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American Morning
Sotomayor's Confirmation Hearing; Debate Over Whether Minority Kids Were Banned From PA Pool; Job Search Scams to Watch For; New Strategy in Afghanistan; Palin Stumping for Democrats?; Life Experiences That Shaped Sonia Sotomayor; Endeavour to Try Again Today, Weather Permitting
Aired July 13, 2009 - 08:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KIRAN CHETRY, CNN ANCHOR: And good morning, once again. Glad you're with us. It is 8:00 here in New York on this Monday, July 13th. I'm Kiran Chetry.
JOHN ROBERTS, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning to you, I'm John Roberts. Thanks very much for being with us. Here's what's on this morning's agenda -- stories that we'll be breaking down for you in the next 15 minutes.
In just two hour's time, Republicans and Democrats will square off over President Obama's Supreme Court nominee Justice Sonia Sotomayor. In a moment, we'll take you live inside the hearing room to find out what she is likely to face.
CHETRY: Also, calls this morning for the Justice Department to investigate the private swim club that turned away a group of minority kids just outside of Philadelphia. The swim clubs' claim that allegations of racial discrimination are untrue. It said it was overcrowding. The Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission is now investigating. And we're going to hear how members of the club and its leaders are speaking out and reaching out to the children.
ROBERTS: A lot of Americans are looking for work and a lot of scam artists are waiting in the weeds, ready to rip them off.
Our Gerri Willis with the red flags that job hunters need to look out for.
But we begin with President Obama's Supreme Court nominee Justice Sonia Sotomayor, poised to make history this morning. Her Senate confirmation hearings begin just about two hour's time. And while Democrats are confident that she will become America's first Latino justice, some statements from her past could come back to haunt her.
CNN's Brianna Keilar had some extraordinary vantage point this morning. She is live in the hearing room where all eyes will be on Judge Sotomayor this morning.
Good morning, Brianna.
BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, John. And we're watching as last-minute preparations get underway in this hearing room. I just want to give you a sense of this room. About half of the seats here being taken up by members of the media. All of these tables here are going to be print journalists covering this hearing. And, of course, this is where they're going to be focussed. On the seat, the hot seat, where Judge Sonia Sotomayor will be talking about her personal story, and also telling these members, these senators, part of the Senate Judiciary Committee about the type of justice she would be if confirmed to the Supreme Court.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KEILAR (voice-over): Sources close to Judge Sonia Sotomayor say she has felt overwhelmed at times by the intense scrutiny, but also surprisingly upbeat about her moment in the national spotlight.
JUDGE SONIA SOTOMAYOR, SUPREME COURT NOMINEE: I hope that as the Senate and American people learn more about me, they will see that I am an ordinary person who has been blessed with extraordinary opportunities and experiences.
KEILAR: The White House and Senate Democrats want to highlight that experience. Her own personal story, growing up in a Bronx housing project where her mother raised two children alone after Sotomayor's father died when she was 9. Her Ivy League education, stellar legal career and how she would make history as the first Hispanic justice.
THOMAS GOLDSTEIN, SCOTUSBLOG.COM CO-FOUNDER: It's a step forward for the country by having someone who is in a permanent lifetime appointment at the highest levels of the government who has this background, both economically and ethnically is a big deal. It's a moment. It is a step forward where we have accomplished something as a nation.
KEILAR: Democrats have the votes to easily confirm Sotomayor, but Republicans promise to raise tough questions about her past statement that a wise Latina woman would reach a better conclusion than a white male. Her views on gun control, property rights, abortion and her ruling as an Appeals judge against white firefighters who claim reverse discrimination when promotional exams were scrapped after too few minority applications scored well. Two of those firefighters will testify against her.
Ken Duberstein has successfully advised five high court nominees as a top Reagan and Bush aid. His advice for Sotomayor...
KEN DUBERSTEIN, FORMER REAGAN CHIEF OF STAFF: Don't embellish. Don't, you know, shovel. These senators have great shovel meters because they've experienced that for years. Tell it straight. Tell the truth always. Be prepared for the one question you don't want to be asked. Because everybody doesn't want to be asked some question.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KEILAR: Now, this -- this is where photographers are staking out their place so that they can get a really good clear shot of Sonia Sotomayor when she comes in here in a couple of hours before opening statements, before the Senate Judiciary Committee. And I want to give you just a little look behind the scenes.
You may recall that Sotomayor fractured her ankle about a week after being nominated, and this is kind of a support for her fractured leg. Jury-rig from, it looks like a cushion with a binder, and what appears to be part of a foot stool and some book tape here so that she can stay comfortable, because, obviously, she's going to be before this committee for hours and hours this week -- John and Kiran?
ROBERTS: Your tax dollars at work there with a little bit of a jury-rig this morning.
KEILAR: Very scrappy.
ROBERTS: Yes. Brianna, thanks so much for that extraordinary inside look. Really appreciate it.
And stick with us here on the Most News in the Morning, because coming right up, we're going to talk with Judiciary Committee member Senator Dick Durbin about the upcoming hearings. He'll be heading off to Washington very soon. He's got an appointment this morning, so he's going to be joining us in just a couple of minutes.
And remember, you can watch Judge Sotomayor's confirmation hearings live right here on CNN. It all begins at 10:00 a.m. Eastern, live on CNN and cnn.com.
CHETRY: And there are some new developments this morning in the case of that Philadelphia swim club that turned away dozens of minority kids earlier this month. Pennsylvania Senator Arlen Specter is now asking the Justice Department to look into these claims. So was it a simple case of overcrowding or was it something else?
We're hearing now from some of the club's members and its leadership. Susan Candiotti has a follow-up to the story that you first saw on AMERICAN MORNING, Friday.
SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: John, Kiran, good morning. After a hastily called meeting Sunday, the Valley Swim Club voted nearly unanimously that it was time to try to work things out with the day care center. This, after a deluge of media attention, racism allegations, even moving a scheduled swim meet.
We've also obtained e-mails that indicate a war of words among club members. Some defending their leadership, others saying they mishandled the situation. In the end, the swim club spokesperson told CNN it wants to settle the controversy. In her words, "As long as we can work out safety issues, we'd like to have them back." But the day care center's director is skeptical, as she put it, "They should have done that before. Those children are scarred, how can I take those children back there?"
Some of the center's kids said when they showed up to use the pool for the first time, some club members made racist comments. The director apologized. He said he canceled the group's contract because of overcrowding and nothing more. Earlier he said it was because the youngsters changed the atmosphere and complexion of the club. But later explained it was a poor choice of words. The club said after being served with a subpoena for its records by Pennsylvania's human relations commission and getting legal advice, it was time to extend an olive branch.
The day care center's lawyer says they'll look over the offer when they get it, and then consider it.
John and Kiran?
ROBERTS: Susan Candiotti this morning. Susan, thanks so much.
We're tracking breaking news right now. Reports of an earthquake in the Indian Ocean this morning. The U.S. geological survey says the 6.1 magnitude quake struck just a few minutes ago near the southern coast of Indonesia just northwest of Australia. It's east of Jakarta. There you can see the site of the quake. There is no word whether a tsunami warning has been issued at this point. Indonesia, as you'll remember, was devastated by 2004 tsunami that killed tens of thousands of people.
CHETRY: Also new this morning, three men had been found alive after nearly a month trapped in a flooded mine in southern China. They managed to stay alive by reportedly licking water that had sip through the mine's walls. 12 men are still missing.
ROBERTS: And ten more people have been injured in the running of the bulls in Pamplona, Spain. A 27-year-old man died on Friday after being gored. Despite fierce criticism from animal rights groups, the bull runs attract thousands of tourists every year.
Nine minutes now after the hour. Stay with us. Senator Dick Durbin coming right up.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROBERTS: Eleven and a half minutes after the hour. And a shot live inside the room where the confirmation hearings for Judge Sonia Sotomayor will begin in a little less than two hour's time. She's going to sit before the Senate Judiciary Committee for her Supreme Court nomination hearing. Democrats call it a slam dunk, but Republicans appear ready to hit hard, at least examining her judicial record.
Illinois senator Dick Durbin is on the Senate committee that will question Sotomayor. He's here in New York this morning before jumping on a shuttle and heading down to Washington.
Thanks very much for being with us. Really appreciate it.
SEN. DICK DURBIN (D), ILLINOIS: Good to be here.
ROBERTS: I want to ask you about the Sotomayor hearings in just a moment. But I wanted to start by asking you about the vice president and his potential involvement in keeping this CIA counterterrorism program secret from Congress.
You suggested yesterday that that may be illegal.
Do you believe, Senator, that the vice president has committed a crime here?
DURBIN: I don't know the answer to that. My information on this is based on public reporting. I was a member of the Intelligence Committee; I'm not now. I don't have access to classified information in my current position. But here's the bottom line. The constitution and law require that the executive branch disclose to Congress what they're doing.
Presidential findings which initiate these programs are disclosed to the Intelligence Committee leaders and members, and we have an accountability, a check and a balance. If that disclosure was not made, if it was ordered not to be made, that's a serious thing. I understand the House Intelligence Committee is going to take a look into this. I think it's entirely appropriate that they do.
ROBERTS: So, there should be an investigation hearings?
DURBIN: Yes, I believe there should.
ROBERTS: So let's talk about Judge Sonia Sotomayor's confirmation hearings. Your colleague Senator Chuck Schumer from the great state of New York suggest that she could get as many as 78 votes from the full Senate votes. That would be about the same level as Judge John Roberts got when he was confirm to be chief justice.
Do you agree that that's the level of support that she'll get?
DURBIN: Possible. But I don't want to try to create expectations that are unreal. I hope Chuck is correct. But we want to make sure she's approved, and I believe she will be. Nobody has worked harder, and to my knowledge, Supreme Court nominee in trying to meet face to face with members of the United States Senate. She's actually sat down with 89 senators, offered to meet with all of them. A few of them said nope, we're not going to meet. But she's gone out of her way to be there, to answer their questions, lengthy conversations. So they can't argue that they don't know her, didn't have a chance to get to understand her point of view, and she's very good.
A compelling life story, longest federal list of federal judicial experience of any nominee in 100 years, and she comes across as a person that you understand. Could be approved unanimously by the American Bar Association.
ROBERTS: But do you believe that 78 may be aiming a little bit high?
DURBIN: I'm not going to jump on a number at this point other than to tell you that I think she's going to be approved, and I hope that it's a solid number indicating bipartisan support. ROBERTS: Of course, Republicans are saying that they are going to look at her nomination very fairly, but they certainly will drill down on a number of issue, different issues. One of those being her impartiality in whether or not she can be in a partial justice on the Supreme Court. The ranking member, Senator Jeff Sessions talked about that yesterday.
Let's listen to a little bit about what he said.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. JEFF SESSIONS (R), ARIZONA: In a number of her speeches, for example, she has advocated a view that suggests that your personal experiences even prejudices, she uses that word, it's expected that they would influence a decision you make. Which is a blow, I think, at the very ideal of American justice.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS: Senator, what's your response to that? Can a judge incorporate their personal experiences, personal feelings in making a decision?
DURBIN: Absolutely. And let's be honest about it. Sandra Day O'Connor was raised on a ranch in Arizona. She said, you know, it's kind of a hard scrabble experience. You had to make do. You had to be self sufficient. That's who I am. That's what I believe. Now, that's bound to be applied to factual situations that come to her as a judge.
I mean, she's going to look at things through her life experience as every judge will. To suggest the judge as soon as they take that oath of office just divorce themselves from their human life experience is unrealistic. Senators don't do it. Congressmen and presidents don't do it. Why would a Supreme Court justice?
But the question is, does she look to the law to guide her? And the answer is yes. And that's where I think she'll be approved.
ROBERTS: Another area that the Republicans are likely to drill down on is the New Haven firefighters. A decision when she was on the Second Circuit Court of Appeals. She ruled in favor of the town and against the firefighters. She was overturned by the Supreme Court just recently.
And Republicans, the strategy, as I understand it, is to try to paint her as being out of the mainstream on racial issues. And when we look at the results of a CNN/Opinion Research Corporation Poll asking about the firefighters, 65 percent of respondents said, yes, the white firefighters were victims of discrimination.
So, is that a fair question for Republicans to ask? Is she out of the mainstream on these issues?
DURBIN: Well, it's a fair question to ask. But if you take a look at that case, she was following the precedent of the court, the rulings of the court for 38 years. She applied the law, that same law that had been applied to trial level to the appellate level. She did exactly what we asked her to do.
And then it went to the Supreme Court. It was the Supreme Court that reversed the law. It was the Supreme Court that saw it differently on a 5 to 4 vote. You can't hold it against Sonia Sotomayor on one hand saying she needs to follow the law and then criticize her when she does.
ROBERTS: And just one more question, if I could, on a completely different topic. You are on with George Stephanopoulos yesterday. You suggested that the Senate, when asked about Charles Rangel's plan to insert tax to high-income earners to pay for the health care plan. You said, well, I think the Senate may look at this a different way.
Is that a non-starter? His plan for raising taxes on high-income earners to pay for health care. Is that a non-starter in the Senate?
DURBIN: The Senate is a different institution. I count votes in the Senate. We want Republican support. We're likely to have a different revenue approach than the House of Representatives. It doesn't reflect my personal point of view, but the outcome if we're going to move it through the finance committee, to the floor and ultimately pass it is bound to be different.
I don't criticize Congress from Rangel. He's doing the best to keep health care reform moving forward. But we're going to have a slightly different mix of revenue. More conservative, probably, before it will ultimately --
(CROSSTALK)
ROBERTS: (INAUDIBLE)
DURBIN: Well, it almost has to be, but a very small part. We hope most of it will be savings for current overspending for health care. If we can get savings from health insurance companies, hospitals and doctors and not raise taxes, at least raise them as little as possible, that's the best outcome.
ROBERTS: Senator Durbin, it's great to see you.
DURBIN: Thank you.
ROBERTS: Thanks for stopping by. You've got a plane to catch. We'll let you go grab that.
DURBIN: Thanks a lot.
ROBERTS: Appreciate you dropping by.
Eighteen minutes now after the hour.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
Twenty minutes after the hour. Welcome back to the Most News in the Morning.
Who says size doesn't matter? Tall people apparently make more money than short people. Studies in Australia and here in the United States suggest on average tall people make almost $800 more per inch. So if you do the calculations, someone who is 6 feet tall earns nearly $6,000 more per year than somebody who measures 5'5". The study says that being tall boosts self-confidence and that builds leadership qualities -- two keys to workplace success.
CHETRY: Aren't all of our presidents pretty tall historically?
ROBERTS: No, not all, no.
CHETRY: No?
ROBERTS: Harry Truman wasn't exactly tall.
CHETRY: President Obama is tall.
ROBERTS: Well, he's very tall, yes.
CHETRY: George W. Bush was tall.
(CROSSTALK)
GERRI WILLIS, CNN PERSONAL FINANCE EDITOR: All supermodels are tall.
ROBERTS: George Bush was what? 5'11", I think.
CHETRY: 5'11."
WILLIS: That sounds right.
ROBERTS: Not overly tall.
CHETRY: Well, if you're 5'5", it is.
ROBERTS: Everything is relative.
CHETRY: Exactly.
Well, Gerri Willis joins us now with more. If you're looking for work on those big Internet job boards, of course, as with everything, there's scams out there. And a lot of con artists are actually looking to try to take advantage of people who are looking for work in these tough times.
WILLIS: That's right.
CHETRY: So what do you do about it, Gerri?
WILLIS: This makes me so angry because these are people who don't need to be put at risk by scam artists.
CHETRY: Right. WILLIS: And that's exactly what happens here.
This is the kind of thing they're doing, actually. They're asking you for credit reports and sending you to a Web site where you can get that report, but you're also going to get your information stolen. And people creating fake yous and taking out credit in your name.
Fake job application forms. So, again, they're stealing your information from you.
Fees charge for background checks. A legitimate employer is never going to charge you fees for background checks.
Bottom line here, what's going on typically, is they're getting you involved in a work from home scheme, where they charge you money. They give you nothing. Or they may be involving you in a passing bad check scheme, where they involve you in what is really an illegal international operation.
So you have to be very careful online. Even the big job Web sites like monster.com out there, that can be a problem, too. They've got information to protect yourself on monster on their Web site.
But guess what? Even simple information, guys, like putting up where you graduated from college could be a problem, because your student ID can be the same as your social security number, particularly for people who went to school many years ago.
So be really careful out there.
CHETRY: All right. Well, what are you going to do to protect yourself besides being extra vigilant when you're on these boards?
WILLIS: You have to be extra vigilant, obviously. But there are also red flags.
If you see spelling errors, it's always a problem. Online fraud is often done by scammers outside the U.S., and their first language isn't always English.
If you're asked for a social security number, always a bad thing.
If they claim that you're going to get rich quick, obviously, that's bad.
So, some obvious things there. But I've got to tell you, the scammers are getting smarter and smarter. It's really tough to figure out the Web sites that are rogue because, you know, they do this in a more complete way.
If you have problems, go to the better business bureau.org -- bbb.org, and report these people because they deserve to get in trouble. Let me tell you, they're taking advantage of people who really can't afford to give anybody money.
ROBERTS: Exactly. You know, folks having tougher enough time being out of work without this.
WILLIS: That's right. So, keep your eyes peeled, make sure you don't get involved with anybody you shouldn't.
ROBERTS: Words that I could use to describe them aren't suitable for television.
WILLIS: Yes.
CHETRY: But it will take your pain away.
ROBERTS: It would, definitely. It will make me feel better.
By the way, Harry Truman, 5'9". Teddy Roosevelt -- reports between 5'8" and 5'10". So, not every president was tall.
WILLIS: Maybe it was tall for them.
CHETRY: That's true.
ROBERTS: Yes. Harry Truman, turn of the century, 5'10", would have been, yes. A little -- a little higher than average, I think.
WILLIS: I'm saying that so much isn't a bad thing. Pay linked to height -- and blondness.
CHETRY: Let's not get into that whole thing.
ROBERTS: Gerri, "Minding Your Business" this morning. Thanks so much.
CHETRY: It's right now 24 minutes past the hour.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROBERTS: As our commitment to the war in Afghanistan grows, so does the price in dollars and lives. The military says three more American troops died this morning, two of them in roadside bombing attacks. Now, the top commander in Afghanistan is again reviewing the strategy and it could mean more U.S. troops in the region.
Barbara Starr joins us now live from the Pentagon with more on this.
What's the plan, Barbara?
BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Well, you know, John, it's beginning to look like more of everything in Afghanistan.
General Stanley McChrystal, the new U.S. commander in that war, we are told, is now set to recommend a massive increase in the size of the Afghan army, 134,000 is the target for next year. But he might now increase, we are told, to a size double that, put an Afghan face on this war. That's the top goal.
But here's the problem. With that kind of increase in the Afghan troop levels, McChrystal, sources say, may need, may need more U.S. troops to help train, mentor, equip, all this new Afghan military capabilities.
So that could mean, we are told by key U.S. military officials, more U.S. troops headed to Afghanistan in the coming year or so, billions of dollars more in U.S. spending. The war that we used to call the forgotten war, now many are calling the fastest growing war.
John?
ROBERTS: The question many people may have, Barbara, is that do we have the troops to flood into Afghanistan and the numbers that McChrystal may be looking for?
STARR: Well, you know, there was a request on the table for about at least 10,000 more troops for next year. If they look at something like that, if they bring that back, they certainly are going to have to continue to lower the troop levels in Iraq, but there is a downside to all of this.
Defense Secretary Robert Gates has been very cautious, saying he does not want to flood Afghanistan with more foreign -- more U.S. troops, said that will lead to more resentment. But they can't really grow that Afghan face of the war without more U.S. help, John.
ROBERTS: Barbara Starr for us at the Pentagon this morning with the latest on that. Barbara, thanks so much.
CHETRY: Twenty-eight minutes past the hour. We check our top stories now.
A former boxing champ's wife is now a suspect in his death. Arturo Gatti found strangled to death on Saturday at a hotel room in Brazil. He was just 37 years old. Brazilian authorities tell CNN that they took his wife into custody. Police have also reportedly recovered a blood-stained purse strap. This purse strap found from that scene. They also say there were inconsistencies in his wife's story.
ROBERTS: Tonight would have been opening night of Michael Jackson's 50-show run at London's O2 arena. And while the show is not going to go on, some fans showed up anyways. The concert promoter, AEG Live, is selling merchandise through its Web site and offering fans a commemorative ticket as an alternative to a refund.
CHETRY: Well, Senator John McCain says he respects Sarah Palin's decision to step down as governor of Alaska. McCain says he doesn't think he is -- that his former running mate is quitting her job as much as changing her priorities. Let's listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You must have been shocked to see Governor Sarah Palin resign as governor.
SEN. JOHN MCCAIN (R), ARIZONA: Well, I wasn't shocked. Obviously, I was a bit surprised, but I wasn't shocked. I understand that Sarah made the decision where she can be most effective for Alaska and for the country. I love and respect her and her family. I'm grateful that she agreed to run with me. I am confident she will be a major factor in the national scene and Alaska as well.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHETRY: Well, McCain says Palin is qualified to run for president in 2012, but stopped short of endorsing her, saying that it's way too early for that.
Meantime, ever since Governor Palin announced that she was stepping down, there has been a lot of chatter about her motivation and also her future in politics.
Well, now she says she has no plans to get out of politics. This weekend, she told "The Washington Times" in an interview, "I will go around the country on behalf of candidates who believe in the right things, regardless of their party label or their affiliation."
So, Sarah Palin stumping for Democrats?
David Frum is a former speech writer for George W. Bush. He's also the editor of MewMajority.com and joins us live from Washington this morning.
David, good to see you.
DAVID FRUM, EDITOR, NEWMAJORITY.COM: Good to see you. Thank you.
CHETRY: So once again, this latest interview by Sarah Palin has a lot of people scratching their heads.
What do you make of what she told them? Especially the fact that she would go around the country on behalf of candidates regardless of their party label or affiliation?
FRUM: Well, I think that was a sentence started well. It started as trying to say something nonpartisan, broad-minded and then it tumbled over the cliff into nonsense. The problem that Sarah Palin has in the states where her own party most desperately needs to make gains. States like New Jersey, for example, where there's a winnable governor's race, states like Connecticut where there's a vulnerable democratic senator.
CHETRY: Right.
FRUM: In precisely those states where Republicans need to do well, those are the states where candidates have made clear she hurts the party, not helps it. Maybe there's a democrat in Arkansas who would like her, but that's not where the fate of the nation is going to be decided.
CHETRY: It's interesting. Republican Chris Kristi, he is running for governor in New Jersey. His campaign also said no thanks, but then you have Texas republican Governor Rick Perry who said that he'd love to have her come campaign. So what does it say about her popularity or her brand of conservatism. She's wanted in Texas, not necessarily New Jersey.
FRUM: Well, Rick Perry would love her to campaign against another Republican in the primary, against Kay Bailey Hutchinson. By the way, a very impressive Republican woman, of whom we have many too few. So, yes, in an internal republican dispute, she helps one faction against another. But in national politics, when the Republicans are trying to win the center back, she hurts the party.
CHETRY: All right. Well, according to "The New York Times" in late March, there was a senior official from the Republican Governor's Association apparently wanting to help out went to Alaska to intervene, I guess, is sort of how this article describes it to help Sarah Palin and they started to make a to-do list for her.
They said that you need to make a long-term schedule and stick to it, have staff members set aside ample time for her family, to replenish her spirits and to build a coherent home state agenda that focused on job creation and ensured re-election. They say she ignored this device and then decided to resign. That marked down the road to resignation. So we're asking, is she her own worst enemy?
FRUM: Look it's hard to read that "New York Times" article and not feel a surge of sympathy for a woman who has been on the receiving end of a lot of very harsh and often very unfair and untrue criticism and she really took it to heart and she suffered. That's sympathetic, it's also true, though, and that article in mind, that being governor of Alaska, a state of 600,000 people is really a small-scale organizational job. It does not begin to -- it does not begin to compare to the kinds of challenges that many governors face in the lower 48 states, never mind the presidency.
So yes, I mean those -- look, we all have trouble sticking to schedules. But if you're going to run large organizations that's what you have to do, and if you're going to claim to be a successful executive, those are the kinds of skills you need already to possess.
CHETRY: Yet, at the same time, we still go back to this "USA Today" Gallup poll showing two-thirds of Republicans want her to remain a national political figure, at the same time the majority of Democrats and independents would rather that she exit the national stage. So if you were advising here, what advice would you give to Sarah Palin today?
FRUM: Well, if I were advising her, I would tell her she's probably doing the right thing for her, which is to cash in on her fame while she can. That seems to be the plan. For Republicans, I think my advice would be, look, if you enjoy watching her on TV, watch her on TV. If you like her speeches, you know, have her come speak to your group. But understand that if the party is to win elections again, it has to win them in places like Connecticut and New Jersey and cannot have a Texas-only message for a whole country of which Texas is an important part, but not the whole.
CHETRY: And you do not think that she can help the Republicans win in 2012?
FRUM: I think we saw in 2008 that her choice by John McCain was one of the most fatal moments in the campaign -- maybe not as bad as the collapse of Lehman Brothers, but when you look at the chart of the collapse of his poll numbers, you can see that her - one of the major inflexion points is her selection.
CHETRY: David Frum, editor of the newmajority.com, former speech writer under George W. Bush. Thanks for being with us this morning.
FRUM: Thank you.
CHETRY: Thirty-four minutes past the hour.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROBERTS: Shot live inside the hearing room this morning where Judge Sonia Sotomayor will undergo her first day of confirmation hearings before the Senate Judiciary Committee. It's the beginning of a historic journey for the judge.
But in order to understand what she is really all about, what shaped her into the judge that she is today, it helps to see where she came from. And our Jason Carroll got a real inside look at all of that. What did you find out?
JASON CARROLL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, I think we got some insight. And we did it by turning to someone who really knows her best, and that is her younger brother. Juan Sotomayor says his sister has been working hard, preparing for her confirmation hearings, but that's not unusual because he says she has always worked hard even from a very early age.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CARROLL (voice-over): Senators want to learn everything about Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor during her confirmation hearing. Her brother Juan remembers learning very early, his sister loves the law.
DR. JUAN SOTOMAYOR, BROTHER OF JUDGE SONIA SOTOMAYOR: It's indelible in my mind. And it was really one of the earliest memories we have.
CARROLL: To explain, he walked us down memory lane in the Bronx where they grew up in a public housing project.
SOTOMAYOR: That's the room.
CARROLL (on camera): Up here on the second floor.
SOTOMAYOR: Where the air conditioner was the room that my sister and myself shared.
CARROLL (voice-over): In the '60s when Juan and his sister were growing up, she wasn't interested in watching "The Munsters" or "Bewitched."
SOTOMAYOR: My sister forced me to watched "Perry Mason" and "Judge for the Defense."
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Have you seen this before, Miss Kennedy?
SOTOMAYOR: She knew she was going to be a lawyer.
CARROLL: Big dreams for the inner city girl whose parents came to the United States from Puerto Rico. The children lost their father when Sonia was just nine. Their mother, who eventually became a nurse, a strong believer in education.
SOTOMAYOR: My mom knew that education was the essence of realizing your dreams, getting out of your situation, and moving ahead.
CARROLL: Sotomayor worked hard, earning top marks as early as elementary school. Sharpening her skills at helping her brother deal with neighborhood thugs.
SOTOMAYOR: My sister always used to have to come over and diffuse situations.
CARROLL (on camera): How did she do it?
SOTOMAYOR: She negotiated.
CARROLL (voice-over): Her brother says she's ready for Washington.
(on camera): Even the senators who are going to be asking her stuff about gun control, they'll be asking her about abortion.
SOTOMAYOR: She'll handle it the way she sees fit. She is her own person.
CARROLL (voice-over): Since her nomination, critics questioned her intellectual depth. Some called her a racist, citing a speech she gave in 2001 as an Appeals Court judge, saying "that a wise Latina woman with the richness of her experiences would more often than not reach a better conclusion than a white male who hasn't lived that life."
SOTOMAYOR: We're raised to treat everyone equally no matter what color, no matter what race.
CARROLL: Juan Sotomayor says his conversations with his sister focused on family and talking about growing up together.
SOTOMAYOR: All right. This brings back memories.
CARROLL: Like at the Catholic school they attended or the job at Zaros Bakery, where they worked as teenagers.
SOTOMAYOR: As you know, my sister's first job. CARROLL: He says his sister worked so hard, it was a tough act to follow, but it taught him something else.
SOTOMAYOR: I decided right then and there I would never follow in her footsteps again.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CARROLL: And he did not follow in her footsteps. Instead of a career in law, he chose the medical profession instead and became a doctor. He will be at his sister's side in Washington for those confirmation hearings just in case she needs some moral support from her little brother.
ROBERTS: It was really nice that he came down from Syracuse where he practices -- he's an allergist, right?
CARROLL: He is an allergist up there.
ROBERTS: He spent the day with you in the Bronx?
CARROLL: He did and you know, it was so interesting, even to go by their old school and meet some of the people there who remember them from back in the day. And the running theme throughout all of her life seems to be how hard she worked even from a very early age.
CHETRY: Yes, and how much her mom was there to support her and really, really encourage education. And we saw her mom tearing up when she was announced when her nomination was announced. So she'll probably be there tearing up today too.
ROBERTS: There's an interesting article about her over the weekend, and there seemed to be very little room in her life for anything else other than work...
CARROLL: And the law. And the love of the law, which again early age.
ROBERTS: Bingo.
CHETRY: Jason Carroll for us. Thanks.
ROBERTS: Thanks so much.
Who do you support, by the way, or rather do you support Judge Sonia Sotomayor -- listen, I'm still on West Coast time - Judge Sonia Sotomayor's confirmation to the Supreme Court? go to cnn.com/amfix and tell us your thoughts at cnn.com/amfix.
CHETRY: Maybe what you need is a drink. We talked about whether or not having a drink -- moderate amount, one to two a day may help with dementia. You never know, not that you're suffering from dementia. I'm teasing you.
ROBERTS: Not yet.
CHETRY: But...
ROBERTS: Pretty close.
CHETRY: But did you also know this? Maybe throwing out a swear word or two could help lessen your pain?
ROBERTS: Really? It depends on where you do it. It might actually increase your pain.
CHETRY: That's true too,
ROBERTS: If you did it here.
CHETRY: It depends on how much you like eating soap. Elizabeth Cohen is going to be joining us with the results of a very interesting study. Forty-two minutes past the hour.
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CHETRY: Pretty shot of New York City this morning. Forty-five minutes past the hour. We fast forward to the stories that will be making news a little bit later today. We'll be keeping a close eye on the market. This week marks the start of second quarter earnings reports, which could spell major trouble for some big financial companies. These reports come on the heels of a four-week market slide.
Vice President Joe Biden's wife, Jill, is set to undergo scheduled orthopedic surgery today. The procedure will take place at Thomas Jefferson Hospital in Philadelphia. The vice president will accompany her there and also return to Washington Tuesday.
And tonight, 6:51 Eastern time, NASA is going to be making yet another attempt to launch space shuttle Endeavour. Heavy thunderstorms forced them to scrub yesterday's launch and also the launch before that. "Endeavour" was also postponed twice last month because of a liquid hydrogen leak. So they haven't had much luck getting "Endeavour" up. They've got that lot of things planned, a number of space walks and how about this, they're putting a patio, right, on the Japanese space lab?
REYNOLDS WOLF, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Apparently so. I don't know if they're going to put some chaise lounges out there...
CHETRY: Right.
WOLF: Maybe a cocktail table. Not sure what's going to go on with the porch. But it should be pretty nice. You know, launching today, it may be kind of a 50/50 proposition, maybe more towards 60/40 of them not taking off. They get a decent chance of thunderstorms especially into the afternoon and into the early evening hours.
Now, when they get into the vacuum of space, weather is not going to be an issue. But for us here on planet Earth, we're dealing with some scattered showers and a few thunderstorms from Raleigh back over to Atlanta and Memphis and maybe even towards Kansas City.
In all of these cities where you could have some delays especially into the afternoon. Back over to say, Oklahoma City, you're going 35. You're making that drive southward in Dallas today, you're going to go into some extreme heat. You're going to be reaching down and turning on that air conditioner, no doubt with 104, your expected high. And Houston, 99, you may have a few stray showers along the coast, but the biggest thing you're going to be dealing with is plenty of heat. A lot of heat in Tampa and Miami with highs in the 90s. New York with 81 degrees and back over to Denver, 88 degrees.
A bit farther to the north, you could deal with some scattered showers and storms in the big sky country, especially to the late afternoon and early evening hours. And then back into the Mississippi Valley, maybe even Arkansas, even into portions of Memphis before the day is out. Thunderstorms are a possibility, some may be severe. That is the latest in the forecast, let's kick it back to you in New York.
CHETRY: All right. Reynolds, thanks so much.
WOLF: You bet.
ROBERTS: So what happens if you stub your toe or you hit your finger with a nail, with the hammer, or something like that?
CHETRY: Or a nail.
ROBERTS: Or a nail. That would hurt, too.
Should you suck it up or should you let one fly?
CHETRY: Well, apparently...
ROBERTS: A little colorful language.
CHETRY: Yes, apparently using a four-letter word may help lessen your physical pain. How about that one?
ROBERTS: We're not making this stuff up, folks. Elizabeth Cohen joins us next to tell us how it all works. It's 48 minutes after the hour.
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ROBERTS: Well, you know, those not so nice but very colorful words you say when you stub your toe or you hurt yourself. Well, if you feel guilty about it, don't. Let them fly. There's a new study that says cursing may just be good for you.
CHETRY: Our senior medical correspondent Elizabeth Cohen is with us from Atlanta. So tell us when and where this works for us, the four letter therapy, I guess you could say. ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN SENIOR MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Oh, I like that. That's a good term for it, Kiran. Indeed, swearing does seem to be therapeutic. There were a bunch of researchers who wonder, maybe we swear for a reason. And so they told a bunch of college students to do what I'm about to do, which is to submerge their hand in icy cold water, holy smokes, and believe me, this is my second choice of words, I'd much rather be saying another word right now.
This is extremely cold. They told the students, hey swear, just go crazy, say your favorite swear words, and when they were allowed to say those favorite swear words, they could hold their hands in the water for a lot longer. Take a look at this. When they were allowed to swear, the students tolerated pain for 115 seconds. However, I'm sorry, when they weren't allowed to swear it was 155 seconds. When they were, they could tolerate pain for 155 seconds. That's actually significantly longer.
And researchers sort of wondered, well, why does swearing allow us to tolerate pain for a longer amount of time? And they think it might have something to do with adrenaline, when you're in pain the adrenaline is flowing and when you swear it kind of lets it all out. It may not be pretty to hear, but it lets it all out. Kiran.
ROBERTS: So, do you still have your hand in the water?
COHEN: No, I took it out...
ROBERTS: Oh, you did.
COHEN: Now I'm dripping.
ROBERTS: OK.
COHEN: Because I wasn't allowed to swear, I couldn't take it for very long.
ROBERTS: All right. Well, keeping it reasonable for family television, can you describe what sort of words best help ease the pain?
COHEN: Yes, what they did was say to the students what are your favorite swear words? What would you say if you hit yourself on the finger with a hammer. And so the students wrote them down and those were the words they were allowed to say. Whatever is your favorite swear words, which, of course, I can't say them right now. However cnn.com/amfix, we actually list the swear words they said. So cnn.com/amfix. You'll' them all there spelled out.
ROBERTS: Really?
CHETRY: No, we got to keep on here.
ROBERTS: Are they there now?
CHETRY: Well, but you head to the Web.
COHEN: With the Web you can do anything.
CHETRY: You have four little girls. I have two kids. I've learned to say sugar instead of -- and darn instead of my old favorite words.
COHEN: Yes, absolutely. I have learned that, too, and I give my girls a dollar every time I swear. So that's how I keep from swearing.
CHETRY: That's funny. The last time John and I tried to put our hands in ice cold water, we were trying to see what it was like for the guy that dove in and swam in the Arctic. It was really, really cold water. I think I lasted for 15 seconds and he lasted for about 45, and we made the "moment of zen" on the Daily Show. So maybe you will, too.
ROBERTS: There you go.
COHEN: Well, that's true and maybe if that gentleman, I bet he swore a lot, that's why he was able to do it. I'm sure of it.
ROBERTS: Keep that hand in that flipping water, if you will.
COHEN: OK. There you go.
ROBERTS: I use that as a good line. You know, Napoleon Dynamite, they use the word flipping. Apparently, it's Mormon- approved, so I'm good with that.
CHETRY: There you go.
ROBERTS: All right. Thanks very much, appreciate it. Fifty- four minutes after the hour.
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CHETRY: Welcome back to the Most News in the Morning. In just over an hour, Judge Sonia Sotomayor's Supreme Court confirmation hearings will start on Capitol Hill. And this morning, some legal experts are asking why even bother instead of learning about the nominee, now we tend to get a lot of nonanswer answers.
And our Carol Costello is tracking that side of the story, live from Washington. Hey, Carol.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Kiran. You know, everybody thinks this is going to be an exciting confirmation process. There's going to be a lot of fireworks going on, and there will be tough questions. The thing is, Sonia Sotomayor really doesn't have to answer them.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
COSTELLO (voice-over): The heat is on, right? Critics have called Judge Sonia Sotomayor a racist.
RUSH LIMBAUGH, RADIO TALK SHOW: You may want to say a reverse racist.
COSTELLO: A lover of affirmative action. Some on the right are praying for a confirmation conflagration...
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Here is one of those rare occasions in which the country focuses on these hearings and on the meaning of the constitution.
COSTELLO: In a perfect world, Sotomayor's confirmation hearing should be that and more. But scholars say in modern times, they've become a little more than photo ops. Snapshots.
JONATHAN TURLEY, CONSTITUTIONAL SCHOLAR: They are maddening if you are a law professor, because they are really without concept. They are like a slurpy. It goes down quickly, and it's gone.
COSTELLO: Blame it in part on nominee, now Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.
RUTH BADER GINSBURG, SUPREME COURT JUSTICE: This is the very kind of question that I ruled out...
Yes.
COSTELLO: Ginsburg is the first Supreme Court nominee who pointedly and repeatedly refused to answer questions on sensitive issues because -- we'll let her explain.
GINSBURG: I'm not going to give an advisory opinion on any specific scenario because as clear as it may seem to you, I think I have to avoid responding to hypotheticals because they may prove not to be so hypothetical.
COSTELLO: The Senate itself adopted this unenforceable rule now known as the Ginsburg rule. And yes, it's been used since over and over and over.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I try to avoid saying whether I agree or disagree and avoid expressing an opinion.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I will not talk about the particular case.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don't think I can express an opinion...
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I should stay away from a matter that might come before the Court.
COSTELLO: So don't expect Judge Sotomayor to answer specific questions about her ruling in that controversial affirmative action case or any other controversial case because she doesn't have to.
(END VIDEOTAPE) COSTELLO: So what will you see? What will you hear, John and Kiran, you will hear hard questions coming from Republicans. The problem is, Sonia Sotomayor doesn't really exactly have to answer them. So here's what you'll hear. You hear a lot about her family life, a lot about her background, and you'll see lots and lots of pictures of Sonia Sotomayor with her mother and you heard Jason Carroll talk to her brother. He's going to be there too. Expect him to be by her side.
ROBERTS: You know, Carol, we were talking about the art of the confirmation hearing with our Jeffrey Toobin earlier today, and it sort of falls along the lines of she has to say a lot without really saying anything.
COSTELLO: Yes. And Jeffrey Toobin told me because I, you know, I kind of discussed this story with him before I did it. He said unless Sonia Sotomayor says something absolutely crazy, she will be confirmed because, you know, the Democrats kind of rule right now.
ROBERTS: Yes, she shouldn't have any problem. In fact, you know, Chuck Schumer was -- Senator Chuck Schumer is predicting she might get 78 votes in the full Senate, which would be equal to John Roberts. We had Senator Dick Durbin in earlier, he didn't want to make that prediction, but you know, he doesn't seem to be any question she'll be confirmed.
CHETRY: All right. (INAUDBILE) right? Those are the opening statements the senators get to make today. And we'll hear her opening statement and then we'll come back to the drawing board tomorrow. Carol, thanks so much. And that's going to do it for us.
ROBERTS: Yes, remember, you can watch Judge Sotomayor's confirmation hearings live right here on CNN. It all begins at 10:00 a.m. Eastern, live on CNN and cnn.com/live.
And the news continues with Heidi Collins in the CNN NEWSROOM.
