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American Morning
Underwear Bomber Trial; NBA Cancels First Two Weeks of Season; Wall Street Protesters Plan "Millionaire's March"; Drones Still Fly Despite Virus; Steve Jobs Died of Respiratory Arrest; iPhone 4S Presales Hit One Million; "Keep the Change"; Gas Station Robbery Backfires; Hurricane Jova Approaches Mexico; Are you Sold on the President's Jobs Bill?; Need a Job to Get a Job?; Battling Back Against Bullies; Underwear Bomber On Trial; Vote On Obama's Jobs Bill; Oil Spill Off New Zealand Coast
Aired October 11, 2011 - 05:59 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ALI VELSHI, CNN ANCHOR (voice-over): Terror on trial. I'm Ali Velshi. The man accused of trying to blow up a plane on Christmas Day 2009 goes on trial today, and the accused underwear bomber plans to defend himself. We're live at the federal courthouse in Detroit.
CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN ANCHOR (voice-over): I'm Christine Romans. The NBA pulling the plug on the first two games -- two weeks of games after players and owners couldn't reach a labor deal. Now, the entire season may be on life support.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR (voice-over): And a critical day for President Obama's plan to put more Americans back to work. The $450 billion bill expected to face a vote in the Senate today. We'll take a look whether Congress is rallying behind the plan. Right now on this AMERICAN MORNING.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELSHI: Good morning to you. It is Tuesday, October 11th. Welcome to AMERICAN MORNING. Good to be back with the two of you.
COSTELLO: Did you watch the Lions?
VELSHI: Not as closely as you did.
COSTELLO: It's 5-0, baby!
ROMANS: All right, first, though, big news today. The trial of the accused underwear bomber begins this morning with earnest with opening statements at the federal courthouse in Detroit. Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab is charged with trying to blow up a North West Airlines flight on Christmas day 2009 with a bomb hidden in his underwear.
VELSHI: The defendant is acting as his own attorney. CNN's Deb Feyerick is live for us in Detroit, where you were the night this all developed on Christmas day 2009. Deb, what is the situation? DEBORAH FEYERICK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Ali, Christine and Carol, we can tell you that he is facing eight charges today. It carries a maximum sentence of life in prison. The charges against him included attempted murder, attempted use of a weapon of mass destruction on the plane he was on and also conspiracy to commit terrorism.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
FEYERICK (voice-over): The Nigerian graduate student turned accused suicide bomber is now acting as his own lawyer and already 24- year-old Nigerian Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab has shown he is defiant.
During jury selection he invoked his American-born, Jihadist mentor, Anwar Al-Awlaki who was recently targeted and killed in a U.S. drone strike in Yemen. Anwar is alive, he shouted in court, saying, quote, "The Mujahadin will wipe out the U.S."
ED MACMAHON, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: When he got on the plane and came to the United States, there were only two things that were going to happen. He was either going to be dead or he was going to serve life in prison in the United States.
FEYERICK: Defense lawyer Ed MacMahon is not on this case, but has handled similar ones.
MACMAHON: The idea of giving one last speech or one last moment in the sun before he goes off to prison for the rest of his life probably sounds appealing to him.
FEYERICK: Abdulmutallab is accused of trying to detonate explosives hidden in his underwear using a chemical build syringe to trigger the bomb and blast a hole in the side of the plane. Authorities say he chose a window seat near the wing and fuel tank and waited until the plane was on its descent in order to cause maximum damage.
RANDALL LARSEN, HOMELAND SECURITY EXPERT: If you look back at Pan Am 103, it only took 14 ounces of explosives to bring down a 747. So it doesn't take a lot.
FEYERICK: Among those likely to testify, Dutch passenger Jasper Schuringa who was a row behind when he heard what sounded like a gunshot.
JASPER SCHURINGA, PASSENGER ON NW FLIGHT: Without any hesitation, I just jumped over all the seats and I jumped to the suspect, because I was thinking, like, he's trying to blow up the plane.
FEYERICK: Also on the Christmas day flight, Patricia Keepman and her husband bringing home their two newly adopted Ethiopian children.
PATRICIA KEEPMAN, PASSENGER ON NW FLIGHT: As we heard the screams and we started to smell the smoke and we saw the reaction of the flight attendants and them running with fire extinguishers. We knew that our situation was dire.
FEYERICK: Authorities were stunned at how easy it was for Abdulmutallab to pass seemingly undetected through multiple airports, including Ghana, Lagos, Nigeria and Amsterdam where he boarded the U.S.-bound Delta-Northwest flight.
Officials believe the device was made by the same Yemeni bomb-maker responsible for bomb-filled printer cartridges sent to the U.S. last year, and also a similar device used in the attempted assassination of Saudi's head of counterterrorism.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
FEYERICK: And it was this particular incident that really brought to attention al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula. It was the first time that ever staged or attempted to stage an operation outside their particular region.
Now while Abdulmutallab is representing himself, we can tell you that in fact, has been a little bit quiet. He does have standby counsel, sort like a pinch hitter who will be called in really to do the heavy lifting.
The standby counsel expected to give the opening statement though, really in that courtroom, they're looking forward to hearing him. Hearing what he has to say and how Abdulmutallab plans to defend himself -- Carol, Christine, Ali.
COSTELLO: I was actually going to ask you about that. So this guy is representing himself. There's bound to be more outbursts. How much will the judge stand?
FEYERICK: You know, it's really interesting, Carol. Because I probably remember these cases the 20th hijacker case, the Times Square bomber case. What happens in these situations is the judge has to keep a very tight leash on what happens in the courtroom.
Because again, it is a legal proceeding, and should something go awry, there could be an attempt for a mistrial. So the judge really has to keep a very tight control over the courtroom, but it does give the defendant an opportunity to at least speak.
At least to be heard, and for many of these defendants, that is critical for them. So firing their counsel, representing themselves, having somebody step in, it's that scene repeatedly, actually.
COSTELLO: Deb Feyerick reporting live in Detroit. Thank you.
The incredible shrinking NBA season. The league has officially cancelled the first two weeks of the regular season. Commissioner David Stern making the announcement last night after players and owners were unable to reach a new labor deal and end a lockout.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) DAVID STERN, NBA COMMISSIONER: We spent two days here. I think it's fair to say that we established the positions of the parties with complete certainty of where each stood, and we remain, really, very, very far apart on virtually all issues.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: Virtually all issues, he says. Stern says the two sides remain deadlocked over salaries and revenue sharing and, by the way, no new talks are scheduled.
VELSHI: The jobs crisis takes center stage today. That's because the Senate is expected to vote on President Obama's jobs bill. Now Republicans plan to filibuster it, and even if the $447 billion measure passes the Senate, Republican leaders in the House have already pronounced the bill dead on arrival.
ROMANS: All right, pretty tense moments at the "Occupy Wall Street" protest in Boston overnight. Police are moving in after they warned activists that they were in an area that was offlimits. Several arrested. Others protests are planned nationwide this morning.
In New York, they planned to march to the homes of millionaires and billionaires including the CEO of J.P. Morgan Chase and News Corp head, Rupert Murdoch.
Organizers are saying they're being targeted for what they call a willingness to hoard wealth at the expense of the 99 percent. New York state mayor, Michael Bloomberg, a billionaire, by the way, says he won't force them from their home base in Hyde Park as long as they follow the rules.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MAYOR MICHAEL BLOOMBERG (I), NEW YORK: The bottom line is, people want to express themselves, and as long as they obey the laws, we'll allow them to.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROMANS: Yesterday, Conway West and Russell Simmons visited the protesters in that park. Simmons tweeted this photo from there.
COSTELLO: A virus affecting computers that control U.S. drones. The unmanned planes, probably the most effective weapon in the war against al Qaeda, they are controlled from an air base in Nevada.
A defense official says the problem has not grounded any drones worldwide and they're still trying to figure out how that virus was installed.
VELSHI: Public health officials in California say that Apple co- founder Steve Jobs died of respiratory failure brought on by a pancreatic tumor. Jobs died Wednesday at his home in Palo, Alto. Apple employees say they will celebrate his life with a memorial service on October the 19th.
ROMANS: And it's so interesting because Apple's new iPhone, you know, was announced on, really, a day when he was -- the last day he was alive I think. It already appears to be a monster hit.
VELSHI: Unbelievable.
ROMANS: As all of his creations have been. The company reports that more than a million people pre-ordered the new iPhone 4s in the first 24 hours. That beats Apple's previous one day record of 600,000 iPhones. This new iPhone hits the stores shelves on Friday.
VELSHI: It's unbelievable.
ROMANS: Saying, it's not a 5.
COSTELLO: Don't you wonder if Steve Jobs' death, you know, fuelled the sales?
VELSHI: It was the last iPhone that was developed under Steve Jobs or at least while he was alive.
COSTELLO: A lot of experts say they have six to 10 years of Steve Jobs' creations in the pipeline. Think of that.
VELSHI: It's incredible.
COSTELLO: Just saying.
Just ahead on AMERICAN MORNING, dramatic surveillance video of an armed robbery at a gas station in Houston. Wait until you see this. How a store clerk turned the tables on the gunman and they turned tail and ran.
VELSHI: Paradise interrupted. Hurricane Jova bearing down on the Mexican resort of Puerto Viarta and the country's Pacific Coast packing 120 mile-an-hour winds. We'll have a live report just ahead.
ROMANS: And Hank Williams Jr. out with a new song that slams Fox News, ESPN and the United Socialist States of America, after he was sacked from Monday night football. It's 9 minutes after the hour.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROMANS: Welcome back.
VELSHI: My favorite story.
ROMANS: Is it? All right, this is Ali Velshi's favorite story. He was dropped from Monday night football. No, not Ali Velshi. We're talking about Hank Williams Jr., for comparing President Obama to Hitler.
Now he's venting in a new song called "Keep the Change" that was just released on the web. So here's a little clip.
ROMANS: Boy, he has an amazing voice and a catchy little tune there.
VELSHI: I'll keep the USA. You can keep the change.
COSTELLO: He - the Obama the changed.
ROMANS: He called out ESPN and Fox News accusing him of twisting his words around.
COSTELLO: Yes, he said they put him through a gotcha moment. I think he'll be on "The View" today this afternoon so that should be very interesting.
VELSHI: It's worth watching the interview again, because nobody was really pushing him. He kind of just said it on his own. He just kept -- of course, my favorite part was the other part, where he called -- they're the three stooges. They're the enemy. They said who. He said Obama and Biden, and I was waiting for the --
COSTELLO: He forgot the other three, I mean, the third stooge.
VELSHI: Not that you're calling them stooges, just that we needed three.
ROMANS: Carol --
VELSHI: Two armed gun men picked the wrong gas station to rob early Saturday morning in Houston. Take a look at this dramatic surveillance video. Two men wearing masked, you see them here, entered the store, 6:30 a.m.
You see one of them jumping over the counter. He's about to jump over the counter while the other one fires his gun at clerk, hitting the clerk in the leg. But the thieves don't know there was another clerk in the store who also had a gun.
He opened fire, hitting one of the suspects twice. Both robbers ran. The one who wasn't wounded didn't get far and now is in police custody. The clerk who was shot is going to be just fine.
COSTELLO: Did you see how he just turned tail and ran? He got out of there.
VELSHI: Yes. There you go. I'm out. I'm done. This robbery is over. Goodbye.
COSTELLO: Coward. The NTSB releasing this stunning video of a Southwest Airlines jet skidding off the runway at Chicago's midway airport. This happened back in April. Take a look at that.
Officials say the flight from Denver landed in the rain, obviously, and it was moving too fast when it tried to turn onto a taxi way and it ended up in the mud. The NTSB is still investigating that incident. No one onboard the plane was hurt.
ROMANS: All right. Right now, severe storm warning's up along Mexico's Pacific Coast as Hurricane Jova approaches. The Category 3 storm packing 120 mile-per-hour winds and is expected to make landfall sometime today.
VELSHI: Did you just decide it's Jova?
ROMANS: I think it's Jova, isn't it?
COSTELLO: It is Jova.
ROMANS: Right, isn't it?
VELSHI: I thought it was "Jova."
ROMANS: No, it's Jova. I don't think you pronounce the "J."
VELSHI: Why do you - why do you -
COSTELLO: It's like Spanish. The J is -
VELSHI: Jova. All right. There you go.
Let's ask Rafael Romo. CNN's Rafael Romo is live for us in Manzanillo, Mexico. He's nodding - see, he's nodding his head, like, what is wrong with you people?
Good morning, Rafael.
ROMANS: There's going to be a lot of rain behind this thing, right? And when you're looking at the potential for mud slides along the Pacific Coast of Mexico, it's pretty significant.
RAFAEL ROMO, CNN SENIOR LATIN AMERICAN AFFAIRS EDITOR: Good morning. And let me just say that I also have a tendency of saying Jova, and that's what many Spanish speakers would do.
But let me tell you. we're here in Manzanillo, it's a place that many Americans know very well. In fact, there's a small American community here. Just north of here there's a destination that Americans know very well, it's Puerto Vallarta and the Hurricane Jova or Jova, as you might call it, is expected to make landfall sometime tonight in between these two points.
Right now, we only have slight rain. I don't know how much you can see behind me. The sea is very calm, but Mexican officials telling us that preparations are well under way. They have sent about 300 soldiers to this area to assist the communities. Also, they have opened about 100 shelters, packed with food, cots and other supplies for people who may need it, and they have been through a situation like this. This will be the third time, 2002 was Hurricane Cana, 2007 it was Henriette and both caused plenty of destruction.
Right now, a Category 3, officials are hoping and praying that in the next 12 hours or so, this hurricane will be downgraded to a Category 2 or less, but, again, this kind of thing is very difficult to predict, Ali and Christine.
ROMANS: All right. Thanks, Rafael Romo.
Jacqui Jeras is at the Extreme Weather Center.
VELSHI: Who?
ROMANS: "Hackui Heras" (ph) is in the Extreme Weather Center.
JACQUI JERAS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Nice, nice.
ROMANS: No. It's Jova ph?
JERAS: It's Jova, yes. It is the H sound.
VELSHI: Jova. All right. Nobody should listen to me anyway. First of all, I was off yesterday. Secondly, why is anybody listening to me anyway?
ROMANS: I've been asking this question for 10 years.
VELSHI: Yes.
ROMANS: But I will say for some reason, it keeps us asking about the question.
Jacqui, this is a major storm. We're making light of the name. This is a major storm -
JERAS: Yes.
ROMANS: -- with potential for mudslides, a lot of rain. This is just walloping them?
JERAS: Yes. And there's a lot of wind with this thing, too, actually. So there could be a lot of power outages and a lot of damage, a lot of trees uprooted, too.
This is kind of an unusual storm that we're looking at. Normally, when we see hurricanes and this specific like this, they'll often parallel the coast, but this one is coming right at them. And the concern is that this is going to be moving in causing a lot of damage.
Now, the mountains are going to weaken it quite a bit very quickly, after it makes landfall. But you mentioned that mudslide threat. So it also enhances the rainfall, because moisture gets pushed up the mountain and that brings down heavier rain than it was just very, very flat. So this will be something we'll be watching tonight, landfall likely late tonight.
And just really quick, I want to show you a little bit of an eye candy. This is a really cool satellite image as this thing was at almost at its peak yesterday afternoon from three different satellites. You can see that eye, which was very, very well-defined at the time.
All right. Back here at home right now across the southeastern U.S., this is our big weather story today. A lot of rain. A lot of cloudiness and a lot of travel headaches as a result from Atlanta up towards Charlotte into Raleigh, even headed into D.C. we think late today. Rainfall will be heavy at times. Especially into the Appalachians. A good couple of inches and there's going to be a lot of standing water on all of the roadways.
Pretty nice across the nation's Midsection, maybe some light showers towards the Great Lakes and our Pacific Northwest storm continues to be on the move for one more ugly day for you folks.
All right. Some great pictures I want to show you real quick from England. Really dramatic photos of a cliff that was crumbling. This is famous Cornwall cliffs, and there have been a lot of storms here. Oh, look at all that. This is estimated to be like 100,000 tons of rock. Just amazing. Look at all that, just poof up into the atmosphere. Lots of storms here. A lot of erosion of the wave caused this thing to crumble on down.
VELSHI: Wow. That's an incredible shot.
COSTELLO: It's beautiful and disturbing at the same time.
VELSHI: Yes.
ROMANS: Wow. Thanks, Jacqui.
JERAS: Sure.
COSTELLO: Thank you, Jacqui.
Now's your chance to "Talk Back" on one of the big stories of the day. The question for you this morning, are you sold on the president's jobs bill? One, two, three, all together now -
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: Let's put construction workers on the job. Let's put teachers in the classroom. Let's give small businesses a tax break. Let's help our veterans. Pass this bill. Let's meet our responsibilities.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: Oh, the president has said that, what, gazillion times in eight different cities and today the Senate will take him up on it, at least we think so. The Democratic-controlled Senate will vote on whether to debate the jobs bill. I know, whatever. Seriously.
If you need a refresher course, the president's jobs bill extends unemployment cuts, the payroll tax, provides money to hire more teachers and construction workers, you know, infrastructure jobs, and boost the (ph) tax on millionaires to pay for it all. The Republicans, they had their own mantra.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MITCH MCCONNELL, SENATE MINORITY LEADER: What this weekend shown beyond any doubt is that Democrats would rather talk about partisan legislation, they wouldn't pass than are actually passing legislation we know will create jobs.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: Because of that tax increase on millionaires, but you already knew that.
What we want to know today is if you're buying what the president is selling. So the "Talk Back" question today - are you sold on the president's jobs bill? Facebook.com/AmericanMorning, Facebook.com/AmericanMorning. I'll read your responses later this hour.
ROMANS: All right. Still to come this morning, the president wants to make it illegal for businesses to specify that the jobless need not apply, but is this really the right way to help the unemployed?
It's 21 minutes after the hour.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
VELSHI: Welcome back. "Minding Your Business" this morning. Twenty-five minutes after the hour.
People were feeling a bit more bullish, but right now U.S. stock futures are down after the Dow surged 330 points or nearly three percent yesterday pushing stocks higher was a less gloomy view of the economy, and hopes that Europe is beginning to get a handle on its debt crisis.
Today, the Senate is expected to pass a bill that would slap tariffs on Chinese exports if Beijing continues to keep its currency undervalued. Supporters say the measure will make American businesses more competitive, but the bill's future remains uncertain. House Speaker John Boehner has not said - or he has said he wouldn't take up the bill.
The banks are bracing this morning for the government's proposal, designed to limit the kinds of risky trading that played a part in the financial crisis. It's called the Volcker Rule. If implemented, they would cut revenue for Wall Street brokers by up to 25 percent.
Cities in the Midwest not long have low unemployment and little debt, they also have the best credit. That's according to a new study. So which cities have the best score? Wausau, Wisconsin, 789. The South tends to have the worst credit. Harlington, Texas, was the only city with an average score below 700.
And it's the end of the road for a soccer mom staple, Chrysler CEO telling Automotive News that the company is discontinuing the Dodge Grand Caravan. The Minivan and the Dodge Avenger Sedan will both be replaced by a single Crossover in 2013. Chrysler will, however, still sell its Town & Country Minivan.
And at long last, Facebook has finally released the iPad app, the app which has been in the works since October of last year. It's rumored to have been delayed because of a rift between Facebook and Apple.
AMERICAN MORNING will be right back after the break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROMANS: It's now 29 minutes past the hour. Top stories this morning.
Opening statements set for today in the trial of the accused underwear bomber. Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab is charged with trying to blowup a Detroit-bound passenger plane back on Christmas Day 2009 with a bomb sewn into his underwear. He is acting as his own attorney.
VELSHI: No deal. The NBA has canceled the first two weeks of the regular season after owners and players failed to agree on a new labor contract to end the lockout. NBA Commissioner David Stern says the two sides remain far apart.
COSTELLO: Tonight, the Senate is expected to vote on the president's $447 billion jobs bill.
The hotly contested measure includes extensions of the current payroll tax cut, jobless benefits, and a new tax credit for businesses that hire long term unemployed. It also includes a 5.6 percent surtax on people earning more than $1 million a year, something Republicans oppose.
ROMANS: All right. There's one provision included in the president's jobs bill that's getting quite a bit of attention, and it has to do with discrimination against the unemployed.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ROMANS (voice-over): Unemployed? Don't bother applying for this job. That's what some recruiters have been telling job applicants. And now, the White House is moving to make it illegal.
President Obama's jobs bill would make it, quote, "an unlawful employment practice if a business with 15 or more employees rejects an applicant because of the individual's status of unemployed." It would also ban job listings that exclude unemployed applicants from applying.
DREW COURTNEY, PEOPLE FOR THE AMERICAN WAY: It's not just bad for the workers. It's bad for the country. It's bad for the economy. It's a tremendous waste of human capital to tell people that because they lost a job, they're not eligible to get a new one.
ROMANS: But business groups are critical and say employers will always hire the best person for the job, regardless whether they have one now or not. They argue this law means frivolous lawsuits from disgruntled jobseekers looking to blame someone for their unemployment.
KAREN HARNED, NATIONAL FEDERATION OF INDEPENDENT BUSINESS'S SMALL BUSINESS LEGAL DEFENSE: We are concerned it would chill the hiring practice of small businesses, because they would be worried that they would get sued if they fail to hire a person who had been unemployed for a long period of time.
ROMANS: Roughly 14 million Americans are out of work right now and the average unemployment lasts more than 40 weeks. Some minorities are hit harder. The national unemployment rate stands at 9.1 percent. For Hispanics, 11.3 percent. Blacks, 16 percent.
COURTNEY: If there are groups of Americans who have been disproportionately hit by long-term unemployment, which I think there undeniably are -- yes, it's going to be more difficult for those people to get a job.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ROMANS: So, some states are taking action themselves. New Jersey has already passed a bill outlawing this. Illinois, Michigan, New York, have all -- have introduced bills as well. But the point here is, if you're already out of work and you have some industries routinely saying, if you're out of work, we don't want you to apply, that doesn't do much to help the structural employment issue.
But I will tell you this, others are saying, look, we want people -- some companies say we want people who have current skills and have a rolodex right now of business that they can use to help our business. You've been out of work six months, you might not be the best candidate.
COSTELLO: Well, I was thinking you get to the interview and they're going to ask you, right?
ROMANS: You know, I tell people when they ask me what should I do if I've been out of work six months. I say, if it says right there on requirements, you must have a job, apply for the job anyway. Get in there and explain to them why you have filled your last six months maybe not with a 9:00 to 5:00 job, with this kind of volunteering and this kind of professional service, and this kind of contract work, fill that gap on the resume with lots of interesting things and just go for the job anyway if you can get it. That's what I say.
VELSHI: You can't -- I mean, it's just hard to legislate this kind of figure, because you can't tell companies they can't advertise, you know, the jobless need not apply doesn't mean they're going to do anything with the hiring.
ROMANS: They could screen you. I mean, they could quietly screen you out. But right up there with, you must pass a drug screen and background check, it says, you must have a job.
VELSHI: All right. If you are looking for a job and just are burned out at work, CNN Money has devoted an entire section to it, putting together a list of the 20 best jobs for fast growth, as part of their special report on the best jobs in America.
At number five -- it's jobs for the best growth -- at number five: a marketing specialist. Median pay in that profession is about $52,000.
At number four: civil engineer. This involves supervising and designing things like bridges, highways and water systems. Median pay there, $74,000.
At number three; financial adviser. Median pay: about $93,000.
COSTELLO: Because we're all scared about our money.
VELSHI: Exactly right.
At number two: physical therapist. As we've mentioned before, the health care industry is booming. Median pay for this job: $75,900.
And at number one, software developer: Median pay is $82,400.
This is one of Christine's favorites, software engineers. Sometimes you refer to it as --
ROMANS: It's true. People say should I have my kid learn a Chinese language, or Hindi? Or what should the language be? And is say, a code.
VELSHI: Best growth means the largest number of jobs being created over the course ever the next decade or so. So, very important.
Check out the all-new CNNMoney.com for more on their week-long special, "The Best Jobs in America."
COSTELLOI: Get back to politics now, shall we?
Republican presidential candidate Jon Huntsman is not taking kindly to the Baptist minister who referred to the Mormon faith as a cult. Huntsman, one of two Mormons running for the White House, was speaking at an event in New Hampshire when reporters asked him about the Reverend Robert Jeffress' comments last week. The former Utah governor, he did not hold back.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
WOLF BLITZER, HOST, CNN'S "THE SITUATION ROOM": On Friday, he told the Values Voters Summit here in Washington that Mormonism is a cult. What do you want to say to this pastor?
JON HUNTSMAN (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Well, it's unfortunate that one person is driving the narrative during a time when we have 15 million unemployed, we have two wars abroad, we have an uncertain position in the world, we have failing schools, we have the most important election of my lifetime in the 2012 election cycle.
The fact that, you know, some moron can stand up and make a comment like that, you know, first of all, it's outrageous. Second of all, the fact that we are spending so much time discussing it makes it even worse.
I mean, you give a major foreign policy speech today as I did, and the questions that come after the foreign policy speech are more focused on religion as opposed to our place in the world. This does not help the American people come to terms with the choices that they have in the 2012 election cycle. And as far as I'm concerned stick to the big issues that really matter and leave religion off the table. Last I looked, that wasn't a perquisite or requirement for the presidency.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: Mitt Romney, the other Mormon candidate in the Republican field, has not directly responded to Reverend Jeffress' cult comment.
ROMANS: All right. Joe the plumber is running for Congress. Remember Joe the plumber?
COSTELLO: Who could forget?
ROMANS: The 2008 presidential race, it seems like yesterday and so long ago at the same time. His real name is Samuel Joseph Wurzelbacher. And he has just field papers to run for Ohio's ninth congressional district on the Republican ticket. Wurzelbacher became a household name threes ago when he went face-to-face with candidate Barack Obama, challenging his tax plan. John McCain seized on that and referred to Joe the plumber repeatedly during the presidential debates.
VELSHI: Coming up next, CNN is going in-depth. Too many of our children are being terrorized at school. So, ahead, you'll meet a man who's on a nationwide crusade to turn the tables on bullying.
COSTELLO: Plus, can some get these runners a set of directions? Why the results from one city's 5k --
(LAUGHTER)
COSTELLO: -- the results are so embarrassing -- the results are in now chaos because of this.
It's 36 minutes past the hour.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: Welcome back to AMERICAN MORNING. It's 39 minutes past the hour.
After a three-day break for the Columbus Day weekend, the Michael Jackson death trial resumes today. They'll pick up where they left off on Friday, playing Dr. Conrad Murray audiotape statement played to police, made in the two days after Jackson died. On Friday, the King of Pop's personal physician heard himself describing how Jackson pleaded with him for some "milk," end quote, so he could sleep.
Dr. Murray then explains to police that milk is a term for the drug Propofol. About 45 minutes of the taped conversation remained and will be played out in court today.
An Iranian actress has been sentenced to a year in jail and 90 lashes for appearing in a film critical of the country's government. The film called "My Tehran for Sale" was filmed in the capital but banned in country. The Australian producers of the movie said they are appalled by the sentence.
ROMANS: (INAUDIBLE) American estimated 160,000 children will skip school because they're afraid of getting bullied when they get there. Think about that -- 160,000 kids are too frightened to go to class.
Our next guest is determined to change those statistics. Let's go in-depth now with Travis Brown, better known as Mr. Mojo to the kids.
Travis is an anti-bullying and youth leadership coach who's on a nationwide no bullying tour. He joins us this morning live from Indianapolis.
Good morning, Travis.
TRAVIS BROWN, ANTI-BULLYING AND YOUTH LEADERSHIP COACH: Good morning. Mojo up, mojo up, mojo up!
ROMANS: What does that mean? What are you telling kids when you tell them that they need to get their mojo up? What is your message to the students?
BROWN: Well, mojo is the highest level of positive attitude, positive energy, positive excitement and energy. And so, we actually charge them with the battle cry of, mojo up. And that simply just means, take a stand, be leader, stand up or speak up for their fellow classmates.
ROMANS: And you're talking about the kids who may be witnessing a bullying event or might see on the playground where one child is being -- I mean, I hate to say it -- but culled from the herd and picked on maybe some of the bullying, the more aggressive kids. You're asking the other kids to stand up.
BROWN: Absolutely. We know there are bullies. There's also the bullied. But a lot of our message is geared towards the bystanders. Those students that are watching it, that are seeing it. I know, statistically, we that almost 50 percent of students see, hear or watch it every single day.
And so, what we're really trying to do is get those students to just speak up or speak out, to do something to help their classmates out. And we know if just one will do it, the rest of them join, and makes it so much easier on everybody else.
ROMANS: You know, kids are watching while they get ready for school this morning, or parents are watching right now. How do you get those kids to step in? Because some of them are afraid of being bullied themselves and some just trying to keep their head down and learn, and they're really shutting that out.
BROWN: Well, part of our message is really just inspiring students to realize that they can really help. I mean, just something as simple as saying, hey, don't talk to her that way. Or don't laugh at them right there. That's not cool.
Now, we do know that that creates a lot of fear, and a lot of students are really scared in this situation, but we want them to understand, as when they come together, when they really work together as groups, all it takes is one student to step up, and now they're saving a life. They're saving somebody from maybe turning to drugs or alcohol or even in some situations, suicide.
ROMANS: You know, it's interesting these schools are really getting serious about this. You know, at my kids' school, the big program is rewarding the peacemaker. Who is the peacemaker, and holding up the peacemaker as really the hero of the school -- a new peacemaker every week. It is really focusing on the positive, but it has to be a school-wide top to bottom, multilayered approach to combat bullying.
I mean, you can come in, inspire the kids on one weekend or one weekday, but the schools really have to have -- and research has shown, they have to have a comprehensive effective strategy to fight bullying. They can't just kind of address it and walk away.
BROWN: We call those the mojo makers, the shot callers, the impact players.
But you're right. And I think that legislation is doing some great things, putting things in place, but it really comes down to the village approach. And so, part of my message on this tour is educate our educators, or parents, and our students, because we know that it's going to take everybody to do that.
And so, one of the things that we've developed is a no bullying tool kit. So, once I leave your school, they have all the tools necessary to run operation mojo week and no bullying week and run this program every single week throughout the rest of the school, and it gives the kids the tools to be empowered to make a difference every single day. And I think that's part of what the statistics have proven that it takes to make a real dent in this issue of bullying.
ROMANS: You know, we've done so much research on this in-depth this week, Travis. Teachers have to have control of their classrooms. There has to be adequate supervision of the playground. You can't lump bullies together. Sometimes they can get more aggressive if you do that.
Some research from Johns Hopkins shows that some of the peer-to- peer mediation doesn't work. I mean, we're finding out a lot more about this than we ever knew before. I know that you've been gone to so many schools. Every school might be a little different.
You even got a call from Jamie Foxx' daughter to come to her school in L.A. Tell us about that.
BROWN: Well, it was a really cool experience. And anytime you have somebody like Jamie Foxx, who's a celebrity that is willing to be a part of that, it's incredible. But really, it was his daughter Corinne. She found me. She reached out to me, brought me out there, and we did an awesome program for her. And it was just awesome both for her mom and her dad there to support her and her school in this cause, because it doesn't matter if you're famous. It doesn't matter where you're from. It doesn't matter where you live.
I mean, there are so many elements to bullying. It's not just physical. It's verbal and cyber. So, it was just awesome to be a part of something that was so cool to see it happen on such an awesome level.
ROMANS: And you bring cyber which is a whole another angle. I mean, you can have as much control of the classroom as you want. You can have as much supervision in playground if you want, but if kids are stalking and bullying online, then that's another thing that kids and students, parents have to be really serious about.
"Mr. Mojo," Travis Brown, very nice to meet you and thanks for all your work in bullying. Nice to see you.
BROWN: Thank you.
ROMANS: All this week at 8:00 p.m. eastern, Anderson Cooper, CNN are going to bring you -- bring more attention to America's bullying crisis. Then on Saturday night, watch the "Bullying: It Stops Here" town hall that's led by Anderson Cooper at eight o'clock eastern.
COSTELLO: Talk about a bummer. Nearly 1,000 runners turned out over the weekend for a 5k race in Wichita, Kansas. They braved the rain this time and the hills. The only problem, their times did not count. That's because the person leading the runners took a wrong turn and everyone followed.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOSHUA SPELL, RUNNER: Apparently, some people went too far, and you know, they -- and some people got turned around early. It was my first chance to get out there and really say, this is what I've done. Set a benchmark. Now, I don't have that.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: You train so hard for these races.
VELSHI: Wow.
COSTELLO: You take a wrong turn. There was prize money at the end, too, but the race organizers said, OK, we're not giving out any prize money, because it wouldn't be fair. So, we're going to give it out next year. But still -- (CROSSTALK)
VELSHI: Some people made the right turn, some people made the wrong turn?
COSTELLO: Exactly.
ROMANS: It is yet another reason why I will not run 5k.
(LAUGHTER)
VELSHI: Or run anyway.
ROMANS: I have so much evidence --
(CROSSTALK)
ROMANS: Carol's been trying to get me to run all summer. The shoes are still in the box.
COSTELLO: I'm going to come to your house.
VELSHI: At least, you got shoes.
(LAUGHTER)
VELSHI: I have nothing to run in, because I'm not even going that far.
COSTELLO: There are barefoot runners now.
(LAUGHTER)
VELSHI: I've got the equipment. The thing stopping me from running, because I got wide feet. It's hard to find shoes that fit. And now that I can run with my bare feet.
(CROSSTALK)
VELSHI: To the outsources (ph)? There must be people who can run for you.
All right. A quick check on the morning's top stories straight ahead, including the race to contain an environmental disaster at sea. It's 47 minutes after the hour.
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STEVEN YEUN, ACTOR: Hi. I'm Steven Yeun, and I played Glen on the "Walking Dead," AMCs down the apocalypse show. And this is my trailer. We are at base camp right now in our set, and this is where I spend most of my time. When you're traveling and you're going to be there for long while, it is so important to make where you're at home.
My guitar's always made me feel like home, because I always have something to tinker with. I have this program called sleep cycle, and it wakes you up within a 30-minute window based on how much movement you have on your bed, because it determines whether you're in deep sleep, and so, you don't wake up groggy.
For me, you know, there are times where we get into remote locations. When you don't have internet, folks are great to just get away, especially you're doing something like "The Walking Dead" and you just slice the zombie in half.
So, those are my traveling tips for when you're traveling or if you're fighting zombies.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
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VELSHI: Fifty minutes after the hour. Here's what you need to know start your day.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
VELSHI (voice-over): Opening statements begin this morning in the trial of accused underwear bomber. Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, he's charged with trying to blow up a Detroit bound northwest flight on Christmas Day 2009. The alleged terrorist plans to represent himself.
The Senate is expected to vote this evening on President Obama's $474 billion jobs bill. The president wants to pay for the measure by imposing a new 5.6 percent surtax on anyone earning more than a million dollars a year. That is something that Republicans oppose.
NBA fans getting slam dunked by league owners and the players union. Commissioner David Stern has cancelled the first two weeks of the regular season, because the two sides are still far apart on a new labor deal. The entire NBA season could be in jeopardy.
A significant amount of oil is leaking from a container ship that's run aground on a reef of the coast of New Zealand. Maritime officials estimate more than 100,000 gallons of crude may have already spilled into the pacific.
Big Ben is tilting. London's beloved landmark is leaning to the northwest as it continues sinking into the ground, and while it's still considered safe, engineers say something will have to be done within a few years if the problem continues to accelerate.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VELSHI (on-camera): That's the news you need to start your day. AMERICAN MORNING is back right after this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: Welcome back to AMERICAN MORNING. We ask you to "Talk Back" on one of the big stories of the day. The question for you this morning, are you sold on the president's jobs bill? This from Heather, "No, and why? Nothing that has money shoved at it has worked so far. Why do the same thing again? When you see Democrats dragging their feet on this, it makes one wonder, what's really in this bill?"
This from Joshua, "Generally speaking, anything that could spur job growth is good, but I do have two thoughts. First, the $450 billion cost is coming on the backs of those who already have a job and pay taxes. Second, it's a short-term solution, because if a business really needed more employees, they would have hired them already. I prefer to see loan guarantees to small businesses like mine since the banks aren't lending to us."
And this from Mike. "The sad truth is most that Americans probably know what is in the bill exactly. We become so divided that we take whatever party line we support, and that's it."
Keep the conversation going. Facebook.com/americanmorning.
VELSHI: The last one was very saley. People just adhere who the people they believe in and --
COSTELLO: Right. They don't bother to check further.
ROMANS: the president purposely put in lot of things in here that have passed before --
VELSHI: Right.
ROMANS: By both parties so that, you know, it would be more, I guess, appetizing, but it isn't --
COSTELLO: No. Let's get right down to it. It's that the tax increase on millionaires. Republicans are never going to go that. They've made that very clear.
VELSHI: Right.
COSTELLO: And that remains in the bill, and that's going to be why it's dead in the water.
ROMANS: There's also job extension -- unemployment benefit extensions. There are some who are saying three years is too long. We've got to cut that off. This is going on too long on a taxpayer dime. Also, the payroll tax holidays, some are saying, you know, we've been doing that for too long. There you go.
All right. The three-day weekend now over for many of us. It was another rough weekend for Tiger Woods. You know, you're going to love your late-night laughs. Take a look.
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JIMMY KIMMEL, HOST, JIMMY KIMMEL LIVE: Tiger Woods had an unusual experience this weekend. He was playing (ph) in the Frys.Com open yesterday, and when a man described as a fan, watch this, started yelling, and then, threw a hot dog at him.
Now, I'm not sure you can still be called fan of someone when you're throwing meat at him on the golf course, but they tackled the guy, and that's the hot dog, in the hand. At least, I hope it's the hot dog. Maybe Elin is even angrier than we thought.
(LAUGHTER)
JIMMY FALLON, HOST, LATE NIGHT WITH JIMMY FALLON: During a golf tournament yesterday, a fan was arrested for throwing a hot dog at Tiger Woods.
(LAUGHTER)
FALLON: Tiger Woods is like, it's OK. I know how hard it is to control your wiener. No, no, no.
(LAUGHTER)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(LAUGHTER)
ROMANS: I didn't hear that one.
(LAUGHTER)
ROMANS: I'm sorry. That was a great line.
VELSHI: OK.
COSTELLO: Elin has moved on, by the way.
VELSHI: We're about to move on as well.
The art of the trade. The swap being born in today's lousy economy, reborn, I guess. People swapping everything from jean jackets to engagement rings for stuff they want but can't fully afford. We'll talk about it on the other side of the break once my co-anchors have stopped giggling about wiener jokes.
(LAUGHTER)
VELSHI: Fifty-six minutes after the hour.
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