. >>> "erin burnett outfront" is coming up at the top of the hour. one of post market bad news dose for the nation's top financial institutions, including bank of america, goldman sachs, how big of a deal is this? >> that's right. obviously, getting a downgrade from standard and poor's, the same agency that downgraded the united states in august, john. they changed the criteria by which they were evaluating banks. so this is not a shock, but it still is not good news especially for american borrowers. look at bank of america, the stock plunged this year. this downgrade means they have to put billions of collateral up and that means that could affect their bottom line, could affect their willingness to make loans and the interest rate at which they will make those loans. they are the biggest mortgage provider in the united states. so these stories are not insignificant. you need strong banks with high ratings in order to have cheap loans. the reason for the downgrade is in part regulation of the united states, but also that exposure to europe, which i

erin burnett "outfront" is coming up at the top of the hour. she is here to give us her take of the start of the holiday season. with all these bargains, everybody gets in early, and pull back. the markets sure liked it today. >> the market sure did. nearly 300 points higher and that was the reason. there's been so much doom and gloom. and a lot of the punditry is saying we'll have a double dip recession. even though a lot of the business executives around the country did not see it coming, it still surprised the markets when we saw this. when you give the numbers for what we saw over the week, the $52 billion, it is 16% higher than a year ago. a big jump. the big question to your point will be whether a lot of that was just people who said, hey, look. things are cheap. things are on sale. i get it. i'll front load my spending. the overall might not be as strong. it was nearly four 00 on average spent this weekend which is a big total. it could show more strength than people think and on the same day we found out that debt in america, the avera

i'm sure erin burnett agrees. coming up at the top of the hour. with a preview, not of her thanksgiving menu. an important story, an american student jailed in egypt. >> i like annie's mac and cheese. it's american thing. an all-american thing. >> amen. >> talking about cairo, you've been talking to ben wedeman, we'll go live to tahrir square. things in cairo falling apart. now three american college students arrest in cairo. police there say that they were throwing molotov cocktails in tahrir square. joy sweeney, the mother of derek sweeney, is going to be with us. her son is in jail this evening in cairo and she's going to find out whether he's been charged. we're also going to talk to the prosecutor in the casey anthony case and ask him, john, why do you think you lost that case. we've got that coming up. plus, a preview behind the scenes of my secret week with marilyn, the movie coming out with michelle williams, skinny dipping part of the interview. back to you. >> i can't watch that. >> i'm not saying who is skinny dipping. i'm just saying.

erin burnt at the top of the hour. >> i was wandering through the debate. everyone taking their seats. we're going to be doing counting down to the debate. talking about big foreign policies but also defense cuts and two schools of thoughts, right? one is this is no problem. h.w. bush, reagan, they cut defense and another school of thought that comes to a very different conclusion. we also have john huntsman's daughters all three going to join us on the show. >> getting more attention than their dad which i guess is not so good if your dad's on the ballot. >> that's right. we're going to give them a chance to talk about who their dad really is. and also general wesley clark going to talk about iran and other threats that will get a lot of talk in that room back there. >> a lot of talk. the economic questions are also national security questions. iran, china challenge. interesting night. >> china has all of it in one big ball. >> one big ball. work on that for the next generation. next, shortly after cairo's demonstrators hanged him in ep gee, goes on televi

erin burnett needs to prepare four her show. when we come back, mayor michael bloomberg will join us. he will tell us who he thinks should be blamed for the failure. and the man singularly responsible for the republican refusal to put tax hikes on the table. ok look, when gas prices jump... you still gotta work. so suddenly you're cutting back on everything from family vacations to cell phone minutes. well here's a thought - how bout cuttin' back on gas? here's how: the ford f-150. it gets 23 highway miles per gallon. that's the best. so you can get the job done and get a break at the pump. yeah, can you hear me now? this is the future. this is the ford f-150. >>> breaking news, the collapse of that super committee. design with coming up with reduction plans. the president after it collapsed is prolsing there will be no easy off-ramp when it comes to deficit reduction. moments ago at the white house, he said he would veto any effort to get around the automatic spending cuts. defense or domestic program that are now call for in t

. >>> erin burnett is coming up at the top of the hour. >> we are following the story of a young boy who came forward a few years ago, syracuse said they looked into it. didn't find anything. now a second man has come forward. we're talking to a man who played football up at syracuse and knew the assistant basketball coach, bernie fine, very well. known him for 25 years. he talks about who this man is and whether he thinks he could have been a pedophile. plus we have a passionate plea tonight, candy, passionate plea to the super committee. this is a really important moment. they really can make a difference. i know down in washington they're coming, it looks like, to a point where they say, we don't need to do a deal and we can get rid of these automatic triggers. but the implications for this country could be huge and great for all americans. we have that coming up, top of the hour. >> and politically the good news is they always work better under pressure and it's there. >> that's right. let's hope so. >> thanks so much. we'll see you at the top of the hour. >>> is syria on the bri

. >>> "erin burnett outfront" is coming up at the top of the hour. erin, i have done it privately and on e-mail, but it's my first on-air chance to say welcome. i know you're an old hand, but bk. >> thank you, you're so nice. >> i know you've got a ceo who told you he thinks there's something important missing from the super committee? >> he does. bis acumen is what's missing. he's going to be our guest, you know him from paul mitchell petrone, started out homeless, living in a car and became a billionaire, pledging to give half of his money away. but he feels strongly about things the super committee could do right now to still get a deal done, candy. so he's going to be our exclusive guest tonight. billionaires with ponytails, who have been homeless, not easy to come by. as we cover the occupy wall street demonstrations on the brooklyn bridge in new york, joined by the former nypd police commissioner, he'll be our special guest. i started taking a vitamin today, i'll bad about na, never take them. omega 3, 6, 9. the reason, dr. andrew weil told me.

erin burnett is here with a preview of "outfront," looking at a very important question. could china overtake the united states as the global superpower? >> the president in a few moments will be addressing the australian parliament, putting more u.s. marines in australia. they don't want to say the reason why. but the reason why is because the u.s. is trying to show china who is boss. when you look at who does all the business with australia, it actually is china. the markets fell, part of that was fear about europe and fear about the super committee. south dakota's christy snoem will talk about whether tax increases are on the table, whether they have what it takes to get the deal done. a man who just won $100 million in a sex abuse case against a priest in miami. >>> like erin, we're fascinated by the china challenge. when we come back, general michael haden answers this question. china, friend or foe? electric. i don't think so. it's got a gas tank right here. electric tank, right over here. an electric tank? really, stu? is that what you pour the electricity in? it's

. >>> "erin burnett outfront" coming up at top of the hour. you're going it take a close look at super committee tonight. >> that's right. a lot of developing news, left, right and center with so many stories. the super committee, one co-chair saying, hours to go before a deal. now that would mean of course if everyone agrees, then in hours you're done. we're eight days away from a crucial decision for america and the world. we'll be talking to a super committee member tonight and the latest developments on occupy wall street. that story today. and the latest on penn state. we're going to talk about that and also some first amendment issues. back to you, john. >> we'll see you in a few minutes. >>> tonight's number, it has a little bit to do with the super committee. 83%, 83% of americans disapprove of the job their members of congress are doing. 83% disapprove. 11% approve. i'll go out in the country and try to fine them. 5% are not so sure. as you look at all of this play out. what comes next is the super committee. a chance for congress to

. >>> erin burnett out front here with her preview. you have more important information on the penn state investigation. >> that's right. we do, john. we're going to be talking to the state senator who said he would ask institute leaders to move a bill he introduced back in 2005, which is incredible when you look at it now, because that bill would have made it against the law to not report child abuse. that's right, in pennsylvania it's not a problem if you don't report it to authorities. he put forth a bill in 2005 to change that. interesting to think how things might have been different if that law might have been in effect when this started. we're going to talk to him about that. we're also going to have on an american held in an egyptian jail as a spy this summer, john. find out his story, what's really going on there. plus, the bottom line on the herman cain story tonight. as his wife gets ready for her interview. and silvio berlusconi. you know how i couldn't resist him. and now he's gone, john. so we found a replacement. >> i lo

. >>> er"erin burnett outfront" coming up at top of the hour. you'll sit down with a ceo who takes issue with the great super committee. >> we hope it's a great super committee, right? the ceo of a manufacturing company, dave roberts from carlisle, says he not going it hire until the super committee does its job. it's proof how important these 12 people are. it's so much more important to our country's economy. we'll talk about cain cashing in. his campaign claims to have made $9 million since october 1st. and the penn state scandal. sheldon kennedy, former nhl player abused by a coach more than 300 times and why took him to so long to come forward to shed light on the scandal now. >> looking forward to. see you soon. >>> when you step in it, to accept rick perry's description of last night's debate, the challenge to step out of it, as quickly as possible. for governor perry that effort began immediately after the debate ended in the so-called spin room. >> i stepped in it man. yeah, it was embarrassing, of course it was. you know, when -- but h

. >>> at the top of the hour, erin burnett looks at a rough day in the markets. >>> up next, the truth about what you may call the obama administration's gift for conservatives under the christmas tree. [ male announcer ] this veterans day, we salute america's amazing service members and veterans with our proud sponsorship of the 2011 quicken loans carrier classic -- a first-of-its-kind college basketball game that will be played on the deck of a u.s. aircraft carrier this november 11th. it's one way for the quicken loans family to thank all of the american heroes who have given so much... for all of us. ♪ and started earning loads of points. you got a weather balloon with points? yes, i did. [ man ] points i could use for just about anything. ♪ keep on going in this direction. take this bridge over here. there it is. [ man ] so i used mine to get a whole new perspective. ♪ [ male announcer ] write your story with the citi thankyou premier card, with no point caps, and points that don't expire. get started at thankyoucard.citi.com. >>> the conservatives, manna from heaven in time

. >>> "erin burnett outfront" coming up at top of the hour. you have a former navy s.e.a.l. on the program tonight? >> former navy s.e.a.l. team 6, which was the s.e.a.l. team responsible for killing osama bin laden in the compound in pakistan. he's written a book that's controversial, disagrees with the government version of what happened. he's going to be on our show. an adviser to herman cain and a man who co-authored a book with the men at penn state, larry sandusky, the accused pedophile. all of that coming up top of the hour. >> a horrible story at penn state. look forward to that report. thanks so much. >>> it's a busy and significant day in politics. herman cain once again emphatically denying the latest sexual harassment allegations against him. >> i have never acted inappropriately with anyone. period. >> also, elections across the country today. what might 2011 tell us about the 2012 climate in? joined by the governor of mississippi, haley barbour. i want to start with herman cain and a key initiative on the ballot in your state. when you watch herman cain today,

. >> erin burnett is coming up at the top of the hour. you're following the conrad murray verdict. >> that's right. we'll have joe jackson's lawyer who has been a friend of the flame for 25 years. i talked to the children of michael jackson today. we're going to hear from him. we're also going to talk about herman cain. of course, the press conference today was ritting. one thing that i was curious about, when the woman said that the night happened and she chose to not tell her boyfriend or her mentor ever, the exact details. is that something that helps or hurts her case. something that stood out to me. we'll be following that. tackling that angle of the story. did you know that 120 million americans live within 50 miles of a nauclear power plant? and erin brockovich will join us to talk about what's happening in the nuclear power plant zones. not something good. >> i bet it's not but i'm looking forward to it. we'll see you in a few minutes. >>> as she noted, an important new chapter in the sexual misconduct question surrounding herman

. >>> "erin burnett outfront" coming up at the top of the hour. erin joins us with a preview. how are you? >> i'm doing well. i see you have snow. i hope you have a little heater there. we're talking about what was, well, distinctly bad weather though the rainy sort, of course the gchl-20 meeting in france. an action plan was agreed to but will it be enough? see the two men, barack obama and nicolas sarkozy? an incident happened today. the french are very upset about something that the president of the united states said to the president of france. and i think it will shock you. so we are going to get to the bottom of that. we simply cannot resist it. plus, with the merchant of death getting convicted this week, the russian arms dealer trafficking in weapons to al qaeda to kill americans we looked into one of the most trafficked weapons in the world, we found a woman who -- the woman who is responsible for capturing this arms deal somewhere she is our special guest tonight. we have all of that coming up at the top of the hour. stay warm, john. >> fascinating. can't wait to see

. >>> "erin burnett outfront" coming up at top of the hour. let's check out for a preview. >> you've been talking to rick perry, the whole herman cain situation. we're going to continue to follow up on that and what we're excited about our guest, sperns wiggins has known herman cain for 27 years, works for him for 10 years, involved with the human resources departments at burger king and godfather's pizza and he's going to talk about the herman cain he knew because as of course you know this comes down to questions of character. we're going to try to get to the bottom of that. that's our special guest at the top of the hour. back to up a at the top of the hour. back to you. >> it's questions voters in iowa are asking. we'll see you in a few minutes. let's follow up with becky beech. jennifer jacobs, the political correspondent for "the des moines register." let's ask that question. are people asking character questions about herman cain? do they believe or at least have some suspiciouses about these allegations? we look at the polling and stev

. ♪ >>> erin burnett jout front coming up at the top of the hour. you have an interview with newt gingrich. >> we talked about herman cain, and wow, was he direct about what he thought about this whole leak and feiascofiasco. you'll hear what he had to say about that. but we'll also talk about the polls, where newt gingrich as tripled from 3% to 10%. here's what he said about how he thinks he can still win. >> i think if you go back and look at jimmy -- if you look at jimmy's carters polls about this same stage, he was beating ronald reagan by almost 2 to 1. the fact is, we'll get around to point next summer to have a nominee. if i'm that nominee, i'll challenge president obama to seven lincoln style three-hour debates with a monitor. at the end of that process, i suspect he'll lose badly. ronald reagan pulled away from jimmy carter in october. >> makes the case for an open race. that and a whole lot more coming up at the top of the hour. >> looking forward to it, erin. thank you. >>> the obama administration already suing three states because of th

. >>> "erin burnett outfront" is coming up at the top of the hour. the little guy wins one, bank of america dropping $5 debit card fee after customer complaints. does that mean consumer outrage wins? >> i think it does, and this is an issue, john, i've had a real issue with banks doing this, they've started to do it this spring, test thing like atm fees at banks, you know, jpmorgan tested $5 one if you went to bank of america atm. this is a debit card fee. the banks said they needed to do this to make up for added costs of financial reform. looking at all of the analysis out there, there are added costs and there's a shift how people account for credit card transactions. however, the numbers that i've seen, and we've looked into this for bank of america, analysis i saw by credit suisse first boston, analysts said they would make more because of atm fees and dib deb it's card fees after the financial reform than they did before. they didn't have much of a leg to stand on. customer revolt, molly catchpole started the online petition and stuck with it a