Return to Transcripts main page

Rick's List

Video of Missing Soldier Brings Hope As Well As Fear; Virginia Governor Under Fire; Citigroup Execs Grilled on Capitol Hill

Aired April 08, 2010 - 15:00   ET

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

DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: I'm Don Lemon, in today for Rick Sanchez.

Hey, a major setback in the search for four missing West Virginia miners. Toxic air has forced rescuers out of the mine.

Here's what else is on THE LIST today.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

LEMON (voice-over): Here's what's making THE LIST -- snatched in a war zone. He hasn't been seen in months.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The family is dealing with a very, very difficult situation about as well as anybody could possibly expect them to.

LEMON: What does this video reveal about the only known American captured in Afghanistan?

PRIVATE 1ST CLASS BOWE BERGDAHL, U.S. ARMY: Release me.

LEMON: He's accused of threatening the speaker of the House.

ELEANOR GIUSTI, MOTHER OF SUSPECT: Greg has -- frequently gets in with a group of people that have really radical ideas.

LEMON: Has the anti-Pelosi fanaticism reached a dangerous pitch?

A controversial proclamation.

GOV. BOB MCDONNELL (R), VIRGINIA: Slavery was an absolute abomination on this nation. I was trying to keep the focus on really the war aspects of it.

LEMON: Roland Martin weighs in on Confederate History Month.

And Tiger tees off at the Masters, the ghost of his father hovering in this soft-spoken new Nike ad.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP, AD)

EARL WOODS, FATHER OF TIGER WOODS: I want to find out what your thinking was.

(END VIDEO CLIP) LEMON: Plenty of you have something to say about this particular brand of marketing.

The lists you want to know about. Who's most intriguing? Who's making news on Twitter? Your national conversation starts now.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LEMON: Hello everyone, again, Don Lemon in here for Rick Sanchez.

And topping THE LIST right now, the only known American soldier missing from the war in Afghanistan. You're about to see and hear a man purported to be Private First Class Bowe Bergdahl in a recording released by the Taliban.

Now, on one hand, it is a comfort, a sign that this young American soldier might still be alive. He was captured last June, by the way. But it's also heartbreaking and it's infuriating. Private 1st Class Bergdahl is clearly under duress as he speaks about his family and pleas for his release.

He's clearly being coached and being used for propaganda. Now, please keep in mind that as you watch this video, keep in mind all of that which was funneled to the worldwide public by the Taliban through a radical Web site. We don't know when it was made. And this is Bergdahl, Private Bergdahl, speaking about his family. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PRIVATE 1ST CLASS BOWE BERGDAHL, U.S. ARMY: I miss them. I love them. And I pray to God to see them again.

The very last thing is, just let me go. Get me to go. Just release -- get me to be released. Just let me go. Let -- get me to come home. Release me. Get -- you know, every day, I want to go home.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: Just heart-wrenching.

Again, that was Private 1st Class Bowe Bergdahl speaking under duress in a message released by the Taliban. Private Bergdahl is the only American known to be held in the war in Afghanistan.

So, joining me now live from the Afghan capital is CNN's Chris Lawrence.

Chris, thank you so much for joining us. What is the military reaction to this?

CHRIS LAWRENCE, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Well, Don, officials right here in Kabul called this video deplorable.

In fact, they said that the way the insurgents keep using Private Bergdahl as some sort of propaganda tool only fuels their desire to find him more. They said a video like this, basically, all it does is just bring more pain to his friends and family. LEMON: If you listen closely to the video, and if you play the whole thing, it sounds like he's being coached. I think they were saying do push-ups, or push-ups. You can hear someone off-camera. So, the question is -- again, it's obvious that it's under duress. Is this video legit?

LAWRENCE: CNN hasn't been able to independently verify it. But you mentioned earlier that Private Bergdahl is the only American service member who has been captured in Afghanistan. In the video, he does talk about the names of friends, of family. He talks about what he did in the Army beforehand.

But you brought up a great point again, in that you have got to take everything in this video with a grain of salt, because obviously he is being coerced.

The key questions you would want to know are, when was this video made and where was it made? There is a newspaper in there, but you just can't make out a date. So, there's no idea to tell whether this was made today, last week, a few months ago.

And the key question, obviously, is, where was it made?

LEMON: Hey, listen, I want to play that part of the video where it sounds like he is being coached again, here, and then we will talk about it on the other side. Listen to this, guys.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BERGDAHL: As you can see, I'm strong, physically fit. And, you know, I can do -- you know, I can do squats, you know, leg lifts, pushups.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Push-ups.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No problem.

BERGDAHL: I'm allowed to -- given the freedom to exercise. I'm given the freedom to be a human being, even though I'm a prisoner.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: So, I would imagine some of -- if not all of his fellow soldiers, have seen this, Chris. What are they saying, if anything, about this?

LAWRENCE: We haven't had a chance to talk to soldiers today, after this video was released.

But, you know, I asked a few -- some of the troops when I was embedded just last week about Private Bergdahl in general, and what they thought. You know, some of them would not even talk about it. It was, like, just a subject they could not even go near. Others said it was just disgusting. They used words that were a lot stronger than that I can't say on TV.

And then there were one or two who just kind of had this bravado that said sort of like, you know, oh, that wouldn't happen to me, I wouldn't let it happen, you know, but you could kind of tell it's that confidence when you're afraid and you're trying to say things that kind of like -- you know, so it's something that you don't have to worry about when they know they have got to go out there on those patrols as well.

LEMON: Our Chris Lawrence joining us from the Afghan capital -- Chris, thank you very much. Stay safe, as we say to all of our soldiers and our journalists, everyone who is working over there. Chris, thank you again.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP, AD)

WOODS: Tiger, I am more prone to be inquisitive.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: It's very interesting seeing that commercial, the reaction inside of yourself when you see it. You wonder what's going on.

But here's the thing. As Tiger Woods tees off at the Masters, let's talk about this ad that is causing such a sensation. I know some of you don't like it. I have been reading your tweets and your comments, but others really are supportive of it. It features the voice of Tiger Woods' dad, Earl Woods -- late father, I should say. What do you think? That's straight ahead.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BEN JEALOUS, PRESIDENT, NAACP: To not take even a second to acknowledge that the Civil War was the South's refusal to let go of slavery, which is a deep and abiding crime against humanity, does suggest that he lacks courage.

BRAG BOWLING, SONS OF CONFEDERATE VETERANS: The people who are complaining refuse to look at anything. They're one-sided.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: Boy, this is certainly causing a firestorm as well. Sometimes, you know, governors issue proclamations and they go unnoticed. Not this one. In fact, the governor of Virginia is apologizing now.

You're fired up about this one, too. We are going to talk much, much more next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: We want to remind you that we're following the situation closely in West Virginia, and we're talking about those trapped coal miners. We heard from -- at a press conference today that there was a setback in getting to them.

We have our Brooke Baldwin on the ground and we're waiting to hear from officials if they are making any progress.

In the meantime, I want to share something with you. It's a tweet. It's from the CEO of Massey Energy. His name is Don Blankenship. There are more of these. There are more of these. We will share just one.

He said: "Thought it might help for those of you out there wanting information about the tragedy to use Twitter." Again, there are more. I think there are about 10 of them. So, he's using Twitter to update people, so you can check in there.

Plus, we're going to share some of them with you just a little bit later on. And, again, you can stick to us. We will have updates on the situation happening there.

Let's move on and talk about another issue, man, that got you guys fired up yesterday. At the top of Republican Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell's to-do list was -- McDonnell, I should say -- McDonnell's to-do list was to apologize for what he calls a major omission. The governor proclaimed April to be Confederate History Month, but caught a lot of flak for not mentioning the role of slavery.

Now, he explained why the original version didn't have the reference.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MCDONNELL: I thought that just having people look at the history, learning from the mistakes of the history, but understanding Virginia's role in the battlefields, et cetera, would be helpful for economic development.

And, so, that's why -- that's why I signed it. Slavery was an absolute abomination on this nation. It was a vile and horrific practice that I'm delighted is wiped off the face of this country. And so I didn't mention it solely because I was trying to keep the focus on really the war aspects of it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: All right. So, former Virginia Governor L. Douglas Wilder said that McDonnell's apology and additional proclamation language was the right thing to do.

Members of the Sons of Confederate Veterans, the group that pushed for the original proclamation, were split on the apology from the governor. Some called it -- quote -- "an insult quote," with others supporting it -- quote -- "100 percent." Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ROLAND MARTIN, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: This is really a recognition, Don, of American terrorists. They were terrorists. These were people who committed treason. No, they were terrorists.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: OK. Yes. He just called them terrorists. You may have guessed Roland Martin is quite opinionated about this Confederate History Month proclamation with Virginia. He is on THE LIST today.

And next: How often was he right? How often was he wrong? You won't believe how Alan Greenspan grades himself. We're going to tell you next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: We have some developing news we want to get you to, Lewisville, Texas.

Can we bring that up now? Because we want to show you there's been a horrific accident there now, and you can see the wreckage from that accident. Look at that, burned-out trucks. I think there's -- we can see a total from this video about three burned-out trucks. This is happening on I-35 in Lewisville, Texas, I think.

And the delays here are east on I -- on 121 at I-35. It's really caused some delays in the eastbound lanes, shut down that lane of traffic completely. Again, three burned-out trucks. We don't know exactly what caused this. It appears to be sunny in the area, but, again, this is a really terrible accident that we're going to be following here.

Look at that car, or at least a bit of it, teetering over the edge. Boy, oh, boy, and it looks like an explosion or at least a huge fire accompanied that accident, because you can see everything is burned out there. Again, this is Lewisville, Texas, 121, Highway 121, at I-35. We will continue to check on that. And that's from our affiliate CBS-11.

Thank you, affiliate. We appreciate that.

Let's move on and talk about our news. We will get back to our developing news if it warrants it.

I have a quick question for you. Out of all those broken financial institutions, who got the biggest government bailout? That particular prize goes to Citigroup. For how much? -- $45 billion. That's billion with a B, folks $45 billion.

Citi was smack dab in the middle of the subprime fiasco, and, today, in front of an independent commission in Washington, Citi's former chairman said he's sorry.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHARLES PRINCE, FORMER CITIGROUP CEO: Let me start by saying I'm sorry. I'm sorry that the financial crisis has had such a devastating impact on our country. I'm sorry for the millions of people, average Americans, who have lost their homes. And I'm sorry that our management team, starting with me, like so many others, could not see the unprecedented market collapse that lay before us.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: All right. So, it is time now for "The Yellin List" with our national political correspondent, Jessica Yellin.

Hello, Jessica. Good to see you.

You know, they didn't see it coming. I will say it again. They didn't see it coming. They did not see it coming. This commission looking into the meltdown, they're getting -- are they getting anywhere with these guys so far, because they didn't see it coming?

(LAUGHTER)

JESSICA YELLIN, CNN NATIONAL POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: They sure have made that clear.

Basically, they have so far said a lot of mistakes were made, without pointing to the person, the fundamental problem that could have fixed it, could have done it differently.

You heard an apology. Robert Rubin, who was the former treasury secretary under Bill Clinton, said that he regrets missing the coming calamity. But neither of them has said, look, I should have known that we were making bad investments and that these bad investments would have ricocheted through the economy.

Both of them have said, basically, we delegate those decisions to staff, and staff didn't make the right decisions. They even say staff couldn't have known any better. Basically, no one could have known, in their estimation.

LEMON: What happened to, I'm in charge; the buck stops with me?

YELLIN: Right.

LEMON: Yes.

YELLIN: Let me break it down for one moment, because what they're -- it's a fascinating question. While they say the buck stops here, both of them say, we're very senior level and we have to hire good people. So, we hire good people, who made their investments in these subprime mortgages.

LEMON: Yes.

YELLIN: Well, was it that person's fault? No, they say, because those people relied on these things we have been talking about, rating agencies. And they say the rating agencies should have told us these were risky investments.

You go to the rating agencies, they say, it was not our job. We were giving our opinion that they seemed like they were safe, but it's just an opinion. The banks should have known that it was not necessarily a solid opinion.

LEMON: Yes.

YELLIN: So, it's real squishy. No one has taken responsibility.

LEMON: Yes, I hear that a lot from CEOs and bosses. When it's going good, that's a good answer, but when it doesn't go well, it's not a good answer. It sounds like you're managing from 30,000 feet, which is never good.

So, let's -- hey, let's move on, because I want you to listen to something else, another Citi official who didn't see it coming. So, I want you to listen to this and to the comment that follows.

First, it's former board member Robert Rubin, OK, Jessica?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ROBERT RUBIN, FORMER U.S. TREASURY SECRETARY: Almost all of us, including me, who were involved in the financial system, that is to say, financial firms, regulators, rating agencies, analysts and commentators, missed the powerful combination of factors that led to this crisis and the serious possibility of a massive crisis. We all bear responsibility for not recognizing this, and I deeply regret that.

BILL THOMAS, VICE CHAIRMAN FINANCIAL CRISIS INQUIRY COMMISSION: What do you get paid for, if it isn't having some intuition, understanding, knowledge, or do you just do what everybody else is doing because everybody else is doing it, and if you don't do it, then you won't make money? Because I do think it's all about money. And it was big money.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: So, you just heard, Jessica, Commissioner Thomas ask, what do you get paid for? What -- you know, that sort of makes you wonder, doesn't it?

YELLIN: Yes. And Rubin made the point that, in 2007, he didn't take his bonus. But he was paid heavily, $14 million a year, very well, before that.

This is fundamentally, Don, about the subprime mortgage crisis. That bank not only was selling subprime mortgages to homeowners who have since lost their homes, many of them, but then repackaging them as deals and selling them to investors on Wall Street. He was involved in both ends of what created the meltdown and that's why Citibank is getting special attention.

LEMON: Yes, so what happens when the person who is the Fed chair at the time didn't see it coming? And we're talking about Alan Greenspan. He testified yesterday. He said he didn't see it coming either. So, let's listen, and we will talk, OK, Jessica? (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ALAN GREENSPAN, FORMER FEDERAL RESERVE CHAIRMAN: We are dealing basically with problems, by its very nature, which are insoluble, that require us to make judgments about what the future is going to hold.

And, as I mentioned before, if we get it right 70 percent of the time, that is exceptionally good. And I think that we -- what we tried to do is the best we could, with the data that we had. And all I can say is, did we make mistakes? Of course we make mistakes.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: Seventy percent, exceptionally good. I would like to go to school and have that. I mean --

YELLIN: Right.

LEMON: -- people -- don't the people expect more from a former Fed chair?

YELLIN: Well, especially because he was so powerful and so intimidating to the people who oversaw him at the time, Don.

One of the things you have to remember is, the body that had control over Alan Greenspan was Congress. And many people you will talk to in Congress say they were just so intimidated by him and by how opaque he was. He was hard to understand when he would testify. They never pushed him as hard as they could have.

So, the other people who share responsibility here are the folks in Congress who should have been pushing him maybe a little harder through those many years. But it's certainly the 30 percent of the time he failed that matters most right now.

LEMON: Yellin's list. Thank you, Jessica Yellin.

YELLIN: Good to see you.

LEMON: They're ramming the gates of their government, and there's a pretty big reasons for Americans to care who ends up in charge here.

Plus, a former Toyota executive warned his company's leadership to come clean. Who is he? And why would he say that? It's next on our list of the most intriguing people in the news.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: All right, who is in charge in Kyrgyzstan? Right now, it is not exactly clear, a violent revolution playing out on the streets of the Central Asian nation. Why should you care? An air base there is vital to the war in Afghanistan. That's why. In fact, 50,000 U.S. troops passed through the Manas base last month headed to the war zone. A former foreign minister says she has taken over as the interim leader there. But wait. The current president says he's not abandoning his job, even though CNN's Matthew Chance says he has left the capital.

But one thing is very clear. Protesters are very mad. Some of them ramshackled the president's burned house. They say he is corrupt and they want someone new in power. But clashes with security police have been deadly, and authorities say 75 people are dead and hundreds are injured.

So, here's what the White House is saying. President Obama is watching the situation closely and is concerned about the looting and the disorder. This is one scene from Kyrgyzstan yesterday that you can see the demonstrations there are serious.

And we're hearing that more shooting is going on right now in the capital city. These pictures from one of our crew members who is in the middle of it all, they give you an idea of the emotions behind the upheaval. The U.S. has closed the embassy and a senior State Department official says they may move people from the embassy to the air base just to be on the safe side.

And it's time now to check the list for the most intriguing person in the news today. You know the phrase speak truth to power, right? Well, this guy practiced it to his boss, on his boss. He wrote an e-mail urging one of the biggest companies in the world to come clean, "because keeping quiet was not protecting our customers." It went on to say -- check out the emphasis -- "We have a tendency for mechanical failure in acceleration pedals of a certain manufacturer."

He reportedly sent it five days before Toyota recalled more than two million vehicles because of sticky gas pedals. Toyota is not commenting on the e-mail from the now former vice president of environmental and public affairs, Irv Miller. He had a no-comment for us today, too, but his e-mail certainly makes Irv Miller most intriguing.

You know what? I guess you have to live to be 96. The prospect of jumping off a bridge isn't as scary as it used to be when you had, you know, your whole life in front of you. Well, still, you got to see this video to believe it.

And Tiger Woods, he teed off just a short time ago, and here's what I'm told, that he birdied on the third hole, birdied on the -- he hit a couple of pars and then he birdied on the third hole. And look what's circling up above Tiger, if you look closely. You know, he's Buddhist. This sign said, "Tiger, did you mean bootyism?"

We will talk about that, the new Nike Ad, and, oh, yes, his golf game. It's all coming up. What a mess.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: There are sports fans and then there are sports fans! And that kicks off our daily list of the best video, AKA, "Fotos Del Dia."

(MUSIC)

LEMON: OK. These are soccer fans in Greece before a big game there. So, why are they fighting? Well, it's a soccer game, that's why they're fighting. We're not sure why these fans were fighting.

So, see them using their feet? Hands, their flagpoles? And the bleachers as well? The Greek government is not happy at all about this. It is demanding that game organizers crackdown on violence. I think they should be.

Let's go down to South Africa, because that is where a 96-year- old man. He's name Mohr Keet. He's breaking boundaries. Look at him go.

On Tuesday, he bungee-jumped 708 feet off the bridge. And "Guinness" certifies the jump, Keet will officially become the world's oldest bungee jumper. Congratulations, I guess.

All right. Well, the pelican's name is Scoop. Please look at this. And he sure lived up to the name Scoop. The handler was explaining migratory patterns during a newscast.

Aww! Scoop migrated over and nipped him right below the belt. He did it twice. The man is now a soprano. Bad pelican!

(MUSIC)

LEMON: All right. So, listen, when he came out of the bathroom on a flight to Denver, the discussion that followed included the words, "fire" and "shoes," not a good one. The pilots took it very seriously and fighter jets responded. They scrambled.

So, why is this guy off the hook? We'll find out -- straight ahead.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I felt panic setting in. Although I knew I didn't have far to go. But it was still, I was scared.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: The rescue of four miners, sadly, at a standstill right now. We'll tell you what's going on -- next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: Now, to the big developing story here on CNN: A big holdup today in the rescue operation at the Upper Big Branch coal mine in West Virginia. I'll get to that in just a moment.

But, first, I want you to take a look at this. Massey Energy Company's CEO, his name is Don Blankenship. We've been telling you about him. He's back on Twitter today, and the first time he is tweeting about the mine disaster for the first time. So, take a look.

Here's what he starts with. He said, "Thought it might help for those of you out there wanting information about the tragedy to use Twitter" and then he goes on with the list, and let's go through them real quick. "The first time that comes to mind -- first thing that comes to mind is the dignity and compassion, understanding, and expression of the miners, families of the miners -- families, excuse me."

"Second, is the incredible courage effort, tireless work , and professionalism of Massey's members."

"And fifth is a huge number of supportive e-mails that I've received to which I could not possibly respond."

And here's his latest tweet here: "Pray for the families and the rescue workers."

Again, that's from Don Blankenship. He is the CEO of the Upper Big Branch mine.

You know, it's going to be some hours before rescuers can try to get into the mine, again. They had to pull out this morning because of high levels of deadly methane gas.

And our Brooke Baldwin is in Naoma, West Virginia. She's on the ground now.

So, Brooke, the question is, when do we expect that they can get back in that mine and try to get to those trapped workers?

BROOKE BALDWIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Don, hello, once again from now a very wet and very rainy coal country here in Naoma, West Virginia.

Timetables, best guess, best-case scenario: about 3 1/2 hours from now. We heard during a briefing a couple of hours ago. They hope to get in there sometime, Don, between 7:00 to 8:00 p.m. tonight, Eastern Standard -- Don.

LEMON: So, what do they have to do to make it safe for the rescuers? It's all part of really boring those holes, right, because they want to get the gas out. Is that part of what's -- will make it safe for rescuers?

BALDWIN: Right, you got it. You know, we've heard about these different holes -- really, we're focusing on two. One was all the way down. That's how they could test those levels and they will try to get in this morning and had to head back out because of the methane, the hydrogen, the carbon monoxide was just too bad.

Now, we can safely assume that second borehole has reached the 1,100-foot mark and then they have brought in this big massive exhaust fan, so they have to essentially exhume the bad air and push the good air in and then they have to go through a process of checking those levels and then, hopefully, once all of that is done, they can head back in there.

LEMON: All right. So, where to first, once they do get inside? Is it sort of the safe room or safe area first? So they're going to check where the miners may have gone -- may have -- their path?

BALDWIN: You got it. You got it. It's really the straight path to the rescue chamber where they are hoping and praying these four missing miners are. According to the Massey COO who spoke a little while ago, he said they are not stopping for anything. Listen --

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHRIS ADKINS, COO, MASSEY ENERGY: Do we stop and try to identify more people? No. This is still a rescue mission to us. We still have rescue chambers that we have to go to. And, you know, we still believe, you know?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: And, again, just to reiterate, this is still a rescue mission, Don.

LEMON: Yes. How long to get to the rescue chamber once they get in? Do they go right in the chamber, drill the hole? How long?

BALDWIN: You know, they haven't really given us a timetable. From the last attempt, it was about four -- 4 1/2 hours to get 500 feet shy of that rescue chamber. What will happen is they'll hop on that man trip first. And then once they get off the man trip, we just heard it, they call it a permissible vehicle, think ATV, that doesn't make sparks that would be safe in a mine. They hop off the ATV and they have to walk all the way, about a mile and a half, to get to that rescue chamber to hopefully find these guys.

LEMON: Oh, Brooke, thank you very much. And we know the families are watching and waiting and holding to hope. We appreciate it, Brooke.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ROLAND MARTIN, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: This is really a recognition, Don, of American terrorists. They were terrorists. These were people who committed treason. No, they were terrorists.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: A simple conversation can cause a stir. This is over the governor of Virginia declares April Confederate History Month but ignores slavery in his proclamation. We brought you this story yesterday and it picked up a whole heck of a lot of steam. Roland Martin isn't the only one outraged about this. Wait until you hear what the Reverend Jesse Jackson told me just today.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: OK. So, just fair warning to everyone who's on Twitter, I just told them here's the conversation that got everybody riled up.

At the top of the hot list was my conversation with CNN contributor Roland Martin yesterday. Roland and I were discussing Virginia governor, Republican Governor Bob McDonnell, proclaiming April Confederate History Month, right?

And our talk yesterday on the show ignited what can be called a firestorm. The interview went viral. You guys burned up the phone lines.

So, we figured we had to run part of the interview again. I started off by asking Roland about the political ramifications of the proclamation.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: I went to the Web site just to see what it was about, Roland, and here's what he said.

MARTIN: Right.

LEMON: He called the Civil War, quote, "a four-year war between the states for independence." What does that gain him politically by doing that?

MARTIN: OK. First of all, here's the deal, and this is the problem -- Republicans are always talking about how they don't like for folks to brand them as being racist or bigots, and I understand that.

But the last two Democratic governors, Mark Warner as well as Tim Kaine, did not issue a proclamation. Tim Kaine also said, look, it makes no sense. The two previous Republican governors issued the same proclamation.

And so, who are they actually playing to? This is really a recognition, Don, of American terrorists. They were terrorists. These were people who committed treason. No, they were terrorists.

LEMON: But, Roland, let me tell you this -- I understand what you're saying. And when we talked about this -- listen, I'm a freedom of speech person. I believe people have the right to say and protest whatever you want. If you start, you know, threatening people, if there's hate speech or that kind of thing, that's where you draw the line.

There is a history to this country for Confederacy, but should we celebrate it? That's the question.

MARTIN: Don --

LEMON: What he said --

MARTIN: -- they were terrorists.

LEMON: Before you answer it -- before you answer it, he says that what exploration -- "We are going through a period where we need to explore our history and an exploration of our history can benefit all," that's what he said. An exploration of our history could benefit all.

MARTIN: OK, right. And I can give you in -- I can give you in 30 seconds versus a whole month what it was all about.

These were American terrorists. These were individuals who were committing a sin against humanity, who wanted to keep the system of oppression, the degradation, and absolute denial of opportunities for African-Americans.

We're celebrating people and had they won, Don, you and I would not be sitting here right now. You and I would be in the fields right now as property as opposed to being free individuals.

And so, that's like somebody saying, oh, we're going to celebrate the Nazi soldiers by saying, well, they were only doing their job as opposed to working in concentration camps. I'm not going to let these folks off the hook. This is a celebration of American terrorists, not freedom of speech.

LEMON: Roland --

MARTIN: Not the First Amendment. That's what it is.

LEMON: I get your point.

MARTIN: Why do we want to sit here and play around with it?

LEMON: People always say that. I mean, we can't predict. We don't have a crystal ball. We don't know how it would have been the other way, but --

MARTIN: OK, well, let's start with what they were doing.

LEMON: I think you're probably right in the sense you may not have as African-Americans have the same opportunities.

MARTIN: Probably?

LEMON: But we don't know if we're going to be in the field or whatever.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: And a lot of you thought I was disagreeing with what Roland had to say. What I was disagreeing was that he didn't have a crystal ball and didn't know exactly where I would be sitting or he would be sitting or anyone else for that matter. So, I didn't disagree with what he had to say, just one point of his argument.

So, you know, as the day went on and the evening, this really picked up steam. Roland Martin later appeared on "AC360" right here on CNN, he appeared on that show along with Brag Bowling of the Sons of Confederate Veterans, and it really got even more heated. Look at this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BRAG BOWLING, SONS OF CONFEDERATE VETERANS: I think Governor McDonnell was writing a proclamation for our organization and that's the approach he took and he's changed it now because of -- because of the vitriolic opposition of people like Roland. ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR: Roland, I want you to be able to respond.

MARTIN: No. And here's the problem, your organization does not represent all Virginians.

He is the governor of the Commonwealth of Virginia. That means whites, African-Americans, Hispanics, Asians, men, women, people who support Confederate veterans and those who oppose them.

When the governor makes this kind of decision, he has to make it for all of the people in that particular state. That is what's so offensive.

No one -- any right-thinking person, especially any African- American, would not sit here and support the praise and celebration of a group of people who wanted to oppress their ancestors.

So, when you talk about your ancestors, trust me, mine were in chains. They were beaten. They were oppressed. They were degraded. Families were broken up.

And for you to say, well, they had to sacrifice. Well, guess what? People with my skin color paid a significant sacrifice by dealing with the folks who you are supporting.

BOWLING: Well, I can say this, that I don't think that -- that you represent the feelings of all black people either.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: All right, well, here's what the Reverend Jesse Jackson had to say. He was in Atlanta today, by the way. So, I asked him to come over and share his perspective.

Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REV. JESSE JACKSON, RAINBOW/PUSH COALITION: It should never be used to politically exploit fears for votes.

LEMON: You think that's what it is, exploiting fears?

JACKSON: Oh, the governor knows exactly what he was doing. He knew what bell he was ringing. They can't celebrate secession from the Union. We can't celebrate and sedition and slavery and segregation and lynching. We cannot celebrate the fact that we had to have legislation to make lynching a federal crime. We can't celebrate something so ugly, so painful. We should never forget it, but we should always put it in perspective.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: OK, listen -- that was the Reverend Jesse Jackson. I want to tell you, I spoke with Roland Martin today. Here's what he to say. I left my glasses, and everyone comments on good or bad at home. So, these are my old ones.

Here's what Roland says: "Right now, there is a family member of an al Qaeda terrorist that is saying they had a calling, a mission to do what they did. And it was just -- it was just and it was right. Just like al Qaeda, the Confederate warriors were terrorists. They were trying to uphold a system that was and is a sin against humanity, and I will not be silent in calling it exactly what it is. They were, and are, domestic terrorists, who took up arms against their country."

Again, that is from Roland Martin, I spoke to him not more than an hour ago about some of things that people are saying about him and what they're calling him as well.

Listen, I want tell you, if you want to comment on this, if you want to -- whatever you want to say about, talk to other people on Twitter, go to Twitter@DonLemonCNN, and, of course, @RickSanchezCNN, and we'll get your comments on the air.

"Hey, thanks," someone said, "I am so glad that you guys rerun the segment." Thank you very much. We appreciate it.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHARLES PRINCE, FORMER CEO, CITIGROUP: Let me start by saying I'm sorry. I'm sorry for the millions of people, average Americans, who have lost their homes.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: The former CEO of a big bank, apologizes to Americans who lost their homes. Why now? Christine Romans -- she will drill down on that for you.

And she also has a special report on why the nation's huge debt will likely be left to your children to pay. You don't want to miss this. That's after the break.

Hi, Christine.

(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)

CALLER: Hi, Rick. This is George from Indiana. I just saw Roland on TV calling my ancestors terrorists. Come on. This is the last thing we need in this country right now. I thought Roland was a much more intelligent man than this. But I guess I'm wrong.

(END AUDIO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)

CALLER: Hey, Rick, this is Vicky (ph) from Virginia. And I agree with Roland Martin about this Confederate History Month. That's a bunch of B.S., and it's -- and they were terrorists, and what they did was wrong. But I live in the South, and I know how deeply engrained it is.

(END AUDIO CLIP)

LEMON: See if you have the nerve or you really want to respond around here, sometimes you get on. So, again, we appreciate your feedback.

Let's go to the top of our financial list today. And at the top of that list is the former chief executive of Citigroup. His name is Charles "Chuck" Prince. Well, today, during his testimony before a congressional panel in Washington, he apologized for not anticipating the financial crisis. Prince, who was CEO from 2003 to 2007 retired after Citigroup announced that it would write-down about $11 billion in losses related to its holdings of risky mortgage-backed securities.

Christine Romans joins us now from New York. Christine, it's always good to see you. But, unfortunately, we have to talk about a very serious topic here.

So, if we couldn't see this meltdown coming, how do we think that we can prevent another financial meltdown from happening?

CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: And that is the question, Don. It really is the question as this commission -- basically what they're calling the 9/11 Commission of the financial crisis, trying to figure out what went wrong, who's to blame, how you keep it from happening again, even as we're right now still in the wreckage of the mistakes that these people made.

First of all, the CEO of Citi and also, a senior adviser and former treasury secretary Robert Rubin both said, "America, we're sorry."

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ROBERT RUBIN, FMR. CITI EXEC./FMR. TREASURY SECY.: Almost all of us, including me, who were involved in the financial system -- that is to say financial firms, regulators, rating agencies, analysts and commentators -- missed the powerful combination of factors that led to this crisis and the serious possibility of a massive crisis. We all bear responsibility for not recognizing this, and I deeply regret that.

PRINCE: I'm sorry for the millions of people, average Americans, who have lost their homes. And I'm sorry that our management team, starting with me, like so many others, could not see the unprecedented market collapse that lay before us.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROMANS: They just didn't see it coming. But a lot of Americans who are out of work, they don't feel any better with the apologies. They want to know how are you going to make sure this doesn't happen again, and how are you going to make sure that short-termism, it has been phrased, that just getting paid real quick for making a lot of money on real sketchy kinds of investments, how are you going to make sure that doesn't come back or isn't even back already, Don.

LEMON: It seems like the stock answer now. We just didn't see it coming. So, you know --

ROMANS: And I'm sorry. No one saw it coming. It was a perfect storm of -- I know, I've heard it 1,000 times.

LEMON: But, in the meantime, you know, I don't know about you, I'm not a millionaire yet. But most of the people who didn't see it coming are millionaires. So, you know, what gives?

Here's the thing, too, Christine. We're spending all of this money digging ourselves out of this financial crisis.

ROMANS: Right.

LEMON: And I'm talking taxpayers, we all are. But that's only adding to our already mounting deficits. And that is a topic of a special program that you're going to be hosting this weekend. It's called "IOU.S.A.: Solutions," right?

ROMANS: And solutions is the key. It's the follow-up to the critically-acclaimed film last year "IOU.S.A." which looked at the exploding debt crisis in this country. And this is about how to fix it.

Do you cut -- do you cut spending? Do you raise taxes? Do you change some of the benefit structures of Medicare and Social Security? Do you go to a totally different kind of tax structure? And is it fair to bequeath on the next generation all of this debt?

We talk to young people about how they feel about all the debt that the United States is racking up. Listen to what they said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: One of the things I think will be absolutely crucial is to have an intergenerational dialogue with our parents and our grandparents about the types of sacrifices that they're willing to make as well. So, for instance, if I have to pay higher taxes, maybe my grandparents will have to take a slight benefit cut. They're probably not going to like me saying that on national television. But I think that all of those different types of sacrifices need to be made collectively and together. ROMANS: You just got less money in your birthday check this year from grandma and grandpa, I can guarantee you. They're going to tell you you can put that towards your -- towards your own future.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROMANS: Anyway, a very frank and a very fun, but also very smart and frank discussion about what to do about all of this debt that we have. Once the economy recovers and is really recovered, then what kind of tough choices have to be made. And the film is fantastic, Don, because it really takes a look at -- it tries to boil down with great graphics exactly what the financial situation of the country is without taking a stand on how much money we're spending right now to get ourselves out of this --

LEMON: OK.

ROMANS: -- of this financial crisis. But just down the road, what kind of decisions we're going to have to make to reel it back in.

LEMON: Hey, listen, we have a time crunch here. But it runs during the doc hour on Saturday and Sunday, right? Is that correct, the documentary hour?

ROMANS: That's right.

LEMON: Eight p.m. -- 8:00 and 11:00 p.m. Eastern, right?

ROMANS: Yes. On this weekend. Thanks.

LEMON: Thank you very much, Christine Romans. We'll see you this weekend.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: The United States and Russia account for 90 percent of the world's nuclear weapons. And given this legacy of the Cold War, it is critical for us to show significant leadership

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: The U.S. and Russia sign a landmark agreement on nuclear weapons. What does it mean for you? That's straight ahead.

And, hey, you want to be on the show? Want to be on the show? We'll let you be part of the show. You got to call this number, though, 1-877-4CNN-TOUR -- 1-877-4CNN-TOUR. Be on the show.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)