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CNN Saturday Morning News

Bombing Attempt in Portland Thwarted; South Koreans Protest Shelling; 12 Stitches For the President; Friday College Football Recap; Saving a Friend from Suicide

Aired November 27, 2010 - 07:00   ET

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

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN ANCHOR: A Thanksgiving reunion more than 30 years in the making. How a simple picture helped long lost siblings reunite.

Plus, the nation's chief executive going for the ball and taking it on the lip. We'll tell you why President Obama may not be smiling today.

From CNN Center, this is CNN SATURDAY MORNING. It is November 27th. Good morning. I'm Brianna Keilar in today for T.J. Holmes. Thank you so much for starting your day with us.

First off, we're following breaking news on what could have been a devastating terrorist attack in Portland, Oregon. A 19-year-old naturalized U.S. citizen from Somalia is accused of attempting to blow up a van filled with explosives. This is the detonation site, the possible one at last night's crowded Christmas tree lighting ceremony in Portland's Pioneer Square.

The top FBI agent in Oregon said the suspect, and I'm quoting here, was absolutely committed to carrying out an attack on a very grand scale. This agent says the threat was real, but the explosives were fake.

The suspect, Mohamed Osman Mohamud, has been on the FBI's radar for months. His arrest came after a long undercover operation. And I talked with former FBI agent Tomas Fuentes about the case about an hour ago.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

THOMAS FUENTES, FORMER ASSISTANT DIRECTOR, FBI (via telephone): Everybody right now expects the attack to occur either in New York City or Washington, D.C., or at least a major city in the United States. And so, to have it occur somewhere that's not New York, it's an issue because then everybody can wonder whether or not somebody in their neighborhood is plotting to do something like this in their community.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KEILAR: Mohamud is due in court on Monday.

And now to the tense Korean Peninsula and the rumblings of armed conflict. North Korea's intense artillery shelling of a South Korean island is drawing protest today in Seoul. Demonstrators say they want a stronger response against North Korea. That shelling killed four South Koreans.

Our Stan Grant found in the middle of today's protests in Seoul.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

STAN GRANT, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The protesters surged forward. They were hauling themselves at the police, and the police firing tear gas and charging back into the protesters. This is an indication of just how much tension there is on the streets of Seoul right now.

As you can see, they are starting to move behind me. And we're going to try to keep our distance here.

As you can see, the pushing and shoving started, again. This is what -- this is what the police have been brought in here -- this is what the police have been brought in here to try to stop. We are in the middle of this. We are going to try to get out of here because this could flare again, violently.

So, I'm just going to -- Fred, let's try to get out of here. Let's try to get out of here. This is not going to be safe for us. Let's go. Let's go. Let's go.

It's been quite confusing what is actually happening here today. Now, of course, violent scenes, lots of pushing, lots of shoving. These protesters are charging towards the police. The police charging back at them.

Just look around here and you can see that we are talking heavily armed riot squad. Now, these people are used to this type of protest. But this is indication of just how much anger there is on the streets of Seoul right now. And just through in here, you can see the protesters themselves, I think you can see -- one of them has now taken his shirt off. The others are wearing banners around their heads.

Now, all the men have been pushed back up there against the wall and surrounded by these police. All you can see through here are the heads, the black helmets of the police riot squad.

With the United States in South Korea about to begin this new war games in the Yellow Sea and North Korea warning that that will take the whole Korean Peninsula to the brink of war. And now, that tension is spilling over into the streets. More and more people angry and more and more people demanding that the South Korean government take a tougher line and move in harder against North Korea.

And here over here, you can see the protesters themselves as they are starting to disperse.

So calm is being restored right now. But as you can see, this is a situation that is fluid and could always explode, again, at any minute. Stan Grant, CNN, Seoul.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KEILAR: The biggest deals on the biggest shopping day of the year and millions of shoppers ready to take full advantage. It was Black Friday yesterday.

And just take a look. They hit the stores early and, boy, they get them hard. Midnight shoppers, they made a beeline for deals on Apple accessories like iPods and iPads. And clothing was also a pretty hot item.

Reynolds Wolf, hopefully, for the people buying gifts for me. Of course, this is really the beginning, the kick-off of the holiday gift-buying season. And it's chilly in some places today. It's going to be rough on folks.

REYNOLDS WOLF, AMS METEOROLOGIST: It really is. They are going to be carrying their presents and packages really close to keep them warm.

Are you one of those people who actually goes out and gets all the presents right away, or like this track where you can just kind of do stuff at the last minute?

KEILAR: I fluctuate between being done in September and going up to the last minute. But I actually never do the Black Friday thing.

WOLF: You never do. Yes, I mean -- I know they got great savings, but it's just a headache at times.

You know, the weather is not going to cooperate for a lot of people in places like, say, Texas and Dallas and Austin, even into Houston, San Antonio. Great places to go shopping, even over towards Lubbock and Amarillo, but it is going to be mighty cold out there. At least you don't have rain, at least you don't have any snow, although some of your neighbors in parts of the country, they're certainly going to be dealing with it.

Now, that cold weather is going to be sticking around through a good part of the morning. We've got freeze warnings in effect for parts of Texas, back into Louisiana, even into parts of Mississippi. It's all going to warm up later in the day. In fact, 60s expected from the Gulf Coast back up to Dallas, 53 in Denver.

Fifty-eight degrees is your expected high in San Francisco. But what is deceiving about that is although it is well above normal or well-above freezing rather, along the coast of California, when you get into the parts of the San Joaquin Valley, we're going to see the transformation from raindrops into snowflakes, especially in the high elevations of the Sierra Nevada. That coupled with some strong winds right along parts of I-80 and Truckee, especially near Donner Summit, it's going to be really tough for vehicles, especially those high profile vehicles, Winnebagos, that sort of thing, even semi-trucks. Same situation for parts of the I-5 corridor, but when you're going east of Portland, you are going to see some of that rain switch over into snowfall. Snow is also going to be piling up in parts of the Great Lakes, in Michigan and even into New York state. And parts of Ohio, it's going to be that lake-effect activity.

Take a look at this. Two to three inches, not for the day, but rather per hour. So, it's really going to pile up. Erie, Pennsylvania, get ready for it. It's going to be time for you to get out there and doing some shovel work.

For the rest of the country, a pretty quiet for the Eastern Seaboard. Northern Plains, it's nice and cold for you. But at least you got the sun going. You got that going for you. Plenty of sunshine for the Four Corners and for much of the Southeast. It should be beautiful. I know there are going to be some people traveling today.

Very quickly, your travel weather looks like this. Boston and New York metro, it looks like it's going to be an OK day for most of you New York metros. However, the wind might give a few delays over an hour in some spots. D.C. metros, wind is also giving you some issues anywhere from a half hour to full hour delay. Cleveland, you got the snow. Orlando, low clouds might give you a little bit of wait on the runway.

All right. Brianna, back to you.

KEILAR: All right. And you see, Reynie, what happened to President Obama? Did you see this?

WOLF: I heard about this.

KEILAR: Yes, he got a -- to the lip.

WOLF: Yes. Kind of spooky. You know, when you go to the company picnic, you ever bump a co-employee or make the boss, you know, have a bruise or anything. But when you mess up the big, big boss --

KEILAR: I mean, come on.

WOLF: -- the big boss of bosses, it gets pretty ugly, doesn't it?

KEILAR: Yes, it sure does. He got a fat lip and we're going to tell you -- he got it playing basketball, actually. We'll tell you who threw that errant elbow at him.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KEILAR: Twelve stitches, Reynolds.

WOLF: It's a lot.

KEILAR: Seems like a lot, right? That's how many it took to patch up the president after he caught an elbow to the mouth yesterday. He was trying to work off some of the turkey and six kinds of pie that they had for dinner at the White House.

WOLF: It must be nice.

KEILAR: Yes. I mean, he had some calories to burn. So, he was playing basketball at a military base in Washington. And aides say that he took this hit while he was defending a shot. So, here's the guy who tagged him.

You know, it's -- Ray Decerega is his name. He works for the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute. He says the president is a tough competitor and a good sport. And I just wonder, you know, so when he goes to work on Monday, are people like, dude, look at you?

(CROSSTALK)

WOLF: I mean, he doesn't look like, you know, an enforcer guy. He doesn't look like a tough dude. He's got a friendly smile.

KEILAR: He's kind of like more -- he's kind of bigger than -- I wouldn't want to catch his elbow.

WOLF: He's a pleasant looking man. He's a guy you -- just a huggable nice-looking guy. Look at him.

KEILAR: He looks like he could do some damage.

WOLF: Not exactly the kind of guy you think would cause fear and instill fear of the president of the United States. I'm not saying the president was afraid. But 12 stitches, that is some serious pain.

KEILAR: Well, apparently, it was a small filament. So, he got kind of more stitches than you might normally need.

WOLF: I see, got you.

KEILAR: That's -- yes.

WOLF: You know, obviously, some interesting things happen around ball. But we have some very interesting stories for you regarding football -- two tremendous games yesterday, two fantastic finishes in games. The first one, it involves the Boise State -- Boise State versus Nevada.

Now, Boise State had a chance to win at the end of regulation and they missed a field goal. Kellen Moore set up with a very a nice pass here. You see him treading between two defenders. And he's got it, lines up perfect. It should be an easy fairly cheap shot field goal. Some caused time out which is what you're supposed to do, the kicker runs on.

Everything is set up. There goes the kick, straight up through and then veers off to the right. It doesn't matter because he's got another opportunity, though, when you get into overtime.

KEILAR: Oh, no.

WOLF: He did it, again.

KEILAR: It hurts me.

WOLF: I know, it's bad.

KEILAR: He's having a bad weekend.

WOLF: It's not nice. He did it twice. And then Nevada made it easy, knocking off Boise State. Boise State is a team that's really fighting for respect. They certainly knock any possibility of getting to a national championship at this point. It's certainly rough but you got to be happy for Nevada. The Wolf Pack, tremendous game for them.

Another huge game took place, we call it the Iron Bowl, between Alabama and Auburn. Alabama, defending national champion. Two losses. A great (INAUDIBLE) on fire early. (INAUDIBLE) for a long pass play. Again, he broke in coverage.

And Alabama got into it very, very quickly. They did a heck of a job. It looks like they were going to take it. And then Auburn started coming back.

Take a look at this. From Cam Newton to Terrell Zachery, easy for me to say, I should it a lot better, I'm an Auburn fan. He goes in. No problem whatsoever.

And then during the second half, they came back out and it was all Auburn. Newton not able to do much on -- with his legs. He only ran for about 32 yards or so, but threw three touchdowns. I mean, it was just incredible. They did have one rushing touchdown. And this is the first time Alabama has lost at home in 20 games.

Greg McElroy was actually taken out of the game on that, had a concussion. Starting senior, had never lost before this season. Now, he's got three of them. Alabama, valiant effort. Auburn, just one play better. And that's all the difference.

KEILAR: So, what do you do when they win a big one like that? I mean, what's the scene in your house?

WOLF: In my house?

KEILAR: Yes.

WOLF: The scene at my house was OK. I was actually watching that at a public setting, so to speak. But I can tell you, I lost about 10 years of my life.

KEILAR: OK.

WOLF: Gone. More gray appear here.

KEILAR: I was going to say -- WOLF: An amazing game.

KEILAR: It certainly was.

All right. Reynolds, from one contact sport to another, don't you want to face those holiday crowds at the Mall?

WOLF: Nope.

KEILAR: No. Well, I bet a lot of you are. You do have an alternative. You can take a detour to a mom and pop shop. We'll tell you about Small Business Saturday coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KEILAR: Quarter past the hour, your top stories this morning:

An Oregon State University student is in a Portland jail accused of trying to detonate a weapon of mass destruction. The FBI says that 19-year-old Somali national Mohamed Osman Mohamud, who is a naturalized U.S. citizen tried to blow up what he thought was a vehicle bomb at last night's tree lighting -- Christmas tree lighting in downtown Portland. Officials say they had him under surveillance for months. And his would-be bomb was a fake.

Tensions are rising on the Korean Peninsula after North and South Korea traded rocket fire Tuesday over a disputed island. Today, on the streets of Seoul, angry members of South Korea's military took to the streets to protest what they say is their government's lax response to the attack. Four South Koreans died in Tuesday's attack on Yeonpyeong Island. Fifteen more wounded there.

Tomorrow, a four-day long joint military exercise is slated for the U.S. and South Korea.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KEILAR: It's very difficult to watch a loved one struggle with depression, maybe even more so during the holidays.

In this week's "Empowered Patient," CNN senior medical correspondent Elizabeth Cohen has some simple suggestions on what you can say and do to help.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN SR. MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, the holidays are a happy time for most people. They can be a time of great sadness for other people.

Well, how would you know if your friend or spouse or someone else needs your help, needs to be convinced that things aren't so bad, and that they shouldn't do some things as drastic as take their own life.

In this week's "Empowered Patient" -- how to save a friend from the brink. How to recognize signs that your friend could be suicidal and what exactly to do, what to say to them to help save them? It's difficult to know what to say and do in this circumstance.

Here are some things you shouldn't say: Don't say, "I know how you feel," because chances are, you really don't. Also, don't say, "Just snap out of it." And certainly, don't ignore it and don't keep secrets if your depressed friend tells you something and says don't tell anyone -- don't tell anyone I'm thinking about killing myself. Obviously, that is not a good secret to keep.

Now, here are some things that you should do. You could do something as simple as send a card. You could do something as simple as say, "I'm here for you." People who are contemplating suicide tell us that just those little things mean a lot to someone who is really on the brink.

For more information on what to do if you fear that someone you love is contemplating suicide, go to CNNHealth.com. We have a full story right there.

For "Empowered Patient," I'm Elizabeth Cohen.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KEILAR: A memorable Thanksgiving Day reunion for a brother and sister after more than 30 years apart. The one object that helped bring the two together this year.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KEILAR: I wonder if you know this, but today is Small Business Saturday. You've obviously heard of Black Friday and Cyber Monday. Well, today is an effort to save mom and pop shops from diminishing as more and more people head to large retailers to do their shopping.

So, one such mom and pop operation, this place. The Inside Loop, a yarn shop in Washington, D.C. The owners credit their success to cautious planning and strong support from the community.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JANIE LIPNICK, CO-OWNER, LOOPED YARN WORKS: We have a wonderful landlady who has been incredibly supportive and is willing to work with us as far as the lease went and really wanted us to be happy and wanted us to be here because I think what it seemed there were no retail shops opening. And a lot are closing.

It's a business and we are careful about the decisions we make. We collaborate on everything. We spent a year just on our operating agreement.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KEILAR: The credit card company American Express started the Small Business Saturday campaign.

And joining us to talk a little bit more about this is our financial expert Clyde Anderson. So, first off, give us an overview of exactly what this is. I've never heard of this.

CLYDE ANDERSON, FINANCIAL EXPERT: Yes, this is new. This is the first year. And it's a great idea. And it's catching momentum. I mean, in the first year, what we're doing is saying that bring attention to small businesses. You know, small businesses need love, too.

KEILAR: They do.

ANDERSON: You know, if we think about it, it's the life blood of America. Small business is classified as any business that has less than 500 employees or less $7 million of revenues. And so, now, American Express came and said, we'll give a $25 credit to anyone that uses or goes to a small business on this Saturday.

KEILAR: So, how -- how do you help support Small Business Saturday? I mean, obviously, just go and shop and you seek out these places?

ANDERSON: Yes, you seek these places. Like we say, it's not as convenient sometime to seek out a different place. Sometimes, we just go to the box stores because they're convenient.

Now, I'd say, take an effort. Take some initiative. Go find a small business that you can support. If each of us gives $100 to a small business, say for 100,000 people, that's $10 million in revenue. So, it can make a big difference.

And so, really, just go out there. And it doesn't have to be a place that -- you know, you have an American Express card and because you don't have, feel like you can't contribute. Just go out there and support a business. A lot of us know businesses that are out there that fall in that category that we can support.

KEILAR: And the incentives to do this?

ANDERSON: Yes, the incentive is a $25 that they are offering with American Express. And also the fact that small businesses are the life blood of America. You know, really, when you think about it, they are what's keeping the economy going. So, we really need to take time to think about that and pump some money into these businesses that really kind of make up a big piece of our economy.

KEILAR: And talk about that, the big picture here. I mean, I cover Congress. We talk about jobs. And you hear Democrats and Republicans saying this is the engine of the economy.

ANDERSON: Yes.

KEILAR: So, aside from just, you know, being able to get your $25 if you have an American Express card, what if you don't have an American Express card. How do you kind of fit into this and why is it a positive thing? ANDERSON: Well, it's funny. I think it's catching on. I think on their Facebook page, American Express had about 850 likes in about two weeks, which is huge. I think they surpassed a million. So, people are really catching on.

So, I think it's a movement that's beginning to happen now. People are saying, OK, let's put some attention on the small business. Maybe we haven't done this in the past. So, this being the first one, I think it's going to catch momentum in the years to come if we can keep focus on it.

But we need to kind of do it every day. It doesn't need to be a once in a year thing. We've got to continue to support small businesses.

KEILAR: And they are such great customer service at small businesses, I have to say.

ANDERSON: It is. It is. A lot of times. And they are great people. So, you get to know people.

Now, a lot of times ,we do business with people and not just to buy things. But we want to do business with people we like. It's the "know you, like you, trust you" thing.

KEILAR: Yes.

ANDERSON: And so, you can do with a little small mom-and-pop.

KEILAR: Funny thing, you end up liking what you bought more, I have to say.

ANDERSON: There you go. You appreciate it, I think.

KEILAR: Yes. I think so, too. Clyde Anderson, thank you so much for that.

A Thanksgiving reunion more than 30 years in the making. We're going to tell you how a simple picture helped long lost siblings reunite.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(MUSIC)

KEILAR: Sing it out for Reynolds Wolf. He loves you because his mother made him listen to you.

WOLF: Yes. I celebrate her entire collection.

KEILAR: Entire --

WOLF: Not my moms, Babs.

KEILAR: Babs. But you know what? She has yet another accomplishment this holiday, Reynolds. She's actually a best-selling author now. And her book is at number two right now on "The New York Times" advice and miscellaneous list. It's called "My Passion for Design." It's also on the "USA Today's" top 150 list.

And in this book, she talks about her talent for interior design. And then, of course, she also shares stories about the choices that she's made.

And this next story -- I feel like we can all relate to this next story. Maybe we've gotten in trouble as we're going through security, for something in our bags.

WOLF: Oh, yes.

KEILAR: Oops. A set of cheese knives came very close to getting pop singer Joe Jonas and his "Twilight" actress girlfriend Ashley Greene arrested in Abu Dhabi.

And Greene told George Lopez on the late night show that he has that they were at the airport, and then Jonas just forget, that he put it in his carry-on bag. And, you know, they explained it was an oversight. Security let these big stars through. But she says that it was kind of embarrassing, Reynolds

WOLF: It's really understandable. I mean, again, cheese knives will always something that will get someone in trouble.

KEILAR: Also, don't you put those in your carry-on?

WOLF: I normally do. I normally do.

KEILAR: Because you never know when you're going to have to eat cheese on a plane.

WOLF: You know, when you get a hankering for a nice dairy product, sometimes, you have to have the right tools for the job. Oh my goodness gracious.

KEILAR: Disaster.

WOLF: Disaster strikes.

KEILAR: My secret is out.

WOLF: Absolutely.

KEILAR: The mike on the boot.

OK. So, the next story. You know, Britons who didn't get their personal invitation to the royal wedding -- well, you know what? They may have another option. You want to see Kate Middleton and Prince William tie the knot?

"The Daily Mail" reports that U.K. broadcasters are actually considering airing the wedding live in 3D. So, Sky TV pioneered 3D television in Europe. They use it for sporting event. And now, the BBC, Virgin, they're in the mix. So, they could really make small screen history here, 3D television.

WOLF: Wow.

KEILAR: That's the problem, though. You need the 3D television to see this, right?

WOLF: And the cookie weird 3D glasses too that you have to wear, you know?

KEILAR: It makes you look so cool.

WOLF: I know. But, you know, it kind of limits that other things you can do. I mean, if you are looking at the whole 3D thing and then you're trying to reach for your cheese knives to cut your cheese and you need to move your Barbara Walters book away.

KEILAR: You can cut yourself with that perception issue.

WOLF: You really can. It can be a problem.

KEILAR: All right. Maybe some pubs will put that in there.

All right. We have more top stories at the top of the hour when CNN SATURDAY MORNING continues. But first, "SANJAY GUPTA, M.D." begins right now.