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CNN Sunday Morning
North Korea Shutdown; 'CNN Heroes'; White House Honors 60th Anniversary of Jackie Robinson Breaking Baseball's Color Barrier
Aired July 15, 2007 - 09:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
MELISSA LONG, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning. It is Sunday, July 15th.
From the CNN Center here in Atlanta, I'm Melissa Long, in today for Betty.
T.J. HOLMES, CNN ANCHOR: And good morning to you all. I'm T.J. Holmes.
Ahead on CNN SUNDAY MORNING...
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Sex means consent. And what happened was not consent.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: She says she's a rape victim, but in court she can't say the words "rape" or "victim". Strange case here, and it's returning to a courtroom this week.
LONG: And a javelin thrower takes aim at the competition? We're going to share this moment with you a little bit later this hour.
We get started, however, with a major development in the priest sex abuse scandal. The nation's largest archdiocese has reportedly agreed to a record payout.
According to The Associated Press this morning, the Catholic Church in Los Angeles agreed to a settlement of $660 million. The settlement covers more than 500 people who claims they were sexually abused by clergy. Now, if you do the math, that averages out to more than $1.3 million per plaintiff.
According to the AP, the settlement also calls for the release of confidential personnel files on priests. A judge must approve the deal. The details still need to be worked out. Some of the alleged victims say they're relieved but not celebrating.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ESTHER MILLER, ABUSE VICTIM: This is just the beginning of a different fork in the road for me as a victim. It doesn't mean I'm fixed. It doesn't mean my relational problems, my work problems go away. MARY GRANT, ABUSE VICTIM: If it wasn't for the 500 wounded victims who came forward and filed these lawsuits, many these priests would still be working in parishes today.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LONG: Some victims say the release of confidential files is an essential part of the deal. They want to know if church leaders took part in a cover-up.
HOLMES: There has been another suicide bombing in Pakistan. Police say the bomber struck a police center, killing at least 11 police recruits. It is third attack this weekend in the country's volatile northwest region bordering Afghanistan.
Earlier today, a suicide bomb attack on a police and army convoy killed 14 people. Among them, 11 Pakistani security personnel.
And yesterday, 24 Pakistani soldiers were killed in a suicide car bombing on another convoy. Tensions have been high since an army raid on a radical mosque last week.
Former Israeli prime minister Shimon Peres will be sworn in as Israel's new president just about two ours from now. Peres has said he see this is new role in a largely ceremonial job as someone who can unite all Israelis.
The 83-year-old's political career stretches back more than half a century. He's been a two-time prime minister, a member of parliament, defense minister as well. And he won a Nobel Peace Prize for helping craft the Oslo Peace Accord.
HOLMES: A positive move by North Korea to end its controversial nuclear program. One official saying today the country's nuclear reactor has been shut down. The move was expected after a shipment of oil arrived from North Korea -- or rather from South Korea yesterday. Inspectors from the International Atomic Energy Agency haven't confirmed the shutdown.
LONG: Those inspectors could confirm the shutdown as early as today. But how do you just turn off a nuclear reactor? And also, what is the impact of doing so?
CNN's Zain Verjee explains.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ZAIN VERJEE, CNN STATE DEPT. CORRESPONDENT (voice over): This is ground zero, the focus of the standoff with North Korea. The Yongbyon nuclear reactor, old and unsophisticated, but the source of plutonium used in North Korea's nuclear bomb-making.
Jon Wolfsthal has been to Yongbyon and knows how to shut it down.
JON WOLFSTHAL, CENTER FOR STRATEGIC & INTERNATIONAL STUDIES: They have to do it carefully, obviously, but there is nothing technically holding up the shutdown of the reactor.
VERJEE (on camera): But it's not as easy as flipping a switch. Here's how do you it.
Say this mug is a reactor and these red markers are fuel rods that contain radioactive material. Now, to stop the nuclear reaction, you have got to put in what are known as control rods. It is kind of like you're pouring water on to a fire.
Then you remove these fuel rods and you place them in a nearby pool. And what that does is it cools the fuel rods down, as well as provides a place of storage.
(voice over): The question is, what happens to the fuel rods which can be reprocessed to produce plutonium? It's not clear what North Korea plans to do with them. Once the reactor is empty, the U.S. hopes it will be disabled.
WOLFSTHAL: Some people want to pour cement into the reactor so that it can't operate. Others want it taken apart down to the studs. We still don't know what the North Koreans are prepared to do to go and disable that facility.
VERJEE: A team of nuclear inspectors is on the ground to begin monitoring the Yongbyon complex shutdown. It's the first time they've been there in four and a half years.
But one question still nags weapons experts. What push comes to shove, will North Korea really be willing to give up its plutonium?
Zain Verjee, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HOLMES: We could see one of the terror suspects in Britain in court as early as tomorrow. Dr. Sabeel Ahmed became the third doctor charged in connection the failed terror attacks in London and Glasgow. He's charged with withholding information that could have prevented an act of terrorism.
Also charged Saturday, Dr. Mohammed Haneef. He is being held in Australia, charged with providing support for terrorism. Australian authorities say Haneef will be tried there, avoiding immediate extradition to the U.K.
(WEATHER REPORT)
(NEWSBREAK)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LONG: Good morning. Hope you're having a nice Sunday.
Of course there are people around us every day who are doing extraordinary things to make our world better. And all this year we are honoring them. We are bringing you stories of people that we call "CNN Heroes". And we're also inviting you to tell us about the heroes that you happen to know.
So, today we introduce you to a man from Wisconsin who went from fighting insurgents in Iraq to becoming a single father. Scott Southworth is today's CNN Hero.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Ready?
SCOTT SOUTHWORTH, CNN HERO: No soldier goes to war with the expectation of coming home and adopting an orphan from the war zone.
My name is Major Scott Harold Southworth. I'm a member of the Wisconsin Army National Guard and the proud father of an Iraqi orphan by the name of Ala'a Adem (ph).
Come on, Ala'a.
My soldiers and I volunteered at the Mother Theresa Orphanage in Baghdad, Iraq. I did not choose Ala'a, Ala' a chose me.
When the sisters informed me that they were going to have to move him to the government orphanage, I instantly told them that I would adopt them. There were a number of obstacles to bringing him to the United States. Not having enough money and not having a stable enough career, not having a wife.
But I could not, as a Christian man, walk away from that little boy. It really was a step of faith for me to just put that into action. He's a good little boy.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I am.
SOUTHWORTH: I know you are.
It's been what, two and a half years since I picked Ala'a up in Baghdad? He's learning how to walk. He's doing addition and subtraction. He's learning to read the English language. He's just a brilliant little boy.
Come on, work those legs.
He's limited by some of the things he can do physically, but I never treat Ala'a as though he's disabled.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I love you.
SOUTHWORTH: I love you too, my buddy.
Ala'a is so much more a blessing to me than I am to him. I felt a ton of sympathy for Ala'a when I was in Iraq. But Ala'a didn't need my sympathy. What he needed was some action.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LONG: And if you'd like to nominate your hero for special recognition this year, you'll find more information on our Web site, cnn.com/heroes.
HOLMES: Honoring Jackie Robinson. The White House hosting a T- Ball game to commemorate the 60th anniversary of Robinson breaking the color barrier in Major League Baseball.
We'll take you to Washington next.
VERONICA DE LA CRUZ, CNN ANCHOR: And politics is a sport, right? Yes? No?
Well, these guys seem to think so. They're going to have your play-by-play from inside the beltway when CNN SUNDAY MORNING continues.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LONG: Good morning. Hope you're having a delightful weekend.
Preparations are under way at the White House right now for a little T-Ball. Yes, T-Ball, the easiest games based on baseball. I'm sure the players wouldn't say that, though.
It is a fun way to honor something serious, the 60th anniversary of Jackie Robinson breaking baseball's color barrier.
CNN's Ed Henry joins us from the White House with more.
Good morning, Ed.
ED HENRY, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Melissa.
That's right, you're absolutely right. Obviously, 1947, Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier. He played for the Brooklyn Dodgers. And you'll remember that in 1955, the Dodgers moved out West, broke Brooklyn's heart, moved to Los Angeles.
So today, President Bush has invited two little league teams, one from Brooklyn, one from Los Angeles, to square off on the White House south lawn, which will be kind of interesting. A little bit maybe like the Hatfields and McCoys squaring off because of all the rivalries between Brooklyn and Los Angeles. But obviously, in all seriousness, none of these kids were actually born when Brooklyn moved out West, and so they'll just enjoy the day.
This is something President Bush has been doing since the beginning of his presidency in good times and bad. He feels it's a good way to get kids active, to get them to be playing baseball and learn some camaraderie. And, in fact, all of the kids today on both teams will be wearing uniform number 42 to honor Jackie Robinson.
You'll remember that Major League Baseball has actually retired that number for all teams so that no one else can wear that. Only existing players who had been wearing it for years, but once they retire, it will never be worn again.
There is also going to be a picnic after the game. So this is really a chance for the president to bring some kids together, bring these families together. There's going to be a lot of stars, like former Dodgers manager Tommy Lasorda there as well.
So it's one of those good days at the White House -- Melissa.
LONG: So a little bit of fun, and, of course, some important history for the kids to learn.
And I have to ask you -- I just checked your bio. It says White House correspondent. It doesn't say anything about your baseball career.
I understand you used to play little league as a kid. Are you going to play today?
HENRY: You had to bring that up. I did. I grew up in New York. I never rooted for the Dodgers or the Mets.
I was a Yankees fan and I wanted -- I played first base. I wanted to be playing first base for the New York Yankees. Obviously it didn't quite work out, Melissa. I'm actually now in the media.
LONG: Well, maybe they'll let you play today to show off your skills.
HENRY: I don't think so. I wish.
LONG: Ed Henry, thanks so much.
HENRY: See you.
HOLMES: Well, we're glad we got him and the Yankees didn't get him.
DE LA CRUZ: Ed Henry is a Yankees fan. All right.
HOLMES: Is that OK?
DE LA CRUZ: Yes.
HOLMES: You all right with that?
DE LA CRUZ: Yes. All I know is Derek Jeter, but, sure.
HOLMES: Why just Derek?
DE LA CRUZ: Because that's -- I know A-Rod. There you go. There you go. And I know a little bit more than just Derek Jeter.
HOLMES: Veronica De La Cruz, let's turn to politics instead of sports, if you will.
DE LA CRUZ: All right. All right. But we're going to mix some sports in with politics.
HOLMES: OK. That's right. DE LA CRUZ: And that story is coming up.
But our first story, one of the first GOP candidates bites the dust.
Former Virginia governor Jim Gilmore has announced that he is out of the race for president in '08. Gillmore says he plans to form a state political action committee to support local Republican candidates in Virginia and also has hinted at seeking office again in the future. He began his bid for the nomination in January.
HOLMES: So now that he's out, what, we're down to 92 candidates now?
DE LA CRUZ: Yes, exactly. Yes, something like that.
Some popular video to show you this morning, T.J., from the political page.
Tom Foreman taking a closer look at how much the Iraq war is costing you. He says the cost is some $10 billion a month. And for that price, the U.S. could build 133 state-of-the-art high schools, 100 hospitals, or take the new prescription drug benefit for the nation's elderly, estimated to cost $70 billion a year. With $10 billion a month, the U.S. could almost double that benefit.
HOLMES: Wow.
DE LA CRUZ: So it makes you think.
Finally, we were just talking about sports, right?
HOLMES: Yes.
DE LA CRUZ: So this is not ESPN, but this is superdeluxe.com.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's time to check the capital gains.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Break it down!
(END VIDEO CLIP)
DE LA CRUZ: This is a political show online like you have never seen before. These guys come at it as politics is a contact sport.
HOLMES: Yes.
DE LA CRUZ: It is sometimes.
HOLMES: Well, it is, actually.
DE LA CRUZ: They treat this one like an NFL pregame here. You can see that they're giving the rundown on the recent second quarter fundraising results by the candidates. It is all online. It's worth checking out -- superdeluxe.com, that is the place.
And, you know, I just wanted to give back to the whole "crunk" thing. You know, earlier...
HOLMES: We're still talking about crunk?
DE LA CRUZ: Yes we are.
Merriam-Webster has added a hundred new words. "Crunk" was one of them.
I asked T.J. to use "crunk" in a sentence. And I have to show you this.
Josh Levs, by the way, thinks that he can out-crunk you.
HOLMES: Oh my goodness.
DE LA CRUZ: And this is why. He wrote an article on this basketball team, the Atlanta Crunk. There is actually a basketball team out there. It's called the Atlanta Krunk, just in case you want to check it out.
LONG: For those that may not know, what is crunk?
DE LA CRUZ: Well, T.J. can explain what crunk is.
HOLMES: We're going to have a crunkathon.
OK. It's Sunday. No more crunk talk. We are...
DE LA CRUZ: But what is it, though?
LONG: What is it?
HOLMES: We are done with the "crunk" talk.
LONG: What is it?
HOLMES: Ladies, you don't want to be involved in crunk. OK?
DE LA CRUZ: Melissa, it is a genre of hip-hop music.
LONG: It's an unladylike thing? OK.
DE LA CRUZ: Or it could be an adjective or a noun, like, let's get crunk with it.
HOLMES: OK.
DE LA CRUZ: How did I do?
(CROSSTALK)
LONG: Well, Veronica was just talking about campaign cash. We're talking about crunk. Right? OK. So campaign cash is tight. Staffers are bailing out. Does the John McCain campaign have a future?
HOLMES: And turning to a controversial trial, a sexual assault trial going on in Nebraska, where the judge bans the words "rape" and "victim," among others. The alleged victim furious about this. So are some women's rights supporters.
We'll have the story for you when CNN SUNDAY MORNING returns.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LONG: Good morning you to. Coming up on 9:30 in the morning here in Atlanta, 6:30 in the morning in Seattle.
I'm Melissa Long, in today for Betty.
HOLMES: And I'm T.J. Holmes.
Strapped for cash and losing staffers, John McCain on the tightrope in his bid for the White House.
We'll talk to an expert political analyst coming up.
Meanwhile, head to Nebraska now. A controversial rape case is getting a lot of attention there. Not so much because of the crime itself, but because of what trial participants can and can't say.
CNN's Carol Costello explains.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Pamir Safi is on trial for the second time, accused of raping Tory Bowen. His first trial ended with a hung jury after a war of words.
Safi's attorney had convinced Nebraska judge Jeffre Cheuvront to ban words like "rape," "sexual assault," "victim" and "assailant," arguing they may influence the jury. And that ruling applied even to Safi's alleged victim, Tory Bowen.
TORY BOWEN, ALLEGED RAPE VICTIM: I was mortified. I didn't know what to do.
My first question to Pat was, "Can I say this in a different language?" I didn't -- I didn't think that the judges had that authority to ban what happened from me in the courtroom.
COSTELLO: At the first trial Bowen testified for 13 hours without violating the judge's ban, but this time around, she wanted to be able speak freely, so she went public. And women's rights groups backed her up with a public protest.
ANGELA ROSE, VICTIMS' RIGHTS ACTIVIST: We're just not going to stand for it. So they've got the scarves over their mouths to show that victims should be given free speech. COSTELLO: Banning words isn't unheard up. The judge in Kobe Bryant's rape trial banned the word "victim" to describe the woman accusing Bryant of rape.
JEFFREY TOOBIN, CNN SENIOR LEGAL ANALYST: The use of the label "victim" assumes that a crime took place. And it's the jury's job to decide whether a crime takes place, not the witness's.
COSTELLO: But the Nebraska judge's order went a lot farther. His ruling not only applied to witnesses, but to the alleged victim's testimony. Bowen says the ruling left her with few words to adequately describe what happened to her. So she refused to sign a court order forbidding her to utter words like "rape," even though disobeying such an order could bring a contempt charge, with jail time, a fine or both.
BOWEN: What happened was rape. Sex means consent. And what happened was not consent.
COSTELLO: Safi's attorney is frustrated, too. He was eager to prove his client's innocence and he says the judge's ruling was correct.
CLARENCE MOCK, DEFENDANT'S ATTORNEY: Trials should be deliberations based upon reason and the facts and the law, not about who can think up the most juicy terms to apply.
COSTELLO: As to where Bowen's case goes now, her lawyers are going to try to move the case out of Nebraska.
Carol Costello, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LONG: And then there were nine. Nine Republicans left in the presidential race for now. That's because former Virginia Governor Jim Gilmore has dropped out. Gilmore said his late entry into the race and a premium placed on early primaries really behind his decision. Also eye surgery forced Gilmore to suspend all campaign appearances nearly two weeks ago. He had only about $90,000 in campaign cash on hand.
HOLMES: Well, John McCain is still in it to win it even though he has very little campaign cash and staffers are jumping ship. At an event yesterday, McCain said he never thought he would rely on money to win the campaign anyway. Well, we get more now from CNN senior political correspondent Candy Crowley, part of the best political team on television.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CANDY CROWLEY, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): He is broke. His staff is skeletal. His poll numbers are sagging. But John McCain is standing.
SEN. JOHN MCCAIN (R-AZ), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: We go to the town hall meetings. We fix our financial difficulties. And we win.
CROWLEY: In New Hampshire, on his first campaign trip since the departure of top advisers, McCain signaled his presidential bid will go back to the future, the template of 2000, when his maverick campaign stunned the political world and he beat George Bush in the New Hampshire primary.
Even close friends wonder if anything can save this campaign, but McCain says he's hard-pressed to think of anything that will stop him.
MCCAIN: Contracting a fatal disease.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Anything short of that?
MCCAIN: Not that I know of.
CROWLEY: Even as he spoke, other top aides in the McCain campaign were preparing to leave. And the details of second-quarter fundraising and spending are about to be made public. McCain is down to his last $250,000, a campaign pittance. He hangs in with old jokes.
MCCAIN: I mean, in the words of Chairman Mao, it's always darkest before it's totally black.
CROWLEY: Of all the changes that have and will take place in camp McCain, the one thing that has not changed is the candidate. He is in some sense a man without a constituency. His positions on immigration and campaign finance reform infuriate conservatives who make up the core of the Republican primary vote. At the same, independents, so vital to McCain's 2000 campaign, have left him in droves over his hawkish stance on the war in Iraq.
MCCAIN: Democratic candidates for president will argue for the course of cutting our losses and withdrawing from the threat in the vain hope it will not follow us here. I cannot join them in such wishful and very dangerous thinking.
CROWLEY: McCain, just back from a Fourth of July trip to Iraq, went to New Hampshire to deliver a tough no retreat speech. Criticizing what he called defeatism, he asked voters to give the surge a chance. He asked them to give him one, too.
MCCAIN: I will stand where I stand today and trust you to give me a fair hearing. There is too much at stake in this election for any candidate to do less.
CROWLEY: John McCain will play the hand he dealt himself.
(on camera): McCain and those around him still hope that voters, even if they disagree with the candidate on certain issues, will nonetheless stay with him because he is willing to stick with positions regardless of the political wins.
Candy Crowley, CNN, Concord, New Hampshire.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HOLMES: Well, so John McCain says he is going to keep on fighting. But is the battle really over for the former frontrunner? Dr. Lorenzo Morris heads up the political science department at Howard University. He joins me now from Washington.
Sir, thank you for being here. Now if you or I said we had $250,000 cash in our accounts, that doesn't sound so bad. But he has a quarter million left in his account. Help people understand how bad is that really at this stage to him to just have a quarter million dollars to spend.
DR. LORENZO MORRIS, HOWARD UNIVERSITY: Well, for one thing, he spends almost that amount each month on travel. That amount pales in comparison with even the amount that's Giuliani has raised, not to mention the amounts raised by the Democrats to simply get around the country and deliver his message. He can barely last more than a few weeks with that amount of money.
In addition, he needs to rebuild his staff which is in disarray. He has to have a new campaign direction in terms of getting poll results that are going to increase his financial donations. And he has to look more credible. All of these things are difficult to do without spending money. And he doesn't have it.
HOLMES: Well, Doc Morris, that doesn't sound good at all. You're not painting a very good picture there for the senator. How he can turn this around?
MORRIS: Well, that's hard to say. It would be rather surprising at this point. It is rare that a campaign confronts at least three kinds of difficulties, financial disarray, staff disarray, as well as declining polls. And it makes it look difficult.
The one thing that gives him a kind of persistence other than his own tenacity as a candidate and as a fairly appealing person is that he represents the closest element to the Bush administration and that element should have some remaining capacity to generate support that has not yet shown itself.
HOLMES: But that's kind of part of his problem, too, being close to the Bush administration. Now there is this -- you may have seen it. Chris Rock did this skit on "Saturday Night Live" where he was talking about John McCain. He said, was it just me or was McCain too old eight years ago when he ran?
Now how much has time taken a toll on him? Does he just not seem to have some of that fire and that energy that drew so many people in when he was that maverick when he ran back in 2000?
MORRIS: Well, in 2000 he ran what was called the Straight Talk Express. He appeared not only to be a maverick, but to be someone who was outside of the normal strain of party politics having been both a conservative and yet generating a reformist approach to campaign finance. None of that glamour remains because that is something that has become part of recent electoral history. And at the same time, he doesn't have any new initiatives. And he is stuck. And I think that's part of the problem. It's whether he lost the glamour or whether or not the ideological positions and support for the war, the support for immigration reform as well as the failure to have new finance initiatives leaves him stuck in 2000 history.
HOLMES: All right. We'll turn to the Democrats now. And tell us, do you see any Democrat making any inroads on Obama and Clinton? And if so, who? And if not just yet, who has a potential to kind of make a dent and not just make this a two-person race?
MORRIS: Well, Edwards always has the potential. And I think Biden has some potential. But for the most part it is a two-person race. And if I had to put my money, as evidently most of the donors do on the candidates, it would be on those two people.
HOLMES: All right. Now how much should we make of this incident, the open mike incident we saw between -- it was Clinton and Edwards there in -- I believe it was in Detroit at the NAACP event, that open mike where they were talking about possibly narrowing down -- they were talking about these debates and cutting some folks off.
Is that going to hurt them down the road? Is this just something we're going to talk about this past week and is going to go away? And, also, is that a terribly bad idea?
MORRIS: Well, T.J., if you consider, for example, in the last debate at Howard, there where eight candidates and about an hour-and- a-half for discussion. That meant that each candidate had no more than eight minutes total speaking time. With that number of people, you certainly have to think that a smaller number would allow the American public a greater exposure to the issues.
On the other hand, it doesn't sound a bit elitist. But what I -- my take on it is different from that of most people. I'm more curious by the notion that in that whispered discussion they mentioned getting together with each other. No one mentioned Barack Obama. It sort of says something about his intricacy -- the intricacy of his relationships to the other candidates in the party.
HOLMES: Well, what does that say to you? What does it say?
MORRIS: It says to me that they haven't paid sufficient attention to the strength of his campaign or it may also say that he has not integrated a large part of the party structure.
HOLMES: Are you serious? The man just raised $32.5 million and they're not taking him seriously yet?
MORRIS: Well, I think obviously if they didn't talk about him as a central component of the debate, I think one of the things that happens is that they are looking more to the Democratic Party leadership. Both of them have an addition to their senatorial positions and important political histories distinct roles with the DLC and with groups like that. And I think they tend to think in those terms.
Barack Obama's money and his popularity comes more from the volunteer element as well as from those who are not considered traditional party activists.
HOLMES: All right. Well, Dr. Lorenzo Morris, again, heading up the political science department at Howard University. Sir, thank you so much for your time and expertise. You have a good rest of your Sunday.
MORRIS: Thank you.
HOLMES: All right. Well, meanwhile, on Monday, July 23rd, the Democratic candidates square off in a CNN/YouTube debate. Anderson Cooper hosts this first of its kind event on live and interactive on TV and online. You can see the Republican candidates go at it on Monday, September 17th.
And tomorrow night, CNN kicks off the week with John Roberts and Kiran Chetry previewing the CNN/YouTube debate. Find out what's on America's mind when we reveal some of the possible video questions for the candidates every night this week at 8:00 Eastern only on CNN, your political headquarters.
LONG: And coming up, a story which you really must see the video to understand. A javelin throw goes terribly wrong. Going to show what you happened when that athletes slips right there. I think can you surmise what happened when, yes, the javelin went astray. That's from Rome coming up on CNN SUNDAY MORNING.
BONNIE SCHNEIDER, CNN METEOROLOGIST: We are tracking Man-Yi as the storm works its way away from Japan.
(WEATHER REPORT)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: Summer time snowfall in Arizona? Bonnie Schneider missed this one, didn't she? No, Bonnie, you didn't. Just kidding. This didn't fall from the heavens. It's the brainstorm of the city zoo. The kids, of course, had a good old time in the white stuff. The zoo's occupants enjoyed it as well. The snow was dumped in a number of pens and exhibits just to loosen things up there in hot Arizona.
LONG: Looks like fun. Here is a frozen treat we can enjoy and today maybe even take part in enjoying an ice cream cone with a little less guilt. Today, check your calendar, it is National Ice Cream Day. It is actually official, T.J., in case you would like to have an ice cream.
HOLMES: Official?
LONG: Yes. President Ronald Reagan created the one-day salute, it was 23 years ago. And what a great day to have ice cream.
HOLMES: Because it's hot, Bonnie. And, again, just to clear that up...
LONG: Like you need an excuse to have ice cream, but...
HOLMES: It didn't snow in Arizona.
SCHNEIDER: No.
HOLMES: And if it would have, Bonnie would have been all over that story.
(WEATHER REPORT)
SCHNEIDER: Now we're taking you to the tropics. And we're tracking Man-Yi. This storm is moving away from Japan in the Western Pacific. The sustained winds are now at 50 miles per hour. And the movement is to the east-northeast at 29 miles per hour. So the storm has definitely downgraded and because of the stationary front developing just to the south of Korea, it will continue to pull away. The problem is we still run the risk of mudslides and heavy rain.
(WEATHER REPORT)
HOLMES: All right. Bonnie, thank you so much, ma'am.
Well, how do you stop an armed robber? You don't need a fancy alarm system, no gun in your house, none of that. You just need a glass of wine. Fine glass of wine.
LONG: This case needs some explaining.
HOLMES: Yes. Self-defense served in a glass. We are going to uncork these details coming up.
LONG: And a javelin thrower takes aim but takes off. A trip sends his spear a little wild and into another athlete.
HOLMES: Into an athlete.
LONG: Coming up on CNN SUNDAY MORNING, we're going to find out how that athlete is doing.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: Need to tell you now about this would-be robber who has a taste for fine wine, good company, but maybe not really a heart for crime. CNN's Zain Verjee has the story.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ZAIN VERJEE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Xavier Cervera took his dog out for a walk as his guests were winding down a dinner party last month on his patio, sipping French wine and nibbling cheese. Almost as soon as Xavier left, his party was crashed by an armed, hooded gunman who had burst through an opened patio door.
XAVIER CERVERA, HOMEOWNER: I usually latch it when I leave. That evening, I did not. And so they were all sitting, spread out in the courtyard, and he just kicked the gate in.
VERJEE: The intruder pressed his gun against a 14-year-old's head, saying, give me your money or I'll start shooting. Then Xavier's guests did something extraordinary.
CERVERA: They offered him some food and wine, which he accepted, which I assume really helped.
VERJEE (on camera): The wine or the cheese?
CERVERA: Probably both. But maybe the wine more so.
VERJEE (voice-over): Then someone hits a sore spot.
CERVERA: One of them said to him, your mother would be ashamed of you. And apparently, that really toned him down. He became a little morose upon hearing that, and he said his mother was no longer alive.
VERJEE (on camera): The attacker took down his hood, had a little bit more wine, helped himself to some cheese. Then he tucked away his gun and looked around and said, maybe I've come to the wrong place.
(voice-over): William Chambliss is a professor of sociology at George Washington University, and says that comment by the gunman was revealing.
WILLIAM CHAMBLISS, GEORGE WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY: "I think I came to the wrong place." He came to the wrong place because these people were so nice and because they treated him like a human being. He couldn't really go through with the robbery.
VERJEE: Chambliss says treating the gunman with dignity was the key. And for the intruder, getting hugs was important, too. First, he wanted individual hugs. Then, a group hug.
(on camera): And after the group hug, he just turned around and left. Just the same way that he came.
CERVERA: Yes, thanked them again and apologized again. And went on his way.
VERJEE (voice-over): Police told The Washington Post it was strange but true. A suspect still hasn't been found. Only the crystal glass he left with.
Zain Verjee, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HOLMES: We're all quite interested in that wine now. And what is it again, Melissa? You've been saying this all morning -- you've been practicing. The name of the wine is what?
LONG: I can't say it anymore. HOLMES: It is Chateau something or the other.
LONG: It's a Bordeaux red wine. I was looking at prices, anywhere from $42 to $99.
HOLMES: So it is not cheap stuff, but it will keep you from being robbed. We're going to hear more from the family saved by the wine. They'll recount their story live Monday on CNN's AMERICAN MORNING, starting at 6:00 Eastern.
LONG: And going to check in with Howard Kurtz in Washington to see what is ahead on his program, CNN's "RELIABLE SOURCES."
Good morning, Howard.
HOWARD KURTZ, HOST, "RELIABLE SOURCES": Good morning, Melissa. Coming up, Larry Flynt on why Hustler magazine is back in the business of investigating politicians' sex lives after tying Louisiana Senator David Vitter to the D.C. madam.
The White House press corps hammers President Bush over his Iraq strategy. Have the media turned against the war?
We'll also look at a Chicago TV reporter who investigated the disappearance of a man's wife by showing up at his house in a bikini. She has been fired.
That and Michael Moore taking on CNN ahead on "RELIABLE SOURCES."
LONG: Thank you. Howard. We'll be watching.
HOLMES: And folks, you want to stick around and watch this. Took a whole lot of lickings to get the materials for this ship. A Viking ship made of popsicle sticks. And, yes, it's ready to set sail.
LONG: And have you seen this yet? A javelin throw goes off course. Instead, it hits an athlete, missing the target. We're going to find out how that athlete is doing, coming up on CNN SUNDAY MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LONG : Good morning once again. Wooden ships, nothing new. But a boat made of popsicle sticks? Would you want to take a ride on this?
HOLMES: I would not. This replica Viking ship made its maiden voyage Friday on a lake in the Netherlands. Well, whether it's ready for the deep blue sea, we don't quite know that. The maker is a Hollywood stunt man who hopes to sail it across the Atlantic to North America. The Coast Guard is on standby to come swoop him up when this thing goes down.
LONG: And I said popsicle sticks. It was built over four years from about five million ice cream sticks glued together. Right now the challenge, finding a crew brave enough to sail it out into the ocean. And T.J. is not onboard.
HOLMES: (INAUDIBLE). Also, this is -- I'm not onboard with this either. This video we've been seeing, just take a look at this javelin throw. This happened in a track and field event in Rome.
LONG: It looked like a slip right there and then watch the highlighted part. The spear goes hurdling well outside the target zone and into another athlete.
HOLMES: But he did set a world record throw with that toss. Just kidding. It was not a record. It didn't count, folks.
(CROSSTALK)
HOLMES: But look at that, the injury actually was not that serious -- or not as serious, excuse me, as it first appeared to be. The javelin penetrated just a short way into the athlete's back. But any way is a long way, if you ask me. He was given a few stitches, the injury knocked him out of that competition.
LONG: His muscle really saving him right there from that spear.
HOLMES: Lucky guy.
LONG: Starbucks loses face in China. A controversial coffee house is closing in China's Forbidden City after opposition a U.S. chain operating in one of China's historic sites.
HOLMES: (INAUDIBLE) Starbucks opened shop on the former imperial palace grounds in 2000. A campaign for its closure has been brewing ever since early this year when a Chinese television anchor complained that the American company's presence was trampling Chinese culture.
And finally this morning, we want to welcome the newest member of the CNN weekend crew, that little guy. That is baby Tate (ph). Tate Bowman Adams (ph). He arrived late Friday, a bit earlier than expected. But he is good looking. And he is healthy.
LONG: And we would love to wish our executive producer Jennifer and her husband both a very best of luck. What a beautiful picture, all smiles.
HOLMES: Tate Bowman Adams. He was supposed to be named after his grandfather, I believe whose name was Sam, but Samuel Adams is not something they wanted to go with.
LONG: Yes, they don't like that ring.
HOLMES: I was a fan of it, Jen. But I understand you not going that route.
LONG: And you know what, Jen, put down the BlackBerry. Enjoy your time...
(CROSSTALK)
(LAUGHTER)
HOLMES: Ten minutes after he was born, she was sending us messages on our BlackBerry.
LONG: Congratulations.
HOLMES: But congratulations. But (INAUDIBLE) stay here with CNN. Coming up next, of course, we have "RELIABLE SOURCES" with Howard Kurtz where you'll see Hustler publisher Larry Flynt talking about his role in exposing Senator David Vitter's name on the alleged D.C. madam's list.
LONG: And then it's "LATE EDITION" with Suzanne Malveaux. She'll be talking to the Iraqi foreign minister about the Iraq progress report. But first a check of the morning's top developments.
HOLMES: And happening right now in the news, it will be the largest settlement yet in the church sexual abuse scandal. A plaintiff's attorney confirms that the Roman Catholic Diocese of Los Angeles will pay $660 million to hundreds of people who say they were abused by members of the clergy.
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