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Rick's List

Who is Christine O'Donnell?; Arrest for Attempted Bombing in Chicago; Crossing the 'Political Ticker'; Lohan Back to Court; Joe Klein's Election Road Trip

Aired September 20, 2010 - 16:00   ET

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

BROOKE BALDWIN, GUEST HOST: And as we begin this hour, of course, I want to welcome the men and women watching us on American forces network all around the world. Here we go. Hour two of your national conversation.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BALDWIN (voice-over): Here's what's making THE LIST today.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHRISTINE O'DONNELL (R), DELAWARE SENATE CANDIDATE: They call us wacky. They call us wingnuts.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: And now, some critics are calling her a witch. Tea Party movement favorite Christine O'Donnell once said she stood before a satanic altar. And Karl Rove is asking her to come clean. So, really, who is this candidate?

Also, hints of a civil war among Republicans. Is the Tea Party movement to blame?

More than a dozen immigrants go missing, sparking fears of a mass suicide. Find out who's leading the group authorities described as cult-like.

The list you need to know about: who's today's most intriguing, who's landed on the list you don't want to be on, who's making news on Twitter. It's why I keep a list. Pioneering tomorrow's cutting edge news right now.

(MUSIC)

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BALDWIN: Here we go. Hour two, picking up the pace of today's list for those of you just now checking in.

Hello. I'm Brooke Baldwin. Rick is off today or at least until 8:00.

Number one in our list this hour: Christine O'Donnell, Tea Party movement darling, surprise winner in last week's GOP Senate primary in Delaware. But, did you hear about how she once said she dabbled in witchcraft? That is just one of the things people are talking about today.

I want to bring in our Brian Todd. He is one of our correspondents. And he is in O'Donnell's home state of Delaware.

But, Brian, before I hear from you, let me -- let me set this whole thing up. First, I want to play the clip that everyone is talking about, everyone is tweeting about. This is from "Politically Correct" 11 years ago. Steve, let's roll this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

O'DONNELL: I dabbled into witchcraft -- I never joined a coven. But, I did, I did.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Wait a minute, you were a witch?

BILL MAHER, "POLITICALLY INCORRECT" HOST: Yes, she was a witch.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You were a witch?

O'DONNELL: I didn't join the coven. I didn't join the coven. Let's get this straight.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You go on and you're like.

O'DONNELL: I was a witch.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Wait a minute, how were you be a witch?

O'DONNELL: Because I dabbled in to witchcraft. I hung around people who were doing these things.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: "Politically Incorrect" -- I stand corrected.

Now, I want to show you Bill Maher showed that clip on his current show, "Real Time" on Friday night. He said he wants O'Donnell to come on to his show and he says he will keep releasing clips just like that one until she does.

And now, we just got some reaction from O'Donnell.

Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

O'DONNELL: That witchcraft comment on Bill Maher, I was in high school.

(LAUGHTER)

O'DONNELL: How many have you didn't hang out with questionable folks in high school? But, no, there's been no witchcraft since. If there was, Karl Rove would be a supporter now.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: So, you heard her. She said she was in high school. We'll hear what Brian says what voters are saying in a second.

But I have one more clip. O'Donnell was supposed to appear on two talk shows. I was watching one of them. She cancelled saying she was overbooked, was exhausted. Here's how the hosts of those two shows reacted.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIPS)

CHRIS WALLACE, FOX NEWS HOST: This was not the program we were planning to bring you. Christine O'Donnell, the surprise winner of the Republican Senate primary in Delaware, agreed to come here live in Washington today to take our questions today. However, late Friday night, her campaign cancelled, saying O'Donnell was exhausted and had to return to Delaware. Saturday morning, O'Donnell called me and said this, "I got triple-booked. I had been invited to go to church and then a picnic. I have to keep my priorities to Delaware voters."

BOB SCHIEFFER, CBS NEWS HOST: Before we begin our interview this morning, some of you may have seen on your morning paper that we'd be talking also this morning with Christine O'Donnell, the surprise winner in the Delaware Senate primary. Well, she cancelled on us yesterday. She said she had scheduling conflicts and couldn't be here.

(END VIDEO CLIPS)

BALDWIN: All right, Brian Todd. Now, it's your turn. So, I guess she was triple-booked, we're hearing picnic, church. Really, just confirmed for me --

BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Right.

BALDWIN: -- this has nothing to do with witchcraft comment. At least, is that what her camp is saying?

TODD: No, it doesn't have anything to do with the witchcraft comment. That is what they are saying. They say this is simply a logistical problem. They were triple-booked on Sunday. They're saying this is kind of -- this is one of the pitfalls of trying to get a campaign up and running and adding staff. They're scrambling to hire more staff.

What went on, they say, Brooke, is that at the time that they were these bookings here in Delaware with the campaign staff that they -- that they have here on the ground, another arm of the campaign that they're hiring to get up to speed to deal with media relations, that is based in Washington, they were booking her on the talk shows. It was simply kind of a left hand not talking to the right hand situation temporarily. They got on the same page later, but they had to deal with that problem and that they got it rectified.

But, yes, they say they were just triple-booked. It was a logistical problem. They really maintain she was not ducking the witchcraft or any other questions.

BALDWIN: OK, she did tweet about it, Brian, if I can get you to stand by a second for a second.

Guys, let's roll over that tweet. She says, "I did comment that if I were -- here we go -- if I were a witch, Rove would be a supporter. I would have turned him in to a Newt because Gingrich says, we win."

That said -- a lot of talk now today as we go forward surrounding O'Donnell, not necessarily the sillier stuff. Really more financial. There are some serious questions about her financial dealings.

Before we get Brian back in, I want you to take a look at this new ad. It's targeting O'Donnell from the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee. Watch this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

NARRATOR: We don't know a lot about Christine O'Donnell, but here's what we do know. She'll fit right in in Washington. O'Donnell spends money she doesn't have, hired employees she didn't pay, stiffed businesses, didn't pay her taxes. One of Christine O'Donnell's former employees summed it up. "We were constantly trying to hold her back from spending. She was financially completely irresponsible."

The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee is responsible for the content of this advertising.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: So, Brian, let me bring you back in. Two questions: one, when they talk about how she was financially irresponsible, what specifically are people talking about? And then, how is her camp defending her stance?

TODD: Well, the accusation comes from her primary opponent, Mike Castle. He started it in the primaries. Now, the Democrats, as you mentioned, have picked up on that theme. Excuse me. They're saying essentially that she didn't -- spend money that she didn't have, that she took campaign money to pay for things like her personal rent, for meals, for gasoline, even for bowling outing.

And what she is saying is that yes, she did use some campaign money to pay for rent but that was because she was living in a place where she also had her campaign headquarters, and that that was legitimate.

I asked her campaign manager Matt Moran a short time ago about some of the broader accusations. Here's what he had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MATT MORAN, CHRISTINE O'DONNELLS CAMPAIGN MANAGER: Some of the different quarters would probably qualify as a lot of the establishment. And then for the supposedly bipartisan organizations there are --

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: But, you know --

MORAN: -- that brought forth this suit. You know, I -- I'm very confident that they will be dismissed as frivolous. And for the charges that need to be articulated fully, we'll have some lawyers that will be looking at that and addressing those concern.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

TODD: Now, Matt Moran went on to say that Christine O'Donnell has been living off her savings over or the past several months. Another campaign official told me that she has been actually earning a living and paying for some of her personal experiences for the money she's been getting from a client who she did P.R. work for. I asked for some more specifics on who that client was, they declined to provide those specifics, citing privacy concerns. But they are scrambling to address some of these key questions about where she's getting her money and how she's spending it, Brooke.

BALDWIN: And, Brian, as you continue digging on that because of a feeling we want to follow up, my second question is -- of course, politics is fine. You have one ad from one camp, and then the other camp, i.e., the Tea Party comes out with a counter ad. What might we expect from them as she is a Tea Party darling?

TODD: The Tea Party is saying that they are coming out with a counter ad or at least an ad for her. We're not quite sure what the content of that will be. You can bet that some of her ads are going to address these questions. Some of her public appearances, she'll address these questions.

We're expecting her here at this golf club here in Middletown in just a short time where she may be fielding some of those questions. We're going to try to put some of those to her. It's something that she's not going to really be able to duck. She hasn't -- I mean, her people will say that they haven't been ducking it, that they've been answering the question. But there are some specific questions about where she got the money and about where she spent it, that they're going to have to address and they pledged to do just that.

BALDWIN: I'm sure you are armed with some excellent questions. We will look for her answers. Brian Todd for us from Delaware -- thank you.

It is a huge fight now on Capitol Hill right now. The fight being: should the Bush tax cuts actually be extended, right? They're scheduled to expire December 31st. If so, will you get one? We'll hear from both sides ahead.

Also, Paris Hilton now admits it the bag of cocaine, you remember, found in her purse? Yes, indeed, she says it was hers. She also admits to lying to police. Yet, she's not going to jail. Hmm? I'll tell you why.

You're watching RICK'S LIST. Stay right there.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) BALDWIN: Time for RICK'S LIST. That means we do lists, we are listy and this my roundup list today.

Coming in at number one: fire blazes near a bridge at the Harlem River in New York City. Unbelievable pictures coming up this morning. This is a couple of hours ago, the fire is out now. But, wow, this is the fire that's causing major problems for commuters there as you can imagine.

The city essentially shut down train service across this bridge. This is -- if you're in the neighborhood, this is metro north. Good news is, despite this -- the smoke, the flames, no one was hurt. Firefighters were able to get the thing under control in about an hour. No word as to what caused it.

Number two: take a look at these homes -- or, should I say, what is left of them, just the foundation. It's the aerial pictures in today just south of Salt Lake City. An area evacuated when this 10,000 acre wildfire simply got too close.

And this is why. Four homes in Herriman, Utah, consumed by the fire. In fact, Governor Gary Herbert said it is a miracle so few homes were destroyed.

And, by the way, he's not the only politician speaking out. We have Democratic Congressman Jim Matheson. He took to Twitter, as we love, to express his support. Let me read you this tweet, "Devastation in Herriman is heart-wrenching. Firefighters are doing an amazing job. Without their quick work, could have been much worse."

Authorities are optimistic enough to say that firefighters may have gotten a handle on this fire.

All right. Number three on my list: five adults, eight children -- they had been reported missing by the husbands of two of the members believing they may be involved in this religious suicide pact. Well, farewell notes reportedly been left behind, you know, deeds, rent information. So what's going on?

After this frantic search, everyone was found alive, including the children there, several children were involved. In fact, one woman in the group told CNN she was shocked and angry that the officials were searching for them so desperately. Huh?

Number four, no jail for Paris Hilton. A Las Vegas judge gave her, instead, a year's probation and ordered her into an outpatient drug treatment program. Remember, this is for that cocaine possession arrest from last month.

Here she is, arriving at court -- Clark County district court this morning. She pleaded guilty to two misdemeanors.

And that is my roundup list.

You can add political activist to Lady Gaga's resume. I'm going to tell you why this mega-singer, songwriter, leading this mega-protest today in Maine and why she's asking Republican lawmakers -- what she's asking some of these lawmakers in Maine to do -- that is ahead.

And the first lady of France is speaking out about a controversy involving Michelle Obama. Maybe you heard about this last week. You remember that the comment that Mrs. Obama now her camp definitely says she never made that life as a first lady was hell. Carla Bruni- Sarkozy sets the record straight.

Hala Gorani. Hala will join me on set. We'll talk about that interview.

That's next here on THE LIST. Stay right there.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: France's first lady, Carla Sarkozy, is certainly no stranger to controversy. Most recently, she was at a center of a storm about comments she reportedly made about our first lady, Michelle Obama. In this explosive new book, Michelle Obama was quoted to saying to Bruni that life in the White House was hell.

Well, Bruni is back in the United States this week as part of a U.N. effort to fight poverty, in AIDS.

And CNN international anchor Hala Gorani sat down with her in this inclusive interview. And Hala is there in New York.

And, Hala, as we talk about these comments, we're referencing this book, right, that was actually penned by two journalists. So, initially, when we thought Michelle Obama had made comments with Carla Bruni at the state dinner, it turned not so.

HALA GORANI, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Right. And this book, you're seeing the cover of that book, "Carla Et Les Ambitieux," "Carla and the Ambitious."

BALDWIN: Oh, I like the way you say that.

GORANI: Two very famous -- yes -- two very famous French journalists. Carla Bruni says, look, I'm absolutely disassociating myself from this book. I never granted interviews in the way the journalists said I granted interviews. And, of course, I'm quoting her here, "Michelle Obama never said that."

So, I asked her, what actually did happen? And did you have any relationship with this book whatsoever?

This is what she told me just a few hours ago.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CARLA BRUNI-SARKOZY, WIFE OF FRENCH PRESIDENT: Of course, Michelle Obama never said such a thing. I'm happy to tell you frankly that this is not an authorized book. No one, not -- only one book that came out about me was authorized. I never wrote the book. I never knew about the book, but I do live in France and France is a free country where anyone can, you know, fantasize and print it. So, of course, I could do something legal. But first of all, it gives a lot of publicity to all of those books. And second of all, it's not in my principle, you know? I'm a democrat, I believe that everyone is allowed to say and write and say what they want. But I'm happy to disassociate myself --

GORANI: Disassociate?

BRUNI: Disassociate myself not only from that book, from all books. And, of course, Mrs. Obama never said such a thing.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GORANI: So, there you have Carla Bruni. And the gentleman sitting next to her is the head of the Global Fund to fight AIDS. It's this capacity that Carla Bruni granted this interview to us. We're going to have the full sit-down a little bit later. She talks about how in her role as first lady of France, this was one of the causes that was dear to her and she's happy to lend her celebrity status to this particular cause, Brooke.

BALDWIN: I know. Isn't she particularly concerned with HIV AIDS in the transmission from mother to child? That's one of the causes she holds near and dear to her heart, right?

GORANI: Yes. That was one of the things that she talked about. What was interesting though is she's saying, "Basically, this is new to me, you know? I am not a career humanitarian."

The reason people know about Carla Bruni, as you know full well, Brooke, is that she has a very, very colorful past. And it's something that she has said, "I'm not ashamed of. I lived my life. I got married when I was 40 years old. Sure I had these love affairs. Sure I was this supermodel strutting my stuff on the cat walk. And then I had this pop career."

And by the way, her music --

BALDWIN: Is amazing.

GORANI: Of course. I mean, let's admit it. It's great music. It's great music to have around when you're lounging around the house.

So, she's had many chapters to her life. This is the latest chapter -- like her or hate her, this is a fascinating person. And it was -- it was really fun being able to meet her in person for the first time.

BALDWIN: Beautiful woman, I imagine she's stunning in person.

Hala Gorani, thank you for that. We'll look for your full piece a little bit later. Fascinating interview there.

Also, coming up here, a panel of economists says the recession is over. That's what we're hearing today. Try telling that to millions of Americans who still don't exactly feel that way. What does that announcement really mean that the recession is over? And would extending part or perhaps all of the Bush-era tax cuts help or hurt the economy? That is ahead.

Also -- the world's largest chicken dance. That's all I'm saying. That's in "Fotos" next.

(COMMERCIAL BRAK)

BALDWIN: All right. Parents, you have a toddler. Toddler can do silly things. This one might make you cringe.

Let's do "Fotos."

(MUSIC)

BALDWIN: All right. Take a look inside that circle. What is it? What is he? It is a toddler, a 1-year-old. He crawled on to this busy road and -- look at the cars, just passing him on by. Police say he was sleeping in the bushes with his mother, woke up, decided to take a little crawl.

Obviously, this could have ended pretty badly. We're not showing it -- we're showing it to you because it didn't. It ended up being OK. After a minute or two, he was rescued. Wow.

What was his mother doing? A very close call, little one.

Next up -- aren't these the guys who come out every time a hurricane gets little too close, you know, people say, hey, get off the beach? Well, this guy is going in to the beach. This is an extreme surfer doing X-games moves.

Look at it with me. Look at that air. Kite surfer laughing at Hurricane Igor's face in Bermuda. Hopefully he got smart and got inside in time. Otherwise, he could still be up in the air somewhere. Whoo!

And they call this the world's largest chicken dance. You know how to chicken dance? Take a look. Take a lesson.

People in Cincinnati take October fest very seriously. Let's listen for a second. Nice. Partying down properly.

These folks in Munich, the beginning of October fest, very proud to see the chicken dancing in full throttle. I don't have time to show you the Weiner dog race or, dare I say, the bratwurst eating contest.

But this weekend -- look at those, look at those two -- this weekend, October fest was in Cincinnati, enjoyed about 800 barrels of beer. That might be the secret ingredient, dare I add, in this chicken dance attempt.

That is "Fotos." Keep in mind, you can always see "Fotos" on Rick's blog. That is CNN.com/RickSanchez.

(MUSIC) BALDWIN: All right. Just in: A 22-year-old Chicago man arrested Sunday morning on terror charges. We're just now getting this multiple-page criminal complaint.

I'm sure Jeanne Meserve has been looking through some of it.

Jeanne, you have an update for us? What do you -- what do you know?

JEANNE MESERVE, CNN HOMELAND SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: I do. First, Brooke, let me underline that the officials say the public was never at risk, vis-a-vis, this individual, whose name is Sami Samir Hassoun. He's 22 years old, a Lebanese citizen who is living in the United States legally.

Apparently, the FBI became interested in him. They had a confidential informant cultivate a relationship with him. And this man started talking about wanting to do things to disrupt politics in Chicago.

According to the criminal complaint that the government has filed, he's not affiliated with any terrorist group, internationally or domestically, but he wanted to wreak havoc on the administration of Mayor Richard Daley. And so, he talked about a number of different plots, including possibly the use of a biological weapon. However, finally, he settled, according to the affidavit, it's alleged on using some kind of an explosive device.

The FBI is surveilling him through all of this. Their confidential sources and others were working with him. They provided him with an explosive device, he thought. He took it and he placed it in a crowded bar area of Chicago. But it wasn't a real bomb. It was inert, an inert bomb.

And, so, he was arrested and picked up. But, again, although he's been charged with the attempted use of a weapon of mass destruction and attempted use of an explosive device, no indication that this individual was affiliated with any terrorist group.

But, interestingly in one of the footnotes in the criminal complaint, it does mention that he was going to try to blame it on jihadists and that he was going to continue with some other sorts of terrorist or disruptive event. But again, his bottom line motivation wasn't religious. No indication made in this criminal complaint that he had any sort of terrorist inclinations, simply that he wanted to disrupt for some reason, not specified here, the administration of Mayor Richard Daley.

Back to you, Brooke.

BALDWIN: Still, though, slightly frightening. I'm glad he made a friend with a confidential informant with the FBI instead.

Jeanne, thanks for going through some of this criminal complaint for us at the last minute, we appreciate it.

Also, "The Best Political Team on Television" is busy tracking the latest news, seeing what's crossing the Political Ticker. Some of the day's developments could be game-changers. That is next on RICK'S LIST.

Stay right there.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: Time now for the "CNN Equals Politics" update.

Here's Paul Steinhauser, our deputy political director, and, of course, part of "The Best Political Team" on TV.

Paul, what's crossing the Ticker right now?

PAUL STEINHAUSER, CNN DEPUTY POLITICAL DIRECTOR: Let's talk campaign cash, Brooke. Let's talk about that hot race in Delaware.

You know, it's only been six days since Christine O'Donnell pulled that big upset and beat Mike Castle there in Delaware to become the Senate nominee on the Republican side. And you know what? Since then, she has raised, she reports, $1.9 million in campaign cash just since last Tuesday's victory. She's really exciting a lot of people on the right, the Tea Party movement.

Also, the ad wars in that race are really heating up. Check this out.

John (ph), come on in here. Right on the CNN "Political Ticker," "Delaware Ad Wars Heating Up."

Listen, the Democrats went up yesterday with an ad against O'Donnell. I learned today that the Tea Party Express, that major Tea Party group that helped her in the primary, they're going up with new ads, and so are some other people as well. This is really one race to watch.

But that's not all going down on the "Political Ticker." Peter Hamby, our political producer, has got some more stuff.

PETER HAMBY, CNN POLITICAL PRODUCER: You have more ads going up today in Florida, the always entertaining Senate race there between Kendrick Meek, Charlie Crist and Marco Rubio. It got a little nasty today.

Charlie Crist went up with the first negative ad of the general election, calling into question Marco Rubio's fiscal record. That's an important issue in the race. Marco Rubio is running as the true fiscal conservative in the race.

The Rubio campaign went up with their own ad, a positive one. The same with Charlie Crist, who has backed down on his pledge to run a positive campaign.

Also, bubbling up today in South Carolina, Nikki Haley, the gubernatorial candidate, we all know her from earlier this summer. She has survived a pretty nasty primary down there. She's picking a fight with Harry Reid in Nevada, the Senate majority leader, over the issue of Yucca Mountain, the nuclear waste site.

Nikki Haley said that nuclear waste should be sent out to Yucca Mountain. Harry Reid responded to Nikki Haley and said hell no. Of course it's political season. Nikki Haley is using that to raise money today in e-mail to supporters.

BALDWIN: I love it. The news rolls in. You guys are on it.

Gentlemen, Peter, Paul -- I feel I could make a joke there, but I won't. Gentlemen, thank you both.

Your next political update in just one hour. And, of course, remember, for all the latest political news, hop online. Go to CNNPolitics.com, or hop on Twitter at "Political Ticker."

Lady Gaga and her fans, they are sending a message to Congress. What she has to say -- there she is -- what she has to say about "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" the day before this major vote. That is next as THE LIST scrolls on.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SANCHEZ: Time to see what's trending today, what are the hot stories, maybe, on Twitter, with the stories you're gong home, you're talking about.

And apparently, number one, you're talking about Lindsay Lohan, the fact that she could be going back to jail. CNN has now learned that a judge has revoked her probation and ordered her to appear in court Friday.

This, of course, follows her own admission, thanks to Twitter, that she failed this recent drug test. And, in fact, there's a series of tweets she posted Friday night. Let's roll over to the Twitter board and I'll show you what she's tweeting.

First, starting with, "Regrettably, I did in fact fail my most recent drug test. And if I am asked, I am prepared to appear before Judge Fox next week as a result."

She goes on, "Substance abuse is a disease which unfortunately doesn't go away overnight. I am working hard to overcome it and I am taking positive steps forward every day." It continues, "I am testing every single day and doing what I must do to prevent any mishaps in the future." She keeps tweeting, "This was certainly a setback for me, but I am taking responsibility for my actions and I'm prepared to face the consequences."

Let's remember, Lohan was originally sentenced to 90 days in jail and then 90 days in rehab for violating probation on that previous DUI conviction, but she was released early from jail because of overcrowding. So she served 13 days.

She was also released early from rehab because the doctor said she'd spent enough time there, 23 days there. She was then put on probation which included random drug tests, and a judge warned her if she failed them, she could go back to jail.

We'll see what happens on Friday.

Number two on the trending list, Lady Gaga in Maine. Just moments ago, the pop star tweeted that she -- what she's talking about today in her rally in Portland. As you probably know by now, she's going to call for the repeal of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell," the military's ban on openly gay men and women. And she, in fact, tweeted fans about the rally just yesterday.

She actually just tweeted now. Let's take a look.

She said she's on her way to Deering Oaks Park. "I have been writing my repeal" -- this is "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" rally -- "address for 48 hours. It's called "The Prime Rib of America."

So, a lot of people are asking, why Maine? Why did she choose Maine to hold this rally?

Well, the pop star is hoping to help persuade the state's two Republican senators -- that being Olympia Snowe, Susan Collins -- to break with their Party and vote yes on taking up this defense bill that includes authorization of the repeal of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell." As you know, Gaga has been very passionate. She sent this YouTube video out last week. She's even posting videos like this one, urging fans to call their senators and ask them to support tomorrow's procedural Senate vote.

And those are the trending items today.

And less than two months before midterm elections, and the campaign season still very much so in full swing. So what's the mood like in cities across the country?

"TIME" magazine's Joe Klein is getting a firsthand look. There he is hanging in -- what is it, Denver today?

JOE KLEIN, "TIME": Denver.

BALDWIN: Talking to Joe -- Denver, got it. We'll talk on the other side of the break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: This election cycle has seen voter discontent and the rise of the Tea Party movement. And as various House, Senate and gubernatorial races head toward home stretch, "TIME" political columnist Joe Klein wanted to -- we'll call it taking the pulse of the nation. So he launched this four-week, 12-state road trip that's taking him from Pennsylvania all the way to the other coast, to California.

And he is walking the streets. Here's video of him knocking on doors, interviewing politicians and you, the voters.

And today, he's good enough to join me from Denver.

And Joe, I've enjoyed watching -- or reading your blogs on "Swampland" on "TIME" magazine. And just briefly, were you able to get your wife to the airport? I know she's been taking some of these trips and listening to some of these speeches with you. Did she get out OK?

KLEIN: Well, yes. Halfway through the trip was conjugal visit weekend. And she met me in Kansas City, and we went to see Sarah Palin together in Des Moines, and then came out here to Colorado.

She got on the plane yesterday. She got home late last night. She's back at work as an interior designer, although her play list of music we listened to on the road, you can find on "Swampland." And it's pretty good.

BALDWIN: Yes, it is pretty good. I saw you had one of my favorites from Buena Vista Social Club. But we digress. I need to talk politics with you.

KLEIN: Yes.

BALDWIN: And then I do want to get to Sarah Palin, but --

KLEIN: Music is politics.

BALDWIN: It is. And you've rolled through essentially, geographically and metaphorically speaking, middle America. And I know you were talking to a lot of people. And then reading some of your stuff, some of these people that you're talking to saying what they're seeing maybe on mainstream media isn't what they're concerned about.

What's the gist from them?

KLEIN: Right. Well, you know, you just had Lady Gaga's rally in Maine. And I've got to say that "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" hasn't been brought up once during the course of this trip.

I keep on bumping into people whose houses are under water. Their mortgage is worth more than their house is now, and people who are suffering economically, and they're not angry so much, but they really are concerned.

They're really concerned about the future of the country, where things are going, when and how and if the economy is going to come back. You don't see very much fist-shaking.

You know, there are Tea Partiers out there, but there are also a vast majority of people who are less certain about the problem and the cure, and scratching their heads and wondering about, you know, the state of the country. Not too pleased with the president either.

BALDWIN: Well, let me ask you since we just got the big news, what, 15 months later from the National Bureau of Economic Research today, saying, hey, we're out of the recession, the recession ending in the summer of last year. Do you think people you've been talking to feel it?

KLEIN: Hell no. No. They're suffering. And the real estate market hasn't come back. And so much of Americans' lives are caught up in their house and the value of their house. And for a long time, because those values seemed to be going up, everybody thought they were doing better.

And then the values crashed. And now they don't know how they're doing.

They're wondering -- you know, they have neighbors who are walking away from their mortgages. I talked to a group of cops and firefighters who are really ticked off about that, because those houses go in to foreclosure, it lowers the property value of their houses, and they think it's immoral. So people are really soul searching now and trying to figure out what comes next.

BALDWIN: And so you've been talking to voters. You're also hearing from some politicians. Your last stop before being in Denver was Des Moines. And we know that the road to the White House sort of begins both in Iowa and New Hampshire.

And so Friday night, you have Sarah Palin speaking at this Ronald Reagan dinner. And you wrote -- and I want to quote what I read -- that "The atmosphere was dripping with presidentialty." And you went on to say that it was -- it was a little bit -- "It was a little bit weird and underwhelming."

Was she candidate Palin or was she just national spotlight, "I'm enjoying speaking" Palin?

KLEIN: Well, I think it was more the latter than the former, because if it had been candidate Palin, she would have laid out an agenda. She would have said what she wanted to do.

And I was shocked by the speech, actually, because I expected her to be really entertaining. She's a great standup politician, but this was a lot of inside baseball, anger at the media, anger at "Vanity Fair," a magazine, because of a profile that was done of her. And anger at people like Karl Rove, who knocked her candidate in the Delaware Senate race, Christine O'Donnell.

And, you know, my sense was that the audience was appreciative, but not blown away. And if Sarah Palin really does want to run for president, she's going to have to come up with, you know, a little bit more substance and a little bit less whining.

BALDWIN: Less whining. I think it was your wife -- she said she sounded like a PTA president, but she also said, "Addendum, no slight to PTA presidents." I guess she wasn't very effusive.

And speaking of Sarah Palin, moving to the Tea Party movement, look, a lot of the quotes over the weekend are mentioning, is there a civil war within the GOP? Or in Colorado, you have the Senate race, Tea Party-backed Ken Buck versus the Democrat incumbent, Michael Bennett.

What's your take on that race? What's your take on the Tea Party movement? And is there a civil war, and do people really care in middle America?

KLEIN: I don't see a civil war in the Republican Party because I don't know what the other side is, aside from just people who have been in office for a while that the Tea Party folks want to turn out. The Tea Party movement is very much concerned with federal spending, and with what they consider to be overreach of, you know, the federal government into areas like health care and so on.

I was at a Ken Buck event this morning, and it was kind of frustrating. You know, it was an event with veterans, and it was kind of frustrating because there was a tracker from the Democratic Party there photographing -- videotaping it. And Buck didn't want to speak in front of him because he alleges that last week, or recently, the tracker took a sentence of his out of context. And this just goes -- you know, takes us further down a really nonproductive road in American politics, where almost all of it takes place in political ads and not much of it takes place in politicians explaining themselves to the voters.

BALDWIN: Joe Klein, I could keep talking to you for a while, but I'm told I've got to go.

Briefly, what's your next stop?

KLEIN: Well, tomorrow, I'm going to go to Fort Carson, Colorado, and meet up with some of the soldiers I embedded with in Afghanistan last April, which is going to be really cool, just to see those guys again and to see them safe.

BALDWIN: All right. Joe, safe travels. Thanks for talking to me. Appreciate it.

KLEIN: My pleasure.

BALDWIN: Also -- thank you.

What is making Wolf's political list? I will check back in with him next.

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BALDWIN: Big news today. The recession is over. In fact, the National Bureau of Economic Research says it was actually over June of 2009. So that means that the recession lasted a good 18 months from December of '07 to June of '09. And since the recession has now been over for three months, let's go over what we've gained.

We have gained back 50 percent of GDP, 50 percent of industrial production, 50 percent of income, and 40 percent of sales. However -- and this is the sticking point here -- we've only gained back nine percent of jobs.

And as I talk to my colleague Wolf Blitzer here more about this recession, perhaps, Wolf, that may be why many, many Americans say it's a jobless recovery. It's a phrase we keep hearing tossed around over and over, right? That even though we're out of this recession, the nine percent recovery in private sector jobs doesn't do a whole lot for people sitting at home.

WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: It doesn't feel like a recovery to the millions of people that don't have jobs and the millions more who are underemployed, who may have been making before the recession $70,000 or $80,000 a year for a family of four. And now they're maybe making $30,000 or $40,000 a year because that's the best job that they can find.

It's still a job. They're not unemployed. But it's certainly not the double salary that so many millions were making before the recession.

So, technically, economists always say that a recession is defined as two consecutive quarters, six months, in other words, of a negative economic growth. And now we're over that, but it certainly is what you would describe as a jobless recovery, at least right now.

BALDWIN: I'm sure you'll have more on that. What else do you have coming up in seven minutes on "THE SITUATION ROOM"?

BLITZER: We're going to have a lot more. Mark Zandi, by the way, one of the chief economists over at Moody's who knows a lot about this stuff, the taxes and everything else, we're going to be speaking with him at some length, going in depth to get a sense of, is this economy moving in the right direction, wrong direction, and the ramifications if they extend the Bush tax cuts for everyone as opposed to just the middle class.

So we've got a lot on that, a lot more coming up.

BALDWIN: Yes. Bush tax cuts, high on the mind for a lot of people.

Wolf Blitzer, we'll see you in a couple of minutes.

We'll talk more about those Bush tax cuts and this interesting poll that CNN Money took with a group of economists. More on that as THE LIST scrolls on.

We'll be right back.

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BALDWIN: Income tax rates set to go up at the end of the year for everyone -- December 31st is the date. The White House wants to extend tax cuts to 97 percent of Americans, but it's that remaining three percent that has Congress fighting.

But while Congress debates this thing, many economists actually agree what to do. And that is to extend these tax cuts to everybody.

This is according to this leading -- this panel of leading economists surveyed by CNNMoney.com. And when it comes to middle class tax cuts, almost everyone agrees with the president that they, yes, indeed, should be extended.

Jeanne Sahadi is a senior writer with CNNMoney.com. And Jeanne, I see you have the pie chart. Excellent, because that leads me to the first question, which is your poll. And the majority, some people may find it surprising, but 60 percent of these economists surveyed say extend them to everybody.

JEANNE SAHADI, CNNMONEY.COM: Yes. The more I think about it, everyone does agree that they should be extended for the middle class. You know, the Democrats, the Republicans, and all these economists.

But I'm beginning to think that the encouragement to extend them for the upper income folks is more a better safe than sorry bet. You know, typically, it's not seen as the most stimulative thing, to give a tax break to a higher income person when -- versus a lower income person, because a lower income person will spend it more. But at this point, there's a psychological factor going on in the economy.

We don't have a very strong recovery going on, so let's not pull it back. Let's not take two steps back by ending people's tax cuts. I think that's the thinking in general. But with regard to high income folks, it sounds more like a better safe than sorry philosophy.

BALDWIN: Well, I think with regard to the high income folks, you know, you hear from Republicans and they say, look, if they're extended to those guys as well, individuals making above $200,000, or couples above $250,000, they say, look, it's great for small businesses, Democrats disagree.

I mean, in terms of long-term economic growth, what do you see happening? Or what do economists tell you?

SAHADI: Well, here's the thing -- it's -- let me just talk about the Congressional Budget Office.

They did a report that found that the tax cuts, extending them for most people or even all people, is kind of a mixed bag. And here's why.

In the short term, they say, if you extend the tax cuts -- and they were judging if we made them permanent, and I think that's less likely at this point -- but if you -- to make them permanent, that would help the economy in the short run, but in the long run, it could harm economic growth because it would add so much to our debt. There is no official estimate yet of the one-or-two-year extension for just the middle class, or for everybody, but it's bound to be a few hundred billion for a year or two. But some people say that might be worth the price, because if the economy goes into another recession or a double-dip recession, or whatever you want to call it, that could add to our debt because the government is going to be pressured to spend more to help people out if things get worse.

BALDWIN: What if then -- you mentioned --

SAHADI: That's not a very gratifying answer.

BALDWIN: I know. It's complicated. And I appreciate your help walking me through this. But with this massive size of the U.S. budget deficit, some experts, including the former Fed chief, Alan Greenspan, say the government can't afford these breaks.

SAHADI: Well, right. So there's that philosophy. Then there are people like Peter Orszag, who used to be the White House budget director, who came out with an editorial a couple of weeks ago.

And he said, you know what? Let's extend them for everyone, but only for two years. And then that's it. They all go away because we can't afford it in the long run.

This is not an exact science. It's more of a -- it's kind of a gambit. I mean, people can't say with any certainty this will definitely help or hurt the economy. They're making their best guesses.

And it seems like people are sort of congealing around the idea that it's better safe than sorry. We're going to slow the recovery down if we extend (ph) the tax cuts. On the other hand, we can't afford to do that for too long.

BALDWIN: Jeanne, got to go. Jeanne Sahadi, we thank you.

SAHADI: OK.

BALDWIN: I think that Wolf Blitzer will continue this conversation. I'm going to pass it off to him up in Washington.

Here he is with "THE SITUATION ROOM" -- Wolf.