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CNN Live Today
Defense, Prosecution Must Agree on 12 Jurors to Hear Michael Jackson's Case; Breaking Down Iraq's Election Results
Aired February 14, 2005 - 11:31 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
RICK SANCHEZ, CNN ANCHOR: Huge explosion rocking Beirut today -- we've been all over this for you throughout the morning -- killing the former prime minister as his motorcade passed by. Nine others are now believed dead. The blast was so powerful it left a 15 foot crater and shattered windows a mile away.
The late Ray Charles was the big winner at the Grammys last night. He won eight of them. Charles took album of the year for "Genius Loves Company." He also had record of the year for "Here We Go Again" with Norah Jones.
An Oregon grand jury moves today to consider an indictment against Gerald Crane. Police believe he tried to coordinate a mass suicide through an Internet chatroom. Investigators say that the pact had sexual overtones and involved Internet users in other countries as well.
And the battle for the top dog starts today in the Big Apple -- there they are -- from Pomeranians to massive Mastiffs, the 129th Westminster Kennel Club show is kicking off at the Madison Square Garden. More than 2,500 pooches are bound for the green carpet. We're going to have the best in show on AMERICAN MORNING Wednesday, by the way.
Keeping you informed, proud to say, CNN, the most trusted name in news.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: There are about 250 possibilities. Now the defense and prosecution must agree on 12 jurors to hear Michael Jackson's child molestation case. That process is getting started in a California courtroom.
Our Miguel Marquez is live today in Santa Maria, as he has been for many months now. Good morning.
MIGUEL MARQUEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning to you there, Daryn.
Yes, they're looking for those 12 jurors, plus eight alternates, from northern Santa Barbara county here. Mr. Jackson for week two of the trial just showed up a short time ago so things could get under way in Santa Maria. It was postponed for a week of course after the death of one of his attorney's sisters, 250 prospective jurors a total that the court has. The court has called 113 of them for the court -- for the session today. All 113 will be brought into the courtroom. Lawyers from both sides will ask questions of the jurors in that courtroom so that all the jurors can hear the questions. They will answer individually in a process called voir dire, or the questioning of the jurors. It's French for "to hear and to see." And then each side, each legal team, will try to detect bias in different jurors, and then they'll dismiss them, and they'll keep whittling the number down until at some point they can decide on 12 jurors, plus 8 alternates, and those 18 people will eventually hear the case against Michael Jackson -- Daryn.
KAGAN: And from the jury to the fans, what about the people who have gathered outside? Are those crowds dwindling?
MARQUEZ: They've quite dwindled. There is probably 20 people or so out there right now. The first couple of days of this, there were about that many that would spend the night. At this point, there are about 20 people out there chanting for the lawyers. They came in chanting for Michael Jackson as he came in, but certainly much smaller numbers than we've seen in the past -- Daryn.
KAGAN: Miguel Marquez, live from Santa Maria, thank you.
SANCHEZ: Iraq's election results are in. In fact, let's try and break this down for you, try and figure out what this actually means. The Shiite parties took almost 48 percent of the vote. The Kurdish bloc got about a quarter, and then the Iraqi, the national accord, secular party of Sunnis and Shias as well, they came up with only 13 percent.
Let's talk now to David Mack. He's the former ambassador to the United Arab Emirates. Currently he's vice president of the Middle East Institute, and we have him here, because he certainly has a lot of experience in the area and can try and help us make sense of this.
Let's start with just looking at the results. From what we know, do you see, this sir, as a workable, demographic breakdown?
DAVID MACK, FMR. U.S. AMB. TO UAE: No, this does not fairly representative of the Iraqi population. It is clearly heavily weighted in favor of the more religious Shia parties and the Kurds, and it's weighted against the vast part of the Shia population, which is secular in its orientation and against the Sunni Arabs.
SANCHEZ: Well, here's what's interesting, the Sunni Arabs, under Saddam Hussein, used to be in control. So the obvious question one would seem to want to know at this point is, will the Sunnis now be punished by the Kurds and the Shias as the Kurds and the Shias were punished under Saddam Hussein's regime?
MACK: Initial signs are pretty good in that regard, because the statements that have been made by Kurdish leaders and the leaders of the victorious Shia alliance, which is a predominantly religiously controlled group, their initial statements have indicated that they intend to bring Sunni Arabs and Shia, secular figures, into some kind of political process. They have made it pretty clear, the Shia group, that they're not aiming for some kind of theocratic control. But a lot of big questions are ahead of them. Can they govern effectively? Can they increase jobs and basic services, electricity, water supplies, and will they be able to reestablish security? The last one depends upon giving the Sunni Arab population, in particular, some kind of hope that they have a stake in Iraq's political future, and frankly, we're going to have to wait to find out how this turns out.
SANCHEZ: This Sheikh Sistani could end up an awful powerful fellow if these numbers shake out as they do. Is he to be trusted by the West? Do we have any sense what his true intentions are in this country?
MACK: His true intentions don't have as much to do with the United States or Iran as some people have suggested. He definitely wants to see a much larger role for Islam in Iraq's national life, particularly on the social, cultural and probably economic side, than the United States is going to be comfortable with. And frankly, a much larger role for Islam than most of the Kurds and many of the secular Shia and Sunni Arabs will be comfortable with.
SANCHEZ: Ambassador David Mack, Middle East Institute, we do thank you, sir, taking time to take us through that as it developments over the months to come. We'll be certainly checking back in with you. Thanks again -- Daryn.
KAGAN: We're going to check out some other news stories from around the world. First to Spain, the fire is out in Madrid at this skyscraper, but officials say the building is still shaky and unstable, and they're hoping it doesn't fall down. The blaze started on Saturday, taking firefighters 21 hours to put out. No word yet on the cause.
To Pakistan now, torrential rains continue as officials rush to provide relief to thousands left homeless and without food. More than 380 people have died in the heaviest rain in Pakistan in 20 years. The downpours have also caused flash floods and avalanches in northern mountain areas.
And in Sri Lanka, DNA results show the child known as "Baby 81," lost and then rescued during the Asian tsunami, is the true biological son of one couple who claimed them as their own. Now the problem was up to nine couples initially said the child was theirs. Officials say the baby and his parents will be reunited tomorrow. You can understand with all the children lost, people desperate to have a baby.
SANCHEZ: Can you imagine being those parents?
KAGAN: And knowing that that's your kid.
SANCHEZ: That's my child, I want him, and they're saying, I'm sorry, but we can't give him to you yet.
KAGAN: Genetics told the story.
SANCHEZ: Well, it's Valentine's Day, and you know what that means, don't you?
KAGAN: You remembered, right?
SANCHEZ: I remembered.
KAGAN: OK, good job.
SANCHEZ: What's everybody doing today?
KAGAN: I'm doing the chocolate, chocolate overload. What you don't know about the decadent sweet that will make you smile.
SANCHEZ: And in case chocolate isn't the way that you want to go for Cupid's holiday, we're going to tell you where can you go to make this a perfect romantic holiday. Here's a hint.
We'll be back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SANCHEZ: You want an excuse for something good? Here we go. Valentine's Day. You know, for a lot of people, that means a heart- shaped box of chocolates. That's right. But chocolate can also have some health benefits for the heart. Now a famous candy company is trying to boost those benefits. CNN medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta has details in our "Daily Dose" of health news.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
HAROLD SCHMITZ, CHOCOLATE SCIENTIST, MARS, INC: 10 years ago, you would have been laughing at me in this interview if I would have said that cocoa or chocolate could have a heart health benefit. 5 years ago, you would have been listening suspiciously to me. And today, you and the scientific community, actually, is sitting back saying, well, there's a reason we call it the food of the gods and maybe this is why.
SANJAY GUPTA, CNN SR. MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): And now, one of the biggest chocolate companies in the world and researchers from Harvard are trying to create the impossible, a truly healthy chocolate. It could change the way we look at dessert.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Then I would add that to my Mediterranean diet and be happy.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'd probably have more.
GUPTA: There are already some known benefits to chocolate.
KATHERINE TALLMADGE, AMERICAN DIETETIC ASSOCIATION: Chocolate reduces blood pressure, improves blood flow and has an aspirin-like effect and can improve cardiovascular risk factors.
GUPTA: But the problem is that most of that benefit is actually from flavonols found only in cocoa. When the cocoa is made into chocolate to make it less bitter, the benefit is lost. But that's where things are starting to change. Mars, Incorporated is calling their first attempt Cocoa Pro. It would be a sweet and healthy chocolate.
SCHMITZ: The cocoa that is in that product has been handled in such a way that it still retains the wonderful sensory properties that they expect from cocoa and chocolate. But it's also delivering the highest possible of naturally occurring flavonols.
GUPTA: They may take a few tries to get it right, but in the meantime, remember that dark chocolate is more likely to have those good flavonols and you can find it for sure in cocoa.
TALLMADGE: Have a cup of hot cocoa every night or at breakfast with some unsweetened cocoa that has not been Dutch processed. Most haven't been.
GUPTA: Another reason to eat a piece of chocolate. Like you needed one.
Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN, Atlanta.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SANCHEZ: Oh, go ahead, do it. For your "Daily Dose" of health news online, just log onto our Web site and you'll find the very latest medical stories, special reports and a health library. The address is cnn.com/health. Sorry about that.
KAGAN: It's because we're talking love, you get all choked up.
SANCHEZ: And chocolate.
KAGAN: Love chocolate!
(CNN.COM REPORT)
KAGAN: Well, if your idea of Valentine's Day is being with the one you love, how about taking that one step further and going away somewhere with your sweetie?
SANCHEZ: There you go. We've got the best romantic getaways out there and if you want to know about them, you got to stay where you are. We'll be back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAGAN: Well, what better time than Valentine's Day to talk about getting away?
SANCHEZ: I couldn't think of any.
KAGAN: "Travel and Leisure" magazine is out with a list of 15 most romantic places. Laura Begley joins us from New York with a sampling of some of those destinations. Good morning, Happy Valentine's Day.
LAURA BEGLEY, "TRAVEL AND LEISURE" MAGAZINE: Happy valentine's day to you.
KAGAN: Let's talk about some of these places. First let's talk about Bora Bora.
BEGLEY: Bora Bora. This is on our list of the 50 most romantic places in the world. And there's a great cruise line there called Bora Bora cruises, which has two sailboats that sail around French Polynesia. And they're amazing, because they only have 30 suites so it's a really intimate trip and these boats are really shallow, too, so they can get into ports that most cruise ships can't get to. And this is the height of romance.
KAGAN: Are we going to bother talking price here or it's Valentine's Day, so we don't care?
BEGLEY: Well this is very high value price.
KAGAN: High value. I like that, high value.
BEGLEY: $10,000 for seven days. But you know, that includes all of the activities, all of the food. Definitely worth it.
KAGAN: That better include a lot for $10,000. OK, Halekulani-- is that Hawaii?
BEGLEY: Halekulani in Hawaii. And our readers have voted this one of their top ten favorite hotels in Hawaii. And it's no wonder. They've got a new spa, they've got amazing pool cabanas. But the big news here, it's that Halekulani is about to open a suite designed by the guru of romance herself, Vera Wang.
KAGAN: She should throw in the wedding dress.
BEGLEY: This is Vera Wang herself, the wedding dress designer. And it's going to be pretty amazing. Vera has chosen her own flowers for this suite, her own fabrics, her china is going to be in this suite. It's not just for honeymoons, either. You can also host your wedding there.
KAGAN: You can't -- you're talking love, you must talk Paris. Hotel de Crillon.
BEGLEY: Paris. You can't get much more romantic than the City of Lights. And the Hotel Crillon is amazing. It's right on the Place de Concorde and it's actually right now going through a huge renovation and they're bringing it back to its 16th -- Louis the XVI romance. And the place to stay there is the Duke de Crillon suite, which is over-the-top romance, with Bacarat (ph) crystal chandeliers and oriental carpets and antiques everywhere. And it's got amazing views of the Place de Concorde and of Paris.
KAGAN: Sounds lovely. What about the Turks and Caicos?
BEGLEY: Well, the Turks and Caicos are really the hot new island chain that's being discovered. And a lot of super luxurious hotels are opening there, including the Palms, which has just debuted. And everybody's buzzing about the 72 suite hotel. All of the rooms have views of the ocean and they also have private terraces, so you can have candlelit dinners overlooking the ocean. Now that's romance, if you ask me.
KAGAN: That is romance, and thank you for spreading the love. Happy Valentine's Day, Laura.
BEGLEY: You, too.
KAGAN: Thank you. Laura Begley from "Travel and Leisure" magazine.
SANCHEZ: You know, you can save a lot of money and just go to the Bahamas.
KAGAN: You could do that. Been there, done that.
SANCHEZ: Guess we all have. We're going to have weather and business all together.
KAGAN: Just ahead. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SANCHEZ: Time to find out what's going on in the world of business first.
(STOCK MARKET REPORT)
(WEATHER REPORT)
SANCHEZ: So there's this cupid guy, right? And he's got this bow and arrow and he yanks that sucker all the way back and let go of eight arrows and hit eight people in the derrieres.
KAGAN: Is that where you get hit?
SANCHEZ: Well, I think.
KAGAN: You get hit in the heart, don't you?
SANCHEZ: Well, but no, that'd be...
KAGAN: Any case...
SANCHEZ: ... kind of tragic.
KAGAN: Empire State Buildings, eight couples, either getting married or renewing their vows at the Empire State Building. We'll get back to this cupid thing. One couple is scheduled to walk down the aisle in this building's 80th floor lobby every half hour from now until this afternoon.
SANCHEZ: I think it's officially a gluteus maximus thing.
KAGAN: Better than -- well, I'm not going to get... SANCHEZ: Say it!
KAGAN: I think we should say is let's talk to Wolf Blitzer.
SANCHEZ: He'll say it.
KAGAN: Wolf will solve everything. Hi, Wolf. Happy Valentine's Day.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
Aired February 14, 2005 - 11:31 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
RICK SANCHEZ, CNN ANCHOR: Huge explosion rocking Beirut today -- we've been all over this for you throughout the morning -- killing the former prime minister as his motorcade passed by. Nine others are now believed dead. The blast was so powerful it left a 15 foot crater and shattered windows a mile away.
The late Ray Charles was the big winner at the Grammys last night. He won eight of them. Charles took album of the year for "Genius Loves Company." He also had record of the year for "Here We Go Again" with Norah Jones.
An Oregon grand jury moves today to consider an indictment against Gerald Crane. Police believe he tried to coordinate a mass suicide through an Internet chatroom. Investigators say that the pact had sexual overtones and involved Internet users in other countries as well.
And the battle for the top dog starts today in the Big Apple -- there they are -- from Pomeranians to massive Mastiffs, the 129th Westminster Kennel Club show is kicking off at the Madison Square Garden. More than 2,500 pooches are bound for the green carpet. We're going to have the best in show on AMERICAN MORNING Wednesday, by the way.
Keeping you informed, proud to say, CNN, the most trusted name in news.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: There are about 250 possibilities. Now the defense and prosecution must agree on 12 jurors to hear Michael Jackson's child molestation case. That process is getting started in a California courtroom.
Our Miguel Marquez is live today in Santa Maria, as he has been for many months now. Good morning.
MIGUEL MARQUEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning to you there, Daryn.
Yes, they're looking for those 12 jurors, plus eight alternates, from northern Santa Barbara county here. Mr. Jackson for week two of the trial just showed up a short time ago so things could get under way in Santa Maria. It was postponed for a week of course after the death of one of his attorney's sisters, 250 prospective jurors a total that the court has. The court has called 113 of them for the court -- for the session today. All 113 will be brought into the courtroom. Lawyers from both sides will ask questions of the jurors in that courtroom so that all the jurors can hear the questions. They will answer individually in a process called voir dire, or the questioning of the jurors. It's French for "to hear and to see." And then each side, each legal team, will try to detect bias in different jurors, and then they'll dismiss them, and they'll keep whittling the number down until at some point they can decide on 12 jurors, plus 8 alternates, and those 18 people will eventually hear the case against Michael Jackson -- Daryn.
KAGAN: And from the jury to the fans, what about the people who have gathered outside? Are those crowds dwindling?
MARQUEZ: They've quite dwindled. There is probably 20 people or so out there right now. The first couple of days of this, there were about that many that would spend the night. At this point, there are about 20 people out there chanting for the lawyers. They came in chanting for Michael Jackson as he came in, but certainly much smaller numbers than we've seen in the past -- Daryn.
KAGAN: Miguel Marquez, live from Santa Maria, thank you.
SANCHEZ: Iraq's election results are in. In fact, let's try and break this down for you, try and figure out what this actually means. The Shiite parties took almost 48 percent of the vote. The Kurdish bloc got about a quarter, and then the Iraqi, the national accord, secular party of Sunnis and Shias as well, they came up with only 13 percent.
Let's talk now to David Mack. He's the former ambassador to the United Arab Emirates. Currently he's vice president of the Middle East Institute, and we have him here, because he certainly has a lot of experience in the area and can try and help us make sense of this.
Let's start with just looking at the results. From what we know, do you see, this sir, as a workable, demographic breakdown?
DAVID MACK, FMR. U.S. AMB. TO UAE: No, this does not fairly representative of the Iraqi population. It is clearly heavily weighted in favor of the more religious Shia parties and the Kurds, and it's weighted against the vast part of the Shia population, which is secular in its orientation and against the Sunni Arabs.
SANCHEZ: Well, here's what's interesting, the Sunni Arabs, under Saddam Hussein, used to be in control. So the obvious question one would seem to want to know at this point is, will the Sunnis now be punished by the Kurds and the Shias as the Kurds and the Shias were punished under Saddam Hussein's regime?
MACK: Initial signs are pretty good in that regard, because the statements that have been made by Kurdish leaders and the leaders of the victorious Shia alliance, which is a predominantly religiously controlled group, their initial statements have indicated that they intend to bring Sunni Arabs and Shia, secular figures, into some kind of political process. They have made it pretty clear, the Shia group, that they're not aiming for some kind of theocratic control. But a lot of big questions are ahead of them. Can they govern effectively? Can they increase jobs and basic services, electricity, water supplies, and will they be able to reestablish security? The last one depends upon giving the Sunni Arab population, in particular, some kind of hope that they have a stake in Iraq's political future, and frankly, we're going to have to wait to find out how this turns out.
SANCHEZ: This Sheikh Sistani could end up an awful powerful fellow if these numbers shake out as they do. Is he to be trusted by the West? Do we have any sense what his true intentions are in this country?
MACK: His true intentions don't have as much to do with the United States or Iran as some people have suggested. He definitely wants to see a much larger role for Islam in Iraq's national life, particularly on the social, cultural and probably economic side, than the United States is going to be comfortable with. And frankly, a much larger role for Islam than most of the Kurds and many of the secular Shia and Sunni Arabs will be comfortable with.
SANCHEZ: Ambassador David Mack, Middle East Institute, we do thank you, sir, taking time to take us through that as it developments over the months to come. We'll be certainly checking back in with you. Thanks again -- Daryn.
KAGAN: We're going to check out some other news stories from around the world. First to Spain, the fire is out in Madrid at this skyscraper, but officials say the building is still shaky and unstable, and they're hoping it doesn't fall down. The blaze started on Saturday, taking firefighters 21 hours to put out. No word yet on the cause.
To Pakistan now, torrential rains continue as officials rush to provide relief to thousands left homeless and without food. More than 380 people have died in the heaviest rain in Pakistan in 20 years. The downpours have also caused flash floods and avalanches in northern mountain areas.
And in Sri Lanka, DNA results show the child known as "Baby 81," lost and then rescued during the Asian tsunami, is the true biological son of one couple who claimed them as their own. Now the problem was up to nine couples initially said the child was theirs. Officials say the baby and his parents will be reunited tomorrow. You can understand with all the children lost, people desperate to have a baby.
SANCHEZ: Can you imagine being those parents?
KAGAN: And knowing that that's your kid.
SANCHEZ: That's my child, I want him, and they're saying, I'm sorry, but we can't give him to you yet.
KAGAN: Genetics told the story.
SANCHEZ: Well, it's Valentine's Day, and you know what that means, don't you?
KAGAN: You remembered, right?
SANCHEZ: I remembered.
KAGAN: OK, good job.
SANCHEZ: What's everybody doing today?
KAGAN: I'm doing the chocolate, chocolate overload. What you don't know about the decadent sweet that will make you smile.
SANCHEZ: And in case chocolate isn't the way that you want to go for Cupid's holiday, we're going to tell you where can you go to make this a perfect romantic holiday. Here's a hint.
We'll be back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SANCHEZ: You want an excuse for something good? Here we go. Valentine's Day. You know, for a lot of people, that means a heart- shaped box of chocolates. That's right. But chocolate can also have some health benefits for the heart. Now a famous candy company is trying to boost those benefits. CNN medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta has details in our "Daily Dose" of health news.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
HAROLD SCHMITZ, CHOCOLATE SCIENTIST, MARS, INC: 10 years ago, you would have been laughing at me in this interview if I would have said that cocoa or chocolate could have a heart health benefit. 5 years ago, you would have been listening suspiciously to me. And today, you and the scientific community, actually, is sitting back saying, well, there's a reason we call it the food of the gods and maybe this is why.
SANJAY GUPTA, CNN SR. MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): And now, one of the biggest chocolate companies in the world and researchers from Harvard are trying to create the impossible, a truly healthy chocolate. It could change the way we look at dessert.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Then I would add that to my Mediterranean diet and be happy.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'd probably have more.
GUPTA: There are already some known benefits to chocolate.
KATHERINE TALLMADGE, AMERICAN DIETETIC ASSOCIATION: Chocolate reduces blood pressure, improves blood flow and has an aspirin-like effect and can improve cardiovascular risk factors.
GUPTA: But the problem is that most of that benefit is actually from flavonols found only in cocoa. When the cocoa is made into chocolate to make it less bitter, the benefit is lost. But that's where things are starting to change. Mars, Incorporated is calling their first attempt Cocoa Pro. It would be a sweet and healthy chocolate.
SCHMITZ: The cocoa that is in that product has been handled in such a way that it still retains the wonderful sensory properties that they expect from cocoa and chocolate. But it's also delivering the highest possible of naturally occurring flavonols.
GUPTA: They may take a few tries to get it right, but in the meantime, remember that dark chocolate is more likely to have those good flavonols and you can find it for sure in cocoa.
TALLMADGE: Have a cup of hot cocoa every night or at breakfast with some unsweetened cocoa that has not been Dutch processed. Most haven't been.
GUPTA: Another reason to eat a piece of chocolate. Like you needed one.
Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN, Atlanta.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SANCHEZ: Oh, go ahead, do it. For your "Daily Dose" of health news online, just log onto our Web site and you'll find the very latest medical stories, special reports and a health library. The address is cnn.com/health. Sorry about that.
KAGAN: It's because we're talking love, you get all choked up.
SANCHEZ: And chocolate.
KAGAN: Love chocolate!
(CNN.COM REPORT)
KAGAN: Well, if your idea of Valentine's Day is being with the one you love, how about taking that one step further and going away somewhere with your sweetie?
SANCHEZ: There you go. We've got the best romantic getaways out there and if you want to know about them, you got to stay where you are. We'll be back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAGAN: Well, what better time than Valentine's Day to talk about getting away?
SANCHEZ: I couldn't think of any.
KAGAN: "Travel and Leisure" magazine is out with a list of 15 most romantic places. Laura Begley joins us from New York with a sampling of some of those destinations. Good morning, Happy Valentine's Day.
LAURA BEGLEY, "TRAVEL AND LEISURE" MAGAZINE: Happy valentine's day to you.
KAGAN: Let's talk about some of these places. First let's talk about Bora Bora.
BEGLEY: Bora Bora. This is on our list of the 50 most romantic places in the world. And there's a great cruise line there called Bora Bora cruises, which has two sailboats that sail around French Polynesia. And they're amazing, because they only have 30 suites so it's a really intimate trip and these boats are really shallow, too, so they can get into ports that most cruise ships can't get to. And this is the height of romance.
KAGAN: Are we going to bother talking price here or it's Valentine's Day, so we don't care?
BEGLEY: Well this is very high value price.
KAGAN: High value. I like that, high value.
BEGLEY: $10,000 for seven days. But you know, that includes all of the activities, all of the food. Definitely worth it.
KAGAN: That better include a lot for $10,000. OK, Halekulani-- is that Hawaii?
BEGLEY: Halekulani in Hawaii. And our readers have voted this one of their top ten favorite hotels in Hawaii. And it's no wonder. They've got a new spa, they've got amazing pool cabanas. But the big news here, it's that Halekulani is about to open a suite designed by the guru of romance herself, Vera Wang.
KAGAN: She should throw in the wedding dress.
BEGLEY: This is Vera Wang herself, the wedding dress designer. And it's going to be pretty amazing. Vera has chosen her own flowers for this suite, her own fabrics, her china is going to be in this suite. It's not just for honeymoons, either. You can also host your wedding there.
KAGAN: You can't -- you're talking love, you must talk Paris. Hotel de Crillon.
BEGLEY: Paris. You can't get much more romantic than the City of Lights. And the Hotel Crillon is amazing. It's right on the Place de Concorde and it's actually right now going through a huge renovation and they're bringing it back to its 16th -- Louis the XVI romance. And the place to stay there is the Duke de Crillon suite, which is over-the-top romance, with Bacarat (ph) crystal chandeliers and oriental carpets and antiques everywhere. And it's got amazing views of the Place de Concorde and of Paris.
KAGAN: Sounds lovely. What about the Turks and Caicos?
BEGLEY: Well, the Turks and Caicos are really the hot new island chain that's being discovered. And a lot of super luxurious hotels are opening there, including the Palms, which has just debuted. And everybody's buzzing about the 72 suite hotel. All of the rooms have views of the ocean and they also have private terraces, so you can have candlelit dinners overlooking the ocean. Now that's romance, if you ask me.
KAGAN: That is romance, and thank you for spreading the love. Happy Valentine's Day, Laura.
BEGLEY: You, too.
KAGAN: Thank you. Laura Begley from "Travel and Leisure" magazine.
SANCHEZ: You know, you can save a lot of money and just go to the Bahamas.
KAGAN: You could do that. Been there, done that.
SANCHEZ: Guess we all have. We're going to have weather and business all together.
KAGAN: Just ahead. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SANCHEZ: Time to find out what's going on in the world of business first.
(STOCK MARKET REPORT)
(WEATHER REPORT)
SANCHEZ: So there's this cupid guy, right? And he's got this bow and arrow and he yanks that sucker all the way back and let go of eight arrows and hit eight people in the derrieres.
KAGAN: Is that where you get hit?
SANCHEZ: Well, I think.
KAGAN: You get hit in the heart, don't you?
SANCHEZ: Well, but no, that'd be...
KAGAN: Any case...
SANCHEZ: ... kind of tragic.
KAGAN: Empire State Buildings, eight couples, either getting married or renewing their vows at the Empire State Building. We'll get back to this cupid thing. One couple is scheduled to walk down the aisle in this building's 80th floor lobby every half hour from now until this afternoon.
SANCHEZ: I think it's officially a gluteus maximus thing.
KAGAN: Better than -- well, I'm not going to get... SANCHEZ: Say it!
KAGAN: I think we should say is let's talk to Wolf Blitzer.
SANCHEZ: He'll say it.
KAGAN: Wolf will solve everything. Hi, Wolf. Happy Valentine's Day.
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