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CNN Saturday Morning News

Newt Gingrich Makes Controversial Statement About Palestinians; Protest Continue In Russia; Wreathes Laid At Arlington National Cemetery To Honor Fallen Soldiers; Joshua Komisarjevsky Given Death Penalty By Jury; CNN Heroes Prepare For Ceremony; Green Monday Sees Record Shipping; Quarterback Colt McCoy Suffers Concussion

Aired December 10, 2011 - 10:00   ET

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

CHRISTI PAUL, CNN ANCHOR: Another alleged child sex scandal involving a well-known sports program. This time, the head of the amateur athletic union is accused of sexually abusing two boys years ago.

Controversial remarks from Republican presidential candidate Newt Gingrich. The party's current front-runner called the Middle East peace process, quote, "delusional."

And a live picture for you from Arlington cemetery where a wreath laying ceremony is taking place to honor our American heroes. And we honor you, all of you families that have served. Thank you with us.

Good morning to you on a Saturday from the CNN headquarters in Atlanta. This is CNN Saturday morning. Thanks for keeping us company here. I hope it has been good to you so far. I'm Christi Paul in for T.J. Holmes.

And let's get right to those allegations of sexual abuse. Two men tell ESPN that the head of the amateur athletic union sexually abused them in the 1980s. The men tell the sports network they were playing for Robert "Bobby" Dodd's AAU basketball team when he molested them. There's been no comment, by the way, from Dodd. He's actually battling colon cancer right now.

Newt Gingrich facing strong criticism this morning for comments he made about the Palestinian people. He said they were invented. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

NEWT GINGRICH, (R) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Well, I believe that those people have the right to have a state and I believe that the commitments that were made at the time -- remember, there were -- there was no Palestine as a state. It was part of the Ottoman empire. And I think that we have invented Palestinian people who are in fact and who are historically part of the Arab community.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PAUL: Gingrich went on to say that it's tragic the Palestinians didn't leave the area when he had the chance. And he also called the Middle East peace process, quote, "delusional." You know there are people that have something to say about this. Here I want to let you know what top members of the Palestinian executive committee are saying this morning. Hanan Ashrawi says Gingrich, quote, "has lost touch with reality." She says his statements show "ignorance and bigotry," and the comments were a cheap way to win the pro-Israel vote.

Saeb Erakat called Gingrich's comments "The most racist statement I've ever seen." He went on to say that it shows, quote, "How really despicable things can get in American politics."

I want to bring in CNN deputy director Paul Steinhauser for this. Paul, can you give us any sense or give us any sense of how much this may hurt Gingrich at this point?

PAUL STEINHAUSER, CNN DEPUTY POLITICAL DIRECTOR: You know, it is -- his comments seem to be at odds with U.S. policy, which does support a two-state solution with Israel and the Palestinian people. But among the Republican presidential candidates, it seems maybe a little further than they've gone, but in line with the idea of all the candidates trying to prove that they're the best friend of Israel. Other than Ron Paul, all of these Republican presidential candidates this year have been stepping over each other to prove they're bona fides when it comes to the support of Israel and to criticize President Barack Obama for not being a friend of Israel and for weakening its security.

And we just saw Gingrich and five other of the candidates at a presidential forum right here in D.C. sponsored by a Republican Jewish group the other day and we heard similar language. This one goes a little further.

Was it politics here? Yes, some Republican Jewish voters. But I think more of this is directed towards social conservative voters. They're very influential in Iowa and South Carolina, two of the first three states to vote. They're very big supporters of the state of Israel. So maybe Gingrich and the other candidates are doing. His words, though, go a little further than everybody else.

And there's been reaction almost from the Romney campaign saying "I'm not sure this kind of statement gets us any closer to accomplishing an agenda. And so that's one of the things I think that makes me a little bit nervous about Speaker Gingrich is that he sometimes makes comments that are open to very broad interpretations." That's from a Romney foreign policy surrogate, a former U.S. ambassador. We've reached out to the Gingrich campaign to see if they have any reaction.

PAUL: Well, we have to wonder what they're going to say tonight, too, at the debate in Iowa. What's going to be different about this one this time around, Paul?

STEINHAUSER: A couple things different about this one. It's the first one in almost three weeks. The last presidential debate on the Republican side was ours, that CNN debate on November 22 before Thanksgiving. Also, the timing here, we're just over three weeks away on the Iowa caucuses, one of the lasting chances for these candidates to make a lasting impression on undecided voters.

The other last thing that changed is Newt Gingrich, he's now the front-runner in national polling and in three of the four early states according to our most recent CNN-"TIME"-ORC poll. So I think he's going to be the man that's going to come under attack from the other candidates. A lot has changed in the last couple weeks. Things may change again in the next three weeks before Iowa votes, Christi.

PAUL: It's a constant up and down, isn't it, although he's pretty solidly ahead in the polls, no doubt about it. I wonder how many people saw that coming, Paul.

STEINHAUSER: It is really incredible, because it was back in May and June that his campaign was almost left for dead. But times have changed. But again, a lot of voters telling us in these polls that they could change their minds when it comes to which candidates they're supporting. So stay tuned.

PAUL: There's plenty of time in there for that. Paul Steinhauser, thank you so much. Good to see you this morning.

STEINHAUSER: Thank you.

PAUL: President Obama meanwhile says he recognizes that our economy isn't doing so well. He spoke with CBS News magazine "60 Minutes" comparing his position as that of the nation's chief executive to that of a ship's captain.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, (D) PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: No matter how well we're steering the ship, if the boat is rocking back and forth and people are getting sick and they're being buffeted by the winds and the rain -- at a certain point if you ask them, are you enjoying the ride right now, folks are going to say no. And are they going to say, do you think the captain is doing a good job? People will say, you know what, a good captain would have had us in smooth waters and sunny skies at this point.

And I don't control the weather. What I can control are the policies we're putting in place to make a difference in people's lives.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Did you overpromise? Did you underestimate how difficult this was going to be?

OBAMA: I didn't overpromise and I didn't underestimate how tough this was going to be. I always believed that this was a long-term project. It's not a short-term project. And, you know, for individual Americans who are struggling right now, they have every reason to be impatient.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PAUL: We're going to play more of the president's 60 minutes interview in the next hour of CNN Saturday morning, so hope you stick around. Meanwhile, Boston, the police there, put an end to one of the nation's longest running Occupy encampments after raiding downtown Dewey Park earlier this morning. This move began about 5:00 a.m. and comes a day after the city imposed a deadline for occupiers to get out of the park or to face forcible evictions. Dozens of people, by the way, were arrested.

Let's get you to Russia now. Allegations of voter fraud in last week's parliamentary elections have Russians riled up. They're demonstrating in the streets. I want to bring in CNN's Phil Black. He's live for us in Moscow right now. Give us a sense of what's going on there and what the protesters are demanding, specifically.

PHIL BLACK, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hello, Christi, only a short time ago tens of thousands of protesters that were here in the square have gone home. That was after some hours of chanting, listening to speeches, cheering, and a little bit of booing, as well.

What has brought them out on to the streets in these numbers is anger, frustration, the belief that parliamentary elections held last weekend were not fair, were not democratic. International observers and many Russians believe that that election process was flawed or fixed in favor of Vladimir Putin's United Russia Party.

And so for that reason we saw tens of thousands of people here today, more that have come out onto the streets of the Russian capital for some decades now. So it was an extraordinary event in that sense. And the people here hope that they set a very powerful message to the prime minister, Vladimir Putin. Their ultimate goal is to have those election results annulled. They want fresh elections. What they want is the Kremlin to make them believe that their votes really do count.

PAUL: And so what's the plausibility of that happening? Speaking of Vladimir Putin, where does he stand in this equation?

BLACK: Not very high or not just yet. Vladimir Putin has always maintained from the outset that the election, he says, was fair and democratic, and he's showing no sign of changing that view just on the basis of one process alone.

And the organizers here acknowledge that to a significant degree. They believe this is just the first big show in a campaign that will follow. But just getting this many people onto the streets can make this point. They believe it's a significant achievement. And so they are really quite hopeful and quite optimistic that from here this sort of protest can become a regular part of the political landscape in Russia, particularly into the 32 months of next year when you're going to see Vladimir Putin, who is currently the prime minister, campaigning very strongly to be elected as this country's president once again.

PAUL: All right, Phil, thank you so much for keeping us apprised of what's been happening there this morning.

Meanwhile, the Nobel Peace Prize award was handed out this morning in Oslo, Norway. The prize actually is being shared by three women, we should point out. Look at them there being honored for their commitment to women and their safety in Africa and Yemen. They are Leymah Gbowee, who is a leading peace and women's rights activist in Liberia, Tawakkol Karman, who, known as the mother of the revolution in Yemen, and Liberian president Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf. Congratulations to those women.

A forbidden tweet gives a convicted murderer a second chance. What a juror allegedly did that will give this guy another trial. You're watching CNN Saturday morning.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PAUL: In Connecticut, a convicted murder will likely be joining his accomplice on death row as the jury rules in one of the most brutal home invasions in recent history. CNN's Deb Feyerick has more on the sentencing of Joshua Komis

Christi, the petit family came to this courthouse ever day of the trial and every day of the penalty phase as witnesses testified for the defense as to why the jury should spare the life of Joshua Komisarjevsky.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DEBORAH FEYERICK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Christi, the Petit family came to this courthouse every day of the trial and every day of the penalty phase as witnesses testified for the defense as to why the jury should spare the life of Joshua Komisarjevsky. But in the end, it was not enough. The jury did not buy the argument that Komisarjevsky was impaired curing the commission of this horrible home invasion, nor do they believe that he played a minor role. Death on all six counts for the murders of mom, Jennifer Hawke-Petit and her two daughters 17- year-old Hayley and 11-year-old Michaeala. The sole survivor, Dr. William Petit, said this was never about bloodlust, nor was it about vengeance.

PETIT: We certainly have been criticized over the years that this is vengeance and bloodlust, but this is really about justice. There was a number of people on that jury who really -- weren't really sure whether he should have the death penalty. But after they looked at the facts of the case, they could only see their way to find one appropriate punishment that would serve justice.

FEYERICK: Komisarjevsky stood at attention, his hands behind his back for almost two hours as each juror was polled. One juror told us a lot of tears were shed during the deliberations, but they believed that while there were mitigating circumstances as to the upbringing of this boy, in fact they were not enough to lessen the penalty. The defense lawyer for Komisarjevsky spoke after.

DR. WILLIAM PETIT, WIFE AND DAUGHTERS MURDERED: We continue to believe that the appropriate punishment in this case is to confine Joshua in a safe prison for the rest of his life, that it's just wrong to give their authorization to functionaries of the state of Connecticut to kill this deeply disturbed young man.

FEYERICK: Joshua Komisarjevsky will be sentenced on January 27th and will likely join his accomplice on death row.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PAUL: Deb, thank you very much.

Now, there's this, too, out of Bentonville, Arkansas. A convicted murder there getting a new trial after a juror disregarded the judge's orders not to tweet during the proceedings. The Arkansas Supreme Court ruled the tweets amounted to jury misconduct, that they were grounds for overturning the murder conviction. And now they're looking into whether jurors should even have cell phones during the trial.

We're talking about this on my Facebook page. ChrisitPaulHLN of you want to get in on the conversation, we would love to hear from you.

Today, too, as we do every day, we remember our fallen heroes and the people that fight for our country. Today specifically more than 100,000 holiday wreaths are being placed near graves at Arlington National Cemetery. We're back in just a moment with a live report. Stay close.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PAUL: Right now at Arlington national cemetery, a very special ceremony going on. Volunteers laying holiday wreaths at the head stones near thousands of graves. The purpose of course is to remember the neigh's fallen heroes. We remember them every day, but particularly during the time of the holidays, we certainly feel their absence. CNN's Athena Jones join us live there at Arlington National Cemetery. So Athena, what have you seen there so far this morning?

ATHENA JONES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It's been a pretty remarkable day. I mean, there's 10,000 volunteers descending here on Arlington's National Cemetery to lay 100,000 wreaths on the headstones here. Over the last several hours, we've seen what was before a sea of white headstones. Now you see wreaths laid at all of them.

You have Boy Scout troops, women pushing strollers, people in uniform, people in wheelchairs who were injured, service members. We've had a chance to talk to a lot of people here, some of them just volunteers who wanted to come out and do something. One man told us, "They've given so much, I've given so little." A 16-year-old woman who came out with her father and served said she wanted to be here on this day.

I also talked to a woman who flew up center Florida. The organization Wreaths Across America which is behind this event, they've been laying wreaths here for 20 years. It's an event that expanded to more than 500 cemeteries all across America in all 50 states. This organization flew the woman up from Florida. She had not seen her son's tombstone since she laid him to rest. He was killed in Iraq five years ago. And so it's been a very, very emotional time for some of the people here.

Almost everyone I talked to said they're pleased to see so many people out. Some are surprised, some say they're not surprised. It's important to be here and to remember everyone on a day like this. Not everyone has someone who is able to comment on them in this way. So people are coming out, laying wreaths on every tombstone that they can in order to honor this service members lost.

PAUL: I think you're probably hearing some incredible stories, as well. Family members, particularly, who come out there, I would think, have to be comforted to see how many people remember their family members who care enough to take the time to come out there. Tell us about a couple of other things maybe you've seen there where you are. You're in section 60, that's why the folks who fought in Iraq and Afghanistan are laid to rest. Is that right?

JONES: That's right. That's the section you see right behind me. I talked to another young man who lost his partner last year in 2010 who was killed, and he said he wanted to be here in order to honor him. He's still healing.

And so there are a lot of emotional stories. There are also a lot of people who are here just to show their support for their troops. They may not have lost any loved ones in particular. There was a man I spoke with who had a relative killed in World War II. I said are you going to visit his headstone? He said I just wanted to better here. It was about coming out and honoring everyone who has come out and served.

So a real mix of stories here. There's been a lot of emotional moments we've observed that we haven't always wanted to interrupt. But, again, that woman on spoke with from Florida was quite pleased to be here and so very happy to see everyone come up with a full understanding that not everyone has been touched, even though many, many, many people have.

JONES: Thank you so much, Athena, for bringing us the latest, and certainly our thoughts and players with all of those folks. Thank you.

So if you live along the east coast, you saw how windy it was there where she is right now. But there is another blast of winter weather coming your way. Some areas could get two to four inches of snow. I'm jealous you're going to get a white Christmas. Details on who is getting what after the break.

Also, winter officially begins November (ph) 22, we should point out. For those of you thinking about escaping the cold, "Travel & Leisure" magazine has just named the best cities for winter travel. The top picks in just a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PAUL: "Travel & Leisure" magazine has named the best place to travel for the winter. Coming in third, Phoenix/Scottsdale, Arizona. Visitors can spend time golfing, shopping, relaxing at the spa in the metro area. I lived there for five years. It's a slice of heaven.

Come in second, Honolulu, Hawaii. Who is going to dispute that, really? It's great for couples and families because, obviously, the weather and the outdoor activities there. But, you know the top spot? San Juan, Puerto Rico. Several deals and apparently a big boost of sunshine boosted it to the top spot there.

I do not surf, but that surfing looked like a lot of fun here at 23 minutes past 10:00 on the east, I should say. But oh, boy, they're not going to see anything like that in the great lakes region. Two to four inches are expected in upstate New York.

(WEATHER BREAK)

PAUL: Newt Gingrich, you know, is riding high in the polls. That means he has a big target on his back. Coming up, our political players Maria Cardona and Lenny McAllister. They're ready to talk about Newt and how his fellow candidates are planning to knock him down.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PAUL: It's 28 minutes past the hour. Welcome back. I'm Christi Paul in for T.J. Holmes. Thank you so much for sharing your time with us today.

Let's get you informed with the top stories this morning. New allegations that the head of the Amateur Athletic Union sexually abused two boys years ago. Two men tell ESPN that Robert "Bobby" Dodd molested them back in the 1980s when they were playing on his AAU basketball team. No comment from Dodd yet. He's battling colon cancer.

Post-election protests are happening right now in Russia. This is part of today's demonstration that's been going on in Moscow. Thousands of people have been gathering all week to protest last week's parliamentary elections. Demonstrators are claiming voter fraud and they're pointing the finger squarely at Vladimir Putin's United Russia Party.

Freshly minted front-runner Newt Gingrich has sparked a new round of controversy in this interview with the Jewish Channel calling Palestinians an "invented people." A top Palestinian executive committee member said the comment is, quote, "The most racist statement I've ever seen."

So you know almost all the Republican candidates for president are in Iowa for a debate tonight. Iowa is one of three early caucus and primary states where a new CNN-ORC-"TIME" magazine poll shows Newt Gingrich with dibble digit leads here. Mitt Romney is still on top, though, in New Hampshire. Gingrich making headlines, though, this morning, as I said, for what he said about the Palestinians and calling them an "invented people." Here it is.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GINGRICH: It's good to be back with a lot of friends. I believe that the Jewish people have the right to have a state and I believe that the commitments that were made at the time -- remember, there were -- there was no Palestine as a state. It was part of the Ottoman Empire. And I think that we've had an invented Palestinian people who are, in fact, Arabs, and who are historically part of the Arab community.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PAUL: That's been getting a lot of strong reaction in the Middle East. What impact will it have here on the campaign trail? Joining me now, CNN political contributor and Democratic strategist Maria Cardona and Republican strategist Lenny McAllister. Thank you both for being here.

MARIA CARDONA, DEMOCRATIC STRATEGIST: Good to be here, as always.

LENNY MCALLISTER, REPUBLICAN STRATEGIST: Good morning.

PAUL: Maria, let me start with you. What do you say about the comments this morning?

CARDONA: I think they're not helpful. Clearly, they are purely political. I think it could help in terms of what Gingrich is trying to do in terms of shoring up the right wing evangelical support that he needs to win Iowa and then to continue through the primary process. It could help him win the nomination. It definitely will not help him win the election in 2012, because what people are looking for in their leaders when they're looking to elect a commander in chief is somebody who is an honest broker and somebody who really understands the politics of the Mideast peace process.

And, you know, what people need to understand is that not even Netanyahu would say these kinds of remarks. The majority of people in Israel understand that the only way -- where they need to be for the security of Israel is to have a two-state solution. That is not something that Gingrich right now would be able to achieve if he was to become president with these kinds of outrageous remarks.

PAUL: Eric had said that today, too, that even Benjamin Netanyahu wouldn't have made those remarks, as well. But let me ask you, what you think about tonight, do you think that -- and people are watching the debate tonight. I'm just curious, do you think this is really going to be a big issue, because at the end of the day, what people are concerned about in this country right now on the forefront is the economy? Is this just a blip on our radar?

MCALLISTER: It's a blip of the radar.

CARDONA: I think it is.

PAUL: Go ahead, Lenny.

MCALLISTER: I'm sorry. I do think this is just a blip on our radar. Sorry about that, ladies. I don't think people are really going to focus on this as much.

Listen, President Obama is not giving federal aid to all 57 states like he said on the campaign trail when he misspoke there. And the people in Pennsylvania are not thinking that he has folks still clinging to guns and region. Candidates say things that are a little controversial on the campaign trail. He was speaking as more of a historian.

And if you look at the facts, historically the facts are correct. But a historian speaking to a certain voting block is not the same as a president sitting in office having to deal with the political realities from a geopolitical standpoint. I think whether they get on the stage this evening and as they move forward, this will be something that people will talk about in the news cycle, but it will eventually fade away if Gingrich does not continue to ramp up these comments.

PAUL: And when we talk about what people are looking at, Maria, Newt Gingrich is being attacked for his three marriages, for flip-flopping, so to speak, I guess, or for switching lanes when it comes to his religion. How much of a candidate's past do you think is going to come into play in this campaign? Or are people just saying, let's look at the future and get on with it?

CARDONA: Well, I think that it will come into play because it is the basis through which you see how this candidate and potential president is going to make decisions. And what I think is going to come back to haunt Newt Gingrich is his long and rich history of those flip-flops, of saying things that are for purely political reasons, and, frankly, of being completely undisciplined. And that's what we're seeing today with these comments about the Palestinian people.

He is not looking, really, right now in terms of these comments, he is not looking to gain pro-Israel, or the Israeli vote. He's looking to gain purely the evangelical vote. So I think, to Lenny's point, he is saying things right now that I think are purely focused on getting him the nomination.

But what is going to really haunt him is -- and I think Lenny is wrong about this -- is that if he is the nominee, these comments are definitely going to come back to haunt him as will his long and rich history of comments he's made in the past, of his public policy positions. And all that is absolutely fair game.

PAUL: Lenny, we have seen, too, Mitt Romney, they are fighting for this nomination, and he has taken the family values to task with Newt Gingrich, as well. Do you think that's the right move for Romney?

MCALLISTER: No, it's not the right move for Romney. I think these folks that try to get Gingrich as a flip-flopper keep forgetting that we have Mr. voting present in the White House right now. President Obama has a history of not taking a stand until it's politically expedient. And he's sitting in the White House right now. This is something that Hillary Clinton attacked him on, this is something that John McCain attacked him, and he still won the presidency in November, 2008.

This is something that if Gingrich massages this well, he can show a moderate side and appeal to the conservatives. Romney, he's being out-Romneyed right now. Gingrich is more of a conservative on certain things that is upsetting the base, but at the same time, he gets more of the conservative basis base behind him than Romney has ever been able to do. As of right now, as long as Gingrich doesn't make too many verbal gaffes, he's going to be the nominee.

CARDONA: I hope Lenny is right because there is nothing Democrats would --

(CROSSTALK)

CARDONA: I hope Lenny is right because there is nothing that we would want more than have Gingrich as the nominee and have President Obama run against him.

MCALLISTER: You don't want that.

PAUL: We'll see and we'll see what happens tonight in Iowa, of course. Lenny and Maria, thank you very much.

MCALLISTER: God bless you all. Take care now.

CARDONA: Thank you.

PAUL: You probably know about black Friday and cyber Monday, of course. Have you heard of green Monday? It's the one online retailers are really banking on right now. We'll tell you why after the break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PAUL: If you think you missed some of the best holiday gifts pricing, you might actually be in luck. Some major retailers have a new round of discounts planned for you this Monday. It's known as green Monday. And no, it's not about environmentalism, which, Josh Levs, we would think it would be with that title.

JOSH LEVS, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: This is yet another date on the calendar now for holiday shopping. Here is what's pretty cool about this. It's turning into something big. It is one of the biggest shipping days of the year, so we paid a visit to a major carrier to meet the hardworking people behind the scenes and you get to see those gifts across the country, even across the world to you.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're not trying to overwork you, but it is going to be heavy and expect the load to be heavy. Does everyone understand?

LEVS: A lot of people in the industry call it green Monday. It's two Mondays before Christmas. It's always a huge day for shipping. Why is that?

PAUL BRADLEY, DHL AREA SALES MANAGER: Typically what we find is customers go shopping a couple weeks before Christmas on the weekends, and they just give up. So then they go online, they order online, the packages get processed throughout the weekend and the pickups are made, the deliveries are made on that Monday. We have increased the number of routes that we have on the streets by over 100 routes. We hired additional part-time workers.

LEVS: So we're seeing all kinds of boxes travel along this conveyor belt here. Sometimes you see things shipped well and some cases not so much.

BRAKE: This to us is a perfect package, very solid material, good corrugation on here. So we definitely want to make sure that our customers are utilizing new boxes if at all possible and the strongest type of tape. Don't use regular masking tape or cheap tape you may get at your local drugstore.

LEVS: Do you see how all the packages get moved through here and then to ultimately get to you, you need a person, a courier. How do you prepare? Do you have to do some extra workouts?

DARONE JONES, DHL COURIER: I stop by Krispy Kreme doughnuts and get some Krispy Kreme sugar, a Red Bull, I'm ready to go.

LEVS: These are heavy, but these are big and bulky, too. I'm 6'1" and I'm pretty sure they're bigger than me. I'm trying to lift it up. Jimmy, come on here. I need your help. We have been watching you this morning. You lift more by 8:00 a.m. than most body builders do in a week. Are you the strongest one around here?

JIMMY DAVIDSON, DHL COURIER: I'm pretty sure I am. Everyone wants me to help them lift their heavies. They call me "Popcorn" around here.

BRADY: It's very gratifying knowing that a grandmother over in China is sending their grandchild maybe their first Christmas present. So we're excited to do that and our couriers experience that on a daily basis.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LEVS: Businesses including Sears and K-Mart are climbing onboard this bandwagon now. Listen to this, Com-Score predicts more than $1 billion in online sales for retailers just Monday. Add to that all of you who are buying these things weekend and planning to ship this on Monday, Christi, massive day for delivery.

PAUL: Yes. Laura on my Facebook page always saying, "I'm shopping, I'm shopping right now online.'

LEVS: They messaged you, too. That's night.

PAUL: It was funny that the guy said, don't use the cheap tape. You took the time to buy it. You want to make sure it gets there. Did they give you any tips?

LEVS: Yes. And we saw, when we were at that facility, we saw so many boxes falling apart. Some people had used masking tape or that regular cellophane, just not the right stuff.

Another tip they tell you is always make sure you to put a couple of inches around everything. Use lots of stuff in there. A couple more tips from UPS. They say only use boxes designed for shipping. They say if you have any questions, get them answered in advance. You don't want your package to get lost along the way. I put a lot of tips for you at my page, CNN.com/Josh.

PAUL: Yes. Good luck to all of you folks working at FedEx and USPS and all that stuff on Monday.

LEVS: It's incredible.

PAUL: I have to lift my heavies. I liked how he said that.

(LAUGHTER)

PAUL: Thank you, Josh.

He's not Bo Jackson or Deion Sanders, but one pro athlete is putting up the Ping-Pong paddle now through the NBA labor deal is done. Sports' Ray D'Alessio has something to say about this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PAUL: What's going on in the sports world? One Mr. Ray D'Alessio knows about that.

RAY D'ALESSIO, HLN SPORTS ANCHOR: I know all, is that what you're trying to say?

PAUL: I don't think I'd go that far, to be honest with you.

(LAUGHTER)

PAUL: The father of Cleveland Browns quarterback Colt McCoy is not happen with the way the team handled his son's concussion the other night.

D'ALESSIO: It happened Thursday night in the game against the Steelers, a head to head collision, just a brutal collision. And his dad, Brad McCoy, went public this week basically telling the "Cleveland Plain Dealer" --

PAUL: Here it is.

D'ALESSIO: This is the hit right here, you see it in slow motion. That's James Harrison right there, boom, hits him. If you listen to Brad McCoy, Colt's father, he described it as Colt McCoy was briefly unconscious, and he feels the team didn't take the necessary steps. Only put him back into the game after missing two plays.

The Browns are saying, look, we did the post-concussion tests. He didn't start showing any signs of a concussion until after the game. But Brad McCoy is saying colt was saying the next morning, hey, what happened last night? I don't remember anything that happened. I don't remember the hit. I don't remember anything that happened at the end of the game. I know we lost and I disappointed my teammates, but that's all I remember.

But the team is saying, look, we did everything that we had to do. Had he shown any signs of a concussion, we would have not under any circumstances put him back in.

PAUL: We wish him well, certainly.

Then there's this off again, on again mega trade in the NBA.

D'ALESSIO: Now it's supposedly on again, this mega trade in the NBA. What a way to start the NBA season. Traders opened up yesterday talking about this huge trade involving Lamar Odom of the L.A. Lakers, Pal Gasol of the Lakers, it was a three-team deal that would have sent Chris Paul to the L.A. Lakers, Lamar Odom to the New Orleans Hornets.

However, David Stern looked at the deal and the hornets would have gotten some other up and coming players. David Stern, the commissioner of the NBA, looked at the deal and he said, no, this is not in the best interest of the New Orleans hornets. Mind you, the Hornets are owned by the NBA. So he nixed deal yesterday. He said I'm going to give you the clearance to go back to the drawing table and see if you can come up with some kind of trade. So they're trying to come up with a fair trade now. Whether it gets done this weekend remains to be seen.

PAUL: We have a couple of seconds, but I have to show you a favorite clip of the day -- Blake Griffin. I shouldn't say he is your favorite clip of the day.

D'ALESSIO: No. Actually, this is pretty funny. This is Blake making a red bull commercial, playing a supposed pro ping-pong player.

PAUL: There, you've got it.

D'ALESSIO: That's my favorite clip of the day, yes. Taking on an actual player, a championship player. Blake thought that he could go one-on-one with her, do a great job. But no, she pretty much schooled him. But in his defense, the outfit she's wearing, I'm sorry, that is not ping-pong official uniform outfit. He was distracted.

PAUL: But you know what? Ray doesn't care. You'll still watch it.

D'ALESSIO: I'll watch it every time.

PAUL: I'm getting the wrap, I'm sorry.

D'ALESSIO: What were you saying?

PAUL: Exactly. Thank you so much, Ray.

We're one week away from the tribute to CNN's heroes. After the break we're going to head to Los Angeles where "SHOWBIZ TONIGHT" A.J. Hammer is introducing us to one of the 10 finalists.

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PAUL: "SHOWBIZ TONIGHT" A.J. Hammer joins outside tomorrow from outside the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles, the site of tomorrow night's telecast of course of CNN heroes, an all-star tribute. What I love this is it is so inspirational because it shows people we are capable of doing so much more than we think we are and these people prove it.

A.J. HAMMER, HLN HOST, "SHOWBIZ TONIGHT": Christi, I challenge anybody who watches this show tomorrow night to not feel inspired, to go out and make a difference, help out in their community.

Right now, behind me, a little bit of action is going on. It's pretty quiet out here. They're working feverishly inside. This is where the red carpet will be where the major celebrities will be coming down the red carpet to go inside to honor the true stars of the night, our CNN heroes.

And you're going to hear so many great stories in the course of the night, including the story of Taryn Davis. Tayrn, just 21 years old when her husband, Michael, a corporal in the army, was killed in Iraq. And she didn't have any sense of community that she could find to share her story and be with people who have a similar experience. So what did you do? You created your own, the Widow Project. And now it's unbelievable. You're serving more than 1,000 widows across the country. It's an unbelievable program. And the thing is, Taryn, like all of our honorees tomorrow night, you saw a need and you didn't have any choice but to take action.

TARYN DAVIS, TOP 10 CNN HERO: I think it was out of total selfishness, I created what I was looking for. And luckily, there were a huge amount of military wives out there that wanted the same.

HAMMER: And getting to know you a little bit and hearing your story and what you do with the Widow Project, yes, you have times when you're all sitting around and sharing your story. I know that's an important part of your healing process and moving on. But you're not sitting around. You're out there doing stuff. Tell me about some of the things that you do to live life to its fullest.

DAVIS: I think they have an instant camaraderie, I think, because of the group that we share. But we also want them to see that it's possible to laugh and to smile and to feel alive again. We've done everything from skydiving out of plane at 13,000 feet to surfing in 50 degree water. We just want them to see that it's possible to be happy again and that they can take this grief and live a fulfilling life.

HAMMER: And you're sharing this weekend, I know, with some other women who are going to be here with you tomorrow night?

DAVIS: Yep. I have six awesome military widows here with me to celebrate the whole military population when we're on stage on Sunday.

HAMMER: I talk a lot about the stars who will be here. Kid Rock is going to perform on stage tomorrow night, and Kid Rock is always very supportive of our troops. But they're really excited to see you guys. So thank you for being here. Good luck with enjoying the weekend and everything tomorrow night.

I'll be here, of course, Christi, on the red carpet which will be behind me at 7:00 p.m. Eastern. J.R. Martinez, the great Iraq war veteran as well as "Dancing with the Stars" champ will be here, as well, co-hosting with me. It's going to be a great time. PAUL: We are looking forward to it. Please tell Karen how much we admire her. We think of our troops and their families every day, no doubt about it. It's something special. Thanks, A.J.

DAVIS: You got it.

PAUL: You can see the top 10 CNN hero nominees and their causes. Tune into CNN live tomorrow night at 8:00 Eastern for CNN heroes, an all-star tribute.

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