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Protests Erupt at Anti-Muslim Video in Cairo, Tehran, Yemen; Egyptian President mohammed Morsi Condemns Murder of U.S. Ambassador; American Warships & Marines Headed for Libya; Political Fallout for Mitt Romney; Remembering Neil Armstrong; Chicago Teacher Strike Affects Student Athletes; Actress Says Filmmaker Duped Her; Romney Stumps in Virginia

Aired September 13, 2012 - 11:00   ET

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

ASHLEIGH BANFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Hi everybody. Thanks very much, Carol Costello. It is 11:00 on the East Coast; it's 8:00 on the West Coast.

And outrage is spreading like wild fire in the Middle East over this video that insults Islam and the Prophet Mohammed. Among other things, protests erupted today in Cairo, in Tehran, and in Yemen -- these following the attacks on the U.S. consulate in Benghazi, Libya on Tuesday in which American Ambassador Chris Stevens and three of his colleagues were killed.

And also the storming of the U.S. embassy in Cairo. Here is a list of the latest developments at this hour.

Hundreds of protesters today stormed the U.S. embassy in Yemen. At least three people were wounded when police opened fire.

In Cairo, demonstrators throwing Molotov cocktails clashed with riot police firing tear gas near the U.S. embassy.

And Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi is now joining the chorus of the world leaders who are condemning the murder of the ambassador of the United States.

In Teheran, protests outside of the Swiss embassy which represents the U.S. since Washington does not have diplomatic relations with Iran.

And also, American warships and U.S. Marines are headed for Libya as we speak.

Just a short while ago, we learned identity of one more of the Americans who were killed in Libya. A person speaking for the family says he is Glen Doherty of Massachusetts.

Also, political fallout is building in the country over Mitt Romney's quick attack over the President and the way that the American administration handled this crisis.

CNN has reporters right across the globe throughout the Middle East and we have a handle on every aspect and every angle of this story. We are live in every location. Let's start right now with the anti-U.S. protests in Yemen and one important note here. Yemen is a key ally in the fight against al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, which has been a massive, massive problem of late.

Hakim Almasmari is a journalist in the capital of Sana'a and he joins us now, live on the telephone.

First, Hakim, if you will, just get me up to speed on the situation on the ground. Is the violence there, are the protests abating in any way? Hakim, can you hear me? Are you there?

HAKIM ALMASMARI, SANA'A, YEMEN, JOURNALIST (via telephone): Yes. Protesters have now -- are decreasing and they were forced to leave 300 meters away from the U.S. embassy in Sana'a. There were clashes. Three protesters were reported injured, one in critical condition.

It is -- gunshots caused the protests to escalate and protesters gathered (INAUDIBLE), but as the day continues, these protesters defuse and decrease, but we are expecting some, particularly tomorrow, because many right now in Yemen are reviewing the video that is online, on the movie that is attacking the Prophet Mohammed, so this could not be the end from what we see.

BANFIELD: And, Hakim, I'm looking at some of these protesters. They look like they're armed with the most crude of weapons, sticks and stones, literally. Is this -- does it have the appearance of a coordinated and organized reaction or is this just spontaneous?

ALMASMARI: No, this is just spontaneous. These are protesters who are angered, from mosque speakers who talk about the anger of the U.S. movie. These sticks you see in their hands are sticks that were found near the embassy door and embassy entrance. They came unarmed. If you look at the picture closely, you will not see guns or machine guns or any serious arms. Anything that they are holding was found and taken from the U.S. embassy entrance or near the embassy.

But, again, it is a very, very critical situation. (INAUDIBLE) but it is also good that it did not escalate, though the number of protesters were massive and in the thousands, so the results are better than we expected and we are hope that the security force tomorrow are there on the scene earlier and ready to defuse such tensions if it happens again.

BANFIELD: Well, and that's exactly my next question. As I look at these picture that we're seeing, I don't see one police officer. I don't see one soldier. I don't see any representatives of any security forces anywhere and this is an embassy.

I may have missed it off the top of your reporting because we had audio problems, but where were they? And where are they now?

ALMASMARI: The security of the U.S. embassy is very, very strong. There is maybe 1,000 Yemeni security forces near the embassy, let alone the Marines who are stationed near the embassy in the hundreds, as well. The idea of why the security forces decided to evacuate the area and enter the embassy is because of the tension. If blood spills on the ground, these protesters would have escalated and been very, very dangerous for the Yemenis and Americans in Yemen.

So the security forces thought it was -- it would be best not to attack these protesters as long as they were unarmed. An interior ministry official told us earlier that any protester who is seen armed near the embassy would immediately be shot at, but since the protesters did not have weapons or guns with them, that's why this security decided it would be best to --

BANFIELD: So they are allowing this to go on. They are allowing these people to vent their anger and destroy whatever property they can find in the immediate vicinity of the embassy, as well as the outside of the embassy itself. And if I understand you correctly, Hakim, even the security forces and the Marines are holed up inside that embassy, presumably protecting our people in there and then ready to shoot if the embassy is breached?

ALMASMARI: Again, Yemen is a very different society. People here are very well-armed. In an average protest in Yemen, you would find hundreds of thousands of protesters, so it is an idea of what the situation -- either you make it worse or we try and solve it.

From my opinion, from where the security forces are reacting today, they tried to defuse it and that is why thousands of (AUDIO BREAK) or the area of the embassy hours after the protests -- after they started. The only tension and gunfire took place when protesters were in small number. When they were shot at, then they started gathering in large numbers and trying to attack the embassy even more.

Though it's wrong, yes, but it's also a way how Yemenis express their views. It could have gotten worse, but we're just happy how it ended this way.

BANFIELD: All right, Hakim Almasmari, excellent reporting and thank you for clearing up that situation. We'll continue to watch this and how, if it does, in fact, continue to defuse the situation in Yemen. Hakim, again, thank you very much. Live from Sana'a.

And a little bit more perspective now, regarding this anger. Again, all of this sparking from the anti-Muslim video, movie, whatever you want to call it. It was extraordinarily crude.

CNN's Mohammed Jamjoom is reporting for us this morning. He's been throughout Yemen many times and elsewhere in the Middle East. This is your beat and you're with us now from Beirut in Lebanon, quite a ways away from the violence we just saw right now.

But my question for you, Mohammed, is how much is there a propensity for this kind of reaction that we're seeing in Yemen to continue to spread -- Libya, Egypt, Yemen, elsewhere -- what is the possibility that we're going to start seeing it as far west as where you are and as far east as, say, Afghanistan or even the Philippines? MOHAMMED JAMJOOM, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, that is certainly the concern right now, Ashleigh, the fact that so many protests have popped up in these countries over the last 24 hours.

You know, I was speaking earlier in the day to a lot of activists in Yemen. I've been to Yemen many times and I was talking to them about this and they were saying that they were shocked that a protest could get this close to the U.S. embassy.

They were saying that they were concerned that this might happen because there has been so much outrage throughout the Middle East, specifically these countries that we're talking about, about this film, that they were concerned that there could be demonstrations and that there might be violence, but nobody expected that an angry mob, 2,000- or 3,000-strong could have gotten as close to the embassy in Sana'a.

This is a fortress. This is a very secure part in the capital of Yemen, someplace where you wouldn't expect that an angry mob could breach the security, could start climbing a wall.

This is what's really concerning people. If it can happen at the American embassy in Yemen in the capital, where else might this happen?

But to that end, I've spoken to a lot of activists who are saying that they're really appalled that this happened, that even if people are angry, even if they're offended and feel that this film was blasphemous and insulting towards Islam, they say that this is no way to handle the anger, that it should be done a different way.

To that end, you saw a statement of apology from Yemen's president, Abd al-Rab Mansur al-Hadi, to the American people and to the American president, Barack Obama, just a short while ago, saying that he was ordering a full investigation of this incident and asking the security forces to prosecute whoever was involved in this to the fullest extent of the law.

But it is a very big concern, especially for Western officials, especially for U.S. officials in this region in a region that's seen so much turmoil in the last couple of years. Ashleigh?

BANFIELD: Mohammed, let me ask you. Tomorrow, as is every Friday, likely to be a very busy day when it comes to protesting. It's Friday prayers among all Muslims worldwide and, typically, when we find ourselves in a volatile situation, it becomes even more volatile on Friday.

What is being done at this point by leaders throughout the Middle East and the Far East and any other of the areas where there is this propensity to inflame to try to tamp down the effect of Friday prayers tomorrow?

JAMJOOM: Ashleigh, we've seen leaders, these past couple of days issue statements, statements of regret, you know, statements of apology like Yemen's president to the American people today, but whether that will be enough to staunch this rising flow of anger, we just don't know.

When you were speaking to Hakim, a few moments ago, he was saying that this sounded like a spontaneous outburst of anger in Yemen, that that's what happened today.

It doesn't seem at this point, from the officials that we're speaking with, like this was any sort of organized, big event, that it was a lot of people that were angry and this is how they managed to take out that anger.

The concern is, how will this play out across the region? How will this play out in places like Afghanistan, where you've seen condemnation of this? How will this play out in other Muslim countries? We don't know, at this point.

Everybody is on high alert. The security apparatus in many countries are in high alert. They're trying to make sure that people are dissuaded from doing these kinds of demonstrations, but whether or not that will be enough, we don't know at this point. Ashleigh?

BANFIELD: Mohammed Jamjoom, live for us in Beirut, Lebanon. Thank you, Mohammed.

What are their leaders doing? What are our leaders doing? That's coming up, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BANFIELD: The hunt for those responsible for the killings of Americans in Benghazi in Libya is intensifying and, right now, two U.S. Navy destroyers that are equipped with guided cruise missiles, Tomahawks, are on their way, heading to a position off of the coast of Libya.

Also on the way, unmanned surveillance drones and an elite Marine unit has just arrived in country.

CNN's Barbara Starr has been following the military response to all of this.

Barbara, for starters, there is such a thing as a military response that looks offensive and there is a military response that looks supportive. Can you clear up just exactly what this military response is supposed to be?

BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Well, Ashleigh, let's walk through the pieces of it.

First up, 50 U.S. Marines arrived yesterday. They are at the U.S. embassy in Tripoli in the capital, strictly to help reinforce security at the embassy, to provide extra guard force for the embassy installation, to assist in the evacuation of any American personnel that might have to leave the country, strictly there to help the embassy. They have no military mission out on the street.

The drones? The U.S. military and the U.S. government have actually been flying drones over Eastern Libya. That is now continuing, stepped up, perhaps, looking for precise targets, looking in Eastern Libya to collect intelligence on suspected al Qaeda sites, if you will, targets, people, encampments, areas, strongholds in Eastern Libya, east of Benghazi, known to shelter, very well known to shelter some of these militant groups.

What they want to do is be able to collect the intelligence and pin down who they believe is responsible for this attack. The intelligence will come from overhead imagery, from intercepts of communications and cell phone calls, all of the typical things that are very well known that the U.S. military and the U.S. intelligence community has done over the years in a variety of places.

They assemble that intelligence. If they can get a particular target that they believe is responsible for the attack, then the next step comes into play. Two ways of dealing with that target, either Libyan security forces get the intelligence handed to them and they go after it or the U.S. has these other options in place.

The ships are there as a precautionary move. The Tomahawks are in- range, should the President want to use them. There are also drones that can fly in, carrying missiles, should the President want to use those.

All of the options on the table, as they say.

BANFIELD: I'm glad you mentioned the drones that can carry missiles. They are unmanned drones. We know that. But they can also be armed with lots of ordnance, so in this respect, do we know if there ones are armed, just in case, or are they truly intelligence-gathering devices?

STARR: At -- you know, at the moment, we are told by senior officials that -- U.S. officials -- that this is strictly a reconnaissance mission, unarmed, looking for intelligence and looking to gather up all the data and information they can, so that they can assemble a case as to who might have been responsible for this Benghazi attack.

That's where it stands right now. Once they get the intelligence in place, once they get the target, if they can get one, then they consider what all these different options are about what they want to do about it.

BANFIELD: All right, Barbara Starr, thank you for monitoring that at the Pentagon for us today. Good to see you.

By the way, President Obama and the newly elected president of Libya have together decided to agree to work together closely on the investigation Barbara alluded to on how to find the people who did this, who murdered our four American diplomatic representatives.

And President Obama has also reaffirmed his support for the democratic transition in Libya. Very important because that's a cause that Ambassador Stevens deeply believed in.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) BANFIELD: Throughout the Middle East today, a bit of the same story in different cities as outraged protesters converge on U.S. embassy compounds and consulates.

In Egypt, the demonstrators there turned to Molotov cocktails and threw them. They also pushed through barbed wire fencing and they set fire to vehicles that were parked outside of our embassy in Cairo. You can see the riot police, also. It's difficult to spot them, but they're there. They responded with warning shots and all that tear gas that you're looking at. This is their effort to keep hundreds of protesters, some of them violent, at bay. Several people have been hurt in this chaos.

And joining us now, live on the phone -- no, live, full-on, from Cairo, Ian Lee. So, Ian, get me up to speed now. I know that with our time difference that there has been at least some daytime. Have things abated? Have the police been able to get an edge on the protesters? What's the circumstance?

IAN LEE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, if you can see behind me, the protesters are down there in the hundreds and the numbers have actually started to grow as night has approached. It's started -- it's growing darker.

And, just to put this in perspective, this protest started midnight, yesterday, Egypt time. The thing has been running for almost about 18 hours now, non-stop clashes between the police and the protesters, tear gas, rocks, Molotov cocktails.

As you mentioned, they burnt out some police vehicles and it doesn't look like it's about to die down. It actually looks like it may be growing a bit. You watch these two groups, the police and the protesters, ebb and flow, really a stalemate, neither side gaining much ground on the other.

BANFIELD: Ian, I want to read a comment from the Egyptian president, Mohammed Morsi, because I believe that much of the focus has been on whether this man would condemn the violent actions and the protesters' damage of the embassy, the breaching of our compound.

We waited and waited and we waited and, finally, we got this, but it comes in the form of a video message that was broadcast by Nile TV.

It said this. "On my behalf and on behalf of the entire Egyptian people, I'd like to issue my sincere condolences and my deepest concerns" -- and here's what's important -- "I strongly condemn the killing of the American ambassador in Benghazi and those who were with him."

Finally, Ian Lee, a condemnation of the killings in Libya and the violence, but it has taken so long and look at the mess behind you. Why did it take this long?

LEE: Well, that's what a lot of people are wondering. The foreign ministry and the prime minister came out fairly soon after the incident at the embassy here in Cairo to condemn the breach. Yesterday, President Mohammed Morsi released a message on Facebook, but he did not condemn those who broke into the embassy and, today, we're getting that condemnation and that message. It is really, for a lot of people, I know, wondering why it took him so long to come out to condemn something that just seemed so obvious for many.

A breaching of any embassy, any diplomatic mission is something that you should prevent and, so, a lot of people were wondering, why did it take so long to come out to condemn this? But he has finally condemned it ...

BANFIELD: And, Ian, he's finally done it, but have they heard him? I'm looking at the mess behind you. Have they even heard the message and do they care?

LEE: Well, you know, I was down there earlier and the group that makes up the protesters right now is a different group than we saw Tuesday night in the embassy raid.

This group right now is more disenfranchised youth. We've seen this kind of crowd over the course of the last year-and-a-half after the revolution and these are youth that seem to enjoy battling it out with the police. Tuesday night, we saw a lot more ultra-conservative Islamists. Today, we're not seeing those people down in the square.

BANFIELD: It's remarkable. There is such a high percentage of unemployed youth in many of these countries where we see the volatility.

Ian Lee in Cairo for us, thank you.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BANFIELD: Today, we are saying goodbye to the first man ever to walk on the moon, the reluctant hero, as his family calls him, who shied away from the spotlight, Neil Armstrong.

His capsule communicator from Apollo XI, Charlie Duke, said that he was always a team player and I'm quoting Charlie now. He says, "Neil believed it was a U.S. accomplishment, not their accomplishment. He was one of the humblest men I ever met."

Even his biographer echoed those words. Have a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JAMES HANSEN, NEIL ARMSTRONG'S BIOGRAPHER: I think Neil felt that he knew that other astronauts could have made the landing.

The crew mission patch for XI, I think all three of the astronauts, but the commander, Armstrong, felt it was important that this was a national effort, this was a team effort, and to have the names of the astronauts was really, you know, it was not needed and it was not really the message.

In terms of deciding who was going be the first out between Aldrin and Armstrong, they both landed at the same time. I mean, that's the way Neil looked at it. He didn't really see why there was such an emphasis upon, you know, him being the first out.

NEIL ARMSTRONG, ASTRONAUT, FIRST MAN ON THE MOON: That's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.

HANSEN: There was some thinking about, well, which of these two men will best, you know, will best represent NASA, the country, humankind, as the years go by, and there was really a pretty conscious decision by senior management that Armstrong was kind of the new Lindbergh.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BANFIELD: The new Lindbergh and such an explorer.

Our John Zarrella joins me live now from Washington. You were at the memorial service today for Neil Armstrong, John. There was such historical significance to the tribute today. Get me up to speed on that.

JOHN ZARRELLA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yeah, you know, one of the things that you sit there, Ashleigh, and you see, wow, all of these men that we're seeing, we probably won't have an opportunity to see them all in the same room again.

Gene Cernan, who was the last man to walk on the moon, spoke haltingly and eloquently about his very, very good friend, Neil Armstrong, and talked about, how you saw in the piece, it was all about the team, and that is the way that Neil was, it was about team and never about him.

So, you know, I talked to Walt Cunningham, Apollo 7, and Walt Cunningham told me, just like you saw in the piece, a lot of people could have landed on the moon and done that, the first man on the moon. But only Neil, was the only one in their group, Cunningham said, who could have carried himself so well after the fact.

BANFIELD: Spiked no football. John Zarrella, thank you. Such a lucky assignment today.

ZARRELLA: Sure.

BANFIELD: And fascinating that Neil Armstrong will be buried at sea. Remarkable.

Also I want to let the viewers know while I thank John, that you can see the entire tribute to Neil Armstrong. go to nasa.gov and you can watch the whole thing. Quite lovely.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BANFIELD: "America's Choice 2012," and we are minutes away from a Mitt Romney campaign event in Fairfax, Virginia, and burning question of this hour is will the GOP presidential nominee keep up with these searing attacks on President Obama's anti-American reaction overseas or tamp it down in light of the political counterattacks or will he avoid the topic altogether and try to switch gears to the economy, say? We will know soon enough.

But in the meantime, Wolf Blitzer is weighing in from Washington.

Wolf, there has been quite a bit of volley of attacks going back and forth in the last 24 hours, and some of this has come within Mitt Romney's own party. He does not have a solid bloc behind him supporting what he said when he criticized the President and the administration's reaction to what is going on overseas.

WOLF BLITZER, HOST, "THE SITUATION ROOM": He has always had a certain number of Republicans as you well know, a lot of the conservatives and the Tea Party activists who were always skeptical and dramatically reassured by Paul Ryan being added to the ticket which helped, but always an element that never really loved Mitt Romney to begin with.

Let me play for you two clips, the reaction to Mitt Romney's tough statement against the administration's policy generally what is going on. First, the President of the United States, and then John Kerry, a supporter of the President, the Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: There's a broader lesson to be learned here. Governor Romney seems to have a tendency to shoot first and aim later. As president one of the things that I have learned is that you cannot do that. You know, it is important for you to make sure that the statements that you make are backed up by the facts, and that you have thought through the ramifications before you make them.

SEN. JOHN KERRY, (D-MA), CHAIRMAN, FOREIGN RELATIONS COMMITTEE: To make those kinds of statements before you even know the facts, before families have been notified and before things have played out is really not just inexperienced, but it is irresponsible and callous and reckless. And I think that he ought to apologize. And I don't think that he knows what he is talking about, frankly. It is that simple.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: I don't think that, Ashleigh, Mitt Romney is going to apologize. Although I'll be curious and you will be curious, all of the viewers will be curious to see how he handles this diplomatic tight rope in the area of the moment. It is a very sensitive subject and one he has to deal with very gingerly.

BANFIELD: You know, there have been some voices that have been moderate urging that everybody needs to take a big step back, cool off on the rhetoric. Have a listen to this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. DAN COATS, (R-IN), INTELLIGENCE COMMITTEE MEMBER: Let's avoid the political statements right now and --

(CROSSTALK) UNIDENTIFIED CORRESPONDENT: Should that be true of Mitt Romney as well?

COATS: I think that we need to keep the political focus on the election separate from the possible implications of what goes to security and how to protect our citizens.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BANFIELD: That's Senator Dan Coats with the Intelligence Committee. And so one would think that, Wolf, people would listen to a Senator like that and what he has to say, and is he being heard?

BLITZER: I am sure he is being heard, because Dan Coats is an important Republican Senator from Indiana, and he has some influence out there.

But remember, we are really in the tail end of a presidential campaign. And it is very close no the battleground states, Florida, Virginia, Ohio, right now, and anything that comes up is going to be fodder for the political debate between the President and the governor in this particular case. So I 'm not surprised that there is a debate and how Romney handles it, and Obama handles it is going to be very important.

Normally, in a situation like this, foreign policy is not high on the agenda, but in this particular case, if violence spreads from Egypt and Yemen and elsewhere, and if there is a repeat -- and I hope there isn't, obviously -- of what happened in '79, when American diplomats were held hostage in Tehran, obviously, that would have an impact, and how it would play out, would depend upon how the candidates react to what is going on.

BANFIELD: And they were released on the day that President Reagan was inaugurated, and so incredibly political those 144 days.

Wolf Blitzer in Washington, thank you so much.

Wolf Blitzer will be back on his own show "THE SITUATION ROOM" starting at 4:00 p.m. Eastern/1:00 Pacific, right here on CNN.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BANFIELD: I want to get you to Chicago where the teachers strike is now in the fourth day, with 350,000 students just waiting to find out what their future is going to be, and not to mention the parents who really need them to go to school so they can get to work. Also, academic futures and the parents are not the only things on the line, because there are literally thousands and thousands of student athletes who are taking a major hit in the strike as well. We mentioned earlier this week that the strike is keeping the football players off of the field, and that can potentially keep some of them from going to college.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) DANTE CULBREATH, COACH: It is an eerie feeling right now, because I'm used to be out here at this time to working with the young men to motivate them to give them opportunities to go to college, and we are unable to do it.

CHRIS WELCH, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): One of the young men is standout offensive lineman, Kendall Moore. for him, and many of his peers, without a scholarship, he simply cannot at the end college.

KENDALL MOORE, HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL PLAYER: It is very important, because after college I want to start my career.

WELCH: Without the video of one or two games to show recruiters can make or break a division II or II prospect's chances. The junior varsity team has already missed one varsity game. And if the strike goes past Thursday, the varsity game this week is out, too.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BANFIELD: So a new development. The Reverend Jesse Jackson has offered his services to try to mediate this terrible impasse.

In the interim, Chris Welch joins me live from Chicago. And I want to ask you about the football story, not just the kids are going to miss practices and games, but they are also doing their own kinds practices, and that is may be dangerous for them. Where does that stand?

WELCH: That's right. They are having to go to the practice unsupervised and any of the coaches or teachers are not allowed to work with the students during the strike. Everything is student-led. Some folks would say, this is no worse than a pickup game of football or basketball anywhere on the south side of Chicago, but that said, it is the south side of Chicago. The other factors of the story is parents are worried about their kids being out of school in general at all. so the fact that they have free time has folks worried, because this is an area of Chicago that, as you know, this year, they have seen quite a lot of violence and shootings. And the murder rate has really gone up, so it is really a concern for parents.

BANFIELD: Day four, and they're still at it. Chris Welch, thank you very much.

When a deal is met reached in the strike, there is another big hurdle for the parents and schools. The school board calls it excess of seat capacity, and parents know it as school closings. Up to 100 schools could be affected by this. Make sure you keep up with the latest and other education issues making news. We have a terrific blog called Schools of Thought at CNN.com/education. Take a look.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BANFIELD: We return to the violent protests in Egypt, Yemen and there are protests because of a crude film made by a man allegedly by Sam Bacile, but there is not much out there about this mysterious filmmaker. However, a member of the crew has contacted CNN and told us that the producer's name that was listed on the actual paperwork filed with the Screen Actor's Gild is actually Abunub Bacilli, not Sam Bacile.

Here's what we know so far. The man who calls himself Sam Bacile claims to be a 52-year-old Israeli-American, but there are no records to show he is registered in Hollywood. A crew member believes he is a Coptic Christian. Israel foreign officials tell us there is no record of a man named Sam Bacile holding Israeli citizenship. That is what we do know.

We know that the film was shot in the United States. And one of the actresses who took part in it is very upset. She asked not to be named, and she told our Miguel Marquez that she was duped and she was never told what this movie was really about.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MIGUEL MARQUEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): She responded to a generic casting call for an action adventure film set 2,000 years ago, a low-budget film called "Desert Warrior."

(on camera): You find yourself in the middle of an international --

(CROSSTALK)

UNIDENTIFIED ACTRESS: Nightmare, that is what I find myself in the middle of, of a world I have prayed for -- for God to help. Killing is never right.

MARQUEZ: In her portion of the script, the Prophet Mohammad character was called George, who was referred to during filming as either Master George or Father Master, but never Mohammad. She was paid $500 for a days work, but she says that the writer/producer, Sam Bacile, lied about the film's contact.

UNIDENTIFIED ACTRESS: I think it is very unfair. I am sorry for that man and the family and everybody else that was hurt.

MARQUEZ: she even phoned Bacile, saying that he remains defiant.

UNIDENTIFIED ACTRESS: He said, tell the media that I am tired of the Muslim people killing innocent people.

MARQUEZ: Steve Klein consulted on the film.

STEVE KLEIN, FILM CONSULTANT: The motivation to spark some change within Islam.

Only a fraction of the fraction of these very dangerous men. If we could somehow open up the eyes.

MARQUEZ: The actress doesn't want her name used because her family is fearful, but she isn't.

(on camera): What's your overriding emotion right now? Is it fear, is it anger? UNIDENTIFIED ACTRESS: Anger and hurt. I'm not afraid. My husband is afraid, for me. But I'm not. I'm pretty pissed.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BANFIELD: Miguel Marquez is joining me live from Los Angeles. Miguel, this actress has intimated that she wants to sue this producer, whether his name is Sam or Abunub Bacile. Does she know where he is?

MARQUEZ: She does. She has his phone number. She told to him yesterday. He told her in the conversation that he's sticking by his guns, that this was his vision for the film. He told her, don't worry, it's not your fault, it's my fault, Sam Bacile. You tell the media that I'm doing it because I was frustrated with the way fanatical Muslims continue Americans abroad.

I can tell you, we are trying to track down exactly who this guy is. This is some of the paperwork connected to some of the names we know Sam Bacile goes under but it is a long paper trail with a very checkered past. and this is a guy who clearly at this point does not want to be known. Certainly, the FBI today announcing that they are investigating all aspects of this case and that may include Sam Bacile himself, perhaps not for making of the movie but other past deeds that he may have done -- Ashleigh?

BANFIELD: It's just the remarkable danger that he's put these people in. To suggest for a moment it's my fault, don't worry about it, you can tell that to the millions of people who aren't even listening to their own leaders when their leaders tell them to tamp down the violence.

Miguel Marquez, good work and thank you.

We'll keep you updated as well as we continue to dig. Miguel is busy tracking down all the paperwork. When we find out more about this person, we'll bring you the very latest. And you can also keep track of it by logging on to CNN.com.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BANFIELD: I want to take you live to Fairfax, Virginia, where Governor Romney is now speaking to a crowd at a campaign event in that city. Of course, we were waiting to find out if he would address these criticisms and the volleys of criticisms back and forth between him and the Obama administration about the United States' reaction to the violence we're seeing overseas and the killing of our U.S. ambassador and three others. Let's listen.

MITT ROMNEY, (R) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I want you to know things are going to get a lot better but I also recognize that we're in mourning. We've lost four of our diplomats across the world. We're thinking about their families and those they have left behind. What a tragedy to lose such a wonderful --

(SHOUTING) ROMNEY: -- wonderful people that have been so wonderful and appreciate their service for the country.

(CHANTING)

ROMNEY: And so I would offer a moment of silence, but one gentleman doesn't want to be silent, so we're going to keep on going.

(CHANTING)

ROMNEY: Let me talk about something else and that is today we saw the headlines in "USA Today." They said that the median income in America has dropped by $4,300 per family. So these are -- these are tough times for American families that have work and then you have 23 million people who are out of work or stopped looking for work or underemployed. These are tough times. But you know what, your optimism is my optimism. America is coming back. We're going to make sure that we have the jobs we need. America is going to remain strong and we're going to make sure that we remain the hope of the earth.

(CHEERING)

ROMNEY: Now, a strong America is essential to the world. It's essential to us and to our future, but also to the world. I was in Poland a few weeks ago and I met with Lech Walesa, a world hero --

(APPLAUSE)

ROMNEY: -- and he saw me come in and through an interpreter he said, you must be tired, you've come from across the ocean. He said, you sit, I talk, you listen.

(LAUGHTER)

Abrupt and to the point. And he said this time and time again, he said, the world needs American leadership. Where's American leadership? We need a strong America. Where's American leadership? And I intend to lead and have an America that's strong, that helps lead the world.

(APPLAUSE)

ROMNEY: As we -- as we watch the world today, sometimes it seems that we're at the mercy of events instead of shaping events, and a strong America is essential to shape events. And a strong America, by the way, depends on a strong military. We have to have a military -- we have to have a military second to none and that's so strong no one would ever think of testing it. This president has done something I find very hard to understand. Ever since FDR, we've had the capacity to be engaged in two conflicts at once. And he said, no, we're going to cut that back to only one conflict. And so he's put in place cuts of almost a trillion dollars. But with his budget cuts and the sequestration cuts, we'll have almost a trillion dollars of cuts to our military. If I'm President of the United States, we will restore our military commitment and keep America the strongest military in the world. (APPLAUSE)

ROMNEY: The world needs American leadership. The Middle East needs American leadership and I intend to be a president that provides the leadership that Americas respects and keep us admired throughout the world.

(APPLAUSE)

ROMNEY: Now, for us to have a strong military, of course, you have to have a strong economy. And people have to be able to get good jobs. And our veterans coming home deserve those good jobs. So I would have expected that with 23 million Americans out of work or having stopped looking for work or underemployed, I would have expected that when the President gave his address at the convention a couple weeks ago that he would have spoken about the unemployed, but he didn't.

I expected him to talk about a plan to get people back to work. Oh, he talks about where he wants to get, but not how to get there. And we watched him for the last four years. And what he has done has not helped. It has led to a $4300 decline in median income. It's led to unemployment being above 8 percent for 43 straight months. It's led to a larger and larger gap between the wealthier and the rest of America. His policies have not worked. How in the world he can go before a Democrat convention and speak to the nation and offer nothing but more of the same is beyond me.

We want real change. I'm going to bring real change and get America working again.

(APPLAUSE)

ROMNEY: I listened. I looked at that -- at the text of his speech at the convention. I expected there to be some new ideas in there. There are no new ideas. He's got -- he's out of ideas. He's out of excuses. And we're going to make sure, in November, you put him out of office.

(APPLAUSE)