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Rick's List
Michael Steele Resurfaces; First Lady Marie Antoinette?; Wyclef Jean Wants Haiti's Top Office; Rebounding From Oil Leak
Aired August 06, 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: Michael Steele resurfaces. The GOP's lightning rod has a message for the faithful and a warning for Democrats.
Also, this:
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON (voice-over): Here's what's making the LIST today.
Here's a sight for sore eyes: a Gulf Coast flyover and no oil as far as the eye can see.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So, what we are seeing is a very rapid biodegradation of this oil.
LEMON: As far as the eye can see.
Let me eat cake. Why is the first lady being compared to Marie Antoinette? It's trending, and we're following.
One top al Qaeda operative, one of America's most wanted, one and the same, and he's an American.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He's out there plotting the attacks and recruiting people to actively do that.
LEMON: The lists you need to know about. Who's today's most intriguing? Who's making news on Twitter? It's why we keep a list. Pioneering tomorrow's news right now.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON: As you can see, Rick is off. I'm Don Lemon filling in today.
It is hour two. Time to pick up the pace of today's LIST for those of you now just checking in.
Number one: Republican Chairman Michael Steele draws a target on Nancy Pelosi. Here's the hat he unveiled just today at an RNC meeting in Kansas City: "Fire Pelosi." And coming soon, says Steele, the "Fire Pelosi" bus tour.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) MICHAEL STEELE, CHAIRMAN, REPUBLICAN NATIONAL COMMITTEE: Get on the bus -- 117 cities, get on the bus. Every state, get on the bus. We're going to win in November, and Nancy Pelosi will be in the back of the bus.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: Joining me right now from that meeting in Kansas City, California State Republican Chairman Ron Nehring.
Ron, thank you, sir, for joining us.
Is this a winning GOP formula, to run against Nancy Pelosi?
RON NEHRING, CHAIRMAN, CALIFORNIA REPUBLICAN PARTY: Well, we're going to have a great year for the Republican Party, and that's going to mean a great year for America.
Clearly, the momentum is -- strongly favors Republicans. That's why we Have picked up the Virginia governorship, New Jersey governorship, that Scott Brown Senate seat in Massachusetts, and so many other special elections, picking up a congressional seat in Hawaii.
We are on track for a great victory in November and providing an antidote to what Nancy Pelosi, Harry Reid, and Barack Obama have been doing to this economy.
LEMON: Mm-hmm.
OK, listen, Mr. Nehring, I want to steer it back to Michael Steele right now, because we just got in this sound, just got it. This is Steele being asked about his controversial leadership of the GOP. Again, this just came in. Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
STEELE: If anything, you know, there -- there are disagreements and different opinions on issues. I think the members have made it very clear that our focus -- and I agree -- should be on November 2. That's where I look. That's where I'm going. I'm getting on the bus. And I'm going across the country.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: All right. Is the party behind Steele?
NEHRING: The Republican Party is 100 percent behind Michael Steele.
And part of the reason for that is, you know, when we gather as the members of the Republican National Committee, the 168 of us, we're from outside of Washington. We're elected by the grassroots of this party. We're focused on the election.
And, so, some of the stories that we have seen, that's inside the beltway, kind of parlor games type stuff, which nobody outside of Washington cares about. Those of us who represent the grassroots are focused on this election in November. We're talking about electing governors. We're talking about electing senators and House members and in local offices as well.
And the RNC under this chairman's leadership has been a great partner with us. In my state party in California, we have the best relationship with the Republican National Committee that we have had in a long time. And this chairman has made sure that we have a partnership working with our state parties. It's not been top down. It's been an even partnership. And that's why so many state party chairmen are 100 percent behind this chairman, Michael Steele.
LEMON: Listen, I understand that. Partnership is good. I get that. But it -- also, elections take a lot of money, a lot of money these days.
The RNC has been -- and Michael Steele have been criticized because he is not raising enough money. He hasn't raised a lot of money compared to the past when it comes to the RNC, especially to help people in local elections, to help people in national elections.
So, you say you stand behind him, but what about the money? Follow the money trail here.
NEHRING: Well -- well, actually, your assertion is just not true. The Republican National Committee has been raising money that's on par with past years, with 1994, comparable to what the Democrats were raising in 2006, when they didn't hold the White House or either chamber of commerce either.
But you know what? This election is not going to hinge upon how much money is raised into Washington, D.C. This election is being guided by the type of decisions that we have -- that Americans are responding to that we have seen come from this White House and come from this Congress, which Americans are very unhappy with.
If you take a look at the public support of Congress, it's at record lows. Nancy Pelosi promised to have the most ethical Congress in -- in history. And, of course, we have seen what's happened with Charlie Rangel and Maxine Waters and one Democrat after another.
Look, it's the national political environment that's going to determine the outcome of this election. Americans are very uncomfortable with the direction these Democrats have taken. And this -- this Republican Party, under this leadership, is on course to have the most successful year that we have had, as measured by a number of elections won, that we have seen since 1994.
LEMON: OK. OK, Ron, I'm not going to get into it with you with the numbers, because numbers show something different. But here is the thing. Will Steele be reelected as RNC chairman next January?
NEHRING: Well, I don't think anybody here is focused on Michael Steele or anybody else's election in January. It's the election in November that matters, that any Republican leader who is focused on what happens after November has their priorities out of whack.
We're all focused on winning the election in November. You know, people who kind of follow what happens within some of these political bodies and kind of the gossip, political gossip columnists, they may be all interested in that, but those of us who were elected by the grassroots, we are focused on election -- winning this the election in November and then we will worry about what happens in January and thereafter.
LEMON: California State Republican Chairman Ron Nehring, I enjoy talking to you. Thank you, sir.
NEHRING: Thank you.
LEMON: You know, the White House is calling it a private trip. They say it is a private trip. There you see the first lady right there. But the first lady's vacation in Spain is anything but. Why? Why is that? Because critics are blasting everything about it, from the timing to the cost. It's all over the Twitter boards. And we will break it down for you, break down this entire controversy, just ahead.
Plus, large sections of Russia are burning. Blankets of smog are crippling the country, as wildfires continue to rage -- the video next on the LIST.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: All right.
It's time right now for the roundup list, a few things to catch you up on.
Number one right now: Jobs are down for the second straight month, sadly. The U.S. Labor Department reports today a net loss of more than 130,000 jobs. They say most of those are temporary census jobs that ended in July.
In the private sector, jobs are up about 70,000. The nationwide unemployment rate stays at 9.5 percent. President Obama is urging passage of the Small Business Jobs and Credit Act, which he says will help create jobs.
OK. Now it's time for number two. President Obama says -- quote -- "This is a good day."
He was publicly congratulating Elena Kagan today on her confirmation to the United States Supreme Court. Her swearing-in is set for tomorrow.
Number three now, look at that, Moscow, middle of the day, and the city is choking under a blanket of thick, dark, noxious smoke and smog. Wildfires surrounding Moscow are making the air painful to breathe, and officials are urging people there to stay indoors if they can. And get this. The carbon monoxide levels in Moscow are many times higher than normal. And the Russian Health Ministry says just breathing in Moscow -- just breathing in Moscow, I should say, is the equivalent of smoking several packs of cigarettes a day. Wow.
All right. Did you hear about this? President Obama just lost another top adviser, his second in the past couple of months. And it comes as we get the new job numbers. So, what's going on at the White House? That is straight ahead.
And think about this nightmare scenario, really a nightmare scenario. An al Qaeda leader knows the ins and outs of this country, our vulnerabilities, or weaknesses, and he knows this, all of it because he used to live here. Well, that nightmare scenario is real. We will explain next on the LIST.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: You really need to listen to this next story on the LIST, because it shows how close to home the al Qaeda threat can be. A Saudi who grew up in the U.S. makes our LIST because he is now one of al Qaeda's rising stars. And this is a guy who really knows his way around New York and Florida.
I want you to watch this exclusive report from CNN national correspondent Susan Candiotti.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The FBI says that after he left America, Shukrijumah started off as an al Qaeda dishwasher, doing menial tasks at training camps. But it believes he's much more than a dishwasher now.
BRIAN LABLANC, SPECIAL AGENT, FBI: Just like any other business, he would be equated with a chief of operations.
CANDIOTTI: Investigators have revealed to CNN they believe Adnan Shukrijumah is now directing al Qaeda's overseas operations.
(on camera): How dangerous is he?
LABLANC: He may not be somebody that's going to come into the United States to conduct the attack, but what makes him more dangerous is that he's out there plotting the attacks and recruiting people to actively do that.
CANDIOTTI (voice-over): The break-through came when FBI counterterrorism agent Brian LaBlanc linked Shukrijumah to the thwarted New York subway suicide mission last fall, the biggest post- 9/11 terror investigation.
Najibullah Zazi and Zarein Ahmedzay admit they plan to blow themselves up using homemade bombs. Prosecutors say it was Shukrijumah who called the shots, probably from somewhere along the Afghan-Pakistan border. (on camera): What did Zazi that he, Shukrijumah, told him to do?
LABLANC: Adnan was the one that convinced the three of them to come back to the United States and conduct the attack here.
CANDIOTTI: He told them you go there and you blow up the subways.
LABLANC: Yes.
CANDIOTTI: There are a lot of people that are saying now that he's involved in evil things, planning attacks on the United States. Can you imagine this?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No. That is not my son. My son is not a violent person. He is very kind, generous.
CANDIOTTI (voice-over): In her only televised interview since her son was indicted in the New York plot, his mother insists he's incapable of doing harm.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The way you call it -- the scapegoat.
CANDIOTTI: The eldest son of a Saudi imam, Shukrijumah came to America as a young child. His mother shared exclusively this beloved photo of the two of them.
(on camera): In the late '90s, Shukrijumah worked several odd jobs, including selling used cars. His family says that's how he paid for courses, including chemistry and computers, at this small college in south Florida. He even took classes to speak better English.
Well, a few years later, when the FBI began looking for him, his English professor remembered videotaping him at one of those classes and turned over the tape to the FBI. The FBI says that professor's actions proved crucial to their investigation some six years later.
(voice-over): On a hunch, LaBlanc asked agents in New York to show that video of Shukrijumah to would-be bomber Zazi.
LABLANC: From that video, he was able to make an identification.
CANDIOTTI: On 9/11, his mother, who doesn't want to be named, says he called home for the last time.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He called me and he said, oh, maybe you'll hear what happened so on and so on and so on. They say they put it in -- they're putting it on the Muslims. I say, yes. I tell him do not come. Do not come because they're looking at all the Muslim people.
And he was arguing with me. He said, no, I didn't do nothing. I will come. Don't worry about it.
CANDIOTTI (voice-over): Shukrijumah's mother adamantly denies her son is directing al Qaeda attacks. But when I asked about the admitted Times Square car bomber, she said this: UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Some time you have to do something very alarming for the people to wake up. It's not because you hate them or you want to destroy them or you want to hurt them.
CANDIOTTI (on camera): Is there anything that you would tell your son about what he should do or not do?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No. I don't have nothing to tell him. He have his own guide and his own heart.
CANDIOTTI (voice-over): For the FBI, it is all about staying one step ahead. Where will al Qaeda and Shukrijumah strike next?
(on camera): What do you think he's doing now?
LABLANC: He's definitely focused on attacking the United States and other Western countries.
CANDIOTTI (on camera): Shukrijumah's meteoric rise in al Qaeda's ranks may be thanks to both talent and luck. Two of his high-level colleagues were killed in U.S. drone attacks.
Susan Candiotti, CNN, Miami.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON: The first lady, Michelle Obama, in the middle of a glitzy trip to Spain funded in part by your tax dollars, and that has a lot of people wondering, how much is too much, especially when so many Americans are barely making ends meet? That's ahead.
Craigslist can be one-stop shopping for furniture, for collectibles, even jobs, and, yes, even sex. What's the owner doing to change that? We track him down for answers. That's next on the LIST.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: All right, and just looking at some of your tweets right now, reading them, why don't we -- why don't we read some of them on the air? Because you guys are fired up about the first lady's trip to Spain, so let's put some of them on.
First up is from NAH6711. It says: "The Obamas are showing that they have gotten comfortable in their new status amongst the elite. Guess we should all eat cake."
All right. That one this is to -- this @DonLemonCNN, by the way. These are coming in.
So, someone says -- Vannacapron says -- 1981 -- says: "What's next? Does the first lady have to ask America to go on vacation with her children now? It is summer. She deserves a break."
Mike Bates says: "Don Lemon, Mrs. Obama deserves some R&R. being married to a dismal failure must take a colossal toll." OK. DavidMTFNC says: "Don Lemon, I don't care if Michelle Obama goes on a vacation. No one would if the economy was better. If B.O." -- Barack Obama -- "took a vacation now, I would be mad."
And then one more says: "Don, let the first family enjoy some of the upside to their difficult and stressful life in politics. Worry about something else."
Thank you, Jules.
And thank you all for your tweets. We will read more and we're going to talk about that story in-depth coming up in just a little bit.
Talking about online, let's talk about this. Craigslist is on our LIST today. You may have browsed it looking for a car, a job, even a roommate, maybe sex. It's sex for sale that has law enforcement officials claiming craigslist is profiting from prostitution.
Groups that try to stop the alleged sex trafficking of juveniles call craigslist -- quote -- "the Wal-Mart of online sex."
CNN Amber Lyon went to the nation's capital, one of the busiest online prostitution markets in the country, to investigate.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
AMBER LYON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: One of the big things going on with craigslist right now is they're saying that they're monitoring all of these ads that come through on adult services to check to see if any of these girls are underage or young.
So we put some words in here, sweet, innocent, new girl. We're going to see what happens. We'll see if craigslist is going to let our ad post. We'll also see, you know, what kind of calls we get.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I saw your ad on craigslist.
LYON: Hello?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, what's your donation for an hour in- call?
LYON: But -- so what is that now, we've had 15 calls? And the ad's only been up for three hours. Fifteen calls in three hours.
(voice-over): Craigslist says its staff manually screens all of these adult services ads, and will reject any that make it look or sound like you're selling sex. That may not be easy. But when we looked through the ads, most of them were pretty blatant.
The FAIR Fund investigates juvenile trafficking.
ANDREA POWELL, FAIR FUND: And most of the young people that we've worked with who have been exploited online talk about craigslist. They don't talk about the other sites. craigslist is like the Wal-Mart of online sex trafficking.
LYON (on camera): So we're here at George Washington University. And we just found out that Craig Newmark, he's the founder of craigslist, he's going to be speaking here today at a tech conference. He doesn't know we're coming. He's been very media shy lately about all of these allegations against him. This guy is the Craig in craigslist. It's his list.
So can people trust that children are not being sex trafficked on craigslist?
CRAIG NEWMARK, FOUNDER, CRAIGSLIST: I think we explain that pretty thoroughly on our blog.
LYON: That's where Jim Buckmaster says that you will immediately contact law enforcement if you suspect any ads are suspicious.
NEWMARK: Jim does a great job showing that we do more than anyone in this area. Pretty good for a community of 50 million people.
LYON: This is Inspector Brian Bray with the D.C. Metropolitan Police Department. He's also in charge of the prostitution enforcement unit. In craigslist' blog they say that they're going to immediately contact law enforcement any time they see a suspicious ad, and you say you've never been contacted by them.
BRIAN BRAY, D.C. METROPOLITAN POLICE: That's correct. I -- it does, you know, it does bother us from a law enforcement perspective because the problem is so rampant that, you know, to get a handle on it, we need all the assistance we can get. And if they're -- if they're notifying, I'm not sure if they're notifying the right people, because we're not getting the call.
LYON: What are you guys doing to protect these girls? You guys say in the blog that you will remove any ad that looks like the person might be suggesting they're going to offer sex. Look at this ad. It says, young, sexy, sweet and bubbly. Clearly here she writes 250 an hour. I mean what do you think she's selling in her bra and underwear, a dinner date? And she's in her bra and underwear.
NEWMARK: Have you reported this to us?
LYON: Why do I have the responsibility to report this to you when it's your Web site? You are the one posting this online. I just want to know. I mean -- OK.
It's just we've run into a lot of victims and a lot of advocates that pretty much call your site the Wal-Mart of child sex trafficking.
(voice-over): In 2008, craigslist agreed to report any suspicious ads to the Center for Missing and Exploited Children, which works with police to find and rescue trafficking victims. Two years and hundreds of thousands of sketchy ads later, the center says craigslist has reported fewer than 100.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON: That was CNN's Amber Lyon reporting there.
Here is something we have waited more than 100 days to see: a Gulf without any noticeable signs of oil, good news. And that's straight ahead. But is it true? Is it all gone?
And this is a stunning end to a high-speed chase. The driver is accused of threatening a police officer, then bolting. We will show you how it all ended in "Fotos." That's next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: There can be a fine line between crazy and criminal. This next guy doesn't just step over that line. He speeds right through it and puts the lives of others in danger in the process. Time now for "Fotos."
ANNOUNCER: Aye dios mio.
LEMON: Sorry, Thomas. "Fotos."
A high-speed police chase in Los Angeles began after a man allegedly walked into a police station. And, unprovoked, he threatened to blow away an officer, and then he fled. Police finally subdued him after he drove the wrong way on several streets and sidewalks.
New York State now, where New York State Senator Pedro Espada Jr. encounters enraged protesters in Albany. So, what does he do? He throws crumpled bills at the crowd, which is chanting, "Hey, hey, ho, ho, Espada has got to go."
The lawmaker is under fire for having a bloated payroll with 40 staffers and spending more than 36,000 bucks a week, according to "The New York Post."
OK, look at this amazing video. I don't (INAUDIBLE) This is from Japan, an amazing catch, been watched by sports fans all over the world. Look at this guy. Want to know why outfielder Shuichi Murata is nicknamed Superman? Well, you just have to look at that. He literally climbs the wall to tear down this would-be home run -- really amazing stuff.
You can see all of our "Las Fotos Del Dia" -- "Las Fotos Del Dia" -- at CNN.com/ricksanchez.
The president's inner circle just got a little smaller. We'll tell you why this woman's resignation could have a big impact on the economic recovery. That's straight ahead.
Michelle Obama's deluxe vacation is rubbing some people the wrong way. They're even comparing her to Marie Antoinette. Is that going too far?
Brooke Baldwin, more on this controversy, next. BROOKE BALDWIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Let them eat cake -- or not.
LEMON: Let them eat cake. Remember what happened. She lost her head.
BALDWIN: Yes, I remember.
LEMON: This is burning up.
BALDWIN: We're all over it.
LEMON: We'll talk about it. Tweet us if you've got them, right? Tweet them if you've got them.
BALDWIN: They got them all right. That's for sure.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: Brooke Baldwin is here.
Brooke, we started talking about this in a meeting. I was like, "Why do people care where the first lady goes on here vacation?"
BALDWIN: We went on and on.
(CROSSTALK)
LEMON: And then I tweeted it and then, boom. What's going on?
BALDWIN: I know. I love it though. I love people getting engaged in a story, and they certainly are on this.
Really, I think it boils down to the question, can the first lady take a vacation?
Michelle Obama, her daughter Sasha, and just a handful -- that's what we're hearing from the White House, a handful of the first lady's closest friends are -- hey, this on my bucket list -- at Costa del Sol. This is the south Mediterranean coast of Spain.
It's a ritzy hotel. The first lady and her crowd, they are expected to take up about a third of the resort, 60 to 70 rooms, where room rates, they start in the $400 range, they go into the thousands.
But she is definitely taking some heat as we look at these pictures. It looks nice, right?
She was the subject of a pretty scorching editorial in "The New York Daily News" today, comparing her, as Don had alluded to, a material girl -- I'm quoting -- "Material girl Michelle Obama to a modern day Marie Antoinette, staying in the lap of luxury, not exactly cutting back in today's troubled times."
In fact, the article suggests perhaps she could be taking a vacation, say, in California, where money certainly could be of use there in the struggling economy. Keep in mind also right now, U.S. unemployment numbers, it's about 10 percent. Millions of Americans are struggling to make ends meet.
Many say Michelle Obama's vacation is not sending the right message. Here's what the White House says: "It is a private trip and is being paid for that way."
But taxpayers -- to be clear, taxpayers are paying for her transportation housing for dozens of her Secret Service agents, who, of course, are there making sure she, her family, her daughter are safe, not to mention the cost of Air Force Two.
As Don said we have been getting a ton of tweets.
Go to the Twitter board please, Sir Robert, and let's take a look at a couple of them you all have sent to me.
The first one is from Eric Webb. And he tweets, "A vacation from what, telling kids not to eat Twinkies? She could have stayed in the USA for a lot less and still had a good time."
Twinkies huh?
Next one from T. Frederick (ph), "Mrs. Obama deserves a vacation if she wants one. Isn't she paying for it? They are going to the Gulf later. Give her a break."
"She deserves a vacation -- Secret Service and the USG plane are over the top. Why can't she just fly commercial with the U.S. Secret Service?"
Good point perhaps.
Last one from my Twitter board, Dale Castle writes, "The chance to show your daughter the world is one we all would make. Let's celebrate Michelle, not denigrate her."
That said, my producer and I have been looking back in time to just look at some of the other, as we like to say, FLOTUS, first ladies of the United States, in history.
Jackie Kennedy, we have a picture. This is from 1962. She did take a vacation in Italy.
LEMON: Look at that boat. Whoa, beautiful.
BALDWIN: Look at that. Nice, right?
LEMON: Love that.
BALDWIN: Also, we have a picture of the Bushes. This was in Africa. Laura Bush, her daughters went there a couple times on safari, but they did say it was semi-official. Semi-official.
Keep in mind, as one of the tweets mentioned, you know, look, when the first lady gets back to the states, Don Lemon, they do plan to take that long weekend in Panama City to promote Gulf tourism. But, still -- what are you typing? LEMON: Yes. I'm looking at something here, because wasn't she invited by someone? If you guys can -- because I seem to remember that when we were talking about this earlier.
BALDWIN: Invited by someone in Spain?
LEMON: I thought she was invited by someone in Spain.
BALDWIN: I think she's meeting with the royal family. I just don't know if that was --
LEMON: OK. So maybe it's semi-official. Who knows?
Someone in the control room, look that up for me to see if it was --
(CROSSTALK)
BALDWIN: That's sort of nebulous though, "official."
LEMON: Yes.
OK. Here's the thing. I'm going to read some because there are some funny ones.
You guys were really going after me today. There was a -- and you can probably attest to this. Someone says -- and I'm looking -- this is on my iPad here -- "It's a time-honored tradition to gripe about the first family's vacation expenses."
That's true. It is.
BALDWIN: It is.
LEMON: It is. It's certainly true.
Someone says, "She goes places in the U.S., they complain. She goes overseas, they complain. It's not her fault that she needs Secret Service." That's from Sway (ph).
BALDWIN: I think that's part of the point that a lot of people are making. Any time, whether the economy is bad or worse or better, and anywhere in the U.S. or outside, I think someone is going to find a problem with it.
LEMON: OK.
Here's one that I think -- and I get this from a lot of people when we read this stuff on the air. Kathi says "Memo to Don Lemon: Possession of a computer does not entitle every maladjusted moron to have his or her views aired on national TV." And then she tweeted me later and says, "Don Lemon: FYI, my memo referred to the snarky trash- treat saying Michelle Obama needs a vacation because she is married to a dismal failure."
BALDWIN: Ooh.. Ouch. LEMON: So anyway -- yes.
Now, here's the thing. This is just honesty here. There is a certain part of the population, and I'm sure there are African- Americans, for the most part, I'm sure there are other people, who like to see this family doing well with two children, an intact family. I talked to my mom -- I'm just being really honest -- this morning.
BALDWIN: Oh, right, your mom.
LEMON: And my mom is taking vacation and she's going away for a couple days. And I said, "Oh, you're like the first lady," blah, blah, blah. And she goes, "Oh, yes, I've been hearing all about that." And she said, "Listen, I used to pay taxes and I couldn't swim in the swimming pool. I used to pay taxes and I couldn't go to the community center. I couldn't ride on the bus. I've been paying taxes for years."
BALDWIN: Right. Right.
LEMON: "So we have to pay for the first family's Secret Service." She goes, "I've been doing that all my life, and many times as a young African-American I couldn't enjoy the benefits of this country," so she doesn't see a problem with it.
BALDWIN: She's saying go ahead.
LEMON: Yes. So that's how some people feel. I thought it was a very interesting take. I had never even thought about it.
BALDWIN: It's a different perspective.
And someone else was saying to me earlier, look, it seemed like the Bushes could go to Crawford, Texas, the Reagans could go back to California. And perhaps the fact that the Obamas don't seem to have a vacation place -- I don't know if Chicago really counts as a vacation place -- perhaps they don't have a go-to location, so they are vacationing at Martha's Vineyard coming up, or in Maine recently. You know.
LEMON: I just remember when I was a wee --
BALDWIN: A wee lad.
LEMON: I was like negative 12. No. I was actually in high school when the Reagans -- and Nancy Reagan was known for her fashion and her entertaining and what have you, and the country wasn't doing well then. At first she was lauded for it, and then later criticized after the economy went south.
BALDWIN: I just think it would be tough -- bottom line, it would be tough to be in the spotlight like that, truly scrutinized.
LEMON: Yes. All right.
Just a story. We're reporting it. The world will go on.
BALDWIN: It's fun to talk about.
LEMON: Yes, absolutely. The world will go on, and then maybe the president and first lady will talk about it, maybe they won't. We'll see.
BALDWIN: Maybe not.
LEMON: You know what else we're going to be doing?
BALDWIN: What?
LEMON: We're going to look for oil down in the Gulf of Mexico.
BALDWIN: Going to look for it. I like the sound of that. It's going away?
LEMON: But guess what? So far we're coming up dry, we're coming up short. That's encouraging news for the Gulf today.
THE LIST is going to scroll on.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: All right, everyone. It is official. Grammy-winning hip-hop star Wyclef Jean has formally submitted his paperwork to run for president of Haiti.
He talked about his candidacy on CNN's "LARRY KING LIVE," and Wolf Blitzer was filling in for Larry last night. So let's listen to part of that conversation.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
WYCLEF JEAN, MUSICIAN: Yes, it's my first time announcing live, that today I went in and I signed, and I am running to be the president of Haiti.
WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: The election is scheduled for the end of November, November 28th. You have a few months to campaign right now.
You're 40 years old. Most of your life, you've lived in the United States. You were born in Haiti, you feel strongly about Haiti.
Why do you want to be president? Why have you made this decision?
JEAN: Well, after January 12th, I would say over 50 percent of the population is a youth population. And we suffered for over 200 years. Now that our country has toppled, it's a chance to rebuild from the bottom on up, and I don't even say I'm trying to be president. I'm being drafted by the youth of Haiti.
Right now is the chance for us to bring real education into the schools, infrastructure, to security, and proper jobs. So this is some of the reasons that I'm running.
BLITZER: What qualifies you to be president of Haiti?
JEAN: Well, what qualifies me to be president of Haiti? When I look at the past 200 years, with what our people have suffered, Wolf, political instability, coups after coup d'etat, I feel that me running, it brings a neutral situation, meaning that Wyclef Jean can sit with any political party, have a conversation. I'm coming in neutral.
I think 200 years we have suffered the exact same thing, and what I'm saying is when you vote for Wyclef Jean, you basically try something new. I represent the voice of the youth which is over 50 percent of the population.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: We're going to talk with the man who did that interview in just a bit, talking about Wolf Blitzer right after the break.
And remember I said was it official, semi-official? Wasn't exactly sure. I asked someone to look it up.
I did that for a reason, because the first lady's spokesperson sent me this e-mail just a second ago about her vacation. We'll read it, coming up.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: OK. Welcome back here.
Listen, so before the break we were talking here -- Brooke and I were talking about the first lady. Obviously, we knew the first lady is going, and they said it was a -- you know, a private, personal trip here. But there was some part of it that may have been in question, about whether it was semi-official.
When Brooke said it's semi-official, I'm like hey, check it out in the control room and make sure if it's official or semi-official.
So just got this from the first lady's spokesperson. Here's what the first lady's spokesperson says.
This is from Katie McCormick-Lelyveld, the first lady's spokesperson. It says, "The first lady will travel to Spain next week for a private mother/daughter trip with longtime family friends. President Obama will not be joining this trip." "While in Spain, Mrs. Obama" -- and this is highlighted in the e-mail -- "will pay an official visit to Their Majesties King Juan Carlos and Queen Sophia of Spain at their invitation. All activities are closed to the press." And then it goes on.
So, there you go. So that was the thing about whether -- when Brooke said, you know, semi-official, the Bushes went to Africa on safari. So that was the language I was trying to get when I said to the control room, check it out. And just as that was happening, the first lady's spokeswoman was sending us the e-mail.
Hey, let's go to our man in Washington now, Wolf Blitzer.
Wolf, do you remember when the inauguration of the president -- I was there in Washington with you, and we did something about the first lady's office not being ready?
WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: Of course.
LEMON: No phone calls. Man, they got right on it. They saw the story and they sent it to us and they said, hey, here's what's happening.
What do you make of this controversy about the first lady's trip? Is it official, is it spending too much money? And the bigger question is whether the administration is tone deaf by doing something like this.
BLITZER: You know, I've covered a lot of presidential administrations, and we always get into these issues when the first lady travels or when children or relatives of the first family are traveling, who pays, how much do they have to pay, all the Secret Service protection that taxpayers of course have to pay for, the flights, ,if it's a U.S. Air Force -- an Air Force One or Air Force Two. You know, I've seen these stories on many occasions.
Look, the first lady has a right to go to Spain with one of the daughters -- the other daughter is in camp right now -- and to have some little fun if you will, sightseeing, doing whatever. They do have an official get-together with the royal family there, so that's part of her responsibilities. Spain is a close ally, a NATO ally of the United States.
But there's always going to be expenses, and people are going to look at the hundreds of thousands of dollars that go into a federally- funded expense like this, because that comes with the territory. That's what first families do.
I've seen these stories, whether Republican presidents or Democratic presidents. You can go back for years and years, and you see that they cost money, but that's just part of the nature of being the president and first lady of the United States.
LEMON: Wolf Blitzer, that's why we have you here. Amazing. Always good to hear your perspective on this.
Let's move on now. Can we talk about Kansas City today with Michael Steele? A congressman -- as a matter of fact, the Republican chair in California saying, yes, Michael Steele, they support him. He has been good for building relationships and partnerships. He says Michael Steele -- he didn't want to get around to talking about whether Michael Steele will have two more years as Republican National chair. But he has made some gaffes.
Do you think that they truly support, the Republican Party, Michael Steele, at this point? BLITZER: He's got a lot of critics, but you can't argue with success. So far, the Republicans in the races that have occurred while he has been chairman of the RNC, the Republicans have done really well, whether in Virginia or in New Jersey, or even in Massachusetts, the seat long held by Ted Kennedy. The Republicans have won.
And they're going into this November midterm election in very, very strong shape right now. It will be ironic if after the -- if the Republicans -- it's still a big "if" -- if the Republicans do really well in November -- for example, take over the House and narrow the gap in the Senate -- and then they dump the chairman that helped them get to this level, that'll be ironic, but it comes with the territory. Michael Steele has made some mistakes, as he will acknowledge, and he's got some enemies within the Republican Party right now.
We'll see what happens.
LEMON: Hey, listen, I just want to tell you, Wolf, as we were saying, another -- the spokesperson said -- I'm going to cover her e- mail up here -- she goes, "Thank you very much. Have a great weekend. Clearly, I was watching CNN."
BLITZER: Are you talking about Katie McCormick-Lelyveld? Look, they're watching us all over Washington. Not only at the White House, all of the offices up on the Hill and elsewhere. They're always watching everything that we're saying, and if we say something controversial, believe me, I hear it immediately and we work on it all the time.
What we try to do is be factual and keep these so-called controversies in some sort of perspective.
LEMON: Let's talk about Elena Kagan. Today the president now congratulating her.
What are you going to be doing with it today on "THE SITUATION ROOM"?
BLITZER: Well, of course she's going to be officially sworn in tomorrow, but this is significant. She is what, 50 years old? If that. Maybe 51 years old.
If she is healthy, she's going to be influential on that U.S. Supreme Court for 30, maybe 40 years. This is going to be the long- term legacy of the president of the United States, of President Obama.
He has got two Supreme Court nominees who are going to be on there for 20 or 30 or 40 years right now, and they're going to have a significant say on all of these sensitive issues. And it goes with the old theory, elections matter, and who's the president of the United States matters. And it certainly matters when you're talking about the United States Supreme Court.
There will be more openings in the years to come, and that could affect the balance between conservatives and liberals and moderates, or whatever, but what is clear is that he is putting younger people on board, replacing a lot older people. And that legacy for him on the U.S. Supreme Court is going to be there for a long time.
LEMON: Wolf, I'd be remiss if I didn't bring this one up, but I don't want to cut into your time. So you're going to be talking about Christina Romer and what that means, her stepping down.
(CROSSTALK)
BLITZER: And we have Hilda Solis, the labor secretary. Jobs, jobs, jobs, that's issue number one. She's the labor secretary. We're going to grill her as well.
LEMON: All right. Wolf, thank you very much. See you at the top of the hour.
We're back in a moment.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: It is day 109 of the Gulf oil disaster and there is good news to report. The cement that has been pumped into the damaged well is doing its job. The leak is plugged.
Just a short while ago, outgoing head of BP's response team Doug Suttles explained how the process worked.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DOUG SUTTLES, COO, BP: The cement plug is very, very extensive. I think it comes up some 5,000 feet up inside the wellbore, so this is a very large cement plug in this well.
And we also displaced cement behind what we call -- over- displaced it. So we pumped it in whichever path it was coming up. We think that was up through the casing.
We pumped it through that path, and it went back into any spaces that were behind the casing and out into the reservoir. So the job went very, very well. And then we left a large volume of cement inside the casing.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: So here's what Suttles is saying. He's saying that the bottom kill phase where cement is pumped into the bottom of the well via a relief well could begin by next weekend.
In the meantime, he is being replaced by Mike Utsler, who says he is committed to cleaning up the Gulf. But just how intensive will that task be?
Our David Mattingly took a flight over some of the marshes that were hard hit by the oil sludge, and what he found defies the predictions of the experts. (BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DAVID MATTINGLY, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Barataria Bay was among the first and worst-hit areas in Louisiana when the oil started coming ashore. You'd never know it looking at it now.
(on camera): I'm only seeing an occasional piece of sheen out here. Is that all there is now?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is it.
MATTINGLY (voice-over): This is my second trip over the Gulf in less than two weeks with federal clean-up coordinator Rear Admiral Paul Zukunft. He says the Gulf's oil eating microbes are working twice as fast as predicted. Oil that was expected to linger for a month is gone in half the time.
REAR ADMIRAL PAUL ZUKUNFT, FEDERAL CLEANUP COORDINATOR: So what we are seeing is a very rapid biodegradation of this oil. Faster than what you expected. Certainly, we were prepared and of course, we are prepared for the worst. But now in three weeks when the NOAA trajectory shows little to no oil in the surface, we were expecting to see more than what we see right now.
MATTINGLY: What we do see are marshes growing back fresh green grass and flocks of feeding pelicans, all signs of an ecosystem on the rebound. (on camera): Did you ever think you would fly out over this bay again and see this water this clean?
CHIEF AUBREY "T. BLACK" CHAISSON, GRAND ISLE FIRE CHIEF: No. I thought we would have problems for years. But actually --
MATTINGLY: I'm amazed. This is the first time I've seen it in probably over a month. I can't believe it.
(voice-over): Getting the public to believe it is a challenge for the Coast Guard and local officials like Grand Isle fire chief T. Black Chaisson.
(on camera): Are you still struggling with that question though, where did the oil go?
CHAISSON: Yes, we have a lot of people that ask that question. And I think our next challenge is to educate the public. We just need to educate them.
MATTINGLY: Where do you think it went?
CHAISSON: I actually believe that, you know, when you disperse it, mother nature takes its course. Microorganisms eat it up. It breaks down. Mother Nature takes care of itself.
Mattingly (voice-over): But no one is prepared to drop their guard. Federal reports indicate there's still potentially over a million barrels of oil still unseen and in the environment. Its long- term effect on these seemingly resilient ecosystems is unknown. David Mattingly, CNN, Grand Isle, Louisiana.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON: All right, David. Thank you.
And thank you for watching.
It's been a very interesting two hours. We learned something new about Michael Steele today, that the party supports him.
We also learned something new about the 9/11 first responders and that bill. Interesting information there.
And an e-mail, of course, from the White House clearing up any notions about the first lady's trip.
I'm Don Lemon. I'll see you back here at 8:00 p.m. for RICK'S LIST again.
Meantime, "THE SITUATION ROOM" begins now with Wolf Blitzer.
