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Rick's List
Deadliest Month in Afghan War; Interview With New York Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney; Bipartisan Bad Blood on Display; Race in Politics; Innocent Man Held Another Day
Aired July 30, 2010 - 16:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: Oh, boy, imagine the help wanted ad for this story on our LIST. Maybe it went something like this: "Wanted, someone to smoke medical marijuana and review it for a Denver newspaper. Wait a minute. I forgot what I have been saying, because I have been smoking marijuana."
(LAUGHTER)
LEMON: "Must have knowledge of pot. That's required. Writing ability desirable. Must have a medical condition. Salary negotiable. Well, this isn't a joke really."
Our Poppy Harlow rides along with the guy who landed this job.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
POPPY HARLOW, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Not only is this legal; it pays the bills.
(on camera): So you get paid to smoke pot and write about it?
"WILLIAM BREATHES," MARIJUANA CRITIC: I get paid to smoke pot and write about it, yes.
HARLOW (voice-over): His pen name is William Breathes and he's one of the first medical marijuana critic in the country. We can't show you his face, because his job depends on staying anonymous, just like a restaurant critic.
(on camera): You can be high doing your job?
BREATHES: And my boss knows it.
HARLOW (voice-over): A decade after medical marijuana was legalized in Colorado, it's estimated about 2 percent of the state's population, or more than 100,000 people, have applied for medical marijuana licenses. According to one Harvard economists, roughly $18 billion is spent on pot every year in the U.S. and Denver's "Westword" paper has capitalized as just that, hiring Breathes as a pot critic who reviews the dispensaries and the quality of the marijuana they sell.
JONATHAN SHIKES, MANAGING EDITOR, "DENVER WESTWORD": He has a journalism degree. He was a good writer. And he could also punctuate and he could spell, which was very different than a lot of people who applied for the job.
HARLOW: As for Breathes, he's been smoking for 15 years to ease chronic stomach pains, but now his medicine pays his mortgage. We tagged along to see for ourselves, and we didn't take our cameras inside, but take a listen.
BREATHES: Oh, that's great.
CLERK: Wanna do the cough?
BREATHES: I'm going to have to go with that.
CLERK: Cool. An eighth or --
BREATHES: Yes, I will go with an eighth. Do you guys have any (INAUDIBLE) up here?
HARLOW (on camera): Can you -- can you show us what you got?
BREATHES: Yes, I got a joint -- a pre-rolled joint of some sour diesel and some really chunky, real -- real good looking pot.
HARLOW: I can smell it.
BREATHES: Yes, you can smell the musk.
HARLOW: It's like permeating the whole car.
BREATHES: Yes, exactly. That muskiness is something you really look for in...
HARLOW: Whew.
(CROSSTALK)
HARLOW: Does that means it's good?
BREATHES: Yes.
HARLOW (voice-over): Back at his home office, it's time to get to work.
BREATHES: Load up a little bit and taste it. Try to taste the smoke as it comes out. And like I was saying, it has a real like woody finish. And then, you know, after a few hits of that you try and feel what type of buzz it is and what it's doing to my body medically.
HARLOW (on camera): So you know the critics would say that you just want to get high.
BREATHES: Oh, yes, definitely. And I'm not going to lie. There is -- there's a fun aspect to this medicine. But if you can see me on a morning when I'm really sick, when pot really helps me the most, it's truly medical.
(END VIDEOTAPE) LEMON: And, as you can imagine, the paper received lots of applications for the job. By the way, that was our Poppy Harlow.
The paper also says some people offered to work for free,but none of them got the job.
Listen, lots going on here we want to tell you about, including news about the RNC chair, Michael Steele. We will tell you that right here this hour.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON (voice-over): Here's what's making the LIST today.
House Republicans say no to money that would help victims of 9/11.
REP. PETER KING (R-NY), HOMELAND SECURITY COMMITTEE RANKING MEMBER: You could pass this bill if you wanted to. You are in the control. You have the power. You have the responsibility.
LEMON: And a New York Democrat is furious.
REP. ANTHONY WEINER (D), NEW YORK: It's Republicans wrapping their arms around Republicans, rather than doing the right thing on behalf of the heroes! It is a shame!
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I was just like, don't move. I tried to hold him for the police. They took so long.
LEMON: The owner of a cell phone store doesn't bother calling the cops on this one. You've got see him stop this crime in progress. It's "Fotos."
This man says Tennessee needs a black congressman and he wants the job.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It is as if only white people live in the great state of Tennessee. We lack representation.
LEMON: But the president has offered his rare endorsement to the white candidate.
The lists you need to know about. Who's today's most intriguing? Who's making news on Twitter? It's why I keep a list.
Pioneering tomorrow's news right now.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON: Hello, everyone. Don Lemon in today. Rick is off.
And it is hour two. It's time to pick up the pace on today's LIST for those of you who are now just checking in.
Number one: Democrats and Republicans doing their best to make each other look bad. And they're succeeding at it, too. We put them on the LIST because -- after what happened on the House floor last night. It's what being called a show of partisanship.
House Republicans defeated a bill that would have provided health care for 9/11 first-responders.
I want you to listen to the bad blood between fellow New Yorkers Peter King and Anthony Weiner. We will begin with Representative King.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KING: What we are doing tonight is a cruel hoax and a charade. Everyone knows this bill won't get the two-thirds majority required on the suspension calendar. Everyone also knows that this bill would pass with a clear majority if the Democrat leadership would allow it to come to the floor under the regular procedures of the House.
The reason HR-847 is not being brought up under regular order is that the majority party is petrified of having its members face a potential vote on illegal immigration.
They say they want Republican support, yet they never consulted even one Republican before they made the corporate tax increases to pay for it. They say they wanted Republican support before they pass this bill, but they never applied that standard when they ran through the stimulus, health care, cap and trade, or financial regulatory reform.
No, you only apply it to cops and firefighters and construction workers. What a sad and pathetic double standard. These heroes deserve better than they are receiving here tonight.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: All right, that was just the beginning. Here is where things go nuclear. After Congressman King finishes, New York Democrat Anthony Weiner just explodes. Here you go.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The gentleman from New York is recognized.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Mr. Speaker, I yield one minute to the distinguished gentleman from New York, Mr. Weiner.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The gentleman is recognized.
WEINER: Great courage to wait until all members have already spoken and then stand up and wrap your arms around procedure.
We see it in the United States Senate every single day, where members say, we want amendments. We want debate. We want amendments, but we're still a no. And then we stand up and say, oh, if only we had a different process, we would vote yes.
You vote yes if you believe yes. You vote in favor of something if you believe it's the right thing! If you believe it's the wrong thing, you vote no.
We are following a procedure...
(CROSSTALK)
WEINER: I will not yield to the gentleman, and the gentleman will observe regular order.
(CROSSTALK)
WEINER: The gentleman will observe regular order!
(CROSSTALK)
WEINER: The gentleman think that if he gets up and yells, he's going to intimidate people into believing he's right. He is wrong! The gentleman is wrong! The gentleman is providing cover for his colleagues, rather than doing the right thing!
It's Republicans wrapping their arms around Republicans, rather than doing the right thing on behalf of the heroes! It is a shame, a shame!
If you believe this is a bad idea to provide health care, then vote no! But don't give me the cowardly view that, oh, if it was a different procedure.
(CROSSTALK)
WEINER: The gentleman will observe regular order and sit down! I will not! The gentleman will sit. The gentleman is correct in sitting.
(CROSSTALK)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The gentleman will suspend. The gentleman will suspend. The gentleman is recognized.
WEINER: I will not stand here and listen to my colleagues say, oh, if only I had a different procedure that allows us to stall, stall, stall and then vote no.
Instead of standing up and defending your colleagues in voting no on this humane bill, you should urge them to vote yes, something the gentleman has not done!
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: Wow. The bill failed, with just 12 House Republicans supporting it.
Let's turn to these two people now.
Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney, she sponsored the bill. She is joining me from Washington. And so does CNN's political correspondent Candy Crowley.
Thanks to both of you. Congresswoman, I have to ask you first -- it's the first time I have gotten to talk to you -- how do you feel? I know that you said that you're going to take this back in front of the House. But how do you feel about this bill being defeated?
REP. CAROLYN MALONEY (D), NEW YORK: Well, I feel that one of the things we wanted to accomplish was a vote before the ninth anniversary of 9/11.
I have been working on this bill for eight years, and it's time to pass it and give the heroes and heroines the support that they need and open the victims compensation fund and help the victims of 9/11.
I -- I feel that it -- we gained momentum. We had 255 votes, including 12 Republicans. Four Democrats voted against it. And my goal is to have it on the floor again under regular rule, majority rule, which would be -- require only 218 votes.
We clearly had the 218 votes to pass it. And we need to keep our -- our eye on that accomplishment and on winning for the -- for the victims and helping the people. It went under a suspension -- suspension rule, which is a very high bar. It is a two-thirds vote.
As Candy knows, it's very hard to get there.
LEMON: Let me ask -- let me ask you. Congresswoman, without -- not getting too wonky for our audience, because not everybody understands the way things are done in Washington. I don't all the time.
Why not just a simple majority? Why did Democrats put the bill in, put the bill in front of everyone, without just a simple majority?
MALONEY: That was a choice of our leadership due to time constraints. We're closing up tonight. They did not feel we had enough time on the floor, so they gave us a suspension vote. The delegation felt that at least it was a step in the right direction. We...
LEMON: Was that the right choice, though? Was that the right choice?
MALONEY: It's the choice that we have. We have 255 votes. That's a very positive vote. If it comes up under regular rule, it will definitely pass. That is my goal and many of our goals, to get it before the House again, among the first votes when we come back.
LEMON: OK. Stand by, Congresswoman. I will talk to you in just a little bit.
I want to bring Candy Crowley in.
Candy, I have Mayor Bloomberg's quote here. And I don't know if we still have that. He said -- he criticized both -- both parties, saying: "It was wrong for the overwhelming majority of Republicans to vote against the bill, and it was wrong for Democrats to bring the bill to the floor under rules that made passage so much more difficult."
Is the mayor correct in that?
CANDY CROWLEY, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, listen, I think you can find blame to go around. And certainly he did.
One of the reasons that they brought this to the floor with such a high standard for passing it that the Democrats didn't want Republicans to offer amendments that might embarrass Democrats in an election year, for instance, that none of this money would go to undocumented workers.
It puts the immigration issue back on the table. And one of the reasons that the leadership felt that it could put that bar up there, I'm sure -- and some of the legislation is a game of chicken -- that they didn't think that Republicans would vote against it, because a clear majority, as the congresswoman said, support the bill.
What Republicans were upset about was that they were locked out of the process, and -- they feel they were locked out of the process, and they did want to offer amendments.
LEMON: But, Candy, so, they felt they were locked out of the process, but what I have read is that they were concerned about, they said, the $7.4 billion that was going to go with this. And money is tight right now.
CROWLEY: Yes.
But, again, there was a majority that was going to pass this bill. It's a very difficult bill to vote against. But the fact of the matter is, as clear as this may be -- and, by the way, this health fund has been funded on a year-to-year basis up until now. This attempts to make it a longer period of time, a longer stretch, so it doesn't require approval every year.
So, you know, yes, that's what they say. But, again, they also want to vote for these. They also want these amendments out there. And why do they want them out there? They do want them out there for political purposes, just as the Democrats don't want them out there for political purposes.
LEMON: OK.
CROWLEY: So, it sounds like they're going to change the rule anyway.
LEMON: Congresswoman, what do you think...
(CROSSTALK)
MALONEY: I think Candy is absolutely right, and what we need to do is put the politics aside and help the heroes and -- and veterans and victims of 9/11.
The -- the $7.4 billion is a small price that would be spent here at home on the first veterans in the war against terror. Just this week, we voted $59 billion for the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, bringing the total to roughly a trillion dollars in foreign wars, yet the incident that began these wars, the heroes and veterans of that, the first warriors that -- in the war on terror, have not been taken care of.
LEMON: Yes.
MALONEY: I think it's a national -- a national shame, a national tragedy. And we should work together and move forward, taking care of those who rushed to the burning buildings to take care of us, to take care of our people.
LEMON: And, Congresswoman, I have read that, and I think you said it earlier in this interview, that you're going to put the bill back in front of the House again after you guys come back. So, we appreciate...
MALONEY: I'm going to push for that. That's a leadership decision.
LEMON: Thank you.
MALONEY: But I'm certainly asking for it, and the New York delegation is pushing for it.
LEMON: Congresswoman...
MALONEY: And I hope the American people will join us in pushing for it.
LEMON: We appreciate your time. Thank you so much.
I'm going to -- I'm going to tell that Florida Republican Cliff Stearns voted against the bill. And he's going to join us, oh, in about 20 minutes past the hour here on CNN.
But, first, I want to go back to our Candy Crowley.
Candy, let's talk about Charlie Rangel right now. He's in a heap of trouble. I thought that it was yesterday, that yesterday was the deadline for him to make some sort of compromise. Was it yesterday or is it today? Have they -- because I understand they have been meeting trying to figure out what -- what to do with this situation.
CROWLEY: Listen, as far as Democrats are concerned, it's whenever he can make it.
And what they're trying to avoid, what they hope to avoid is a public trial in the House on this. It's not trial, obviously, in the courts, but it is in the House. So, they are -- look, it's like plea bargaining a little bit, because he gets -- you know, his lawyer can say, listen, he's not going to say he is guilty of these. He's just going to say he's sorry for the oversight.
I'm making this up, mind you, but, I mean, that is how it works. And then the committee could say, uh-uh, we need to censure or we need to, you know, do this or that.
LEMON: Mm-hmm. CROWLEY: So, that's what's going on. And I know of no deadline that would...
LEMON: Yes.
CROWLEY: ... make it so that he couldn't -- that his lawyers still couldn't be bargaining.
LEMON: Yes. Candy Crowley, we appreciate it. We are going to be checking this in THE SITUATION ROOM coming up, and, of course, "STATE OF THE UNION" on Sunday 9:00 a.m. Eastern time.
Thank you, Candy.
CROWLEY: Yes.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ADMIRAL MICHAEL MULLEN, JOINTS CHIEFS CHAIRMAN: The truth is, they might already have on their hands the blood of some young soldier or that of an Afghan family.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: Those explosives words aimed at the founder of WikiLeaks, after his Web site released thousands of secret documents about the war in Afghanistan. That's straight ahead here on the LIST.
Plus: more bloodshed in Afghanistan. July has now become the deadliest month for American troops in the entire war, and it comes as the U.S. begins a major offensive against the Taliban -- details next right here on the LIST.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Hey, Rick. This is Rissi (ph) from Illinois.
Oh, man, Rick, did you see Anthony Weiner? Oh, I love that. I would love for our president to be the same way. All these corporations and BP and Halliburton and everybody just gets away with all this nonsense. We need to see more of that. Uh-huh. That's the way I look at it, Rick, but no fighting.
(END AUDIO CLIP)
LEMON: We appreciate your calls.
And we want to go now to the roundup list. We're keeping eyes on these stories.
Number one: The deadliest single month for U.S. troops in Afghanistan since the war began, which one? It's this one, July 2010. So far this month, 66 American service members have died serving in Afghanistan. That includes six over the past two days. Twenty-two members of coalition partner militaries also died this month there.
Number two now: A big chunk of California is burning right now, on fire, so far, more than 17,000 acres from three separate wildfires. One fire is in Palmdale in northern Los Angeles County. No mandatory evacuations right now, but that could change.
And here's what fire officials are saying. They say they're also concerned about electric lines that supply power to Southern California, lines that are near one of the fires.
Those are live pictures right there from the Palmdale area in California. Again, no mandatory evacuations, but that could all change, and, again, separate wildfires causing all of this, all of these problems there. You're looking at live pictures. We will update you.
We want to go now to number three: fire again. Enormous fires are raging across five regions of western Russia. It's dry there, with the highest temperature since the 1870s. Wildfires have destroyed more than 1,000 homes and killed at least 25 people. The military is on round-the-clock firefighting duty with planes and with helicopters as well.
This month will go down as the hottest July ever recorded -- ever -- ever -- in Moscow.
We have brand-new developments to tell you about in the WikiLeaks controversy. We're now hearing from the apparent whistle-blower in this case, a hacker, in his own words.
That's next right here on the LIST.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: Boy, this story has really been burning up the blogs, the Internet, and also it's been fodder for news.
The investigation into who leaked secret Afghanistan field reports to the Web site WikiLeaks is pushing forward, and the fallout may be growing from this. An Army private accused of leaking the more than 90,000 classified military documents is now in the Marine Corps brig in Quantico, Virginia.
Twenty-two-year-old Bradley Manning was an intelligence analyst with top-secret clearance to sensitive information about the war. He could face court-martial. The former hacker who tipped off the Pentagon about Manning spoke to our very own just Drew Griffin a short while ago.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ADRIAN LAMO, ALERTED GOVERNMENT TO WIKILEAKS SUSPECT: Why did I do it? Quite simply put, because I did not believe that any individual or small group of individuals could vet these documents to a degree sufficient to be able to say without any sort of doubt that they would not result in loss of human life. (END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: Julian Assange, the founder of WikiLeaks, remains defiant, despite accusations from Defense Secretary Robert Gates and Admiral Mike Mullen, who said yesterday that he had -- quote -- "blood on his hands" and was jeopardizing lives by posting those documents.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JULIAN ASSANGE, FOUNDER, WIKILEAKS: We are disappointed in what was left out of Secretary Gates' comments.
Secretary Gates spoke about hypothetical blood, but the grounds of Iraq and Afghanistan are covered with real blood. Secretary Gates has overseen the killings of thousands of children and adults in these two countries. Secretary Gates could have used his time, as other nations have done, to announce a broad inquiry into these killings.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: Well, the Pentagon and the military's top brass both say no one will be surprised if al Qaeda and the Taliban are poring over those documents right now with the intent of retaliating against Afghans who have helped U.S. forces.
A Taliban spokesman confirms to CNN that they are studying the WikiLeaks documents, but he mentioned nothing about hunting down and punishing informants.
The uproar over that bill for 9/11 rescue workers, the one that was supposed to help them out, $7.4 billion, you saw Congressman Anthony Weiner on the House floor just exploding. We heard from the Democrat, the one who sponsored the bill, Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney. We are going to hear from a Republican congressman next. Cliff Stearns is going to join us right here on the LIST.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: Boy, this has suddenly become the topic of the day here.
Health care for 9/11 first-responders became the latest victims of partisan politics during a Capitol Hill showdown last night. So, the question we're asking here on the LIST today, has the bad blood between Democrats and Republicans rendered -- any chance of getting any legislation passed at all?
So, you may have the -- seen the outrage, right? One lawmaker really got upset. We played it here for you here on the LIST just a few minutes ago, but we wanted you to hear what the non-politicians have to say about this.
So, last hour, I talked with first-responder John Feal. He is one of the guys who rushed to ground zero to help with rescue efforts.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOHN FEAL, FOUNDER, FEALGOOD FOUNDATION: The way it was put on the floor, as a suspension bill, we knew it would fail.
Both congressmen, King and Weiner, are right, but both congressmen, King and Weiner, are wrong. One said it was a sham. It was a sham. One said it was a shame, and it is a shame. Because of bipartisan, reckless politics, it's the 9/11 responders that suffer. Because two parties can't agree and have different ideologies on how to help somebody, we're the ones who suffer.
They should have voted like an American last night, instead of like a Republican or a Democrat. That vote should have been 435 to nothing. Instead, we have to wait another six or seven weeks before they come back from their long, overrated recess, and, hopefully, we get the floor...
(CROSSTALK)
FEAL: I'm sorry.
LEMON: Yes, go ahead. Finish your thought and then I will go on with my question.
FEAL: Well, we have to wait for them to come back and hopefully we put the bill back on the floor at the end of September, and, as a regular rules bill, which only needs 218 votes, and we know, we're confident we're going to win. But the thing is, Don, we're running out of time.
LEMON: Yes.
Let me ask you this, because Carolyn Maloney, who sponsored the bill, she says that she is going to take this up after the recess. But let me ask you, you said it was a sham. That's because Republican opponents say they were concerned about the $7.4 billion cost of the program. And money is an issue right now. We will go on about the Democrats after this.
But money is an issue right now. Do you think they have a point?
FEAL: The bill does not add -- Don, the bill does not add to the deficit. There's no more -- this bill does not touch the deficit. The congressman from California who said this was a tax gimmick, this is not a tax gimmick.
And if you're going to put 9/11 responders on the table and their health and their welfare -- and 900 have died since 9/11 -- against foreign companies having to pay tax or tax-cheat, then it's a no- brainer.
And when they call this an entitlement, you know what? The men and women who risked their lives without prejudice nine years ago, they are entitled to this, because they worked under the guideline that Christie Todd Whitman said that the air was safe to breathe.
And now all of these men and women now are deathly ill. So, yes, it is an entitlement. They're entitled to this.
LEMON: So, let's talk about the Democrats now.
FEAL: Sure.
LEMON: Instead of a simple majority, Democrats used rules requiring a wider majority for approval to prevent Republicans from offering amendments on the floor that they said would embarrass them in an election year.
And here's what Michael Bloomberg says, the mayor of New York. He criticized both parties. And he says: "It was wrong for the overwhelming majority of Republicans to vote against the bill, and it was wrong for Democrats to bring the bill to the floor under rules that made passage so much more difficult."
Mr. Feal?
FEAL: I agree with the mayor. But I hope the mayor just doesn't make a statement today and that he gets more involved. As one of the most powerful politicians, elected officials in the country, he needs to be more involved, and he needs to insert himself more, because he's the mayor of New York City, and thousands in New Yorkers are sick and dying from their heroic actions.
I have the utmost respect for all of these elected officials. I have worked closely with all of them. And I know this bill better than all of them. And, Don, high school was hard on me, but I know this bill inside and out. And I have been advocating it now for almost five years.
I have made enough trips to D.C. to circumnavigate the Earth. And I'm confident, in September, we will pass it. But Congress has to get their act together.
LEMON: John Feal, your foundation is the FealGood Foundation. Is there a Web site? How can people find out more?
FEAL: Don, they can all go to www.fealgoodfoundation.com. It's F-E- A-L, like my last name. And they can learn about the horrific, horrific, horrifying stories of 9/11 responders and what they're going through, people losing their homes, losing their cars, not having gas to get to their chemotherapy appointments.
This is un-American. And I blame this on Congress. And the Senate, they better take notice, because, when we do pass this in the House, we're going to gun for the Senate, and they better start voting yes, too.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: Boy, Cliff Stearns, that's a tough act to follow.
Let me tell everyone that Cliff Stearns is a Florida Republican who voted against the bill. He joins me now from Washington.
Listen, you heard Mr. Feal. Did he change how you feel about it? If you had -- if he had spoken on the floor, if you had heard his story, might you have changed the way you voted?
REP. CLIFF STEARNS (R), FLORIDA: Don, I would not have. First of all, let me say this has nothing to do with ideology. This is a bill that I'll explain here shortly -- is a bill that really is not a sound bill and is another entitlement. It goes for 21 years.
Did you know that? It goes for 21 years. It's $7.5 billion, but it could be added on with more money.
Now, all of us, either party, both parties, agree that we should reimburse and help the people who have health problems because of 9/11. That's no doubt about it. But there is no better source on whether we should pass this bill than Kenneth Feinberg.
Kenneth Feinberg, of course, was the gentleman who was in charge of the 9/11 Commission that disbursed the funds for health care for the 9/11 victims. He testified that this bill should be a five-year reauthorization bill that sunsets and look at it in five years. The Democrats made this 21 years and the GAO has said it's an entitlement. It's not --
LEMON: All right, Congressman, let me get in here and talk, because listen, I know this is $7.4 billion. The congresswoman said that's a small price to pay, and she called them 9/11 veterans, 9/11 heroes.
STEARNS: OK.
LEMON: I didn't rescue anyone on 9/11. I can't imagine what it was like. But if we're spending all of this money on wars and on bailouts and all these other things, the people who ran towards those buildings instead of running away, how do you put a price on that? How do you put a time limit on that?
STEARNS: It's nothing to do with putting a timeline or a price on it. The question is, when you look at the bill it's set up so that people can come in and say that they have health care problems, and they don't have to prove it. So there is a possibility of a huge amount of --
(CROSSTALK)
LEMON: So you're not saying that the bill shouldn't be passed. You're not saying these people shouldn't be helped. You're saying that you think that there should be some sort of time limit. And I think what you're saying to me is you believe the Democrats sort of rushed this through and you need to look at it more before you sign off on it.
Is that correct?
STEARNS: Sure. Now, Don, let me talk to you about some of the details of this bill.
It reimbursed hospitals in New York City at 140 percent of Medicare. Now, we just cut Medicare for hospitals here in Congress this year, as well as the DRGs, reimbursement for all the doctors across this country. So, yet, we're going to take New York City hospitals and pay them 140 percent?
Also, in the bill, Don, it says that when a person gets reimbursed, 25 percent of that goes for legal fees to attorneys. And the other important thing about this bill is, you know, if a person is making a $1 million or $2 million a year, they can still come in and say, "I'm having trouble breathing."
I think we have to set it up like Kenneth Feinberg did when he did the 9/11 reimbursement.
LEMON: I need you to make your point because we're running out of time, sir. Sorry about that.
STEARNS: OK. But remember, Kenneth Feinberg has said that this should not be put together as it is. And Carolyn Maloney (ph) should also read Feinberg's testimony at the judiciary which points out that this should be not an entitlement, but a five-year authorization. So we all agree we want to help these people. We just want to do it the right way.
LEMON: All right.
Cliff Stearns, Republican representative from Florida.
Thank you, sir.
STEARNS: Thank you, Don.
LEMON: You know, we want to hear what you have to say about this, as well as other stories that we have on THE LIST today. We're going top go to the Twitter boards next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: I told you we were going to go to the Twitter boards. We like your tweets. We also like tweets from people who are actually involved in the stories that we are telling here and we're talking about on the air.
So, to the Twitter board right now.
Here is what Frank Pallone, Democrat of New Jersey, says. He's tweeting about this. "Managed 9/11 health bill on House floor last night, but Republican opposition doomed expedited package."
That's what Frank Pallone is saying.
Here is what Kirsten Gillibrand is saying, also of New York. "Very disappointed the 9/11 health bill failed in the House yesterday. Our heroes deserve better."
Mike Bloomberg, the mayor of New York City, I talked to all of our guests about him, what he had to say. He said, "Congress' failure to pass 9/11 first responder benefits is outrageous."
He's the mayor of New York. Now Representative Pete King, who was part of that whole tirade with Anthony Weiner. Right? He said, "Watch me support the 9/11 health care bill while attacking the Democrats for their hypocrisy." And then there is a link to him doing that.
Thanks for your comments. We'll try to get more on, here on THE LIST. But we've got a lot more ahead.
Check this out.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
WILLIE HERENTON, FMR. MAYOR, MEMPHIS, TENNESSEE: I believe that it is very clear to the majority of the citizens of this community that we lack representation.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: All right. So that man right there, Willie Herenton, he was the mayor of Tennessee -- the first black mayor, by the way, for a long time. I sat down with him and he says Tennessee needs a black congressman, and he wants the job. But the president and the Congressional Black Caucus have offered their endorsements to another candidate -- a white candidate.
What's going on? You'll want to see the story. It's next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: There's been an increasing buzz about race relations lately. That seems like all we're talking about here, from the Tea Party movement, to Shirley Sherrod speaking at the National Association of Black Journalists yesterday. I got to talk to her there on a panel. And even the president, President Barack Obama, during his appearance on "The View," and also at the National Urban League yesterday.
And also, Sherrod says she is actually going to sue the blogger, Andrew Breitbart, who posted an edited video clip which cost her her job at the Agriculture Department.
And there is a congressional race in the cradle of the civil rights movement where one candidate, an African-American, says race should play a factor.
I went out there to see how the issue is playing out.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON (voice-over): Sunday in Memphis -- praise and worship for the faithful. A captive audience for Dr. Willie Herenton and Steve Cohen, both campaigning for Tennessee's heavily Democratic Ninth Congressional seat. Cohen is the incumbent Congressman and Herenton is gunning for his job.
HERENTON: Are you going to vote for me? You got me covered? OK, baby. I love you now. LEMON: The man who was Memphis mayor for two decades is making race a key part of the platform. The main campaign slogan on yard signs and flyers, "Just One." He believes that there should be at least one African-American from the state of Tennessee in Congress.
HERENTON: When you look at this picture, it is of one race. It is as if only white people live in the great state of Tennessee. They're African-Americans. I believe that it is very clear to the majority of the citizens of this community that we lack representation.
LEMON: But the Congressional Black Caucus is looking beyond race and is backing Herenton's white Jewish opponent. Even the first African- American president isn't supporting Herenton. Obama issued a rare endorsement calling Cohen, the two-term incumbent, a proven leader.
HERENTON: I am disappointed that the president intervened. I mean, this is a local race. A local race that the citizens of this community should determine.
LEMON: Herenton is downplaying the endorsement instead drawing attention to Cohen's singing and dancing at campaign events saying Cohen is pandering and "trying to act black." Does it bother you, your opponent talking about race so much saying that you are trying to be black? What do you think of that?
REP. STEVE COHEN (D), TENNESSEE: Well, you know, it is something that he does, and I think that it is grasping. I don't try to be black there is no way and I understand the black community probably better than most Caucasians do, because I spent so much time working on issues.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You have done so much for this district.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I really would like to thank you.
LEMON: And on the campaign trail, many of the Congressman's constituents say that his commitment on health care and education resonate more with voters than skin color.
COHEN: I represent everybody and I work hard for people to give them opportunities, and I just think that race should not be an issue in 2010.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON: All right. Here's what's important to note -- that Steve Cohen appears to have all the momentum. He has the support of the Congressional Black Caucus, and he has that critical endorsement, that rare endorsement from President Barack Obama. He clearly has the black vote in Washington, but the question is, will he have the black vote at home?
We'll follow up on that story.
We have an update to tell you about. Actually, it's new information. You see RNC Chair Michael Steele right there. He was forced to cancel an appearance today, we are told, an appearance before a national meeting of black journalists. It's called the NABJ convention. It's going on right now in San Diego. I was there yesterday.
We're told it was due to a case of food poisoning. Now, follow me. This is really six degrees of separation.
Steele was scheduled to appear at the meeting one day after Shirley Sherrod. Remember her? By the way, Andrew Breitbart was scheduled to appear at that same convention yesterday, at that same panel with Ms. Sherrod. He canceled as well. The National Association of Black Journalists has been holding its annual meeting in San Diego, California, all this week and this weekend.
So, I said six degrees of separation? That's probably three or four degrees right there. We'll find out if Michael Steele is OK. Food poisoning.
A man wrongly imprisoned for 27 years is held in jail an extra day because he complained his handcuffs were too tight.
Too tight, Brooke?
BROOKE BALDWIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes.
LEMON: My mouth isn't working. His handcuffs were too tight?
BALDWIN: Handcuffs, shackles around his feet. The guy was going home.
LEMON: Twenty-seven years. He's been there a long time. And they say one more day.
BALDWIN: One more day.
LEMON: Unbelievable.
Don't go away.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: What's trending, Brooke Baldwin? Handcuffs trending.
BALDWIN: Yes. I'll tell you, I woke up this morning and this was the first thing I was tweeting about. So let me show you this story.
Imagine this. Put yourself in this guy's position.
Imagine you're 18, you're convicted of a crime you did not commit. You spend nearly 27 years in prison, and then, thanks to some DNA evidence, you're off the hook, you're exonerated. But just when you think you're about to be freed, you've got your family waiting in court for you to give you the hugs, not yet.
In Houston, this happened to Michael Anthony Green. Here he is. He was being transported from prison to jail, and then he would be freed. He was walking with these iron shackles around his feet and he had cuffs on his hands.
So Green told this affiliate reporter down in Houston that, you know what? His cuffs hurt him when he was walking and the guard was having him walk too fast.
The guard says it led to this whole altercation. He said Green made some kind of death threats.
End result, you have this guy who spent 27 years behind bars -- again for a crime he didn't commit -- has to stay behind bars one more day.
Finally, this afternoon, Green -- there he is, to an applause -- finally walking free. Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Are you angry that you've been in prison for so long?
MICHAEL ANTHONY GREEN, SPENT 27 YEARS IN PRISON FOR CRIME HE DIDN'T COMMIT: That would come natural for doing time for something you didn't do.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Mr. Green, how did you get through the 27 years?
GREEN: Fueling my anger and studying the law.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BALDWIN: Quickly, there was a jailhouse interview last night with this affiliate reporter from KHOU. And the reporter asked, you know, "What was it like, sir, to spend 27 years in prison for a crime you didn't commit?" Here is what green told the reporter.
Look at this: "Think of the most precious thing in the world and then having it taken away."
Still, though, he also told the reporter he is not that angry. He had to let that go a long time ago. It just wasn't worth it.
LEMON: I don't think I could do it.
BALDWIN: I don't think I could either. It just really resonated, that story.
LEMON: I don't think I could do that. Let the guy out.
Hey, you want to talk about --
BALDWIN: Let's talk -- I'll tell you --
LEMON: Miss Clinton now, but soon to be Ms. Someone Else.
BALDWIN: Right. Mrs. Something Else.
My mom was calling me about this, this morning. She was on a rampage, and I think a lot of people are.
Chelsea Clinton. OK, so she's getting married tomorrow, and some people are like, "I don't care," but a lot of people do.
The groom -- she'll be Ms. Mezvinsky. She is marrying Marc Mezvinsky. He's an investment banker, long-time friend.
But a lot of people are talking about this unbelievable guest list. And according to the rumor mill, astronomical cost. OK?
Take a look at this list.
It's expected to cost somewhere in the ballpark of $3 million to $5 million. Word is that includes $750,000 for catering, $600,000 for tents. And here is what -- this has got some people buzzing -- $15,000 for porcelain Porta Potties. And the water will be hot running water.
Now, I was tweeting about this with a bunch of people today. And some people are saying, look, you know, we watched her grow up. She has got this wonderful wedding. She deserves her dream wedding.
Others are saying, are you kidding me? Three million dollars to $5 million? Really? Do you need it?
LEMON: That is -- it's trending among women.
BALDWIN: It is.
LEMON: Because all the guys I speak to go, "What the heck?"
BALDWIN: I tell you, the ladies today, talking about it.
LEMON: Yes. Well, Mr. Clinton, Mr. Former President, start -- get more speaking engagements, because that's going to be a big dent in his wallet.
BALDWIN: Yes. I think they can afford it. I'm just guessing.
LEMON: Thank you, Brooke.
She is almost spending as much as you for your wedding.
BALDWIN: Yes, right.
LEMON: OK. I've got to be honest with you guys.
Stay here and talk to me about this.
BALDWIN: OK.
LEMON: I've got to be honest with you. All the Chelsea Clinton stuff that Brooke has been talking about, it kind of got me to thinking that this being RICK'S LIST, I did a little digging.
One thing led to another, Brooke, and now I have a list for you of the most famous wedding daughters.
BALDWIN: Oh yes.
LEMON: Can you think of any? Let me help you out, start you off.
Number four, Teddy Roosevelt's daughter Alice married an Ohio congressman at the White House. In fact, 1906.
BALDWIN: Wow.
LEMON: Number three, in 1966, LBJ walked his daughter Luci down the aisle of her White House wedding.
BALDWIN: Look at that cake.
LEMON: Who else made the list? Who else? Who else? Who else?
Let me tell you after the break.
BALDWIN: Did you see that cake?
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: OK. So Brooke is back.
BALDWIN: Hey.
LEMON: Brooke, I did a little research. I'm not a crack researcher, so if I leave anybody out, you guys send me a tweet. Send me a tweet or Brooke a tweet, and then we'll figure it out.
BALDWIN: Yes. Call us out.
LEMON: OK. So, the list of the famous first daughters' weddings. All right?
BALDWIN: Right.
LEMON: So, I gave you two before the break. Remember?
Did you think of any others after that?
BALDWIN: I mean, I just keep thinking of Jenna Bush being the most recent.
LEMON: Oh, man.
BALDWIN: I gave it away. Sorry.
LEMON: All right.
Number two, many of you still seeing the images of Richard Nixon walking his daughter Tricia down the aisle at the White House, in the Rose Garden in 1971.
BALDWIN: Here's a White House wedding. There you go.
LEMON: That was one at the White House, right.
And then number one on the list of most famous first daughters' weddings? You gave it away, Brooke.
BALDWIN: Sorry.
LEMON: George W. Bush's daughter Jenna.
BALDWIN: Jenna.
LEMON: In 2008, tied the knot in Crawford, Texas.
That was a White House wedding, too, back in 1906, right? Yes, at the White House. Yes, Teddy Roosevelt's daughter.
BALDWIN: So that was another one. Yes, I was wondering in the break.
LEMON: Teddy Roosevelt's daughter Alice married an Ohio congressman at the White House, 1906.
BALDWIN: Look, if your dad's the president, it would be kind of cool.
LEMON: There you go. And kind of expensive as well.
BALDWIN: Yes.
LEMON: Thank you, Brooke. That's a lot of dough.
BALDWIN: I know.
LEMON: Up next, a disturbing report on a series of hate crimes targeting Latinos. The urgent manhunt is under way. And growing fears of violence across one city, and it's all happening in a place that may surprise you.
THE LIST scrolls on.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: Arizona and the southern U.S. border is not the only hotbed of anti-immigrant sentiment these days. It's just one of them.
Watch this report. It is CNN's Allan Chernoff in one of the most ethnically diverse parts of the country, Staten Island, New York. That's where police are dealing with a crime wave that has a distinct and particular racial tone.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ALLAN CHERNOFF, CNN SR. CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Rogerio Vasquez is lucky to be alive after a thug hit him with a baseball bat three months ago. ROGERIO VASQUEZ, ASSAULT VICTIM: The attack was a baseball bat on my head.
CHERNOFF (on camera): They attacked you with a baseball bat to your head?
VASQUEZ: Yes, my head. This bone, it was broken.
CHERNOFF: This bone was actually broken.
VASQUEZ: Yes, broken. And my head here.
CHERNOFF (voice-over): The assault on Vasquez came three weeks after this brutal attack shown on YouTube of another Mexican immigrant in this same New York City neighborhood. Four teenagers were indicted and all pled not guilty.
Yet, the violence here in Port Richmond, Staten Island continues. There have been another eight documented assaults on Mexican immigrants since then.
(on camera): Last Friday evening, a 40-year-old Mexican-American had just finished a soccer game here. As he left the park, police say he was approached by four African-American teenagers who asked him, "What are you doing in this neighborhood?"
STEVEN PARAGALLO, STATEN ISLAND CHIEF, NYPD: They proceeded to hit him with an aluminum scooter about the head. He was hurt pretty bad, pretty seriously. He was taken to the hospital.
CHERNOFF (voice-over): Police say in every case but one, the alleged assailants were African-American teens. And in the majority of attacks they used anti-Mexican slurs.
PARAGALLO: I think it's just people in the neighborhood, individuals, again, who feel that the Mexicans are intruding on their turf.
CHERNOFF: Racial tension has simmered through this neighborhood for the past decade as Mexicans have moved in, but advocates for immigrants here say now it's different. National anti-immigration sentiment epitomized by Arizona's controversial new law, they argue, is triggering a new wave of violent bias.
TERRY TROIA, EL CENTRO: That contributes to the psyche of people who may be afraid of new immigrants or who may have some anti-immigrant sentiment. I think it fuels the fire.
CHERNOFF: Police are trying to put out that fire of prejudice. They've made arrests in three of the 10 cases. Patrolmen are out in force, and detectives are seeking clues from the Mexican community.
RAYMOND KELLY, NYPD COMMISSIONER: They can come forward and speak to us. We are not an immigration agency. We're not concerned about immigration status. We want information.
CHERNOFF: As they continue investigating police plan to maintain a heavy presence here to ensure no one in this neighborhood, U.S. citizen or legal immigrant, will be victim to the kind of attack Rogerio Vasquez suffered.
Allan Chernoff, CNN, Port Richmond, Staten Island.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON: Boy oh boy. A terrible, terrible story there.
Well, you know, "THE SITUATION ROOM" is straight ahead. Wolf is off, but if anyone is going to fill in for Wolf Blitzer, it should be this lady right here on the wall. She looks great in purple.
Suzanne Malveaux, have a great show and have a great weekend, my friend.
SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN ANCHOR: You, too.
