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New Hope for 1.7 Million Illegal Immigrants; Wildfires Raging in the West; Powerball Jackpot Hits Estimated $320 Million; Voting Concerns in Ohio; Firefighter Says Airline Profiled Him; Romney Blasts Biden Blunder; Blast Near U.N. Monitors' Syrian Hotel; People Want to See a Shirtless Paul Ryan
Aired August 15, 2012 - 09:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: I know. It's a tongue twister.
O'BRIEN: I'll see everybody back here tomorrow.
Fred, I know. It's not. It's not.
WHITFIELD: It happens all the time. That's why people choose Fred --
(CROSSTALK)
O'BRIEN: Yes. Good morning.
WHITFIELD: All right. Thanks so much, Soledad. Good morning to you.
Hello, everyone. Happening right now in the NEWSROOM, West Nile virus. More states, more infections. New concerns today as officials warn the disease is getting much worse.
And it just got uglier. Vice President Joe Biden telling a crowd of mostly African-Americans that Romney's policies will put people, quote-unquote, "back in chains." Mitt Romney tells Obama to take his campaign of hate back to Chicago. Have we reached a new low in the presidential race?
And wildfire threats. Homes and lives being destroyed. Blazes burning across the western U.S. with high winds and no chance of rain, making matters worse. An area the size of New Hampshire torched this year alone.
And check this out. An amazing car crash caught on camera right there. And the driver actually walks away with just a few minor injuries. His car rolled over eight times, if you're counting. A story of survival as the NEWSROOM begins right now.
Good morning, everyone. I'm Fredricka Whitfield in for Carol Costello.
We begin with a story that is both politically charged yet steeped in raw human emotion. Immigration officials are bracing for a flood of people who came to the U.S. illegally as children. Under a controversial new program launching today, young illegal immigrants can come forward and avoid being deported at least for now. It means hope but also risk. Not just for the immigrants but for President Barack Obama. Critics say this is an election year stunt to win Latino votes.
We begin our coverage with our Miguel Marquez.
So, Miguel, what are these immigrants telling you?
MIGUEL MARQUEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, they're telling me that they are in disbelief that this is actually a reality. Here's this program, it was just announced a few weeks ago, and today it is a real thing. And they're able to line up and apply for it.
In the weeks and months ahead it is expected that hundreds of thousands will apply.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MARQUEZ (voice-over): Twenty-three-year-old Justino Mora was brought to the U.S. from Mexico when he was 11. He is one of 1.7 million young people here illegally. That beginning today have a shot at something they thought they'd never have -- legal status in the U.S.
JUSTINO MORA, STUDENT: At the beginning, it felt like a dream. Like I didn't really actually believe it.
MARQUEZ: But it's a temporary program. Only lasting two years. And only those 15 to 31 years old need apply. Each applicant will also need a slew of documents to prove they entered the U.S. before the age of 16, or in or have finished school and have been in the U.S. for at least five years.
MORA: Over here I have my vaccination card, some medical records.
MARQUEZ (on camera): Because this proves that --
MORA: I came --
MARQUEZ: -- you were here all along.
MORA: Yes.
MARQUEZ: You got vaccinated and -- so it's a -- it's a record of where you were on certain days.
MORA: Exactly.
MARQUEZ (voice-over): Workshops teaching immigrants how to apply are jam packed here at CHIRLA, an L.A. based immigrant rights group. Thirty-six thousand people have attended the workshops, and the group expects to help 10,000 or more immigrants apply. (On camera): Here in California, the program could have a massive impact. In the Los Angeles school district alone, more than 200,000 students could qualify.
(Voice-over): Mora, a junior studying political and computer science at University of California Los Angeles, will apply along with his brother and sister.
(On camera): This must be incredibly emotional, though.
MORA: It is.
(LAUGHTER)
MORA: Yes, it is.
MARQUEZ (voice-over): It is emotional on all sides of the immigration debate. When President Obama announced the policy change in a high-profile press conference two months ago, it ignited a fire on the political right, including Rush Limbaugh.
RUSH LIMBAUGH, CONSERVATIVE COMMENTATOR: So President Obama went out today in the Rose Garden and basically announced amnesty for young illegals. In what many people are calling a jobs program for illegals.
MARQUEZ: The argument, making it legal for the young undocumented to work here will take jobs away from Americans. Mora counters he wants to create jobs here.
MORA: I want to establish my own business, probably creating computer software. And hopefully work for either Google or Microsoft.
MARQUEZ: Big dreams for him, a nightmare for others. The fight over immigration reform on the horizon.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
MARQUEZ: Well, this is the application. It's only six pages long. And it is a lengthy process to carry out, it could be five or six months before people applying today would hear back and get their visa or their green card to work here legally. But one big reason to fill this thing out today is that once this application is in, they cannot be deported until it is resolved -- Fred.
WHITFIELD: All right. Miguel Marquez, thanks so much. Appreciate that.
Let's talk more about this. For the illegal immigrants who apply, there is indeed risk. There's also some debate as to how much reward. Keep in mind even President Barack Obama calls this, quote, "a temporary stopgap measure."
Rafael Romo is a CNN senior Latin America affairs editor.
So why the risk? RAFAEL ROMO, CNN SR. LATIN AMERICAN AFFAIRS EDITOR: Well, because this is only a temporary measure. It's only going to last for two years. It's an executive order by President Obama essentially. And nobody really knows what's going to happen in the event that -- what's going to happen in January if Obama is not the president. What's going to happen in August of 2014 if Obama is the president.
And so there are many questions as to what's going to happen to the information that these kids are sending to immigration authorities, the same agency that would eventually would have to deport people is going to have their information.
I asked this very same question to an immigration attorney. Let's listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ROMO: And what happens in January if we have a totally different administration that may or may not be sympathetic to this cause?
CHARLES KUCK, IMMIGRATION ATTORNEY: Well, certainly a great question. What would a President Romney do as part of this? I think once he sees, if he is elected president, once he sees the great economic and societal benefits that come from this, he'll have no choice but to -- but to favor and extend the program.
The American public, a majority of Americans, favor this program.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROMO: And, Fred, it's very important to clarify that there are very strict requirements to this. Kids have to have been 16 before they reach the country, live here for five years. Have gone to school, have a GED or high school diploma or be enrolled in school. Also those who served in the military qualify. And very important, they cannot have a criminal background record. Even if they committed three misdemeanors that automatically makes then ineligible to apply for this.
WHITFIELD: So because of these risks that people -- some people are interpreting, I wonder if that means that the number of people applying is far lower than originally anticipated.
ROMO: Well, I was asking that to a girl who came to the United States from Mexico when she was 1 year old. And she was telling me, yes, I am nervous. I have many questions. I have a lot of doubts about this program. But as it is right now, I have nothing else. And what -- what I'm going to do is going to apply. And she was indeed going to an attorney's office to apply for this and hoping for the best, hoping that Congress finally enacts the Dream Act into law.
If you remember, it was debated in Congress twice. It failed twice. It didn't go through.
WHITFIELD: That's when this executive order came into place.
ROMO: It stumbled in the Senate, and so that's what they're hoping for.
WHITFIELD: Yes. All right. Rafael Romo, thanks so much. Appreciate it.
All right. Now we want to turn to a growing health risk blanketing most of the United States. Take a look at this map of the Lower 48 right there, all those states in red are showing activity of the West Nile virus. Mosquitoes carry the disease, which can be a mild kind of flu like symptoms or kind of come to the surface or it can actually cause fatal swelling of the brain.
Twenty-eight people so far have died. And more than half of those victims in the state of Texas. It's on track for the worst year ever. Public health officials are using planes and trucks that you see there to spray insecticide and kill the teeming mosquito population. Warm winter and heavy rains since are being blamed for creating such widespread breeding conditions.
So this morning, major wildfires as well. Big problem burning across several western states. The worst is in central Washington state. Flames have swept across 28,000 acres, and dozens of home are lost.
Meteorologist Rob Marciano joining us now with a closer look. This seems -- like it's impossible to try to contain.
ROB MARCIANO, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Well, that fire, and we have -- we have over 50 large uncontained fires burning right now, including all of those acreages, over a million acres burned thus so far.
So let's begin with Lake County. This is in northern California. We've been talking about this for a couple of days. Two fires that are burning on north of Napa, northwest of Sacramento. And they have done a fair amount of damage as far as the video there is concerned. Sixty percent of that is contained. But two fires burning there.
Also in Southern California, Riverside, and also in San Diego, the Riverside, Buck Fire, 3,000 acres burned there, 5 percent containment. A few structures burned. And in San Diego, five fires combining for almost 6,000 acres burned there.
We do have some live pictures I want to share with you from KABC in Temecula, just outside of Los Angeles. So not sure exactly what we're looking at but probably one of the two fires there. Likely the Riverside Fire complex that has 3,000 acres burned. But very, very little containment there.
As Fredricka mentioned, the biggest fire that we're concerned about is across central Washington in Cle Elum, which is just east of Seattle, by an hour and a half, maybe two hours. This thing broke out a couple of days ago near a construction site. High winds whipped it around. Sixty primary homes destroyed by this, 900 people are evacuated, 45 square miles burned so far. And so -- as mentioned, evacuations there.
All right. Now let's go to the weather switcher and show you what we expect to happen across Washington. The winds have been -- have been whipped up for sure, but the heat now is going to build in. From Portland to Seattle, and including the fire zone, temperatures will be anywhere from 90 to 100 degrees tomorrow.
And then again on Thursday, the levels the humidity will be dropping as well. And the longer-term pattern, Fredricka, keeps the heat and the dry air out west. Although it will cool down in the east that took hot weather, certainly not something that the firefighters want to hear about.
And a small threat for seeing some thunderstorms over the weekend as well, which, as you note, is not always a good thing as it kind of kicks up the winds.
WHITFIELD: This really has been a year of severe weather. Extremes.
MARCIANO: And -- it has been extreme, but we didn't see a lot of snow this past winter across inner mountain west. So no snow melt. The ground is dry. So we've already seen six million acres burn, and that's about a million above what should be the year-to-date average.
WHITFIELD: Pretty significant. All right. Thanks so much, Rob Marciano. Appreciate that.
All right. Let's talk politics now. More mudslinging on the campaign trail. And Mitt Romney is pushing back this morning after Joe Biden pushed the envelope yesterday. First let's listen to what the vice president said to an audience that included many African- Americans.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOE BIDEN, VICE PRESIDENT: He said in the first 100 days, he's going to let the big banks once again write their own rules. Unchain Wall Street. They're going to put you all back in chains.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: And now here's what Romney had to say this morning.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MITT ROMNEY (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I think the American people had the same reaction, which is they listened to the vice president and they thought again an unfounded charge and a metaphor which is not uplifting, not uniting, but one which is once again a divisive attack.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: So the campaign sniping goes on. We'll talk about that later on this hour with our political director Mark Preston.
All right. Can you feel it? Yes, there's lottery fever in the air again. And -- hey, why not? The estimated Powerball jackpot is now up to $320 million. That's the fourth highest in the game's history. And the next drawing is tonight.
Joining me now is CNN national correspondent Jason Carroll. So how many tickets have you purchased already?
JASON CARROLL, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, I have a new title rather than national correspondent, it is the next Powerball winner. That is me. You're looking at him. We'll see.
WHITFIELD: God luck.
CARROLL: Hopefully, we'll see. Actually, it might be this man right next to me, Victor Rosario. He has been here this morning.
How many tickets have you bought so far?
VICTOR ROSARIO, LOTTERY PLAYER: This morning have I bought 22, and now I got another 42.
CARROLL: So 42 in total, you're doing it for your office. And what are you going to do if you win?
ROSARIO: Well, we're going to get out of the job.
CARROLL: Leave your job?
ROSARIO: Yes.
CARROLL: Well, Victor, you are not alone. There are a lot of people out there, Fredricka, who were just like Victor. We spoke to them yesterday. They talked about what they would do if they won the lotto, Powerball. Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There's so many great places to eat in New York. I would have to visit them all.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'd drive my gold golf cart out to get the mail box. Everybody would like, that's the guy that won the lottery.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'll find a house for my kids.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: For your kids?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes. And maybe take a vacation. But I'd put a trust fund for all of my grandchildren.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CARROLL: So, again, more folks coming in trying to cash in on their dreams, buying their Powerball tickets. If there is a sole winner, that would come -- sort of factor out to about $213 million. That's before taxes. Still a lot of money. You can buy a lot of dreams with that amount of money -- Fredricka.
WHITFIELD: My gosh, and just having that money, that, you know, Powerball available, means that people really are dreaming big. And that's kind of the fun in it, too.
So what about lottery, you know, ticket sales? Up, down, when you have an economy like the one we do?
CARROLL: Well, according to one lottery organization, ticket sales are actually up because of the poor economy. And they say that they typically see that when an economy is sluggish or slow. They see an uptick in sales. So not surprising that that's what they're seeing this go round, especially with the jackpot being so big at $320 million.
WHITFIELD: I think I know what I'm doing, you know, this afternoon. Looks like I've got to find a place to buy a Powerball ticket. And I usually do not play. But this one, I think I'm going to give it a try. I can't let you be the only --
CARROLL: Give it a chance. Why not?
WHITFIELD: You know, reporter who's going to win.
(LAUGHTER)
WHITFIELD: All right, Jason.
(LAUGHTER)
WHITFIELD: Thanks so much. Good luck.
All right. Take a look at these images you're about to see. Wreckage from a steamboat that sank nearly 130 years ago. The drought in the Midwest is so bad that it's drying up rivers and exposing relics just like this one.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: All right. Checking our top stories:
In Kansas, part of a train fell into a river after derailing this morning. The cars were carrying grain. No one was hurt, and you can see tractors and cleanup crews surrounding the wreckage. A union pacific official is investigating the cause of the crash.
And today, we are watching Facebook stock. That's because the company's so-called lockup agreement with many shareholders is over. They now have the option to sell off about 271 million shares for the first time. Facebook stock has lost nearly half its value since its debut in May.
And now to Missouri where the drought is drying up rivers and exposing wreckage from sunken steamboats. The one that you're seeing is what is left of what was known as the Montana. It was a big football field nearly sized ship when it sank in 1884.
The drought also uncovered another wreck which is unknown.
All right. Many Democrats in Ohio claim their vote is already been suppressed ahead of early voting which starts October 2nd. Two Republican dominated counties plan to extend early voting hours, but hours are staying the same in four counties with huge Democratic populations.
Democratic State Senator Nina Turner was a guest in the CNN NEWSROOM yesterday.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
NINA TURNER (D), OHIO STATE SENATE: Even Ray Charles could see what is going on here. Flat out voter suppression in Democratic areas. And also areas that are predominantly African-American.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: Jon Husted is Ohio's secretary of state. He is joining me live right now.
So, Jon, You know, these are some pretty powerful accusations. But what is the explanation here? Why would there be such a disparity?
JON HUSTED, OHIO SECRETARY OF STATE: Well, let me reassure you and Ohio voters that it will be easy and secure to vote. And let's talk about the rules in Ohio. You can start voting 35 days before the election either by mail or in person. Every single voter receives an absentee ballot request, which they can return and receive an absentee ballot and have over 750 hours to vote without ever leaving their homes.
If you contrast that with our border states, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Kentucky, they don't have early voting. It is very easy to vote in Ohio. It's secure to vote in Ohio.
The issue at hand has been in law and in tradition in Ohio that local boards of elections have established their own voting hours. This is how it was in the last election. However, it has erupted into a little bit of a partisan controversy.
And I hope to quell that controversy by moving to establish uniform hours in every county across the state so we can get back to focusing on the candidates --
WHITFIELD: How will do you that and when will you do that? You're telling me there will not be -- if you're successful, there will not be the disparity in Republican, you know, hours or Republican district hours differing from Democratic -- largely Democratic district hours?
HUSTED: No. I am doing the research. I spent last evening talking to Democrat and Republican local elections officials to try to develop some consensus about establishing uniform hours statewide.
This will be a precedent-setting move by myself and the state of Ohio to do this because it's not been the tradition or it's not been the standard that has been set previously.
But we are trying to make sure that everybody feels like they are being treated fairly in every county. I have been a champion of uniformity. We should have uniform rules.
I asked the legislature to establish this in law rather than leaving it up to any secretary of state to establish these rules. They didn't act on that particular request. And so now, I find myself in the position that the only way to resolve this will be for me to issue a standard directive for all counties to have uniform voting hours.
WHITFIELD: And when will this be resolved? When can you confidently say there will be uniform hours? Before October 2nd?
HUSTED: Well, long before October 2. We are working with the attorney general to make sure that we're doing it appropriately with the legal authority that I have. I'm talking with Democrat and Republican local elections officials to make sure that we are making sound choices that treat the largest counties and the smallest counties with equal consideration so that everybody will have a standard set of rules and that we can move on to the candidates and their ideas and not this political hysteria surrounding hours of voting and the rules, because it's easy to vote in Ohio.
Common Cause just issued a report that says Ohio has one of the six best systems in the country. We are doing a number of things to make it easy. And to make sure that our elections are secure. And people should know that.
And it's time to get focused back on the issues, and I'm going to help create an environment where that can happen.
WHITFIELD: All right. Ohio's Secretary of State John Husted -- thanks so much. We'd love to follow up with you in your move to bring some kind of uniformity to the voting in all of these counties. Thank you so much for your time.
HUSTED: Thank you.
WHITFIELD: All right. A man is accused -- is accusing, rather, an airline of discriminating against men. The controversial policy that bans men from sitting next to kids who are traveling alone.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: An airline is coming under fire for a controversial policy banning men from sitting next to unaccompanied children. The airline says it's about safety. Others say it's discrimination.
Here is Sandra Endo with more.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SANDRA ENDO, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): On board a virgin Australia flight, Sydney firefighter Johnny McGirr says he was profiled simply because he is a man.
JOHNNY MCGIRR, PASSENGER: As soon as I boarded I was a potential pedophile.
ENDO: Since he was sitting next to two young boys who were unaccompanied by adults, he was asked by the airlines to switch seats with a female passenger. It is Virgin's policy to make sure there are no male passengers or empty seats next to children flying alone.
McGirr complained to the airline and explained how he felt.
MCGIRR: It was interesting, really ashamed, like I had done something wrong and embarrassed.
ENDO: In a statement, Virgin says, "This has been a long- standing policy that was based on customer feedback, and in light of recent feedback, we are now reviewing the policy. Our intention is certainly not to discriminate in any way."
It's a controversial policy. In 2010, a man sued British Airways for sex discrimination and won after being forced to move away from unaccompanied minors sitting next to him.
Right now, there's no major U.S. carrier that specifically prohibits men from sitting next to unaccompanied children. And since there's no nationwide Department of Transportation policy for airlines, carriers are left to figure out what's best. Children safety advocates support what some international airlines are doing.
JOHN SHEHAN, NATL. CENTER FOR MISSING & EXPLOITED CHILDREN: We're trying to prevent child victimization. We know that these -- that the overwhelming majority of sex offenders are male, so by removing that situation, you're lowering the risk.
ENDO: Travelers we spoke with have mixed views about the policy.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I would be fine as long as the airline has a watch on what he is doing and he's monitored. I don't -- I think that is discriminatory.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Because my kids, you know, I feel you know unless I am not there with them or another parent, I would feel more comfortable if the policy was in effect.
ENDO (on camera): Many domestic travelers we spoke with also didn't even know this policy existed on some airlines. We also reached out to the American Civil Liberties Union. They did not want to comment on this story.
Sandra Endo, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: All right. Other stories right now in THE NEWSROOM.
The opening bell rings in about one minute and expect stocks to be lower today. Investors are reacting to disappointing economic report.
Gold medalists with the U.S. women's rowing team are ringing the opening bell this morning. And they have got their gold and bling with them right around their necks.
And a deadly outbreak of the West Nile virus kills 28 people in the U.S. Sixteen deaths are in Texas. We'll take a look at this map of the lower 48. The states in red show West Nile activity. Mosquitoes carry the disease, which can be as mild as flu-like symptoms or can cause a fatal swelling of the brain.
Well, the jackpot of $320 million has Powerball fever in the air and it's growing, 42 states plus D.C. participate in the lottery. The drawing is tonight.
For his part, Vice President Joe Biden is probably hoping today's trip on the campaign trail will be a bit smoother after creating quite the firestorm with these comments.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOE BIDEN, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: He said in the first 100 days, he's going to let the big banks once again write their own rules. Unchain Wall Street. They're going to put y'all back in chains.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: Biden was speaking before an audience in Virginia that included African-Americans. And that prompted outrage from some conservatives who say the vice president's remarks were a reference to slavery.
But Biden pushed back, saying he was merely echoing a line used by top Republicans, including newly announced vice presidential candidate Paul Ryan.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BIDEN: Here is what Congressman Ryan said. He said -- we believe a renewed commitment to limited government will unshackle our economy. The speaker of the House said -- used the word "unshackle" as well referring to their proposals.
The last time these guys unshackled the economy, to use their term, they put the middle class in shackles. That's how we got where we are.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: And this latest war of words may suggest the race for the White House is quickly becoming a race to the political bottom.
Joining us right now, CNN political director Mark Preston.
So, Mark, as I mentioned, Republicans are seizing on Biden's remarks, with Mitt Romney tying those remarks to these opponent's overall campaign.
MARK PRESTON, CNN POLITICAL DIRECTOR: Yes. And, you know, Mitt Romney just did this just a short time ago in an interview on CBS. He was asked specifically about what was going on, Fredricka, here, and about this campaign, and he said that President Obama is running a campaign of division and hatred. I mean, those are very, very strong words.
And it's not something we'd expect to see, Fred, now. Perhaps we would see this in the last couple of weeks leading into November. But to see it this early is certainly a red light that this is getting to become very nasty.
WHITFIELD: In fact, Romney's words, quote, "that it was angry and desperate -- an angry and desperate campaign." Let's listen to what Mitt Romney had to say.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MITT ROMNEY (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Another outrageous charge just came a few hours ago in Virginia, and the White House sinks a little bit lower. His campaign and his surrogates have made wild and reckless allegations that disgrace the office of the presidency.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: So when Paul Ryan came onboard this past weekend, everyone was saying this is now a campaign about issues. It seems like it will have clear focus. Instead, the Romney team accusing the Obama camp of hate, while the Obama team not only backs up what Biden had to say but calls Romney, quote, "unhinged".
So is it starting to alienate voters on both sides? Are people, you know, who were already frustrated with the system feeling even much more so frustrated and turned off?
PRESTON: You know, Fred, I think a lot of people are still in the summer mode at this point, and they are focusing their time with their kids and at the beach or what-have-you. The ones that are zeroing in on it, though, I think are going to be disgusted.
The fact of the matter is, the economy is in shambles at this point. And this campaign is supposed to be about big ideas, whether you agree with Mitt Romney or whether you agree with President Obama.
But when it starts to get this nasty, and really this acidic this early, and they are not talking about how to fix America, how to fix the economy, I think you'll see a huge backlash from voters especially heading into the fall.
WHITFIELD: You have to wonder if they are testing the grounds. I mean, this is what President Obama had to say about Romney's dog. The dog keeps coming back on the rooftop, but in this way.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Governor Romney explained his energy policy this way. You can't drive a car with a windmill on it. That's what he said about wind power.
Now I know he's tried some other things on top of a car. I didn't know he had tried windmills on top of the car.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: So he talks about trying things on top of the car. You know, is this, you know, White House or is the Romney campaign kind of trying to see how far they can push the envelope?
PRESTON: You know, I think that's an interesting point to make right now, Fred, because we might be seeing some trial balloons being floated certainly by the Romney campaign to really take the attack directly at Obama by saying that his campaign is about hatred, a very explosive word to use.
The question is, if they think it will stick right now, will they continue that theme heading into November? The fact is that while Obama's approval rating is below 50 percent for his job, he is still well liked. If the Romney campaign can chip away at him personally that can only help them in November. Same thing with President Obama right there, trying to chip away at Mitt Romney.
WHITFIELD: All right. Mark Preston, thank you so much from Washington.
On this week's "NEXT LIST", meet a guy whose enthusiasm for ukulele is infectious. He has redesigned the instrument and made it more popular than ever.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The ukulele, you don't feel like you need hours and hours of practice. You can just pick it up for the first time take your finger and do this.
And just have fun with it. It just feels good. Everything feels right.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: Using scandal to reshape his reputation. Robert Pattinson has a new film coming out, but his break-up with former "Twilight" co-star Kristen Stewart seems to be stealing the spotlight everywhere he goes.
Nischelle Turner is joining us now from Los Angeles, with more details on this -- Nischelle.
NISCHELLE TURNER, CNN ENTERTAINMENT CORRESPONDENT: Hey. Yes, you know, he's out promoting his new movie. It's all a small movie called "Cosmopolitan."
It's with more on this. You know, he is out promoting his new movie called "Cosmopolis." It's directed by David Cronenberg. You know, if that's all that was going on, we wouldn't be talking about it this morning.
We got a chance to speak with Robert Pattinson and the director, and asked what everybody wants to know, how is he doing after his high profile relationship troubles? He said he is doing fine, and he advised everyone to more or less just ignore all the tabloid stories about him. Here's what he said.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERT PATTISON: I mean, you know, since the first "Twilight," you enter this kind of realm where everything is -- you know, you get stuff reported about you. And it's weird.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's very abstract film. It doesn't really have a lot to do with personal reality.
PATTISON: He's having total disassociation.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: People think they know what is going on, and they don't really know what's going on.
PATTISON: Let's hope that loads of people just make it up anyway. It doesn't make any difference.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's true.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
TURNER: Now, you know, I'm no body language expert, but it seemed a little awkward, a little nervous.
(CROSSTALK)
WHITFIELD: I'm with you on that one. He is like, I don't really want to talk about this. Can we move on? Can we talk about the "Cosmopolis", please?
TURNER: And we can. As a matter of fact, I think he was kind of like, can we talk about the movie? Let's drink some water here.
You know, he's been on the media blitz for this movie. He's been everywhere. I don't know if you see, he rang the opening bell. He had ice cream with Jon Stewart.
And today he did his first live post scandal interview. So you can't accuse him of hiding out, though. That's for sure, Fred.
WHITFIELD: I know. Well, you know, it is kind of awkward. Nobody wants to talk about their stuff out there in the open, even if you are a public person.
TURNER: Exactly.
WHITFIELD: Anyway, so fans are now just days away from the last movie that Whitney Houston was in. "Sparkle." are there any reviews? What are people buzzing about?
TURNER: There's a lot of buzz, Fred. You know, the movie opens on Friday. This movie is a cult classic. It originally starred Irene Cara, one of my favorite movies. It was supposed to be a big comeback for Whitney. She fought for years to remake the movie.
And now just what would have been a week after her 49th birthday, six months and one week after she died, "Sparkle" is going to hit theaters and it's expected to do well at the box office, you know? And its release has a lot of people remembering her, because she is featured prominently in the trailer. And we're going to be hearing a lot about her in the near future.
In fact, today, her family is going to open an exhibit at the Grammy Museum here in L.A. and it's going to have a lot of her memorabilia. A greatest hits album coming in the fall, and a reality series that her family is going to do, and her mom did do that book thing.
WHITFIELD: Wow.
TURNER: So, a lot of things coming up. Yes. We'll be hearing a lot, but we'll see her on the big screen on Friday, and that's going to be a big deal for a lot of people.
WHITFIELD: Yes. It really is. And I would imagine that display of memorabilia will be bittersweet for the family too.
TURNER: Yes, absolutely.
WHITFIELD: Nischelle, thanks so much. We're going to see you again in the next hour with more showbiz headlines.
The truce between Lady Gaga and PETA seems to have been broken. Next hour, we'll tell you what's behind their newest controversy.
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WHITFIELD: A look at our top stories now.
Twenty-eight thousand acres scorched in Washington state. At least 60 homes destroyed, and the western wildfire situation is getting worse. More than a dozen new fires have been reported. And in Idaho, a 20-year-old firefighter was killed by a falling tree.
And we're expecting results from Tuesday's military test flight of the Waverider, launched from a B-52 bomber. The hypersonic aircraft is designed to fly at more than 4,500 miles-per-hour, or six times the speed of sound. That's fast enough to fly from London to New York in an hour. And in Colorado, a horrifying car crash caught on camera. That's it right there. Incredibly, the driver and the passenger survived with just minor injuries. This happened during the Pikes Peak International Climb. It's a race to the summit. And has strict safety requirements for cars including roll cages and --
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WHITFIELD: A new and dramatic security breach today in the heart of Syria's capital. A bomb attached to a diesel tanker exploded near a Damascus hotel. The hotel houses U.N. Monitors as the civil war in Syria rages on.
CNN's Nick Paton Walsh is monitoring events from Beirut. So Nick, you know do we have any claim of responsibility for this latest blast?
NICK PATON WALSH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The Free Syrian Army, the rebels, say that they were behind this attack. They say at 8:00 o'clock in the morning they meant to hit a defense ministry building where officials were meeting, but this blast went off incredibly closely to the hotel where United Nations monitors stay. I spoke to one U.N. official who said actually it appears to back onto the room window where she normally stays.
But no U.N. personnel were harmed and the FSA saying that the U.N. were by no means their target and were pretty far away from where this device exploded. But really right in the heart of what's supposed to be the regime's safe sanctuary. And I'm sure it reminds many regime officials of a month ago how four senior officials were killed in the blast inside the national security industry. Those visions of black smoke again pouring out in the very center of Damascus.
And further reports today of other attacks in the capital from the opposition Syrian observatory for human rights who say there have been clashes around different provinces in the capital and claim they have been using rocket-propelled grenades on the Iranian embassy's new building and the prime minister's office. Claims that are hard to confirm, although other reporters in the capital have said they've heard further explosions this afternoon -- Fred.
WHITFIELD: All right, thanks so much. Nick Paton Walsh I appreciate that from Beirut.
A crisis in America now and I'm not talking about unemployment. Millions are at risk of losing their homes and now one senator has a plan to help more of them avoid foreclosure. Hear his idea in the next hour of the CNN NEWSROOM.
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WHITFIELD: All right.
Many people are now looking at Republican vice presidential candidate Paul Ryan and his position on key political issues. Others have a completely different interest in Ryan.
Our Jeanne Moos explains.
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JEANNE MOOS, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): We don't have to look hard to find an Olympic swimmer soaking in a tub in a Speedo to sell Louis Vuitton designer bags or to find Tim Tebow wearing only the skin tight bottom half of his uniform in September's GQ.
But when it comes to VP hottie Paul Ryan, he's hiding a six pack and a lot of people are looking for it, searching "Paul Ryan shirtless" on Google. At one point it was the second most popular term folks were searching under his name though it's since dropped to fourth.
JIMMY KIMMEL, TALK SHOW HOST: This is why I love America. The man is nominated to potentially lead our country and one of our first thoughts is "I wonder what his nipples look like."
MOOS (on camera): Yes, yes. Of course, we should be concentrating on weightier matters but everybody's heard by now that Congressman Ryan is a devoted follower of an exercise program that sounds like a secret weapon.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Order a P90X now. The sooner you go extreme, the sooner you'll look extraordinary.
MOOS (voice-over): But it's hard to tell how extraordinary Paul Ryan looks in that bulky jacket. He told Politico --
PAUL RYAN (R-WI), VICE PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I keep my body fat between 6 percent and 8 percent.
MOOS: But your chance of seeing that lack of body fat is about zero percent. This sleeveless photo of Ryan with his exercise guru is about as shirtless as he gets. Even though TMZ billed its photo gallery at absclusive, all it was, was photos of Ryan fully dressed.
(on camera): One Web site didn't just scour the Internet. It begged readers for help finding shirtless photos.
(voice-over): Better yet if you have your own, send those in. But so far nada.
Better not end up like former Congressman Anthony Weiner, having your chest analyzed.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And it's a shaved chest.
MOOS: Or even banished by Barbara Walters.
BARBARA WALTERS, CO-HOST, "THE VIEW": Take that off please.
(voice-over): Forget Vladimir Putin or Senator Scott Brown, Paul Ryan is the pin-up no one can pin down. So some are resorting to fake Facebook pages and photoshopped images but in reality instead of shirtless, it's all shirts.
STEPHEN COLBERT, COMEDIAN: Wearing plaid shirts together, wearing white shirts, wearing blue shirts, and here they are wearing Lycra.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What's everybody looking at?
MOOS: These days the last thing you want is a chest so overexposed it's recognizable even without your head.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The Weinergate man.
MOOS: Jeanne Moos, New York.
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WHITFIELD: All right. The next hour of the CNN NEWSROOM begins right after this.
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