news. and more sex, drugs, and alcohol than just about anybody else with the rambling man himself. gregg allman has seen it all. now he's bringing a surprise. wife number seven to be. >> this timety am really in love. >> gregg allman, the primetime exclusive. and only in america, talk about blood money. an outrageous insult to a beloved president. this is "piers morgan tonight." good evening. my big story tonight the bain blame game. listen to this from last night. >> we found out when we got in a fight with mitt romney over this that it didn't work.

that people understand free enterprise. people realize sometimes you succeed, sometimes you fail. but they refuse to take a one-sided view of it. >> so he's attacking mitt romney or was cory booker right the first time? is it just nauseating? joining me now, a man who thought he was the perfect person to ask about private equity. donald trump. how are you? >> hello, piers. >> congratulations on a thrilling finale to "celebrity apprentice" and may i say arsenio was a top choice. >> he is. he's a great guy like you. he's a winner like you. we're proud of him. we know he was on your show recently. he is terrific and he's done really well. >> we'll come back to that later. i want to talk to you about this whole bain capital, mitt romney, barack obama row. i want to talk about the basis of this debate. whether the record at bain capital was predominantly a good one or a bad one.

>> it wasn't a good one. it was a great one. he did so well, actually, that he set records over there. that's what we need in this country. when you look at what every country is doing to us. we need somebody with this ability. his record was great. he did an amazing job. look at solyndra and some of the deals this country has been making over the last couple years. it's disgraceful. mitt romney should be in favor of what's going on. when he shows his record, it's a great record. and compare that with what's going on in this country, it's a different world. >> isn't one of the problems here that people like you and newt gingrich who are now racing to support mitt romney over this battle have in the past attacked him for his record at bain. >> well, i've been supporting him for a long time. i certainly just started over this. because this was just brought up. this is a new idea they have.

i mean, they have to stretch for ideas because the administration has been a disaster for the country. every country is ripping us. every country is ripping us like never before. it was interesting. i brought up the country of colombia. partners. partners like this we don't need enemies. colombia, i'm not knocking them. their representatives did a better job than ours. but they made $4 billion on us. china's going to make $350 billion. so we need somebody who knows about business, about negotiating, about what's happening. otherwise we're not going to have a country left. >> let me play you two clips. one is from president obama on what he says is the crux of this debate. >> if your main argument for how to grow the economy is i knew how to make a lot of money for investors, then you're missing

what this job is about. >> he's clearly setting his whole stall here on what he reckons romney was doing at bain. and i want to play you a clip from an interview you gave to cnn's candy crowley last year march 2011. >> mitt romney is a basically small business guy if you really think about it. he was a hedge fund. he was a fund guy. he walked away with some money from a very good company he didn't create. he worked there. he didn't create. >> did create companies. >> yeah, well. by companies he closed companies. he'd get rid of jobs. okay? >> now, see, that donald is what barack obama is saying. yes mitt romney may have made profits for his investors but he closed down companies and cost a lot of americans their jobs. and the private equity game can be brutal in that respect.

therefore for mitt romney to use it for one of the better trump over obama is wrong. >> when candy asked me that question which is bigger in terms of a business. that was her question. i think it was a fair question. also at that time, i didn't know too much about mitt romney. i didn't know him. i had never met him. as i got to know him, i realize he's a terrific guy. he's done a terrific job. i started looking into deals that he's done. they have been amazing deals. you look at staples and so many other companies that have been created. without him they wouldn't have been created. i got to know a lot about him. so much so i decided i like this guy. i can see myself endorsing him because i'd rather have it that way. i think he'll do terrifically. his question is not the question you're asking. it was a different question. >> it all comes down to the issue of private equity.

when you have america in the state it's in at the moment, $13 trillion in debt and people looking at congress to blame for this. look at me. i made a load of money for investors if at the same time by doing so not in every case but quite a few he had to shut companies down, lay people off, cost america jobs. i know it's not as simple as that. is it the right battle ground for mitt romney, you think? >> we're not 13 or 14 trillion in debt, we're $16 trillion in debt and going up rapidly. this is an exploding time bomb. i think this is a fair question to ask. look at some of the deals that have been made and they've been terrible deals. we're talking about the solar panels, so many other things. we're talking about not letting us get the energy that's right under our feet.

we can't take it out and get it. so we're making opec richer than they are. we need somebody who has great compassion which mitt romney has. socially he has great compassion. he's also a great businessman. that's what we need. >> in a presidential battle like this, we saw cory booker get in trouble by appearing to disagree with president obama by saying it was nauseating he felt to attack mitt romney over bain. putting that to one side, people are saying this is too vicious. you've always believed in the rough and tumble of opposition of opponents, beating people and so on. do you think it's too vicious or do you think this is part and parcel of american political life? >> first of all, i know cory booker. he's a terrific guy. he's doing a good job in newark. it's not an easy job. he is doing a good job. what he said the first time was 100% correct.

then, of course, i can imagine the wrath came down upon him and when it came down, he changed his tune quite a bit. but he's a good man. what he said the first time was true. and i'm sure he would tell you that if you were just sitting there having a beer together. that's one of those things. but cory booker is -- what he said was really accurate. the fact is if you're going to be getting nasty, then the other side has to get nasty. and if you remember john mccain who's a wonderful man, john mccain did not want to go all the way. he did not want to get -- they left a lot of things out. i can name them, but what's the purpose of naming them? obama is attacking mitt romney very hard. and in the case of, i think and many people think, very unfairly. i think the republicans have to fight fire with fire. i've always felt that. we can't be nice like we were four years ago and expect this to happen. it's going to be a tough race. it's going to be a close race. i think mitt romney's going to

be an amazing candidate. i think not only an amazing candidate but an amazing president. but to become president, i think you have to fight the fire with fire. they're being very tough on him. and i see we're already -- the republicans are pulling back. they don't want to throw all their punches. i think you have to throw all your punches. those punches are going to be thrown at you. and piers, i think you know that better than anybody. >> yeah. certainly know what you're getting at. i think the issue you're talking about which you don't really want to name, but i'm guessing is the issue of reverend wright who of course was so closely aligned to president obama. now, are you saying that it would be fair game to go after president obama based on his association with that man? >> well, a book was just written by a great writer named ed kline. and the book strongly says and in fact it's not even the book because i heard the tapes and the tapes were played all over the television where essentially reverend wright is calling

president obama a liar. now, are the republicans going to use that tape or not going to use it? you tell me. but they're calling him a liar. so it'll be interesting to see what happens. i think it's going to be a nasty campaign. but if it's going to be nasty, it's got to be nasty on both sides not just one. >> the democrats have already said that it wouldn't be fair to go after mitt romney for his religion, his faith, he's a mormon. but clearly if reverend wright comes into play and is deemed to be fair game, wouldn't it be also fair game to go after mitt romney for his religion? >> i think the democrats will use whatever they can use regardless of whether or not reverend wright is brought up. if you look at the tapes they're devastating for the president. reverend wright is an angry man. he's extremely angry at the president. he thinks he was dumped. and he says things that are very, very strong. i see nothing wrong using it.

it's not even old news. it's new news. i see nothing wrong with using it. if everybody in the ideal world sat back and debated the real issues, that's one thing. a lot of things will be brought up which are going to be very, very unfair. if they're going to be unfair on one side, then the republicans have to act accordingly. but reverend wright is on tape saying lots of interesting and very bad things. i see nothing wrong with the republicans using that. >> let's take a short break, donald. come back and talk more about politics. want to know what you think about the potential aspect of vice president trump. and also why you think sacha baron cohen is a talentless dud. when you have diabetes...

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of his money. >> david letterman poking fun at mitt romney. back with me now, donald trump. when people mock mitt romney for being rich like that, you're obviously a rich man. do you think it's a fairly silly way of attacking him? >> no i think it's cute and fun. everyone knows it's fun. you know, mitt romney, if you look at his record not only was great at bain, but he saved the olympics. they put him in, he didn't just go in there. he went in to save it. the olympics were going to be a disaster and they turned out to be a tremendous success. and he went in there and did an amazing job. because that was really getting close to be being a catastrophic situation. mitt romney has been an amazing guy when it comes to not only companies but even the olympics. that was one of his great achievements. >> joe biden today says, i'm

just reading this now, working in private equity no more qualifies you to be president than being a plumber. just because he could run a private equity firm doesn't qualify him to be president. what do you think of that argument? >> well, look. we have a president that's in there right now that had very little experience. he was a street organizer in chicago. there are those who say he was controlled by mayor daley. what sophisticated deal maker would without a wink say okay, i'm going over to europe to get the olympics and then come in fourth place? as the president of the united states. what you say is if you tell me we're getting the olympics, i will go. but i'm not going to embarrass myself by going. well, i assume he didn't get that little assurance. now, the reason he did it was because he was probably right -- i don't want to say in the

pocket of because that's not respectful, but he comes out of the whole daley situation. and when mayor daley was the mayor of chicago, i guess he said i want you to go over and get us the olympics. but honestly, what president -- we're talking about a president. we're not talking about somebody else. will go over there, make the plea for the olympics and come in third or fourth place? it was an embarrassment and i think it was terrible frankly. so when joe biden talks about, you know, somebody doesn't have the experience, in theory he shouldn't have the experience because he was in college and he got caught plagiarizing. that's copying somebody's papers. we should say he shouldn't be vice president. probably shouldn't have been allowed to continue in school. >> let me ask you a couple of quick questions, donald, while you're so fired up in this wonderful mood. first of all, is there any prospect or chance of you

considering being vice president if mitt romney asked you what would you say? >> so many people have asked me that question lately. i did do great in the polls. i loved doing it. i had a lot of fun. the reason i got out was because i started to like him and i thought he could do a great job. but i would do anything i could to help the country. the country is in serious trouble. i would do anything i could to help the country. we are being laughed at by the world. i go to other nations and i look at their airports then i come home to new york and new jersey and i look at airports that are falling down. you go to lax in los angeles, we're like third world country right now. so i would do anything i could to help the country. >> including saying yes to v.p. if he asked you? >> well, i don't think he's going to ask me, but certainly i have a very strong base of people that do like what i say. i don't know if they like me, but i think they respect me

which is much more important. and i think they like what i'm saying. this country has tremendous potential. and if we use that potential, if we know what we're doing, we can be bigger and better than before. the way we're going right now we're going to be the opposite. we're going to be over. >> have you been asked to speak at the republican convention this summer and if so will you say yes if you are? >> well, a lot of people have been asking me whether or not i'd be interested in doing it. i hadn't thought in terms of speaking at the republican convention, but i have been helpful to mitt. i was one of his early endorsements at a critical stage. i think he's a terrific guy. i'm honored by it. i think his wife is a fantastic woman. and if somebody asked me, i guess it's certainly something i would consider. i'm not a politician. i frankly will be speaking at the north carolina republican convention on june 1st and they've asked me to do that. i just made a big investment in north carolina, bought a big job

in north carolina that's terrific formerly known as the point. now it's trump national. and i look forward to being there. but if they ask me, look, i want to do whatever's good for the republican party, whatever's good for mitt romney. i think he will be a great president. >> there was a tweet today that intrigued me. glad to see sacha baron cohen's movie is not only a dud but not good at the box office. he is talentless. what do you have against him? >> i don't like what he did to ryan seacrest. he dumped all sorts of ashes and everything during the academy awards and he got publicity. i thought the security guards were totally incompetent. the guy standing there. this big dumb ox. he's standing there. oh, please, yould you please move forward. believe me, if that happened to me, it wouldn't be so nice. we all go down fighting because

that shouldn't have happened. and i thought that was a disgrace and i'm just not a fan of his. i don't think he's funny. i don't think he's talented. when he did that to ryan seacrest who is a great guy, i wish the security people took proper action which would have been laying him out all over the floor. that would have been very appropriate. >> finally, are you recruiting for the next "celebrity apprentice?" >> yes. we have a lot of people wanting on. frankly we have probably five for every slot we have. everybody wants to be in. the first year it wasn't that easy. people didn't want to be fired. whether it's any of them, their brands have really been helped. we had a big finale a couple days ago. i'd say we have a winner this year. arsenio hall was a good winner. we do have a lot of people that want on.

we're going to have surprises. >> i think you chose well. clay is a great contestant. he's a good guy. thanks for joining me. >> thank you very much, piers. coming up, gregg allman is no angel. tonight he tells all. the marriages, the music, the drugs. how he's still rocking after all these years. plus a surprise announcement. ♪ we're at the prime time steak house in houston

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when you think sex drugs and rock and roll, your mind often moves to gregg allman. he burst on the scene in the late '60s and never left. in his new book is bares all. joining me now is rock and roll hall of famer gregg allman. how are you? >> i'm doing just fine. >> does it feel good to be alive? >> just great. >> a fantastic ending to a book you've got here. i must have said this a million times but if i died today i've

had me a blast. if i fell over dead right now, i led some kind of life. i don't know if i'd do it again. if somebody offered me a second round, i think i'd have to pass on it. i love that. in other words, you don't regret it but don't want to go through it over again. >> right. >> is that how you feel? >> that's the way i feel. >> when you wrote the book, it's incredibly detailed. the one thing that is a consistent theme to your life is chaos, tragedy, lots of change, lots of things that would crush ordinary people. yet you keep going. >> yeah. well, i mean -- there is so much good times that goes along with all of this. we had some great fun.

now, don't picture my life as being chaos. maybe at times, you know. just like everybody else's. like growing up and all that stuff. >> you say that. but when i was reading it, you start to notice just a lot of terrible things happen to you. you obviously famously and sadly lost your brother in a car crash. then you lose another band member in almost the same circumstances in almost the same place. your father was killed in a car jacking. two girlfriends of yours committed suicide after you broke up with them. you had, as i said, five marriages. six marriages in fact. these aren't normal events in somebody's life. it's not a normal life, is it? some would say you've been hit by a lot of blows. >> yeah.

well, i've had my share. that's for sure. >> you say at the end i'll go to my grave, my brother will greet me saying nice work little brother. you did all right. >> yeah. >> tell me about your brother. >> he was a year and 18 days older than myself. and he -- i bought this guitar when i was ten years old. and he had some kind of big toy, anyway, he broke it. anyway, one day on a rainy sunday he's sitting there watching me. i'm, you know, tinkering around with that guitar. he said what you got there, little brother? i said that is -- this is

capital m, capital y guitar. and the fights began. so bad that ma had to go out and get us another one. >> was your dream the pair of you to become huge rock stars? or was it just to have fun making music. >> just to have fun making music. >> everything came as an accidental side effect of that love for music? >> yeah. yeah. >> do you have any regrets? when you finished the book did you sit back and go i wish i hadn't done that. >> drugs. >> you wish you never got involved with that? >> drugs and alcohol. nope. they just a lie, man. >> what do they do to you, do you think? >> they make your crazy.

what they do is they catch you off -- they cut your mind off from any hassles or any real bad stuff going on. that's what they do at first. >> do you still get as much fun from playing music as you always did? >> absolutely. >> is it the one constant in your life? >> yes, sir. >> what does it do for you when it's just you and the music? >> well, i've gone on stage before three times with an abscessed tooth, and i got there and set down behind my ax and started playing. forgot all about it. >> don't even feel the pain of an abscessed tooth? >> no. >> really? i want to come back and talk to you about women.

my god, you've had a lot of them. >> where does it say that? >> in your book. >> does it? >> yeah. including cher. you married cher. ♪ [ male announcer ] knowing your customers

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♪ ♪ i'm no angel back now with gregg allman. you've been married six times and just revealed to me one of the glamorous ladies over there is your fiance. you're getting married for the seventh time. >> well, yes. >> have i got a scoop on my hands? >> a scoop on your hands? >> yeah. >> jon. -- i don't know. >> an exclusive? does anybody else know this? >> two, three people. >> and me. that's great. rely on me to keep this quiet. there she is.

hello. you've done very well if you don't mind me say. how old is your fiance? >> she is 24. >> 24. and how does she feel about becoming wife number seven? >> that's not what she's becoming. she's becoming wife number one. >> really? >> yeah. i don't have a wife. haven't had one for years. >> what made you take the plunge again? >> well, because this time i am really in love. >> like you've never been before? >> yes. >> really? i'm not questioning you, i'm curious. it's fascinating. how many times do you think you've been properly in love? >> one sided, i think twice. >> you were only in love with two of your six wives?

>> yeah. i didn't -- wasn't -- i didn't reciprocate. >> you said of cher who you married in the '70s, she smelled what i imagined a mermaid would smell. i've never smelled it since. i'll never forget it. have you ever smelled a mermaid? do you have anything to base this on? i'm assuming that was a compliment. >> that would be a scoop. >> you were in love with cher weren't you? >> i would say yes i was. >> have you said in touch with her? >> from time to time, yes. >> a good friend? >> yeah. >> when you married cher, you became a rock couple whether you liked it or not. was that a hideous experience? >> it was a hideous experience. >> because the whole world wants

a piece of you. >> oh, man. i could go out and do my thing. a couple people say hey, i love your music. she could go out, she caught more hell than i did. but the both of us go out, forget about it. i mean, they would spot us. like the black and white scotch commercial. >> do you think you've been a good husband over the years? how much of it was your fault that you kept having broken marriages, do you think? >> i don't know. could we move on to something else? >> it's fascinating. i had no idea you were getting married again or that your

fiance would be in the room or that she's young and glamorous. i think it's touching you found true love. >> i do too. >> how did you propose? >> on my knee. >> did you really? you got down on bended knee? >> i did. >> do you remember your exact words? >> yes. i asked her. i said her sweet little name -- >> what is her name? >> shannon. and i said would you marry me. will you marry me. and she said yeah. >> when are you getting married? >> i don't know. i don't know. that remains to be seen. i said in the last three years i had quite a few surgeries and

i'm still kind of healing up from all that, you know. i probably should be home right now. >> you might be going to lie down after this. but it's very romantic, i think. >> been waking me up every morning at 6:00. >> this is a quote from the book. every woman i've had a relationship has loved me for what they thought i was. when the sound goes off you're left with this dude and that's me. obviously that's the person they didn't get to know. do you think shannon knows the real dude? >> absolutely. absolutely. >> but she wasn't even born when you had your biggest hits. do you think that is a good thing? >> i think it's totally irrelevant. >> you sing to her? >> yeah. >> do you? that right, shannon?

i'm very pleased for you. it's a happy ending that i didn't know existed. i feel excited for you, gregg. it's a fascinating book. it's a riveting read. you've had a hell of a life. and the fact you're going to end up with shannon, wife number seven, is a great testament to your staying power. how would you like to be remembered? >> i would like to be remembered as a -- somebody who could rock your soul or make your cry with a song. and somebody who's kind, who loved to laugh, and loved his god. >> good for you. that's a pretty good thing. it's been a real pleasure.

keep on rocking. and loving. gregg allman. fascinating chap. next, a former abc news president speaks out on keeping america great. >> announcer: this is the day. the day that we say to the world of identity thieves "enough." we're lifelock, and we believe you have the right to live free from the fear of identity theft. our pledge to you? as long as there are identity thieves, we'll be there. we're lifelock. and we offer the most comprehensive identity theft protection ever created. lifelock: relentlessly protecting your identity. call 1-800-lifelock or go to lifelock.com today. what makes a sleep number store different? you walk into a conventional mattress store, it's really not about you.

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tonight keeping america great with a man with a front row seat to history. he was president of abc news. scenes story of the first time in a candid new book. david westin joins me now. i wrote a newspaper for the period you ran abc news. it was an extraordinary period for huge news stories. whether it was 9/11 or princess diana's death or the iraq war. it kept coming. >> including on this side of the atlantic impeaching a president. it was extraordinary.

>> as you see the fascinating survey out. 77% of people said the media tend to favor one side in america. compared with 53% in 1985. as you see the way the debate's gone with the media now. with fox dominant on the right, msnbc to the right. nbc like many of the networks down the middle impartial. which is what you from the book have claimed to be. but you see it inevitably moving more the way of the british media i grew up in with everybody ends up with a side. or do you think the networks can still stay strong down the middle? >> i don't think it inevidently has to go into more partisanship. what constitutes the media became vastly greater. when i started both msnbc and fox news were two months old.

and we didn't have a website. and over time as i talked about in the book, that expanded. you can find strong partisan opinion. but i believe today there is still a role and it's being played by organizes to take the center. >> the it extensively unhealthy to have partisan cable networks? >> i think there's nothing wrong with opinion journalism. there's nothing wrong with adequacy journalism. we have editorial pages in our newspapers. and that's perfectly healthy. i think the challenge comes when the line gets blurred. when people are not saying yes, i'm giving you my opinion, rather than telling you what i think is the truth. >> you mean where news is presented in the opinionated manner? >> absolutely. i think we owe it to the audience to tell them when it's true, or even worse when we think they want it to be true. that's the danger. but i also think despite the

fact that there's roles for opinion journalism, there's a role for some organizations who are trying to get it right. >> just report the news. >> yes. >> without opinion. >> yes, exactly right. >> in all the time that you worked at abc, did you see the relationship between the media and politicians in particular break down further as time went on? it had become more fractious? >> well, it changed fundamentally. there were various incidents that happened. during the monica lewinsky time it was very fractious. the one time we got it right, that was a breakdown certainly. >> on that point, that's interesting. when i read that i was struck by the fact that today with the internet is with all the bloggers as they are, with the immediacy so much faster even than 2000, these mistakes will keep coming. i mean, only today there was a rumor that gorbachev had died. it was started by a fake account for the swedish prime minister. >> yes.

>> and it was reported by a number of journalists that isaw on both sides of the atlantic without checking and i thought, we're entering a dangerous period where twitter and social media, good experienced journalists are cutting corners in their race to break something. >> two things. one, you're absolutely right. you can get a rumor started that way and even mainstream organizations can pick it up. the gorbachev thing happened today. and we had the governor of south carolina who was a rumor from a fictitious outlet saying she was to be indicted. totally false. and politicians use this. they can now go directly to the people through facebook, through social media, through twitter. >> we saw the cory booker, interesting we have been debating that on the show tonight. the interesting thing about him was the way he treed to defend himself through twitter. which wouldn't have happened five years ago. politicians who are smart are trying to control their own

message. i'm not sure how successful they can be though. if you do what he did on "meet the press." >> this is my personal opinion now, i'm not responsible for covering the things, my reaction to the cory booker issue was he can support president obama and not agree with him on every single issue. >> what's wrong? he reined back on what he said. i agree with president obama on 90% of the things he says, but i on this point i don't on this. >> it's a sad point if someone has the agree on 100% of everything. >> why did he feel he had to? >> because i think he felt a backlash. there's a lot of reporting if the obama campaign called up and put the pressure on. >> very quickly, give me your highest moment, the best moment you had and the lowest. >> well, probably the most fun in terms -- was the millennium.

remember peter jennings anchored for 24 hours straight. we were on the air for every single time period. it was a huge success, but more than that -- >> the internet didn't collapse. >> no, that's right. y2k. >> everyone assumed it would happen. >> we had jimmy walker in new zealand with an atm card who put it in at 12:01 to see if it would collapse. >> it was the biggest nonstory. >> and we covered it extensively is. >> what was the low story? >> well, the death of peter jennings was a terrible moment and then the wounding of bob woodruff and his cameramen was terrible. and my biggest regret was not covering the weapons of mass destructions more extensively. peter jennings was more skeptical and i wish we had listened to him more on that. >> he was a great man and a brilliant broadcaster.

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well, tonight only in america, for sale and for shame. at first i couldn't believe it, but it's true. an auction site is put up a vial of ronald reagan's blood to the highest bidder. this contains a sample of the late great president's blood. it was drawn shortly after the assassination attempt on his life in 1981. the son of a deceased lab worker who kept it didn't want to donate it to the reagan library. he said would have reagan would have appreciated his capitalistic endeavors. the seller, his name has not been released. i'm sure he'd want me to sell it, not donate it. of course he would. there's nothing ronald reagan would like more than the gutter snipe trying to profit from the blood spilled on one of the worst days of his life. and he says it specializes in world-class collectibles. not much world class about this

offering. it's a shameful invasion of privacy. and if they want to be world class, it should give it to the reagan family or the foundation which has called this a craven act. but bidding of the blood which is hovering around $12,000 ends on thursday. let me just say this. you would literally have the blood of great american on your hands. so maybe think again. that's all for us tonight. "ac 360" starts now. keeping them honest, with a pastor preaching about the plan to eliminate all gays and lesbians. he is laying out a detailed plan to watch them die. the pastor's name is charles worley. that is rim right there. now, according to the website a 1,200 seat church about a half hour's drive outside of charlotte, north carolina. the sign out front says the home