Return to Transcripts main page
CNN Newsroom
Supreme Court Nominee Meets Lawmakers; Obama Heads to Egypt; Abortion Doctor's Suspected Gunman Expected in Court; Suspected Airplane Debris Found off Brazil; Is the Economy Stabilizing?; $30,00 Missing from Maersk Incident; Military's Online Outreach
Aired June 02, 2009 - 09:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: Death of a doctor still rippling through a community. We hear from both sides of the abortion debate.
And happening right now: Brazil's air force says they have found some debris that could be from Air France flight 447. And we are learning more about those who were on board that jet that disappeared yesterday.
And a dad determined to reunite with his son still blocked even after the death of his estranged wife.
It is Tuesday, June 2nd. Hi, everybody. I'm Heidi Collins. You are in the "CNN NEWSROOM."
This morning an awful lot going on. We want to give you a quick walk-through now. Judging Sonia Sotomayor. This morning the Supreme Court nominee makes the rounds and shakes some hands but what questions will she face?
Our senior congressional correspondent Dana Bash is on Capitol Hill. She'll take a look at those and give us a little bit of a preview. And then to Elaine Quijano this morning at the White House. President Obama leaves today on his next big mission, reaching out to the Muslim world.
So, how will he resonate?
We want to get straight to that battle for Supreme Court, though, first this morning. President Obama wants the Senate to confirm Judge Sonia Sotomayor before August. Republicans warn they will not be rushed through the vetting process. Ultimately her confirmation seems likely. As you know, Democrats hold a majority in the Senate and seven Republicans have previously confirmed her for a lower court.
But it will not be without some debate. Some Republicans questioning comments she has made. Will her life experiences influence her judicial decisions? If confirmed, Sonia Sotomayor will be the first Hispanic to sit on the bench.
Before she can sit on that bench, though, Sonia Sotomayor must first sit down with lawmakers who will consider her nomination. In all, there will be eight meetings today and while they may look informal, the stakes for a nominee are, of course, huge.
CNN's senior congressional correspondent Dana Bash explains.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DANA BASH, CNN SENIOR CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): White House aides huddle with Sonia Sotomayor preparing for her first meetings with the senators who will decide her fate. Obama officials invited photographers to capture these images to portray an engaged nominee and because history shows congressional courtesy calls matter.
ED GILLESPIE, FORMER CHAIRMAN, REPUBLICAN NATIONAL COMMITTEE: Senators will form opinions based on the one-on-one meetings. They'll talk to their colleagues about their perceptions that they've taken away from those meetings and that will start to form perception.
BASH: Perceptions that have much more of an impact than the smiles and pleasantries the photo-op suggests. Most recently Samuel Alito and John Roberts's Senate meetings went smoothly but Harriet Miers's nomination was pulled after senators in both parties emerged from private sessions calling her unqualified.
SEN. CHARLES SCHUMER (D), NEW YORK: I couldn't tell you how I would vote on Harriet Miers because she offered very, very little.
BASH: Even Sotomayor's critics concede she is qualified. Still, senators she's visiting say they'll use their meetings to ask pointed questions. For Republicans, it will be their first shot at directly asking about concerns like judicial activism.
SEN. JEFF SESSIONS (R), ALABAMA: And not a policy-making branch. So the question would be whether or not she's committed to that or whether she believes that a judge is empowered to promote an agenda.
BASH: And those Senate Republicans are carefully avoiding the explosive language of Rush Limbaugh who called her a racist. GOP senators say they do expect her to explain and even apologize for suggesting as a Latina woman she would more often than not reach a better conclusion than a white male.
SEN. LINDSEY GRAHAM (R), SOUTH CAROLINA: She is going to have to convince me that if I found myself in court against someone she has a lot of empathy for, I'd get a fair shake. And if she can't, I won't vote for her.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COLLINS: Dana Bash joining us now live from Capitol Hill with more on this. So Dana, eight meetings today that we know of and more are scheduled for tomorrow. Seems like a nominee on a fast track. Is it?
BASH: Well, not necessarily as fast, Heidi, as the White House wants. They want to have this done, the hearings to be completed, the vote to be completed by the time the Senate adjourns for August recess in the first week of August, but Republicans are really pushing back. They're saying, hold on a minute. We really need time. She has a voluminous record, 3,500 cases that are at least in public that she has opinions on, lots of writings, et cetera. So they are really pushing back. That is the subject of intense negotiations going on...
COLLINS: Yes.
BASH: ... even as we speak, Heidi.
COLLINS: Absolutely. So, what about the questionnaire? Have you heard any more about that, what these questions are going to look like for her?
BASH: Well, we are hearing from Democratic sources, we actually could get the response to the questionnaire as soon as today. In fact, I have it here. It's just about 10 pages of questions but we are expecting, Heidi, to get many, many more in terms of the response because what this questionnaire asks for is Sotomayor's background, some of her schooling, some of the clubs and associations that she is dealing with, but also her writings.
And we are told that we should expect some writings and some other things that she has done since she was last confirmed by the Senate as a circuit court judge and we expect there to be a lot of that. We are told by some Democrats it's not going to be anything necessarily explosive but you never know until you see it.
COLLINS: That's right. And we'll just keep asking you until we get it.
All right, Dana Bash, thanks so much. Our congressional correspondent this morning.
And next hour the political tug of war. The emotional pull of race. How big of a role will it play in the confirmation battle? We're going to talk with two strategists, one Republican, one Democrat. That'll come your way at the top of the hour.
President Obama getting ready to head out on an important trip to the Middle East and Europe. He is making a major speech about U.S. relations with the Muslim world from Cairo, Egypt later on this week.
Elaine Quijano is live now at the White House with more on this.
So, Elaine, there are some pretty big expectations for this trip, especially regarding that speech. What does the president hope to accomplish with this?
ELAINE QUIJANO, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Yes, you're absolutely right, Heidi. There are some pretty big expectations. This is all about -- the first part of this trip anyway is all about outreach to the Muslim world. And so ahead of that speech actually on Wednesday, the president is going to be making a stop in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia to meet with King Abdullah there and then Thursday is the big speech that you mentioned, the major address to the Muslim world. The president will be delivering that address from the University of Cairo in Egypt. Now officials say that the president is going to be talking about ways in which the United States and Muslim communities around the world can work to bridge their differences, but the president is also going to be talking about the issue that continues to confound American presidents and that is peace in the Middle East, how to work towards some kind of a solution in the Israeli/Palestinian conflict.
As you know, Heidi, a lot of people in the Middle East are going to be watching what the president says here very closely. His words are going to be so closely scrutinized to see whether or not the approach by the United States is going to change under this new president. Heidi?
COLLINS: Yes. And then from Egypt, he will move on to Germany and France. What are some of the issues that he's going to talk about and highlight from there?
QUIJANO: Yes. It's interesting. The president, on Friday, will be stopping at a Buchenwald concentration camp. Now this is a camp that was liberated by U.S. forces in 1945.
COLLINS: Right.
QUIJANO: It's estimated that at least 56,000 people were killed there by the Nazis. The president also then going to be meeting with injured troops at Landstuhl Medical Center and then on Saturday the president heads to France to help commemorate the 65th anniversary of D-Day.
And that's going to be a chance, really, to of course pay tribute to the sacrifices that people made there, to pay tribute to America's veterans, but officials say it's also going to be an opportunity for the president to underscore his commitment to veterans by really aiming his message at lawmakers back here in Washington, as they continue to haggle over the president's budget.
The president has been pushing for an increase in funding for the Veterans Administration, so that's going to be at least part of the president's message when he heads overseas, Heidi.
COLLINS: All right. Very good. Elaine Quijano this morning from the White House. Appreciate that.
And also want to let you know tonight at 8:00, why former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney is taking issue with President Obama just before he heads to the Middle East. Why Romney says Obama is giving the U.S. a bad rap. You can watch that tonight at 8:00 on "CAMPBELL BROWN."
The lines separating the two sides of the abortion issue may be deepening with the death of Dr. George Tiller. The abortion provider's murdered in church has prompted conflicting comments like these.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANTHONY LEAK, ANTI-ABORTION ACTIVIST: This is a man who has murdered anywhere from 65 to 100,000 innocent children. And they should be happy not that someone has been murdered -- killed, but that this man has been taken off the streets and he won't murder any more.
ANNE PRITCHETT, ABORTION RIGHTS ACTIVIST: I think it's hypocritical to support life in the womb but not outside of the womb.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COLLINS: The man suspected of killing Tiller is expected in a Wichita court this afternoon and CNN's Ed Lavandera has more on him.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ED LAVANDERA, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): For years, Roeder was a regular at abortion protests like this one. And CNN has learned that the day before Dr. Tiller was killed a worker at a clinic in Kansas City says Roeder was chased off after trying to glue the lock shut.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He hit us in 2000. The same thing. He's a regular at our clinic. I know him by face.
LAVANDERA: It's a cause that his ex-wife who didn't want to show her face says Roeder had grown obsessed with.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He was determined that if the abortion doctor killed the baby, then he didn't have any right to live either. It was justifiable.
LAVANDERA: She says he had made plans before. Police arrested Roeder in 1996 after finding explosives in his car. His ex-wife says he intended to blow up an abortion clinic. At the time police said he also had links to the Freeman and anti-government group out of Montana.
At his sentencing the judge called him a threat to the community and scolded him for trying to live by his own laws.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Citizens must conform their conduct to what's been written in the law, not what freedoms they choose for themselves.
LAVANDERA: Roeder spent 16 months in prison and eight months on probation before the conviction was thrown out on appeal. Roeder's family says he has a long history of mental illness and his ex-wife described him as self-righteous and capable of murder.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think I knew that if he snapped, if he went that far, that he could actually do it.
LAVANDERA: She described a man who put his beliefs above all else, even once spending family money on a gun instead of heart medicine for her. An old landlord said Roeder's views seemed extreme. BRANDON COKINS, ROEDER'S FORMER LANDLORD: I've been exposed to a lot of different, you know, religions, but I had never been exposed to the point of view that was so full of hate.
LAVANDERA: Two years ago, someone using Roeder's name posted a threatening message on the Web site of the anti-abortion group Operation Rescue. It said, "Bless everyone for attending and praying to bring justice to Tiller and the closing of the death camp," he wrote. And he also asked, "Sometimes soon, would it be feasible to organize as many people as possible to attend Tiller's church inside not just outside."
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COLLINS: CNN's Ed Lavandera is joining us live from Wichita.
So, Ed, we know that Roeder visited with his adult son on Friday. What did the family make of that meeting?
LAVANDERA: It was Friday night and it was rather strange according to his ex-wife, because according to her, she -- Roeder was a strict observer of the Sabbath, Friday night and into Saturday, but he insisted on spending time with his 22-year-old son, taking him to see the "Star Trek" movie and also taking him to dinner and to have some ice cream. They, looking back on it now, say they believe it was his way of saying good-bye.
COLLINS: Back to George Tiller and his clinic. Do we have any idea at this point what will happen to it?
LAVANDERA: Well, it will remain closed for the rest of this week. Officials with the clinic have told the patients that were going to be coming there this week that their appointments have been postponed. They do say that they will plan on reopening. There's a doctor from Nebraska who worked closely filling in for Dr. Tiller from time to time over the years and will reopen next week.
COLLINS: All right. CNN's Ed Lavandera for us from Wichita this morning. Thank you, Ed.
A candlelight vigil was held outside San Francisco city hall last night for Dr. George Tiller. The speakers included some who had met Tiller and had great respect for his service to women. Other speakers vented their anger over Tiller's murder.
What is a late-term abortion procedure? And why would it be performed? Our chief medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta goes beyond the controversy to bring you the facts. So, make sure you stick around for that.
Meanwhile, vanished. An Air France plane missing in the Atlantic. Now another plane sees bright spots in the ocean. A possible clue? Leading rescuers to the missing passengers and crew.
ROB MARCIANO, AMS METEOROLOGIST: And I'm Rob Marciano on the CNN severe weather center. We'll touch on Air France and we'll also do some weather.
Take a look at this national map. It does show thunderstorms that are forecast to break out from New York back to south of Chicago. All the way down to Dallas, Texas where they're trying to get the space shuttle home.
Day time highest today will be quite toasty down across the south. 90 in Dallas, near 90 in Atlanta. 92 degrees in Nashville. Air quality alerts for some hot humid conditions there.
CNN NEWSROOM with Heidi Collins will be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: Quickly want to get this out to you just as it's coming in here to the CNN NEWSROOM now. A possible tragic discovery this morning for crews searching for Air France flight 447.
Brazil's air force says they have found some debris along the plane's route to Paris but they are not confirming that the debris is from Flight 447. Now earlier we heard that another aircraft saw shiny spots in the water. But the search of that area actually turned up nothing.
We want to get more on the discovery of this debris, though, by the Brazilian air force. So CNN's John Zarrella is joining us now on the telephone from Rio de Janeiro.
And John, I know that you just landed and you are working this information and your sources just as you are hooking up with us right now. But tell us what you know about some of these objects that were apparently found in the water.
JOHN ZARRELLA, CNN CORRESPONDENT (via telephone): You know, as you said, Heidi, right from the top, it's way too soon for them to confirm that, in fact, this is from the missing aircraft, but it may well be the first major development in the search.
Apparently, according to Brazilian air force officials, a C-130 -- Brazilian C-130 aircraft and some other aircraft flying in an area about 440 miles off the coast of the island Fernando de Noronha spotted what appeared to be a drum in the water, perhaps some seat cushions, perhaps even a piece of a life vest, and also what appeared to be an oil slick on the surface of the water.
Now, again, they are cautioning that the information is very, very preliminary and they cannot confirm that. I tell you, Heidi, we stopped just a few minutes ago over at the Windsor Bar Hotel which is where the families are gathering and they were waiting there.
Of course, we could not get in to where the families were, of course, but they were apparently waiting for some information from government officials who were, apparently, going to show up there and perhaps give them some new information. So it may all coincide with what, in fact, the Brazilian air force is saying that they believe they have found off the coast of this archipelago, the Fernando de Noronha islands which, again, 450 miles off the coast.
And it is an area that they believed, from the beginning, was very likely where, if a plane had gone down that that's where it would be. Heidi?
COLLINS: Yes. Yes. Understood. Now, John, you mentioned going to the area where some of the family members are gathered. How do they seem to be doing? I'm sure they are really waiting to hear some good news here, but...
ZARRELLA: Yes, of course, they are waiting, you know, certainly, as the throng outside, the crush of media outside the hotel, but they are all sequestered, secluded inside. But, you know, what's interesting is everybody you talk to here in Rio, the only story that anybody is talking about is this, apparently, very tragic plane accident that has taken place.
And that's all that's on anybody's minds. That's all that's in any of the newspapers, on any of the radio stations. And you know, we know, from what we are hearing that, you know, the families are gathered there and they are secluded and no one has been able to have any contact with them outside of their immediate families and friends. So not really getting any information from family members themselves. Heidi?
COLLINS: All right. Well, completely understandable. All right. John Zarrella on the ground there in Rio de Janeiro.
John, let us know if you get any more information. We, of course, will take that immediately from you. Once again the wreckage that has apparently been found in the Atlantic Ocean that could have come from Air France flight 447. We will stay on top of that story for you.
Also coming up a little bit later in this already we will talk with former NTSB safety inspector about scenarios that may have caused this crash and how the investigation and search will follow.
Late-term abortions. What are they and why are they needed? Our Dr. Sanjay Gupta is here to explain.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: Dr. George Tiller's Wichita clinic is actually a -- excuse me for one moment. A bunker in the battle over abortion. CNN's Gary Tuchman visited it and also got hometown reaction to the doctor's killing.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
GARY TUCHMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): George Tiller was a doctor. He was also a warrior. He had been shot once before. Had been threatened countless times, had his clinic bombed. He rarely did TV interviews. He was vehement to 1991.
DR. GEORGE TILLER, ABORTION DOCTOR: I have a right to go to work. What I am doing is legal, what I am doing is moral, what I am doing is ethical and you're not going to run me out of town.
TUCHMAN: Out of necessity, the abortion provider had elaborate personal security but not when he went to church.
DAN MOMNET, DR. TILLER'S ATTORNEY: I couldn't believe that someone in Kansas would assassinate Dr. Tiller for the things that he believed in.
TUCHMAN: Dan Momnet was a close friend and also Dr. Tiller's attorney, and he's stunned.
(On camera); Do you think Dr. Tiller was scared?
MOMNET: If Dr. Tiller was scared, I never saw it for a moment. I saw his fear for his patients, I saw his fear for his family. I never saw him flinch about himself.
TUCHMAN (voice-over): In 1991 five years after a pipe bomb exploded outside his clinic, no one inside, thousands of protesters converged on Tillers' office for seven weeks of demonstrations. More than 2,500 people were arrested. Two years later, Tiller was shot in both arms while driving out of the clinic parking lot.
MOMNET: But despite all that, he refused to yield women's rights to scare tactics.
TUCHMAN: Instead of running, Tiller dug in. Security is elaborate at the clinic. A moat. Tall fences. It was like working under siege.
(on camera): Dr. Tiller's office here in Wichita looks like the fortified buildings and the bunkers I've seen in Iraq and Afghanistan because in essence his office has become a bunker. There are no windows whatsoever. It looks like a military installation. No trespassing signs throughout the property. Cameras like this one keeping an eye on the steady stream of protesters who come here through the years.
And what kind of things do the protesters do? It gives you an idea right here. If you look at the curb, one protester recently wrote "babies killed here" in chalk and the message continues on the curb down the street.
(voice-over): Randall Terry is the founder of the anti-abortion group Operation Rescue.
RANDALL TERRY, FOUNDER, OPERATION RESCUE: The thought of him leaving this life with blood on his hands, for having killed so many thousands of children and not having been prepared to meet his maker is a dreadful terrifying thought.
TUCHMAN: Dr. Tiller's friends do their best to ignore the words of people like Randall Terry.
NICKI GAMBLE, ABORTION RIGHTS ACTIVIST: Underneath all of these individual actions, there is a conversation and a dialogue that goes on about abortion that hasn't been very healthy or respectful. I worry that that's another potential killer on the prowl.
TUCHMAN: In Dr. Tiller's hometown, there are many people horrified about what happened.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I don't believe in abortion, but I don't think nobody has the right to take a life.
TUCHMAN: Though no everyone agrees.
(on camera): How do you feel what happened to Dr. Tiller?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think he got what he deserved. I really do.
TUCHMAN (voice-over): And at least for now, Dr. Tiller's clinic is closed.
Gary Tuchman, CNN, Wichita, Kansas.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COLLINS: So, what is late-term abortion? And why is it needed? Our chief medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta is joining us now to explain a little bit more on this.
Good morning to you, Sanjay.
DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Good morning. Well, starting with the term, late-term abortion, not a lot of people even agree on that term. There's no consensus in the medical community whether that's the appropriate term.
What's really at the heart of the issue here, Heidi, is the viability of the fetus. Most people know a pregnancy typically lasts 40 weeks, but really before 22 weeks the fetus is not viable. More than halfway through the pregnancy, and most doctors and scientists agree on that.
After 27 weeks, it is viable. The question is that period in between, between 23 and 26 weeks ,and that's really sort of the heart of the issue here. What is a late-term abortion and does it constitute the same thing from state to state, Heidi.
COLLINS: So, how common is it to have a procedure that might fall within this category?
GUPTA: Well, I think that's a good question. It does provide a little bit of context as well. We crunched some numbers here overall and if you look at the number of, again, late-term abortions and just using that term because that's a term people have been using, only about 1.3 percent of abortion happen after 21 weeks, 88 percent of abortions happen before 13 weeks. So that gives you some context as to what we're talking about as well.
I will say that, you know, when you talk about these later term abortions, you're often talking about dilating the cervix and extracting the fetus as well. That's often how they are performed, Heidi.
COLLINS: Aren't there laws what type of procedure is allowed different across states and don't we have to talk about the health of the mother in all of these discussions?
GUPTA: Yes, and so -- there are different laws in different states and oftentimes there are variables, including, you know, how do you sort of categorize the health of the mother, for example.
So, in 24 states, which is shown in red here, it's based on the viability of the fetus. Again, I just explained how confusing that can be. But that's how it stands in 24 states. In the states in yellow there, you're talking about a certain number of weeks after which an abortion cannot be performed, and the green states of which there are only five, it says after the third trimester, during the third trimester, I should say, that the abortions can't be performed.
So, there is no national sort of statute on this. You can see how much variability, not only in the laws but in the interpretation of the laws as you go from state to state.
COLLINS: Sure. Absolutely. All right. Our chief medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta. Thank you, Sanjay.
GUPTA: Thank you.
ANNOUNCER: Covering the angles, uncovering the details, see for yourself in the CNN NEWSROOM.
COLLINS: Stocks on Wall Street kicked off the new week and new month with a bang. This amid new signs that the economy is beginning to stabilize. We get new numbers on the housing market and auto sales as well today.
Susan Lisovicz at the New York Stock Exchange with details on that.
Hi, Susan. Auto sales, I think after yesterday and GM's news, everybody is pretty interested in that, yes?
SUSAN LISOVICZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Right. And we're going to see more of the same, unfortunately, which is why GM is, as "The Wall Street Journal" so memorably puts it, collapsed into the government's arms. But we did not see it collapse on the stock market.
On the contrary, Heidi, it's the time for that cow bell yesterday. The Dow got within 55 points of where they began the new year and just so you know, Heidi, with the opening bell, the S&P 500, which so many of our mutual funds track, is up 4.5 percent so far in '09, while the NASDAQ is up about 16 percent. Keep that in mind.
We do have new headlines on General Motors. The bankrupt automaker has reached a tentative deal to sell its Hummer brand to an unidentified buyer. The sell will likely save more than 3,000 U.S. jobs. Separately, GM will have access to $50 billions in government funds immediately and up to $33 billion as needed pending a final court hearing later this month.
As GM gets more government money the banking sector is working feverishly to pay it back. JPMorgan Chase, American Express and Morgan Stanley are selling stock in an effort to raise capital and repay TARP. The three companies plan to raise nearly $8 billion in total.
Meanwhile, Goldman Sachs selling part of its stake in a Chinese bank for nearly 2 billion, also to repay the government.
In the first minute of trading, the Dow Jones Industrials showing a little bit of pressure, but just a little bit. Terrific run yesterday. Dow is off 4.5 points. Nasdaq is off nine. By the way 8776 is where the Dow needs to go in order to break even. 8714 right now. Real close.
COLLINS: OK. OK. Well, we're watching that closely.
All right. Susan, appreciate it.
LISOVICZ: You're welcome.
COLLINS: It gave us cars like the Corvette, the Coupe de Ville and the Hummer. Taxpayers gave it more than $19 billion in bailout money. Now after filing for bankruptcy yesterday, General Motors is shutting down a dozen plants. The factories in Kansas City, Kansas and Warren, Michigan, are safe for now, but those workers know they dodged a bullet.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We want to keep building cars, we want to keep making money and we want to keep surviving.
GERTRUDE FOSTER, GM WORKER: It's been a long time coming, but I have seen a lot of changes in my lifetime for General Motors. And it's like, it's just an unseeable situation. You don't know what's going to happen. It's -- hoping we will be going for the better.
GERRY GILLESPIE, UNION CHIEF: You got so many plants, staffing plants, power training plants and service parts and service plants.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's pretty much everyone?
GILLESPIE: It's everything. That's the whole ball of wax. This is a tragedy.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COLLINS: GM plans to cut more than 20,000 workers by the end of the year.
The $30,000 question now -- where is the pirate booty? Money missing from the Maersk Alabama hijacking. The Navy now taking a closer look.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: The U.S. Navy taking another look now at the hijacking of the Maersk Alabama. You remember pirates took the ship and kidnapped Captain Richard Phillips. He was rescued by Navy SEALS. Now the Navy wants to know what happened to the money the pirates supposedly stole.
CNN Pentagon correspondent Chris Lawrence joining us now live.
So, Chris, where did this money come from?
CHRIS LAWRENCE, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Well, Heidi, we're talking about the money that the pirates stole, and it came right out of the locked safe of the Maersk Alabama.
COLLINS: Right.
LAWRENCE: Now a Pentagon source is telling us that NCIS team has opened an investigation into how and when that $30,000 went missing. Now we believe the money ended up on that lifeboat where the four pirates held Captain Phillips hostage before that Navy sniper team on board the "USS Bainbridge" shot and killed three of them. The one pirate surrendered. And they had that daring rescue of Captain Phillips.
But, right now, the money is unaccounted for. And no one is being accused here. What the NCIS is doing is being very, very thorough, and they are going to be questioning anyone who had contact with that cash, which could include the crews of the Alabama, the Bainbridge and the Navy SEAL team that rescued Phillips.
COLLINS: Is there any sort of confirmation, though, Chris, that the money was actually still on board that lifeboat and there for the taking?
LAWRENCE: Yes, there is, because the U.S. government is bringing, you know, federal charges against that one remaining pirate. There is a criminal complaint that's already been filed in which an FBI agent says these pirates held a gun to the head of Captain Phillips, walked him to the safe on board his ship and forced him to take out about $30,000 in cash. Then the pirates split it up amongst themselves and got on board that lifeboat with Phillips.
Now, you know, according to the list of evidence items recovered from that lifeboat -- AK-47s, ammo, cell phones, radios -- no mention of the money.
COLLINS: All right. CNN's Chris Lawrence, our Pentagon correspondent staying on top of this one for us.
Thank you, Chris.
LAWRENCE: You're welcome.
COLLINS: Confirming a new commander. This is a live look now from Capitol Hill where the Senate Armed Services Committee is holding a hearing on General Stanley McChrystal. He was picked by Defense Secretary Robert Gates to take over as the commander of the operations in Afghanistan. We'll have more on McChrystal coming up next hour. A committee is also considering new commanders for the European and southern commands.
Two Americans among the 228 people missing from Air France Flight 447. Anne and Michael Harris moved to Brazil from Texas a few months ago. They were on their way to Paris for a training seminar and a vacation.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BET NORRIS, NEIGHBOR: How do you deal with something like that? You know, when somebody is sick, ill, you have expectations and you always worry and all that. But when something like this happens, it's just devastating.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COLLINS: People from at least 30 different countries were aboard the flight.
We want to give you this update now. Now debris has been spotted along the plane's path, but, so far, no definitive word on whether it is from Flight 447.
But we still have the question of what may have caused the crash, of course.
And joining us now live from Denver this morning is Greg Feith. He's a former senior air safety inspector for the NTSB.
Greg, thanks for being with us again. Quickly here as we continue to watch this story develop about the debris, so much discussion of whether lightning can actually take down a commercial jet.
Talk to us a little bit more about the effect of lightning when you're talking about a jet that is a fly-by wire term that we keep on hearing, an electronic jet.
GREG FEITH, SENIOR AIR SAFETY INSPECTOR, NTSB: Well, the airplanes today, Heidi, are built to withstand lightning strikes. If you look out the window when you're on a commercial jetliner and you see what looks like little antennas, they're called static wicks.
It's to dissipate that static electricity that typically originates from a lightning strike. So a lightning strike taking an airplane out of the sky is a very rare event. However, as you mentioned, this is an electronic airplane. So it could have some adverse effect on the computerized systems on the airplane.
COLLINS: Yes. And we also know the area in which this aircraft was flying has been prone to storms, where stormy weather going on when this is all happening.
Talk a little bit about when you were in that cockpit and you are in control of the path of the aircraft. You know there are storms out there. What exactly does a pilot do in order to get around them?
FEITH: Well, in this particular instance, Heidi, what -- with the fact that they are going transatlantic, they are going to be on basically using their radar to guide them in and around storms.
Typically, a thunderstorm -- pilots don't want to fly through them. They'll circumnavigate it by hundreds of miles to avoid the turbulence and, of course, the dramatic effects if you will of that thunderstorm activity.
So, a key question for investigators is, how did these two pilots get this airplane in the midst of a very powerful thunderstorm when in fact other airplanes transiting the area were able to circumnavigate. So that's going to be a key question in this investigation.
COLLINS: Yes, certainly. And the big thing right now, as we've been telling people, and just getting this news in, as we continue here, according to the Brazilian Air Force, they have found some type of debris. They are talking about seats, apparently a drum, other things that were on board.
What is the concern? Because this aircraft has been out there, we're looking at the clock, about 28 hours now.
FEITH: Absolutely. And so what they're going to have to do now is do some reverse engineering. Find out the location of this debris. Then they are going to have to figure out what the tide speed was. It's been around now for 28 hours, so they're going to have to back up that course and probably several hundred miles to the actual area of the wreckage. And then, of course, start their search all over again for the largest pieces of wreckage and, hopefully, find the flight data recorder and cockpit voice recorder in amongst that wreckage as well.
COLLINS: Yes. And we know that there are trouble, or at least we had heard the reports of course about problems with the electronic system and we talked a lot about the gaps in the radar.
What about any type of beacons that are on the aircraft and also on the raft, correct?
FEITH: Correct. So if any of those rafts during the course of the breakup of the wreckage itself, if any of those rafts inflated, of course, they have pingers and buoys on them that can be home in on.
And then, of course, the flight data recorder and cockpit voice recorder have pingers. They are water-activated. So if they are sitting on the bottom of the ocean, of course, then the military assets will have to go in there with listening devices and try and home in on those particular signals. But they got to find an area for which to do that. And that could, again, take another day to two days or a week to search that area. It's a vast area. COLLINS: Yes. That's a very important point. I think everyone needs to keep in mind. We're talking about the Atlantic Ocean here. So we will continue to follow this story, of course.
FEITH: Absolutely.
COLLINS: Senior NTSB investigator Greg Feith for us this morning out of Denver.
Thank you, Greg.
COLLINS: And meteorologist Rob Marciano has a closer look for us now at the search area because it really is important, Rob, as we've been saying along with Greg. This is a huge, huge area. It's going to take some time.
MARCIANO: Yes, it is. And, you know, Chad was kind of interpolating the speed of the aircraft yesterday afternoon, and kind of calculated where he thought this thing -- where the search area might very well be. And it turns out that's where it looks like if they are looking the most intently at this hour.
There is the military island, just off the coast of Brazil. And, again, about 400 miles to the -- probably to the north/northeast is where they are searching for. The wreckage of the plane there. So that pretty much is almost into the middle of the Atlantic. Very, very deep waters there. We're talking thousands of feet deep. So that, obviously, posts its own problems.
We're laying cloud cover on top of this, Heidi, to indicate that -- yes, this is typically an area where you'll see thunderstorms develop. There were two areas of stormy conditions. One, about maybe an hour south of where the problems occurred. And then, they were just getting into what's called the Intertropical Convergence Zone. You probably heard a lot of that chatter in the last 12 hours.
It's basically an area that's prone to thunderstorms. All during the entire time of year, it migrates from north-to-south during the season. But it does have quite a bit of turbulent weather, and they were just entering that zone, if this is, indeed, the area where they are searching, where that plane likely went down. So, still a lot of questions. But it seems like we're beginning to answer at least some of them at this hour -- Heidi.
COLLINS: Yes. Yes. All right. Rob Marciano, thanks so much. We'll check back with you a little bit later on today.
MARCIANO: OK.
COLLINS: The U.S. military launches a brand-new effort online. Our Josh Levs is here now to show us a little bit more about this.
Hi, Josh.
JOSH LEVS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes. Hey, there, Heidi. The military is calling it the first of its kind. They're including the major social networks. They also have a video contest. We're going to show you.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: President Barack Obama heads overseas later today for his first trip to the Middle East as president. First, the president will be in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, where he will meet with King Abdullah to talk about Saudi Arabia's role in the region.
Thursday, President Obama scheduled to give a speech to the Muslim world from Cairo, Egypt. Then he had two stops in Europe before heading home.
Courting the critics. Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor on Capitol Hill today, where she's getting some face time with the senators considering her nomination. Sotomayor scheduled today is packed with half-hour courtesy calls or meetings, where she gets a chance to talk with Senate leaders and members of the judiciary committee. That's the panel that, of course, key to her confirmation.
And coming in October, CNN takes a comprehensive look at how Latinos are changing the country. "Latino in America" showcases life in some Hispanic neighborhoods. We'll show you how one of America's fastest growing minority groups is reshaping politics and doing business. That's all right here on CNN this October.
Before bankruptcy, General Motors gave pieces of ownership to creditors and union members, but what about GM retirees? Is anybody watching out for their pensions?
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: Retirees don't exactly get a spot at the negotiating table when General Motors was preparing to file for bankruptcy. And now their pensions and health care benefits could be at stake, and they want GM to remember its obligation to them and their families.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RICK KNOTH, GM RETIREE: All of a sudden you've got a big increase in your expenses, which the health care -- if they eliminate our health care would be a huge increase on our expenses. That would be very tough to figure out how to handle that.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COLLINS: The GM Retirees Association says it hasn't gotten any reassurances. It may take legal action to protect pensions and benefits soon.
And don't forget, our Anderson Cooper is out there keeping them on honest. You can catch him on "AC360" right here on CNN. That's weeknights at 10:00 p.m. Eastern.
There's a lot more ahead in the NEWSROOM. And CNN crews are, of course, working to bring it to you.
Let's check in now with our correspondents, beginning with you Dana Bash on Capitol Hill this morning.
Hi, Dana.
BASH: Hi, Heidi. Well, I'm standing in a Capitol hallway where we expect Sonia Sotomayor to walk through any minute for her first of several meetings here with key senators who will decide her fate. I'll have more on her whirlwind day up here on Capitol Hill at the top of the hour.
QUIJANO: I'm Elaine Quijano at the White House. President Obama is heading overseas on a trip aimed largely at improving U.S. relations with the Muslim world. Just how will he try to do that? I'll have details at the top of the hour.
JASON CARROLL, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: And I'm Jason Carroll in New York. A controversial ruling by Judge Sonia Sotomayor made against a group of firefighters is certain to come up at her confirmation hearings. But before she gets in the hot seat, the Supreme Court itself could pass judgment on her judgment.
I'll have that story and more coming up.
COLLINS: Yes, that's right. The timing will be interesting.
All right. Everybody, appreciate that.
Also, going to tell you about a custody battle between two families and two countries. It is a heart-wrenching story that tests the fairness of law and the strength of a father's love.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: Hey, quickly, just want to let you know. We are learning something more about the secretary of the Army position. We are learning that today, a little bit later on today, President Obama will announce that Representative John McHugh -- he's a Republican from New York; a Watertown representative to be exact -- will become the next secretary of the Army. At least the nominee for that position, I should say. Sixty years old, ranking member on the House Armed Services Committee. So we will continue to follow that.
He's not currently serving on the Select Intelligence Committee, but he did serve on that committee last term. So that is what we know at this point. We'll continue to gather some more information for you and bring it to you just as soon as we get it.
Twelve militants are dead in fighting in Afghanistan today. The U.S. military says they were killed in fighting with Afghan and U.S. forces. Six were killed in the Paktika Province overnight in an operation targeting a Taliban commander. Another six were killed in an assault on a compound in the Wardag Province.
The U.S. military has a new presence online today. In the effort to get out information quickly and recruit more people who may want to join, the military is using a whole bunch of online tools, in fact.
Our Josh Levs is here now to show us a little bit more.
Hi, Josh.
LEVS: Hey, there, Heidi. Yes, they're calling it the first of its kind. It's interesting. And, specifically, you were just talking about Afghanistan. It's specifically by U.S. forces in Afghanistan. Let's zoom in for a second.
One of the big tools they've launch is a brand new YouTube page, which is packed with video. We actually have a clip for you. Take a look.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: If you're in the military currently serving or past service in Afghanistan, here's a great opportunity to showcase your talents in photography, videography or video editing. Just make a view three minutes or less that explains why Afghanistan matters and send it to Joint Forces Command branch.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEVS: It's interesting. I'll tell you what you're seeing here.
It's a clip of video. One of the main ones, from the most popular ones they have put up there, in which they are encouraging as you heard anyone who has ever served in Afghanistan as part of the military to make a video, which they will then use to build out this site.
And they go on to talk about interesting things, be sure to respect privacy. Be sure you have the right to use this material. Also, I'll show you one more clip. We have something where they try to talk about the day-to-day activities of how U.S. forces are helping Afghanistan forces.
(VIDEO CLIP)
LEVS: They're showing the latest images they have at any given time from what comes in. And what the military is saying is that they want to use this to reach out.
Let's zoom back in on the board. I want to show you a couple things. You can learn more about all these sites that they are launching because we have a story right here at cnn.com from the CNN Wire that will show what the military's saying about it. And we actually link you to not only this YouTube page, but also, Heidi, a Facebook page here and a new Twitter page. That they've all set up all for the U.S. forces specifically in Afghanistan.
And I'll tell you, as part of all of this, we, no surprise, want to hear what you think about this, about this effort from the military. And we have a full screen graphic for you. Take a look at this. You can weigh in on our blog, or you can weigh in on our Facebook page, or a Twitter page. And in every case, what we want to do is hear what you think about this -- cnn.com/newsroom. And we will take a look at what you've got. We'll be sharing some of that here. There you go, cnn.com/newsroom. We'll take a look at what you have to say about this, and we'll share some of that here on the air. Because, obviously, the military needs to reach out, needs to reach a lot of people.
But we're curious what you think as users of these Web sites in general. They're going a good job? Do you like what's there? What are your thoughts on that? Should it change? That kind of thing, Heidi.
We'll let you know what people have to say.
COLLINS: All right. Very good. We'll check back later.
Josh, thank you.
LEVS: Thanks a lot.
COLLINS: Checking stories happening right now. The suspects in the shootings at a military recruiting center is in an Arkansas courtroom at this hour. One soldier was killed and another wounded in yesterday's attack. Authorities believe the suspect was angry about military operations and acted on his own.
Two U.S. journalists detained in North Korea are scheduled to go on trial for spying on Thursday. Their families are making public appeals for their release. Lisa Ling, the sister of one of the reporters, spoke on CNN's "LARRY KING LIVE" last night.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LISA LING, LAURA LING'S SISTER: I talked to my sister once. And when I asked her how she's been treated, she said, I'm being treated fairly. And for that, we are truly grateful. But, by the same token, she also said that she is -- is terrified. She's extremely scared.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
