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Attorney Firings Showdown; A Boy's Hero; Al Gore and His Message on Global Warming; Britney Spears Out of Rehab

Aired March 21, 2007 - 14:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: Hello. I'm Don Lemon, live at the CNN world headquarters in Atlanta.
BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm Brianna Keilar, in for Kyra Phillips.

Well, it started with the firing of eight federal prosecutors and has turned into a tug-of-war over testimony. The White House won't go for putting it in writing, Congress won't go for anything less.

What's at stake and who is likely to win the standoff? Our senior legal analyst Jeffrey Toobin will help sort that all out.

You're here in the CNN NEWSROOM.

We're following a few developing stories this hour. The latest political volley in the firings of those eight U.S. attorneys. Who has the next move, the white House or Democrats in Congress?

Also, in just a few minutes, we're going to hear whether interest rates will go up, down or stay the same, and how it is going to affect you.

And former vice president Al Gore under oath and in the spotlight again at the bottom of the hour, testifying in front of his biggest congressional critics on global warming.

But first let's go straight to the NEWSROOM now and Fredricka Whitfield with details on a developing story -- Fred.

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Well, Brianna, an accident on a nuclear submarine. Two British sailors have been killed in this mysterious accident taking place on the submarine that was in the Arctic.

Not sure exactly what the cause was, but this assurance now coming from the British defense ministry, saying that the nuclear reactor on board the HMS Tireless was not affected by the accident. The submarine quickly surfaced and is completely safe. But still, the mystery surrounding the accident that was involved on this submarine and how these two British sailors died.

More when we get it -- Brianna.

KEILAR: All right. Thanks, Fred. We'll check back with you in a little bit. LEMON: Behind closed doors or in public under oath, a showdown over what President Bush's aides know about the firings of eight federal prosecutors and how they should tell Congress about it. It is escalating today. A contentious White House briefing just wrapped up, and our Ed Henry was in the thick of it.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ED HENRY, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: These are not actually interviews. That's your word.

The senators, like Senator Leahy, say they want testimony, testimony there is a transcript. This is not an interview. You want it to be an interview, but it's up to Congress. They're the ones investigating. They say they want testimony, not interviews.

TONY SNOW, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: Ed, what we're doing is we're trying to be accommodating to Congress by offering them extraordinary insight into a deliberative process. You also know that everybody who goes there -- the president expects everybody who talks to Congress to tell the truth, and so does the law. And they know that it would be illegal not to tell them the truth.

So the question you've got to ask yourself is, is this pressure on transcripts and everything, is this really something where somebody thinks that there is going to be a fact that they're not going to receive? The answer is no.

The question is whether you're trying to create a political spectacle rather than simply the basis of getting at the truth. This, I think, is an important and crucial distinction because, again, I'm not sure -- well, I think we can say with confidence that they're going to get every fact they need to find out what's going on.

HENRY: Are you afraid that they'll be able to go through and find inconsistencies in testimony if there is a transcript?

SNOW: No, they'll be able to do it.

HENRY: OK. You keep saying the Justice Department, the response in these e-mails, 3,000 pages, unprecedented, very responsive. Why then is there this gap from mid-November to about December 4th, right before the actual firings? Why is there a gap in the e-mail?

SNOW: I don't know. Why don't you ask them them?

HENRY: Well, you're the White House. The Justice Department...

SNOW: I know, but I'm not going to be the fact witness on Justice...

HENRY: But you're the one representing that this has been very responsive. Now when there's a gap you say go to them.

SNOW: Yes. I've been led to believe -- and I've been led to believe that there is a good response for it, but I'm going to let you ask them because they're going to have -- they're going to have the answer.

HENRY: And there's one e-mail from November 15th that says -- from Mr. Sampson to Harriet Miers, I believe, "Who will determine whether this requires the president's attention?"

SNOW: Right.

HENRY: And then there's a gap in e-mails. Was there any -- perhaps any e-mails about the president in there, and did the president have to sign off on this? Because the question was raised...

SNOW: The president has no recollection of this ever being raised with him.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LEMON: Ed Henry joins me now. Ed Henry making news.

It seems like what they're saying here is, this is a point, we're going to stick to it. No matter how many different ways you ask me, these are the rules that we're putting on the table and that's the -- that's the way we're going to do it.

HENRY: You're right. In fact, elsewhere in the briefing, Tony Snow repeated over and over that once Congress issues subpoenas, which they're edging closer and closer to actually issuing, the generous offer that he calls it from the White House yesterday, the president himself, is off the table. So, basically negotiations have essentially broken down.

I think also another thing to look at -- I followed up with a question about executive privilege. Now, you heard Tony Snow at the end there saying the president has no recollection of being involved in this decision to fire the U.S. attorneys. So we asked the question then, well, why are you citing executive privilege, or at least suggesting you will, and yesterday the president said that the principle at stake here is candid advice from his advisors to the president?

If the president wasn't involved in the decision, then how could he cite executive privilege on something he was really not involved in? And Tony Snow basically said, "That's a good question. I don't know the answer."

But it makes you wonder if the White House is having it both ways here. On one hand they're trying to insulate the president politically and say he was not personally involved in this, this was done by other people, perhaps at the Justice Department. But on the other hand, the president saying, I'm not going to make Karl Rove and others testify under oath and in public because I need to preserve this principle of advisers being able to provide candid advice to a president who apparently was not actually involved in this decision.

So it's sort of curious -- Don. LEMON: And maybe I'm wrong. You can -- it seems like during the thing you were saying -- he would answer your question, Ed, and you would say, well, that's kind of what I'm saying, and then he would say, that's kind of what I'm saying. It just seems like maybe, I don't know, he was saying the same thing you were saying but he used it to answer your question. That's sort of what I was getting.

HENRY: Tony Snow does like to turn around the question on you when it's something he doesn't have an answer for necessarily. He'll try to turn it around and ask you the question.

I think another issue there, at the beginning you saw in that exchange we were talking about a transcript. I pointed out to him at one point -- he kept saying there doesn't need to be a transcript when there is testimony or interviews of Karl Rove and others on the Hill. There is actually within a few feet of where I was sitting and Tony Snow was standing, there is a stenographer provided by the White House at every White House briefing providing -- recording every word, and then releasing a transcript within a couple of hours.

The reason for that is Tony Snow doesn't want me to come out here and tell everyone if it were not an on-camera briefing Tony Snow said X when he really said Y. What a lot of reporters are pointing out today is that if there is no transcript of whatever Karl Rove says behind closed doors, you're going to have a Democratic senator come out and say Karl Rove is implicated in this, he said X, Y and Z. And then you're going to have a Republican senator come out and say, no, Karl Rove is vindicated, he said something totally different.

The bottom line is, without a transcript, how will the American people know what was really said behind closed doors -- Don.

LEMON: And that's really what's at the bottom of it. At least that's what the Democrats are saying on the Hill.

Ed Henry, thank you so much.

HENRY: Thank you.

LEMON: We appreciate that inside look, too, of the questioning between you and Tony Snow.

Thank you.

HENRY: Thank you.

LEMON: With subpoenas in the pipeline and the White House resisting, a constitutional crisis may be looming. We'll talk about it with our senior legal analyst, Jeffrey Toobin, in just a moment.

KEILAR: And one lost boy, 6,000 acres, 100 or so volunteers. But it was a four-legged rescuer who reached Michael Auberry first.

And CNN's Randi Kaye has the story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Michael!

RANDI KAYE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): In a sea of search- and-rescue teams, all it takes is one really good nose, and you're looking at it.

This 2-year-old Shiloh shepherd named Gandalf, after the wizard in "Lord of the Rings," worked his magic today. Gandalf was the first to find Michael Auberry, missing four days in North Carolina's Doughton Park.

(on camera): How did you and your dog spot Michael?

MISHA MARSHALL, SOUTH CAROLINA SEARCH AND RESCUE DOG ASSOCIATION: He was upwind of us. He started air-scenting him. And dogs do what's called a head-pop. And he popped his head three times in one direction. We came around the corner, and he spotted Michael.

KAYE (voice-over): Misha Marshall's rescue dog has been given a piece of clothing to catch the boy's scent before heading out. This was Gandalf's first rescue mission, Misha's fourth. And, just two hours into the search, they found what they had come looking for about a mile north of the Boy Scout campsite.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They have found Michael. He is OK.

KAYE (on camera): When Misha and her dog spotted Michael, she says he was standing up and appeared to be looking for help. They problem is, Michael was across the creek. So, Misha and her team yelled at him to stay put; they would come to him.

(voice-over): And, when they did, Misha found the 12-year-old disoriented, his feet wet, his body fully clothed.

(on camera): What was the first thing he said to you?

MARSHALL: He asked for some water. He asked for a snack. He asked if a helicopter could take him out. So, yes. So, that -- we said, well, I don't think so. But he had obviously heard the helicopters, so...

KAYE: Typical 12-year-old boy, huh?

(voice-over): Paramedic Lee Whitehead was searching nearby and went to check on Michael.

LEE WHITEHEAD, PARAMEDIC: He was interested in getting some grandma's cookies. He was pretty hungry.

KAYE: Lee gave him a quick once-over and determined Michael was dehydrated and in the early stages of hypothermia. He tried to keep warm by staying on the move at night.

(on camera): What was he doing for -- for water or liquids?

WHITEHEAD: He said he would -- he said he would get water from the streams, which was probably a good thing.

KAYE: Did he say what he had eaten over the last four days?

WHITEHEAD: He hadn't eaten anything since his last time he was in camp. I asked him if he had eaten any time, anything he had had, and he said, no, he hadn't eaten any of the local vegetation of anything.

KAYE: No tree bark or anything like that?

WHITEHEAD: No. No.

KAYE (voice-over): Michael made a very private exit from the woods, then was taken straight to the hospital for a thorough exam.

The family celebrated in privacy, but, afterward, Michael's father shared more details about his son's harrowing ordeal.

KENT AUBERRY, FATHER OF MICHAEL AUBERRY: He slept in -- in tree branches. I'm not sure exactly what that -- that means yet. He said he curled up under rocks. And Michael is not completely aware of the passage of time and that -- that -- how many days he was out there. He's -- but he's -- he's doing great.

KAYE: Kent Auberry says Michael heard rescuers calling his name the last few days, even yelled back. Nobody heard him. Not until the Gandalf the shepherd sniffed him out could this scout be saved.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LEMON: It really is just an amazing story all the way around. And our Randi Kaye is on the phone with us from outside McGrady, North Carolina.

Randi, I can't go 10 feet outside without people asking me about Michael and how he's doing. How is he doing today?

KAYE: He's doing much better from what I understand, Don, than he was doing yesterday. He's still in the hospital. He's expected to get out some time this afternoon, so he's still in the hospital, where he was brought yesterday afternoon to get some IV fluids and have some scratches and bruises treated. But from what I understand, in terms of his mental health, he's doing much better.

I think he's happy to be back with his family, and he has had some peanut butter crackers and some chicken fingers his dad brought him yesterday. So he's doing a lot better.

LEMON: Well, we understand he was joking that Gandalf ate some of his peanut butter crackers. But that was all in fun.

You know, we've heard several reports about why he wandered off. One was that his feet were cold, the other was that he was homesick.

Do you know or have any idea since you've been there on the ground why Michael wandered away? KAYE: His father says that it was due to the fact he was homesick, that he really wasn't enjoying being with the Boy Scout troop. So after -- after lunch on that Saturday, last Saturday he just decided to wander off.

He thought that he could make his way through the woods on foot. He was looking for a highway, and he was planning to hitchhike home. All of this according to his dad. So he said he's going to have a long talk with his son about hitchhiking, and his mom says she has no plans to let him out of her sight again.

LEMON: Absolutely. We can understand why.

KAYE: Sure.

LEMON: Thank you so much. Give our best to the family. And also if you can rub Gandalf's belly for us, do it.

KAYE: It's good luck I think.

LEMON: It is. All right. Randi Kaye, thank you so much.

KAYE: Thanks, Don.

KEILAR: All right. And we just want to remind you that we are waiting from the latest Fed announcement on interest rates. And our Susan Lisovicz and Ali Velshi are both standing by in the NEWSROOM for that decision. They're also going to tell us what it means for you in just a few minutes.

LEMON: Plus, we'll have more on our top story, the skirmish over fired federal prosecutors. It sets the stage for all all-out battle between the White House and Congress.

CNN senior legal analyst Jeffrey Toobin will join us live with more on what is at stake in all of this.

The NEWSROOM continues.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BUSINESS REPORT)

KEILAR: Twenty-five past the hour now. And we're working on a few other stories here in the CNN NEWSROOM.

Attorney General Alberto Gonzales supported by the president. But will he be undermined by his former chief of staff? A House panel has just approved a subpoena for Kyle Sampson to discuss the firings of eight U.S. attorneys.

And a convicted child molester and his parents are a step closer to trial in the murder of a 6-year-old Georgia boy. A grand jury has indicted George Edenfield and his parents. And the D.A. says he'll see the death penalty against all three of them. Meanwhile, the site of last year's tragic accident that killed 12 coal miners, West Virginia's Sago Mine, is being idled. Management says the temporary shutdown is a business decision and it's unrelated to the deadly explosion.

Now back to President Bush and Congress, on a collision course over the firings of eight federal prosecutors. A House panel today approved subpoenas to force Mr. Bush's top aides to testify under oath if they refuse to appear voluntarily. Democrats say the president's offer to let the aides answer questions behind closed doors without being sworn in, with no official transcript, is not enough.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. JOHN CONYERS (D), JUDICIARY COMMITTEE CHAIRMAN: We can meet at the local pub to have that kind of a gathering. I love conversations, especially with veteran lawyers and people associated with the White House. It would be a great conversation. But in my judgment, it would not advance us towards uncovering the simple truth in this matter.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KEILAR: A constitutional showdown could be ahead. And joining me with thoughts on that is CNN senior legal analyst Jeffrey Toobin.

And Jeffrey, let me ask you, because Tony Snow, we heard from him a short while ago. He said that these interviews carry with them the legal requirement for telling the truth. But we just heard Chairman Conyers there basically saying he could have this discussion over a pint of beer in a pub.

Can you break down the legal differences between the two for us?

JEFFREY TOOBIN, CNN SR. LEGAL ANALYST: Well, it is true that when a government official is interviewed by another government official, if you make an intentionally false statement, that can be a crime. It's Section 1001, making a false statement. It is a crime.

It's a lot harder to prove than perjury, which is making a false statement under oath, because when you're under oath, have you a transcript. And what the White House is saying is, we want this to be move informal, no transcript, not in public. And yes, it's true that that can be a crime if you make a false statement, but it's very different from sworn testimony under oath.

KEILAR: So it's difficult to prove. I mean, let's just break it down. If they were to have these discussion behind closed doors, there were some discrepancies in the statements between White House officials, could it be proved or would you say that most likely it wouldn't get anywhere?

TOOBIN: Oh, no, it could be proved. Martha Stewart went to prison for lying to FBI agents in an interview that was not transcribed. So it doesn't make it impossible. It just makes it harder. And the Democrats are saying, wait a second, if you want to cooperate, if you want us to get to the facts, what possible harm can a transcript do? If you're telling the truth, what difference does it make whether people are taking notes by hand or with a court reporter, you know, taking down stenographic shorthand?

It's a pretty good argument by the Democrats, but at the same time Tony Snow is saying, wait a second, I thought you want to know the facts here. We're going to give you the witnesses you want. If you want to know the facts, why don't you just ask them questions and what do you care how it is recorded?

So, I mean, both sides -- this is really much more a political argument than a legal argument.

KEILAR: So you mentioned there taking notes. Obviously, notes can be taken then in these closed-door proceedings if they were to happen?

TOOBIN: Absolutely. The congressmen and women, the staff members could take notes. The lawyers on both sides could take notes. But, there will not be a court reporter with their little black machine taking down each word.

And it is true that when you don't have a court reporter, there are often disputes about what precisely was said. And if there are disputes about what precisely is said, that makes a criminal prosecution harder if things come to that.

KEILAR: You see, this is kind of boiling down to political nit- picking, not legal nit-picking between Congressional Democrats and President Bush in the White House. But does President Bush have a valid point when he says that this would really set a bad precedent on separation of powers?

TOOBIN: Well, the problem with that argument is, there have been lots of testimony by executive branch officials over many years. And what's funny about this controversy, it is almost exactly the reverse of how we spent the 1990s where you had a Democratic president and a Republican Congress, and Bill Clinton was sometimes citing executive privilege and the Congress was saying, no, no, no, we want testimony.

Here, of course, the parties are flipped, but the arguments are very much the same. In the '90s, the way almost all these things were resolved, was with a compromise. They got some witnesses but not all the witnesses, they could ask about some subjects but not all questions. At this point, it looks like no compromise is in the air any time soon, which means it could go to court, which means likely months of legal wrangling ahead. And there are only 21 months left in this entire administration.

KEILAR: It is certainly going to be interesting to see how far all of this goes. Our Senior Legal Analyst Jeffrey Toobin, thanks.

LEMON: You're looking live at the U.S. Capitol where former, well, there it is right there. Former Vice President Al Gore is scheduled to resume his testimony in global warming. There he is walking into that room where he is going to be speaking. He'll be doing that this afternoon. He's going before a Senate committee featuring Democratic presidential hopeful Hillary Clinton as well as Republican Senator Jim Inhoff who is perhaps the most outspoken skeptic in the entire Congress on the issue of global warming. Now there is former Vice President Al Gore right there in the center of the screen, becoming in recent months and years, a spokesman for global warming. His documentary winning I think two Academy Awards, or maybe one. It was actually presented to, I believe, the director of that, not him, but he was a part of it. Academy Awards. Okay.

Coming up, from Al Gore to Arnold Schwarzenegger. He may have his audience, but he doesn't get the governor's go ahead. Memo to Rush Limbaugh, don't call Arnold Schwarzenegger a closet anything.

Keilar: In case you missed it, the Fed decides interest rates won't change. You're watching CNN, the most trusted name in news.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: Hello. I'm Don Lemon live at the CNN world headquarters in Atlanta.

KEILAR: And, I'm Brianna Keilar, in for Kyra Phillips.

It is the environment. Former Vice President and Senator Al Gore returns to the Hill talking about global warming but he is not preaching to a unified choir. We're listening in and taking a temperature reading on Gore's potential as a presidential candidate again.

You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.

LEMON: It is bottom of the hour. You're looking at the U.S. Capitol live where former Vice President Al Gore is speaking right now, as a matter of fact, in testimony on global warming that should happen any minute. We'll get some pictures of him. He is speaking before a Senate committee featuring Democratic presidential hopeful Hillary Clinton, as well as Republican senator Jim Inhoff and Inhoff is perhaps the most outspoken skeptic in the entire Congress on the issue of global warming. We'll get some of that testimony, if it warrants it, right here in this broadcast.

Now we go to the other drama in Washington. A House panel approved today but did not issue subpoenas for some of President Bush's top aides. Lawmakers want to know what they know about the congressional firings of the controversial firings of eight federal prosecutors.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. LINDA SANCHEZ, (D) CALIFORNIA: The White House has offered a proposal that allows limited access to witnesses, no access to key documents and no testimony under oath. We have worked toward voluntary cooperation on this investigation, but we must prepare for the possibility that the Justice Department and the White House will continue to hide the truth.

TONY SNOW: Do you want to get at the truth, or do you want to create a political spectacle? Those are the options that are laid out. Well, we think we've come up with what we think is an amicable and respectful way to enable the House and Senate in their oversight responsibilities to get access to everything they need to understand fully the process that led to a decision to replace eight U.S. attorneys.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: CNN's Senior Political Analyst Bill Schneider joins me now with a very busy day for everyone from here, the White House, on Capitol Hill. Tony Snow calls it a political spectacle and says if subpoenas are issued, the deal is off to let Karl Rove and Harriet Miers talk, behind closed doors. So who's going to blink in this showdown, Congress or the White House?

WILLIAM SCHNEIDER, SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: Well, this is of course, political more than legal, as Jeffrey Toobin just said. The president is on the defensive here.

There is a lot of pressure on him. He has very little political capital. His approval ratings have diminished. A lot of Republicans have been openly critical of the White House. This is a serious charge that there was political interference with these U.S. attorneys who were being urged either to investigate or not to investigate certain corruption charges. That's serious business.

So there is a lot of pressure on the president. On the other hand, he is a man of great resolve, some would call it stubbornness and he is defending what he regards as an important principle, executive privilege. As Jeff said a few minutes ago, this could go all the way to the Supreme Court and that will take some time.

LEMON: It seems like, Bill, that the White House, at least listening to Tony Snow, very concerned about appearances. They don't want this to appear as an inquiry or trial, just as an interview, he's saying.

SCHNEIDER: That's right. The idea is to make it a little bit more informal but also to protect the principle that Congress cannot subpoena members of the White House staff who, after all, were not confirmed by Congress.

Cabinet Officers, yes, but not members of the White House staff, because their conversations with the president and other officers from the White House have to be private and privileged. So they're protecting what they regard as an important principle. And democratic presidents have also defended that principle.

LEMON: Alright. Bill, let's switch gears here. Al Gore testifying before a Senate committee this hour about global warming. You're looking at live pictures right now. Is the former vice president hoping that he'll warm up to American voters and perhaps enter the race for the White House after Senators Obama and Clinton you know, they think they still have a fight for it.

You know what, before I get your answer on that, let's listen to -- I think our Andrea Koppel asked him the question, she went right to it, and then we'll talk about it.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

AL GORE, FORMER VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I'm running into the Senate. I'm running to the Senate side to do --

ANDREA KOPPEL, CNN CORRESPONDENT (on camera): Are you ruling out the possibility of running -- throwing out the possibility of throwing your hat in the ring?

GORE: You know, I have no plans to run for president again. I don't intend to and I don't expect to. And I did enjoy listening to the other side and I thought a lot of them on both sides made some great points today and as I said, several times, I think that bipartisanship is one of the real goals we need to shoot for in getting a solution to this climate crisis.

KOPPEL: So there is nothing to your not wanting to listen to the Republicans.

GORE: I don't know what you're referring to there.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: And obviously you can see that was unedited videotape. Everyone's getting in on that answer, they want to know, are you going to run.

But you know what, the conventional wisdom at least I've heard by some is that let Obama, let Clinton fight it out, and then all of a sudden at the 11th hour, Al Gore can step in and possibly have a chance at this.

SCHNEIDER: I'm not sure he is plotting that, I'm not even sure he is hoping for that. But he is leaving the possibility open because everyone knows what he can say, I'm not going to run, I will not serve if elected, I will not run if nominated, end of story, no one would bother him anymore. People are still bothering him.

Remember at the Oscars, he was about to make a big announcement, and the music drowned him out miraculously. And he wouldn't answer the question again. But his words are chosen carefully, he says, no plans, no intention. That leaves open the possibility that if there is a devastating fight between the candidates who are now running for the Democratic nomination, Democrats could turn to him in desperation. He simply does not rule that out.

LEMON: And you know it is very interesting, because most people are fighting for that younger demographic by using the internet and what have you. In a very unusual sort of way, Al Gore has achieved that and not necessarily through conventional politics. SCHNEIDER: That's right. What -- he's really reinvented himself. He's done it a couple times in the past and now he's done it again. He's not the Al Gore we saw in 2000. He's got a new cause, a new issue, really a new persona.

Remember he didn't even endorse Joe Lieberman, his running mate, when Lieberman ran for president in 2004. This is a very different Al Gore and one with a lot of appeal to the so-called net roots activists on the left of the Democratic party.

LEMON: Yes, we say this a lot but it is true this time, stay tuned.

All right, Bill Schneider, thank you so much for that. And you can watch more of Al Gore's testimony on Capitol Hill, check out CNN.com to hear more of his comments and also his critics.

KEILAR: One's a former body builder and movie star-turned governor. The other, a talk show host and conservative heavyweight. Now Arnold Schwarzenegger and Rush Limbaugh are squaring off over what Limbaugh says are the California governor's not so conservative credentials. In response, Schwarzenegger called Limbaugh irrelevant in a TV interview yesterday.

Now a little while ago, Schwarzenegger called in to Limbaugh's radio show. He said he worries about results, not ideology.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

VOICE OF ARNOLD SCHWARZENEGGER, (R) CALIFORNIA: You know, I have to ultimately make decisions that is based on bringing people together, bringing Democrats and Republicans together, and really working for the people and trying to resolve issues. If it is issues that have to do with health care or environment, if it is creating more jobs, getting more businesses to California.

All of those things I have to make tough decisions every day, prison reform and building more prisons. So all of those things. So what you guys are talking about and the ideology and philosophy and the right versus the left and all of those things, I cannot deal with that as much, because to me what is important is that I bring both of the parties together and to make things work to serve the people.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KEILAR: Limbaugh told his audience he likes Schwarzenegger but in his words, "He's a good guy but he's not a conservative. He's a Republican."

And of course, all the day's political news is available any time day or night for you at CNN.com/ticker. See if this becomes a feud in the likes of the Donald and Rosie maybe.

LEMON: We shall see. Have you been watching "Dancing with the Stars?"

KEILAR: I didn't. But I've heard so much about it. Everyone else has seen it.

LEMON: It's unbelievable. Yes, we're going to talk about turning personal loss into a prime-time ratings bonanza. Ahead in the CNN NEWSROOM, Heather Mills talks to our Larry King about "Dancing with the Stars." And here's something very interesting. She talked with him about dancing with that artificial leg. Don't go away. We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KEILAR: The United Nations already punishing Iran over its nuclear program may get tougher and maybe as soon as this week. Let's go now to Senior U.N. Correspondent Richard Roth.

Richard, what do you have for us?

RICHARD ROTH, SR. UNITED NATIONS CORRRESPONDENT: Well, there was a loud voices, heavy debate, some screaming, it wasn't inside the U.N. It was just a couple of blocks away from here, away from U.N. Headquarters.

A demonstration by Iranians who live here in America who are upset with president Ahmadinejad. They're not upset with the French ambassador, who that's what you're seeing initially there. These protesters there, they are saying that the president of Iran is a terrorist and spreading terrorism.

They say that he should not be given the right to speak at the Security Council which is the plan when the Security Council adopts a resolution imposing some more limited sanctions on the Iranian government.

They say that Iran should not have the nuclear bomb, that's what the Iranian regime of President Ahmadinejad indeed wants. And they were about 150 to 200 of them outside -- Brianna.

KEILAR: Did we see this last time when he came to speak at the opening session?

ROTH: Yes. You saw this last time with bigger crowds than we're going to see it again when he arrives here presumably in a few days when the Security Council may finally vote on this resolution.

KEILAR: All right. Richard Roth, our Senior U.N. Correspondent. Thanks so much.

LEMON: Straight ahead, entertainment news with A.J. Hammer.

A.J., what's on tap?

A.J. HAMMER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Don, we're going to tell you about a couple of celebrities who are happy to be home again, one from rehab, the other from a hospital. All the details coming up next in the NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) LEMON: Britney's back, y'all. Back home that is. And let's hope she doesn't do it again. Alright. That's corny.

A.J. HAMMER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Twenty-eight days, Don. Apparently she thinks that's enough. And it's true. After that 28- day stint in rehab, Britney is back home. She checked in the Promises Alcohol and Drug Rehab Facility, Malibu back in February 22nd.

That was after a stretch of erratic behavior that included two other brief stints in rehab and culminated in that little episode where she shaved her head. Now according to her manager at Jive Records, she has successfully completed the program. So now she is back at home. He is asking that we all respect her privacy which I kind of expect the paparazzi will not be doing.

Promises is quite familiar with celebrity clients, of course. It costs around $48,000 for a 30-day stay. And, it's hosted a slew of other stars including Ben Affleck, Charlie Sheen has been there and so has Diana Ross.

Now we forget sometimes Britney's just 25 years old and in addition to rehab, she's got two kids, she's dealing with a divorce. A lot on her plate. A lot on anybody's plate, let alone a 25-year- old's.

LEMON: Absolutely, A.J., I agree with you. And we joke about it sometimes but it is pretty serious stuff and we do wish her well. Let's talk about a celebrity, a celebrity that's back home but this one is out of the hospital?

HAMMER: Yes. I am happy to report this news, that Regis Philbin, certainly one of the hardest working men in show biz, back home after heart bypass surgery which went down last week.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KELLY RIPA, REGIS' CO-HOST: We should say good morning to Regis who is at home watching us.

HOWIE MANDELL, CO-HOST: Is he at home?

I didn't know that.

RIPA: We love you.

HAMMER: Regis' co-host, Kelly Ripa, breaking the news this morning on their show. Passing along the good news along with the substitute host, Howie Mandell, who is filling in for Regis today. Ripa added that the 75-year-old Philbin, has actually been home for two days now but she hasn't been able to say anything because she was sworn to secrecy.

The heart surgery was exactly a week ago, so the fact he was only in the hospital for five days seems to be a good sign. They do expect Philbin to call into the show on Friday. Don, we're still waiting to hear exactly when he will make his return to the show. We expect it will be within probably four to six weeks.

LEMON: Great. During that time our very own Anderson Cooper has been filling in as well, doing a great job there. And A.J., let's talk about another celebrity, Woody Harrelson. Today we learned his father passed away. What can you tell us about that?

HAMMER: Yes. Woodie's dad, Charles Harrelson, died last week in federal prison. He was 69 years old. The elder Harrelson was convicted of murdering a U.S. district judge back in 1979 and he spent the rest of his life in custody. He was found unresponsive in his cell on March 15th, appears to have died of natural causes. Woody Harrelson was a teenager when his dad was convicted of the murder. And Woody has spoken out in the past about how he feels that his dad's conviction was unfair and the results of pre-trial publicity.

We do have one last bit of housekeeping today for you. We told you yesterday that there was a hearing in the paternity case involving Anna Nicole Smith's daughter Dannielynn. Per a judge's urging, there are now reports that a DNA sample has been in fact been taken from 6- month-old Dannielynn. So hopefully we'll have a definitive answer soon as to who the father is and put this whole thing to rest.

Coming up tonight on "SHOWBIZ TONIGHT" we'll have much more on Britney Spears out of rehab after 28 days. The question is did she leave way too soon and can we really believe that she is turning her life around? We hope she is. And we'll have the inside story for you on TV's most provocative entertainment news show at 11:00 p.m. Eastern and Pacific. On headline prime. We will see you then.

LEMON: I watch every night, A.J.

HAMMER: We'll take every viewer, Don. Thanks.

KEILAR: Coming up, a developing story, a trench collapse in Texas. Fredricka Whitfield is getting all of the details. We'll have more on that in just a moment.

And a big rally on Wall Street. Stock markets are up this Wednesday afternoon. Susan Lisovicz joins us from the New York Stock Exchange with more. You're watching CNN newsroom.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: Hello, I'm Don Lemon live at the CNN world head quarters in Atlanta ...

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