. MALVEAUX: Yes. Poor people generally don't run. Who is the richest? Do we know?
KOSIK: OK -- yes, we do know. Republican representative from California, Darrell Issa, he takes -- he takes the prize. His average net worth comes in at about $450 million. Or about a half billion dollars. Now, keep in mind, he did start a company that makes vehicle anti-theft devices. That, of course, helping his income there.
Now, the richest Democrat is Senator John Kerry of Massachusetts. He's worth about $230 million. Certainly doesn't hurt to have a very wealthy wife. His wife is Teresa Heinz. She is the heir to the Heinz Ketchup fortune. Of course, behind every lawmaker -- well, not every -- but almost every lawmaker is a nice rich woman. But I generalize.
MALVEAUX: All right. Thanks, Alison.
KOSIK: Sure.
MALVEAUX: Any minute now we're going to hear from Mitt Romney in his own words live from the campaign trail in Michigan.
MITT ROMNEY (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Michigan state is, of course, a very big presence in the community.
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MALVEAUX: Day after taking credit for the auto industry rebound, Mitt Romney is campaigning in Michigan. He is holding an event in Lansing there. Michigan is the state where Romney was born. This is the first campaign stop visit since he won the Michigan primary back in February. No Republican presidential candidate has won Michigan in the general election since George H.W. Bush. That was back in 1988. Romney is hoping to break the pattern.
And a disturbing video now showing police beating a homeless mentally ill man to death. Now a court is trying to decide if the officers should face trial. We're going to take a look at that video.
Want to go live now to the Romney event. Let's listen in.
ROMNEY: The more good jobs leave America, there won't be enough good jobs in America to succeed in this great country. This we know in our hearts. The lessons of the last four years teaches a great deal about the next four years if we continue in the same direction with the same president . We must not. It's time to bring America back.
Now, the president's plea that we simply ignore the last four years is actually his latest effort to escape responsibility for the failures of the last four years. His earlier attempt, as you recall, was to try and blame others -- his predecessor, Congress, the 1 percent, oil companies, ATMs, the tsunami. But the failures were not caused by others. They were caused by wrong choices. The president's wrong choices.
President Obama chose to apply liberal ideas of the past to a 21st century America. Liberal policies didn't work back then. They haven't worked during these last four years. And they will not work in the future.
New Democrats had abandoned those policies, but President Obama resurrected them with the predictable results. President Clinton, remember, he said the era of big government was over. President Obama brought it back with a vengeance. Government at all levels now consumes about 38 percent of the economy. And if Obamacare is installed, that will rise to about half of the economy. President Clinton made efforts to reform welfare as we know it, but President Obama has tried to tirelessly expand the welfare state with more promises and more programs, more benefits, more spending.
Old school liberals saw a problem and thought a government run program was the answer. Obamacare is the fulfillment of their dreams. Federal bureaucrats will tell all Americans what they have to have in their health insurance policies and an unelected board will tell seniors what treatments Medicare is going to cover. Liberalism once taught that unions would ensure lasting prosperity for workers. Instead, they too often contributed to disappearing companies and disappearing industries and disappearing jobs.
But like many politicians of the past, the president takes his marching orders from union bosses and rails against the right to work states and fights to win union elections by eliminating the right to vote by secret ballot and even denies an American company the right to build a factory in the American state of its choice.
The liberals of the past raise taxes, often with very little thought to how they'd hurt small business and the economy. Just like them, President Obama proposes to raise the tax on small business. He wants to increase the marginal tax rate that the most successful small businesses pay from 35 percent to 40 percent. It's a throwback to the discredited policies of the past and it will kill jobs.
Old skill liberals envision government guiding and providing every need of every citizen. Government would be at the center. The most important player in our lives. Have you seen, by the way, the president's vision of the future? To help us see it, his campaign has even created a little fictional character. It's on the website. Living an imaginary life filled with happy milestones through which she will spend the rest of her days thanking President Obama. It's called "the life of Julia." And it's a cartoon. Julia progresses from cradle to grave, showing how government makes every good thing in her life possible. The weak economy, high unemployment, falling wages, rising gas prices, the national debt, the insolvency of entitlements, these are fictionally assumed away in a cartoon produced by a president who wants us to forget about them.
By the way, what does it say about a president's policies when he has to use a cartoon character rather than real people to justify his record?
And what does this say about the fiction of old liberalism to insist that good jobs and good schools and good wages will result from policies that have failed us time and again. It's often asked why this recovery has been so slow. The slowest on record. Why are American families having to suffer so much for so long. It's because the solutions that have been applied to the problem have been the wrong solutions. President Obama is looking in the wrong direction. Looking backward won't solve the problems of today, nor will it take advantage of the opportunities of tomorrow. His are the policies of the past. The challenges of the present and the promise of tomorrow must be met by a new and bold vision for the future. And I will bring it.
MALVEAUX: Mitt Romney in Lansing, Michigan, going before voters, going after President Obama's policy. We're going to have more at CNN NEWSROOM after this.
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POPPY HARLOW, CNNMONEY.COM: Time now for "The Help Desk," where we get answers to your financial questions. Joining me this hour, Greg Olsen is a certified financial planner and partner at Lenox Advisers, Lynnette Khalfani-Cox is the founder of the financial advice blog, askthemoneycoach.com.
Thank you both for coming in.
Greg, interesting question for you from Ann in Washington. Ann wrote in, "I have two credit cards and a credit score of 770. I always pay my bills on time and I never spend more than 10 percent of my total credit limit. I would like to open another credit card that offers cash back and points on gas purchases. Will opening that other credit card hurt my credit score?"
GREG OLSEN, CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER: Well, Ann, first of all, congratulations for being so financially responsible.
HARLOW: Yes.
OLSEN: It could slightly negatively affect your credit score, so you want to really think about it before you open up another card. If you really need to, because of the benefits that go along with it, maybe ask for a lower credit limit. If it's just for gas, maybe $500 a month would be sufficient.
The other thing would be possibly look at the other two credit cards you have if you really need this third one and say, which one don't I need.
HARLOW: Right.
OLSEN: This way you'll keep your overall credit limit about the same and that shouldn't negatively affect your credit score.
HARLOW: But closing one, that could hurt her credit score?
OLSEN: It really depends -- I mean, in that situation, over time you -- you're constantly opening and closing cards. So I would seriously consider it depending on how good that next -- really you need that next card.
HARLOW: Yes. Got it.
All right, Lynnette, your question comes from Joe in Arizona. Joe wrote in, "after a short sale on a bankruptcy, how long do I need to wait to buy another home?" I don't know, should he even buy another home?
LYNNETTE KHALFANI-COX, FOUNDER, ASKTHEMONEYCOACH.COM: Not immediately, certainly. You've got to get that credit cleaned up and sort of get back on track financially. Generally speaking, the short answer could be as little as one year, believe it or not, or as long as maybe three years. It depends on two things. One, the type of loan you get. If it's an FHA or a government backed loan versus a conventional mortgage. And also, two, the type of bankruptcy proceeding that he was in. Believe it or not, you can be in a Chapter 13 where you reorganize your debts and pay them off over a period of three to five years. You could actually get a mortgage one year after you file bankruptcy. You can get it while you're in bankruptcy proceedings. You have to show a lot of stuff to the bankruptcy court and your trustee, I've been making all my payments on time. I've sort of gotten back on the right track. But legally you can do it. The government wants to make sure, obviously, that people don't just, you know --
HARLOW: Keep doing it.
KHALFANI-COX: Walk away from homes and foreclose and then get it again. So that one to three year time period is the general rule.
HARLOW: Got it. Thank you, guys.
If you have a question you want answered, just send us an e-mail any time to cnnhelpdesk@cnn.com.
