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Candidates Gear Up for Debates; Early Voting Begins in Iowa
Aired September 29, 2012 - 16:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome back to the CNN NEWSROOM, I'm Fredricka Whitfield.
President Obama and Mitt Romney are about to come face to face in their first presidential debate, it's just four days away. Senator John Kerry is helping the president sharpen his debate skills by filling in as Mitt Romney in mock debate. Mitt Romney on the other hand is using Senator Rob Portman as his sparring partner.
CNN political editor Paul Steinhauser is in the battleground state of New Hampshire.
PAUL STEINHAUSER, CNN POLITICAL EDITOR: Hey, Fred, as running mate Paul Ryan makes the rounds in the campaign trail both here in New Hampshire and in Ohio, his boss, Mitt Romney, guess what? He is hunkering down today. He is getting ready for the debate on Wednesday for the first presidential showdown between him and President Barack Obama. Romney is spending a lot of this weekend in debate preparations. The same thing for the president, he is off the campaign trail today, tomorrow he does go out to Nevada. But basically he is spending a lot of this weekend, we believe, behind closed doors getting ready.
Meanwhile, both campaigns are playing the expectations game, trying to lower the bar for their candidates even the candidates themselves are doing it. Take a listen to Mitt Romney recently on the campaign trail.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MITT ROMNEY (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I mean he is the president of the United States. He is a very effective speaker.
He's a very eloquent speaker and so I am sure in the debates, as last time in his debates with Senator McCain, he will be very eloquent.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
STEINHAUSER: And it's not only Mitt Romney and his campaign that are playing that game so is the Obama campaign.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
STEPHANIE CUTTER, DEPUTY CAMPAIGN MANAGER FOR BARACK OBAMA: What history tells us, that challengers normally win the first debate just by the fact that they're standing on the stage with the president. That elevates them. And they normally come into these things as the underdog, so we're coming into this debate very realistic that Mitt Romney is likely to win if he plays the cards right.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
STEINHAUSER: Stephanie Cutter making those comments on "Piers Morgan." Now the idea here is pretty simple, try to bring down your candidate, lower the bar so if your candidate does better, it is considered a big victory on debate night. How much are Americans really paying attention to that? I don't know. What they really want to hear on Wednesday night is what the candidates will do to make the country better. Fred.
WHITFIELD: All right. Thank you so much, Paul Steinhauser.
President Barack Obama and Mitt Romney coming face-to-face as American voters weigh in, on picking their choice on the first presidential debate, starting Wednesday night, October 3rd. Watch it live at 7:00 Eastern time on CNN and on CNN.com.
All right. Thirty eight days from the presidential election, but already millions of Americans have had their say. In fact, nearly half of all voters are expected to take advantage of early voting laws, as John King reports in the battleground state of Iowa. A favorite may already be emerging.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And we thank you ever so much for coming.
JOHN KING, CNN CHIEF NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Mind made up and ballots cast, 40 days early. This opening day line is in Iowa City.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Here we go.
KING: This one in Des Moines.
Iowa's early voting, part of an important and growing national trend. Thirty five states now allow some form of early in person voting, including seven of the nine presidential battlegrounds, CNN ranks as toss-ups.
Here in Iowa, the early numbers and early turnout is just a big Obama head-start. So far, a nearly 5-1 democratic advantage statewide in requesting early mail-in ballots.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I was wondering, Mary, if the president will have your support this November. Awesome.
KING: When it comes to early in-person voting, there is added Obama campaign emphasis in getting younger voters in the bank early.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You may know that in-person early voting starts tomorrow in Iowa. So basically for us here at the campaign, every day is going to be election day. UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes, we can.
KING: Johnson County, home to the University of Iowa, led the state four years ago when 55 percent of its ballots were cast early.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The entire world is watching us.
KING: As president of the university democrats? Katherine Valde's job is getting her fellow students to vote now.
(on camera): Fair to say, not the most reliable if you just wait for one day.
KATHERINE VALDE, PRESIDENT, UNIVERSITY OF IOWA DEMOCRATS: Yes, I mean, things can come up. You can have an exam, you can wait until election day and realize you don't know where your precinct is, with early voting, there's just 40 more chances to catch people.
KING (voice-over): (INAUDIBLE) Republican strategist Steve Grubbs concedes President Obama is ahead, as September winds down and early voting opens.
STEVE GRUBBS, FMR. IOWA REPUBLICAN PARTY CHAIRMAN: Anybody that knows football, knows that the first quarter is when the action happens. So October will be big, and if Romney has a good start for the month, we'll be fine.
KING: But Grubbs, once again, is making much of the early rush.
GRUBBS: In 2010, the democrats had an edge in the early voting, as well. I can't tell you exactly what the edge was it was. It was a significant edge and the Republicans still swept the state. It's a difference of strategy, you put your money in the last three weeks or you put it in the early voting.
KING: The GOP sent its first early vote mailing just this week.
KAREN ZMOOS, ROMNEY VOLUNTEER: Can Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan count on your support this November election? Excellent. And would you be interested in voting early this election?
KING: Karen Zmoos credited with making the Iowa GOP's one millionth voter call this cycle.
ZMOOS: I'm calling with three very brief question, sir, about issues that matter to Iowa.
KING: And she's doing her part now as Republicans play early voting catch-up.
ZMOOS: You know, we're working hard here, we're rolling up our sleeves, putting our boots on and we're going at it. So we still have time.
KING: John King, CNN, Iowa City, Iowa.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: And now to Pennsylvania, where six teenage girls have been charged as adults in the vicious beating of a mentally disabled woman. It happens on Tuesday near Philadelphia and it was caught on cell phone. The video was posted on Facebook. Police say the woman was beaten and stomped. And say the girls chased her inside in the building there. Beat her with a chair, a hose and their fists. The girls' ages ranged from 15 to 19 years old. Two of them are sisters, and here is how one mother reacted.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I never talked to my child, since she went to school yesterday. I said I have to talk to her.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What about your other daughter?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I don't know the story. I haven't talked to here since yesterday. Can you (INAUDIBLE) -
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: She apparently is the instigator if you look at the video.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: OK. Well I haven't seen the video and I haven't talked to my child. I am sorry for the things that happened but I have nothing else to say.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They have been charged with aggravated assault, and related charges, being held on $50,000 bail.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: The lawyer for one of the girls is speaking out on the case. He says his client, 16-year-old Anya Dennis is innocent.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ENRIQUE LATOISON, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: My client never made any physical contact with the victim in this case.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: She did not throw any punches?
LATOISON: No, she didn't throw any punches.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Or threw anything at her.
LATOISON: That's correct.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: The victim was taken to the hospital. Officials says she is being treated at an undisclosed location.
Today, 10 miles of one of the busiest freeways in America, closed. And people in Los Angeles are calling it carmageddon two. The last time the drivers fear a similar closure on Interstate 405 would cause a monster traffic jam, but it actually went smoothly, because most drivers actually stayed home trying to avoid the 405. Well, this weekend officials once again are asking people to stay off that interstate, stay away from it as best they can. It will reopen Monday.
It's a real-life Cinderella story. The victim of schoolyard bullying gets the last laugh when a school prank back fires.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
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Today, the beaches and gulf are open for everyone to enjoy and many areas are reporting their best tourism in years. We've shared what we've learned with governments and across the industry so we can all produce energy more safely. I want you to know, there's another commitment BP takes just as seriously -- our commitment to America.
BP supports nearly 250,000 jobs in communities across the country. We hired 3,000 people just last year. BP invests more in America than in any other country.
In fact, over the last five years, no other energy company has invested more in the U.S. than BP. We're working to fuel America for generations to come. Today, our commitment to the gulf, and to America, has never been stronger.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: All right, our legal guys are straight ahead. And they will tackle a case that will have all of us re-thinking when you post a photo on your Facebook or blog, or anything like that - Richard, where is this case going?
RICHARD HERMAN, CRIMINAL DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Well, poster, beware, Fred, you it out there on the internet, who owns it? Whose property is that picture? If someone misuses it, what are your rights? What can you do?
WHITFIELD: And Avery?
AVERY FRIEDMAN, CIVIL RIGHTS ATTORNEY: Well, isn't it amazing that an anti-gay group stole a kiss from a gay couple, or at least stole a picture of their kiss? The question is do we have copyright violations and personal infringement right? We'll have the answers for you and more coming up.
WHITFIELD: All right. And our legal guys, 90 seconds away.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) WHITFIELD: And we're talking about a case involving a gay couple. They take a beautiful picture with the Manhattan skyline behind them. They put it on their blog. And then somehow the picture gets lifted, superimposed with a whole different background, kind of like the Colorado landscape. And it is done allegedly by a group that has an anti-gay campaign. And these two young men here saying we're suing on the grounds of our privacy being violated, copyright infringement, and the list kind of goes on. Avery, do they have a solid case? What can you do? What can anyone do to kind of protect their image when you post it on Facebook, your blog, on the internet, period?
FRIEDMAN: Well, there is absolutely a rock-solid case. Look, the defendant in this case is a guy in northern Virginia who took wedding pictures of a couple in New Jersey, posing in New York, and used it for a political campaign in Colorado. If you can follow that. And the bottom line is, he never asked consent. He just appropriated the likeness. There is a copyright by the photographer, you know, this is what happens when you have extremism, Fredricka.
People do things that are inexplicable and I don't know how Mr. Delgadio who runs this organization in Northern Virginia is going to get away with it. The really strange thing is this group who is designated a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center. And the unusual thing is, it is the only hate group in the country that has at its head, a government official. This guy is a supervisor in Loudon County, Virginia. So the showdown is going to take place in federal court in Denver, and I think the plaintiffs are going to prevail on this case.
WHITFIELD: So Richard, what's at stake here? I mean if you think that the couple was pursuing, you know, the right to privacy being violated, a misuse of their photo, the photographer too is involved saying - you know, copyright infringement. To what extent does this couple, the photographer have to go to prove their case?
HERMAN: Yes, Fred, I think the only thing that's going to protect them is the fact that it was copyright protected. And I don't know how they chose to copyright protect this picture. Because I don't know if the law is crystal clear on this. If you take a picture and you post it on the internet and other people use that picture or do things to that picture, I don't know what protections you, as an individual, have. Once you put it out there into the mainstream. But here, there was an actual photographer -
FRIEDMAN: Yes, it is the photographer's copyright, not the individual's. They have an appropriations claim. But it is the photographer's copyright claim that I think is viable here.
WHITFIELD: OK. And we did reach out to the public advocate group that allegedly used this photo for their comment. And we did receive no response on that.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: All right. Don't forget, our legal guys are here with us every Saturday beginning at noon Eastern time to give us their take on the most intriguing legal cases of the day.
Secret tapes were allegedly taken by the Pope's former butler. The centerpiece of his trial is starting today in Rome. How it damage potentially the Vatican?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This is an eco brick. This is a container and this is where you stuff all of the wrappers, all of the plastic bags, everything whether synthetic or inorganic trash. Just put the lid and then you have an eco brick ready for construction.
I'm Susanna (INAUDIBLE). I'm the founder of (INAUDIBLE).
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: All right. Now let's check some international stories this hour.
Pope Benedict's former butler is on trial today at the Vatican. He is accused of stealing hundreds of secret pages from the pontiff's personal apartment and leaking them to an Italian journalist. We have a live report on the trial coming up in the next half hour.
And the Czech president is recovering from a bizarre attack. He was inaugurating a new bridge when a man armed with a fake gun fired plastic pellets at him. He was taken to the hospital with bruises but no serious injuries. The suspect is in custody.
A typhoon is roaring over the Japanese island of Okinawa. It's the latest in a string of typhoons to slam the are. The storm is expected to impact the east coast of mainland Japan, before making landfall there tomorrow.
When Whitney Crop was nominated for becoming homecoming court by her classmates, she was thrilled. But her excitement soon turned embarrassment when she realized she was a victim of a cruel prank. Now, this Michigan teen is turning the tables on her bullies. Here is CNN's Chris Welch.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CHRIS WELCH, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A superstar practically overnight. 16-year-old Whitney Kropp is a role model for anybody who has ever been bullied.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We love you, Whitney.
WELCH: But this sophomore's journey to stardom was no fairy tale. When her peers picked her for homecoming court as a joke, she had thoughts of suicide.
WHITNEY KROPP, ON HOMECOMING COURT: Wow, I feel like trash. I feel like I'm a little thing that no one really cares about. WELCH: At her sister's urging, she decided to keep her title on the court.
(on camera): If I were in your position, that would be really hard to do.
KROPP: It is really hard to do right now, because after I thought of driving out of the homecoming court, I am not this joke that everyone thinks I am. I will just prove all these kids wrong.
WELCH: Well, that is just exactly what she did, and since then, she has been swamped with support, from the local hair salon that gave her a new do.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: To find out that it was all just a joke, it just - it really touched me.
WELCH: To the Facebook page with over 100,000 fans.
BERNICE KROPP, WHITNEY'S MOM: It is so cool to see, you know, e-mails that she's getting or we're getting or she is getting, from parents and other students from all over the place, telling their stories and how it helped them and it touched them. And, you know, my daughter is out there as an inspiration to a lot of people. And that is a really cool thing.
See, you're like Cinderella, mistreated, unappreciated, much abused, but after much support you're going to have a great time at the ball.
KROPP: You know, I thought no one cares about me. And I thought, you know, not even my own brother and sister care, but they're proving me they do care. The world is proving that they - well not really care about me but they care about the situation.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Basketball is softball.
WELCH (on camera): Folks from all over the state are here tonight. In fact, this group of girls traveled more than an hour away - you left your own football game to come and support Whitney, why?
DONNA GEORGIEFF, SUPPORTS WHITNEY KROPP: We just wanted to show Whitney that our entire student body is completely and 100 percent behind her.
WELCH (voice-over): From being bullied, to the bully pulpit. She is using her new found fame to send a message.
KROPP: If the kids are bullying you, do not let them bring you down, stand up for what you believe in. And go with your heart and go with your gut. That is what I did. And look at me now. I am just as happy as can be.
WELCH: Whitney says she will likely face bullies again in her future, but she says when that happens she will be able to confront them with her head held high, and with a new confidence.
Reporting from West Branch, Michigan, Chris Welch, CNN.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: And the young player faced one pitch in the major league, a fastball that almost ended his career and could have ended his life. Now he has been given a second chance at that.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: It was his best day and his worst day, all at once. Adam Greenberg was up at bat for the first time in the majors, playing for the Chicago Cubs back in July of 2005. A fastball, 92 miles an hour, hit him straight in the head. You can see right there the injuries he sustained ended his dream of playing in the majors, until now. The Marlins team is giving him a shot next week at bat, and he got a lot of help in this quest from a self-described Cubs fanatic, Matt Liston, I talked to both of them.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ADAM GREENBERG, FORMER CHICAGO CUBS PLAYER: It is a chance to realize my dream as I had my whole life as a child wanting to play major league baseball. And obviously, what happened several years ago did, and the dream was kind of shattered. And I didn't really get to enjoy being a major leaguer. So obviously with the help of Matt Liston and this One-At-Bat campaign, you know, he has enabled me to kind of get back and now truly realize the dream. And honestly just saying, I'm soaking up the dream and loving every second of it.
WHITFIELD (on camera): That's fantastic. So you know, Matt, you all became tight now but you didn't know him from Adam, so to speak, but you were a fan. You got this campaign going, why?
MATT LISTON, ONE-AT-BAT CAMPAIGN FOUNDER: Yes, you know, I remember Adam's first at-bat. I am a Chicago Cubs fanatic, and I remember the day he played that game in 2005, July 9th, I thought was about to see the centerfielder of our future. And I remember when he got hit in the head, it was devastating. And I remember watching the games after that, thinking where is Adam? When will Adam get to play? And he never got called up again. he never played again for the Chicago Cubs.
And so that was always burning in my brain. And then I would always check in to see what Adam was up to on line, and he still didn't get the call to come up. And then right before this season started I was actually watching the movie "Field of Dreams" with my wife. I couldn't believe she never watched it before.
Anyway, so we were watching it, and she said she mentioned the character in there, Moonlight Graham, Adam is always compared to Moonlight Graham, and she said man I feel sorry for that Moonlight Graham character. And I said Moonlight Graham doesn't have anything on this guy, on Adam Greenberg, and so I started telling her the story of Adam Greenberg. And then I thought wow, he is only 28, 29 years old. We can't let this moment pass, this window of opportunity. WHITFIELD: I wonder, Adam, how will you be at bat, Marlins, Tuesday, and not have tears in your eyes. I mean, how will you be able to concentrate on that moment? Will you be thinking about what happened years ago? Will you be thinking about, you know, your fitness and training and readiness. Can you tell me what you might be feeling?
GREENBERG: Yes, here is the one thing that I want to make very clear. This campaign, and this At-Bat is a success already. So the result of what happens on Tuesday, it is one at-bat. But obviously it is resonating with so many people, showing the power of the human spirit and the power of perseverance, and just staying positive and not letting yourself stay down but you can't do it alone, you need support. And I didn't ask for it. Certainly, I didn't know Matt from a hole in the wall. He wasn't a friend of mine, a relative, an agent, nothing. He's just a genuinely nice guy and passionate baseball fan and passionate person. So all of those emotions, I'm getting to kind of relive and talk about it and share it right now.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: Oh, I love them. We'll be watching to see how Adam does. And of course, we wish them all the best.
All right. That's going to do it for me. I'm Fredricka Whitfield. The "CNN Newsroom" continues at the top of the hour. Susan Hendricks is in for Don Lemon. And she's looking at the question of should you spank your kids? Is it child abuse? Or do you think it leads to more disciplined children. Share your thoughts with Susan right now by tweeting her. And hear the discussion in the "CNN Newsroom" at the top of the hour.
Right now, keep it here for "SANJAY GUPTA, MD."
