Return to Transcripts main page

CNN Newsroom

Romney Tape Controversy; Severe Weather Threatens East Coast; Inmates Escape Mexican Prison

Aired September 18, 2012 - 14:00   ET

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

POPPY HARLOW, CNN ANCHOR: Listen to this. More than 130 Mexican inmates escaped from a prison near the U.S. border, right near Texas, and they're on the run right now. The escape happened in Piedras Negras, which is across the border from Eagle Pass, Texas. Police have blocked roads leading into the U.S. -- leading into the U.S. Authorities say the inmates escaped through a seven-foot-long tunnel that started inside of a prison workshop. Just like the movie. Then they cut through a chain-link fence and they took off. Pretty wild story.

Well, CNN NEWSROOM continues right now with my good friend Brooke Baldwin.

BROOKE BALDWIN, CNN ANCHOR: Poppy Harlow, lovely to see you in studio.

HARLOW: Good seeing you.

BALDWIN: Safe travels home.

HARLOW: Thank you.

BALDWIN: And good to see all of you. I'm Brooke Baldwin. A lot to get to here over the course of the next two hours including this.

No one's jumping ship. But as Mitt Romney arrived just a short time ago in Utah, several leading conservative thinkers are wringing their hands today as Mitt Romney's private remarks about American voters, he's writing off nearly half of the country, 47 percent to be precise, as self-described victims and dependents of the state. Let me quote some folks for you.

"Arrogant and stupid." That is the assessment of Mitt Romney's remarks by William Kristol, leading conservative thinker and founder of "The Weekly Standard." He's more from Bill Kristol. He goes on, quote, "Romney seems to have contempt not just for the Democrats who oppose him, but for tens of millions who intend to vote for him.

David Brooks, conservative voice of "The New York Times" wrote this op-ed this morning denouncing Romney's secretly taped musings as quote/unquote "country club fantasy."

So, just so we're all on the same page here, here is Mitt Romney secretly recorded. This was last May at a $50,000 a plate fundraiser in Boca Raton, Florida. Take a look. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MITT ROMNEY (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: There are 47 percent of the people who will vote for the president no matter what. All right. There are 47 percent who are with him, who are dependent upon government, who believe that they are victims, who believe the government has a responsibility to care for them, who believe that they are entitled to health care, to food, to housing, to you name it. But that's -- that's an entitlement. And the government should give it to them. And they will vote for this president no matter what.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: So the lefty magazine, "Mother Jones," posted that clip plus more of Romney's private remarks yesterday afternoon. Fast- forward to last evening. Romney appeared at a previously unscheduled news conference where he took three questions, all about the secret recording. He said his remarks were off the cuff. He conceded they were "inelegant," his word, but he did not back down from the thrust of what he said, which included the observation that he'd never convince this 47 percent to, quote, "take personal responsibility and care for their lives." Quote, "my job," said Romney, "is not to worry about those people." Here is White House Spokesman Jay Carney responding late this morning.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JAY CARNEY, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: When you're president of the United States, you are president of all the people, and not just the people who voted for you. You've heard the president say so many times, because he deeply believes it, that we're in this together, all of us.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: Want to bring in CNN's Jim Acosta. He's helping us cover the Romney campaign. He's live in Salt Lake City for me, where Romney has the first of two fundraisers today.

Question number one to you, Jim Acosta, does the Romney camp view, because of this story, are they in damage control mode?

JIM ACOSTA, CNN NATIONAL POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: I think that's safe to say, Brooke. We can report that Mitt Romney is at a fundraiser, or at least on his way to a fundraiser right now, and it's interesting to note, it might be one of the days most interesting ironies, that this fundraiser is open to cameras. They are allowing the press for the first time to bring a video camera into this fundraiser to record what Mitt Romney has to say. So we should get some kind of sense as to whether or not he's going to talk about this controversy in about an hour or two from now when we start getting a readout on what he says at that fundraiser.

But, yes, Brooke, I think it's safe to say, last night, when he held that hastily arranged news conference, they gave the press about 15 to 20 minutes advance notice of this news conference. A lot of the reporters did not make it to that press conference. Some of them were coming in from dinner or workouts and they're, you know, in shorts and flip-flops and that sort of thing. So this just goes to show you how fast moving all of this is happening right now.

And just a few moments ago, we got off the Romney campaign plane here in Salt Lake City. Kevin Madden, one of his top aides, came to the back of the plane to brief reporters on basically the day's developments and he declined to say whether or not Romney is watching these clips as they come out. As you mention, there is a clip that came out yesterday. We do know that Mitt Romney watched that video as he was receiving his first intelligence briefing at the FBI building in Los Angeles.

But then there was that "Mother Jones" video that came out overnight. We don't have a sense as to whether or not he's watched that video yet, but his campaign has said that the comments that he made in that "Mother Jones" video regarding Israel are consistent with what he has said before. And I asked Kevin Madden at one point, do you think that all of this is going to blow over? And, Brooke, his comment was, that depends on you guys, talking about us.

Brooke.

BALDWIN: I'm just curious because you clarified sort of one of his remarks. One thing he didn't touch on last night. Actually, let me just play part of this clip, then I'll ask you my question on the other side. But you mentioned this news conference kind of thrown together, members of the media in shorts and, you know, t-shirts. And this is where Romney added some context to those reporter remarks. Let me play this first.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MITT ROMNEY (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: You know, it's not elegantly stated. Let me put it that way. I'm speaking off the cuff in response to a question. And I'm sure I could state it more clearly and in a more effective way than I did in a setting like that. And so I'll -- I'm sure I'll point that out as time goes on. But we don't even have the question given the snippet there, nor the full response. And I hope the person who has the video would put out the full -- the full material.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: So in, you know, talking to folks in the back of the plane, I was just curious if he clarified at all his comments that he made about, you know, had his parents been Mexican, that perhaps his electability would be -- would be up. Has he clarified what he meant by that?

ACOSTA: He has not clarified. As a matter of fact, one of our political producers, Rachel Streitfeld, was in the room last night and tried to throw that question at Mitt Romney. He did not respond to that question. That is, you know, obviously they have not been able to respond to everything that was captured in that footage. But we should also note, you know, you just heard Mitt Romney there in that clip you just played say, he hopes, he wishes that the people who made this recording would put the full recording out there. We should report that "Mother Jones" has said that they are going to be putting out this full video sometime this afternoon. So we're going to get a sense at some point later today, Brooke, as to what was said, in its entirety, at that fundraiser in Florida. And also the questions as well. So we don't hear how the questions were asked. We're going to hear how the questions were asked. And we're going to hear how Mitt Romney responds. It should be pretty interesting to watch, Brooke.

BALDWIN: And here you and I were just yesterday talking, you were standing at the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce event where Mitt Romney was talking right around this time yesterday. So we'll follow up on those comments.

But let -- you know, just finally here, Jim, you know, when you talk about timing, and here we are, we're still counting 49 days until November 6th, the timing isn't great for the Romney campaign to have to explain these remarks that, you know, yes, they were made last May. But just as you were explaining yesterday, you know, the Romney team is sort of trying to reboot his campaign, are they not?

ACOSTA: That's right. I mean that's what they were saying yesterday morning, that they were sort of retooling his economic message and that was a big reason why they were having this speech out in Los Angeles. And obviously there's also the irony that he was reaching out to Hispanics the same day that a videotape was coming out showing him wishing that he were Latino because that might improve his political prospects.

I mean, I think that, you know, the big problem for Mitt Romney in all of this is that there are things for liberals to not like here, there are things for conservatives to not like here. Obviously if there are people who are perhaps in the middle and thinking about voting for Mitt Romney, but they're on some kind of government assistance, does that perhaps sway them in some way? Obviously there are people who voted for Mitt Romney who receive some sort of government assistance. And if you (INAUDIBLE) people who receive Social Security and Medicare into that 47 percent figure, and we've heard some conservatives say that, obviously there are going to be people who are going to say, wait a minute, people pay into Social Security and Medicare over the course of their lifetime, how does that make them moochers on the federal government?

And, you know, so that is the big problem for Mitt Romney. Because he spoke off the cuff, because he was sort of acting like a political analyst, if you will, he has a lot to explain for here. And I think that's why you're going to see Mitt Romney perhaps getting more press conferences as the days go on. We do know he's going to be doing an interview with one of our rival cable network later on this afternoon. Hint, hint, it's the one that he typically goes to when he finds himself in these situations. And so we're going to be hearing more from Mitt Romney talking about this as the hours go on, Brooke.

BALDWIN: That is correct. That's supposed to happen in about two hours from now. Jim Acosta for us in Salt Lake City. Jim, if you hear any more clarification, obviously we'll pop you back on camera. Jim brought up a great point with that 47 percent number. We're working the numbers here at CNN. We're going to fact check that number for you a little later in the show. Is that an accurate number?

Also, we'll be talking to a Republican strategist, a consultant, talking about, if anything, what Romney needs to do to recover from this. So that is coming up.

But let's talk weather. And specifically severe weather taking aim at the East Coast with the risk for tornadoes. Washington, D.C., Philadelphia and New York. Wow, that's a colorful map, Chad Myers.

CHAD MYERS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: All the way down even into Florida.

BALDWIN: Wow.

MYERS: I mean this is the entire East Coast. So let me tell you now, a five-minute F-1 tornado and a 75-mile-per-hour wind gust in Kansas and Oklahoma is just another Tuesday. But this is not just another Tuesday because of where it's going to be hitting. It's going to be hitting the big cities all up and down I-95. New York City, Washington, D.C., all the way down even into the Carolinas. We have big weather here. These big red boxes are already tornado watch boxes. I don't expect Kansas, Texas sized tornadoes. Maybe small ones. But if it's in a populated area, that's the rub, isn't it? Even an 85-mile- per-hour storm, like we saw in Queens the last couple of weeks, you know, that's a big story if it's in a city.

And so here's Washington, D.C. You have some wind gusts here coming through Culpeper right now heading into the D.C. metro area probably I'd say an hour, hour and 15 minutes. Northern Virginia, you'll get it first, obviously. Even to Scranton and up to Syracuse, watch boxes for the potential for tornadoes. And then I did mention all the way down to Florida. Brooke, we talked about this yesterday how the shuttle didn't get to fly because the weather was so bad.

BALDWIN: Right.

MYERS: It's not going anywhere today.

BALDWIN: Yes, you called it yesterday. You said not today, not tomorrow, perhaps Wednesday we'll be talking about Endeavour in L.A.

MYERS: Yes. Right.

BALDWIN: Chad Myers, thank you very much.

MYERS: You're welcome.

BALDWIN: And what a busy news day it is here for this Tuesday. Got a lot more to cover for you, including this.

More than 100 inmates are on the run after an escape near the U.S. border. And now there are suspicions this could have been an inside job. I'm Brooke Baldwin. The news is now. The race to save a U.S. ambassador.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ARWA DAMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): He got a code blue call. Patient arrested, needs resuscitation.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: CNN investigates what happened in Chris Stevens' final moments.

Plus, as one of America's biggest cities deals with violence, a teacher strike, Chicago's star basketball player breaks down.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: With all this stuff that's going on in this city.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: And 70,000 troops still in Afghanistan. CNN breaks down each candidate's position on the war's future.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: Pretty intense manhunt underway right now after 132 inmates escaped from a Mexican prison that borders the United States. The town is Piedras Negras, Mexico. If you don't know it, it's right there, right along the border with the U.S. Right across from Eagle Pass, Texas. We'll zoom in. you can kind of see where it is. And that, just geographically speaking, is obviously a huge concern.

Mexican authorities are blocking roads that lead into the U.S. as they search for these escapees. U.S. Customs and Border Patrol agents are also on alert. We have Nick Parker joining us live from Mexico City to talk about this. But we also have Tomas Herrera on the phone. He is the sheriff of Maverick County, Texas, just on the other side of the border from Piedras Negras.

So welcome to both of you.

Nick, I want to begin with you, because we know the local police and the feds, they're looking for all these guys, 132 of them. The prison they broke out of is considered minimum security. So what really is the threat here?

NICK PARKER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, it is -- the name of the prison is a social integration center. But don't let that title fool you. That's actually a term that's applied to most prisons in Mexico, except prisons that are extremely high security. So it's a fairly significant prison.

And if you take a look at the numbers of the people that actually escaped, of the 132 escapees, 87 of them have been charged or were being held on federal crimes, which are actually obviously serious crimes. And if you look at the authorities, their reaction, the government here has sent in a unit of special forces last night, which is joining the marines and the army and the police, that have fanned out over the area to try and -- to try and track them down. We're expecting a report actually from the interior ministry in the next hour or so of an update on that. But they're taking it very seriously.

BALDWIN: Yes, clearly, special forces, army, police. You know, also, Nick, when you read about the details, because these guys, they crept through a one by one through the seven foot-long tunnel, cut through a fence, crossed an open lot, not a single one of these 132 inmates got caught. Is anyone inside the prison in trouble over this?

PARKER: Well, the short answer is yes. Authorities were alerted to this break yesterday afternoon around 3:25 or so. When they got to the prison, they were told by the prison director that 132 people had escaped. He told them that morning they had done a roll call and there had been full attendance present at that time. Subsequently, the prison director has been held in custody by authorities, along with two other prison officials. So certainly they're going to be investigating that particular angle.

And it's not obviously the first time that we've seen this kind of mass prison break during the administration of President Calderon. Only in 2010, in the city of Nuevo Laredo, which is a border town as well, we saw 151 prisoners escape. And in that case, 41 prison guards were charged for aiding and abetting.

BALDWIN: OK, Nick, thank you.

Let me just bring in Sheriff Herrera.

And, sheriff, just off the top here, are you nervous? Are the people in the community?

TOMAS HERRERA, MAVERICK COUNTY, TEXAS, SHERIFF: Well, kind of, but we'll survive. We've got this border pretty well secured. Tight security on our border here in Maverick County. We have approximately 80 some odd miles of border that borders the United States and Mexico. Of course, we're working together with border patrol, DEA, and all of the local state and federal law enforcement agencies. We patrol the whole area of the county last night and all through the day and so far, (INAUDIBLE) minutes ago, we have not had any report from our citizens out there reporting any activities during the night and the day. So I guess they're all staying on the other side. I was kind of looking forward for maybe if there were some U.S. citizens that would try to get into the U.S. side to get out of Mexico, but apparently that had not been the case.

I remember several years ago we had an incident where they had an escapee of a local -- of a jail here (INAUDIBLE) inside the city and there were two citizens that were apprehended as they crossed the (INAUDIBLE) into the United States by border patrol agents and Maverick County Sheriff's Office.

BALDWIN: OK, sheriff, let me just jump in, because, you know, if I lived in Maverick County, I'd be wondering, my goodness, should I be even opening my door to a stranger really right now because you never know. You say no one's come over across the border. But let me just play you some sound. This is -- this is what one of our affiliates in your neck of the woods reported on this morning. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

EMILY BAUCUM, REPORTER: Well, last night, around 9:00, we talked to a police officer here in Eagle Pass who told us that on the north end of the town, a woman got a knock on the door. She went and answered. And it was three men who asked her for clothes and water. So she obliged. Gave them what they wanted. And they said thank you and moved on. And at that point she realized it could be those inmates. So the police department is investigating that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: And that's a could be, sheriff, could be those inmates, could be anyone. But what are you telling people in Eagle Pass, Maverick County, what's your message to them?

HERRERA: Generally it's (INAUDIBLE) here somebody bringing -- knocking at the door at -- to be a lookout, precautions. Look through a window and if they see somebody they don't know, call the sheriff's office or the police department or border patrol right away. You know, don't open the doors to no one.

BALDWIN: Yes. OK. One hundred and thirty-two inmates out, 87, as Nick pointed out, 87 on federal crimes. Sheriff Tomas Herrera, thank you, and Nick Parker in Mexico City. My thanks to you both.

Now this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, with all this stuff that's going on.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: As hundreds of thousands of kids are still out of school in Chicago, the city's star basketball player breaks down. We'll play the video for you, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: If you watch enough basketball, you probably know who this guy is, Derrick Rose, the Chicago Bull league MVP last year, bouncing back from a serious knee injury. He was at this media event for his new sneakers. And instead of actually pitching his shoe, he poured out his soul about his city, stricken by teachers on strike, and shootings on the rise. He actually broke down, not over how bad it may seem in his hometown, but the how good life has been to him as a kid who grew up in one of Chicago's most violent neighborhoods, that being Englewood. And it all started when this interviewer asked him last week about being an inspiration to his fans. Watch.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DERRICK ROSE, BASKETBALL PLAYER, CHICAGO BULLS: It is truly a blessing. With all this stuff that's going on in this city, a kid from Englewood got something positive going on, that makes me feel so good. This shoe is great. All this is all -- this is great, but it's -- I can't explain this. I can't. Going through so much. And to have, like, true fans, that means a lot to me. And I know it means a lot to my family. Because we're not supposed to be here at all. But God made the way. This is truly unreal. And I'm just happy that I have true fans out there.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: Oh, how about that? Rose says he's been praying for Chicago students. He -- this is his tweet. Quote, "I don't like the fact that our kids are not in school. That's the only thing we have to save these kids."

Speaking of the school system in Chicago, it is day number seven of no school for Chicago students. And this afternoon, teachers union delegates, they're meeting to discuss a possible, possible settlement. School officials, they went back to court yesterday to ask a judge to declare the strike illegal and order the teachers back to work, but a judge won't even be able to hold the hearing on that until tomorrow. Chicago Teachers Union President Karen Lewis weighed in on the legal action.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KAREN LEWIS, PRESIDENT, CHICAGO TEACHERS UNION: Well, clearly it's not an illegal strike. If it were an illegal strike, that -- the judge -- CPS would have gone to see a judge over a week ago. So clearly it's not an illegal strike. I think this is just the frustration on the part of the mayor who was expecting students to go back to school on Monday. And that did not happen.

We are certainly not afraid of the mayor and we're not afraid of judges. We know that what we have done up to this point is to focus the energy of the city towards looking at what really makes schools better. We are very concerned about that and we want to be a part of that process.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: And the teachers strike is so, so large, it could affect national economic statistics, including the Labor Department's monthly jobs report. The strike's timing is so key because it coincides with the period in which the government collects all the data. And so September's report could look far worse if the strike in Chicago continues.

Question, how crazy is our news cycle? If you're watching something else last night instead of, say, the news, you pretty much missed the evolution of the now infamous Mitt Romney video, including Mitt Romney's impromptu news conference at 11:00 at night. Was that a good idea? That's next. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: Boy, the Mitt Romney fundraiser videos have the political world abuzz. Videos that less than 24 hours ago, no one knew a thing about.

I want to talk about all this with Howie Kurtz, he is the host of CNN's "RELIABLE SOURCES" and the Washington Bureau chief for "Newsweek" and the "Daily Beast."

Good to see you, Howard Kurtz. Let's begin with this, what is worse here, the specifics of what Romney said or the fact that he appears to be saying one thing out on the campaign trail and quite another in front of donors paying 50 grand for dinner?

HOWARD KURTZ, HOST, CNN'S "RELIABLE SOURCES": I would say the specifics of what Mitt Romney said about the 47 percent of Americans who he says feel entitled to government benefits and he views them as victims.

I would say that's the nitro-glycerine here. The fact that it emerged online from a video, surreptitiously recorded and doesn't match in tone what he's saying is the sort of extra spice for the story, but the -- his own words are the heart of the story.

BALDWIN: It is interesting to watch stories like this, you know, the genesis of the story, breaking sometime around yesterday afternoon and by 10:00 last night, Jim Acosta telling us, media, you know, reporters there in flip-flops and shorts finding out there is a news conference at 10:00 at night. Do you think it was a good idea to handle it that way --

KURTZ: You cut off my Skype.

BALDWIN: I can hear you. Can you hear me, Howie? Did we lose you, Howie Kurtz? OK. We're going to work on this. We have to get this conversation with Howard Kurtz. Let's work on the audio. Take a quick commercial break. Back in 2 minutes.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: Where were we? Yes, we're talking about the Mitt Romney fundraiser videos with Howard Kurtz, the host of CNN's "RELIABLE SOURCES," Washington Bureau chief of "Newsweek" and "Daily Beast."

Howie, apologies, technology can be a blessing and a curse. Back to my question, in terms of the PR of the story, breaks yesterday afternoon, 10:00 last night, Romney camp throws together this news conference. Do you think that was a good call to handle it at the late hour the way they did?

KURTZ: I think it would have been a good call wasn't quite as late in California had Mitt Romney not had a compelling message to try to do the standard political damage control, after this videotape was being played hour after hour after hour on cable news. Fortunately, all he had to say was inelegantly worded, but he didn't really take back the message and he looked a little uncomfortable. So it made sense to try to go get into the news cycle before the morning papers and before the morning television shows, but I don't think he quite pulled it off.

BALDWIN: OK, what about the timing of this Fox News interview. Because we've just learned he's talking to Fox in just about an hour and a half from now. What does he need to say?

KURTZ: Well, first of all, you know what is fascinating about this, Brooke, is that Fox News barely covered this story, on a couple of news shows, wasn't mentioned in primetime last night, but with Romney going to a place he perceives as a favorable environment.

He needs to either take ownership of the remarks and explain why he views, you know, half the country as dependent on the government, why -- he needs to neither defend his remarks in more elegant language, to use his term or he needs to say, you know what, I screwed up.

I didn't mean to put it that way and put it behind him. I don't think he can steer the middle course and make the story go away.

BALDWIN: You know, I tweeted this story out, Howie, last night and woke up to all kinds of remarks. One of which was, hang on, Brooke, let's go back to 2008 and President Obama, a private fundraiser then, right, talking in San Francisco.

He was talking about jobs lost and the economy and this video was recorded telling these donors essentially that rural Americans get bitter, these were the then senator's comments, and cling to their guns and religion. Tell me how this is different.

KURTZ: It is similar in that it is an embarrassment because it is words that were spoken behind closed doors that would not intended to be made public. In this case, this video was obtained by David Corn of Mother Jones, liberal publication.

I talked to Corn earlier today, he said the source, like his writings, his books, he doesn't think this was a hit job, but he does think that the person who secretly recorded Romney's remarks wanted this out.

So there was more of an ideological agenda at work here, but it is similar to Obama's 2008 embarrassment over guns and religion in that it is a story that the candidates in this case never intended to be public.

But you know what? You're talking to a room full of donors in an era of cell phone cameras, what are you thinking? You have to act like as a presidential candidate like every syllable you utter could be meant for public consumption.

BALDWIN: It just makes me think of the Duchess of Cambridge in a conversation I had yesterday, you can never be sure you're having a private moment in this day and age.

Something I thought about just here on the fly. Howard Kurtz, thank you very much, quite a story to chew on for Sunday. We'll look for you on CNN.

Also just into us here at CNN, this new development in the controversial voter ID law saga, in Pennsylvania that's next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: Just in to us here at CNN, Pennsylvania's highest court sending this controversial voter ID law back to the lower court. This, of course, is national debate over whether people should show identification before punching the buttons at the booth.

I want to go to CNN's Sarah Hoye. She's joining me on the phone from Philadelphia. So, Sarah, just fill me in.

SARAH HOYE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (via telephone): Good afternoon, Brooke. So what we're looking at is, like you said, this is a national story. This voter ID law is becoming problematic across the country.

But here in Pennsylvania, it went all the way to the Supreme Court and now they're kicking it back to the lower court because the problem is coming down to the fact that if people need photo ID to vote at the polls for the presidential election, how easy is it for them to get that ID?

So right now the Supreme Court is concerned about are they able to get it in a quick and -- a quick manner. They're sending it back to the lower court to make sure that what the law prescribes is being implemented in the proper way and to make sure there aren't any difficulties in getting that ID.

BALDWIN: So November 6th is 49 days away. Is this thing going to get resolved by then?

HOYE: Well, it looks like it. The supreme is saying the lower court has until October 2nd to come back with an answer. So I guess we'll wait and see.

BALDWIN: Sarah Hoye, thank you very much. Calling in from Philadelphia here on this voter ID law issue we have been talking a lot about voter ID recently.

And speaking of politics here, let's go back to the Mitt Romney videos because they have given us all really this inside look at big money in political fundraisers, the thousands upon thousands of dollars per plate on either political side, these dinners that bring in big, big money.

Dan Primack, senior editor at "Fortune" magazine. Dan, we brought you on because we understand that you just got in touch with the guy who hosted that Romney fundraiser, back in May, back in Boca Raton, Florida, who, you know, we're seeing on the videos. His name is Mark Leader. What did he tell you?

DAN PRIMACK, SENIOR EDITOR, FORTUNE.COM: Mark had a statement to "Fortune," which didn't really specifically address Romney's comments except that he said he's an old friend of Mitt Romney's, which is, you know, validated, that he believes all Americans and their families and parents want children to have a chance to succeed going forward.

Again, he didn't take it -- didn't talk 47 percent specifically or this issue about self-respect, which Romney referred to.

BALDWIN: Did he mention anything about cameras? I know this fundraiser was one from what I understand, one in which cameras are not allowed. Were they confiscated at the door? Do we know?

PRIMACK: He didn't mention anything about that. To my understanding I don't believe cameras were confiscated at the doors. Clearly whoever took this film got one in.

You know, my guess and it is really only a guess that there was a statement made and it was an implicit understanding, but I don't imagine this was for 40 or 50 people who Leader new personally. I can't imagine security frisking people as they came through the door.

BALDWIN: So then would he even have a clue who it was that got that camera in there and shot this video?

PRIMACK: I wouldn't think so. You know, unless he really remembered where everybody was sitting in the room and was able to really pinpoint, but it doesn't seem that he does. And I don't think he's got a great memory of some of the specifics of it.

Remember, we're talking about a fundraiser that was over four months ago. And one of three fund-raisers he's thrown plus a fundraiser for a larger group of people that he threw that same evening at a country club down the street, prior to the dinner.

BALDWIN: Mark Leader, who exactly is he? What is his background?

PRIMACK: He's a private equity executive. He's been doing it since about 1999. He runs a firm called "Sun Capital Partners," which really is a legitimately turn around firm. Their real job is to buy up smaller companies out of bankruptcy, try to fix them.

Before that he was actually an investment banker with Lehman Brothers and his relationship with Romney goes back to then. The story goes he and his partner while with Lehmann went to Bain to pitch them on some deal.

When they left, they looked at each other and said you know what? We want to do what they're doing. So they quit Lehman and formed their own firm.

BALDWIN: I know that in this particular fundraiser back in May, it was $50,000 per plate. So, you know, as a donor, if you're going in, you're paying quite a pretty penny to hear from a candidate or a nominee, just take me inside something like this. What exactly do you expect to hear? How do the candidates normally act? How candid are they?

PRIMACK: You know, I think they're normally probably maybe a little more candid than on the stump. You could even say it's a little bit different. There is a speech that gets given or comments that get given, but then there's give and take and Q and A.

And this 47 percent comment and the issue about Israel and Palestine, which also made some waves today that was in response to questions. So what you really expect if you're sitting at this fundraiser is the chance to ask some questions to maybe feel that you're going to get a personal interaction with the guy and when you get $50,000, you expect a certain amount of access.

There is a Q and A, and give and take, like a press conference, except that the candidate doesn't expect that the world is about to see his answers.

BALDWIN: Over and over and over again. Dan Primack, senior editor at "Fortune" magazine. Dan, thank you.

All right, to this 47 percent number, we have been talking about it, hearing it all day long. We're going to fact check this number for you.

The question is who in America does and doesn't pay taxes. Let's look at this. This is a photograph billed as the wealthiest portrait ever taken. Look closely. Recognize anyone? We'll tell you the story behind this photo.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: You may think you know what a big pile of money looks like, but I want to show you the real deal. Michael, let's show everyone the picture. Take a look at this.

You are looking at the latest cover of "Forbes" magazine. This, my friends, is what $126 billion looks like. This photo is being billed as probably quote/unquote, "the wealthiest portrait ever taken."

I won't name everyone. I know you recognize Oprah in the purple, Bill and Linda Gates, Warren Buffett is in there and you see Jon Bon sitting down.

Yes, this picture was taken back in June during the Forbes 400 selling on philanthropy. So these are affluent folks giving back too.

Now to a money story of a different sort here. Back to this 40 percent number, the 47 percent of Americans Mitt Romney spoke about during his secretly recorded remarks. Want to play some of that for you and I'll tell you where I'm going with this. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) MITT ROMNEY (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: There are 47 percent of the people who will vote for the president no matter what. There are 47 percent who are with him, who are dependent upon the government who believe they are victims, who believe the government has a responsibility to care for them, who believe they are entitled to health care, to food, to housing, you name it. It is an entitlement and the government should give it to them. And they will vote for this president no matter what.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: You heard that, victims, dependent. These comments catching all kinds of political heat today, but we wanted to know is he right with the number, 47 percent.

So we asked Christine Romans to crunch the numbers. Here is what she found -- Christine.

CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Brooke, how could it be that nearly half the country pays no taxes as Governor Mitt Romney claimed? If you're talking about federal income tax, he's right.

According to the Tax Policy Center, 46.4 percent of households pay no federal income tax. Who are these non-payers, it's mostly the elderly, the working poor, lower middle class families with children. There also a few thousand millionaire families who pay no taxes as well.

Of those not paying, nearly two-thirds pay a payroll tax, used to fund Social Security and Medicare. Now how many people are paying no federal income tax and no payroll tax? It is a much smaller 18 percent of households. Why?

Well, America's tax code written by Congress is 16 volumes of loopholes and tax breaks for having kids, buying a home, credits for low income earners and Bush era tax cuts for everyone. That's why many households end up with no tax bill at the end of the year or in some cases a payment from the government.

Of those who Romney said, quote, "believe they are entitled to health care, to food and housing," here are the numbers. Since the great recession, record numbers of Americans have fallen into this safety net, 26 percent are on Medicaid, 15 percent on food stamps.

Eight percent use WIC, that's food aid for women, infants and children, 4 percent get housing assistance and 2 percent have temporary aid for needy families. That's not counting unemployment benefits up to 99 weeks for the long term unemployed.

Sixty one million Americans receive Social Security checks, 49 million are enrolled in Medicare, the government run health insurance program. In all, census data shows nearly half of American families receive some sort of government benefit -- Brooke.

BALDWIN: There we have it. Christine Romans, thank you. Coming up next, CNN investigates the final moments of U.S. Ambassador Chris Stevens. Arwa Damon tracked down the very people who dragged him from the consulate in Libya.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: I want you to see this video that just surfaced. It was taken just moments after the attack on the U.S. Consulate in Benghazi, Libya. Just a warning, as you can imagine, it is pretty graphic stuff.

So within this video, you will see Libyans pulling an injured, but living person from the rubble. It turns out that person was Ambassador Chris Stevens who, as we all know now, later died.

These are some pretty incredible pictures and CNN's Arwa Damon walks us through scene by scene.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ARWA DAMON, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This is the first thing that he says he saw and filmed at the consulate compound. The cafeteria building up in flames. It was shortly before midnight, September 11th.

The smoke so thick, the compound's main house is barely visible and then this. After breaking through a window, men shout they found a body. Suddenly one of them cries out. He's alive. He's alive.

The crowd cheers. God is great. Rushing for a car, they realize it is a foreigner. I was filming the video and I thought it was an American, he recalls. But I thought it was a driver or a security guy, I never thought it was the ambassador.

It is clear from the rest of the video that the man they pulled out was Ambassador Christopher Stevens. He says he was alive, but barely. He had a pulse, and his eyes were moving, he says. His mouth was black from all the smoke.

Ten minutes later, rushed through the Benghazi streets in a civilian's car, the ambassador arrived at the hospital, but it was too late. The doctor tells us he got a code blue call. Patient arrested, needs resuscitation.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No pulse, no breathing.

DAMON: He too did not realize it was Stevens. The body was covered in soot, he says. I began resuscitation, but after 45 minutes, the patient gave no signs of life.

The Libyan government has vowed to bring those who attacked the consulate to justice. But nearly a week later, there are still contradictory accounts of what happened. The head of Libya's national congress says it was a pre-planned attack.

That the government has arrested dozens of people, among them members or sympathizers of al Qaeda, and a handful of foreigners. Other senior officials say the 50 were merely brought in for questioning, and there is no evidence of an existing plot.

What is undisputed is that over the past three months, attacks against western interests in Benghazi have increased as has the power of extremist groups. Something military officials say they warned the Americans about.

This young man says he arrived at the compound just as the fire fight began to subside. He says he didn't see any foreigners, just Libyans. Members of known extremist militias, bearded, carrying Russian made automatic machine guns, rocket propelled grenades and lighter weapons.

He was detained by the attackers and says he heard them talking about the assault, celebrating their success, and he says before he was released, they also talked about an attack on another location that night, a safe house where the American staff took shelter.

Perhaps we'll never know exactly what happened that night, but it is a far cry from the dreams of so many Libyans when they rose up last year. Arwa Damon, CNN, Benghazi, Libya.

(END VIDEOTAPE)