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Shootings in Suburban Detroit; Armstrong's Fall From Grace; Obama, Romney to Debate for Third Time Monday

Aired October 20, 2012 - 22:00   ET

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


DON LEMON, CNN HOST: Hello, everyone. I'm Don Lemon. The stories you're talking about in just a moment. But first, we want to get you up to speed on some of the day's headlines.

Two days, 17 shootings, three counties. Investigators are trying to figure out who is behind a series of random attacks in suburban Detroit. It's mainly drivers who are being targeted. Fortunately no one has been hurt. For many, it's reminiscing of the sniper shooting in Washington, D.C. area ten years ago.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Thank not nobody's been shot and nobody has been hurt. But it's still weird when you hear about stuff like this. It brings back memories of the sniper and everything that happened in D.C.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think it's crazy. And people are getting shot at all over the place. The kids are scared, the parents are scared. Someone's got to put a stop to it.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Know that we are coming for you. It's only a matter of time.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: The person who's doing it, still out there. So far, no arrests.

The numbers are climbing higher in the deadly fungal meningitis outbreak. According to data released by the CDC on Saturday, 23 deaths are now tied to the outbreak. There are 284 total cases, including three joint infections. Most patients got sick after being given contaminated steroid injections used for back and neck pain.

The White House is denying a report that Iran has agreed to one- on-one talks over its nuclear program. "The New York Times" reported the agreement on the negotiations but a spokesman for the national Security Council says that report is not true. He added that the U.S. still hopes to find a diplomatic solution.

An attempt to at least temporarily stop the bloodshed in Syria is being ignored. Activists say Homs and several other cities came under heavy shelling from regime forces today. More than 120 people reported killed nationwide. The continued violence comes as a U.N. envoy in Damascus is making the case for a truce during next week's Muslim holiday. And one day after opposition groups say more than 80 bodies were discovered in a mass grave in the eastern city of Deorizor (ph).

Here's what else we are talking about tonight.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: He conquered the tour de France and won their hearts and their money. Now some big donors to Lance Armstrong's cancer foundation want their money back. We ask them why, block.

From cheating to win to cheating in the bedroom, a growing number of people say it's OK and even helping relationships and marriages. Would you allow your better half to sleep with someone else?

Election Day is almost here, people. And some of you still can't make up your mind. Are you undecided or just uninformed?

Bet nobody will mess with that bus driver again. He stood up to a passenger behaving badly. Some say he went too far. But we will speak with someone who says it's time we all do the same and stop coddling people who act like jerks.

Plus, more Hulk Hogan sex tapes, Tom Hanks' filthy mouth, and Brad Pitt creeps us out.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: OK, think you had a bad week? Not as bad as Lance Armstrong's. The same group that banned him from ever competing in a bicycle race, the group that took away his tour de France titles will published a report saying he ran, quote, "the most sophisticated and successful doping program the sport has ever seen." Poof. Poof, went his sponsors. Nike and radio shack, gone. Poof went the chairmanship of his foundation, Livestrong.

Now, that is a bad week. Well, last night in Austin, Lance Armstrong spoke in public for the first time since all this went down. And he got a bit philosophical. Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LANCE ARMSTRONG, CYCLIST: This mission is bigger than me. It's bigger than any individual. There's 28 million people around the world living with this disease. Martin Luther King said once, he said we must accept finite disappointment but never lose infinite hope.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: OK. There he is on the screen right now, Michael Birdsong, joining me live.

Before, I told the audience, who you are, I want your reaction to Lance Armstrong, what he just said. He just quoted Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., about not losing infinite hope. What do you think?

MICHAEL BIRDSONG, FORMER LIVESTRONG VOLUNTEER: I think it's a great quote, but the thing is, he's still standing there as the one guy talking to everybody. And for me, that's a conflict of message to me.

LEMON: OK. I want to tell people who you are now. Michael Birdsong, you are a Livestrong volunteer from way back, way back. Your wife is a cancer survivor. You believed in the foundation. You believed in Lance Armstrong. You helped raise a lot of money. You personally donated a lot of money. Things have changed now. So where do you stand with the Livestrong foundation?

BIRDSONG: I haven't worked with them at all since 2010. My official role with them ended at the end of 2008. In 2009 and 2010, I helped a friend out who was doing a charity ride. I was her webmaster so I was like one degree removed. But it was more -- I was helping her. The Livestrong part didn't play into it. So, 2008 is when I stopped.

LEMON: You said you want your money back. Why?

BIRDSONG: Livestrong and Mr. Armstrong are tied at the hip. There's no way of really separating either of them. Several athletes out there have foundations. The cyclist Tyler Hamilton had one. I believe it dealt with M.S. No one ever really heard about that. Tyler didn't win, you know, the tour de France.

The results that Mr. Armstrong had in the tours de France directly benefited the building of the Lance Armstrong Livestrong foundation and they rebranded it as Livestrong. And he cheated and cheated, you know, beyond many people's beliefs or imagination for those results in the tours de France. So the whole thing is built on a lie. And that's wrong.

LEMON: You've used words -- I've heard you say that you feel that you were betrayed, hoodwinked and ripped off. But despite the scandal, Mr. Birdsong, there are plenty of people who are still standing by Lance Armstrong and his charity.

Listen, and then you and I will talk about it.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PAULA IVEY, TEAM SURVIVOR: There's 28 million cancer survivors around the world today. Fourteen million in the U.S. and those numbers have increased since Livestrong has been around. And they really provide a lot of support that was never there before.

SEAN PENN, ACTOR: No, I think it's an organization that was developed by somebody who's been an enormous inspiration to so many and to myself.

JEAN ANNE BOOTH, TEAM SURVIVOR: And regardless of what you might say about anything else, he's done more to motivate and to inspire just regular people and also all those survivors than anybody else. (END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: OK. I mentioned what you said. You said you felt hoodwinked and ripped off. Are all those people hoodwinked just like you were?

BIRDSONG: Let me state that I'm not saying that Livestrong has not helped people. I know it has, you know. But how did we get to this point? How did all of this get created? I don't see people letting Bernie Madoff off the hook for all he did. I believe he did many things for philanthropy, too. But it's all based, like I said, on a lie. And if other people are happy donating even more money to Livestrong, more power to them. You believed on something, you think you're doing something good, I can't say anything bad about that.

I'm speaking for myself here and my wife. You know, about how we feel about all this because we're so dedicated. We were very much like some of those people you interviewed. I defended Lance to, you know, people would say he was cheating and I would flat-out tell people, if he did that, this hall would fall apart. He's smarter than that. He's not going to build all of this on a lie, at least that's what I thought.

LEMON: Yes. Well, Michael Birdsong, thank you. Your wife is doing better, we hope.

BIRDSONG: Oh, yes.

LEMON: We appreciate you coming on CNN and giving your feelings. Thank you very much.

BIRDSONG: Thank you, sir. Appreciate it.

LEMON: OK. So just a new development here, just within the last couple of minutes, we're told that Livestrong wanted to respond to our story tonight. We've reached out to them earlier in the week. But now, we are hearing they want to respond. And I'm being told on the phone now is Katherine McLane, the vice president of Livestrong.

Thank you for joining us, Ms. McLane. You heard what Mr. Birdsong had to say. What's your response to that?

KATHERIN MCLANE, VICE PRESIDENT, LIVESTRONG (via phone): Well, I think we want to express our deepest gratitude at Livestrong for all of our donors. They have helped fuel a mission that's served 2.5 million cancer survivors throughout the United States. As one of the most highly rated cancer non-profits in the United States, we just want to make sure people know the funds they contribute go to serve people and families who are struggling with the financial or emotional or practical challenges that always accompany cancer.

BIRDSONG: Would you be open at all to giving people their money back, anyone who wants it? I'm sure most people would not want their money back. They would probably think it's going to a good cause. Even he said, I'm speaking for myself. Would the foundation be open to doing that or is that out of the question? MCLANE: Well, I tell you, Don. What I heard very loud and clear from Mr. Birdsong was that he felt the sense of disappointment. And I would just want to reassure Mr. Birdsong and anyone who's donated to Livestrong that they weren't supporting one person. They weren't supporting an athlete or a celebrity. They were supporting millions of people throughout the United States who are struggling with cancer. And that is exactly what their funds were used to support.

LEMON: So I take that as a "no".

MCLANE: Well, certainly we want to hear from our donors and if they have concerns, we want to know about that. But ultimately, the funds that Livestrong has raised and the hard-earned dollars that our donors have contributed, we're very, very grateful for. And they have gone to serve people who are struggling with financial or insurance problems as a result of cancer. And I find it hard to believe that anybody would want to ask for their money back for dollars contributed to such an amazing and noble cause.

LEMON: But you certainly understand the concern, which I think you said earlier in this interview. It's been, as I said at the top of this show, a very bad couple of weeks for Lance Armstrong. And I'm sure for the foundation as well. He spoke for the first time last night in Austin, Texas. And we played some of that. What have the last couple of days, the last couple of weeks been like for your organization as vice president of this organization?

MCLANE: And thank you for asking. I think - it's obviously been a tumultuous time. And certainly, we're trying to stay as focused as we can, being providing a high level of service for people who turn to us for help with a diagnosis, who need help getting access to a clinical trial, who need help to get insured to cover their treatment. That's what we show up to work for every single day and that's exactly what we're putting all the emphasis on.

LEMON: What I'm getting at though, I'm sure the organization has seen better times. I'm sure the morale is not the same as it was. Obviously you want to help people, obviously. If you have an organization like this, you don't work for an organization like this and not want to help people. But I'm sure morale has been better and I'm sure there's been some concern about whether or not -- whether the organization can remain, can sustain.

MCLANE: Well, you make a good point. I mean, there's no arguing that these have been tough and emotional times, certainly for the team who works at Livestrong. These are all people who have devoted their careers to the service of others. And that's a beautiful thing.

But I think the organization is doing exactly what it needs to do to ensure that we are continuing to provide the high level of service. And that is making a swift and seamless transition to a new chairman of the board who will, you know, assume sort of oversight of our mission and make sure that we're headed in the right direction to serve more people.

LEMON: I've got to run, Ms. McLane. It is just because, you know, I have heartbreak here. But have you spoken to Lance Armstrong?

MCLANE: Well, he's spoken to our team throughout the week. He wanted to make sure that everyone he's worked with for many years at the foundation was aware of why he stepped away as chairman. He knew that he did that to inoculate the organization from any of the damage that's spilling over from sort of the sporting world and the news and controversy that's coming out.

LEMON: What would you say to him if you could speak to him?

MCLANE: I would say thank you for 15 years of service to cancer survivors. I would say thank you for giving all the 100 employees at the Lance Armstrong foundation a chance to engage in an incredibly noble mission.

LEMON: Thank you, Katherine McLane, vice president of Livestrong. Thank you for coming on.

MCLANE: Thanks.

LEMON: Now this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: Election Day is almost here, people. And some of you still can't make up your mind. Are you undecided or just uninformed?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: After all the presidential primaries, TV ads, debates, how can anyone not know who they're voting for? Apparently a lot of people don't. About one to two percent of people poll say, they are undecided, eight to 10 percent say, they are uncommitted, meaning that they have a preference but the preference could change. And their indecision is fodder for shows like "Saturday night live."

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Before you get our vote, you're going to have to answer some questions. Questions like --

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: When is the election? How soon do we have to decide?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What are the names of the two people running? And be specific.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Where is the president right now, if he or she running?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: All right. So, Michael Jones may not be laughing at that because he is still undecided. But CNN contributors Ana Navarro and Lz Granderson, well, they made up their minds a long time ago, one to the left, one to the right. They're probably laughing at the "SNL" bit. Yes, they are, by the way.

So, Mr. Jones, you voted for President Obama last time. It is no laughing matter. But, I have to ask you why? Why haven't you been able to make up your mind this time?

MICHAEL JONES, UNDECIDED VOTER: It's a host of things going on. It could be maybe just a perception problem. From hearing him speak and things going on around you, the reality things might be getting better. But from my perception, things aren't getting better. There's a lot of people out here hurting. There's people having to decide to gas their car up or provide their family with an adequate meal. There are people in my neighborhood that try to have a business and they're now closed down. That's discouraging. And homes were up for sale, foreclosure.

LEMON: Yes. Hey, listen. I don't think people will disagree with you. Hard times, as you said, getting better, but people are still in hard times. But listen. The choices, some say, are quite clear. It's simple. These are the things that people care about when picking a candidate -- economic issues, domestic and/or social issues and then there's foreign policy, which is really low. It's a low priority, only four percent.

So, let's start with the economy, which 59 percent of people care about, big number. Number one priority there, unemployment, here's where the candidates stand. Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MITT ROMNEY (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: The unemployment rate was 7.8 percent when he took office. It's 7.8 percent now. But if you calculated that unemployment rate, taking back the people who dropped out of the workforce, it would be 10.7 percent. We have not made the progress we need to make to put people back to work.

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: The most important thing we can do is to make sure that we are creating jobs in this country but not just jobs, good-paying jobs, ones that can support a family. And what I want to do is build on the five million jobs that we've created over the last 30 months in the private sector alone.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: All right. So, either you agree with the president who says he needs more time for his jobs plan to work or you think Mitt Romney will do a better job than the president. It's simple -- that's not going to change between now and the election. So then, what gives here?

JONES: Well, you know what, at least when I spoke with the president the other day, and he was - who is willing to say that there were some shortcomings in the four years that he has served. But he pointed out some interesting points, too. The car industry, the death of bin Laden. I worked the day of 9/11. I seen people come up the street with -- devastated by that thing. And you know, I think I'm leaning towards the president because Romney describes his five-point plan. But I don't see any kind of substance though. And it seems to be that whatever is negative about the president, he just harped on it. I don't see an agenda or anything moving forward.

LEMON: All tight, let's talk about that. We talked about -- we know how they stand on taxes. We know about that. They seem there's a clear difference there. One is middle class, one is the upper class. He doesn't want to get rid of the Bush tax cuts, the other one want to get rid of the tax cuts.

Then on domestic and social issues, health care, education, gun control, abortion, gay marriage, both men are pretty similar on health care for obvious reasons. Romney has waffled on that. On education, despite what you hear, they're the same on gun control. Neither will touch it because of the gun lobby. On abortion and gay marriage, they're the exact opposite of each other.

So, Lz, what's so hard, do you think for undecided voters to make up their mind over?

LZ GRANDERSON, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: I think it's the apathy that they feel towards the president. You're right. It can't be clearer in terms of the two men being different. If you're undecided at this point, the only thing I can think of is you're waiting for the October jobs report just to see one last time if we truly are heading in the right direction.

But you remember a few months ago where we were trying to figure out if we were better off four years ago than we are today. I've looked at things like the jobs report numbers and how this time four years ago, we had lost 500,000 jobs in this country. And now we've created more than 100,000 jobs. Now, that number may not sound like a lot but that's a huge swing. So, when you look at that, I think it's pretty clear.

LEMON: Ana, the reason I gave all the information, talking about social issues, the economy, taxes and on and on, education, because I'm trying to actually help these people, you know, the people who are undecided or uncommitted make a choice here. Because it seems to be pretty clear to most Americans. Why do you think people are so undecided?

ANA NAVARRO, REPUBLICAN STRATEGIST: You know, first of all, I can't tell how happy I am to meet Mr. Jones because I was beginning to think these undecided voters were like big- foot, that they existed they were some mystical figure existing in the wilderness for which, you know, there was no scientific evidence off because I have been searching high and low for undecided voters and I really can't find any.

I can't tell why they haven't decided. They might be waiting for an October surprise, maybe for a November surprise, maybe they want to see all three debates. You know what, Don? The truth is, maybe they don't like either of these two guys. They're not undecided because they love both of them. They're undecided because neither of the two have finished the sale. So I would say to them, you know what, if by November 5th midnight, you still haven't decided. Guys, flip a coin. I will take heads.

GRANDERSON: I'd rather you stay at home.

LEMON: All right.

GRANDERSON: I don't want you to flip a coin. I'd rather you stay at home.

LEMON: Well, listen. Mr. Jones, we hope that you make up your mind and we hope that we have helped and that you at least have a sense of humor about the little "Saturday Night Live" thing we played and our funny pundits here.

Thank you very much. Good luck to you with making up your mind. All right.

JONES: Thank you.

LEMON: Here's a look at what else is coming up.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: Cheating in the bedroom, a growing number of people say it's OK and even helps a relationship and a marriage. Would you allow your better half to sleep with someone else?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: All right, serious question for you, serious. Would you let your girlfriend, your boyfriend, your husband or your wife sleep with someone else? I'm talking about what most people call cheating.

OK. Just hear me out here. Recently I was reading a "Huffington Post" write-up by actress Stacy Nellkin arguing that cheating on a spouse doesn't need to be a deal breaker and that it can actually be good for the relationship.

Right of a psychologist, Wendy Walsh, whose mind I'm reading right now. Going, oh, hell, no! And Steve Santagati is yelling, yes, yes, yes.

So, ladies first. Wendy, let us have it, go!

DOCTOR WENDY WALSH, HUMAN BEHAVIOR SPECIALIST: I want to say one thing about every blog that you read that says cheating has worked and it was great for the relationship. It's always in past tense. The relationship is over, it ended for a reason. No, cheating is all about lying, deceit, betrayal, bringing a potential STD into your relationship, maybe a stalker woman out there. It is not a good thing.

LEMON: OK. One of our floor director here in the set, she is nodding her head, yes.

So Steve, you write about these issues in your new book called "code of honor." is there a difference between cheating in a marriage and cheating on your boyfriend or girlfriend or is it fair game for all relationships?

STEVE SANTAGATI, AUTHOR, CODE OF HONOR: No, it's all the same. You know, the problem is that human beings invented the term cheating. Cheating doesn't occur in nature. A deer can't cheat on a bear. The irony --

LEMON: Yes, yes, yes!

SANTAGATI: But Don, ready for this? The irony is I bet a guy invented cheating so his woman would never leave him. And then, men have been the worst over history at cheating. The point of the matter is, stay single, don't get married. You won't have to cheat. Don't lie to anybody.

LEMON: But Wendy, doesn't he have a point? Because these are conventional terms - I mean, in nature, as he said, it doesn't happen. And then, we expect monogamy and all that --

WALSH: Don, Don, Don, we are not deer, OK? And here is what you should not.

SANTAGATI: Yes, we are.

(CROSSTALK)

WALSH: Cheating is very different biological for men as it is for women. And let me explain why.

Men can have sex without falling in love. So Steve, you go have all that sex without falling in love. If you want that, that's fine, but plenty of women have this pesky hormone called oxytose (ph) and that makes them bond through sex. So therefore there's more chance that women, when men cheat, they're looking for sex. When women cheat, they're more often looking for a new relationship.

So, if your girlfriend cheats on you, Steve, it's not because she wants a romp. It's because she wants something better, all right? That's what happens between men and women.

SANTAGATI: Wendy, you're out of touch. You're not in the dating front lines anymore. Women are dating like men. As a matter of fact, if you look at the statistics, it's almost exactly equal the amount of women are cheating as are men. As a matter of fact, sometimes, believe it or not, hope you're sitting down for this, women just like to have sex. You are as sexually interested -- I was going to say horny, but I wouldn't say that on television -- as we are. You're just as bad.

WALSH: Of course we're horny, Steve. Listen, the truth is though, if women are behaving, if women are adopting a male model of sexuality, it's actually hurting them. But, when my book comes out soon, "the 30 love detox," you will understand why the high supply sexual economy is hurting women. It is hurting relationships. It is hurting families. And more than anything, it's denying the freedom for many women to become numbers because their fertility window is shutting before they can get there.

LEMON: That's it. Boom! We're done! I do, Wendy has to say. But I have to say, you know, Steve --

WALSH: You're a dude, Don. You're a dude.

LEMON: Someone came up with that. It's all about control.

Thank you, Steve. Thank you, Dr. Wendy.

What would you do if this happened to you? Take a look at this jaw-dropping video.

(VIDEO CLIP PLAYING)

LEMON: Bet nobody will mess with that bus driver again. He stood up to a passenger behaving badly. Some say he went too far. But, we will speak with someone who says it's time we all do the same and stop coddling people who act like jerks.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: What would you do if someone grabbed you and spit on you? Would you do this?

(VIDEO CLIP PLAYING)

LEMON: All right, so that is a Cleveland bus driver decking a belligerent woman who came aboard his bus. It was all over TV. It went viral online. Lz Granderson even felt compelled to write an article about it for CNN.com entitled "stop coddling people who behave badly." And then of course Dr. Wendy Walsh, our behavior expert is back to keep Lz and me in line.

So Lz --

WALSH: That's right.

LEMON: Are you advocating violence here?

GRANDERSON: Absolutely not. You know, the theme that tripped me out about that video was that people started going off after he punched her. They should have been going off when she was spitting on him, when she was going off on him for like three minutes. I watched a clip for three minutes before he punched her. He's being berated by this woman and people didn't say anything. He punched her and they lose their minds. It should have happened sooner.

WALSH: I disagree. I disagree. No one should have been going up. They should be sitting in their seats like good passengers. And that bus driver should have been behaving like an employee --

LEMON: Wendy, Wendy --

WALSH: What, what?

LEMON: I want you stop. And I want you to listen to this. Listen. Play "the view" for me. Play this click from "the view".

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes, she spit it. But, I bet you when he gets back on that bus, nobody's going to do that to him anymore. Nobody's going to get in his face. Sometimes you just have to show people that you cannot do that.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And I'm sorry. Women have this idea that you can hit and punch on a man and he's not going to hit you back. Those days are gone.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: All right. I think you were going down that road, Wendy. Do they have a point there?

WALSH: No. That's like saying that spanking a child is going to improve their behavior. All the research is counter to that completely, positive rewards.

This is -- listen, Don, all this is, is fallout from too much individual rights and freedoms in America. I just got back from Europe and I was cracking up in London. Because if you even park slightly wrong, someone would come up and scold you, like, excuse me, you're not supposed to be doing that. And I though, wow in America, you'd be at risk for getting hit there.

LEMON: That woman hit him, grabbed him and then she spat on him.

GRANDERSON: She spat on the dude.

WALSH: She hit first -- it's OK to hit because she hit first? Come on!

LEMON: But Wendy, listen. It's not just the woman on the bus. I mean, Lz writes about this. It's a woman who fell into the fountain while texting. And then she threatened to sue the mall. Remember that woman. She is walking in the wall and all of the sudden, she - boom. It's her fault. She threatened to sue. And then there was a fan threw a beer at, remember that at Ron Artest, igniting what's known as the basket brawl. A number of these things -- when is it going to stop? Lz --

WALSH: I do think Americans are -

LEMON: Go ahead, Wendy.

WALSH: I just think Americans do play the victim card all the time because we use attorneys in this country to fight our battles for us. But we don't need to have battles. We can cooperate. We can compromise. We can get along.

LEMON: Lz.

GRANDERSON: Yes, we can get along. But it starts with personal responsibility, right? We need to be able to get to the point where we look at that video and stop immediately blaming the bus driver -- what the bus driver should have done and look at the fact at who initiated it. I mean, this woman is woman is walking down the hall in this mall. She's not paying attention, she falls in the fountain and then she wants to sue somebody. I mean, we need to laugh at her and say, no --

WALSH: You're like a third grader saying, he hit me first. I don't care who started it. I'm a mother here.

LEMON: I know you are, but what am?

(CROSSTALK)

LEMON: You're both pretty. Stop it. We're done.

(LAUGHTER)

WALSH: I love you, Lz.

GRANDERSON: She hit me first.

LEMON: All right. Moving on now, for months, the presidential candidates have been on the road rallying, most recently debating. But a few days ago, they met off the campaign trail and had a few laughs.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ROMNEY: But it's nice to finally relax and to wear what Ann and I wear around the house.

(LAUGHTER)

OBAMA: I had a lot more energy in our second debate. I felt really well-rested after the nice, long nap I had in the first debate.

(LAUGHTER)

LEMON: Next, a look at the lighter side of President Obama and Mitt Romney.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: Presidential candidates jacking it up in Washington. Yes. Mitt Romney, President Obama suspended the campaign slugfest to show off their humor, for their coming rivals, at the Alfred E. Smith charity dinner in Washington. They were funniest when they mocked themselves.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) OBAMA: The disagreements governor Romney and I may have, it's what we have in common, beginning with our unusual names. Actually Mitt is his middle name. I wish I could use my middle name.

(LAUGHTER)

ROMNEY: Let's just say that some in the media have a certain way of looking at things. When suddenly I pulled ahead in some of the major polls, what was the headline? Polls show Obama leading from behind. And I've already seen early reports from tonight's dinner -- headline, Obama embraced by Catholics, Romney dines with rich people.

(LAUGHTER)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: That was funny. But I love that. I wish I could use my middle name.

Republican strategist Ana Navarro is quick with it and so is Dean Obeidallah. And so, I hope sees himself as a comedian.

Are these guys really funny or do they just hire funny people, Dean?

DEAN OBEIDALLAH, POLITICAL COMEDIAN: I think they're hiring funny people. But delivering a joke takes some timing and some comedy sensibility. President Obama did it well (INAUDIBLE). And honestly, Mitt Romney is doing a good job with it right there. And people like it when you make fun of yourself in a way that's not clownish. And they both did it really well. It makes people them. I think that was great what they did.

LEMON: So Ana, this next was going to be for you. Both President Obama and Romney took jabs at Romney's wealth. Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ROMNEY: A campaign can require a lot of wardrobe changes. We have blue jeans in the morning, perhaps, suits for a lunch fund- raiser, sport coat for dinner. But it's nice to finally relax and to wear what Ann and I wear around the house.

(LAUGHTER)

OBAMA: I went shopping at some stores in midtown. I understand governor Romney went shopping for some stores in midtown.

(LAUGHTER)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: So Ana. is it a smart move for Romney to make fun of his own money?

NAVARRO: Of course it is. If he doesn't do it, somebody else is going to do it. Frankly, it's been funny. His own money in this campaign has been about dancing horses and car elevators and all sorts of things, which are funny. I'd rather be funny about them than be serious about them.

And you know, Don, no, the question you asked Dean, these guys are not funny. You're funny when people are laughing at your own jokes. You're funny when people who are not your blood relatives and paid staff are laughing. I prefer it when these guys are saying this. But it was great to see them be funny and have a light moment, particularly after the very testy debate that just happened two nights before.

LEMON: And it was one of the most -- one of the times I've seen Mitt Romney most comfortable. And you know, you saw him not so, you know, uptight.

But, I want to move and talk about celebrity endorsements. They both had fun with it. Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

OBAMA: We're getting to that time when folks are making up their minds. Just the other day, honey boo-boo endorsed me. So, that's a big relief.

(LAUGHTER)

ROMNEY: In the spirit of Sesame Street, the president's remarks tonight are brought to you by the letter "O" and the number 16 trillion.

(LAUGHTER)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: All right. So honey boo-boo endorsed President Obama. Lindsay Lohan endorsed Mitt Romney. Both of those endorsements may not be high points for either candidate, either campaign.

So Dean, whose celebrity endorsement would be the worst ever? I mean, what if Charlie Sheen came out and endorsed a candidate? Would that be helpful or a big downer?

OBEIDALLAH: Not at all. I think Obama should have Charlie Sheen endorse Mitt Romney and say, this guy, we share the same family values or get the whole cast of "the real housewives" in all the cities together, they go Mitt Romney is our guy, we like the way he spends money to remind us of oz, that kind of thing.

But I mean, this doesn't move people. I will be quite honest with you. I want a facebook, twitter, ask people, they say they makes them think more about the celebrity. They like the celebrity less if they endorse a candidate they don't like or they like celebrity more for endorsing candidate they like.

(CORSSTALK) LEMON: And that's what I'm followed with Ana. You know, because there were serious -- Eva Longoria, Scarlett Johansson, Morgan Freeman, Clint Eastwood, I mean, they're all lining up. Do you think it matters?

NAVARRO: Look. I think it matters. And it helps in things like raising in raising money. For example, if you get an e-mail saying, give me $3 and you have a chance to have dinner with George Clooney. Yes. I even might get up for this $3 dollars to go have dinner with George Clooney.

You know, so it helps in fundraising. It helps in creating headlines. But I don't think it moves votes. And as to who would be the worst endorser, I think O.J. Simpson and Robert Blake could compete for that, you know. I think a celebrity that's been accused or convicted of murder is probably the worst endorsement you could have.

LEMON: All right, Ana, thank you. Dean, stick around because we're going to be talking about Hulk Hogan, in the middle of a legal battle over a sex tape. Now we're finding out the story may not be over. There may be more where those tapes came from.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: How can America break its addiction to oil and foreign oil? Well, Fareed Zakaria's team traveled around the world to look at renewable energy and natural gas and they found what's often called the fifth fuel, efficiency.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

FAREED ZAKARIA, CNN HOST, FAREED ZAKARIA GPS: Trains, planes and automobiles burn over 13 million barrels of oil every day in the United States. And we spend over $1 billion per day buying that oil, almost half of which comes from foreign countries, some of whom are considered national security problems.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Weaning ourselves off oil saves about $4 trillion net present value in the United States. That money then stays at home.

ZAKARIA: So, love and freezing, what if we wasted less fuel getting gas to the wheels? And he designed the hyper car, which could weigh about two-thirds less than a normal car and could run up to an astonishing 240 miles per gallon.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: Global lessons, the GPS roadmap for powering America airs Sunday night at 8:00 and 11:00 Eastern right here on CNN.

Hulk Hogan in the middle of a legal battle over a sex tape. Now, we are finding out the story may not be over. There may be more tapes.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: More Hulk Hogan sex tapes? A person on twitter who said, no, I feel you. Can we as a society withstand the impact? Rumor has it that the lady who leaked the first Hulk Hogan sex tape has a few more up her sleeve or somewhere, who allegedly leaked. The woman's ex-husband, a radio personality known as bubba the love sponge, talked to Howard Stern about the sex tape scandal.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He only cares about himself. And now, there's rumors that there's other tapes of them. And I don't think that there are.

HOWARD STERN, RADIO HOST: I think he would say to you that, yes, no one held a gun to my head. But I didn't know my sex was going to be all over the world.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And nor did I.

STERN: If I get Hogan to come in here with you and I think I can work this out and I swear to you I think I could --

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm not afraid of you. I'm not afraid of you or your studios.

STERN: I know you'd come in.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: All right. So Dean is back. Dean, what do you make of these -- we talked about these sex tapes last week. Now Hulk has filed a $100 million lawsuit. He's named bubba the love sponge in the lawsuit and bubba's ex-wife. Howard wants to bring them on to try to mediate the thing. This is crazy. And there may be more tapes.

OBEIDALLAH: You can only hope they're sequels, you know. When you see the Hulk Hogan's sex tape, it makes you appreciate Kim Kardashian's sex tape that much more. I mean, the whole - I hope this is like a whole series Hulk Hogan's sex tape. The time (INAUDIBLE) like every month we are getting new one. Have a two days had tried out. Simply like it. What's this world coming to? He had sex with his best friend's wife and he agreed to it. You know, sex - segment on cheating earlier, he agreed to navigates are leaking. What's happening here?

LEMON: And who wants to be -- here's the weird thing. I can understand it is upsetting. To be involved in litigation, for that much money, the tape's already out there. Shouldn't you just go, you know what, it's out there, I'm just going to deal with it and let Howard mediate it, I think?

OBEIDALLAH: Let's escalate. And to start, it should be bubba the love sponge, Hulk Hogan and Howard Stern all together, that is must-see TV. I'm not kidding. Something that is compelling. People will watch it and listen to it. LEMON: Speaking of must see TV, people are talking about Brad Pitt's intense new ad for Chanel perfume. Here it is.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BRAD PITT, ACTOR: Wherever I go, there you are. My luck, my fate, my fortune, Chanel number 5, inevitable.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: I really like Brad Pitt. But is that a bit creepy?

OBEIDALLAH: It's like outtakes from the tree of life" movie he did last year. The movie made no sense and this commercial makes in sense. It's the first time they've ever used a man's voice of Chanel 5. And parts of it are lies because I don't see what the appeal is. I don't understand women world, frankly. Ask for my girl, how is that appealing to women? He's creepier --

LEMON: I don't understand -- I'm going to show you how it's appealing to women. Play this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I watched it again today and I have to say, it's even stranger than I remembered it from the first time.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Every journey ends, but we go on. Plans disappear, dreams take over.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: That's why. Come on, that's hot.

OBEIDALLAH: Yes, that's hot. Oh, my God. That's funny, though. When men twist their nipples, in comedy, that's 100 percent comedy goal every time. Conan does it a lot. It is a very funny movie. I don't know what Chanel 5 was thinking. But you know what. Brad Pitt made $7 million reportedly. They asked him to do it.

(CROSSTALK)

LEMON: Hey, real quick, I want you to see Tom Hanks' squeaky clean image. He made a slip on morning TV. Look.

OBEIDALLAH: Yes, he did.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TOM HANKS, ACTOR: Mostly, it is swear words. So that's a little bit --

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE REPORTER: If you say it with an accent like that --

HANKS: I want people to buy me (bleep) -- oh! UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE REPORTER: We are so sorry, "good morning America."

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: All right, that is early in the morning. Does this put a dent in his good boy image? And what about dropping the "f" bomb on TV - much to do about nothing you think.

We all curse. Let's be honest. He said, I apologize to the kids. Tom, children aren't up watching "Good Morning America." They are not of watching big on in America. (INAUDIBLE) is getting dressed? Who was really offended? There was no backlash. He is still a guy everyone likes I think. He's one of the most beloved, iconic actors of our time.

LEMON: Yes. We were just talking in the break and you said a swear word by accident. Have you ever had a slip-up on TV?

OBEIDALLAH: On TV, no. As a comic on stage, I try not to curse either. But I have never had it on television, although I've come close. And you really wonder what will happen. You know, Tom Hanks. So, I'm gone. You will never see me again. I'm on basic cable.

LEMON: Imagine if we said one of those words -- remember when we said the "n" word on TV and everyone went crazy?

OBEIDALLAH: But that's a lot of faux anger. This is an organic comment made by Tom Hank made a mistake in character.

LEMON: We got to go.

OBEIDALLAH: Come on, America.

LEMON: Thank you, Dean. Thanks for watching everyone. From the CNN headquarters in Atlanta, I'm Don Lemon. See you back here tomorrow haven't. Have a good night.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)