[Phillips:] Well, it was an emotional scene outside of Joe Paterno's home after he was found after he found out that he was fired. Our own Sarah Hoye was right there when the announcement was made and the students basically, Sarah, responded immediately. Tell us what you saw and what that moment was like.
[Sarah Hoye, Cnn Correspondent:] That's right. Last night in front of Joe Paterno's home, about 15 to 20 students showed up after it was announced he had been fired. The mood was very, very sombre and very, very calm. There was even a little instance when they did cheer for him. Now I do believe we have some video for that. So if we have it, let's go ahead and take a listen.
[Joe Paterno, Former Penn State Football Coach:] Look, get a good night's sleep. All right. Study, all right? We still have things to do. All right, I'm out of it maybe now. We'll go from there. One thing, thanks and pray a little bit for those victims.
[Hoye:] So we have been right there with just that little emotional outburst there at the end that we love you, Joe. We love you, Joe. That was really much it for in front much his house. Other than that it was very quiet. Like I had said, very, very sombre and the students were there just kind of milling about. It was a very, very small group of people. Joe did come out and speak with them.
[Phillips:] I had a chance to speak with the student body president. I wanted to ask him about you know, how many students are out there within the mix? We are seeing all this support for Joe Paterno and the football program, but what about the sex abuse victims? You know, are there students out there trying to be a voice for that, which in many instances has seemed to have gone forgotten. And he said he's seeing actually a shift that more students are speaking out about that. What have you seen heard? Do you feel the same way?
[Hoye:] Well, you know, Kyra, it is interesting you mentioned that because this morning, as the students were going to class, because here on campus if you can see around me it is pretty much business as usual. And as they were going to class, we did speak with a few of them just to kind of gauge how they were feeling. What are they thinking about? How does this affect them? Is it really all about Joe? Is it really just about football? Those students will tell you, no. That there are these victims involved. These alleged victims, that there is a grand jury report. There are very, very much aware as to what that is. Even in the student newspaper today, there is an editorial, the fall of the giants, in which this editorial is calling for the students to actually step up to the plate, step up to the challenge because we are Penn State. They want the students to kind of help rebuild the system that in a sense some of them are saying failed. Whether it is from the football, whether it's from the cover up, whatever it was. So the students here are very aware, not only about this beloved coach who has been there for decades who is let go, but also what this means in light of this potential scandal.
[Phillips:] Sarah, thanks. And we're going to talk about what's next for Penn State football program and Joe Paterno. NPR sports correspondent Mike Pesca joining us in just about ten minutes. All right, it's time for "Political Buzz"; your rapid fire look at the best political topics of the day. Three questions, 30 seconds on the clock. And playing today Robert Zimmerman, member of the Democratic National Committee; Patricia Murphy, founder and editor of Citizen Jane Politics; and CNN contributor Will Cain. All right, guys let's get right to it. Rick Perry's embarrassing moment at last night's Republican presidential debate. Here it is.
[Rick Perry , Presidential Candidate:] And I will tell you it's three agencies of government when I get there that are gone. Commerce, education, and the what's the third one there? Let's see.
[Ron Paul , Presidential Candidate:] You need five.
[Perry:] Oh five. Ok. So commerce, education and the
[Unidentified Male:] EPA?
[Perry:] EPA. There you go.
[Unidentified Female:] Time is up, time is up.
[Unidentified Male:] Seriously?
[Phillips:] That's the big oops moment, as it is being called. So is Rick Perry finished Patricia?
[Patricia Murphy, Founder And Editor, Citizen Jane Politics:] If Rick Perry wasn't finished before this, I think you've got to believe that he is finished now. Plus a lot of people after this happened the main question they had coming out of it, was why are you even running for president? You don't know exactly what you want to do. And this was not a pop quiz, this is not a trick question. This was not the name of an obscure foreign leader. This was what are the three agencies you want to get rid of. And it's an issue he raised himself. This gets to the point that if he is going to be on the national stage as president, he needs to be able to be on a debate stage as a candidate, he cannot do that. So I do think that this is really the end of it for him.
[Phillips:] Will?
[Will Cain, Cnn Contributor:] He might be finished, Kyra, but it shouldn't be for this. And for two reasons. One, we've all done this. Everyone can identify with a situation like this where your mind just simply goes blank. I've done it sitting right here at this desk. People at home have done it talking to their friends. Rick Perry's campaign might should be finished but not for that reason which brings me to my second point that I will remember which is in giving them plenty of substantive reasons not to support Rick Perry. The least of which is crony capitalism. His his reign as governorship in Texas has been connected to appointing friends, favors and positions throughout the state. The point is Rick Perry's campaign should be finished but not for a bumble on the stage.
[Phillips:] Robert?
[Robert Zimmerman, Democratic National Committee:] Well, first of all Kyra, I've never seen Will Cain's mind go blank ever in all of the segments I've done with him. So but the more important point is look, over Rick Perry's three months as a candidate, he's came back from the dead more than Dracula. But this is different because ultimately he couldn't remember his core convictions. He couldn't define his reasons for running. That's why like what Patricia said is correct, Rick Perry is finished.
[Phillips:] All right, guys I don't know if you've actually seen the Web site, FunnyOrDie.com. But Mike Tyson sure does a mean Herman Cain.
[Mike Tyson, Former Boxer:] Chocolate may be the flavor of the week. But crazy is the face of Republicans never tie up, I want to be your president because this Cain is able. And if you give me time, I will make you a fable.
[Unidentified Female:] I am America
[Phillips:] Ok. Let's reverse roles now. Did Herman Cain win the fight to get his reputation back last night? Robert?
[Zimmerman:] No, he didn't. And it's not because of the issue of the charges against him as serious as they are. It's because Herman Cain has repeatedly lied when confronted about these issues; about not knowing the settlements, not knowing about the payments. Not answering forthrightly. So Herman Cain has not met that threshold that a presidential candidate has to meet. Do you have the character to serve? That's why he did not get his reputation back and that's why he's not a credible candidate.
[Phillips:] Will?
[Cain:] Well to continue to torture the metaphor, this fight is not over. You're only like round one or round two. So we'll see, we have several other women who suggest they are going to put a or would like to put a joint press conference together. We're going to find out a lot more about that issue going forward. Herman Cain, though, did have a good night. Mainly because of Rick Perry and because of this Penn State scandal. He's not everyone's news today. So he did have a good night but the fight is not over.
[Phillips:] Patricia?
[Murphy:] Yes, well I think that Herman Cain with the exception of the moment where he called Nancy Pelosi, Princess Nancy which I don't think went over that well with a lot of members of the audience. I thought he did himself a lot of favors last night. When he spoke to this issue he went back to his talking points and said this is a media witch-hunt. I am being tried unfairly by the press. And he got a huge round of ovation among those Republican supporters. That sent a message to anybody watching that the media may have an opinion of Herman Cain but Republican voters have a very different opinion. And they were supporting him in that room last night. I think he at least stabilized his campaign
[Phillips:] All right, guys. Time for the buzzer beater. Let's get back to Rick Perry. It took him 53 seconds to answer this. You get 20 seconds. What government agency would you eliminate and why? Will?
[Cain:] Department of Education. Now the mouth breathers out there are going to be like, what? He's anti-smart and pro-ignorance? No. I'm not. Over the last 30 years the Department of Education's per student spending has tripled but our test scores have flat lined. Yes, education needs reform but it doesn't have to come from Washington D.C., It can come from your local and state governments.
[Phillips:] Robert?
[Zimmerman:] You know that question illustrates the great problem in American public policy. Taking these issues and reducing them to sound bites versus looking to policy. Now, I'm not going to advocate abolishing departments. Yes, reform, consolidation of services, sure. But every time we try every time we abolish a department, that's a victory for the special interests and a defeat for the middle class of America. That's why we need to keep the Environment Protection Agency going, that's why we're going to keep Social Security intact, and keep Medicare functioning.
[Phillips:] Whoa, OK. Patricia, bring us home.
[Murphy:] OK. I have my eyes on a very efficient, very effective, very aggressive agency of the government. I'm ready to get rid of it, it's the Washington, D.C. DMV. They do their job too well. Go away.
[Phillips:] Boy, she took us in a totally different avenue. You got Will with the straightforward answer. You got Robert who is not a happy guy going after Will and then Patricia just throws us for a loop there.
[Murphy:] Well, I feel passionately about this issue, and I'm ready to launch my campaign.
[Phillips:] You know what I think DMV lines go all the way back to when we were turning 16 guys. That's how bad it's always been. All right. I appreciate it.
[Murphy:] Thank you.
[Phillips:] Well, coming up, Eddie Murphy quits his Oscar's hosting gig. We're going to tell you why you he's walking away from his biggest role in years. And how would you like to invest in the Green Bay Packers? We'll tell you what the defending Super Bowl champs are planning to do, next.