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CNN Saturday Morning News

Sandusky: "I Enjoy Spending Time with Young People"; Hillary Clinton's Historic Visit to Myanmar; Herman Cain Announcement Today

Aired December 03, 2011 - 07:00   ET

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

T.J. HOLMES, CNN ANCHOR: Good Saturday morning to you all. We're at the top of the hour. Seven a.m. Eastern Time, 4:00 a.m. out West, wherever you may be, we're glad you're right here.

And we are standing by for news from Herman Cain, expected to make an announcement about the future of his campaign today after coming face to face with his wife last night for first time since he was accused of a 13-year affair.

Also, news from overnight, in an extensive interview, former Penn State assistant coach Jerry Sandusky says he's innocent of child molestation. You'll hear him explain in his own words of his, quote, "attraction to young boys."

I'm T.J. Holmes. Thank you so much for being with us here.

And let's get to some of these headlines. And, again, this will be a big day in politics. Things could really, really change today when Herman Cain steps out. He says he'll make an announcement on the future of his presidential campaign.

He is back home in Atlanta today for the planned opening of his Georgia campaign headquarters, but instead, many people are speculating that he could drop out of the race. This all after a Georgia woman this week said she had a 13-year affair with Cain. He denied it.

Also this morning, a quote for you -- this one coming from the U.S. defense secretary. "Just get to the damn table." Those were the words from Leon Panetta for Israel's leaders. He's talking about the prospects for Middle East peace.

Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LEON PANETTA, DEFENSE SECRETARY: The problem right now is we can't get them to the damn table to at least sit down and begin to discuss their differences. You know, we all know what the pieces are here, to a potential agreement. They've been talked about. They've been worked through.

We understand the concerns. We understand the concerns of Israel. We understand the concerns of the Palestinians.

If they sit at a table and work through those concerns and United States can be of assistance in that process.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOLMES: Panetta said the push for peace is also on hold because Israel is becoming more isolated in the region.

Well, the Syrian government has reportedly bans the use of iPhones in the country. "Los Angeles Times" reporting that it's an effort to stop pictures and video of the ongoing uprising from getting out. Thousands of people have died during anti-government protests there.

Also, the man at the center of the Penn State sexual molestation scandal is trying to set the record straight on his relationship with young boys. Former assistant coach Jerry Sandusky sat down in his lawyer's house for a four-hour interview with "The New York Times." This is his first extended interview since being indicted on sex abuse charges last month.

Take a listen to him explain his relationship with young boys.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JERRY SANDUSKY, FORMER PENN STATE COACH: If I say, no, I'm not attracted to boys. That's not the truth because I'm attracted to young people, boys, girls.

Right. I enjoy -- that's what I was trying to say -- I enjoy spending time with young people. I enjoy spending time with people. I mean my two favorite groups are the elderly and the young.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOLMES: You may have heard a voice there off at the distance. We believe that was his attorney actually helping him clarify what he was trying to say. Sandusky also went on in that interview to say that coach Joe Paterno never spoke to him about suspected misconduct with minors. He also said Second Mile charity never restricted his access to children until 2008.

Also, Sandusky says his intentions were good, they were just misunderstood, saying, quote, "They've taken everything that I ever did for any young person and twisted it to say that my motives were sexual or whatever. I had kid after kid after kid who might say I was a father figure. And they just twisted that all," end quote.

Well, it's five minutes past the hour.

Let's turn back to what would be a big story in politics today. Herman Cain and his decision about whether or not he'll continue his presidential campaign. A new poll out of Iowa paint a pretty bleak picture for him right now.

"Des Moines Register" poll, as you see there, it illustrates just how far he has fallen in the eyes of the Republicans likely to attend the Iowa caucuses. He's just at 8 percent now as opposed to 23 percent.

Our Shannon Travis has more on what we can expect to hear from Cain. And that's coming just a few hours.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SHANNON TRAVIS, POLITICAL REPORTER: T.J., what happens in the house behind these gates behind me will likely determine Herman Cain's political future. The Republican presidential candidate arrived here at his home in an Atlanta suburb to meet with his wife for the first time since the allegations of an alleged affair with an Atlanta businesswoman surfaced early earlier this week.

Herman Cain arrived here amid a convoy of Secret Service and security. He was in an SUV. Me and my crew, we tried to wave. I've spoken with Herman Cain several times. There was no indication he saw any of us.

On Saturday, Herman Cain said himself that he will announce the reassessment period he's on. It's anyone's guess whether he'll come out and suspend his campaign, or come out and thumb his nose at his latest accuser yet again. We'll be standing by for that -- T.J.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HOLMES: Thanks to our Shannon Travis. We'll be checking in with him live throughout the morning.

And while Herman Cain is pondering his future here in Atlanta, the Republican presidential front-runners do have a pretty full schedule. Mitt Romney holding a rally in Manchester, New Hampshire, with former presidential candidate Tim Pawlenty.

Newt Gingrich, meanwhile, has a town hall in State Island. That happened this afternoon.

And then, tonight, Gingrich, Romney, and a few of the other candidates are scheduled to take part in a presidential forum in New York.

We're just about seven minutes past the hour. And kids know there's a lot of stuff you can't get away with in school. You can't cheat, you can't steal, you can't fight, but you also can't call your teachers name.

You certainly can't call her cute? Yes, this kid learned a hard lesson. That story after the break.

But Reynolds Wolf would never call his teacher such a nasty world that would get you kicked out of zoo.

REYNOLDS WOLF, AMS METEOROLOGIST: No, no, no, no, no. We pursue excellence here. We wouldn't want to go that crazy.

It looks like it's going to be very rough across the four corners. Southern California, another day when you're dealing with the Santa Ana winds. And in the parts of, say, the high mountains of the southern Rockies, we could have over a foot of snow and whiteout conditions along parts of I-25 and I-40 coming up in a few moments.

We'll see you. Good morning. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HOLMES: It's nine minutes past the hour.

Look at what we get there, Reynolds. This is just outside of our front door. This is at Centennial Park right across the way, and they are setting up.

That is ESPN getting set, I believe, getting set to do the coverage of the big SEC Championship today. Now, they're not on live yet, so you don't need to switch over and check them out. Let me make sure I make that clear.

But big game today. LSU taking on Georgia for the SEC championship. Not a whole lot at stake. Some people say even if LSU, they're going to end up in the championship anyway. So, I don't even care anymore.

WOLF: See, I know you and I know you love things to get kind of crazy.

HOLMES: Kind of crazy.

WOLF: And I know if LSU loses this game, you've got a lot of teams that have got just one loss, just one, and that throws the whole BCS into pandemonium.

HOLMES: I'll change my tune tomorrow morning. If they lose, I'll be the first one yelling and screaming, that Houston should get the shot of national championship.

WOLF: Why not?

HOLMES: Why not. They're undefeated.

WOLF: Absolutely.

Well, one thing we can't take a poll on, one thing we can't really worry about, is the weather. Nothing you can do about it.

It's going to be brutal again today in southern California. And other places that are going to be tough are, say, parts of the four corners.

We're also watching this storm. Take a look at this. I don't know if you can see this really well. The numbers are kind of bleak here -- 1,403 miles. That is the length of the storm system that extends from the Great Lakes clear down to parts of New Mexico, even toward El Paso.

It is a combination of wind, it's a combination of rain. You've about got sleet in there. It's a tremendous mess.

And something else is going to create a lot of rough travel conditions, especially along the two major interstates, along parts of I-25 and I-40. So, if you're making your trip say from Albuquerque, going towards Santa Fe, beautiful drive, but in the high mountains, you're going to have a tough time seeing some of the tops because the cloud cover and it's snow. Some places could get a foot of snowfall in some locations. Great for skiers not today but in the coming days, once the system moves toward the east, it's going to be better for you.

Southern California, unfortunately same story. Strong Santa Ana winds, some winds approaching 60, maybe 70 miles an hour. You've already have some damage and widespread power outages. I would expect those numbers are going to rise.

The winds are going to weaken, though, by late afternoon. So that's some good news.

We've got the wind, the snow, we've got, of course, the travel conditions we're going to be dealing with. In Los Angeles, only you have the winds, though, very low humidity is going to give us what we refer as a critical fire threat for the day. So if there was any fire that was set, it could spread very quickly, especially across the San Gabrielle. Wind gusts anywhere from 40 to 60, some maybe stronger. But as you mentioned, they will diminish in the afternoon.

As we wrap things up, here's a look at some of the issues we have across the four corners. A lot of winter storm warnings and watches. High temperatures warming up across the nation, 48 degrees in Kansas City, 36 in Salt Lake City, 64 in San Francisco.

Back east we go, 48 for New York, 62 in Atlanta, 79 in Tampa. Speaking of weather and speaking of football, thankfully, T.J., two big games, the one in Atlanta and, of course, the Big Ten championship game, both indoors. So, that's good.

HOLMES: That's always good.

WOLF: Unless you like weather to play a little bit of a part.

HOLMES: No.

WOLF: No?

HOLMES: No.

WOLF: No excuses.

HOLMES: Reynolds, thank you. And this story that Reynolds and I were going back and forth about a little earlier, and, of course, we would never call our teachers names because it could get you suspended from school. What if you called your teacher something, you know, innocent?

A 9-year-old in North Carolina, he called his teacher cute, and this young man you're seeing was suspended for two days. You heard me right, folks. He wasn't fighting. He wasn't cheating. He didn't call the teacher a bad name.

Let him tell it.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

EMANYEA LOCKETT, SUSPENDED FOR CALLING TEACHER "CUTE": I talked to my friend, I said my teacher was cute.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOLMES: OK, he called his teacher cute. That may seem innocent enough and maybe that is inappropriate. At least that's what the school district's spokeswoman was saying.

And the kind was sent home for what they say was, quote, "inappropriate behavior."

Now, we're kind of making a little light of this. Maybe there is another side to it and you should set some kind of a standard or a rule or whatever it may be, and you shouldn't have that kind of, I don't know -- you should think of your teacher that way.

WOLF: You can't call your teacher cute?

HOLMES: Can call her cute?

WOLF: You can't. I mean, there's a division here. I mean, you've got, of course, you have the role of the student, the role of the teacher. The teacher should be respected. She's in a position of authority.

It's like in the military, a private does not refer to a sergeant in a derogatory or shifty angle.

HOLMES: Let me throw this at you. He was overheard talking to another student. It's not like he looked at the teacher.

WOLF: That's entirely different. I mean, really is.

(CROSSTALK)

WOLF: But, still, you just be careful. Really, it teaches him to be careful. You say certain things at certain times, certain places. Hypocritical maybe, but still, you know, he needs to beware of his surroundings.

HOLMES: Reynolds, I love you. All right, Reynolds, thank you.

WOLF: I'm escaping. That's all I'm doing. I'm walking away.

HOLMES: Quarter past the hour now. And coming up, our "Morning Passport" is going to take you to Myanmar. Hillary Clinton wrapping up a visit to that spot, at the place where no secretary of state has been in more than 50 years and meeting for the first time with, some say, is a kindred spirit.

That's next. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HOLMES: About 16 minutes past the hour now.

And it's time for our "Morning Passport."

Did you know that Hillary Clinton has gone where no secretary of state has gone in quite a while.

Of course, we bring in our Nadia Bilchik for this morning's "Morning Passport."

This is a really historic trip.

NADIA BILCHIK, CNN EDITORIAL PRODUCER: Really historic trip. First time in 50 years that such a high-ranking U.S. official has gone to Myanmar, otherwise known as Burma.

And for Hillary Clinton, the highlight was visiting Aung San Suu Kyi, really, the famous human rights activist and democracy activist. And as you can see there, she is talking to her. Just a quick reminder that Aung San Suu Kyi came back to look after her mother in the late 1980s and in the 1990s got involved in politics, and her party won.

And when it won, they banned the party and they banned Aung San Suu Kyi. She has been under house arrest. You see the garden of her home. And her home really is as iconic as she is because when you think about Aung San Suu Kyi, you think of that home.

Also interesting about that home, it was given to her mother by the government when her father was assassinated. So her father was responsible. Aung San Suu Kyi's father was responsible from liberating Burma from the British.

So, there's the house on the lake. And when you see that house, you think of merely 20 years of house arrest and what she went through, the sacrifice.

You know, she never saw her husband from 1995 to virtually -- he died in 1997. She never saw him. She wasn't allowed go back to England -- no, she was allowed but she didn't want to because she knew if she went back, she wouldn't be allowed back in the country and her husband wasn't allowed into Myanmar.

HOLMES: And, you know, even seeing these pictures, Senator Clinton truly looked thrilled to be there standing with that woman.

BILCHIK: She really was inspired by her. She said on her plane flight down to Myanmar, she actually saw a movie of Aung San Suu Kyi, and she said meeting this woman, this legend, the person they call the Mandela of Asia was very inspirational.

Did you also notice that Hillary had her hair back? And there was something if you watched the clips, the way she mirrored her behavior, something very dignified about being in the presence of this iconic person. HOLMES: And we hope, and the world hopes, and then certainly, the United States at this point hopes there will be changes coming to Myanmar. Some things, some indication.

BILCHIK: That was the idea. She was there really to promote what seems to be steps towards democracy and 280 political prisoners have already been released but Mrs. Clinton would like more.

There you see her at one of the temples where she had to take off her shoes and socks and so did all the Secret Service. So, that was interesting. But her visit to Myanmar, Burma, and let's see and hope that it is the beginning of a new era of democracy and change in that region.

HOLMES: Nadia Bilchik with our "Morning Passport," we will be seeing Nadia again this morning. Thank you so much.

It's 20 minutes past the hour now. It's almost time for Clyde.

He's got this for you this morning. You know it's tough to find a job these days, but you want to find a job, not just any job? Go for your dream job.

He's going to tell you how do that. That is next. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HOLMES: Our financial analyst Clyde Anderson is here with us now.

And you got -- this is a tough one this morning. You tell me in this tough economy, don't just find the job, T.J., you can get your dream job.

CLYDE ANDERSON, FINANCIAL ANALYST: Dream job.

HOLMES: Should we even be thinking about a dream job?

ANDERSON: Why not?

HOLMES: It's a tough company, man.

ANDERSON: That's the problem. A lot of people I just need a job. And it's not about a job. It's about fulfilling something. And that's what we can help you do.

HOLMES: All right. First things first, what do you do?

ANDERSON: First things first. You really have to focus on your job search. Don't just pray and pray and think I'm going to put myself out there to everybody and it's going to happen. My resume is going to be all over the Internet and somebody's going to call me about a job.

Be focused about it. Find the company that you want to work for. What did you want to do?

HOLMES: Are you limiting yourself in some way? Shouldn't you -- everybody look at my resume.

ANDERSON: Nobody wants to see that anymore because you're going to get hit at the bottom of the pack. You've got to know these companies inside and out and you've got to figure out how can I get inside of that company and what do I need to do to stand out and make myself stand out and let them know I have the skill set that works for their company.

HOLMES: OK. Skill set. What if you don't have it yet? How do you get it?

ANDERSON: Go to trade school, take additional classes. Some people think that I have to go spend a lot of money to get another degree. That's not always the case.

HOLMES: Why?

ANDERSON: Show that you specialize something.

HOLMES: Specific skills.

ANDERSON: Specific skills to say that, OK, now I know the company I want to work for. Let me find that job that's going to work for that company.

HOLMES: All right. You talk about the classes there. What is this tapping into your network?

ANDERSON: It's all about networking. It's about who you know and what you know about you and what you know about them.

HOLMES: OK. You hear that all that time, networking, people have these events here and there. You go shake hands. We've been to plenty of them together.

ANDERSON: Exactly.

HOLMES: Is that the type of networking?

ANDERSON: Well, the thing that people get messed up, it's not about passing out business cards. It's about building relationships. So, even if I go to a network, I'm going to meet two people out of a hundred people that's fine, but I'm specific who I'm going there to meet. And then I have to be here.

And you have to realize, know you, like you, trust you. First, people get to know you, then they began to like you, and then they can trust you and they'll give you a job.

HOLMES: OK. What is this saying and it's all about online now. You need to have a presence.

(CROSSTALK)

ANDERSON: You got to have an online presence. You have to have your own blog. Wordpress is a great way to do it. There's a website called about.me. It's a great website.

Have an online presence. Use your social media, use your Twitter, use your LinkedIn, use your Facebook. And talk about who you are and what you're looking for.

HOLMES: Do you direct people back to that stuff?

ANDERSON: You direct them back to it. You put it out there. You let them know.

It's kind of like the pull. Not the pushing salespeople anymore. You're pulling people to you. They're intrigue about what you're talking about. So, now, they want to see who you are.

HOLMES: All right. How do you market yourself? I guess that's part of it. But how do you -- I mean, you can't buy a billboard.

ANDERSON: You got to build a campaign now and that's what it's about. It's about building a campaign. And it's just like watching and realizing that I'm sure, you could say, OK, in the next six months, this is what I want to do.

And so, it's interesting. They got videos out there -- 17,000 videos on YouTube of people doing online resumes. And you do your online. So, a guy did a creative one for Google and he wanted to get a job and he talked about his skill set and why they needed to hire him.

And so, we got to be that intent in this economy about getting that job.

HOLMES: All right. Clyde, all right, OK, you sold me on this one. I didn't know about it. You got me. You sold me on this one.

Clyde Anderson as always with us every Saturday morning. Thank you so much.

ANDERSON: My pleasure, man.

HOLMES: All right. Twenty-five past the hour now.

And a church in Kentucky telling an interracial couple they're not welcome. Church members also approved a statement saying they do not approve of interracial marriage. You all have been responding in an amazing way to this story. Some of those responses when I come back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HOLMES: A church in Kentucky telling an interracial couple that they are not welcome. Church members passed a statement saying they don't approve interracial marriages.

I asked you about this. You've been commenting a lot this morning.

Here's some of them:

Carey saying, "It's very disheartening to see such glaring roof that bigotry and prejudice are alive and well in the 21st century."

Another here saying, "It's not surprising that things like this are still happening in the U.S., but my goodness, we're talking about a church."

Another here, though, from Sheila, saying, "May not be PC, but the church has the right to its beliefs. If the congregation agrees, it has a right to."

Also another from Rick saying, "Just find a new church. There are many who believe that God loves all his children, not just some that are the same as them."

We thank you for sending those in. Reynolds and I, of course, will be back with you at the top of the hour with more live news.

But right now, time to hand you over to the good doctor.