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Campbell Brown
Pain Pills Easy Access; Haiti's Recovery; Record Breaking Snowstorm hits the Mid-Atlantic: Struggling to Dig Out; Northeast Blizzard; Iran Clamping Down; Bank Bonus Politics
Aired February 10, 2010 - 20:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
ANNOUNCER: CNN Primetime begins right now.
CAMPBELL BROWN, CNN ANCHOR: Hey there, everybody, we have breaking news tonight. Air travel screeching to a halt. Thousands of flights canceled at some of the nation's busiest airports as a monster blizzard pounds the east coast.
That tops the "Mash-Up." We are watching it all so you don't have to.
And this is not a good night to be in an airport on the east coast or to be in a car, frankly. Delta, United U.S. Airways, Continental America -- they've all scrapped well over 3,800 flights. The roads, as many of you have found out today, a total mess. And the storm is far from over.
Take a look at what's going on along the eastern seaboard.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Dulles and Reagan national airports are closed. Well over 1,000 flights, probably 1500 flights, across the country are canceled.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Our friends at the Weather Channel estimate before it's over it will impact 1 in 3 Americans, 107 million people in 25 states, including 10 of the 25 most populous states in the United States.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Further south, near Williamsburg, Virginia, zero visibility led to a 50-car pileup.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: In Pennsylvania, the governor ordered several interstates closed. Another concern, roof tops. The wet, heavy snow brings this roof top down overnight.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: This snowstorm swallowed half the eastern seaboard causing blizzard warnings as far south as Charlotte, North Carolina, and leading officials in Baltimore to order everyone but emergency crews to --
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Stay off the highways.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BROWN: So how bad is this going to get? Chad Myers is in the CNN Severe Weather Center for us tonight with more on all of this.
Hey, Chad.
CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Hi, Campbell. It is still snowing in New York City, all the way down even to Philadelphia. Snowing in Boston and the like, and this is what's going to be at least right here for the next I would say six hours, and then it scoots out to sea.
As you mentioned, flights. JFK actually still running fairly well. Thirty planes in the air out of JFK. Now that said, D.C.A., zero. IAD, Dulles, zero. BWI, Baltimore, zero. Philadelphia, nothing flying.
These are really the only planes flying on the east coast whatsoever right now. And JFK is taking care of the runways and moving it around.
Newark has four planes out of it and LaGuardia has three planes out of it right now. So airports across New York are not closed but they're not very open either.
Look at these all-time records. Dulles Airport for year 2009-2010 now has 72 inches of snow this winter. Philadelphia, 70. BWI, 70. These are all-time records since we've ever kept records across parts of the United States. This is the snowiest season ever. Campbell.
BROWN: All right, Chad Myers. And we should tell everybody you're looking at a live picture of New York City right now. I guess compared to some of our friends a little further south, we're not in such bad shape. The winter, already the snowiest on record in Baltimore, Washington and Wilmington, Delaware, and there are more than five weeks to go until spring, folks.
Iran under an information black out tonight. This is just hours before what could be a showdown in the streets of Tehran. Opposition leaders have called for massive anti-government demonstrations tomorrow on the 31st anniversary of the Islamic Revolution.
And residents of -- excuse me -- of Iran's capital say their main forms of communication, the Internet and social media, are now being blocked. Take a look.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
IVAN WATSON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: We've heard about phones being tapped. We've heard about Internet being shut on and off.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Further cutting communications, Iran said today it will permanently block Google's G-Mail service. But similar attempts to cut off Iran have been unsuccessful. With pictures and cell phone videos flooding the Internet.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That is video that was just uploaded to Facebook despite these blocks. And what it is it's a defiant cry of "Allahu Akbar". That is a sign of defiance against the Iranian government. RICK SANCHEZ, CNN ANCHOR: They're creating a blackout. And when you're creating a blackout, you don't want your citizens to be informed. That usually doesn't mean that you want them to trust you more. It means you don't trust them.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BROWN: We're going have a lot more on this coming up later in the hour including Christiane Amanpour who will be here with us on set.
Vice President Joe Biden giving a mixed review of Sarah Palin tonight. He says some of her comments are, quote, "sort of out there." But he likes her. He really likes her. At least that's what he told Larry King. Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LARRY KING, CNN ANCHOR: Sarah Palin.
JOE BIDEN, UNITED STATES VICE PRESIDENT: I like her.
KING: Wanted your job.
BIDEN: Yes -- you know, everybody --
KING: You like her?
BIDEN: I do. I like her. She's an engaging person. She's a great personality. I don't agree with what she says and I think some of the things she says are not -- well, I --
KING: What are you going to say?
BIDEN: Well, you know, it's sort of like -- some of the comments made are just so far -- sort of out there. I just don't know where they come from. But she -- if you met her, she's an engaging person. I understand why people like her.
KING: Do you fear her? In a sense, politically fear her?
BIDEN: No, I don't. Look, I have not done as much of the raw politics as I used to do when I was a senator. I mean, this job, I've been given big chunks assignments. Iraq, this, et cetera. So I'm not up to being able to give you the poll number. My sense is that Sarah appeals -- Governor Palin appeals to a group of people who are generally frustrated, feel disenfranchised, are -- very conservative. Not all of them. And --
KING: Tea party people.
BIDEN: Tea party people, but beyond that. She has appeal beyond that as well. But I don't know that it represents a -- anything approaching a significant portion of the population.
BROWN: The vice president also talked about jobs, health care, the war on terror. You can see the full interview tonight at 9:00 Eastern on "LARRY KING LIVE."
New York governor David Paterson in a tough spot tonight defending himself against allegations that may or may not be contained in an article that nobody has even seen yet. That's, yes, pretty much the story.
"The New York Times" is reportedly working on this profile of the governor and for weeks there have been rumors circulating that it will include allegations of womanizing and illegal drug use.
Rumors circulating to the point that Paterson felt he had to address them. He said he will not let the rumors drive him from office. And he insists he will run in November.
Listen to what he told Don Imus. This was this morning.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GOV. DAVID PATERSON (D), NEW YORK: I have been depicted in a way that has been racialized, sexualized, hyper sexualized and dissolute. And the reality is that it is hard to diminish this kind of uproar when it gets started. Especially when no one is talking about a source and no one is even investigating who the sources are. Because believe me there are enough entities that would certainly not be wishing me well this year.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BROWN: More to come on this story as well when Governor Paterson sits down with Larry King tomorrow night.
And birthday wishes go out to "GMA" anchor George Stephanopoulos. He turns 49 today. How do we know? Well, his wife, actress Ali Wentworth, made sure that we knew.
Take a look at the birthday surprise she gave him this morning on "GMA."
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JUJU CHANG, ABC NEWS: Now we've got another quick look at what's ahead on "World News Tonight" with Diane Sawyer.
ALI WENTWORTH, GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS' WIFE: Thank you, Juju. Tonight a closer look, Palin's palm. Is the writing on Sarah's hand speech cliff notes? Is it cheating? It is -- it is in high school. And are those math equations on politician snicker?
Oh honey, George, I never, ever get to see you at home. I love you. I shaved my legs and made you a steak. Happy birthday, baby! Happy birthday!
GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS, ABC NEWS ANCHOR: Wow, that is the effect of too many snow days with only the kids right there.
WENTWORTH: They made me keep my clothes on, honey. (LAUGHTER)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BROWN: Now if Ali Wentworth probably looks familiar to a lot of you, you may have seen her in movies, on stage, on TV including an appearance on "Seinfeld." She played Jerry's girlfriend, (INAUDIBLE), she was quite the comedian there. Many birthday wishes, good birthday wishes to George. Very enjoyable.
And that brings us to "The Punch Line" tonight which is courtesy of Jay Leno on his final primetime show. He couldn't resist having some fun with President Obama's handshake.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JAY LENO, HOST, "THE JAY LENO SHOW": Everybody knows President Obama, whether you agree with his -- probably the hippest president we've ever had. Whether you agree or disagree with his politics.
But watch how his level of hipness rubs off when he meets just an average businessman from Maryland. Watch. Watch when they shake hands.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Pictures of the president walking in here.
LENO: Watch when they shake hands.
(LAUGHTER)
LENO: You see, it's just -- it's just intuitive. It's just.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BROWN: Jay Leno, everybody. And that is the "Mash-Up" tonight.
When we come back, Iran on the brink. Thirty-one years after the Islamic Revolution. Huge protests expected.
Also coming up President Obama changing his tune on Wall Street's big bonuses. Apparently he thinks they're not so bad after all. We'll talk about that.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BROWN: Tonight, Iran may be on the verge of new violent clashes on the streets. Tomorrow marks the 31st anniversary of the Islamic uprising and the government already cracking down on e-mail, on other communication.
And CNN's Ivan Watson is at our Iran desk monitoring all the latest developments. And given the crackdown, Ivan, we've been hearing that on social media especially, tell us, are you able to get information out? We certainly haven't been able to get a correspondent in.
What do we know? WATSON: It's very difficult to get information out. Thursday is supposed to be a day when the government shows how much support it has out in the streets for the opposition. They swear they are going to try to infiltrate the state-sponsored crowds and show their opposition.
And they got an early start tonight. Take a listen to this cry of defiance from the rooftops in Tehran.
Campbell, that's the yell of "Allahu Akbar," God is great. We got that off of YouTube and Facebook. Somehow people were able to upload this material. That has been a consistent show of defiance against the Iranian government from opposition members.
They are in a very dangerous position because the government killed, executed, two opposition activists two weeks ago by hanging. Accusing them of being enemies of god. It just put another opposition protester on death row yesterday and it has arrested thousands of people, including dozens of journalists, and on top of that, Campbell, it has been cracking down on text services and on the Internet.
And we have heard from people on the ground in Iran that even G-Mail has been blocked. We talked to a Google spokesperson, he confirmed that Google traffic in Iran has dropped dramatically and it's not something that Google can control. Campbell?
BROWN: All right, Ivan Watson for us on that. Part of the story.
With me right now, Christiane Amanpour who's of course our international correspondent and host of CNN's "AMANPOUR".
Christiane, based on what Ivan just told us, this crackdown on social media, the arrests, the executions of protesters who have been arrested earlier, clearly they are trying to deter the opposition, but can they?
CHRISTIANE AMANPOUR, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Look, this has been going on since the elections. Everybody expected the demonstrations, the protests to sort of melt away in face of the crackdowns. But they haven't. And what the government is going to find is that each and every one of these religious holidays, which in yesteryear and every year, they used to bring out support for the republic, for the revolution, is now being turned into a show of strength by both sides.
So the government will bring out and will bust out many, many of its supporters and the opposition, the Green Movement, will come out as hard as they can as well. The three main leaders, Mousavi, Karoubi, and Khatami, have called people out, but they have been very clear to say no violence.
Do not come out and show violence. Just come out and march for your rights. But don't be violent because we've seen that in previous demonstrations like the Ashura on the very holy day for the Shiites in December, it did it turn violent. The crackdown was even harsher. There were more and more people arrested. And so they're trying to make sure that it's not violent this time.
BROWN: You spoke earlier -- today, I believe, with the -- a former Iranian diplomat who actually resigned because of the way that these protesters have been treated.
AMANPOUR: That's right.
BROWN: And what else is he telling you? What was his sense?
AMANPOUR: Well, what's really interesting is that there are real cracks all over the system. It's in the government, it's in the parliament. It's within the foreign ministry and the ministries. It's within the sort of hard-lined -- even within the hard-lined bastions. Within the Revolutionary Guard, for instance.
Some estimate that about 80 percent of the Revolutionary Guards' rank and file may have voted reform during the last election. So all this to say that this consul-general in Oslo, Norway resigned after the Ashura crackdown in December.
And he said he wanted to do that because he was, in any event, extremely concerned about the reaction to the election. And extremely concerned obviously after what happened in reaction to the Ashura crackdown.
So he said many, many of his colleagues are feeling the same way. He said he described a sort of division now within the diplomatic missions all over the world, in many parts of the world, in Europe and elsewhere. Because there are diplomats there and also intelligence people there.
So there are real sort of philosophical standoffs between all of those people and all of these different embassies and he says he believes more will resign if there's violence on the anniversary of the revolution tomorrow.
BROWN: Talk to us a little bit about U.S. influence or lack of influence. Probably. I mean what can the administration really do beyond what they've already done which is condemn any crackdown on protesters? You take a big picture there in the process of trying building international support for sanctions. But diplomatically there's not a lot in terms of options.
AMANPOUR: Well, not a huge number. I mean obviously they keep talking about sanctions. They are also trying to rally their allies and also the Russians and the Chinese to do something tougher.
They have already announced today certain sanctions against certain companies and a general connected to the Revolutionary Guard. Companies that are owned by the Revolutionary Guards. So they've already announced that.
That in addition to previous sanctions that they had put on the Revolutionary Guard. Certain business concerns of theirs. They are looking to see whether they can get China and Russia to support them in the Security Council. It's not at all clear. And at the same time, obviously, wanting to -- trying to figure out how the street protests play in to the eternal shadow-boxing over the nuclear program. And there is no great answer to that. And what's happening, though, on the streets is you see the division between the leadership of the reform movement, who are not calling for violence and an overturn of the system.
They're calling for reform and democratic rights. Whereas some of the younger, the foot soldiers in the reform movement, are calling for much more dramatic change. So all of these things combining, it makes it very difficult for the west to how precisely how to respond.
BROWN: And we'll see how all this plays out. Of course tomorrow. Christiane Amanpour, thanks, Christiane. Appreciate it.
When we come back, we'll talk a little bit about what President Obama is saying. Fat cat Wall Street bankers, it is what he had once called them. Well now he is calling them something else. More on that when we come back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BROWN: President Obama's latest comments on Wall Street bonuses have some people asking, whose side is he on?
In an interview with Bloomberg's "Business Week" the president was asked about the top executives of Wall Street firms Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan Chase getting bonuses of $9 million and $17 million respectively.
The president answered, quote, "I know both those guys. They're very savvy businessmen and I, like most of the American people, don't begrudge people's success or wealth. That's part of the free market system. I do think that the compensation packages that we've seen over the last decade at least have not matched up always to performance."
A change of heart perhaps on the president's part because this is what he said to "60 Minutes" in December.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I did not run for office to be helping out a bunch of, you know, fat cat bankers on Wall Street. The only ones that are going to be paying out these fat bonuses are the ones that have now paid back that TARP money.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BROWN: And here he is just a couple of weeks ago.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
OBAMA: So, if these folks want a fight, it's a fight I'm ready to have. And my resolve is only strengthened when I see a return to old practices in some of the very firms fighting reform. When I see soaring profits and obscene bonuses at some of the very firms claiming that they can't lend more to small businesses, they can't keep credit card rates low, they can't pay a fee to refund taxpayers for the bailout without passing on the coast to shareholders and customers.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BROWN: Joining me now is Eamon Javers, who covers the White House and the economy for "Politico." He is also the author, we should mention, of a new fascinating book, "Broker, Trader, Lawyer, Spy: The Secret World of Corporate Espionage."
Also with us is CNN senior political analyst, David Gergen.
David, just a few weeks ago, Wall Street bankers were fat cats, giving obscene bonuses, and now they're savvy businessmen. I got a little bit of whiplash with those comments. What about you?
(LAUGHTER)
DAVID GERGEN, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: Well, the White House was aggressive today, Campbell, in making -- in pointing out that on several occasions the president has also said he does not begrudge people and their successes and private enterprise system, and they said he was just echoing that.
But I think the incident a fairly small beer (ph). But I do think it underscores two points. The reaction to it. One is, people see in this the larger -- a larger story of President Obama not being very clear, not sending clear signals on a number of issues, say, the public option and health care reform. And that has really rattled and disappointed a lot of people on the left.
And secondly, there is now in this -- hyper charged environment there is almost -- he is almost on hair-trigger in this presidency. So whatever he does gets subjected to a real pounding from the left or the right and sometimes both.
And in this case, this incident brought howls from the left. I mean, Paul Krugman, the liberal columnist, Nobel Prize winner for "The New York Times," you know, argued today that the president was clueless if he really thought that this -- he took the position he did.
He also said that, you know, we're basically finished in our economy. It's all over if this is the president's real approach. So, you know, I think the president has -- I don't think it was very much but it's so clear he cannot afford to say things like that that seem to contradict and leave him in a position where he's as vulnerable as he is politically.
BROWN: Well, I -- you mentioned Paul Krugman today and so I want to pick up on that, Eamon, because let me just be clear about what the president said that got Krugman pretty upset.
Comparing the big wigs to highly paid professional athletes. He said, and this is a direct quote, "Seventeen million is an extraordinary amount of money. Of course there are some baseball players who are making more than that who don't get to the World Series either."
And in response to that, economist Paul Krugman wrote in his "New York Times" blog. His own quote here, "Oh, my god. First of all to my knowledge, irresponsible behavior by baseball players hasn't brought the world economy to the brink of collapse and cost millions of innocent Americans their jobs and/or houses."
So probably not the best analogy there.
EAMON JAVERS, POLITICO CORRESPONDENT: Yes. There are two real problems here for Barack Obama with the statement. One is what David was just talking about which is the mixed message problem. And you know, when you're out there talking about obscene bonuses and then you say but in the case of these two guys who I know, it's totally justified, it just confuses the electorate a little bit.
The other one, I think, is a little bit more subtle which is that, you know, he sounded a little bit defensive to me in making the statement. And it's interesting that he almost felt as if he had to say that he feels like the American dream is there for everybody. He still wants people to get rich. He doesn't begrudge anybody their success.
The fact that a president has to say that he doesn't begrudge success in this country is a real defensive signal from the White House. Maybe an unintended defensive signal, but it's an awkward position for him to be in.
BROWN: Let me just -- David, I'm going to let you respond to that but I just want to also be clear about the White House response. David, you touched on it. But just to give them their due on this point, they did say very clearly today that he doesn't -- you know, that the president has always said, as you pointed out, he doesn't disparage wealth or begrudge people's success.
You know, and that the comments, in their view, were taken out of context. I thought we were pretty clear in showing pretty much all of the comments he made. But I guess to me that sounds a little bit like spin.
GERGEN: Well, of course it's spin.
BROWN: A little?
GERGEN: But hey, Campbell, it's the best defense they've got. You know? So of course they're going push that point. But I -- you know, I think there's also another element here. And that is of the two gentlemen in question, Jamie Dimon and Lloyd Blankfein, both have, you know, taken substantial cuts in what their bonuses might have been.
He just had Jamie Dimon in for dinner recently. Jamie Dimon is seen -- has really one of the people on Wall Street who's acted very responsibly in terms of leadership over the last couple of years. So I'm sure the president softened because -- and partly because of the people in question.
BROWN: All right, David, let me stop you there. This doesn't have anything to do with that recent "New York Times" piece that said Wall Street is now shifting all of its money to Republicans as opposed to Democrats. Am I being way too cynical to suggest that?
GERGEN: I think that's a little cynical.
(LAUGHTER)
GERGEN: I -- I do think that the White House has been stung because there are a lot of people on Wall Street who think it's way too hostile and has gone after people like Jamie Dimon when they shouldn't have. Blankfein, when they shouldn't have. You know so there is that also that in the mix, Campbell.
But I -- you know, the truth is, the president has got to find -- (INAUDIBLE). President has got to find a consistent message to send mixed signals on an issue this sensitive only gets him to trouble.
BROWN: Eamon?
JAVERS: Yes, well, and clearly for the president, he's struggling to channel the popular outrage that's out there about all these bonuses, all the bailouts. All that stuff makes voters really angry. But at the same time, he's caught because he wants Wall Street to succeed.
He needs the economy to come back. He needs it to come back by November which is going to be a long shot. So he wants to encourage American business, American finance, to bounce back. So he's caught the twist in between the politics and the economics and he ends up with this mixed message thing. It's not really a pretty spot for him right now.
BROWN: Thank you very much. "Politico's" Eamon Javers and our own David Gergen. As always, thanks. Appreciate it.
GERGEN: Thank you.
BROWN: When we come back, we have a special investigation to share with you tonight. We're going to take you to one part of Florida where some doctors are handing out highly addictive pain killers like candy. And it is fueling drug abuse across the country. That when we come back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BROWN: Prescription drug abuse is one of the fastest growing problems in America. The numbers are just staggering. One in five adults and teenagers has abused them, one in five. The pills are regulated by federal and state law. In some places, they're nearly impossible to obtain legally regulate. But not in Florida, where hundreds of largely unregulated pain management clinics are supplying users from all over America.
We sent independent journalist Amber Lyon to investigate. We should warn you, some of the images you're going to see here may be disturbing to some people.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
AMBER LYON, INDEPENDENT JOURNALIST: It looks like you have a lot of --
J.B., PAIN PILL ADDICT: Track marks.
LYON: Yes.
J.B.: They are track marks.
LYON: What about when people say that these pills are being swallowed and they're not being abused. What would you say to that?
J.B.: I say that's (expletive deleted). I have done 19 in one day at one time. I've done (INAUDIBLE). I've done roxies (ph).
LYON: OK, that's the roxi, 30 Roxicodone.
J.B.: Roxicodone 30 milligram. You hold a needle. I put water. I pour water on it. And you push down. Don't waste anything.
LYON: Where does everyone get these roxies (ph) from?
J.B.: People who either go to pain management doctors and sell their scripts, or people who buy from people who go to pain management doctors.
LYON (voice-over): People as young as middle school aged are taking OxyContin, Roxicodone, Xanax. They're crushing them, snorting them, injecting them, just like cocaine or heroin.
(on camera): We decided to shoot the story in South Florida because this is the pain clinic capital of America.
(voice-over): It's about 5:00 in the morning on a Sunday. We've been driving up and down the streets of Broward County looking for pill users, and we found Amber just kind of hanging out in front of McDonald's and we asked her if she was using pills and unfortunately, the answer is yes.
(on camera): When did you did start using pills?
AMBER, 19-YEAR-OLD ADDICT: 14. 13, 14.
LYON: You look so young. What kind of pills were you taking?
AMBER: Roxies, Xanax. One time when I was like 13, when I was in school, this girl had sold me a whole bunch, a whole bunch of Xanax bars for $20. I took them all in school and I almost died.
LYON: Amber, how are you getting these pills?
AMBER: They're cheap. People get them prescribed to them and then they just hand them out for $2 or $3.
LYON: And why did you pick to just kind of sit here in this McDonald's?
AMBER: Because this is where I panhandle. It's pathetic, right?
LYON: Pill users from not only Florida but all over the East Coast drive down here to get their meds. And just to see how bad the problem is, all you need to do is pick up a copy of the local newspaper, flip it over and you'll find 14 pages of pain clinic ads. There are hundreds of them in Broward, in Palm Beach counties. So what I'm going to do is pick three of these clinics, check myself in as a patient just to see what the heck is going on.
First thing you notice is the amount of security out there. There's a guy driving around in a golf cart monitoring everyone who comes in. The best way to describe them is they look just like DMVs, rows and rows of chairs. People are coming in and out, and some people only spent three minutes in the clinic and they already have a prescription in hand which they fill at the in-house pharmacy. I headed out to the smoking area, where a lot of these patients hang out.
One guy from Kentucky gave me his cell phone number and then told me he could get rid of my pills, if you know what I mean.
PATIENT: If you make it to Kentucky, I'll get rid of everything you got.
LYON: You what?
PATIENT: If you make it to Kentucky, I'll get rid of everything you got.
LYON: Everything I got? How much do pills go for in Kentucky?
PATIENT: $25 a piece.
LYON: $25 a piece.
We are out in front of one of the clinics in Broward County. The outside is covered in mirrors. It doesn't even have a sign on the front with a name, and you can see there's a line of people waiting to get in.
They told me I'd have to pay 350 bucks just to see a doctor. With the volume of patients, some of these clinics are pulling in hundreds of thousands of dollars a day.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You know, I was telling my friends, I was like, these are five legal dope houses. It's outrageous, but all these doctors are doing it. It's really the doctors that are doing it because they want easy the money.
LYON: What kind of pills do you get?
PATIENT: Just pain medication.
LYON: Like OxyContin, Roxicodone.
PATIENT: Yes.
LYON: What kind?
PATIENT: Just Lortabs.
LYON: Lortabs.
There's guys walking around with big black shirts that say staff on the front. You almost feel like you're entering a night club.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: To me it's really odd.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, this is crazy.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is crazy as hell. I mean, you go to the doctor here. You get your medicine here and you leave. It seems to me like there ought to be more regulation on it.
LYON: We're here in a parking lot in one of these pain clinics and more in West Palm Beach, Florida. But you kind of feel like you're in Appalachia. Because look at these license plates, we got Virginia right there. Over here, Tennessee. Next to that, we have Kentucky. Almost every car in this lot is not from the state of Florida.
CLINIC WORKER: Get out of here. Get out of here.
LYON: Ma'm, we just want to know why all of these people have to drive thousands of miles to see your doctors.
CLINIC WORKER: I'm going to call the cops on you.
LYON: What are your doctors doing for all these people that they have to drive thousands of miles to see them?
CLINIC WORKER: Leave me (expletive deleted) alone.
LYON: We are entering the OxyContin pipeline. I-75 goes from South Florida all the way up to Appalachia, and pill runners go back and forth on this highway all the time because an 80 milligram OxyContin might sell for about 20 bucks on the streets on Florida. But up in places like Kentucky, Tennessee, that same pill will get these guys $120.
This is Amber with CNN. We're here to see Sheriff Jim.
SHERIFF JIM HAMMOND, DAUGHTER DIED: Sundi was 32. Her name is Sundi, and she was a sunshine to us. You know, just smiling and happy and even her friends will tell you, you know, the thing that drove them to her all the time. She was always happy.
I actually received the call about 2:00 in the morning and I went to the place she had died. Tragic for us certainly personally. Tragic that she left a 13-year-old son who absolutely adored his mother.
You know, it was a kind of cut and dry case. It's another young person who's in her early 30s who recently lost her life is what it amounted to. Not a day doesn't go by I don't think of her. That's just being a grieving parent, I guess. Don't get me crying.
LYON: This is Hank here, and this is Mike over here with Yasko (ph). And they're part of the K-9 unit in Hamilton County. And we're going to head out with these guys tonight.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: These are certified Oxycodones, OxyContin, Roxies, (INAUDIBLE) Lortabs,
LYON: Right now, we're just patrolling up and down I-75. We are going about 90 miles an hour right now.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This was the one where the pharmacist called. When we walked into Wal-Mart and questioned them, they scattered. So --
LYON: I guess that's a sign that's something is up.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes. They went 30 miles out of their way to go to a pharmacy.
LYON: So if they had gotten it filled, they could have gotten $7,200.
Plantation, Florida, Roxicodone. We've got Xanax out of Plantation, Florida, again. And this one is out of Boca Raton, and we got Roxicodone there 30 milligrams.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They admitted that they go down to Florida. They spend anywhere from $600 to $1,600 to go see these doctors and they'll just prescribe them whatever they want.
LYON: And then you guys have to kind of clean up the mess up here.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We catch them as they come through, or the ones that come back to Tennessee. But these particular ones were just coming through going back to Kentucky. Small world.
LYON: Has your mom seen your arm?
J.B.: Yes.
LYON: What does she say to that?
J.B.: It makes her -- she's heartbroken about it. I want to stop. I want to get off the street. I don't like this life. It's ridiculous. It's dangerous.
LYON: So you just kind of roam the streets at night just walking all around here?
AMBER: Well, at nighttime usually I go to sleep at a church or something. But right now, I'm in a kind of a black hole. I don't really know what I want with my life.
LYON: Do you feel like you're living right now?
AMBER: Hardly. I'm telling you the truth. LYON: I know.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BROWN: Amber Lyon is joining us right now from Miami. And, Amber, it's unbelievable what's happening right out in the open. Is anything being done to crack down on these clinics?
LYON: Well, Campbell, this is a problem that has been going on here in the state of Florida, which is even more disturbing for almost 10 years now. And the government here has been very, very slow to act, to do anything about this compared to other states. So you've seen these clinics, you saw that street, they're just pain clinic after pain clinic after pain clinic down here. But in the government's favor, though, last year they did pass a new prescription drug monitoring bill which is going to create a computerized monitoring system to monitor the sales of prescription drugs.
However, I did talk to some critics today. They say this new law just doesn't have any teeth. It's not going to shut down any of these clinics. And get this, Campbell, felons can open up these pain clinics and they'll still be able to after this new law goes into effect.
BROWN: Wow, it is really unbelievable. Amber Lyon for us tonight. Amber, thank you so much.
And when we come back, the effort to help Haiti. What it is like right now for those who are on the front lines. We'll talk about that.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BROWN: In Haiti, with 212,000 believed dead, the work now is recovering the deceased. And my colleague, Anderson Cooper, is in Port-au-Prince.
And, Anderson, talk to us a little bit about this incredible recovery work that you have been observing on the ground.
ANDERSON COOPER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, you know, the truth of it is that there's really not recovery work taking place. And when we think of recovery work, we think of sort of carefully extracting bodies from wreckage. That's not really going on here. I mean, it's been going on in small ways. Individuals and family members trying to do that as we've been seeing over the last couple of weeks. But it's really now government backhoes and bulldozers coming in and just tearing down what remains of these buildings. And the sad truth is it means all those people who are buried inside and crushed inside are just being thrown out along with the rubble and the debris.
There are people, individuals trying to make a difference and trying to pull out the remains of loved ones and even of complete strangers before the backhoes come. But it is a race against the clock. And it is a thankless job and it is a brutal job, but it's one you see occurring on every street all throughout the city of Port-au-Prince, Campbell.
BROWN: And, Anderson, you've been in Haiti since the beginning. I mean, from what you've witnessed, do you think that it's improved? That recovery efforts have gotten better?
COOPER: Well, I mean -- you know, technically, of course, things have gotten better. I mean, it's been nearly a month now. If things hadn't gotten better, it would be, you know, it would be criminal. But -- so, yes, technically things have gotten better.
I always hesitate to say that, though, because to say things have gotten better implies that things are OK here and things are normal here and it's not. It's not normal and it's not OK. What is happening to, you know, the nearly half a million patients who are homeless tonight and their daily struggle to live and to get food for their families and to get water and to live with dignity is a daily struggle. And it's not normal and it is something which is worth bearing witness to and worth remembering as we think about things getting better here.
BROWN: Anderson Cooper for us tonight from Port-au-Prince. Anderson, thanks so much.
Washington is snowed under tonight as you may have heard by now. But what do people do when the federal government, the airports, the roads do get shut down? You're going to see when we come back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BROWN: Here in New York and across the northeast, we've been watching the blizzard that just keeps dumping more and more snow. We're going to head back outside in a few minutes. But first, more must-see news happening right now. Mike Galanos, host of Prime News on our sister network HLN here with tonight's "Download."
Hey, Mike.
MIKE GALANOS, HLN PRIME NEWS: Hey, Campbell. First off, Iraq is throwing all former Blackwater employees out of the country. Now the private security firm no longer does business in Iraq, but 250 contractors who used to work with Blackwater are still there. They have one week to get out. Iraqis, they're outraged over a U.S. judge's recent dismissal of manslaughter charges against five former Blackwater guars involved in the 2007 Baghdad shooting incident.
This video is pretty disturbing. It's in Seattle, teenage girl beaten. And this while security guards looked on and really did nothing to stop it. Cameras show a group following this 15-year-old girl. She gets pushed and punched onto the tracks there of the bus lanes. Just right in front of the guards, as we watched this. One attacker shoves the girl. She gets punched, kicked in the head 10 times.
Let's say this. She's going to be OK. Cuts and bruises. Now the guards didn't get involved because their contract requires them only to observe and report. Obviously officials are now reviewing that policy.
And finally this one. A spokeswoman for John Edwards is denying a report that Edwards is engaged to his mistress, Rielle Hunter. The "National Enquirer" reports Edwards proposed to Hunter last month after admitting he was the father of their child. It's worth noting the "Enquirer" broke the initial story of Edwards' affair, and we also he and his wife Elizabeth have legally separated.
With that, back to you, Campbell.
BROWN: All right, Mike. Thanks so much.
Did you hear it is snowing? And while it looks pretty, there is definitely a dangerous side to this record-breaking snowfall. We're going to have more on this when we come back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BROWN: The blizzard of 2010 is breaking records along a huge swath of the East coast leaving millions of people struggling to dig out. Washington's police chief says it was hard to even see the capitol dome today through the snow. And federal workers were forced to stay home for a third straight day.
New York's LaGuardia airport actually did get some planes in and out today, despite conditions that were clearly pretty horrendous. Of all the cities and towns that are snowbound tonight, Washington does appear to be perhaps the hardest hit. And Kate Bolduan live for us on the National Mall in D.C. to give us a feel for what things are like down there.
Hey, Kate.
KATE BOLDUAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey, there, Campbell. And you definitely feel it down here on the National Mall. You can see and you know this view very well, Campbell, you can see the Washington monument in the distance behind me during the whiteout conditions that were happening earlier today. You could not see that at all.
And photo journalist Kris Turner (ph) will turn around and show you a very beautiful view of the Capitol dome. And you mentioned it, and it is no surprise, Campbell. Federal government shut down for the third day in a row, as well. What else what shut down? Airports, area airports, Washington, Reagan, as well as Washington, Dulles international airport, they were shut down today. They're hoping, planning to open back up at 7:00 in the morning. But a lot of this has to do if they can get the snow off the ground. And many people are talking, Campbell. They don't know where to put it at this point.
Let me show what we're talking about a little bit. You know I'm not this tall. We're on the top of a huge snow mount. Right here, a parking meter, that you can see just how high the snow drift is. Already this is the snowiest winter on record for Washington, D.C., as well as the suburbs.
At Dulles airport, 72 inches, they are now recording for the season. Here in Washington, D.C., at Washington Reagan, 54.9 inches. Those are astonishing, astonishing things.
But the problem that we've been experiencing and people across the Washington region have been experiencing with this latest onslaught of the snowstorm is the gusts of wind. The winds have been fierce throughout the day. Nearly 40 miles an hour and over in some places, and they're talking about possibly up to 50 miles an hour here in Washington, D.C., tonight. And that has meant a serious problem with power outages throughout the region. They're trying to get their hands on it.
But really, we joke about it all the time, Campbell. I know you probably have as well. It takes about three snowflakes to shut down Washington, D.C., when it really comes to it. But this time, it's some serious snow.
BROWN: Yes, no kidding. Looking at that parking meter, wow. Kate, better you than me.
BOLDUAN: I know.
BROWN: Have fun out there. We appreciate it.
BOLDUAN: Thank you.
BROWN: Kate Bolduan tonight.
"LARRY KING LIVE" starting in just a few minutes. But snow -- the good, the bad, and the ugly. Also, tonight's "Guilty Pleasure." That's next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BROWN: We've been reporting all night on a monster snowstorm and that means that intrepid reporters are pounding the pavement to bring you all of the snow coverage you can handle. But along the way, there have been a few blizzard bloopers and Jeanne Moos has the best of them in tonight's "Guilty Pleasure."
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's one of the key --
JEANNE MOOS, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): There's a blizzard all right. A blizzard of flakey reporters.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And the health care debate --
MOOS: Easy for the nice, warm anchors to laugh.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You and I are sitting on heaters.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh, I'm sitting on heaters.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What's the matter with you?
MOOS: It's not easy walking and talking, getting the cold shoulder. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And there are puddles wherever you go.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You're all over the place buddy.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Absolutely.
MOOS: Everyone's critiquing our outerwear.
KIRAN CHETRY, CNN ANCHOR: You need a hat, you poor thing.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Love the hat.
MOOS: At least we don't go out reporting in shorts.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Now, what is wrong with you?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I have been doing it for 25 years.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And you have icicles coming out of your nostrils.
MOOS: I say we don't report in shorts? Tim Russert's son, Luke, posted this Twit pic of himself on snow patrol. The macho thing to do is to keep reporting no matter what happens.
MAJOR GARRETT, FOX NEWS SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: I wrote one for our blogs. There we go. This is what we do on live television, folks, in the blizzard.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Oh, my gosh.
GARRETT: Stay there. We're fine.
MOOS: Whether it's a falling umbrella or a falling cameraman.
REYNOLDS WOLF, AMS METEOROLOGIST: UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Or it's not really now, but rather it is some black ice, which at times can be a very slippery thing, let me tell you.
MOOS: Might as well join the cameraman on the ice.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Is he OK?
WOLF: That's Tony.
MOOS: Just that like nothing has happened.
SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: It dipped to about 9.7 percent. But for African-Americans, it is more than 15 percent.
MOOS (on camera): In the name of in-depth storm coverage, we reporters will use anything to measure the depth of the snow.
(voice-over): This reporter climbed his own satellite truck to measure virgin snow.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh, seven inches of snow. MOOS: My ruler is bigger than your ruler.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Set to receive --
MOOS: Despite bragging about pictures being --
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: In high-definition.
MOOS: Try defining this.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: On the left, that's the shot we usually show you of the Capitol Hill dome. On the right, that would be the White House.
MOOS: The White House did clear. We noticed a secret serviceman jumping on top of it.
WOLF: Let's toss it back to you.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Well, Reynolds, you're making it look, oh, too easy.
MOOS: Reporters are a little like dogs, frolicking in the snow. But no one frolics quite like CNN's Reynolds Wolf, keeping warm between live shots.
Now there's a meteorologist who rules even without a ruler.
Jeanne Moos, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BROWN: And that's all for now. Thanks for joining us, everybody.
"LARRY KING LIVE" starts right now.
