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American Morning
Occupy Wall Street Showdown Averted; Fashion Backstage Pass; Report: Gas Bill For 2011: $2,900; A Father on a Mission; Gap To Shut 21 Percent Of North America Stores
Aired October 14, 2011 - 08:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN ANCHOR: I'm Christine Romans.
Showdown in lower Manhattan averted. We'll take you there. Live pictures right now of what are the protesters in Zuccotti Park and the police presence around it.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: I'm Carol Costello.
Governor Rick Perry talking to us ahead of a major policy speech today. Will it be the start of a comeback? Is he worried about 9, 9, 9?
ALI VELSHI, CNN ANCHOR: I'm Ali Velshi.
Glitz, glamour. First Lady Michelle Obama going with deep purple at last night's White House steak dinner for the South Korean president and his wife. And the reviews are positively sizzling on this AMERICAN MORNING.
ROMANS: Good morning, everybody. It is Friday, October 14th.
VELSHI: And the Tigers live to fight another day.
COSTELLO: I know. Isn't that fantastic? They go to Texas.
VELSHI: I'm very happy for you. You are a fan to be happy for.
COSTELLO: I know when they lose, I'm in such a bad mood. That's why you hope that they win.
(LAUGHTER)
ROMANS: It's true. It is true.
COSTELLO: Good morning to you.
The deadline to get out has come and gone. Hundreds of Occupy Wall Street protesters still occupying New York's Zuccotti Park this morning. They are defiant and they are claiming victory. You're looking at a live picture.
You see Susan Candiotti in there somewhere in the crowd. She's still around.
Susan, what's happening now?
SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, you know, a feeling of victory around here. That's what protesters have been saying for the last couple hours every since they got word that the city -- we can pan off and show the crowd here -- ever since they got word that the people who own this park have decided not to clean it up to move it out. That means that all these people can now stay and they are saying, we weren't planning to leave anyway. Obviously, this avoids possible confrontation.
I wanted to talk to a couple of protesters now.
What do you think about the decision by the city to back off and by the park owners?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It was a sensible decision because otherwise it would have been a very bad sort of publicity coup, you know?
CANDIOTTI: What do you think it would have meant if they came in?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, I think it would have demonstrated they don't respect us. Right now, they respect us.
CANDIOTTI: What does this mean for the future of the movement and what about the sanitation they were worried about? There was a big cleanup at the park here yesterday. Will that continue?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Absolutely. We take care of our own business.
CANDIOTTI: How long do you think everyone will be here? How long will you be here?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: As long as necessary.
CANDIOTTI: Why are you here?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Just to be here.
CANDIOTTI: And when people talk about a movement, what does this movement mean to you? You heard a lot of people say it's not important to have the single message. Do you agree with that or do you think it needs a little more focus because there are so many reasons that people are here.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think it's good that it's broad because people can bring their own reasons. I mean, I'm here because I want more economic opportunity for myself.
CANDIOTTI: Are you working?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh, yes.
CANDIOTTI: What do you want to do here at the park?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm here to hold the park. I think the number one goal right now is to hold the park and demonstrate and "Occupy Wall Street" is an autonomous movement. It does not need any governmental infrastructure to regulate anything that it does.
CANDIOTTI: All right. The sentiment here is status quo. The crowd was huge, much bigger than this earlier. It's still much busier than it normally is at this time of day and they're planning more events here in the city over the weekend and also announcing that they're going global that there will be events over the weekend in more than 80 countries. That's the prediction of the organizers of occupy main street.
But for now, he food stations stay, the tarps stay, the sleeping bags will stay, no one's leaving.
Back to you guys.
COSTELLO: Susan, we see this huge contingency of New York City police officers walking down Broadway. I think that's where they are right now. Have there been any arrests?
CANDIOTTI: Not to our knowledge. Everything has been peaceful this morning. There have been some marches that have stopped and started, some that are still going on. That's a normal course of events throughout the day here. They always have a march in the afternoon.
There was some talk about barricading parts of the park so they would be harder to come in and out but we're still trying to check out those reports. We had no trouble coming in and out of the park this morning.
COSTELLO: Susan Candiotti live in Zuccotti Park amongst many, many happy protesters this morning.
VELSHI: Yes, not clear where this is all going at this point.
Hip-hop mogul Russell Simmons tweeted Michael Bloomberg offering to personally pay for the cleanup at Zuccotti Park to avoid the confrontation that could have happened this morning. He said he was ready to go to jail for the cause. Listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RUSSELL SIMMONS, HIP-HOP MOGUL: The fact is that the government is controlled by corporations and the people want to power back in themselves. They want the power back to the people. Simple. They want a democracy that works.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROMANS: He sees himself as anti-Wall Street, anti-banks. He has his own rush card. He's basically is a banker. He's basically a banker, too.
VELSHI: Yes.
ROMANS: And he has done that in protest of Wall Street and banking.
VELSHI: However, his card has fees. ROMANS: His card has fees.
COSTELLO: So, wait a minute. For those of us who aren't, hip to Russell Simmons banker status, what do you mean he's a banker?
ROMANS: He's a banker. He runs a credit card company --
VELSHI: It's called the Rushcard.
ROMANS: He is the face of a credit card company called the Rush Card and you can get a rush card. If you are pushed out by other banks or you don't like your banks. So, he is in the financial services industry.
COSTELLO: He's protesting against himself?
VELSHI: He says his bank is the anti-bank.
ROMANS: He says himself as the anti-Wall Street.
VELSHI: But it is a card that does charge fee for people to use. I'm not quite sure how that's the anti-bank. I mean, we know that there are 40 percent of bank accounts that you can get that still don't have fees in this country. There are a lot of place -- obviously, this movement is a much bigger than banking.
It's just interesting to see Russell Simmons part of a movement that is focused on banks, as your discussion showed earlier, he's in the banking business.
ROMANS: He sees himself as the alternative. I want to be clear, he sees himself as the alternative to Wall Street.
COSTELLO: I just wanted to clear that up because I did not know that.
ROMANS: He is a financial entrepreneur, no question about that.
To see how the "Occupy Wall Street" movement has spread across the nation and to contribute your own story, you can visit CNN.com/openstory. It's a new way to interact, communicate, to share your voice. I want to say it again for you folks -- CNN.com/openstory.
COSTELLO: These days, the quickest way to anger a Tea Party official is to compare their movement to the "Occupy Wall Street" campaign. The Tea Party has been blasting the protesters looking for evidence of union ties, fringe rhetoric and bad behavior and quickly posting it online.
Earlier on AMERICAN MORNING, we spoke with representatives we actually spoke from both sides to find out if the two upstart movements can somehow co-exist.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIPS)
AMY KREMER, CHAIRWOMAN, TEA PARTY EXPRESS: Everybody want to compare these two movements and we do agree that, you know, we're all mad as heck about the bailouts. But aside from that, I don't see that we have a lot in common. I respect their First Amendment right, their right to be there. I certainly respect that.
But what is their objective? That's the difference in the Tea Party movement and "Occupy Wall Street." We have a clear and defined objective.
DAN CANTOR, "OCCUPY WALL STREET" CAMPAIGN SUPPORTER: Our view is that we are in this together. If we are in this together, we need to ask ourselves -- what are the things that can allow people to live decent and secure lives, don't destroy their pension, provide health care, have opportunity for young people? If you went down to Zuccotti Park, you'd be amazed at the sort of energy and love and good humor there.
(END VIDEO CLIPS)
COSTELLO: That was a fascinating conversation I had with those two people. And the really interesting thing about this: the Tea Party is so defensive about being compared to "Occupy Wall Street." It started this online thing. I mean, they're posting really vile picture of whatever protester they can find doing vile things.
VELSHI: But they are saying nobody was ever arrested. There was never a report of confrontation with police. It's very interesting. They're sticking up their opposite rounds.
COSTELLO: But they're raising money through this movement now and talking about the Tea Party and they're posting these pictures online and they're asking their supporters for money. So, it's just an interesting phenomenon that's going on right now.
VELSHI: "Occupy Wall Street" people in some way helping the Tea Party raise some money.
All right. Texas Governor Rick Perry may be looking for new life for his presidential campaign today. He's making his first major policy speech since he jumped into the race in August, eight weeks ago. He's expected to lay out a bold new energy plan that promises 1.2 million jobs and makes us more secure by getting our -- by cutting our reliance on foreign oil.
We spoke to him in our last hour about that and whether or not he's worried about his slide in the polls.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
VELSHI: A CNN poll of polls, an average of four national surveys show you slipping into third place. How did you blow that lead?
GOV. RICK PERRY (R-TX), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: These polls are going to go up and down. I have run for office as a decade as the governor of the state of Texas, I'm down 25 points when the last election in Texas and that one turned out all right.
What Americans are interested in is not the best debater, not the slickest politician. They're interested in a leader that looks them in the eye and says, listen, here's how to get this country working again. In about two hours, I'm going to be standing up in front of America and show clearly how the president of the United States can get this country back working again.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELSHI: Governor Perry also said he hopes he's making progress every day in his debating and in other parts of his life, he says. Critics have said it's not his thing and has cost him points.
CNN will host the Western Republican Presidential Debate in Las Vegas live next Tuesday October 18th, at 8:00 p.m. Eastern, right here on CNN. Anderson Cooper will moderate. Carol Costello will be here live for all the analysis the morning after.
COSTELLO: We have such cool stuff planned. I can't let the cat out of the bag just yet, but I'm telling you, you have to join in next week.
VELSHI: Is it going to be live animals? What is it you're
COSTELLO: Kind of.
VELSHI: It's a political debate. You'll have to watch.
ROMANS: You're going to have to watch and see.
All right. President Obama heading to Mo Town today. He and President Lee of South Korea visiting a G.M. auto plant in Detroit. Last night, Lee and his wife were honored at a state dinner at the White House.
COSTELLO: And take a look at Michelle Obama, all decked out in deep purple. Wow! The first lady wearing kind of a sexy one-shoulder number. It was a purple gown designed by a Korean-American designer Doo-Ri Chung and it sure turned heads.
Check out the accents. It's especially the knee-high slit. Oh, we can't see it there. That's a beautiful dress, though. She had a sparkling teal belt on, which was a nice contrast to the purple. You wouldn't think of putting those colors together.
VELSHI: Is this conversation really happening?
We'll continue to follow developments with Michelle Obama's dressing and on Wall Street, as the police move into the protest area. CNN, as you can see there, is live. This is the place to be for all the breaking developments this morning.
Also ahead, a possible tornado in Virginia, a stormy night along the east coast overnight. Rob Marciano will bring us the latest on that.
ROMANS: All right. Listen to this -- an Oregon man surfs on the back of a great white shark. I am not kidding. He lives to tell about it. Hang ten, dude, you're going to love this story. I would never in a million years, but you're going to love this story.
COSTELLO: It's just weird.
And true grit exhausted. Facing elimination, the Detroit Tigers stay alive. Did you see the sixth inning? Oh, my gosh!
VELSHI: You're going to hear all about it.
COSTELLO: Yes, you are. Next.
It's 10 minutes past.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
VELSHI: You know, there are some people in this country who think that the baseball postseason is still going.
The National League Championship series all tied up at two games apiece. I sort of, you know, Rob and I kind of dropped out after the Yankees were eliminated.
COSTELLO: Oh, you poor Yankee fans.
VELSHI: The Milwaukee Brewers beating the Cardinals in St. Louis last night to even it up by a final score of 4-2. The Brew Crew did it with a fifth inning rally capped off by Ryan Braun's big go ahead hit. Game five is in St. Louis tonight.
But, really, that's not the big story.
COSTELLO: Exactly. You took the words right out of my mouth. Let's head over to the American League and the gutty, gritty Detroit Tigers staying alive. Look at that. They sent the series back to Texas with a 7-5 win over the Rangers last night.
Did you see the sixth inning? A lucky bounce off the third base bag -- I don't know if we're going to see another home run. Was that Delmon Young? I can't tell, I'm so far away.
VELSHI: Yes.
COSTELLO: He hit two last night, but this weird sixth inning when Miguel Cabrera hit a line drive. It should have been a double play, but it bounced off third base and it turned into a double. In that sixth inning, they had a single, a double, a triple, and a homerun.
I don't think that's ever happened before in the world of baseball. And the Tigers go on to win. Of course, there were some nervous moments, you know, in the final innings, but that's a Tigers special.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ALI VELSHI, CNN ANCHOR: That was the game. In the last few games have been really good games.
COSTELLO: Oh, yes.
VELSHI: The games in which the Tigers took the Yankees out, that last game, game five was not a good game. The Tigers won it in the first inning. The first five minutes of the first inning.
CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN ANCHOR: Rob, the only thing longer than watching a baseball game is listening to these guys talk about baseball. Please, save me.
ROB MARCIANO, AMS METEOROLOGIST: I don't know about you, Christine, but I've moved on.
(LAUGHTER)
MARCIANO: I mean, you know, I'm more worried about the NBA lockout. Ali, I believe, basketball has actually invented in Canada. So, I mean, --
VELSHI: There you go.
(CROSSTALK)
VELSHI: You realize we're not going to get to move on until the Tigers finish this up one way or the other.
(LAUGHTER)
COSTELLO: Tigers go to the series, baby.
MARCIANO: I might take the entire next week off.
(LAUGHTER)
MARCIANO: Good morning again, guys. Hey, I want you to show some video out of Virginia where last night rough weather between a drawn out rush hour because of heavier rain to severe thunderstorms that roll through. There was some damage, probably a couple tornadoes that touched down there. We have a total of eight reports and two particular cells in the evening that really looked nasty.
A little bit more calm, I guess, you'd say today as far as severe weather is concerned, but we will see thunderstorms throughout the afternoon. But, right now, New York to Philadelphia, we're sort of dry. The latest pulse of rain has moved north of the city, but D.C. through Baltimore back through Richmond, this secondary rain shield will be lifting up towards the north and east.
And it's all kind of rotating around a deepening area of low pressure that's right over, actually, Detroit, which managed to get away with very little in the way of rain during the game yesterday. But the winds are going to pick up with this system. We could see winds gusting to 60 miles an hour.
High-wind watches have been posted for parts of Western New York in anticipation of this and blustery conditions, really, are going to prevail across much of the eastern third of the country over the next 24 to, say, 48 hours. And because of that, plus a little rain, we'll probably see some delays. Already have 30-minute delays at LaGuardia and could see them grow to over an hour there in JFK, Boston, Philly, as well, and Detroit and Chicago.
Western third of the country looks to be pretty good with highs, again, into the 90s. We saw some records again across parts of SoCal. Sixty-one degrees in Chicago, 71 degrees in New York. Expect more rain to encompass Manhattan later on this afternoon. Guys, back up to you.
ROMANS: Thanks, Rob.
MARCIANO: All right.
VELSHI: OK. Check this surfer out. He is, I think, you call it extreme. He says he was out on the waves in seaside Oregon Monday afternoon when something knocked him off his board, and he landed on what he thought was a rock. It wasn't a rock. He was riding a great white shark, and he's still alive. Here's the proof.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DOUG NIBLACK, SURFER: The tail and the fin were definitely the scariest part. You know, I just saw this fin up in front of me, and then, it was right there, and then, the tail snapping back. It was like riding a sea monster, you know. It felt like an hour, but I mean, it was probably, probably on its back for about four seconds, because I looked down and I could just feel it wiggling.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELSHI: I'm just looking at the expression on Carol's face that says that she needs to see pictures.
COSTELLO: It just defies belief. I mean, I'm not calling him a fibber or anything. I would like to see the picture.
VELSHI: He said he's seen sharks before, by the way, but never been that close.
ROMANS: He didn't have a camera crew out there behind the break, unfortunately.
(LAUGHTER)
VELSHI: He plans to go back in the water once the waves are worth it, again. I think that was great when he said it was like riding a sea monster.
COSTELLO: Men, dude. Yes.
Now is your chance to "Talk Back" on one of the big stories of the day. Today's question for you, should companies require interviews with minority job candidates? The black community is hurting. Sixteen percent unemployment, and many in the African community -- African-American community, rather, say President Obama is trying, but not hard enough.
Robert Johnson, CEO of Black Entertainment Television and an influential guy in the world of politics said this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERT JOHNSON, CEO, BET: And the Congress both sides, I'm not picking on one or the other, they need to go the extra mile to increase opportunities for African-Americans.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: Johnson's idea of going the extra mile, expand the NFL's Rooney rule throughout the business world for executive level jobs. That's the rule requiring NFL owners to interview at least one African-American candidate when there is a vacancy in a coaching or GM position. OK, I hear you. That's smacks of discrimination. Not so says Johnson. It would be strictly voluntary.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOHNSON: There's no mandate to hire anybody. It's simply -- it' called, what I call best practice enhance commitment to diversity conclusion.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: Especially, he says, with so many White candidates vying for the same jobs. As for how the Rooney rule has changed the NFL, there are now eight African-American head coaches, before there were just two, and there are five Black general managers, before that, only one. The Rooney rule, though, is mandatory.
But the "Talk Back" question for you today, should companies require interviews with minority job candidates. Facebook.com/americanmorning. Facebook.com/americanmorning. I'll read your responses later this hour.
ROMANS: All right. Fifty bucks here, 50 bucks there. Do you have any idea how much total you spent on gas so far this year? We do, and it's a doozy. Twenty-one minutes after the hour.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROMANS: Welcome back. It's 23 minutes after the hour. Watching your money this morning.
Speculation in the oil market will add 600 bucks to the average family's gas bill this year. That's according to a new report by the Consumer Federation of America, a consumer advocacy group. The CFA says the total average gas bill will top 2,900 bucks and that's by traders and investors on the direction of oil is a big part of that rise.
U.S. stock futures are up ahead of the big G-20 meeting of the world finance ministers. That happens in Paris today. Financial stocks dragged down the Dow and the S&P 500 yesterday. Tech shares pushed the NASDAQ higher, though.
You could be seeing fewer Gap stores very soon. The company says it plans to shut down 21 percent of its stores in North America over the next couple of years. That's about 700 locations. A combination of the lasting effects of the recession on your shopping habits as well as the rise of online shopping has made the past few years quite a struggle for Gap.
And get it while it's hot. People are lining up for the new iPhone 4s fresh in stores this morning. Apple sold about a million of the iPhones in the first 24 hours the device was available for preorder. And Apple co-founder, Steve Wozniak, he was first in line for the new phone in Los Gatos, California last night. First in line, Steve Wozniak.
Up next, who says you can't go home? A CNN journalist turns an eye on himself and his family in his new book "My Long Trip Home." The fascinating story of his parents, an interracial company who met in the 1950s. That interview coming up next. AMERICAN MORNING is back right after the break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
VELSHI: Welcome back. A new book tells the fascinating story of a couple, an interracial couple, who fell in love in the 1950s in America. They raised a child through the civil rights movement. Their son struggling in his own search for identity. Well, that boy grew up to be our boss. It's his new memoir called "My Long Trip Home."
Joining us now is the executive vice president of CNN Worldwide, Mark Whitaker. Mark, thanks for being here.
MARK WHITAKER, EXECUTIVE VP AND MANAGING EDITOR, CNN WORLDWIDE: Ali, it's great to see you.
VELSHI: It's important to me this interview go well.
(LAUGHTER)
VELSHI: Let's talk a little about this book. It's interesting. It really is a memoir. You decided a year after your father's death to go back and write the history, much of which you didn't know. You live a lot of it, but you went back and found some of the reasons for the way your life was the way that it was. Tell us about a bit about this.
WHITAKER: Well, I always knew that they had a very interesting story.
VELSHI: Yes.
WHITAKER: Interracial couple in the 1950s. My father was an undergraduate. The only Black male student that's worth more college (ph) when they met.
VELSHI: Yes. WHITAKER: My mother was his teacher. So, it was a doubly scandalous relationship.
VELSHI: Right.
WHITAKER: They came from very interesting worlds. My father grew up in Pittsburgh as the son of undertakers. My grandfather, actually, is one of the first Black undertakers in Pittsburgh, had been born on the (INAUDIBLE) in Texas, the son of a slave and made his way north and started in the steel plants and became an undertaker.
My mother had come to America in 1940 with five of her younger sisters with a bunch of refugee children to escape the Nazi occupation while her father who was a protestant minister stayed behind to help organize the little village where he was the religious leader to hide thousands of Jews during the war.
VELSHI: Yes.
WHITAKER: So, that was the interesting part. But then, there was also a tragic part about all the things that happened after my parents divorced that kept me from writing the story for a long time.
VELSHI: And when you go back to the story, what you learn of, you know, both of your parents had remarkable histories. Your father's side and your grandfather on your father's side, these were remarkably charismatic men with a lot of the faults that come along with charismatic men. They were handsome. They were drinkers. They were womanizers.
WHITAKER: No, absolutely. And my grandfather had suffered a stroke when I was a very small.
VELSHI: So, you don't know him --
WHITAKER: I knew him, but as a sort of, you know, almost a cripple, you know?
VELSHI: Right.
WHITAKER: But one of the things I found in the process of my research was an autobiography that he had actually dictated to a nurse in a nursing home on his 75th birthday that told the story of how he had come to Pittsburgh and become this very successful businessman, but then, eventually, because of his womanizing, because his marriage split up, he lost his business.
My father hated his father, basically, and was in conflict with him his entire life, and yet, became very much like him. So, for me, part of the process in all of this was, first of all, discovering their stories, the source of that conflict, which I think explained a lot of my father's problems but also made it even more important for me to come to terms and wrestle with my father's memory.
VELSHI: Right.
WHITAKER: So, that didn't happen to me.
VELSHI: Both your mother and your grandmother on your father side both had to deal with these men who had absent to themselves from their lives, and they became entrepreneurial in their own ways. Your grandmother ended up running the undertaking business.
WHITAKER: Right.
VELSHI: And your mother ended up finding teaching jobs wherever she could get them. Caused you to live in different places, all over the world.
And the universal part of the book becomes the struggle of identity.
WHITAKER: Right.
VELSHI: Are you white? Are you black? How are you identifying with this as you -- as you grew up?
WHITAKER: Well, you know, even though my parents split up, my mother took pains to keep me and my younger brother in contact with my father's family.
VELSHI: Right.
WHITAKER: So every year I talk about my long trip home. We would take this long trip to Massachusetts where she finally ended up after years of temporary jobs --
VELSHI: Right.
WHITAKER: -- teaching at a small college there, every year to drive all the way out to Pittsburgh to visit them. So I grew up in those two worlds. But, you know, one of the things I got from my father for all of the struggles with him was that even though he identified very strongly with his upbringing in Pittsburgh with Africa, he became a scholar of Africa.
VELSHI: That's right.
WHITAKER: With black culture, he never wanted to be completely defined or confined by that. So even though I had these personal struggles with him, in some ways, I thought that that was a very good example that I followed first consciously but more unconsciously as I grew up.
VELSHI: Where does that leave you to now? How do you identify yourself? Because you've got kids who are more mixed.
WHITAKER: Yes. Now that's true. Well, look, you know, I identify myself as African-American, and in fact, as you know, if you know our history, anybody who has -- I mean, most black Americans have some white blood.
VELSHI: Right. WHITAKER: And, frankly, a lot of white people have some black blood. Although one of the things that I think is interesting, you know, is that I grew up at a time when it was a very unusual to be mixed race. And then when I was sort of a teenager in college, there was a sense that somehow you had to choose.
I think increasingly mixed race people come from mixed race backgrounds are saying it's OK to be mixed race.
VELSHI: Right.
WHITAKER: In the latest census, more people are declaring themselves mixed as opposed to one thing or another and I think that's a positive thing.
VELSHI: And that's another universal part of this.
I can't let you go without talking about the fact that this really influenced you as a journalist. You talk about some decisions you made at "Newsweek," for instance. Your decision not to publish the story about Monica Lewinsky but a decision to publish a story about Guantanamo Bay that ended up you had to do something about. Tell us about this.
WHITAKER: Well, you know, my father always said to me beware of what you want because you might get it. And certainly we know once I became a news executive I discovered that. There are no easy choices. But you know one of the things I talk about in the book, or some of the lessons I learned sort of professionally, some things that I did right, some things that I thought in retrospect I could have done better and I learned from.
I mean, you know, after the Monica Lewinsky story where I tell the story which wasn't known at the time that we didn't have a lot of time to actually make that decision. But, you know, when I had the choices to make during the Gulf War later, I learned some of those lessons and I trusted my gut a little bit more and we did some very tough, skeptical coverage of the march to war in Iraq a few years later.
VELSHI: Mark, it's a great read. You've got a lot of great compliments on it because it's a great read, but it's full of pictures. It's a great narrative that does have a universal appeal. So thanks for joining us on it.
WHITAKER: OK. My pleasure.
VELSHI: Mark Whitaker. The book is called "My Long Trip Home." Carol?
COSTELLO: I'm just glad Mark got up early with us this morning.
(LAUGHTER)
COSTELLO: You feeling OK there, Mark?
ROMANS: It's early. It is early. COSTELLO: Here are your top stories now. It's 33 minutes past the hour.
A confrontation between police and "Occupy Wall Street" protesters has been averted at Manhattan's Zuccotti Park. New York City officials had ordered the demonstrators to get out of -- get out of the park at 7:00 this morning so the park could be cleaned. But just before the deadline the cleanup was postponed at the request of the company that owns the park. Demonstrators claiming victory now and still occupying the park.
ROMANS: Also right now there's a big police presence at this site. This is new video of police moving in. Things seem to be under control. So far no major disturbances there.
COSTELLO: One thing is certain, the "Occupy Wall Street" movement keeps picking up steam. New York City may be the flash point, but protesters also took to the streets in cities like Oakland and Austin, Portland, Maine, Denver and Boston. Dozens of rallies also planned for today and this weekend across the country.
ROMANS: All right. Governor Rick Perry getting ready to make a major speech today, the first since he jumped into the race. He's expected to lay out bold, new energy plans that promise 1.2 million jobs and make us more secure by cutting our reliance on foreign oil. He says he will loosen some government regulations to do it. Ali spoke to him in our last hour.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
VELSHI: You have said about the EPA in the past -- this is a quote from you. "They won't know what hit them." What about the criticism?
GOV. RICK PERRY (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Sell the rest of it to the world. We got Washington, D.C., and one-size-fits-all mentality that's killing jobs and a president needs to be in place that respects that government's job is to create an environment where those men and women who risk their capital know they can have a chance to have a return on investment. And we don't have that today.
VELSHI: A CNN Poll of Polls an average of four national surveys show you slipping into third place. How did you blow that lead?
PERRY: Well, these polls are going to go up and down. I've run for office for a decade as the governor of the state of Texas. I'm down 25 points when the last election in Texas. And that one turned out all right.
What Americans are interested in is not the best debater, not the slickest politician, they're interested in a leader that looks them in the eye and says, listen, here's how to get this country working again. In about two hours I'm going to be standing up in front of America and show clearly how the president of the United States can get this country back working again.
(END VIDEO CLIP) ROMANS: All right. CNN is going to host the "Western Republican Presidential Debate" in Las Vegas. It's live next Tuesday, that's October 18th, 8:00 p.m. Eastern right here on CNN. Anderson Cooper will moderate. Carol will be there live for all the morning-after analysis.
COSTELLO: It will be exciting, too. I know I keep teasing you but --
ROMANS: I know. I can't wait to see what you have up your sleeve.
COSTELLO: Part of it -- yes, that's a good thing. Up your sleeve. That's another hint. Animals up your sleeve. Republican debate. You figured it out.
Coming up next, one father's mission to end bullying. And this fight is deeply personal. That's because his own 11-year-old son committed suicide because he was picked on all year long by bullies. Kirk Smalley will join us live with his amazing story.
It's 36 minutes past the hour.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: It is 39 minutes past the hour. Welcome back to AMERICAN MORNING.
Kirk Smalley has endured what no parent should ever have to endure. His son committed suicide after being bullied at school. Since then, Kirk has been on a mission to end bullying. He helped start the anti- bullying nonprofit group, Stand for the Silent. And he participated in the president's bullying summit earlier this year.
Kirk joins us now live this morning from Los Angeles where he's going to be speaking at schools about his son Ty's story.
Welcome, Kirk. It's great to see you again.
KIRK SMALLEY, SON COMMITTED SUICIDE AFTER BEING BULLIED: Hi, Miss Costello.
COSTELLO: The last time I talked with you was shortly after Ty died. How are you doing?
SMALLEY: We're making it. We're trying.
COSTELLO: You are trying. You've been all over the country talking about bullies, trying to educate people about bullying. How many schools have you visited so far?
SMALLEY: As of yesterday, we've been to 210 schools. We've talked to roughly 220,000 kids.
COSTELLO: And what's your message, Kirk?
SMALLEY: We're just trying to teach them that this has to stop. That they -- you know, they can make the difference. These kids themselves can be the ones that bring about this change. The fact of the matter is, they are the only ones that can do that. And we teach them that they are somebody. They have a reason to be here. They have a right to be here and a right to be who they are.
COSTELLO: I've seen one of your speeches. They're very emotional because you talk about your son. For you, giving, you know, this number of speeches, you're sort of reliving it each time. How can you endure that?
SMALLEY: How can I not, Carol? It -- you know, it affects these kids. It -- we get the messages and the e-mails from these -- from these kids we talk to every single day that say we truly saved their life. You know we changed their life. How could I not relive it every day? If it changes one baby, if it saves one kid, you know, it's something we have to do.
COSTELLO: Last year, last summer, a couple summers ago, everybody in this country was talking about bullying and to maybe enact some law that would help solve the problem. In your mind, has anything substantive happened at a federal or state level to change things about bullying? Are there any laws that have been instituted?
SMALLEY: In my mind no. You know we're talking about it too much. We're not doing enough about it. You know, the government and our lawmakers, they keep spinning their wheels. It's time to take some action. You know it's time to form these coalitions. It's it's time to get a collaborative effort out there between government entities and private industry and people. You know and start --
COSTELLO: When I talked to you -- when I talked to you before, Kirk, you wanted some -- you wanted bullying to be made a crime. Do you feel -- do you still feel that way?
SMALLEY: Yes, ma'am. Someone needs to be held accountable for it. If I treated you that way in the workplace or on the street, you know, that's assault. That's a crime. Why is it allowed in our schools for our kids to be treated that way?
COSTELLO: And I just want to talk a little bit more about the personal toll that this has taken. You are so committed to your anti- bullying efforts that you actually lost your job over this.
SMALLEY: Yes. We've -- Laura and I, we've been talking to schools literally every single day, you know, for months. And my employer was awesome. He was very supportive, but he needs an employee, and I can't turn down the chance to go and talk to kids and change their lives and save a life, you know?
We've got 104 more programs scheduled between today and December 20th where we're going to get to talk to another 203,500 kids at that time. You know that's almost 500,000 kids in 18 months that we will personally have got to speak to and I can't stop. I won't stop.
COSTELLO: I don't think you will. And it's good that you're sharing Ty's story and you're telling kids, you know, this is what could happen when you bully. This is why you must step in and do something when you see bullying going on.
And just a last thought because the St. Louis Cardinals are doing so well. And I know Ty loved the St. Louis Cardinals. I just have this picture of him watching from up there the St. Louis Cardinals playing good baseball.
SMALLEY: Yes. Go, Cards. You know.
(LAUGHTER)
COSTELLO: Yes. Thank you, Kirk Smalley, live from Los Angeles.
SMALLEY: Yes, ma'am. Thank you.
COSTELLO: Thank you for joining us. We appreciate it.
On his tombstone there is a St. Louis Cardinals written out. That's really touching.
Kirk Smalley, he's a great guy. If you'd like to learn more information about combating bullying, you can check out the Stand for the Silent Web site at the standforthesilent.com.
And join us tonight at 8:00 Eastern. Anderson Cooper and CNN will bring attention to America's bullying crisis. And CNN Saturday night watch "The Bullying: It Stops Here," that's a town hall, led by Anderson Cooper. That will happen at 8:00 p.m. Eastern.
It's 45 minutes past the hour.
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ROMANS: Good morning. Its 46 minutes after the hour. Here are your "Morning Headlines".
New York City officials ordered Wall Street protesters to get out of Manhattan's Zuccotti Park by 7:00 Eastern this morning so the park could be cleaned but just before that deadline the cleanup was postponed at the request of the company that owns the park.
These are live pictures right now where there's a big police presence near the site where things do appear to be under control.
And a live look at the Occupy Denver camp near the capital; authorities in riot gear moved in to dismantle tents and remove debris. That's the Occupy Denver camp, again live pictures there in the predawn hours. There appears to be a calm standoff as Colorado state patrol officers and Denver police inching through the park and surrounding streets.
Markets open in 45 minutes. Right now U.S. stock futures are trading higher ahead of today's G-20 meeting of the world's top finance ministers in Paris.
President Obama and President Lee of South Korea will be visiting a GM auto plant in Detroit later today. Last night Lee and his wife were honored at a state dinner held at the White House.
That's the news you need to start your day. AMERICAN MORNING back right after the break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ALI VELSHI, CNN ANCHOR: I have this. The biggest names in fashion, the biggest secrets of the season and the shoes, oh, the shoes. Alina Cho is here with a sneak peek at her weekend special, which I am going to make a point of watching because it's fantastic.
ALINA CHO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: You know, we were talking about this last night, we were at an event together and you said that you have -- really haven't just -- and I thought you sincerely meant it.
VELSHI: I really have sincerely meant it. I really have sincerely meant it. And the whole thing "Backstage Pass" is going to air this weekend.
CHO: It is.
VELSHI: In bigger versions. So if you've been watching AMERICAN MORNING all week and you've seen the installments there's more.
CHO: Expanded versions and also other elements that we weren't able to get in. We've talked to the hottest makeup artists in the world, the hottest model in the world. You know this week it has been my pleasure to introduce you to some of the people I think are the creme de la creme of French fashion.
And tomorrow it all comes together in my half hour special it called, "Fashion Backstage Pass from Paris". We're going to take you inside the exclusive world of Chanel and its famous designer, the iconic Karl Lagerfeld.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CHO: What makes you do that?
KARL LAGERFELD, CHANEL: I don't know, vision, I have a flash like this. I don't ask questions. Thank God I get answers, I don't know from where.
You know it's very interesting you know, when I make big efforts, it's for the garbage can. When I make no effort and suddenly I don't know, it happened it's much better. But you cannot count on it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHO: When I make big efforts it's for the garbage can, too, by the way.
The biggest fashion story out of Paris this season is who will replace John Galliano as the next designer of Christian Dior. We're back stage with the frontrunner, Marc Jacobs. Also the decision-maker himself, Dior's CEO. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CHO: You know who has magic hands is Marc Jacobs.
SIDNEY TOLEDANO, CEO, DIOR: I heard about it. I heard it about and we'll see, at the moment, I'm not making any comment, but telling the people and --
CHO: Have you made a decision? May I ask you that?
TOLEDANO: As I say, the people who knows are not talking and the ones who are talking are not knowing. So, no, no, I cannot make any comment.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHO: He's Ali's favorite man.
VELSHI: I love that man.
CHO: Yes we're going to tell you when we might hear a decision. He did tell me that.
Also, he has a face of a cherub and the golden touch. Alber Elbaz is the artistic director of the oldest fashion house in the world Lanvin.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CHO: You say your work is like a whisper. Explain that.
ALBER ELBAZ, ARTISTIC DIRECTOR, LANVIN: I am a whisperer. I think that whispering is something very personal because when someone whispers to you, has to get really close to you and this is a very intimate relationship.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHO: And last but certainly not least, the man behind those iconic red soled shoes, Christian Louboutin.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CHRISTIAN LOUBOUTIN: You have fairy and she's going "ding" and then you know, (INAUDIBLE) it transforms the person from head to toe. Well, a pair of shoes a bit like that.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHO: Isn't that the truth as one buyer at Barney's told me once buying one pair feels great, buying three feels better. We're going to have those stories and much more including my designer to watch as someone who has been around since 2002, but who is the man of the moment in Paris. He was the toast of Paris this season and also my five -- five favorite picks from the Paris collection. So the dresses and outfits that I happen to like personally that I might be wearing. VELSHI: And when somebody -- if anybody ever interviews me and asks me to describe myself I'm going to look in the camera and I'm going to say, I am a whisperer.
CHO: You are.
VELSHI: The thing is just so full of -- but you know what I like about it, is that -- people may be sitting out there saying what do I've got to do with this high fashion? It's like a lesson in the world of fashion. Instantly you will know why these names are relevant and why they're out there and it's just -- and it just makes you look smarter.
CHO: Well, you look at Chanel it's a $2 billion business and you look at the way these people are creatively and the method to the madness, if you will.
VELSHI: With some of those driving gloves on.
CHO: Karl Lagerfeld, you know, Marc Jacobs and these people. There's a reason they are successful.
COSTELLO: But basically there are still people with money who can buy these things.
CHO: There's lots of people.
VELSHI: The one percent, Carol.
COSTELLO: Yes, the one percent.
VELSHI: You watch us, by the way, tomorrow, we'll all watch it. 2:30 p.m. Eastern time, 11:30 Pacific, right here on CNN. It's going to be great. Alina's special "FASHION BACKSTAGE PASS FROM PARIS."
ROMANS: All right. It's 55 minutes after the hour.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROMANS: Breaking news in Denver right now. We're going to have live look where dozens of police in riot gear have showed up at the Occupy Denver camp outside the state capital there. Authorities began taking down dozens of tents early this morning before the sun was even rising. Authorities were in there taking these tents down. Now, you have officials in riot gear who are in that area for the Occupy Denver camp.
VELSHI: Of course, we've been watching the tense, but calm situation in New York Zuccotti Park all morning long. A confrontation between police and Occupy Wall Street protesters was avoided after the park owners canceled cleanup and decided the protesters can stay. For now, the protesters are determined to hold their ground.
Mayor Bloomberg was on the radio this morning. He suggested that politics played a part in that decision. Listen.
(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)
MICHAEL BLOOMBERG, MAYOR, NEW YORK CITY: Well, in the end, I'm not sure that it is more important. But I know we have a right to make sure that everybody, the first amendment applies to everybody. And we just have to go ahead to enforce it. I think what happened, my understanding, is that Brookfield got lots of calls from many elected officials threatening them and saying, if you don't stop this, we'll make your life more difficult.
If those elected officials would spend half as much time trying to promote the city and get jobs to come here, we would go a long ways towards answering the concerns of the protesters, rather than just --
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Mr. Mayor, did I understand you correctly that some of the political entities called Brookfield and said you leave these people alone?
BLOOMBERG: I wasn't privy to the conversation, but I'm told they were inundated with lots of elected officials who called. I don't know which ones and I assume Brookfield is going to say it's personal or private and they're not going to tell anybody who. But I don't think there's any question that a lot of the (INAUDIBLE) they say they got many calls.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Right okay.
(END AUDIO CLIP)
COSTELLO: Interesting developments.
Oh, that will get more controversial throughout the day.
ROMANS: It will.
COSTELLO: Yes.
Let's get to our "Talk Back" question now. The question we asked this morning. "Should companies require interviews with minority job candidates?" You know, the unemployment rate among African-Americans is 16 percent, among Latinos, 11.3 --
ROMANS: Yes.
COSTELLO: 11.3 percent. So that's why the question.
Tanya, "The sad thing is, I knew this is one of your controversial questions that would allow people to say all the mean things they were thinking. I read a couple of them and felt my temperature starting to rise. I believe the most qualified person should get the interview and race should not be a factor.
This from Jennifer, "The race card not the only card you were dealt but it seems like the only card you know how to play. It's easier for African-Americans to get into school, get assistance, grant, and free housing and the list goes on. If you get to use the race card, I want to play the single mom card." This from Zaneb, "The problem is that in today's economy and highly competitive job market, your race sadly does factor into your job interview. You have to prove that you are overqualified for the position so they pick you over the next white candidate."
Keep the conversation going, Facebook.com/Americanmorning. It has gotten quite heated on the page, but, you know, a lot of people are sending in thoughtful responses and they're just arguing amongst each other. But that's what we like.
VELSHI: That's all right.
ROMANS: That's right.
VELSHI: Good discussion.
COSTELLO: Thank you for your responses this morning. I appreciate it.
VELSHI: Thank you. A special thank you goes out, by the way, goes out to the Detroit Tigers for winning last night and making this a much more pleasant morning than it was otherwise going to be.
ROMANS: Yes. Carol is in a very good mood when they win.
COSTELLO: I'm going to go buy another shirt.
VELSHI: And we're in a good mood as a result.
ROMANS: It's good for the economy when they win, too.
COSTELLO: That's true.
COSTELLO: Carol gets very happy and buys more Detroit paraphernalia.
(CROSSTALK)
ROMANS: All right, "CNN NEWSROOM" is going to start right with Kyra Phillips. Good morning Kyra.
