tv   The Situation Room With Wolf Blitzer  CNN  June 13, 2011 2:00pm-2:56pm PDT

forward, looking ahead, president obama heading to puerto rico. it will be the first official visit by a sitting president since president kennedy's visit back in 1961. also, the u.s. army turns 236 years old, so the pentagon is having a cake-cutting ceremony. happy birthday to the u.s. army. if you did not get the army a president, no worries, it's world blood donor day. do a good deed and donate. let's go to wolf blitzer live in new hampshire. take it away. just three hours from now, cnn's first republican presidential debate. should anthony weiner be forced to resign?

and billions and billions of dollars air lifted by u.s. officials to iraq go missing. just ahead -- the disturbing details of what authorities now believe happened to all that money. i'm wolf blitzer. you're in "the situation room." we're live here in manchester, new hampshire where last-minute preparations are now under way for cnn's first republican presidential debate. less than three hours from now, six run candidates and one potential white house hopeful will formally square off. here are the contenders, the former massachusetts governor mitt romney. he's considered the early front runner this race. former minnesota governor tim pawlenty who's expected to hit romney hard on his controversial health care plan. newt gingri newt gingrich whose stunning

campaign implosion threw his entire candidacy into question. ron paul, making his third presidentialed by. minnesota congressman michelle bachmann makes her debut tonight. she has yet to formally announce but all signs are pointing to a presidential run. former pennsylvania senator rick santorum among the least known of the seven. he's popular among social conservatives, opposing abortion and same-sex marriage. and herman cain is beginning to gain some traction. guys, thanks very much. i want you to listen to what tim pawlenty, the former minnesota governor said about mitt romney yesterday on tv. listen to this. >> you don't have to take my

word for it. president obama said he drafted his obamacare after romney care. so now we have obamneycare. what i don't understand is they both continue to defend it. >> it wasn't exactly a slam, but for tim pawlenty, it was a biting comment. >> yeah. i think it was a slam. 59 mitt romney. it's clear that pawlenty has made a decision he's going to take on romney and try to make this a two-man race. i'm not so sure that's a great idea. i think it's a little early on to try to do that. right now, pawlenty is everybody's second choice. maybe he ought to remain that for a while. he has to do it without being disliked. so we'll see how he does tonight. >> but the knock on pawlenty is he's very vanilla or doesn't stand out in a crowd.

he's in a position where he's thrown out this catchy word. he doesn't have to be on the attack. he just simply needs to respond now. many republicans believe the key problem for the romney candidacy if he's the nominee is health care. their argument is bring it out now, let the voters know what the issue is. >> romney refuses to back away from his health care reform legislation that he got into law in massachusetts. >> it insluds a mandate, just like the federal program. >> romney's history from the last campaign is as a flip flopper. so there's only so much backtracking he could do before that history starts repeating itself, right? so in terms of health care reform, he had a decision to make and he said okay, i stood by my plan, but only for the state of massachusetts. i would not have done it on a federal level.

and his team knows this is coming up. >> i'm always curious to see if these republicans adhere to the old ronald reagan adage, thou shall not speak ill of a fellow republican. they will all speak ill of the president of the united states. >> that's the easy target. they'll probably be a little softer on each other than they will months from now. they will not be soft on barack obama. they will be united in feeling that he has failed as mitt romn romney said. >> newt gingrich has an enormous amount riding tonight. his campaign imploded over the past few weeks, especially last week when 20 of his top officials simply quit in frustration of what he was doing. so he has to really shine tonight. >> this is gingrich's natural forum.

what he has to convey, it's not just all show. i can run a machine, i can run a campaign, i can get people to work for me and stick with it. and that's a hard thing to do in a debate format. they want to show everybody in the audience how great they can be. and ho do you convey, i can lead an organization when you're on a stage doing a show? >> the challenge for newt gingrich is to have people understand him. and understand what he's saying. he's used to being the philosopher king. he has to have a clear and concise message with clear and concise ideas. and that really isn't his strong suit. i think it will be interesting to see if he can speak directly to the american people and say these are the things we need to do. >> later tonight, robert gibbs, the former white house press secretary, now a key official in the obama reelection campaign, he's come here to new hampshire

to make the democratic position well known against these republicans. a lot of republicans here, there will be some democrats as well. a lot of calls for anthony weiner to resign amid the sex scandal. new scantily clothed pictures of the congressman. they were reportedly sent to one woman. our senior correspondent is going through all of this. what's the latest, dana? >> the latest today is that the white house has hagued in for the first time and a the president feel s weiner's behavior was inappropriate and that his dishonesty was inappropriate. he did not answer the question whether or not he should resign. leaders here in congress, the fellow democratic leaders are

not doing that. they dropped a the hammer on him over the weekend. nancy pelosi, the dnc chairman also member of congress in a coordinated message saying publicly, you've got to step down. but still a democratic source i spoke to after that said even then, weiner was saying he's on the fence about whether or not he's going to resign we've been reporting since last week that he was ready to talk to his wife about whether or not that's the right thing to do. he says he wants to look his wife in the eye before he decides whether or not to resign because he has hurt her so much already. his wife works for and is traveling with hillary clinton. they've been traveling abroad. we should also note that of course anthony weiner over the weekend got on a plane and checked himself into a treatment center. we don't know where that is or

what he's being treated for. a lot of his constituents down want him to resign. what can the house democratic leader do if he decides he's staying? >> there's not a lot they can do. nancy pelosi has never called for one of her fellow democrats to resign before. they hoped that that would do the trick. what they can do is make life hard for him here and take some of his power away. they could potentially strip him of his committees. he sits on the powerful energy and commerce committee. they could potentially have a vote to kick him out of the democratic caucus. leaders are going to meet here in about 20 minutes and are no doubt going to be discussing this. there will also be the first meeting in over a meeting.

>> this has to be taking a toll on the congressman. >> i spoke to several people who have spoken to hum over the last week and weekend. and i have been told that he's in a sense of, quote, despair. another source i talked to said he's turbulent. very, very emotional. i'm told he really can't keep it together when he has conversations with his colleagues and with his friends. as you can imagine, he's in a very tough spot and that, you know in the words of another source, i he's kind of an emotional wreck right now. >> thanks. appreciate it have much. coming up, the president on the ailing economy. >> i will not be satisfied until everyone who has a good job that offers security has a good job that offers security.

is so just how strulnerable is the president with voters when it comes to issues number one? plus, escalating bloodshed and brutality in syria. one man's desperate struggle to help countless civilians flee the violence. [ male announcer ] millions of men 45 and older just don't feel like they used to. are you one of them? remember when you had more energy for 18 holes with your buddies. more passion for the one ya love. more fun with your family and friends. it could be a treatable condition called low testosterone or low t. come on, stop living in the shadows. have already declared they are in. they are going to challenge president obama. a few others have indicated they may get in in the coming weeks. if unemployment doesn't come down and people don't start feeling a little more optimistic about their future, the gop's biggest challenge is going to be avoid snatching defeat from the jaws of victory. tonight seven republican presidential hopefuls will get it on in the grand it state of new hampshire live on cnn

beginning at 8:00. we're likely to hear a lot the sad state of the economy, how president obama's failed to create jobs, why the country is so deep in debt and how each of these men and women thinks they can change things for the better. they will be promises of no new taxes and steep cuts in government spending. mitt romney, who has emerged as the early front-runner in the field, will no doubt have to defend attacks over the universal health care law passed in massachusetts when he was governor of the state and newt gingrich will have to try to convince his supporters that he's serious about running a campaign. most of his staff abruptly up and quit late last week. it's just the second in a series of debates scheduled for republican candidates. the characters likely to change over the coming months. jon huntsman, sarah palin, rudy giuliani, rick perry, some of the possible additions in the coming weeks, but the issues, those will likely remain pretty much the same. so here's the question. what do you want to hear from republicans at tonight's presidential debate? go to cnn.com/caffertyfile and

post a comment on my blog. wolf, i know you're excited for this. >> i certainly am. i love politics, always excited to watch these debates. >> i know you are. >> aren't you, jack? >> oh, yeah, i'm on the edge of my canvas chair here. >> i know you are. i know. all right. let's -- we'll get crazy getting excited. thank you. more on the debate coming up, but meanwhile there are calls now for congressman anthony weiner to resign, and they are coming in from the highest levels of his -- after his so-called sexting scandal continues to grow. a democratic source who spoke to weiner tells cnn the new york lawmaker is, quote, on the fence of stepping down, also saying that the congressman is in a state of despair. cnn's mary s s is working this story for us in new york. what's the latest there, especially in his district, which is -- which includes brooklyn and queens? >> well, wolf, you know, while weiner can't be forced to leave unless he's broken the law, the people who put him in office are

split over his fate. there are many new yorkers who think he can survive this, but even if he does, there's no guarantee his congressional seat will even exist in the next election. two days after democratic congressman anti-any weiner said he was going to an undisclosed location to seek treatment the white house weighed in for the first time on the scandal. white house spokesman jay carney calling it a distraction. as for the voters of his district -- >> hey, ho, weiner's got to go. >> they are divided. >> we support weiner. >> reporter: should weiner resign, there would be a special election much like the one recently held in new york's 26th district. that election was called after republican congressman chris lee resigned in february after e-mailing shirtless photos of himself to a woman on

craigslist. with weiner's political career in limbo there's talk his district could be eliminated in 2012. can that district realistically be eliminated? >> yes, it can. >> reporter: veteran new york political reporter errol louis says weiner's district has come up because new york is schedule to lose two seats, one republican and one democratic seat. >> the democrats tend to be down here in and around the city and if you were to look at any one he has a big target on his back and i think he knows that. >> reporter: whether weiner's district is left is something left to the state legislature, likely next spring, but democratic strategist says the process relies on relationships with state lawmakers, and it's not out of the realm of possibility that weiner's district could be cut. >> it's possible that the district may be eliminated and carved up into pieces and making things easier in reapportionment or may not be, but thee problem that anthony weiner faces about reapportionment is the same

problem he has in his present crisis. he just doesn't have a lot of friends. >> reporter: the decision on redistricting is by no means a done deal, faces many steps and hurdles and the process is a while away but the fact there's political calculations already being made gives you a sense of the gravity of the situation. wolf? >> mary, have any of his colleagues in new york actually weighed in? >> reporter: you know, besides congressman steve israel who weighed in on saturday asking that weiner resign, there really hasn't been a lot of talk among new york lawmakers, and that includes new york senator chuck schumer, a democrat of new york and anthony weiner had one time worked for him. schumer is seen as his mentor. schumer said he was heartbroken over this, but he has stopped short of calling for his resignation. >> yeah, new york congressman steve israel from long island has called for his resignation, joining nancy pelosi and other democratic leaders. all right. the pressure mounting on

congressman weiner. thanks, mary. thanks very much. meanwhile, important new developments in that massive arizona wildfire, the second largest on record in state history. we'll have the latest. plus a home improvement project gone very wrong, and all of it caught on tape. stick around. you're in "the situation room." ♪ ♪ introducing purina one beyond a new food for your cat or dog.

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look at this. just moments ago mitt romney and his wife, they arrived here on the beautiful campus of st. anselm university in manchester, new hampshire, getting ready for tonight's debate. about an hour and a half away from the debate. not dressed. i assume somebody brought a suit

and tie for him. he'll go out to the podium with six other candidates and the debate will last for two hours. stand by for extensive coverage. more on this coming up. a little preview from robert gibbs, the former white house press secretary. he's a democrat and here as well. won't be debating, but he's got some thoughts about what's going on. our live interview with robert gibbs coming up. meanwhile, stunning news about the so-called gay blogger said to have been kidnapped in syria. lisa sylvester is monitoring that and some of the other top stories in "the situation room" right now. what's going on here, lisa? >> reporter: hi, wolf. well, a blog that drew worldwide attention has now been revealed as a hoax. perpetrated by this man, an american scholar living in scotland. tom mcmaster led readers to believe that the blog belonged to a young lesbian in syria and entries claiming she was abducted sparked an online campaign demanding her release. mcmaster said he was trying to draw attention to the dire situation in syria.

cnn was among the many organizations reporting on the blog, and cnn has not been allowed into syria to comfort unrest. fire crews are making some progress on that huge wildfire in arizona, the second largest on record in that state. they have stopped the northward advance and are now focusing on the eastern flank, building fire lines in new mexico. the so-called wall of fire has burned 706 square miles and has destroyed 33 homes and businesses. it's only about 10% contained. and take a look at this accident caught on cell phone video. a crane was lifting a fiberglass pool into the back of a home in minnesota when something obviously went very wrong. the crane came crashing down on the house destroying the garage roof and slicing off the chimney and the truck tipped up in the air and the pool came down crashing down on a backyard fence. fortunately no one was hurt. pretty amazing video there,

wolf. >> amazing video. fortunately, no one was hurt. thank you. deployed to defend the president, the former white house press secretary, he's here. i'll speak with him live. that's coming up. plus, nearly $3.5 billion in baggage fees alone. you won't believe what the airlines collected from you and all your fellow passengers last year alone.

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seven republican candidates are now arriving here at st. anselm university. moments ago herman cain, the former ceo-of-godfather's pizza and popular radio talk show host, here now on the campus. unlike mitt romney, he's already dressed. mitt romney showed up in his jeans, but he's changing presumably in one of the

buildings here. he'll be all dressed up with the other candidates ready for the debate that begins in an hour and a half from now. tonight's republican presidential debate, 90 minutes away, and you'll see it all live only here on cnn. the republican hopefuls have been doing some final run-throughs. they are practicing and checking things out on the stage. tonight they certainly will have plenty of time for swipes at one another, but they will also no doubt aim their sharpest barbs at president obama to. counter all of that criticism the obama campaign has deployed a very familiar face to all of us. talking about the former white house press secretary robert gibbs. he's here in new hampshire. welcome to new hampshire. >> wolf, it's good to be back in new hampshire. >> what was the thinking to come up here and make sure what, that the president had a spokesman on the scene? >> this is obviously a very important state, and we want to make sure that what your viewers hear tonight, they get the other side of the story. >> so you're here to respond, because they will be really going after the president. seems to me the biggest problem

he has right now, not necessarily these candidates, but 9.1% unemployment. >> sure. >> and the country is nervous, that right track/wrong track number not good for an incumbent president. how do you deal with that? >> well, wolf, i think it's important to understand, as millions of americans do, that two things happen, right. we had an awful recession that started in september of 2008, right before the last election, and we're still in the midst of that horrible economic time, but for millions of middle class families, they were watching their paychecks shrink and their food bills go up and college educations get more expensive. that's been going on for many, many years. >> but they are still watching all that. >> absolutely, because we didn't get into this mess overnight and the truth is we're not going to get out of this mess overnight. i think what -- what the president and his team have done is work every single day to try to turn this economy around, to try to get it pointed in the right direction. is it happening fast enough? absolutely not. do we need to create a lot more jobs? yes, we do, and i think will be

interesting to hear a couple of folks tonight. i mean, mitt romney and tim pawlenty bring awfully unimpressive resumes in job creation. >> going after the president on the economy, especially mitt romney. >> well, mitt romney, less than an hour's drive in massachusetts when he was governor, they ranked 47th out of 50 in job creation. 47th out of 50. tim pawlenty in eight years as being governor, eight years created net 6,000 jobs, and left his state with billions of dollars in deficits so i think that what's going to be great about this election is they are going to watch -- get to watch candidates -- they will get to watch the president watch other candidates make their case, but these guys aren't going to be able to run away from their records and quite frankly they are not that impressive. >> in this most recent cnn research political poll, how are things going in the country, 39

say well and 60% say badly. that right track, wrong track numbers are difficult. >> all this stuff didn't happen last week. a bank collapsed. a huge finance calamity happened in september of 2008, but, again, you've got to remember for millions and millions of middle class families, their loss of security, their paychecks shrinking, that didn't start in 2008, started a few years before, that and they understand that we have gone into as deep an economic recession as we've seen in our lifetimes and it's going to take some time to get out >> i understand what you're saying about tim pawlenty's record as governor of minnesota and mitt romney's record as governor of massachusetts. rick perry, i was said there's 595% chance that he'll run and enter his race and his record in job creation, according to this recent federal reserve bank of dallas report, 37% of all the

net new american jobs since the recovery began were created in texas. that's impressive. >> clearly there's a vacuum in the republican party because mitt romney's record and tim pawlenty's record on job creation ranks among the least impressive. >> does rick perry worry you? >> look, i will say this about this process. you and i have watched this, not just in this election, last election, many before that, this is a long process. there are going to be many more debates like this, many more things. i think this is going to take some time to work itself out. i remember four years ago when we were going through this process, everybody thought a certain nominee was going to happen until maybe november or december or january. >> hillary clinton. >> and who is doing a great job as secretary of state, but, you know, there are in the words of robert frost a great new england poet, miles to go before we sleep. >> no doubt about that. why do you need to raise -- the president has no opposition for

the nomination? why does he need to raise $1 billion? >> to have the support of millions of people, most of whom gave just a little bit of money. >> no primaries or caucuses for him this time. >> what's bad about this proses is it's horribly expensive. >> $1 billion is a lot of money. >> well, it is a lot of money. again, the president's campaign has been fortunate to have the support of millions of average hard working americans who wanted to get involved in the political process, some whom got involved for the very first time. we're certainly happy to have their support, and i will say this. there's -- you're going to have a lot of candidates up on that stage tonight. they are raising money. they are criticizing the president, and we'll respond. >> before i let you go, anthony weiner, the president of the united states telling ann curry of nbc news, can i tell you that

if it was me, i would resign. how much of a problem is anthony weiner for the president and the democrats right now? >> look, i think the president said -- obviously just said that. i think democratic leaders have said something. i will say this. most people that are at home watching this debate are not worried about a congressman from new york that some have occasionally seen on cable but most don't know much about. what they are worried about tonight is an economy that is creating jobs but not creating them quickly enough. they are worried about a place in the world. they want us to get -- continue to getting our troops out of iraq and start getting our troops out of afghanistan, restore our standing in the world. that's what the president has been working on, and i think that's what we're all focused on. >> get the troops out of afghanistan, that's $100 billion a year. >> it is expensive to be there, but there will be a lot of talk about deficits and debt tonight. we invaded a country in iraq. remember we -- they basically fired an economist that worked in the bush administration who

said the whole thing was going to cost $150 billion. if we could have figured out how to have our excursion into iraq only cost us $150 billion, we'd give that guy the nobel prize in economics. it's cost us trillions. had to refocus our efforts in afghanistan, and we are paying those bills from many, many years ago. >> you want weiner to resign? >> look, i think that the president -- i'd stand by what the president said and stand by what the leaders said. i think that -- that that's problem the best route for him to go. >> thanks for coming to new hampshire. >> happy to do it. >> the candidates are arriving. you saw some of the pictures. newt gingrich arriving at st. anselm only moments ago. he's getting ready for the debate. find out what the voters want to hear from the candidates. that's coming up. okay, team! after age 40, we can start losing muscle -- 8% every 10 years. wow. wow.

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let's bring in cnn's don lemon who has been speaking to voters here in new hampshire. you've been here for a few days now. what's the sense? >> i feel like i live here. as soon as we got off the plane people started to talk to us about issues, about issues, and the viewers and the voters, wolf, they are pretty savvy. i think what they think is the politicians and people who are going to be on the stage tonight. they think most of the time they spend time fighting amongst each other instead of listening to them, the issues important to them. the last thing i spoke to them about a couple of moments ago, what qualities would they want in a presidential candidate. here's what they said. >> maybe somebody you'd want to have a beer with, i don't know. >> i want our troops out of

afghanistan. fix the deficit and, you know, increase in living. we've got people in america that are homeless and that can't have anything to eat because of the way the economy is. get us out of recession. it's not rocket science. it's simple math. >> somebody who is not a politician. they seem to get to washington, and they all turn into the same politicians once they get to washington. doesn't matter what they, are independents, republicans, democrats. they are all the same once they get there. >> someone who really is in touch with people, you know, maybe a grass roots foundation but also can just touch everyone. if you could put all the good qualities of all the candidates together and, you know, wrap them up into one person that would be perfect. >> reporter: and time and time and time again, wolf, what people said to us, what came up was the economy, spending and jobs. the voters really don't care

about much else because if they don't have a job, can't afford the gas to go to the polls, then what good is any of this? >> everything else is sort of irrelevant. jobs, jobs, jobs. >> absolutely. >> look at this, ron paul just -- actually rick santorum, the former pennsylvania governor, there he is right there. rick santorum arriving, is that rick santorum? i believe once he turns around we'll get a closer look. let's see. that's rick santorum, the former pennsylvania senator. he's here. one of the seven republicans who will be on the stage tonight. you're seeing him arrive one by one. he'll presumably put on a tie for later on tonight. one republican hopeful has logged many, many hours here in new hampshire but will not be here tonight. our chief political correspondent candy crowley takes a closer look at jon huntsman. >> reporter: he looks like a candidate, walks like a candidate, talks like a candidate. >> we're in a deep funk in this country. >> reporter: jon huntsman has held more new hampshire events in the past 30 days than anyone

else, but he is not a declared candidate, though that's pretty much nuance. >> we're right at the end point, and is your family supportive? yes, you check that box. do you think you can rally enough financial support to make it happen? yes, you check that box. do you think on the ground in the key early states, new hampshire and south carolina and florida you can create the presence and the excitement and enthusiasm that will work? yeah, you check that box. hey, how are you? >> how are you, sir? >> reporter: he's a motorcycle riding mormon who speaks fluent mandarin, the soft spoken father of seven, former governor of utah and ambassador for president obama, a man described as a leader, therein lies a problem. >> there's the problem that he served as ambassador but gushed over policies that made no sense. >> reporter: he hopes to be

strong on issues and soft on rhetoric. he goes through hour of campaign trail time without mentioning barack obama. he steps away from softballs in the strike zone. do you think that barack obama has had a failed presidency? >> on the economic side there are no signs of success, very little. >> reporter: he shows nine stinkt for the kind of go get 'em jugular rhetoric that the party faithful expect, and so you think it's failed on the economic side. >> failed on the economic front. >> reporter: how about on foreign policy front, how do you think he's done? >> we have different world views. >> reporter: more than 70% of the country doesn't know enough about huntsman to know whether they like him, and the field is crowded. a basic tenet is to define yourself before your critics do. still, huntsman declined a cnn debate invitation. for now he is biding his time and holding his tongue. huntsman will not bide for much longer, another ten days or so, and he'll be in all in, but in a political world that thrives on

campaign slugfests we'll see how long he holds his tongue. candy crowley, cnn, manchester, new hampshire. >> and as all of you know issue number one in the presidential race is certainly the economy and jobs. for many americans, the social issues, including abortion, are not necessarily the top of the agenda, but former pennsylvania senator rick santorum is one candidate who certainly doesn't run away from the social issues. he opposes abortion rights for women, though i was surprised to learn the degree of his fierce opposition. on "meet the press" on sunday he insist there had should be absolutely no legal exceptions under any circumstances, including for rape and incest, but then he went one step further. >> i would advocate that any doctor that performs an abortion should be criminally charged for doing so. i've never supported criminalization of abortion for mothers but do for people who perform them. >> santorum's mind life begins at conception and that life should be protected by the u.s.

constitution. let's see how this issue plays out in tonight's debate a little bit more than an hour from now. jack cafferty is coming up next, and then it can cost you hundreds of dollars to check luggage on a flight, but that adds up to billions of dollars for airlines.

ron paul, the texas congressman, just arrived here moments ago for tonight's debate. he's running for president of the united states. this, the third time. we're a little bit more than an hour away from the start of the debate. all those fees we keep paying when we fly, the transportation department says air carriers collected almost $5.7 billion last year. jeanne meserve has the latest. >> reporter: if you feel like you're getting nickelled and dimed by those airline baggage and reservation change fees, it's adding up to serious money. according to the department of transportation, in 2010, u.s. airlines collected $3.4 billion in baggage fees, and $2.3 billion from reservation change fees for a grand total of almost

$5.7 billion. if you are wondering how big an increase that is, it is huge! d.o.t. says between 2007 and 2010, baggage fees rose 631%! in that same three-year period, reservation fees went up 151%. though they were down a little bit last year. wolf? >> which airlines collected the most in these fees? >> well, delta in both categories by a very large margin, followed by american airlines. the air transport association which represents u.s. airlines maintains airfare is still a bargain. it says that in 2010, even with $5.7 billion in fees, the industry had only a 2% profit margin. >> all right, thanks very much for that. jack's got the cafferty file. >> the question is what do you want to hear from these

republicans tonight in the presidential debate which gets under way in new hampshire in a little over an hour. abby in texas -- clear, rational, thoughtful, jebt, common sense and compassionate solutions to america's problems without the bible thumping self-serving righteous right wing ret tick. something more than big government, bad. small government good. i doubt we'll hear anything close to that. david in virginia -- in a word, moderation. couple of more words -- positive vision for the future and a plausible path on how to get there. i'm so tired of the left 15% of the country and the right 15% of the country firing ideological artillery shells at each other over the heads of the rest of us. >> their plan to return the middle class back to the middle class. their plan to increase exports and how their christian family values square with eliminating medicare, medicaid and social security. claudia in texas -- i'd like to hear what jobs were created

by extending the bush era tax cuts for another two years before they start debating what jobs obama has not created. >> chris, in new jersey -- you want to hear the plan to really change the structure of our government. particularly ron paul needs to get vocal about a fair tax and abolition of the irs. the biggest thing the republicans need is someone who can explain the original intent of the founding fathers and how this country was run for 200 years when the federal government was extremely limited in size and most of the governing was done at state level. mark -- i'd like for each candidate to be asked what sources of their contributions are. from special interests or private donations? greg in arkansas -- less criticism, fewer slogans, a couple of new practical ideas, prefer pli with some details to fix the problems in our country that will benefit all of the american people, not just the voters they agree with. and stacy in florida says -- this cast of clowns is the best we can do. we apologize, america.

check back with us in 2016. if you want to read more, go to cnn.com/caffertyfile. >> thanks very much, jack. jeanne moos is next. well-being. we're all striving for it. purina cat chow helps you nurture it in your cat with a full family of excellent nutrition and helpful resources. purina cat chow. share a better life. ♪ ♪ [ male announcer ] and just like that, it's here. a new chance for all of us: people, companies, communities

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here's cnn's jeanne moos on anthony weiner's problems. >> reporter: if there's one word you'd never expect to hear in a protest chant, it's "wiener." >> we support weiner! we support weiner! >> hey, ho, weiner's got to go! >> reporter: weiner resigned, seeing signs creep into view behind a reporter.

circumcise congress, cut the weiner, or drive-by signs hanging off vintage wheels. only a handful of protesters pro and anti-weiner showed up outside his queens office, but they were feisty. >> how do i know how many other things he's lied about. >> everybody's lied at some point! >> reporter: at which point a guy arrives to grab a naked cell phone picture of weiner in his opponent's face. no shortage of embarrassing photos to wave. >> this is what he thinks of you. >> reporter: that seems to be one of the suggestive photos tmz says were taken in the congressional gym. next thing you know, protesters will be waving the anthony weiner action figure. the face sure doesn't look like much like the congressman's. the cheap version, $29.95. the anatomically correct one is $10 more. weiner scandal has even penetrated the presidential race. at least twice a fringe

conservative candidate has literally set up a podium outside weiner's apartment so he can take advantage of the captive audience of press. >> i'm republican presidential candidate andy martin. >> reporter: and here's how he describes congressman weiner. >> it's so weird, and so creepy. >> reporter: when finished addressing the media, he disassembled his podium an leaves. as for the actual