we're back with actor eric roberts and peter sprigs.north carolina study says mothers who spank their children are three times more likely to use harsher forms of punishment than those whose children were not spanked. it is a slippery slope, peter, whether you like to admit that or not, it happens. >> well, but studies, surveys of parental behavior show about 90% of all american parents have used spanking on their children. only about 1% of parents have actually abused their children. so -- >> they're not going admit it. >> not many people go down that slippery slope. >> peter, you're being naive if you think people are going to come out and say i beat the crap out of my kid. they're not going to say it. >> no. i'm talking about the -- in fact, in sweden after they banned spanking the rates of child abuse went up and the rates of teen violence went up. >> i would have to see those numbers, peter. i don't know that that's probably true. >> also, that's because people are not treated for the craziness they have. maybe there are other ways

joining me is eric roberts, star and actor in the new series on star "crash." and supporter of the national child project. why are you forspanking a child, peter? >> peernts need so have an array of disciplinary tools to them. spanking should not been the first resort, it should be a tool. it can be effective to reinfo e reinforcing some tools, particularly when a child is before defiant. most people know the difference between spanking and abuse and are able to draw that line. and ordinary spanking is not harm to feel children. it can be useful to parents. >> what do you think about that? >> i'm devastated by his enjoyment of that. here's what it would be like. it's like someone is 15 feet ta tall, weighting over 70 pounds hit you for any reason. that's how much bigger you are than a child. you're not supposed to hit an adult. >> if a child said, you're a whore, they would get swatted. >> why is hat okay? >> parent is in a position of authority. the same way it's okay for the police to use force in ways that an ordinary civilian is not. i think kids understand

> lenny, we've heard from republicans criticism about the pace of this, robert gibbs responding to criticism from congressman ericca inform tor about the pace of the strategy. i want to get your thoughts on the other side of this. >> i don't recall congressman kasm ntor saying that when david mckiernan's request said on the desk of the previous commander in chief, i don't remember him going to a nop on television saying that that commander in chief was endangering the lives of men and women in afghanistan. >> lenny, what do you think of the pace? is the president taking his time? is that appropriate? >> it's appropriate to the degree that all americans get a sense from this white house that there is an urgency there and i think there are some questions about delays on the part of this president, considering that mccrystal's recommendations have been well known for some time. so, look, here is where americans can agree. one, the situation in afghanistan is worsening. two, americans don't want a decision at a time of war to be made by politicians worried about re-elections. the question for this president is, will

roberts. education secretary arne duncan and the u.s. attorney general eric holder are in chicago. they're in talks with mayor daley and community leaders on ways to stop violence against school kids. that visit prompted by the death of 16 year old derrion albert, the honor student found beaten to death walking to a bus step. albert's death was a tragic and sad occasion. the obama administration plans to tackle the problem of school violence head-on. >> i came here not out of sadness but with hope and compassion for our children. i came here because i believe in chicago's capacity to deal with this openly, honestly and directly. this is my home. this is the city i grew up in. where i played ball. i tutored children at church on the south side basement. my friends are here. my family is here. i learned everything i know in these communities and in these schools. i learned about character. this is a city that never gives up when it is challenged. this is a city that always unites in the face of adversity. a city that produced great leaders and thinkers, a great mayor and america's fi

robert novak. the leak came after her husband criticized the bush administration and the run-up to the invasion of iraq. scooter libby was eventually convicted of perjury in the case. >>> attorney general eric holder says a lawsuit over warrantless wiretapping is threatening to expose ongoing intelligence work. holder wants the lawsuit thrown out. it's the first time the white house has tried to envoke the states secrets privilege. the bush administration envoked the privilege to get numerous lawsuits thrown out following the september 11 attacks. >>> talks between afghan president hamid karzai and the man challenging him for his job have broken down. christiane amanpour who appears on the sister network cnn has learned that karzai's opponent, abdullah abdullah will likely boycott november 7's presidential runoff. the former u.s. ambassador to afghanistan predicts that the country will soon have some sort of power-sharing deal between karzai and abdullah. >>> california officials say that they are going to try to reopen the san francisco-oakland bay bridge on monday. but they say they can't guarantee it, even though they'll be working the whole weekend to repair it. the bridge is closed on