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tv   Erin Burnett Out Front  CNN  January 23, 2012 11:00pm-12:00am EST

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news broadcast is a special time for the most seasoned journalist to ask hard questions, like can a cat really play a keyboard? is there perhaps a squirrel somewhere that can waterski with the best of them? is there room for lady of the evening in a puppet courtroom? i would respectfully say the answer is a resounding yes. that's it for us. erin burnett "outfront" starts next. in america, we believe in a future
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eighth either the screeners aren't working very well or i was subjected to a random patdown, which isn't helping any of our safety. >> i want to do one final question, sir. i spoke with newt gingrich the day after the primary, and i asked about your dad. >> it's a fact that ron paul is going to get a significant vote. it's fact of life that you want to find something that would give him a strong reason not to consider a third party. and so you've got to say okay, you should what circumstance he has a legitimate role. . he's earned that role by running a very formidable campaign. and i want to find something that we're adequately compatible on that you could actually find
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something to do. >> is there something? >> i think one thing that ron paul brought to the republican party. when you poll him against barack obama, he's polling seven points ahead of is president obama with young people. i think newt is right, they need to embrace ron paul and say we want all these new, young people to be active. but in some ways they have to embrace some of the ron paul's message. it's not about ron paul as a personal figure. it's about my father's message that brings the young people. i think there's room for him in the republican party. we're not all the same, but most of us do believe in much smaller government than president obama does, much less taxes and much less debt than the president does. >> rand paul, thank you very much. apologies for the snafu at the beginning of the program.
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thanks very much, have a good one. >> tonight, how the government is watching us. we're talk aing about gps in ce phones, cars, planes. you can get it in a wristwatch, but it's also used by police to track suspects. until now, they didn't even need a search warrant. but today, the supreme court ruled that the police have to have a warrant in order to monitor a suspect with a gps device. the case today was a suspected drug dealer. police tracked him for 28 days. should they be allowed to do that? >> well, there's a big disagreement about that. those that support law enforcement officials, by the way, including the obama administration. people think it's a liberal
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administration. the justice department said law enforcement did nothing wrong in this case. they attached a gps, a search warrant expired after 11 days so they had no search warrant and they tracked the guy for 28 days, nailed him and then he got sentenced to life in prison. le the justice department says that's okay. the supreme court said no. i think people would be shocked, because civil libertarians of course, say hey, they should have had a warrant. you can't have unrestrained surveillance by police forces in the united states. >> what's the reaction going to be? >> people were hoping for a monumental decision about the new digital surveillance techniques. gps is actually an old one. they were hoping the court would hand down some big decision in this area. the only thing they agreed on is
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that they physically trespassed on somebody's property when they attached the gps, but they avoided the bigger issue, can you follow somebody for 28 days then you arrest them for criminal activity. we would get a look at up and coming law enforcement techniques. but we did get a hint that we need new laws, that america's privacy is being violated. i think it's going to be looked at as a very, very important surveillance decision. >> remember to turn it off. i don't believe it's turned off. i think they're always watching. we've got to go. up next, where is michelle parker? there's new video showing the missing mother just hours before she was last seen. it's a story we've been following and we're going to talk to her sister tonight. and the end of the line for one
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of your favorite television characters. the shat goes splat in tonight's numbers. forty years ago, he wasn't looking for financial advice.
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sad news today. william shatner is dead. well, not really, but one of his characters is. in a new ad, shatner's priceline negotiator is seen helping passengers off a bus moments before it falls off a bridge and explodes. it's part of the company's plan to stop its name your own price
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option that shatner has promoted successfully for 14 years, but don't worry, the shat is still under contract with priceline, which brings me to tonight's number. 46. that's how many seconds it took for priceline.com to tell me there were no flights that muched my exact criteria. so this morning i went to search for a flight, karachi, pakistan, to dubai. i entered january 24th as departure, january 28th as return and i waited and waited. while i waited, i saw william shatner doing karate, flashing money, fighting his evil twin and posing with somebody that looked like a gigantic pitcher. then priceline said they don't even have any flights. 46 seconds is a very long time, sort of dial-up time.
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tried another site, kayak, and in a tenth of a second and no videos of shatner, they got me a flight. maybe he got out at the right time. what's your favorite travel site? let us now. still "outfront," the outfront five. hanging by a thread. legacy versus lawsuits. >> no matter what anybody else says, it wasn't joe's fault. >> all this "outfront" in our second half. business, it's all you. that's why you have us. at staples, we have low prices on everything your small business needs. staples. that was easy.
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we start the second half of our show on stories we care about and tonight, we begin with two people dying, 100 injured. there's been severe weather in the southeast today. one of the hardest hit areas was jackson county, alabama. officials there are telling us the storm destroyed more than 200 homes and damaged another 200. we're told that number will rise. alabama governor robert bentley has declared a state of emergency in all 67 counties.
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two, the u.s. has imposed sanctions on iran's biggest bank. the european union put pressure on iran saying they would ban oil imports. but the truth is, the u.s. and europe are not able to stop iran from getting the money it needs to build nukes. an analyst says one-third of transactions go through dubai and has been used a long time by iran to conduct back channel trades. three, gabrielle giffords will resign from congress this. daniel hernandez seen here hugging the congresswoman is credited with saving her life after a gunman opened fire at a congress on your corner event january 8th, 2011. we talked to daniel hernandez after today's event and he told "outfront" that giffords talked to his mom and said, quote, she was always a fan of my mother's
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cakes and today, mentioned her name. number four, the new ceo of rim, the maker of the precious, said today that better marketing and product rollout are key to keeping the smart phone alive. market share has dropped below 10%. they need a change at the top, however, experts believe a change in markets will not be enough to turn around blackberry. it has been 171 days since america lost its top credit rating. we are hopeful congress to going to do more this year. only 90 public laws were passed in the senate in 2011. that is the lowest number since 1995 when 88 laws were passed. that's abatrocity. forget positive campaigning.
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mitt romney and newt gingrich are going after each other today in florida. in 2006, the gingrich group earned $25,000 a month for, quote, consulting and related services for freddie. i want to note, this was just one year. we don't know what was paid the other five years. but assuming it's the same rate, it would be $1.5 million. gingrich said he did not, quote, lobby for freddie. >> i was supposed to do consulting work. the governor did consulting work for years. i never suggested that his consulting work -- let me start right there. there's no place in the contract that provides for lobbying. i have never done any lobbying. >> when he was working for freddie, gingrich campaigned for the failing company. the speaker said, quote, i'm convinced if nasa were a government-sponsored enterprise, we probably would be on mars today. we have a much more liquid and stable housing finance system than we would have without them. stable? housing prices are down 24% from
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their peak and the facts are no matter what you believe about freddie's contribution to helping people buy homes, the fact is that america's homeownership rit homeownership rate is 66%, about the same as canada's 68%. canada doesn't have a federal institution like freddie. and they still owe us from the bailout they got from taxpayers during the crisis, more than any bank in america. first the politics, john, did he answer? how did he do tonight on the questions about freddie? >> he struggled because mitt romney kept coming at him. romney had a line that he delivered with devastating efficiency. he said you don't have to call yourself a lobbyist, you're an influence peddler. it resonates because it's accurate. that really frustrated newt tonight. >> you read every word of this contract, and you were looking
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at an exhibit where it says, consulta consultant, that being gingrich group, will also supply copies of disclosure reports that may be fired by law, such as reports filed under the lobbying disclosure act. what does that mean? >> to me, that i contemplate the possibility that there will be lobbying, pure and simple. the contract is with the director of public policy, which is where you would have the contract if you're lobbying. i'm not saying that it is lobbying. but there's nothing in there that precludes lobbying. and all the language is consistent with lobbying. >> and what did you say? public relations? >> public affairs. >> that's the chief lobbyist? >> he kept hammering this home, your contract wasn't with the ceo, it was with the chief lobbyist. call it whatever you want. you weren't a historian. they don't make $25,000 a month. >> as we said, if they did,
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everybody would be going getting a ph.d.. wh what else do you see in here? >> as you point out, it's only one year. $1.3 million hasn't been explaineded. only the first year has been explained and we know nothing of the details on the consulting. it's like trying to sell me a car by showing me front butcher and saying the rest of the car, it's okay. >> here's what i don't understand, the basic test here, newt gingrich is obviously an incredibly bright guy and he understands a lot of this stuff. but the reason he would be paid so much on a monthly basis is because of his knowledge of congress and how it works and who works there, right? that's what makes his value, whatever term you want to put on it, it's his influence and knowledge of those people that is the value, correct? >> in old school day, it's his rolodex. his ability to pick up the phone and talk to people. >> his value comes from his experience. that's why people are willing to
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pay him money no matter what other experience he provides. >> you have homes under water, houses on average half of where they were a few years ago in florida, thanks in part by activities taken by fannie and freddie. >> if you do have this underwater problem, same thing in the next big state, nevada. the gingrich camp is going to try to push back and talk about bain and romney being invested in some of these funds. in the past, he said maybe all of these mortgages should go under water. both campaigns are going to try to make political hay out of this economic pain. >> but the problem for gingrich is if he didn't lop bbby, what he do to get the $1.6 million? just sit there? >> well, because you know people, you were valuable and that puts you in the group that you said romney was in. >> the history of fannie and
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freddie, come on. >> it is a sordid and dark history that requires a lot of deep reading to understand. >> that original spin causes him part of the problem. no one bought that. so now to have nancy desmond come out, the ceo of gingrich group and say, well, it precludes lobbying, it doesn't. there's nothing in there that precludes lobbying. so don't argument based on the document when the document doesn't back you. >> why would they only come out with one year of all the years. it happens to be at the top of the housing market. it's not a bad year to put out. so why only one? >> this had a $300,000 max spend. and it was for one year. and they must have renewed it. they must have extended it. and they spent another $1.3 million, another $1.4 million. so what did they spend it on? >> that is a key question. we're going to keep looking into that. ahead, we're going to take you inside the italian cruise ship in the moment it slammed into
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the rocks. new home video about what happened in those moments. and new clues in the disappearance of michelle parker, the missing mother we have been covering in the state of florida. her sister outfront next. cut. cut! [ monica ] i thought we'd be on location for 3 days -- it's been 3 weeks. so i had to pick up some more things. good thing i've got the citi simplicity card. i don't get hit with a fee if i'm late with a payment... which is good because on this job, no! bigger! [ monica ] i may not be home for a while. [ male announcer ] the new citi simplicity card. no late fees. no penalty rate. no worries.
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we do this at the same time every night, our outer circle and we begin tonight in italy with a cruise ship disaster. tonight, we have newly released video of the moments just after the costa concordia ran aground
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off the coast of italy. honeymooners denise and david were among the first passengers to evacuate and david captured moments of sheer panic on his camera. now, as the rescue mission continues, italian officials announce two more bodies were recovered in the area near the ship's internet cafe. that brings the number of confirmed deaths to 15. a new phase of the operation began today. cnn's dan rivers has been there covering the story and i asked him about it. >> it's been a watershed day here on the island. finally they have now formally started the salvage operation to empty the fuel off the wreck of this liner. they're starting with own of the 13 fuel tank with some 270 cubic meters of fuel. they'll then move on to the others.
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2,500 tons needs to be removed. >> and next, in nigeria, where blasts killed at least 157 people and left police headquarters and government builds in ruins. nigeria is the most populous country in africa, split between muslims and christians. the group claimed responsibility according to a nigerian newspaper. the group has been blamed for months of widespread bloodshed. we asked about the strategy behind boko haram's attacks. >> at their root, i think they look to delegitimatize the jonathan administration, make him look weak and powerless and tap into the sense, particularly among northern muslims that this government is in some ways illegitimate.
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>> good luck jonathan is the president of nigeria. and now to afghanistan and the development in the taliban talk negotiations. in meetings between the u.s. special envoy, karzai's government signaled it is willing to join in on an american-led peace effort. karzai said it would not stand in the way of releasing prisoners from guantanamo bay as the demands of the taliban. however, ambassador grossman said no decisions have been made. a senior adviser at the center for strategic and international studies and we said what needs to happen before official talking with the taliban can start. >> first and foremost, we need to find out if the taliban are serious. they haven't been in previous talks. second, we need to keep karzai onboard. there's concerns by afghans there will be a secret deal. and first degree murderly, pakistan has to be a part of this. there will be no long-term political settlement for
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afghanistan, unless the pakistanis are involved. >> he was the winningest coach in division i college football history. the 85-year-old former penn state football coach died sunday from lung cancer. the state college campus is honoring the coach's legend, but there's still so many questions concerning the program. paterno's former assistant coach jerry sandusky is charged with molesting ten boys. several more have come forward since. before he died, paterno said he wished he had done more in light of the allegations against sandus sandusky. sarah gannon is in state college tonight. good to see you. let me ask you this. i know you spoke to scott paterno, joe paterno's son. what did he say? >> erin, he told me his father died in a way that he wishes he has the courage to die that way when his time comes. he said he was completely at peace with his life. he told his children, just take care of your mother.
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he kept saying that over and over again. that you know everything he has accomplished, in his life, he has done with his wife by his side and really moving forward, they're focused on their mom. they're concerned about her, but they're really looking forward to celebrating joe paterno's life and legacy in the coming days at a campus memorial service on thursday. >> is there any indication from your reporting on this as to whether joe paterno's death will impact the case against sandusky since obviously he was the one that mike mcqueary told that he saw jerry sandusky abusing the boy in the shower. >> it's a good question. a lot of people are asking that now. what legal experts are telling me is that joe paterno's statements would have been a dramatic moment in court for sure. that people would have wanted to hear what he said. there's going to be some unanswered questions because he
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now can't take the stand. however, as far as it being crucial to either of the two cases, the perjury case or the molestation case against sandusky, it probably wasn't going to be crucial or key. and the reason is because he really was just a piece in a time line. the key people here are eyewitnesses and victims. and in the perjury case, the key people are the two defendants and the people they talked to directly. so, you know, of course people wanted to hear from joe paterno, but is it going make a huge difference in the prosecution or defense? people are speculating that the answer is no. >> thank you very much. sarah has been breaking the news on this story since the very beginning. it has been nine week since michelle parker disappeared in orlando florida. on friday, she turned 34 and police have released new video of her on the day of her disappearance. this is significant. we have been covering this story. there had not been any video. this is video of her at a fast
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food restaurant about three hours before she vanished without a trace. as you can see, that is zooming in on her face there. michelle was last seen dropping off her children with her exfian exfiance, dale smith. he has custody of their children. parker and smith had a tumultuous relationship, which ended in a fight over an engagement ring on the television show "the people's court." that episode aired the same day that michelle parker went missing. lauren e lauren erikson is michelle parker's sister. she joins us along with her attorney. i wish you weren't here because i wish this story ended and ended well, but you are. lauren, the new video released of your sister coming through the fast food, it helps police with the timeline of what happened to her and where she was. have they learned anything from this video? >> the video itself, it just shows her going through the drive through, getting lunch.
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if anything, it just shows it was a normal day. she was going to grab lunch. she was on her way to a beauty supply store that day to pick up c color for our salon, but as far as anything significant, it doesn't really show too much. >> let me ask you, my understanding is and tell me if i'm wrong, there was a decal on the back of her car, which apparently was not there when they actually got the car. is there any, in your view, significance of that? or what did it say? what's your belief and what are you hearing from police? >> that's correct that when the vehicle was found the next day, that friday, the stickers were off of it. in the video when she went through the kfc, the stickers were on. we actually saw her around 2:30 that day in sat llon. i remember watching her leave and the city,s were on then. so between when she was last seen and the vehicle was found, the stickers were taken off.
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>> matt, what is our understanding as to whether there could be significance to that or whether this video could help significantly with the time line of what happened to michelle. >> i think what it shows is opd is doing a great job. they've been searching through every single tip that comes in and they've actually got it narrowed down to her driving through a fast food restaurant. i think the significance of the decals is it shows they were on there before and then later on, you know, in the time line those decals were gone. it shows that a, the police are doing a great job and b, that, you know, the decals were removed and we don't know why. >> lauren, how are the children doing now. obviously they're still with dale, right? >> the twins are with their dad. and then austin, the oldest, he's back in school. he's doing all right. i haven't seen the kids recently, but as far as their well being goes, i'm sure that they're fine. >> i know that you're still searching for your sister. how often are you going out at
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this point? do you feel that there's still stones left unturned? >> i feel until my feet have crossed over every inch of the state of florida or until she's found, there will bes unturned. there will never be a stone unturned until the day that i see her again or this family has closure one way or another and justice is served. >> matt, what else do you think is -- i know you always talked and said the orlando police department has done a great job. but you had said before you want more assistance and more help. do you still think you need more assistance to find out what really happened? >> erin, at this point, we're actually regrouping in that sense this week. what we need is a more organized effort, i think. we're going to be assisting opd and the surrounding law enforcement agencies with that effort. we're going to be gathering our support group to kind of work with them in further rans of finding michelle. essentially what will happen is this is a high probability area.
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we believe that she could be sheer. we'll join forces with opd and hopefully bring michelle home. >> and all right, well, thank you very much to both of you. i appreciate you taking the time. and we still all the viewers who have been involved with your story are all hoping that there will be a miracle and a nice outcome. so thanks to both of you. good to see you again. >> thank you. >> all right, well, a strange thing happened in south carolina when we were there. we spin a yarn about vodka and country music. we partook of both. all energy development comes with some risk,
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while we were in south carolina covering the primary run-up last week, we made a stop at a company called firefly vodka, way out on a barrier island in the middle of nowhere. you might have seen a story we did in the show about that. and while we were there, the man behind the company told us about an amazing thing that firefly vodka does for independent music acts. >> we did a lot of promotions for indy bands. so one of the ways we go to market is, we offer our rv, we pay for gas when they're on the road and then we offer our studio for use for grata. >> it's a wonderful thing. we appreciate it. >> you're welcome. >> that is right, the company
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gives the bands a free tour bus. they can drive around the country, play shows and it doesn't cost them anything, not even gas. literally all they have to do is park the rv, the giant billboard, really. see? it says firefly. they have to park it in front of the venue and mention flierfly vodka when they're on stage. it's sort of capitalism meets entrepreneurialism meets american freedom all in one. well, the band we met is a group called yarn. it's using the rv to play shows in south carolina, north carolina, georgia, and florida. and when we met the singer you saw talking a moment ago, he asked where we were from. and we said new york. and he said wow, we're from new york, too. it was a long drive, huh? and we stopped in our tracks. it made us realized that someone thought we would have driven? how amazing that would have been. we thought about how crazy and scheduled our lies are and how freeing a road trip really is.
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we just stood there talking about how amazing it would be to be young and in a band. okay, we're not either one of those things but we did do a road trip. we drove from charleston, south carolina, to atlanta for our election coverage. all kinds of small store, even some porn shops. the bottom line is yarn is doing what they want to do, how they want to do it. they stop when they want to stop. they go where they want to go. we thought we would play a little bit of yarn. by the way, it's an amazing band. they have a great song that you're going to listen to here. i'm waiting for the key line. but playing good music and living the real american dream is pretty amazing. ♪ diamond and wine this down has too many ♪ ♪ schenectady i've been waiting so long for you to comfort me ♪ >>

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