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CNN Saturday Morning News
Denver Man Admits Al-Qaeda Ties, Official Says; Wolf Blitzer Appears on 'Jeopardy!'; Amputees Visit Congress, Fight for Arms, Legs; Rosh Hashanah Starts Hebrew Year 5770
Aired September 19, 2009 - 06:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
T.J. HOLMES, CNN ANCHOR: We're just on it (ph). Oh.
Oh, hey there, everybody. From the CNN Center, this is CNN SATURDAY MORNING for September the 19th.
BETTY NGUYEN, CNN ANCHOR: Yes.
HOLMES: Here we are in Atlanta. Good morning to you, Betty.
NGUYEN: Well good morning to you. You are awake this morning, raring to go.
HOLMES: Yes, I am well-rested for a change. I feel great this morning.
NGUYEN: For a change.
HOLMES: Yes.
NGUYEN: It's difficult on this show. And chip (ph), too.
Hello, everybody. I'm Betty Nguyen. Thanks so much for being with us. Happy Rosh Hashanah, the beginning of the new year for those in the Jewish community. Thanks for starting your day with us.
Let's get to it though. Denver, 24-year-old Najibullah Zazi admitted ties to al-Qaeda, planned attacks on major U.S. transportation systems -- well, that's what he's accused of. Also, increased security has turned up this morning as a result of this investigation.
HOLMES: Yes, it's scary stuff.
NGUYEN: Yes. A homeland-security note though went out to transit authorities last night to be vigilant.
Now, DHS and FBI have no information on any specific targets. But we must say that, you know, when it comes to this investigation, he -- we are learning that he has admitted ties to al-Qaeda, but a lot of questions still surrounding it.
HOLMES: Yes, and it's an investigation that's kind of crisscrossed the country.
NGUYEN: Right. HOLMES: Kind of this whole thing started September 11 in New York, kind of some scary stuff. Some homes were raided. And now, it is turned -- like, they call them "real deal terrorists"...
NGUYEN: Exactly.
HOLMES: ...is actually the phrase that authorities are using. We are going to be getting in-depth with that story this morning.
Also, has it really come to this? Are America's kids really -- I don't want...
NGUYEN: It's an eye-opener.
HOLMES: It is.
NGUYEN: Yes.
HOLMES: Do they really not know some of the simplest things? We have some results of a survey of high-school students...
NGUYEN: Uh huh.
HOLMES: ...in a particular state. But still, maybe this is a -- a bigger problem. But just to give you an example of the questions they could not name: didn't know who the first president was.
NGUYEN: Nope.
HOLMES: OK. How many could name it -- 77 percent of the kids surveyed didn't -- weren't able to name the first president.
NGUYEN: So it means only 30 percent knew who the first president was.
HOLMES: Who the first president was.
Also, 90 percent didn't know how many justices sat on the Supreme Court.
NGUYEN: Supreme Court.
HOLMES: We're going to be getting into this survey and a lot this morning (ph).
NGUYEN: And these are, you know, answers or questions that a lot of people, you know, going through immigration here in the U.S. -- like, 92 percent of those who take that test pass it.
HOLMES: Yes. Pass it. Yes.
NGUYEN: Are able to these. But -- but these are kids are in the U.S., in high school...
HOLMES: In high school.
NGUYEN: ...that are not able to answer it. So what does that say about the system and what should be done?
All right. We want to hear from you this morning. What do you think about it? Go to our Facebook and Twitter pages. Let us know. Give us a shout out. You can find us also on our blog as well. Again, Facebook, Twitter, CNN blog. There's lots of ways to get in touch with us. We will be reading your comments on the air.
All right. Let's get to this right now, a look at our top stories this morning.
Lots of chanting there, competing rallies in Iran's capital city of Tehran. Thousands demonstrated against Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad yesterday, and thousands more cheered the Iranian leader who called the Holocaust "a myth." The anti-government demonstrators are upset over Iran's highly contested presidential election.
HOLMES: Also, police investigating the disappearance of 5-year- old Haleigh Cummings, they are now draining a pond in rural Florida. Our affiliate there, WJXT, standing by to bring us any news as it possibly breaks this morning.
Cummings, you may remember, was being watched by her baby-sitter when she vanished from her father's mobile home. That was back in February.
NGUYEN: Well, and Germany, it is beefing up security ahead of next -- next weekend's national election and following a threat on the Internet by al-Qaeda. According to security officials, an Internet video from the terrorist group warns about attacks on German soil if the German people don't vote in a party that supports pulling troops out of Afghanistan.
And we also have some new developments in the alleged terror plot that we first told you about, we've been following in our backyard right here in the U.S.
HOLMES: Yes. Federal intelligence officials say they've found video of New York's Grand Central Station with their main suspect, who is an Afghan national living in Colorado.
Our homeland-security correspondent Jeanne Meserve has been taking a look at his investigation.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JEANNE MESERVE, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: For days, Najibullah Zazi and his attorney denied that he had any link to al- Qaeda, but an administration official familiar with the matter says that Zazi has now admitted ties to al-Qaeda. The official says the government is now exploring what kind of charges it might be able to bring against him, and that a plea agreement is a possibility down the road.
Zazi underwent three days of questioning by the FBI. And we do not know what kind of information he is sharing. But on Friday night, a homeland-security note went out to transit officials and also to law enforcement. We don't know the specifics, but a DHS statement said in part, "While DHS and the FBI have no information regarding the timing, location or target of any planned attack, we believe it is prudent to remind transit authorities to remain vigilant."
Now for days, law-enforcement officials have been saying that they felt this was the real deal, it was a genuine terrorist threat. The fact that Zazi has now admitted having ties with al-Qaeda would seem to substantiate that claim.
Jeanne Meserve, CNN, Denver.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
NGUYEN: Well, I also spoke with a former FBI agent who's now a member of New York's Joint Terrorism Task Force. And I asked her about why their main suspect has still not been arrested.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
FORIA YOUNIS, MEMBER OF NYC'S JOINT TERRORISM TASK FORCE: When do we keep investigating and when do we disrupt the plan?
Before 9/11, the JTTF may have gone a little bit longer and kept investigating. Post-9/11, the clear marching orders are, disruption, disruption, disruption. So we cannot take a chance. We do not take it -- the FBI doesn't take any more chances. If they suspect something, they would rather disrupt it than let it go on and obviously have some Americans or citizens in the U.S. get injured.
So this may be a disruption angle. They may be still continuing their investigation, interviewing and collecting other pieces of information and seeing where that leads them.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NGUYEN: Well, Zazi is supposed to continue talking to police for a fourth day, about 8:30 this morning. We'll continue to follow this story for you.
And we wanted to know what you think about our top stories this morning. E-mail us: weekends@cnn.com. Or find us on Facebook and Twitter. We have a blog at cnn.com/betty, or cnn.com/tj. A lot of things for you to weigh in this morning. We'll be reading those responses on the air.
HOLMES: And a lot's happening weatherwise this weekend.
NGUYEN: Oh yes.
HOLMES: It's supposed to be wet a lot of places, including here in Atlanta, where we sit.
Our Karen Maginnis sitting in today for Reynolds Wolf.
Karen, good morning to you.
KAREN MAGINNIS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Yes, I have a feeling I know where Reynolds is. It may be an Auburn football game.
NGUYEN: Do you think?
(LAUGHTER)
MAGINNIS: (INAUDIBLE) thinking about, yes.
(WEATHER REPORT)
NGUYEN: All right. So as the debate over health-care reform continues in Washington, one amputee is fighting to get his prosthetics paid for.
HOLMES: Jordan is his name. He lost his legs when he was 16 in a boating accident. Now, he's in an uphill fine -- fight to get his legs fully covered by insurance.
This is a young man we did a story once before.
NGUYEN: Yes.
HOLMES: But we'll be talking to him again here coming up and see about his new crusade.
NGUYEN: All right.
And here's a question for you: Did you see this? Are you smarter than our very own Wolf Blitzer?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ALEX TREBEK, HOST, "JEOPARDY!": Wolf.
WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: Who is Andy Warhol?
TREBEK: You're on the board with $400.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NGUYEN: And he didn't get much more after that 400, unfortunately.
HOLMES: Let's show them the highlights.
NGUYEN: Yes, we are. Wolf gets quizzed by Alex Trebek and things -- mmm, don't go so well.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(MUSIC, FOREIGNER, "HEAD GAMES")
NGUYEN: Wow, we are rocking out to "Head Games" by Foreigner today.
HOLMES: Obviously, Deanna's (ph) back from her vacation.
NGUYEN: Yes, she is.
Speaking of head games, our Wolf Blitzer -- you know, he controls "THE SITUATION ROOM." He's got this manned (ph) down.
HOLMES: Yes.
NGUYEN: Well, on "Jeopardy!," a little bit of a different story.
HOLMES: Yes.
NGUYEN: Didn't go so well. Take a look.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Since 1990, he's covered every major story for CNN, including the 1991 Gulf Coast and Hurricane Katrina. Here's the host of "THE SITUATION ROOM," journalist Wolf Blitzer.
TREBEK: King David and Jesus both hailed from this town.
Wolf.
BLITZER: What is Jerusalem?
TREBEK: No.
An accused person in court, along with his counsel.
Wolf.
BLITZER: What is the defendant?
TREBEK: No.
Wolf.
BLITZER: Anodated (ph).
TREBEK: No. What is excerpted?
Wolf.
BLITZER: What is a crash?
TREBEK: No.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NGUYEN: That is so wrong. We gave only the lowlights. Wolf did answer several questions, all right? He was playing for charity, the American Cancer Society.
He ended with a negative 4,060.
HOLMES: That means there were no highlights, Betty.
(LAUGHTER)
NGUYEN: Which means he's probably writing his own personal check to that charity, because he made no money on "Jeopardy!," unfortunately.
But despite his performance -- oh, here you go. Charity gets $25,000.
But Wolf Blitzer -- but, you know, this is -- it's -- to be tough.
HOLMES: It is...
NGUYEN: It's "Jeopardy!"
HOLMES: And you're under pressure. And some of those things, it sounds like one thing -- and no, it's just -- no, I'm not going to give the man a hard time.
NGUYEN: Exactly.
HOLMES: And who knows how we would have done?
NGUYEN: It's not like we were sitting out there.
(LAUGHTER)
HOLMES: Yes.
NGUYEN: Yes.
HOLMES: So, congratulations.
NGUYEN: But it's a good thing it was only for charity.
HOLMES: We'd have to change the name of "THE SITUATION ROOM."
NGUYEN: Yes.
(LAUGHTER)
HOLMES: It's a different situation, apparently.
NGUYEN: Oh yes.
(LAUGHTER)
HOLMES: All right. Just teasing, Wolf. We love you.
Well, we're going to stay with our theme here. Of course, we've been talking a lot about the make-or-break time we're in right now...
NGUYEN: Right.
HOLMES: ...with health care. And on Wednesday this week, the big health story was Senator Max Baucus. He released his compromise bill everybody had been waiting on.
NGUYEN: Everyone had been waiting. But on that same day though, there was another health-care story happening on the Hill of vital importance to some two million Americans. And that is a push for insurance companies to drop caps on prosthetics.
CNN's Brooke Baldwin puts the face on this issue.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BROOKE BALDWIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: T.J., Betty, good morning. We are talking about men and women, young and old, who have come here to Washington wanting change when it comes to our nation's health care. And they say that arms and legs are not a luxury.
JORDAN THOMAS, BILATERAL AMPUTEE: OK.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hi, Jordan, again. Good to see you sir.
THOMAS: Good to see you.
BALDWIN (voice-over): As the debate over health-care reform rages on in Washington . . .
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Jordan, now a college in Charleston just let you off for (INAUDIBLE).
THOMAS: I did. I had to come up to Washington, you know?
BALDWIN: Twenty-year-old Jordan Thomas is fighting for a cause close to home. Jordan is a bilateral amputee. He lost his legs in a boating accident when he was just 16.
THOMAS: My dad jumped in the water immediately and held me afloat. And I remember looking at him and saying, "Dad, my feet are gone."
BALDWIN: During his recovery, Jordan met children whose parents, unlike his, couldn't afford expensive prosthetics.
THOMAS: My legs are $24,000. And a lot of companies will put caps, $5,000 cap for example, and then you have to pay the rest.
BALDWIN: So the then-16-year-old started the Jordan Thomas Foundation, raising money to help disadvantaged kids, like Noah (ph), get the prosthetics they need.
BALDWIN (on camera): You like the knee?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes. Yes.
BALDWIN: How's it work? Just like that.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes. And you can do this. Watch.
BALDWIN: Wow. (voice-over): Taking Noah's story to the next level.
(on camera): So, what are you doing? You're pounding down the doors of these congressmen?
THOMAS: Yes, trying to get a hold of some of them, yes. And just -- and just raising awareness. That's the thing about, you know, the whole amputee deal is, it's not kind of a red-state or blue-state deal, it's just kind of an ethical deal.
What would you do...
BALDWIN (voice-over): Jordan is taking his hard-hitting questions ...
THOMAS: What do you do to ensure that the amputees have access to the best possible people for them to provide prosthetics?
BALDWIN: ...hoping lawmakers will listen and follow through.
SEN. BOB CORKER, (R) TENNESSEE: There's an awareness level that is hugely raised when someone like him is here.
BALDWIN: Joining Jordan, dozens of amputees, taking their message to the U.S. Senate, the same day that Senator Max Baucus released his road map to health-care reform.
DAVE MCGILL, AMPUTEE COALITION OF AMERICA: We want legislation that will eliminate the caps so that amputees across the United States have access to the types of devices that allow them to function every day.
BALDWIN: There are two million amputees nationwide. Jordan is simply one of them, taking on Congress, step by step
THOMAS: It's just -- it's a no-brainer.
BALDWIN (on camera): Amputees nationwide will really now just have to wait to see if there's any kind of language in this proposed health-care bill that will include full coverage for people with prosthetics.
In the meantime, they're just hoping this will raise awareness -- T.J., Betty.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HOLMES: And I talked with former Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle about what he thinks of the health-care plans out there. He, of course, is advising the president. He, of course, was the president's first choice for Health and Human Services secretary as well. This is an issue he knows inside and out. Going to be talking to him. You'll see my interview coming up in about 30 minutes.
NGUYEN: All right. So here's a question for you: What would you do if someone tried to rob the bank that you were in? Hmm. Yes. Well, surveillance video captured a customer at a bank fighting off a would-be robber.
HOLMES: Hmm.
Also, it's the end of Ramadan and the beginning of Rosh Hashanah.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOSH LEVS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey there. Type "Rosh Hashanah" into Google and you get all sorts of image, including this, from zingerbug.com. I'll explain why the apples and honey and what that means.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(MUSIC, FASTBALL, "FIRE ESCAPE")
HOLMES: All right. School year just starting up.
NGUYEN: Yes.
HOLMES: We've got a bit of a test. And -- and you should know all the answers to the questions we're going to be asking here.
NGUYEN: You should.
HOLMES: But these questions were given to a thousand public high-school students in Oklahoma.
NGUYEN: Mm-hmm.
HOLMES: Now, this was a study that was commissioned by this Oklahoma Council on Public Affairs. The questions they pulled are actually from the citizenship test that people have to take to become U.S. citizens.
The results, though, from these students, who have lived their entire lives here, who have been citizens since the moment they were born...
NGUYEN: Exactly.
HOLMES: ...a little scary.
NGUYEN: Not nearly as high as the results from those immigrants who took ...
HOLMES: Yes.
NGUYEN: ...the citizenship test.
HOLMES: But take a look here. Some of the questions -- and it shows also the percent of students who got the answers right, folks. Number of Supreme Court justices. Just a few knew the answer.
The writers of the Declaration of Independence. Didn't get that one right either. Just over 100 kids got some of these questions right.
But you see some of them there. The two parts of Congress -- as much as we talk about this in the news, only 28 percent got that right.
NGUYEN: There -- there's no really passing amount here -- a percentage point, when it comes to students. I mean, I guess the largest I've seen so far is that -- the 61 percent right here, and that is: What ocean is on the East Coast of the United States? Hey, they seemed to get that, the Atlantic Ocean.
Only 23 percent knew that the first president was George Washington. Abraham Lincoln and Thomas Jefferson also did pretty well there.
HOLMES: Not -- none of the students got all 10 of the answers right. The best score we're told is 7 out of 10. Only six students did that.
NGUYEN: Only six...
HOLMES: Yes.
NGUYEN: ...match 70 percent on this test.
HOLMES: We should give some perspective here.
NGUYEN: OK.
HOLMES: It appears that some kids -- and kids will be kids sometimes -- they didn't take this thing too seriously, because 5 percent said that Barack Obama was the first president.
(LAUGHTER)
HOLMES: Maybe they didn't hear it right, and maybe they thought first black president.
NGUYEN: Maybe they read the answer -- or, the question wrong.
HOLMES: Yes, 7 percent said that Barack Obama wrote the Declaration of Independence.
NGUYEN: No way.
HOLMES: OK. So, obviously not...
NGUYEN: That's crazy.
HOLMES: ...taking it seriously. And 2 percent said it was written by Michael Jackson. So... NGUYEN: Yes, they weren't taking it seriously.
HOLMES: ...who knows if this is a good way...
NGUYEN: Michael Jackson? Come on.
HOLMES: ...if this is a good way to test school kids, or if this means much of anything. But maybe it does mean something. We're going to be talking about this later with Steve Perry.
You know the name; you'll know the face, and you know his voice as well. He was a big part of our "BLACK IN AMERICA 2" series....
NGUYEN: Mm-hmm.
HOLMES: ...this "take no junk" principal, of Capital Preparatory Magnet School. He's going to be here with us to talk about it a little later. So you don't want to miss him.
NGUYEN: Absolutely. And we got a lot coming up, including some of your top stories as well.
HOLMES: Take a look at some of those now.
Investigators uncovered another bone in Phillip Garrido's property to go with similar fragments found last week. Contra Costa County, California, building inspectors have also released photos of the inside of the Garrido home, which they have condemned as being unsafe. Take a look at it there.
Garrido and his wife are in jail, charged with 29 felony counts in connection with the 1991 kidnapping of Jaycee Dugard. Law- enforcement agencies are searching Garrido's property for possible evidence linking Garrido to the disappearances of two other girls in the 1980s.
NGUYEN: Well, the evacuation of almost 4,000 students in Northern California is being blamed on repairs to a high-school track field.
Three schools evacuated yesterday after students began complaining of nausea, headaches and a foul odor. School officials say it was caused by a substance that was put on the artificial turf. And they say the fumes though are not toxic.
HOLMES: And take a look at some video we have to show you here. This is a customer near Milwaukee, Wisconsin, takes down a suspected bank robber.
NGUYEN: Oh my.
HOLMES: Take a look at how this is going now. You see the robber kind of trying to walk up to the -- the front there. And the guy apparently didn't want his money stolen that day.
(LAUGHTER) HOLMES: The first video we are seeing of this. The suspect did not make it out with any cash. And after the man jumped on him, his wife and then some other customers...
NGUYEN: Oh my.
HOLMES: ...helped hold him down until police got there.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's kind of nice to know that somebody like that would take the time or, you know, put himself in harm's way to, you know, at least -- you know, protect everybody's interests here, you know? So...
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Especially his wife.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Especially his wife.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Definitely a hero for somebody to do that. You know, in today's day and age, you never know. You never know what's going to happen.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It takes a hero to do that. And it takes a lot of guts.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: Wow. You see him. He scaled a couple of the ropes..
NGUYEN: He's leaping over the ropes just to get to him. My goodness.
HOLMES: And took -- and obviously, the police would not recommend that you...
NGUYEN: No.
HOLMES: ...that you do this. Things worked out here, but this is a case where your money in the bank is insured. Whatever he steals, you're going to get it back; the bank's going to get it bank. Everybody's...
NGUYEN: FDIC insured. You're good.
HOLMES: It's going to be OK. But still, it all worked here. They guy didn't get away. And if convicted, the suspect could get some 40 years in prison. NGUYEN: That is really quite a site.
And let's talk about this for just a second: the Jewish holiday of Rosh Hashanah, that is under way as we speak.
HOLMES: Yes, CNN's Josh Levs tells us what it's about and how it's celebrated.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
LEVS: All right. This is fun, a little Rosh Hashanah 101.
Let's go to this first of all. You can see the words right there, "Rosh Hashanah" or "Rosh Hashanah." That's how you pronounce it.
It means the beginning of the year. This is the date on which, in the Jewish lunar calendar, you advance the next year.
In fact, check out this Web site right here: Jewfaq.org. It points out to you what year it is. So this will begin 5770, 5-7-7-0.
A couple more facts for you here. It's also known as the Day of Judgment. And this begins the 10 days of penitence, which then end at what you've heard of Yom Kippur, or Yom Kippur.
Around the world, there are 13 million Jews, according to the latest estimates. It doesn't mean all are celebrating Rosh Hashanah, but that's the latest estimate. And according to the "CIA World Factbook," that's actually just under a quarter of one percent of the world's population.
You can say "happy New Year." It is a happy holiday. Or if you want to try it in Hebrew, you can say it, "shanah tovah."
One of the traditions is dipping apples in honey. We have some video of a family doing that for you there, celebrating Rosh Hashanah.
(CROSSTALK)
LEVS: A lot more information here, Jewfaq.org. Back to you.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
NGUYEN: All right. Thank you, Josh.
HOLMES: All right. And President Obama may be on TV more than your favorite talk-show hosts this weekend. A look at his whirlwind of interviews this weekend.
NGUYEN: Including one with our very own John King. And the president really has some interesting comments on race. You don't want to miss that.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
NGUYEN: Hello, and welcome back everybody to the "CNN SATURDAY MORNING" show. I'm Betty Nguyen.
HOLMES: And hello to you all. I'm T.J. Holmes. Appreciate you being here with us this morning.
Let's tell you some things that are making some headlines.
NGUYEN: All right. First up, federal authorities have reportedly launched a criminal investigation into the purchase of Merrill Lynch. Now, that's according to a North Carolina newspaper.
You'll remember though that Lynch was bought by Bank of America around this time last year. A spokesman for BofA declined to comment, and CNN has not been able to confirm with federal authorities that an investigation is indeed under way.
HOLMES: Well, federal investigators say the Colorado man at the center of an alleged terror plot had video of New York's central terminal in his possession. They also say that they Afghan national, whose name is Najibullah Zazi, has admitted to having ties to al- Qaeda.
He has not yet been arrested, however, but is expected to speak for a fourth day to FBI investigators some time a little later this morning.
NGUYEN: We're also learning more about the suspect in the killing of Yale University graduate student Annie Le. The police chief in New Haven, Connecticut says Ray Clark was the prime suspect even before Le's body was found. Clark was arrested Thursday and he's being held on a $3 million bond.
Le's body was found Sunday, the day she was to be married, she had been strangled and her body stuffed behind the basement wall of an off campus laboratory.
If you think you're seeing President Obama in the media a lot these days? Get ready, you'll be seeing even more of him.
HOLMES: A lot this weekend, the president determined to get out and sell his health care reform. Here now, CNN's Deputy Political Director Paul Steinhauser.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
PAUL STEINHAUSER, CNN DEPUTY POLITICAL DIRECTOR: Betty, T.J., a thing we're hearing this week in the media, is Barack Obama talking too much when it comes to health care reform? Is he overexposed? Is he diluting the bully pulpit? But you know, it was just a month ago that some people were criticizing the president for not talking enough, for laying low on vacation, while those anti-Obama protests at the health care town halls across the country got tons of coverage in the media.
Well, as of about a week and a half ago Mr. Obama has been everywhere. It started with a prime-time address in front of the nation to a joint session of Congress. Now, add to that two town hall health care rallies, and an appearance on "60 Minutes", a speech at the largest union organization. But wait, there's more. Tomorrow the president goes on five of the Sunday talk shows and Monday he joins David Letterman. In fact, he's Dave's only guest that night.
White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs was asked if the president is being overexposed?
ROBERT GIBBS, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: I think gone are the days where one outlet is where everyone gets their news, or one medium is where everyone gets their news. I think this is just an attempt by the president to speak to as many different people as he can on an issue as important as something like health care reform, or on Afghanistan .
STEINHAUSER: So where does Mr. Obama stand in the eyes of the public. According to a new CNN Poll of Polls, 55 percent of the Americans approve of how he's handling his job as president. Our Poll of Polls is an average of the six national surveys conducted after Mr. Obama's speech to Congress last week.
Now that 55 percent figure is higher than the approval rating for the president's health care plans. It seems Mr. Obama's personally more popular than his proposals, which I guess, it means when it comes to pushing health care with Americans, Mr. Obama is his own salesman -- Betty, T.J..
(END VIDEOTAPE)
NGUYEN: Still, though, it's a bit of a battle trying to get that pushed through.
HOLMES: Among all those interviews he's doing, I can't believe he's not stopping by our show.
NGUYEN: You would think.
HOLMES: You would think. This is the place to be.
NGUYEN: If you want to get your message out, this is where you come.
HOLMES: Isn't that something? We've got out calls in though.
NGUYEN: President Obama, you have an open invitation any time you want.
HOLMES: An open invitation.
(LAUGHTER)
He is doing some CNN. He's doing this other show we have on.
NGUYEN: Some guy named John King.
HOLMES: Yeah, John King, "STATE OF THE UNION" comes on around Sunday, 9:00ish. NGUYEN: Right after our show. Well, John pre-taped an interview and asked the president if racism is playing a role in some of the criticism leveled against him.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOHN KING, CNN CHIEF NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: In recent weeks people have raised some pretty serious questions. The big rally in town, signs talking about Afro-socialism, swastikas with your name and your picture on them. "You Lie" shouted at you during a nationally televised address and former President Carter says he sees racism in some of this. Do you?
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: You know, as I've said in the past, you know, are there people out there who don't like me because of race? I'm sure there are. That's not the overriding issue here. I think there are people who are anti-government.
I think there are -- there's been a longstanding debate in this country that is usually that are much more fierce during times of transition; where when presidents are trying to bring about big changes. The things that were said about FDR pretty similar to the things that are said about me. That he was a Communist, he was a socialist. Things that were said about Ronald Reagan, when he was trying to reverse some of the New Deal programs, you know, were pretty vicious as well.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NGUYEN: Well, that interview airs tomorrow morning on "STATE OF THE UNION" with John King at 9:00 a.m. Eastern.
So, we want to know what you think about our top stories, this morning. You can either e-mail us, at Weekends @ cnn.com, or go to the Facebook and Twitter pages. We also have a blog at CNN.com/newsroom. We'll read some of your replies on the air.
HOLMES: Weather to tell you about. Look at that water that is not weather related. What you're seeing here -- this is in Maryland, a shot from on high, of a water main break. This is a 72-inch pipe that burst in a -- oh my goodness -- at a Baltimore suburb. And just flooded the streets. You can see how this is going for the residents there.
Again, not a weather-related issue. What you're seeing here now is a live picture from on high. They are working -obviously been working throughout the night -- trying to get this thing done. I think it first burst yesterday afternoon sometime. But just spewing all of this water out into the streets. People have been told just stay in your homes for the time being. They are trying to get this mess cleaned up. It's one thing when it's weather-related.
MAGGINIS: And T.J., they said surprisingly there were no injuries, but lots of people were trapped in their homes.
HOLMES: That's good. MAGGINIS: No injuries, no medical emergencies or anything like that. But they did rescue a couple of people. Because as you can imagine that, you know, part of a road washed out.
HOLMES: Just a mess.
MAGGINIS: Let's go ahead and take, if we have it, that live shot again, we can look at or maybe the pictures we have from the area. There are about 800 homes that were reportedly without power overnight because of these severe main break that we did see.
Speaking of severe weather, take a look at Atlanta, right now. We've got this live picture. Boy, I'd love to be on top of the CNN Center taking a picture of that nice long exposure shot with the fog and low visibility. We have a tropical air mass in place that that's wreaked a lot of havoc.
And -- so has this button. It is not cooperating very well with me.
(WEATHER REPORT)
NGUYEN: OK. So, she is a pioneer in the military, taking charge of the Army's order, barking drill sergeant and her story is coming right up.
HOLMES: Also, another story about Michael Jackson and his estate. Well, his mother could possibly contest the estate. New information coming out. And also some new information we just got about how much she is getting per month to take care of his three children.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
NGUYEN: All right, well the lady you're about to meet, not backing down at all. In fact, she's a new leader of the Army's drill sergeant and she is a female. Yes, Command Sergeant Major Theresa King takes over as drill sergeant at the school there at Fort Jackson, in South Carolina. Happens on Tuesday.
HOLMES: She's a 48-year-old North Carolina native. One of 12 children, she credits her sharecropper father's stern discipline for teaching her to be responsible, work hard, and take no short cuts. Beyond the barracks she's completed one master's degree in business management, working on another in theology.
As for her work with soldiers, her battalion commander says she has a unique way of dealing with them. Correcting them in a matter that they are wanting to please her and wanting do the right thing.
NGUYEN: Here's some top stories.
We're learning from court documents that Michael Jackson's estate will provide his mother, who is caring for his three children, an allowance of $86,000 a month. That's a lot of change right there. And 13,000 of that for each child's monthly entertainment and related expenses. $13,000? That's a lot of movies. And $3,500 a month for clothing for Katherine Jackson.
Now Mrs. Jackson was granted custody of the three kids soon after Michael's June 25 death, and control of the estate's assets have been given to a lawyer and a former music executive.
HOLMES: She can challenge the men who can control the estate if she liked. A judge ruled that. She has the option to challenge the estate. So maybe this whole thing is not over just yet. And her late son's estate, not quite settled like we thought it might be after the judge did rule about the kids and the custody.
NGUYEN: Right.
HOLMES: The fights might not be over yet.
NGUYEN: I have a feeling this saga will continue for a little while.
In the meantime, though, seven former CIA directors calling on President Obama to stop the criminal investigation of people involved in the CIA's harsh interrogation of suspected terrorists. Attorney General Eric Holder decided last month to reopen the investigation of interrogations following the 9/11 attacks. And the former CIA chiefs said the investigation would put intelligence officers in continuous jeopardy and may keep other governments from cooperating with the U.S.
HOLMES: A North Carolina man can breathe a whole lot easier today after doctors removed a piece of plastic from his left lung. There it is. Came from where? Wendy's fast-food spoon. The man says he thinks he accidentally inhaled it while eating too quickly. He claims he was sick for two years before doctors figured out what was wrong.
NGUYEN: How does that happen?
HOLMES: Dude, don't get that hungry.
NGUYEN: Remind us not to go to dinner with that guy.
HOLMES: Come on!
NGUYEN: No telling what else he'll inhale. The good thing they found it and he's OK. But imagine being sick for so long and having no idea what it is and then being told it's part of a spoon you ate, buddy.
HOLMES: And that's the handle.
NGUYEN: Yes, the handle, the end part.
HOLMES: It's not like you ate the end that your eating, you're dipping with. He ate the handle.
NGUYEN: How did that happen? I don't know.
All right. So, transit systems -- this is a serious story -- they are on alert this morning and Americans are asked to be vigilant.
HOLMES: This comes after an alleged terror plot was uncovered. So, how come no arrests have been made just yet?
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: Everybody is watching closely to figure out exactly what's going to happen with health care reform. Well there's one man who knows the issue of health care inside and out and he also has the ear of the president. He was almost the president's Health and Human Services secretary. He didn't quite get the job, it didn't work out for him. But I got to speak to him while on "American Morning" yesterday, Senator Tom Daschle.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
TOM DASCHLE, (D) FMR. SENATE MAJORITY LEADER: I think when it comes to both how much help there is for the states, and how much help there is for the middle class, as they try to buy insurance, we're probably going to have to adjust those figures. There's a growing consensus that we have room in the budget now to address those figures a little bit more successfully. So, my guess is you are going to see those numbers tweaked over the next few days.
HOLMES: You say tweaked, that sounds like more expensive. How much more expensive are we talking about here, Senator?
DASCHLE: I think within the realm of the budget. You know, we've shooting for something below $900 billion. I think you are going to do that. We've got over -- we've got several billion dollars to deal with here. Most of those resources will go into making insurance more affordable for more people.
HOLMES: I know you've been looking at -- it's tough, too -- there are five bills out there that are thousands and thousands of pages. But we have a general idea of all of these bills. This particular bill does not have the public option in it. We have some saying a Democrat -- just was here with us yesterday, Representative Weiner, said this one is dead on arrival. How does this bill move us forward, if you have a Democrat even saying, this bill doesn't have a chance in heck if it does not have the public option in?
DASCHLE: Well, the prospects for a public option, T.J., are different in the House than they are in the Senate. A calculation has been made that the votes aren't there today. But I think perhaps before the end of this process you'll have some votes. You'll have a vote up or down, probably on some form of a public option, either in committee or on the Senate floor. Then we'll now.
But clearly we've got to move forward and that's exactly what the Democrats, and some Republicans, are trying to do. Find what common ground we can. We'll find out whether that includes a public option or not, in the Senate.
HOLMES: You say there will be an up or down vote at some point. I guess, at that point, do you expect and is there just hope that Democrats will then, just, you know, stake their position and vote together? No matter what this public debate is like, just hoping that maybe once it does come to the floor, that Democrats will get together. And this might have to just be a partisan bill?
DASCHLE: This is a test of governance. We're facing one of biggest challenges in the country, domestically, with health reform. We have got to demonstrate that we can address that challenge successfully.
Democrats are in the clear majority in the House and Senate. We have the White House. We have got to perform. We have to get this job done. I think you'll see Democrats coalescing around a final version that will give us the unity we need to do that job within the next few weeks.
HOLMES: All right, Sir, before I let go. Let me ask you about the president. You, of course, have the ear of the president and he has your ear as well. Tell us. He has said several things publicly, but from what you understand, will the president sign a bill that does not have the public option?
DASCHLE: Well, the president is going to wait and see until the final product is delivered before he makes any final decision on what he's going to do, T.J. He's going to look at everything. He's going to look at whether there's a public option, something that he and I both strongly support. But he's going to look at the whole package and make a decision at that time.
HOLMES: And last thing, here, he's going to be doing a whole lot of television this weekend. Is that good, or bad? Does the president nee to maybe -- he's playing off his personal popularity, but is he running a risk here of overexposing?
DASCHLE: He's our best spokesperson. And you know, now is the time. Now is really his best opportunity to make the case to the American people using the media, talking to members of Congress, talking to groups as he did yesterday, on a university campus. He's doing everything he can to ensure that we've not left one stone unturned in getting this job done.
HOLMES: I know you said the best spokesman, I know I have to let you go here. But still, part of the problem is while he talks about "my plan". But what he has right now, are his suggestions, do you think he needs to send a bill up there that says health care by Barack Obama, instead of leaving it to them up on Capitol Hill to put something together.
DASCHLE: We now have five bills.
HOLMES: Yes.
DASCHLE: We have three in the House and two in the Senate.
HOLMES: But none of them are his. Do we need his?
DASCHLE: We'll have his. And he's working to make sure it's his at the end of the day. What he has said is he is going to work with the Congress to deliver a bill that's both his and the Congress and that's the way it should be.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
NGUYEN: Well, Republicans are launching a new counter attack today against the president's push for health care reform. Speaking on the GOP's weekly radio and web address, Congresswoman Sue Myrick spoke about her battle with cancer. She said her diagnosis took six doctors and three mammograms and one ultrasound before her cancer was located. She says that process took a few weeks. But it would have taken far longer had she lived in a nation with government-run health care.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. SUE MYRICK, (R) NORTH CAROLINA: Replacing your current health care with a government-run system is not the answer. These so- called health care reform bills have different names, a public option, a co-op, a trigger. Make no mistake, these are all gateways to government-run health care.
For small business owners, these proposals mean higher taxes at a time when unemployment is nearing 10 percent. And analysts are predicting that any kind of recovery will be a jobless one. As a former small business owner, I can tell you from experience, this is the worst possible time to be imposing new job killing taxes.
In fact, the nation's largest small business association found the health care tax increases being proposed could lead to the elimination of more than 1.6 million jobs.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NGUYEN: Myrick also warns that the proposals being considered could lead to massive Medicare cuts.
HOLMES: Tomorrow morning, at 9:00, Eastern, President Obama sitting down with our John King on health care reform, the economy, and a whole lot more. You can get the full story on "STATE OF THE UNION" at 9:00 Eastern Time.
NGUYEN: All right. Got to talk about my Dallas Cowboys this weekend, because they are opening their new home. It is in Arlington, Texas. But it is more of a football palace than anything. And the price tag? Over $1 billion, yeah, we do it big in Texas.
But most people, they just want to talk about the Texas-sized television screen. We'll show it to you next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
NGUYEN: Love it. The theme song from "Dallas".
HOLMES: Who has that?
NGUYEN: I have that. That's my wake up sound in the morning.
HOLMES: Is that right?
NGUYEN: Not really.
Why are we playing this music?
HOLMES: Because this is a little much, quite frankly. It is a monument to excess, some would say. The new football stadium -- this thing is impressive, no doubt about it.
NGUYEN: Yes, and for a guy who loves to watch TV to say this big screen a little bit much, you would love one of these at your house, wouldn't you?
HOLMES: I'm fine with what it is. But it is not just the size of the TV, it's the screen. If you all haven't heard about this controversy, there is a big old screen down there.
NGUYEN: It's huge.
HOLMES: At Texas stadium. What do they call it now, the new Texas stadium?
NGUYEN: Yes, they are in Arlington, Texas. Here's the deal. They are set to play the first regular season game there this Sunday. It wasn't enough to have 72,000 seats, 300 luxury suites, but our Ed Lavandera shows us that the stadium's center piece, what we've been talking about, this television screen, is causing a bit of a problem on the field.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ED LAVANDERA, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Welcome to what's been sarcastically dubbed, Jerry's World. Jerry, of course, is Jerry Jones, the owner of the Dallas cowboys. It's a stadium that cost more than $1.2 billion. It's where hard-nosed football meets swanky, plush high life.
Even Randy Galloway, a crusty old-school newspaper columnist and sports talk show host can't criticize the stadium.
RANDY GALLOWAY, SPORTS COLUMNIST, FORT WORTH STAR-TELEGRAM: Jerry was building a monument to himself. You walk in and go, Oh! I mean it is amazing. By the way, that Jerry jumbotron is really what touches it off.
LAVANDERA: Galloway is talking about the grand daddy of all score boards, back-to-back screens in high definition, 72 feet tall, 160 feet wide. The video board uses 30 million light bulbs and stretches almost the length of the field. This scoreboard will be like an altar for couch potatoes to fall to their knees and worship on football Sundays.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I can't believe that. This is like -it's bigger than life. LAVANDERA: But during one of Cowboys preseason games, a punter for the Tennessee Titans kicked the ball into the bottom of the scoreboard. In the time it took for the ball to fall back to earth, the sports world erupted in laughter. How could you spend more than a billion on a stadium and not know the ball could hit the scoreboard?
GALLOWAY: It was radio gold. It was newspaper gold. I got about five newspaper columns out of it. And about -- what, at least two or three days of radio shows out of it.
LAVANDERA: Turns out the Cowboys did nothing wrong. NFL rules say the scoreboard must be 85 feet above the field. This screen is 90 feet high.
BRETT DANIELS, DALLAS COWBOYS SPOKESMAN: We've been in close talks with the NFL throughout the process in determining that height. A lot of study, a lot of research went into it.
LAVANDERA: Some coaches still want the scoreboard raised but it stays put for now. If the ball hits the screen during the game, they'll just have a do-over.
(On camera): As you walk around this stadium, it is amazing to take in just how massive this scoreboard, dangling in the middle of the stadium. You know that somewhere in America there are men sitting around and plotting of ways to get something like this into their garage.
Ed Lavandera, CNN, Arlington, Texas.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HOLMES: Hello, everybody. From the CNN Center in Atlanta Georgia, this is CNN SATURDAY MORNING for the 19th of September. I'm T.J. Holmes.
NGUYEN: Good morning, T.J. How are you doing?
HOLMES: Good morning.
(CROSSTALK)
HOLMES: You know, we should mention this. It's a nice little get up you have on today.
NGUYEN: Thank you. You look pretty dapper yourself.
HOLMES: Oh, really? My tie is weak compare to what you got going today.
NGUYEN: Oh, sure. The folks at home looking pretty sly as well.
Good morning, everybody, in your robes perhaps. I'm Betty Nguyen. Happy Rosh Hashanah -- the beginning of the New Year for those in the Jewish community. And we do appreciate you starting your day with us. One of the things we're going to be talking about today a lot is this investigation, including a Denver man, 24 years old. His name is Najibullah Zazi. Well, he has admitted ties to al Qaeda.
Now, here is what he's been accused of: planning attacks on major U.S. transportation systems, and because of that, a large scale investigation is under way. And, in fact, I believe, the FBI has called this the real deal when it comes to terrorism plot.
HOLMES: Some scary stuff to hear these details. But when you're talking about transit, talk about subways and rail -- that is some scary stuff that not the kind of security as going through an airport.
NGUYEN: Exactly.
HOLMES: And that's what they think he might have been targeting.
NGUYEN: And because of that, some of the transit places across the U.S., mainly up in the New York area where this was targeted, at least I believe so, have been put on high alert.
HOLMES: All right. Another story, you've been seeing a lot of this video, ACORN having some issues right now.
NGUYEN: Yes.
HOLMES: It's a community organizing. This video we're showing you here is because that fake pimp and that fake prostitute went in and did some undercover video of being advised by ACORN workers of how they could skirt the law. Well, that is costing ACORN dearly, it appears, right now. Also, it could cost you, if you're looking for a house. It could affect how you get money for your housing. Details just ahead.
First, let's get you some of our top stories today.
NGUYEN: Yes. And here they are. Listen to this. That is the sound of thousands of Iranians demonstrating against Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad yesterday, a wall of security forces holding them back. Thousands more cheered the Iranian leader during the country's annual pro-Palestinian rally. Now, the anti-government demonstrators are upset over Iran's highly-contested presidential election.
HOLMES: And stop the investigation -- that's the message from seven former CIA directors to President Obama. Last month, Attorney General Eric Holder decided to reopen the criminal investigation of people involved in the CIA's harsh interrogation of suspected terrorists. In a letter sent to the president yesterday, the former CIA chiefs say the investigation would put intelligence officers in, quote, "continuous jeopardy."
NGUYEN: Listen to this -- Germany beefing up security ahead of next weekend's national election. That is following a threat on the Internet by al Qaeda. According to security officials, an Internet video from the terrorist group warns about attacks on German soil if the German people don't vote in a party that supports pulling troops out of Afghanistan.
And we also have some new developments to tell you about in that alleged terror plot that we first opened the show with. We've been following it this week out of New York.
HOLMES: Federal officials say they found video of New York's central terminal with their main suspect, who is an Afghan national living in Colorado.
Our homeland security correspondent Jeanne Meserve is taking a closer look at the investigation.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MESERVE: T.J. and Betty, people around the country can expect to see increased security around transit. The Homeland Security Department sent out a note on Friday night urging transit authorities and state and local police to be vigilant. They also put out a statement which said in part, "While DHS and the FBI have no information regarding the timing, location or target of any planned attack, we believe it is prudent to remind transit authorities to remain vigilant."
Now this notice to transit authorities went out after three days of questioning of Najibullah Zazi. Zazi is the 24-year-old Afghan national from Denver whose travel to New York last weekend triggered a series of raids both in New York and then back here in Denver, and talked of an alleged terror plot.
We are told by administration official familiar with the matter that Zazi admitted to having ties with al Qaeda and that the government is now exploring what kinds of charges it might be able to bring against them. There is also the possibility, this official says, that down the road, there could some be some kind of plea agreement.
Now, for several days, law enforcement officials have been saying that they believe Zazi and whoever may have been working with him represented a genuine threat, that this was the real deal in terms of terrorism alert. The fact that he has now admitted to having ties to al Qaeda would seem to substantiate that claim.
T.J. and Betty, back to you.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
NGUYEN: All right. We'll continue to follow that story.
And this as well -- the rain, it just keeps pouring here in the Southeast. I don't know how many days we've seen of constant rain.
HOLMES: Well, Karen, how many days as you've seen constant rain?
(LAUGHTER)
MAGINNIS: I think there have been five straight days where some precipitation has occurred. But, T.J. and Betty, actually, we were in a drought for like five years. And now, they are seeing drought conditions all across Minnesota. They are saying the soybean is turning yellow there because it is so very dry.
Take a look at the precipitation we're looking at over the next 48 hours or so. And the kind of bulls eye areas across the northern sections of Alabama and into south central sections of Tennessee, where some areas have seen an excessive amount of wet weather over the last week or so. In Nashville, they have seen just about eight inches.
Now, these pictures are coming out of Memphis, Tennessee. Take a look at the water up to the hub caps. They're saying that in some cases, it's two feet deep. They saw about three or four inches of rainfall. The ground is absolutely saturated. They really need another round of wet weather like a hole in the head.
Area of low pressure situated here keeps things soggy. But also, for the west coast, we'll start to see an offshore flow. And, T.J. and Betty, that ups the fire danger significantly going into Sunday and Monday.
Back to you.
HOLMES: All right. Karen, we appreciate you. We'll talk to you again here shortly.
Also, ACORN, we've been talking about them. It seems like a lot here lately. They may soon take a huge financial hit -- this after a series of undercover videos surfaced. You probably have seen some of them. This is just one of them here. It's caused such a stir. The House wants to yank all the community organization's federal funding.
The video you're seeing here is because a guy going in as a fake pimp with his fake prostitute essentially got on tape, apparently, some ACORN workers trying to give them advice on how to essentially break the law.
We've got more now from Abbie Boudreau with the CNN's Special Investigations Unit.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Ayes is 345, the nays is 75.
ABBIE BOUDREAU, CNN INVESTIGATIVE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It wasn't even close. By a 345-to-75 vote, the House of Representatives voted to kill all federal funding for the community organizing group, ACORN.
REP. JOHN BOEHNER (R), MINORITY LEADER: ACORN is trying to claim that they are cleaning up their act. But I think it's too little, too late.
BOUDREAU: It wasn't just Republicans, 172 Democrats also voted to defund ACORN -- an indication of the deep wounds inflicted by hidden camera videos.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Your business is a performing artist.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: A performing artist.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Which you are. OK? So you're not lying.
BOUDREAU: Videos that show ACORN workers offering help and advice to a couple of conservative activists posing as a pimp and a prostitute. ACORN's damage control effort has included saying the tapes were doctored, threatened to sue the filmmakers, and ordered an independent investigation.
BERTHA LEWIS, CEO, ACORN: I immediately took swift action and I said, "You know what, we're going to look at this. We're going to make a review from top to bottom so that this thing never happens again. We worked too hard to have some trumped up thing like this happen.
BOUDREAU: The newest tape reportedly shows an ACORN worker in National City near San Diego advising the undercover filmmakers how to get underage sex workers from El Salvador over the border from Mexico.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is confidential, right?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Thank you.
BOUDREAU: But ACORN tells CNN, the worker was just trying to deal with the, quote, "bizarre and challenging situation." And that he was playing along with O'Keefe and Giles to get information, which according to ACORN he passed on to his cousin who is a detective with the National City Police Department.
And now, this video released by an ACORN worker in Philadelphia. She says she reported the couple to the police.
KATHERINE CONWAY RUSSELL, ACORN WORKER: It appears Mr. O'Keefe lied to get his appointment. He was not dressed like he is on the Internet. And when we got suspicious about the questions he was asking at the Philadelphia ACORN housing office, we called the police and filed this report.
BOUDREAU: And there are other cases where ACORN workers say the videos didn't show the full story. This ACORN worker, seen on one video, claiming to have killed her ex-husband in self-defense.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Then I just picked up the gun and (BLEEP) and I shot him and he died right there.
BOUDREAU: But Theresa Kaelke tells CNN she was just playing games. Her ex-husband is just fine.
THERESA KAELKE, ACORN WORKER: He's alive and well.
BOUDREAU: And local police confirm that.
(on camera): But coming on top of earlier tapes which clearly show ACORN workers bending over backwards to help O'Keefe and Giles, questions about whether the tapes were taken legally, doctored or even deliberately misleading seem to have been drown out in the clamor.
Abbie Boudreau, CNN, Atlanta.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
NGUYEN: Well, the fallout could affect more than just ACORN. How this whole mess could come home to you, especially if you are in the market to buy a house. We're going to delve into that.
HOLMES: Also, in 10 minutes, you'll hear from the president this morning. In his weekly address, he pushes for the reform of the rules that govern financial firms.
Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
NGUYEN: All right. So, federal funding isn't the only thing ACORN could lose. The organization also receives substantial state funding and number of politicians are lining up, calling for that to go next. ACORN's CEO though is promising change. But her words seem to be falling on deaf ears.
Take a look at this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LEWIS: I will clean this house. It is being done now. And here's what I would like. I'll come back in three months and you can look at what we've done.
REP. JOHN BOEHNER (R), MINORITY: ACORN is trying to claim that they are cleaning up their act, but I think it's too little, too late.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NGUYEN: OK. And while ACORN takes a hit, over non-profit housing agencies are worried that they're going to feel the backlash as well.
Housing specialist, Clyde Anderson, joins me now to talk about all of this.
And let's get down to the nitty-gritty of it. So, how can these organizations -- these other organizations be hurt by all of this essentially?
CLYDE ANDERSON, AUTHOR, "WHAT HAD HAPPENED WAS": Well, you can see ACORN is in a tough position right now. They get these federal dollars, and there's a lot of other organizations that do similar work. Now, you're going to be scrutinized to let you know how important the front line is when you have this type of organization.
NGUYEN: All right. So, when it comes to homeowners, how does this affect them?
ANDERSON: Well, you got to look at it. An organization like ACORN, they do a lot of housing counseling for pre-purchase as well as post-purchase, as well as a lot of foreclosure. And so, it's key. Right now, you know, we've seen what the housing market is doing. What the industry is having, the whole education is so important, and the dollars are so important for a lot of them provide downpayment assistance for money to provide homes for people.
NGUYEN: So, if these organizations could be hurt by this whole ACORN fallout, where do people go who need that kind of assistance then?
ANDERSON: Well, I think there's a lot of organizations out there.
NGUYEN: OK.
ANDERSON: We want them to keep their money. You know, we want to make sure they're doing the right thing. And so, HUD.gov is a great Web site that gives information all across the country. You can go there and find out the counseling agencies that provide the type of assistance.
NGUYEN: All right. So, when you go HUD.gov, what kind of agencies will you find there? What kind of benefits will you receive by going to those agencies and seeking help?
ANDERSON: Sure. You're going to see organizations like CCCS, NeighborWorks, NACA, some of those organizations that we've talked about even in the past. And a lot of these organizations will let you know that they provide downpayment assistance, that they have housing counseling -- all the things that you're looking for. They'll tell you by organization and where they are located, the address, and you can find out what they have to help.
And a lot of these organizations give money to help with downpayment assistance. And right now, a lot of people need that downpayment.
NGUYEN: All right. And, you know, there's a whole list of these organizations. So, help us whittle it down. You're our financial expert, our housing expert I should say. Which ones do you like?
ANDERSON: Well, I always go to the national organizations, NeighborWorks provides a lot of help and they also supports in other organizations that fall beneath it. You also have organizations like CCCS. It's always been a favorite of mine, because they're a national organization that provides housing counseling as well as post and pre- home buying counseling. And foreclosure piece is so important right now.
So, I would look at the national organization and then just find, ask around. A lot of these other organizations, like CCCS, will then direct you to other organizations that may help you as well.
NGUYEN: All right. As always, we appreciate your time and your effort today in helping people out there looking to buy a home. We appreciate it.
ANDERSON: Always a pleasure, Betty.
NGUYEN: OK. T.J.?
HOLMES: All right. And we'll be breaking down health care reform with our Josh Levs.
LEVS: It's the next big step in the battle over health care. What is in and what's not in the Baucus health plan? We'll show you.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
NGUYEN: Well, Senator Max Baucus, he unveiled his health care reform plan this week.
HOLMES: And one of the much-awaited documents in Washington. It's five different bills out there now. But this was the one that everybody thought would get some bipartisan support.
Our Josh Levs now takes us through some of the bill's specifics.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
LEVS: Well, as soon as the Baucus health care plan was posted online this week, we immediately started breaking it down for you right here. And right now, at CNN.com/healthcare, you can read it. You can also see what was pulled out about some of the key points from the plan.
And we have some points for you right here on this screen. Let's take a look at this. It would cost $856 billion over 10 years and would establish mandatory coverage by 2013. Now, there's no public plan as part of this, but it does establish the non-profit cooperatives instead.
There would be under this some new protections involving preexisting conditions. And that is one of biggest changes a lot of people have been looking for in and of itself. That could be a change in the way health care operates in America if this law is changed, the way insurance companies have to handle preexisting conditions.
Also, two major points to take a look at, some of the most controversial issues involving health care reform. We'll go to this first, which is about using federal funds for abortion. What it says here is that there would be these funds available for abortions only in cases of rape, incest or when life of mother is in danger. That's actually the way it is now. So, it would maintain the current law.
It does also say -- and some people point to this -- that qualified health plans that are able to participate in the system under this plan could still provide funds for other types of abortions -- abortions in other situations, but federal funds would not be used toward those.
Finally, I want to go to this, illegal immigrants, a lot of people looking at that. It says that illegal immigrants would not be allowed to buy insurance. They may, however, buy insurance for their children if their children are here legally or, in fact, could be U.S. citizens here.
It also says that it will require verification of personal data. And that's something we hear debated a lot. Will the rules be strict enough or not strict enough to keep illegal immigrants out of the system? One thing that we're going to certainly expect to hear a lot more about.
And it's all right here for you to take a look at at CNN.com/healthcare.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
NGUYEN: We have more information coming out about the suspect in the killing of Yale University graduate student Annie Le. The police chief in New Haven, Connecticut, says Ray Clark was the prime suspect before Le's body was found. Clark, who was arrested on Thursday, is being held on a $3 million bond. Now, Le's body was found Sunday, the day she was to be married and she had been strangled, and her body stuffed behind the basement wall of an off campus laboratory.
HOLMES: A North Carolina man can breathe a whole lot easier today. It's kind of easier when you remove a piece of plastic from your lung. That's the piece you're looking at there. It came from -- where else? But a spoon, of course. You're eating at Wendy's, oh, my God, you know the stuff is so delicious and you just can't help yourself.
NGUYEN: So, you inhale the spoon?
HOLMES: Yes, do. Now, don't get on to him, Betty. I've seen you handle a couple of challenges here and there. He accidentally inhaled this eating by eating too fast, says he was sick for some two years before doctors figured out exactly what was wrong.
NGUYEN: Yes. As we pointed out earlier, that is not the part of the spoon that you put in your mouth. That is the handle of the spoon. So, what went on there while he was eating?
HOLMES: You know, they got the 99 cent menu, maybe that baked potato.
NGUYEN: So, he was just taking it all in apparently. And the good thing, they got part of it out.
Well, this morning, the president discussing a need for a consumer financial protection agency.
HOLMES: Yes. This was in his weekly address to the nation. The president stressed the importance of new financial reform rules on Wall Street. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: To protect our economy and people from another market meltdown, our government needs to fundamentally reform the rules governing financial firms and markets to meet the challenges of the 21st century.
We can't allow the thirst for reckless schemes that produce quick profits and fat executive bonuses to override the security of our entire financial system and leave taxpayers on the hook for cleaning up the mess. And as the world's largest economy, we must lead, not just by word but by example, understanding that in the 21st century, financial crises know no borders. All of us need to act more responsibly on behalf of a better economic future.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: And the president also promised to continue working with world leaders at the G-20 summit that's coming up next week in Pittsburgh, that's going to build on the progress made to help stop the global recession.
NGUYEN: A major conservative gathering in Washington this weekend is called the Values Voter Summit. Well, today, they are discussing President Obama's health care plan. And coming up in the 8:00 hour of CNN SATURDAY MORNING, we're going to be talking about that.
HOLMES: Also, the president is working on another big project. He's taking part in a P.R. blitz for his home state. He's trying to get the Olympics to the Windy City.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(MUSIC)
NGUYEN: That's really energized us this morning when we heard that music a little earlier. "Brass Monkey" by the Beastie Boys, though I can't do the dance.
(CROSSTALK)
NGUYEN: No. Save that for later.
HOLMES: Well, a thief is on the loose in Colorado.
NGUYEN: It's not a monkey.
HOLMES: No. It's not a monkey. It's another animal. It's outfoxing residents while snatching valuables right out of their front yard.
NGUYEN: Yes. It's become especially tough on one golf fanatic who's really feeling the pinch. We get the story now from Dave Delozier of affiliate KUSA in Steamboat Springs.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Steamboat is a great community.
DAVE DELOZIER, KUSA REPORTER (voice-over): And a town well-known for one thing...
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It is a big ski town.
DELOZIER: But ask Steamboat resident Tom Houk and he'll tell you.
TOM HOUK, STEAMBOAT SPRINGS RESIDENT: My love is golf.
DELOZIER: Which is a fact not lost on his wife Sally.
SALLY HOUK, GOLF FANATIC'S WIFE: Tom is definitely a fanatic. He is obsessed with golf.
T. HOUK: Short.
DELOZIER: So much so that rather than leave the game at the course...
T. HOUK: It's a little soggy today.
DELOZIER: ... Tom built a green in his front yard.
S. HOUK: It's been his baby all along, it's the pedigree.
DELOZIER: Every evening this summer, Tom would practice. And every night -- he just would leave his golf balls on the green until...
T. HOUK: We figured out, well, they were getting swiped.
DELOZIER: But by who?
T. HOUK: Well, I just kind of scratched my head and I thought my kids had -- their buddies would take the balls or something like that.
DELOZIER: Day after day -- and morning after morning.
T. HOUK: Then they started coming back every morning, the place would be cleaned out.
DELOZIER: Until the numbers were starting to add up.
T. HOUK: So, we've probably gone through 70 or 80 golf balls.
DELOZIER: And it was time to get to the bottom of this. So, one night they watched.
S. HOUK: I was just amazed. I was laughing so hard.
DELOZIER: The thief was a hairless fox.
T. HOUK: We just couldn't believe it. We just thought -- well, he's just snatching one.
DELOZIER: Which a few minutes later turned into two.
S. HOUK: He has a mission. He's going somewhere and taking them and returning quickly.
DELOZIER: Well, you start to get the picture of where this is going.
T. HOUK: There's nothing on the green in the morning.
DELOZIER: No golf balls but one big question: What does one fox do with 80 golf balls?
T. HOUK: I think he's thinking they are going to hatch and he's just giving them a little time.
DELOZIER: It turns out, in the ski town, Tom Houk isn't the only one in love with golf.
S. HOUK: Yes. This little fox has an obsession with golf -- with golf balls.
DELOZIER: Which is why Tom might want to start keeping his clubs inside.
T. HOUK: He's a thief.
(LAUGHTER)
DELOZIER: In Steamboat Springs, this is Dave Delozier, 9 News.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
NGUYEN: Well, I guess that's one way to, you know, clear the course of those golf balls.
HOLMES: Fine-looking animal, isn't it?
NGUYEN: A hairless fox, I don't think I've ever seen one of those before.
HOLMES: All right.
NGUYEN: But now, you know.
HOLMES: More top stories of the hairless variety, maybe, maybe not. Coming up at the top of the hour, Betty and I, of course, will be back with more live news at 8:00 Eastern Time.
NGUYEN: But, first, "HOUSE CALL" with Dr. Sanjay Gupta.
