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American Morning

Bonds Faces Fewer Charges; Fury in Cairo; Former Radio Talk Show Host Plans a Possible Bid for the GOP Presidential Nomination

Aired February 11, 2011 - 08:00   ET

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

KIRAN CHETRY, CNN ANCHOR: Mad before, enraged now. You're looking at the biggest day of protests that we've seen yet in Cairo. One opposition leader, O'BRIEN: hamed ElBaradei tweeting out this morning the entire nation is on the streets. Meantime, President Hosni Mubarak of Egypt is staying put and so are the people.

But Mubarak has at least one ally and strong one -- the military coming out this morning announcing their support for Hosni Mubarak to remain in office, so a gradual transition can take place -- on this AMERICAN MORNING.

(MUSIC)

CHETRY: And good morning to you.

A lot has been going on this morning. It is now 3:00 p.m. in Cairo and 8:00 in the morning here in New York on this February 11th. Thanks so much for being with us. I'm Kiran Chetry.

T.J. HOLMES, CNN ANCHOR: Hello to you all. I'm T.J. Holmes.

Take you right back now to Tahrir Square. Some of the biggest protests we have seen, and some of our correspondents saying these protesters may be as angry as we have seen them so far in these 18 days of protests.

CHETRY: Also, Egyptians waiting for resignation that never came. President Mubarak refuse to go step down, instead stepping aside in a way, transferring some powers to his handpicked vice president -- that's not enough for demonstrators.

As crowds grow, so the concerns about possible violence this morning as we're seeing an incredible shot from one of our cameras this morning, right over the balcony at Tahrir Square. And now, a wider shot, really a makeshift city that has emerged as protesters dig in for the long haul.

Frederik Pleitgen is live for us in Cairo this morning with the latest -- Frederik.

FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Kiran.

And we can really say that this morning, the crowds are absolutely massive. We pan around here and you can see that they have pretty much taking control of this entire part of downtown Cairo. If you pan down here, this is actually one of the busiest streets in all of Cairo, a major thoroughfare that is getting fuller and fuller. People are parking their cars, almost shutting down traffic. As you can see, there's a lot of coming to the demonstrators, but there's also people shuttling back and forth between demonstrations because you have the big one at Tahrir Square, which is right in front of us, and then you have a second major venue in front of the Information Ministry, which is drawing more and more people.

The Information Ministry, of course, one of the most despised institutions here in this country simply because people are not very fond of the government-controlled media here. Also, the other thing that we're hearing is more and more protesters are apparently already showing up at the presidential palace as well. That, of course, is quite a dicey situation there because that is guarded by some of the troops that are most loyal to President Hosni Mubarak. So, certainly, that's a place where tensions certainly could inflame.

And then, Tahrir Square, the men venue, is still drawing a lot of people. Again, as I said, this is one of the largest, if not the largest crowd that I've seen here since these events started and the people, as you said, very, very angry, not very fond at all of that speech that they heard by Hosni Mubarak. Yesterday, after the speech, they told me today was going to be a day of rage, a day that masses of people would come here to the Egyptian capital and certainly from what I'm seeing today, they seem to have made good on that promise, Kiran.

CHETRY: All right. Thanks so much, Frederik.

The shot that we have for you -- from you right now is very astounding. I mean, you can just see how it's grown even over the past two hours and how many people are out there. As we know, Friday prayers usually end right when we are gearing up to go on the air, and that is when we see more and more people out there and that's been the case again today.

Egyptian opposition leader Mohamed ElBaradei expressing his concerns about his country's future, tweeting, "Egypt will explode."

And ElBaradei just tweeted again this morning, following the military's decision to back Mubarak saying, "Entire nation is on the street. Only way out is for regime to go. People power can't be crushed. We shall prevail." And then the last telling line, "Still hope army can join."

Well, here's an idea of where all of these people are gathered right now. The numbers we're hearing are overwhelming. Protesters have spilled out into Cairo's Tahrir Square, and crowds also gathering at parliament.

Eyewitnesses as well tell us that 10,000 people are outside of the presidential palace, several miles from Tahrir Square. And that that number is growing quickly as well.

Witnesses also tell us about 30,000 demonstrators have surrounded the headquarters of the government in Suez, chanting Mubarak is a thief. The military is also set up at positions around the government compound there, creating a barrier between the compound and the protesters.

HOLMES: President Mubarak addressed this country and the rest of us last night. He remains in title the president of Egypt. So, what exactly has changed in the government?

Well, let's show you here. Mubarak said he would delegate power to his vice president, Omar Suleiman. He did not transfer the power to Suleiman. So, it's a little different. Delegating power means he can still get that power back.

As de facto president, Omar Suleiman now has oversight of police, interior ministry and other key agencies, has control over economic policies, running negotiations with the opposition as well.

Now, President Mubarak, he still has the power to take back all of his presidential powers. Also has the power to dismiss parliament, dismiss his government, as for amendments of the constitution. Also important to note, under the constitution, President Mubarak cannot give these powers to Suleiman without an actual transfer of power.

CHETRY: And as Egypt's Vice President Omar Suleiman emerges from the shadows, we are learning more about the man who is one of Mubarak's most trusted loyalists. He is running and he has run the country's intelligence services up to now and has handled most of the most sensitive dealings with Israel and the Palestinians. In fact, after 9/11, he became an ally of the Bush administration's counterterrorism programs. He's also been accused of torturing terror suspects. In fact, he reportedly offered al Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri's whole arm when the CIA asked Suleiman for a DNA sample.

HOLMES: Well, here at the U.S., the White House is pressuring President Mubarak to spill out exactly what he plans to do next.

Candy Crowley, our chief political correspondent and anchor of "STATE OF THE UNION" on Sunday mornings right here on CNN, joins us now.

Candy, good morning. Just how off-guard was the White House caught by all of this?

CANDY CROWLEY, CNN CHIEF POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Hey, look, I think that it is clear that they expected and they say, from media reports, not from secret documents or whispers they were getting from anywhere, that President Mubarak was going to resign. I think you saw the frustration or you heard the frustration in the president's written statement, saying you have to spell this out. The people are, you know, are confused as to what's going on. These have to be very clear steps.

There a lot of people, those around that are either informally advising the White House or via TV advising the White House, who think that this is a pretty good time for the administration to consider a flat-out call for Mubarak to resign. Now, they haven't done that. They have been very careful not to do that. They have been worried about making things more unsettled than they already are. But a number of people looking at the situation now say that it calls -- that they think that the White House, which has been quite cautious today that this is a good opportunity -- whether or not they see it that way is a different thing.

CHETRY: Also the question about the flurry from CIA Director Leon Panetta, testifying yesterday and talking about the situation and saying that, you know, if all reports are to be believed, you know, Mubarak is stepping aside or will give up power -- it seemed to lead to some confusion when that actually didn't happen yesterday.

CROWLEY: Sure. And you also had the president up in Michigan saying we're watching history unfold -- and in the large scheme, we certainly are. But it added to this idea that certainly was piled on with the media.

And, by the way, where did these rumors first start? Where did the word that President Mubarak was going to step down first happen? Military folks in Egypt which certainly is interesting, considering the source.

Having said that, the White House says that Panetta, when he was testifying, was going on media reports. But it certainly added to the idea that Mubarak was going to step down and then that, in turn, of course, adds to the anger and the disappointment in that square. And I think that you also see, again, some of that reflected in the White House statement.

HOLMES: All right. Candy Crowley, always good to have you. We'll see you Sunday, as always, right?

CROWLEY: You will, you will.

CHETRY: We'll all be watching Sunday morning, "STATE OF THE UNION," 9:00 Eastern, right here on CNN.

Candy, thanks.

HOLMES: Still ahead this morning, your tax dollars at work, but in Egypt. We'll explain.

CHETRY: Also, Donald Trump for president? He seems to be into it. He was at the big CPAC conference yesterday, talking to conservative voters and activists, saying, hey, there's no one -- there's no one out there that can win. Maybe I need to throw my hat in the ring.

Well, did he say that? We're going to talk more about that, what he got the crowd cheering for and what also drew some boos.

Nine minutes past the hour.

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HOLMES: Eleven minutes past the hour on this AMERICAN MORNING.

A close eye being kept today on that area where, so far, things are peaceful in Cairo. A large protest once again. Some of our correspondents saying some of the largest crowds they have seen and these crowds are angry today, after they had their high hopes that maybe yesterday, President Mubarak would step down in his televised speech. Instead, he transferred some powers to his vice president. So, technically, he is still the president of that country.

We are keeping a close eye on things there.

Meanwhile, we turn to the White House now. End of an era at the White House in the briefing room, at least. The press secretary, Robert Gibbs, today is his last day. He often serves, of course, as the face of the administration, getting the message out of the administration. You are familiar with that face by now.

Jay Carney is going to be taking over now. He was the communications director for Vice President Biden -- but Gibbs is still going to be doing some work for the president, going to have a direct line working for his re-election campaign.

CHETRY: Well, they packed in the crowds at CPAC. This is the big conservative gathering of activists in Washington and it continues today. Ten thousand people are expected to attend the three-day event which opened with a pretty big bang yesterday.

Some -- sort of interesting characters, including Donald Trump. Not sure if he'll actually run for the Republican nomination, but he had some interesting words for some of the other potential presidential contenders.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, TRUMP ORGANIZATION: Frankly, I wish there was a candidate that I saw that would be fantastic because I love what I'm doing. In fact, I have a great club that's 15 minutes away. By the way, Ron Paul cannot get elected, I'm sorry to tell you. Sorry.

(BOOS)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHETRY: There you go. He's getting some boos and some jeers from Ron Paul supporters, but then there are others who appreciated perhaps the candor of Trump there. He says he will announce whether he'll run by June.

HOLMES: Other featured speakers today, Mitt Romney, Tim Pawlenty and also Ron Paul, the one that's, of course, Trump just said can't get elected.

A couple of notables that are missing, Mike Huckabee, as well as Sarah Palin not on the schedule so far this year.

CHETRY: Well, coming up at 8:40, we're going to be speaking with another person who is there, somebody who already has launched his exploratory committee for president. We are talking about radio talk show host and former CEO of Godfather's Pizza, Herman Cain. He's exploring a run for president in 2012. We're going to get to know him.

HOLMES: Also, a follow-up on the story we were telling you about yesterday. A gas pipeline explosion in eastern Ohio, this was near Pittsburgh -- lit up the sky for about 40 miles last night. You can see this from a distance here. Flames some 200 feet in the air. One house damaged, but glad to tell you no injuries to report for you here.

CHETRY: Unfortunately, that wasn't the case in Allentown, Pennsylvania. We have an update for you on that gas explosion that took place yesterday morning. Five people killed in the blast, including a 4-month-old child. The explosion leveled eight houses. They are still trying to get to the cause of that tragedy.

HOLMES: Also, the person who has been convicted now of killing Chandra Levy will be sentenced today. Police arrested Ingmar Guandique in February of 2009. Chandra Levy was last seen back in May of 2001. You remember the story because she ended up being romantically linked to Congressman Gary Condit. He was not a suspect however.

The man convicted is already serving a sentence for two other attacks on women. He faces now a maximum sentence of life in prison without parole.

CHETRY: Some good news for Barry Bonds this morning. Federal prosecutors dropping six of the 11 felony charges against the former San Francisco Giants Slugger. Bonds is the all-time home run king. He's now facing four felony counts of lying to a grand jury, one count of obstruction of justice. Each charge carries a maximum penalty of ten years in prison and $250,000 fine.

T.J. HOLMES, CNN ANCHOR: Also, we're going to turn back to Egypt. Of course, the youth playing such a vital role in this movement, and they have been using social media along the way. We're, once again, taking a look at the impact of things like Facebook and Twitter in this latest uprising. It's 15 minutes past the hour on this AMERICAN MORNING.

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CHETRY: Eighteen minutes past the hour now. We want to update you on the situation in Egypt in this unfolding 18-day uprising that has been deadly. According to one human rights activist, the death toll could be much higher than previously reported. You're looking at live pictures now in Tahrir Square, Cairo. The Human Rights Watch has confirmed 300 deaths. The group has not been able to get information, though, for many locations.

So, a spokesman says that that number could actually be two or three times higher than the current estimate. Many of the deaths happened during a round of violence, you may remember, some of the pictures unfolding live on international television, January 28th and 29th.

Meanwhile, in Tahrir Square, protesters flooding the streets. Many who've been reporting on this say these are the biggest crowds they've seen. Demonstrators have been rallying since January 25th calling for major economic reforms and end to corruption in government and for President Hosni Mubarak to step down after his 30-year reign. And they're also demanding a move to a Democratic government. Many are crediting Facebook and Twitter for spreading the first word of those first protests.

HOLMES: Well, joining me now, activist, Nasser Weddady, who we have been talking to throughout this crisis in Egypt. He's a civil rights outreach director for the American Islamic Congress. We appreciate you being here. So, when you asked me who we (ph) just went on? You said do I need to put this away?

You have been tweeting like crazy and social networking really for weeks, but how critical is it still? We heard about it being a part of organizing the protests at first but keeping it up. How critical is it?

NASSER WEDDADY, ACTIVIST, AMERICAN ISLAMIC CONGRESS: It is critical because Twitter has played out both in Egypt and in Tunisia, and before that, in Iran. Activists like me have basically dubbed it the news agency of the people.

This is how we got information spread out and complimenting, and at some times, guiding mainstream media coverage of the events providing latest information and contacts because what we have seen -- and by the way, it has played out somewhat, there has been a shift in the way the Middle East and North Africa have been covered because you can tell that a lot of the talking heads that came at the beginning of the events both in Tunisia and Egypt just like Hosni Mubarak, just some voices from the administration are behind the times. They are operating with a matrix of the 20th century.

HOLMES: Now, you call activists like yourself. Now, are you one of the ones that President Mubarak is calling an agitator?

WEDDADY: I can tell you for fact that I'm not welcome in Egypt. It's not because --

HOLMES: Why not?

WEDDADY: Because I've been known to be a staunch supporter of the activists on the ground and protect (ph) of the dictatorship, the military dictatorship, not only in Egypt but across the Arab world. You have to understand something. I'm 35 years old. My name is highly symbolic. My name is Nasser. My mother named me after Gamal Abdel Nasser who took over and is still this military regimen.

My forefather's generation was excited about this dictatorship -- what turned out ultimately to be a massive failure not only in Egypt but across the Arab world. I come from the other end of the Arab world, and here I am, 35 years later, I'm telling you that the benchmark for the success of this movement is not so much the ballot or the mere act of elections. It's about civil rights, individual rights. If those are not guaranteed by institutions, even if we have elections, everything is meaningless.

HOLMES: Is there that generational gap? You say 35.

WEDDADY: Yes.

HOLMES: Thirty-five and younger. Those are the ones we're seeing in the street right now.

WEDDADY: Yes.

HOLMES: What about those older Egyptians right now?

WEDDADY: They are in the streets, and they are joining the protest on massive scales. As a matter of fact, they are supporting the protesters, providing food, providing moral support, and even taking to the streets in contributing as well, because they, too, I mean, if you quote for example (INAUDIBLE) who someone I highly respect and look up to.

The man who mapped the moon for NASA before the landing. He said my generation was the generation of failure. We failed to take on the regime. You guys are doing it, the youth, and this is beyond Egypt. This is literally the Arab world in Iran.

HOLMES: I want to -- you tell me whatever camera works best, but your group has been putting this out. This and a lot of people here in this country will recognize it even if they can't read it, but there's a bus here and people recognize that's the image of Martin Luther King, Jr. Your group has been putting these out and translating them into Arabic for a couple of years now. What role is something like this now playing in Egypt? The message you've been trying to get out for years.

WEDDADY: Yes. What we're seeing in Egypt is that there is this is new generation that absorbed the culture of non-violence. It inspired by the civil rights movement, both in America but in India, Gandhi. They're looking up to this because what they've learned is that violence is not the solution, and because, by the way, the regime wants the protesters to be violent because that would get international opinion to look the other way as was happening in the last 30 years.

Mubarak has been not been called dictator. Western media has been painted as the moderate Arab regime which is a moral obscenity. They're whitewashing what an, otherwise, is a thuggish, criminal, murderous set of regime and rulers, and that's not only Egypt. We're talking here all the Arab states combined plus Iran.

HOLMES: Oh, you hit on that point that many have said and even previous administrations have said, sometimes, we sacrifice Democracy for the sake of stability. We don't end up getting either one at the end of the day. Nasser Weddady, it's been pleasure being able to talk to you. Thank you for coming in this morning.

WEDDADY: It's my pleasure. Thank you.

HOLMES: All right. Kiran. CHETRY: One other aspect of all of this is the United States and its role in paying Egypt in some ways. Your tax dollars are at work there to the tune of $2 billion. Christine Romans breaks it down and explains why so much is at stake financially as well. Twenty-four minutes past the hour.

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HOLMES: We're getting close to the bottom of the hour here. Come on in, Christine. Come on in here now. Christine Romans. Situation in Egypt could affect the amount of U.S. aid that goes to Egypt. Christine Romans is watching your money this morning.

CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: I'm watching your money, and I'm watching 1.5 billion of your money, T.J. and Kiran just about every year heading out the door as foreign aid to Egypt. It is the second largest recipient of American tax dollars after Israel. And last year, if you look here, 2006, we gave almost $1.8 billion. You can see last year, it was about $1.558. There you go.

That's an awful lot of money. Where did it go? Most it of goes to what the government calls peace and security which also means military aid, an awful lot of military aid. The government also says that this is all about keeping the country stable to foster civil transformation and to try to promote transparency within the government. All of that, of course, written before all of this happened. And so, many people asking what do we get for all of that money and what do taxpayers get for all that money when you still have such a big, open question about what happens next.

One thing, from the WikiLeaks data dump that we saw out there, some interesting information about cables from the U.S. government about what that money buys American taxpayers and American interests in the Middle East. The benefits of U.S. aid, the U.S. military enjoys priority access to the Suez Canal and Egyptian airspace. That's huge.

CHETRY: That's huge, but also economically huge right now because the Suez -- I mean, a lot of oil flows through there.

ROMANS: Oh, yes. I mean, 10 percent of all, you know, cargo trade, ship going cargo trade goes through there. If you don't have the Suez Canals or you have delays in the Suez Canal, 6,000 miles to go around it. I mean, it's pretty clear that this is an important strategic partnership and that all of that money has gone for military aid and stability in the area and for U.S. kind of check on what's happening in the Middle East and an ally.

But now, I mean, many people are saying what -- did U.S. money simply keep regime that was unpopular in power? And is that the right thing? And is that going to be really backfire for American interests in the end?

CHETRY: I mean, but the other thing, too, is, I mean, they have been a partner in helping us fight terror.

ROMANS: That's right. CHETRY: Which is the other difficult side of this as we try to figure out whether Hosni Mubarak, you know, is going to stay, is he going to leave and what replaces him? Will we still have that ally when it comes to terror?

ROMANS: That's absolutely right. This is why we keep saying that uncertainty is not good for the markets. These are all questions being asked by the people who are putting money on important valuable commodities around the world.

HOLMES: Christine, thank you, as always.

CHETRY: Have a wonderful weekend.

ROMANS: Yes, you, too.

CHETRY: Top stories now. Cairo's Tahrir Square packed again with people as far as the eye can see, and we have watched the picture grow throughout the morning as well. It is now 3:30 in Cairo in the afternoon. Hosno Mubarak rejection seems to have brought more people into the streets and it's just one of the anti-government protests and demonstrations across Egypt.

HOLMES: He didn't step down like they wanted. Instead he delegated power to his vice president Omar Suleiman according to Egyptian state television we are getting this morning is that Suleiman is asking for the deputy prime minister to lead the national dialogue now and help bridge the gap between the regime and anti-government protesters.

CHETRY: Also, the White House scrambling to respond after one of the most unpredictable days in the uprising. Earlier T.J. spoke to Peter Brooks and a former CIA officer about the administration's handling of the information that was coming out yesterday about Egypt.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HOLMES: What is happening here? Are there just some public flubs or, you know, behind the scenes in the intelligence is not really giving them a clear picture either?

PETER BROOKS: Well, T.J., I think they caught flat-footed at the beginning and then when you get into a crisis situation, events tend to take place very, very quickly and there is very few good options when you get to a crisis. And I think that the administration is playing catch-up here. They are reactive. They probably should have been proactive way ahead of this. They knew the elections were coming up in the fall and should have been trying to influence Mubarak much sooner than this.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHETRY: In a statement last night, President Obama pressed President Mubarak for a genuine transition in Egypt.

HOLMES: Let's turn back live to Cairo to our Ben Wedeman who is there for us. Ben, we are expecting a major statement made by protesters today. Does it appear they are doing that?

BEN WEDEMAN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, IT certainly does, T.J. this is the major statement. We're not into Tahrir Square which is apparently jam-packed. We are next to the Nile and up the street from me is Egyptian state television and the ministry of information. I estimate, at this point, this must be well over 10,000 people along the road in front of the ministry. They can't get inside, of course, because there are tanks, armored personnel carriers, barbed wire and soldiers preventing them from doing that.

But certainly this gives you an indication of the public reaction to President Mubarak's speech last night, which seems to have pleased very few of the demonstrators who are streaming through the streets of Cairo on an almost daily basis. Obviously, here, they are in front of state TV, which they believe to be a symbol, a mouthpiece for the Mubarak regime. T.J.?

HOLMES: Ben, I apologize if it's not translated for you, if you don't know, but can we tell? Do you have any indication what they are chanting down there on the streets right now?

WEDEMAN: One persistent chant is "Down, down, with Hosni Mubarak," and there are all sorts of other versions of that. But that seems to be the only really one you hear time and time again. Excuse me, T.J.

And what is interesting in this crowd today is we have something, we have more people who are coming from other walks of life. There's a sign that says that one group represents the professors from the University of Cairo. Other signs that indicate that there are workers here, many workers, of course, now on strike in Egypt, calling -- excuse me, T.J. -- calling for President Mubarak's immediate resignation.

HOLMES: Ben Wedeman, we appreciate you and appreciate the pictures this morning. Thank you so much. We will keep a close eye. A live picture of Tahrir Square where, again, we have looking so much at Tahrir square but another shot of another area where protests are kicking up again. This is back to Tahrir Square again.

CHETRY: It's amazing in front of the state TV.

Ian Lee is with the protestors in Tahrir Square. He joins us on the phone. We are seeing from Ben Wedeman's shot in front of the state TV building where people believe it's a mouthpiece and Tahrir Square continuing to green turning into a make-shift city on its own there. How much longer will this administration be able to withstand this pressure, outcry from people on the streets of Egypt calling for change?

IAN LEE, CORRESPONDENT: That's the question everyone is asking down here in Tahrir, how much longer, you know, can the government last? People down here seem determined to ride this out.

You know, I did talk to a few people who were unsure about, you know, whether they would stay here. They thought some of the concessions were good enough for them. But, by and large, everyone down here is adamant about staying here until this ends, until Mubarak leaves.

CHETRY: And tell us how much you've seen this grow. I mean, we checked in about two and a half hours ago as we understand it, Friday prayers had just ended. Has it continued to grow and remained largely peaceful?

LEE: It is definitely largely peaceful. I haven't seen any violence at all. But it definitely continues to grow. I have seen people streaming in. It is so packed down here. At times, you're just squeezed between a bunch of people. It is amazing how many people can fit into this fairly small square.

But, you know, just going around Tahrir Square, you have seen people filling into the streets. This is definitely one of the most packed times I've seen the square.

CHETRY: Ian Lee for us there saying the most packed he has seen and we heard the same thing from Frederik Pleitgen earlier again. This continues to grow and develop throughout the day.

HOLMES: To our viewers, we assure you we will never be too far away from the story in Egypt and we will keep a close eye on it throughout the morning.

CHETRY: Also ahead, take a look at this man. Could he be in the running for the GOP's choice for running for president? He's Herman Cain, former CEO of Godfather Pizza, a radio talk show host, and he running for president, speaking today at C-PAC, but he is going to talk to us first. It's 37 minutes past the hour.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HOLMES: It's 39 past the hour now. The BBC is claiming Iran is jamming its television broadcasts following their coverage of the anti-government protests in Egypt. Iranian authorities are also accused of blocking reformist websites and detaining opposition supporters.

The arrests come after Iran's opposition leaders arrests called for a rally Monday in support of the uprising in North Africa and the Middle East. A National Security Council spokesperson is saying that recent arrests and the efforts to block international media underscore the hypocrisy of the Iranian leadership.

CHETRY: With the election looming in 2012 only two Republicans announced they are forming exploratory committees. One of them is Herman Cain, radio talk show host, former CEO of Godfather's Pizza, and former chairman of the Federal Reserve Bank in Kansas City.

He is calling him the dark horse of 2012 which seems to fit because you've probably never heard of him. Cain is speaking at the C-PAC this afternoon but first he's talking to us. Thank you for joining us and talking with us this morning.

HERMAN CAIN, RUNNING FOR 2012 GOP PRESIDENTIAL NOMINATION: It is my pleasure, Kiran, thank you. CHETRY: So you are one of only two who have actually officially taking a step forward and say, yes, we are doing an exploratory committee. Why do you want to run?

CAIN: Because I feel compelled to. I've been very blessed to be able to pursue and achieve my American dream, and I happen to believe that the American dream is under attack because of too much legislation, too much regulation, and too much ta taxation.

The good news is the American people have awakened and they are fighting back, and that was evidenced on November 2nd when in one election cycle, control of the House of Representatives changed.

So I feel compelled to do my part of whatever I can do because of those grandkids that I have. It's about the grandkids, it's not about us.

CHETRY: Do you think that Barack Obama has done a good job at president so far?

CAIN: No, he has not, to be perfectly honest, with all due respect. His two vulnerabilities -- first, his leadership style. You don't ask 36 czars and think you're going to successfully lead this country on top of the 15 departments that he inherited that normally go with the office of presidency.

And the second thing obvious from President Obama's tenure as president it has lacked the understanding of business and the economy. He has promised over and over that he is going to focus on jobs. He has done this now for two years. But his policies, unfortunately, have not stimulated the economy the way they could be stimulated if he had a better understanding of how business works and how the economy works.

CHETRY: It's certainly no secret that African-Americans largely support Democratic candidates and vote Democratic. You know, if you're going into some of these communities and campaigning in some of these communities, how do you say that I believe the GOP is better for African-Americans?

CAIN: I believe that conservative values are better for African- Americans. And the good news, Kiran s that many of them are waking up. They are not blindly voting democrat as some of the polls would have you believe. I happen to know because of my time on the radio and a lot of calls that I got from people that they are, in fact, waking up.

Sometimes people confuse what it means to be a Republican versus a conservative. I would be running for the Republican nomination, but I'm conservative. And when people understand that conservative means we believe in less taxes, less government, allowing the free market to do what it is supposed to do, and more individual responsibility, leach realize according to that definition they are conservative.

And so the good news is a dark horse candidate like me has a very realistic chance of picking up a large portion of the black vote but, more importantly, I have a great chance of getting the nomination because people like the things that I stand for.

CHETRY: You talk about your chances right now. You're register is at less than 1 percent in a recent Iowa poll, so long odd, of course. Is campaigning for president the best way for you to make a difference, in your opinion?

CAIN: I believe so, because when people learn about my business background, which means that I have a problem-solving background, I'm focused on solutions. I like to talk about solutions to the problems.

I mean, let's take for an example the economy. You know, continuing to tinker around the edges is not going to stimulate this economy to grow at the rate that we should grow. China is growing at 10 percent per year compounded. Last year, our GDP growth was 2.6 percent. At that rate, China is going to be the same or bigger than the United States in 15 or 20 years.

CHETRY: So how do we change that? You said going around the edges and talking about cutting spending. People are still very leery to touch defense and Social Security and Medicare and Medicaid. Would you?

CAIN: Spending first. It's not as simple as that. I believe you got to do a horizontal cut across the board and then what I call vertical cuts. This is how you turn businesses around. So that is how we are going to get at the spending. You can't tinker around the edges and cut at the top. You have to go horizontal and do a deep dive on each individual agency.

Now, let's talk about stimulating the economy, that's where the -- the actions taken by the 111th Congress and the President, they didn't go far enough. Here is what I would have done and here is what I would have tried to get Congress to do and because the American people understand that, number one, we need to lower the top corporate tax rate from 35 percent to 25 percent. We are the only developed country in the world that has not lowered its top corporate tax rate.

Secondly, make the tax rates permanent. Two years just extends the uncertainty that's hanging over this economy.

Third, lower the corporate -- lower the capital gains tax rate. This is where many small businesses get their capital from people who have cash because they are generating because of low capital gains.

And then one of the four things that I would have done, this two percent tax, payroll tax holiday, that was a bone to the American people. I would have made it 6.2 percent the entire payroll tax for a year for the employee and a year for the worker -- for the employer. That would have been a direct stimulus --

(CROSS TALK)

KIRAN CHETRY, CNN ANCHOR: But it still doesn't help the deficit. None of -- none of what you mentioned helps the deficit.

CAIN: No you're absolute right but Kiran, once you get the economy growing faster, you're going to have more tax revenue coming in. And if you start to cut the deficit and cut the national debt at the same time, then we would have them moving in the right direction.

CHETRY: All right. And quickly I just want to ask you, if you were not running yourself, who would you back out of the people that you've seen at CPAC and some of the people who have said they might throw their hat in the ring for the GOP nod?

CAIN: I have a lot of respect for Jim DeMint of South Carolina. I have a lot of respect for Michele Bachmann to name two of the people that I really admire and I think that you know they could bring a lot to the leadership of this country. And Senator Tom Coburn of Oklahoma; I don't know if he was one of the who's mentioned but he's another person that I respect.

I happen to think that it's going to be a very impressive field of potential Republican candidates. And to be honest with you I think that is good not only for the Republican Party but that's going to be great for this nation.

CHETRY: And just one other quick thing on a personal note. This is amazing you beat the odds before you were diagnosed with stage 4 cancer and spread from your --

(CROSS TALK)

CAIN: Yes.

CHETRY: -- colon to your liver in 2006.

CAIN: Yes.

CHETRY: You beat it. And have been cancer-free for more than four years. How did that life and death struggle change your perspective on the world, if it did?

CAIN: You know what it did, Kiran? It accentuated something that I -- that I have commented on. You know, when you have children, you focus on their future. When you have grandchildren it -- it calls at you to focus on the future of the nation and the future of the world.

That life threatening with cancer accentuated my desire to do whatever I could do with my talents, my background, my skills and abilities in order to try to help make this a better nation, whatever that might mean, utilizing the -- the things that I have been blessed with in this country.

And just like you mentioned I am considered a dark horse candidate but I was a dark horse candidate to beat cancer. I only had a 30 percent chance --

(CROSS TALK)

CHETRY: Very true.

CAIN: -- of beating it. But, in fact, by the grace of God, I did. So being a dark horse is nothing new to me.

CHETRY: Well, it was great to talk to you this morning and congratulations on all of that. That's wonderful. Herman Cain, exploring a 2012 Presidential Run. Thank so much for joining us this morning.

CAIN: Thank you, Kiran. My pleasure.

CHETRY: T.J.

T.J. HOLMES, CNN ANCHOR: All right, Kiran.

To our viewers, well, we're talking about CPAC there. You with catch live streaming coverage of it at CNN.com/live.

But let me get you back for this live picture that we're looking at here right now. Tahrir Square, of course the Egyptian protest there today. A day of anger versus a day of liberation that many thought they would get.

But meanwhile, there in Cairo, they are setting up their own city. A city complete with bathroom facilities right there in Tahrir Square. We'll continue to follow that ongoing situation on the ground.

Plus we are getting a bit of a break. Some warmer temperatures but what does that mean in this winter? Our Rob Marciano coming up next.

We're 12 minutes to the top of the hour.

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ROB MARCIANO, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Check out these icicles at Oklahoma City overpass. My God, I mean it's cold and they got a bunch of snow. These aren't exactly natural. There was a water main break that caused this water to leak and obviously the super cold temperatures caused them to freeze underneath that overpass so the fire department had to come out and take it down.

All right, good morning again everybody. We do have a little warm-up that's underway slowly, although if you're waking up in Louisiana, parts of Texas and Oklahoma you're saying not, well, quite yet because it's pretty chilly out there.

But the good news also is that the radar fairly quiet with the exception of southern parts of Florida and in northern tier where there's a little weak Alberta clipper type of system dropping to the south across the Great Lakes. Other than we're looking pretty quiet but cold.

New Orleans to Houston temperature still right below zero; so, across the swamps there the chilly alligators and certainly the craw daddies are bundling up this morning. 16 degrees in Memphis, Tennessee, 16 degrees in Memphis Tennessee. If you are traveling today, Newark, Miami and Detroit will have some issues. But let's talk temperatures; 34 degrees for a high temperature in New York. That's still below average and you'll stay chilly I think through the weekend. Everybody else is going to see a bit of a warm-up; 28 degrees in Chicago that's warmer than yesterday; 48 degrees in Dallas that's warmer than yesterday and that trend, is going to continue.

Here is pretty much the four-day forecast for places that got hammered with the snow and the cold. Dallas will go from 48 today to 67 on Monday. Oklahoma City 46 today to 64 degrees on Monday. And Memphis will see similar numbers. As a matter of fact, Nowata, Oklahoma we saw an all-time state record low temperature 31 degrees yesterday morning may touch 70 next Thursday.

That would be a 100 degree plus swing thank -- thanks to this swing in the weather trend which is bumping the jet stream a little bit farther north where it should be this time of year. You notice we still got it chilly across the northeast this weekend. You'll get your warm-up Tuesday and Wednesday of next week.

That's a quick check on weather. AMERICAN MORNING is coming right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CHETRY: We are getting informal estimates at least from our reporters on the ground of what they are seeing in Cairo today and in other places in Egypt are the largest crowds that they have seen in these anti-government protests taking place for an 18th day now.

And there is a live picture from Tahrir Square where they have grown louder and larger since President Mubarak refused to resign yesterday. The crowds perhaps biggest they've seen so far and protesters have been constructing shelters there so that they can stay in the streets for as long as it takes.

In fact, not just shelters but medic stations and bathrooms. Some have described it almost as a mini city taking place.

HOLMES: Yes, those bathrooms are just another act of defiance some people would say because I mean they plan on being there for a while. Many people thought they would be out of there by now if Mubarak would have stepped down but they plan on staying.

It's been a confusing 24 hours.

Inside the White House as well, based on some intelligence, some at the State Department, some at the White House, including maybe even the President sounded optimistic about what was happening.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We are following today's events in Egypt very closely and we will have more to say as this plays out, but what is absolutely clear is that we are witnessing history unfold. It's a moment of transformation that is taking place because the people of Egypt are calling for change.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOLMES: All right. The President's later released a statement saying it is not yet clear that the situation is immediate, meaningful, or sufficient.

A few minutes top the top of the hour. A quick break, we're right back.

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HOLMES: We certainly hope you have enjoyed the time you spent with us this week. Some important information, important news, big stories this week and including certainly what is happening in Egypt. And CNN will continue to follow that story quite closely.

CHETRY: Yes. Developments are changing by the minute this morning.

Have a great morning. We'll see you back here Monday.

Meantime "CNN NEWSROOM" with Randi Kaye and Isha Sesay starts right now.