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Campbell Brown
President Obama Speaks Out on Gulf Disaster; Arizona Targets Ethnic Studies
Aired May 14, 2010 - 20:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
RICK SANCHEZ, CNN ANCHOR: Hello again, everybody. Campbell is off. I'm Rick Sanchez.
There is a lot of anger in the White House tonight, anger about the Gulf oil spill, the president blasting BP, Transocean, and Halliburton. He says he won't tolerate any more finger-pointing. He calls executives' testimony on Capitol Hill, the word he uses, a ridiculous spectacle.
But here is the thing, Mr. President. It's been three-and-a-half weeks now, right, and we still don't know exactly how bad this spill is or even if there is a fix for this thing. So, when are we going to get answers? We're looking into it.
Also, another story that we have been following, one that is really threatening to become even more controversial, this is the one I was just telling John about. This is Arizona banning ethnic stories. But what is the real story behind this story, not the superficial stuff? We have got facts tonight that you probably have not heard.
Also tonight, Sarah Palin takes the NRA by storm and continues taking shots from afar at the president of the United States. We're going to tell you what she said.
Here is our number-one story. Let's go.
We have been talking about this all week here on this show and on "RICK'S LIST," my afternoon show. Arizona is now, as you probably know, the national hotbed, right, for ethnic tension because of the immigration law.
But this week, Governor Jan Brewer signed another law. And what this one does is, it bans the teaching of ethnic studies in public schools, ethnic studies, kind of an abstract term, right? So, we will get much more concrete with this, I promise.
And just like with the immigration law, we have been watching emotional protests develop this week. Take a look at Tucson.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
(SHOUTING)
UNIDENTIFIED PROTESTERS: When do we want it?
UNIDENTIFIED PROTESTERS: Now.
UNIDENTIFIED PROTESTERS: What do we want?
UNIDENTIFIED PROTESTERS: Education.
UNIDENTIFIED PROTESTERS: When do we want it?
UNIDENTIFIED PROTESTERS: Now.
UNIDENTIFIED PROTESTERS: What do we want?
UNIDENTIFIED PROTESTERS: Education.
UNIDENTIFIED PROTESTERS: When do we want it?
UNIDENTIFIED PROTESTERS: Now.
UNIDENTIFIED PROTESTERS: Education not a crime. Education not a crime.
UNIDENTIFIED PROTESTERS: Education is under attack.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: Here is what I want to take you through. You ready? That phrase, ethnic studies, it sounds tame, right? But we started doing some digging. And what we found is that there is a backstory here.
The class that is causing this controversy is called la raza, or that's part of the title of this course that is taught. By the way, raza is harmless enough. It just means the race in Spanish.
Yesterday, on "RICK'S LIST," I equated that with teaching a class called black power, because it is, or many see it as, a political movement. That's when Twitter nearly blew up, with people on both sides expressing opinions on this, which is a good thing.
Now, are the critics who pushed Governor Brewer to sign the new law xenophobes, or are they making a valid point here?
Tom Horne is the state schools chief. He is joining us. By the way, he led the campaign to ban these types of classes. And Augustine Romero is in charge of the ethnic studies program at the Tucson School District. My thanks to both of you gentlemen for being with us.
And, Mr. Romero, I want to begin with you. Why not just call the class Mexican studies or -- like you would have -- Mexican-American studies? Why did you put the word la raza in there, which, as you know, to many people connotes a political movement, as opposed to an educational course?
AUGUSTINE ROMERO, TUCSON UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT: No, the course is not called la raza. The courses are called Mexican-American studies from a -- U.S. history from a Mexican-American perspective. We have -- we use the word raza to translate to "the people."
(CROSSTALK)
SANCHEZ: Why?
(CROSSTALK)
ROMERO: We did that -- we did that -- we did that...
SANCHEZ: OK.
ROMERO: ... so that our students could recognize and connect to their indigenous side, just like the word "dine" for the Navajo translates to "the people," like the word "o'odham" for the Tohono O'odham translates to "the people." The word "yoeme" for the Yoeme people translates to "the people."
It was an attempt to connect to our indigenous sides, as well as our Mexican side.
SANCHEZ: But what if you're -- is the course basically only about Mexican-Americans, or is it other Hispanics? What if you're from Honduras or Guatemala or a Caribbean country of Hispanic descent?
ROMERO: Right. Primarily because of the demographic in which we come from and the population, the course have been designed to tell the Mexican-American side of history.
SANCHEZ: OK, that's perfectly fair and acceptable. Why not then just call it Mexican-American studies, or even Mexican studies or Mexican history? Why didn't you call it that?
ROMERO: Well, that's what the courses are called. They're called Mexican -- they're called U.S. history from a Mexican-American perspective.
SANCHEZ: But you just told me the emphasis on -- is on the word raza.
ROMERO: The department. The department is called -- the department is called Mexican-American/Raza Studies.
SANCHEZ: You, I understand, Superintendent Horne, have a problem with that phraseology, correct?
TOM HORNE, ARIZONA SUPERINTENDENT OF PUBLIC EDUCATION: Yes.
Rick, I actually have some late-breaking news for you. You will be the first national to carry this. Just before coming on, I got a call from KVOA Channel 4 in Tucson to tell me there was a demonstration this afternoon in which the students did a skit. And, at the end of the skit, they kill me.
So, the -- KVOA wanted a comment from me, asked me, did it hurt my feelings? And I said, no, it doesn't hurt my feelings, but it does confirm what I have been saying about the intellectual level of what they have been teaching in the raza studies course.
SANCHEZ: Well, you know, obviously, that's, you know, what the Supreme Court calls symbolic language.
HORNE: Right.
SANCHEZ: I'm sure, Mr. Romero, that you don't condone them actually having an act where they actually kill Mr. Horne, if in fact that is true, correct?
ROMERO: If that's true, absolutely not. And if anything like that did take place, what I would -- would imagine, it's the symbolism in killing the bill, not Mr. Horne.
SANCHEZ: Well, KVOA said they were killing me.
But I -- the point I'm making is not whether or not the teachers condone it, but whether the intellectual level that has been taught in this class and whether the emotions that have been taught in this class are leading to this kind of activity, which I think is very dysfunctional for the students, when they become adults, and they don't know how to resolve disagreements in a civil way.
SANCHEZ: Well, we have got a picture up right now that I want to talk about. You see that picture right there? You have a particular problem, Superintendent Horne, with that picture that we're showing right now on camera, correct?
(CROSSTALK)
HORNE: Yes. That's the students protesting the bill, and teachers as well, dressed up as revolutionaries in masks, sunglasses, berets, brown shirts. I think this demonstrates the militant aspect of the course that we're dealing with.
(CROSSTALK)
SANCHEZ: You think because of the clothes they're wearing -- but yet you see who is in that picture, though, that they're showing, right, that poster that they're holding up?
HORNE: Yes, Cesar Chavez.
(CROSSTALK)
SANCHEZ: That's Cesar Chavez.
(CROSSTALK)
ROMERO: It's important to note that those people in that picture are not our students, nor are they former students. They were simply a group from San Diego who showed up to participate in the protest. Those are not our students in that picture.
(CROSSTALK) SANCHEZ: Do you worry -- here is what I want to get at, OK, because it's interesting. I mean, obviously, there is enough to criticize on both sides here, and I know both of you guys are getting a lot of heat.
I have been reading the tweets that I have been getting just since I have been doing this discussion, good and fair points being made by many Americans. But I'm wondering, Superintendent Horne, and I want you to answer this when we come back, all right?
I'm going to set you up, because we have got to get a break in. But, when we come back, are you concerned that you may be throwing out the baby with the bathwater here? I mean, there is nothing -- look, I'm sure you, I think, you would want your kids to understand Asian American studies. You would want your kids to understand African- American history. You would want your kids to understand Hispanic- American history and Hispanic-American studies.
So, are we going to end up with those courses being denied for all Arizonan students because maybe one class did the course in a way that you didn't like it?
Hold your thought. I want you to think about that and give us the answer on the other side, because that appears to be what is going on right now.
HORNE: I will be happy to answer.
SANCHEZ: Also -- well, and I'm going to give you plenty of time to answer. We're just going to take a quick break, and I guarantee you we will start with you, sir.
Also, the president of the United States angry, maybe as angry as we haven't seen him before, furious about the oil spill blame game that is going on. Have you seen these pictures? Well, some experts are looking at these pictures, and they're saying, you know what? We're measuring this by looking at the particles and how fast they're coming out. There is a lot more being leaked than we're told. It's not just 5,000 barrels that are going out.
They're saying it may be as many as 70,000. We're going to drill down on this as well. Pardon the pun. We will be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SANCHEZ: Welcome back. I'm Rick Sanchez.
I'm back with Tom Horne and Augustine Romero.
This is a good conversation. It's the kind of conversation people all over the country should be having. And we're digging a little deeper.
The question to you, obviously, Mr. Horne, you heard me ask it, are you throwing the baby out with the bathwater just because one course in Tucson may have done something you don't like? HORNE: Rick, in the standards promulgated by my department, we require that, in all social studies classes, students learn about the contributions of different cultures, but we bring them together and teach them about all different cultures and teach them to treat each other as individuals.
What I'm opposed to is dividing them by race.
(CROSSTALK)
SANCHEZ: But nobody is dividing them by race are, they?
HORNE: Yes.
SANCHEZ: These classes are available to any student who wants to take them, as I understand it.
HORNE: Yes, but 90 percent of the kids in the raza studies are Hispanic. It's primarily directed at different races, black studies for the blacks, Asian studies for the Asians, and so on.
And what is going on in the raza studies program, I wanted to read to you a statement. I have a number of statements in front of me from teachers and former teachers.
(CROSSTALK)
SANCHEZ: All right, make -- you can read one, sir, because I have to give Mr. Romero equal time.
HORNE: OK.
Very quickly: "TUSD uses taxpayer-funded programs to indoctrinate students based primarily on ethnic divisions, in the belief that there is a war against Latino culture perpetrated by a white, racist, capitalist system."
SANCHEZ: That's...
HORNE: "TUSD has hired a group of radical socialist activists who promote an anti-capitalist and anti-Western civilization ideology. They use ethnic solidarity as their vehicle of delivery."
(CROSSTALK)
SANCHEZ: We get it, we get it, we get it, we get it. I think we understand the gist of what that teacher is saying. Again, that's a teacher's opinion.
(CROSSTALK)
SANCHEZ: Mr. Romero...
HORNE: I have a number of them.
(CROSSTALK) SANCHEZ: But let me come back to you, Mr. Romero.
Do you feel like maybe you pushed the envelope so much that some people viewed the way you were teaching this class, almost the word that has been used is in a militant fashion, and, as a result, you are now getting this ban across the state? If you had it to do over again, would you have done it a little differently, sir?
ROMERO: No, not whatsoever.
The things that that law is designed to stop, we don't do anyways. What we do is, we promote academic achievement. What we promote is multiculturalism, and what we promote is an understanding of all people and the inclusion of all people. Those courses are meant for all children to participate in. And, as a matter of fact...
SANCHEZ: So, why the criticism? OK. So, quick, because I know we're running out of time, and I hate to interrupt you. I know viewers don't like that.
But I got to get to the -- cut to the chase here. Why do you think he has received letters like the one he just read if there is absolutely nothing wrong with the way you're doing the course? Why do you think people would react that way? What would you say to those people?
ROMERO: It's a political response, and it's a political response that he is using and he has created for political gain. He has created this racist agenda for political gain. He is trying to create fear.
SANCHEZ: What is his political gain, quickly?
ROMERO: He is running for attorney general.
SANCHEZ: All right.
ROMERO: He's trying to -- he's trying -- on the backs of Latinos, he is trying to gain the attorney generalship.
SANCHEZ: All right.
We will leave there it, gentlemen.
My thanks to both of you for being with us. We will continue this conversation, and, obviously, like I said, it's one that's -- many people around the country should be having at their dinner tables.
We thank you again. We will see you soon.
Coming up...
HORNE: Thank -- thank you for having us, Rick.
SANCHEZ: My pleasure. Would you look at that? Three-and-a-half weeks and counting, all that oil still gushing into the Gulf. BP has no good solutions on the table, but has BP been playing it straight as far as how much is actually leaking?
And then: Sarah Palin preaching to the converted at the National Rifle Association's convention today. She says President Obama is coming for your guns. Proof? Well, we will talk about that as well. Stay there. We're coming right back at you.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SANCHEZ: Welcome back. I'm Rick Sanchez.
Our number-one national story tonight, the spill in the Gulf. Why? Well, because there are new reports questioning whether proper permits were even pulled and whether BP is telling the truth about how much oil is really leaking out there.
Listen to the president.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I saw firsthand the anger and frustration felt by our neighbors in the Gulf. And let me tell you, it is an anger and frustration that I share as president.
I know BP has committed to pay for the response effort. And we will hold them to their obligations.
I have to say, though, I did not appreciate what I considered to be a ridiculous spectacle during the congressional hearings into this matter. You had executives of BP and Transocean and Halliburton falling over each other to point the finger of blame at somebody else.
The American people could not have been impressed with that display, and I certainly wasn't.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: The president's obviously focused on the enormity of the problem. But take a listen to what the chief executive of BP told the "Guardian" newspaper in the U.K. about the size of this spill. Here is the quote. Ready?
"The Gulf of Mexico is a very big ocean. The amount of volume of oil and dispersant that we are putting into it is tiny in relation to the total water volume."
Interesting. All right. So, how much oil is actually gushing out? Is it 5,000 barrels, as BP is claiming, or is it really more like 70,000 barrels, as some experts now suggest?
Our David Mattingly is in New Orleans. He is joining us now.
David, experts who are examining this newly released video -- in fact, put it up, if you possibly can, Luka (ph). See if you -- see if we can see this. Look at this right there. You see that? They're measuring the flow here, now that they have finally seen this video. And they're saying there's 10 times more oil that is coming out of there than what we originally thought.
What is BP saying about that?
DAVID MATTINGLY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Rick, this debate all getting started when that video went out, these different experts across the country using their own calculations to come up with their own much greater numbers.
BP is now saying that they're not taking some things into consideration, that this type of oil expands when it reaches water, that they really don't have a perspective on the size of the pipe, that they don't understand that it's mixed with natural gas, all sorts of factors, saying it's not really proper to try and quantify this oil just by looking at what is coming at the pipe.
They're also saying it's hard to get an idea what we're dealing with. They tell us that this pipe is 22 inches in diameter. We want to show you something. This wash basin is also 22 inches in diameter. This is how wide that pipe is. So, that gives you some sort of perspective.
You can sort of make up your own mind, though. We're watching this cloud of black oil come out of a pipe this big. It's been doing this every single second day after day ever since this disaster began.
SANCHEZ: Well, the sense I get after what -- that prop that you just used to show us is, that's a hell of a lot of oil. By the way, I can't count how many different solutions have already been suggested or tried or eliminated or just failed.
Where are we now, David? What is the next plan?
MATTINGLY: Right now, they have got a plan in play they have never tried before, not just at this depth, but never, ever before. They're inserting a tube inside that big pipe, a tube to go in there with seals around it to close that off.
So, their hope is that that will be working. They hope to get it working possibly some time overnight. If we are lucky, Rick, if we are lucky, we will wake up in the morning and find out that some of this oil has been stopped.
SANCHEZ: Oh, we are. We are -- would be lucky, and we are hoping. Thanks so much, David Mattingly, following that story for us and doing, by the way, great work down there.
Historian Doug Brinkley has been one of the best resources that we have been able to have tracking this entire disaster. He is also the author, as you may know, of "The Wilderness Warrior: Theodore Roosevelt and the Crusade for America."
Doug, remember the Pottery Barn analogy that was used during the beginning of the war, you break it, you own it? Well, this thing in the Gulf is broken, and I'm wondering, does the White House, as of today especially, now own this environmental disaster?
DOUGLAS BRINKLEY, PRESIDENTIAL HISTORIAN: Well, I think it's owned by the corporation BP. But the White House has a political problem dealing with MMS.
They have done the right thing. Secretary Salazar has divided it in two. But, as we investigate it, people are asking, why weren't there stricter environmental standards? How did this get to this point, and oil companies is in control?
SANCHEZ: Well, let me add something to that, because I think you're on to something here. There are questions about permits being pulled for this rig, about if someone is lying about how much oil is really leaking.
We heard complaints about batteries that should have been replaced on this blowout preventer that maybe weren't replaced. I mean, this stuff makes people crazy. It's maddening.
And did you see this interview I did with Mike Mason earlier today? He -- who has blown the whistle on BP in the past and told me essentially that they lie and they cheat, especially in their testing of their blowout preventers. Let's listen to a little piece of this, and then I want to get your reaction on the back side.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MIKE MASON, ALASKAN FREIGHT HAULER: They were supposed to do pressure up to 5,000 PSI on all of the different valves, rams and other components of the BOPs. And what they would do is -- they were supposed to pressure up on them for five minutes. And what they would with the paper charts that they use, it would kind of like a seismograph-type chart type thing, where the ink pen would go on the paper.
SANCHEZ: Right.
MASON: And -- yes. And what they would do is pressure up for 10, 20, 30 seconds and see that it was holding at 5,000, and they would take their finger and move the chart five minutes, and then they would bleed the pressure off and go on to the next valve by saving time doing that.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: He is saying, when the inspectors weren't looking, when the regulators weren't looking, instead of holding and seeing if this thing worked for five minutes, they did it for 10, 20, 30 seconds. He is saying they cheated, that they lied on the inspections.
BRINKLEY: And this is why I have been going after BP from day one here.
I have been working on a book on Alaska. And the more you look at what goes on with BP up there, they treat Alaska and the Gulf of Mexico as if it's some kind of colony. They feel that it's been deregulated, that you do enough political payoffs and just skirt American environmental standards, and you do what you want to do.
I really urge the media to look at what BP did to our Arctic tundra in 2006. They had such corrosive pipes that oil spilled all over Alaska in a major environmental disaster. This is the third major BP disaster in the United States in five years, because BP wants to be -- they're number four in the country as a corporation, and their ethic is drill, drill, drill now, get it, get it out while you can.
SANCHEZ: Yes.
BRINKLEY: And when you take shortcuts like that, bad things happen.
And now we're dealing with just the P.R. disaster of a major company who doesn't seem to get ahead of this story. And the comment you said of Tony Hayward is just absurd, to say this is a drop of the bucket in our Gulf of Mexico, when our marine system is being destroyed. And I think he needs to step down as CEO, and that BP board needs to ask him to step down. He has been a -- the worst public spokesperson imaginable.
SANCHEZ: Doug Brinkley, my thanks to you.
By the way, just to add some numbers to that, the average for those four corporations that he happened to refer to there as the most profitable in the entire world, possibly in the history of the world, about $25 billion a year. Just think about that for just one minute.
Historian Doug Brinkley, we look forward to your book. Thanks so much. Appreciate your time.
BRINKLEY: Thanks.
SANCHEZ: Up next; Sarah Palin shooting from the hip today at the National Rifle Association's annual convention, telling the crowd that President Obama would ban all guns if he thought he could get away with it. How do you think that one is going over? Well, there, probably pretty well.
We will give you more on this when we come back. Stay there.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SANCHEZ: Welcome back. I'm Rick Sanchez.
Now for the smoking-hot political story: fallout from what just happened moments after President Obama's visit to Buffalo yesterday. Have you heard about this? A woman in a wings joint, Luann Haley, called the commander in chief -- quote -- "a hottie with a smoking little body."
That's a direct quote, by the way. Well, today, a local reporter asked her the question we all have: Luann, what were you thinking?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The commander in chief arrived, ordered some wings to go, and, while waiting, decided to make his way around the restaurant.
And then he came to Luann.
And you greet him and you say?
LUANN HALEY, BUFFALO, NEW YORK: I just said, he is a hottie. He's got a smoking little body.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What the heck were you thinking?
HALEY: I don't know. I don't know. People tell me I should think before I open my mouth.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Mr. Obama took it in stride, even gave her a hug. And then she says the president came up with an idea of his own.
HALEY: He said that we need to take this picture, because we have got to send this back to Michelle.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That would be Mrs. Obama.
HALEY: And I yelled out, "Eat your heart out, Michelle."
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: So he got one compliment, but then, of course, there is North Carolina where Sarah Palin lashed out at President Obama in a speech to the National Rifle Association. Palin said Obama and the Democrats would ban guns if they could and are on a mission to gut the second amendment. The "self-proclaimed proud redneck," that's in quotation marks, dazzled the crowd at the annual gathering, including a large number of women. We caught up with one woman with a weapon. Here now her story in her own words.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONNA STUBEY (ph), MEMBER OF NRA: I'm Donna Stubey (ph), an army wife, a mother, and a member of the NRA. We love to look at the new stuff they have out at the NRA. This is the Px4 Storm Model C. This is what I have at home. It's so easy, you know, to use. The second amendment is very important to me because our founding fathers worked so hard to protect those rights, you know. It's worth every -- every minute that we put into it to protect it. So, I believe in it. I wouldn't have it any other way. Not in my home.
I have one of these, and I love this gun. It's great for hunting. I actually shot a bear down in Montana with this 308. This is a small Taurus pink handgun, and pink is for girls, so I really like this. There's a lot more women that is beginning to shoot now, and so they -- they can sell more of these, you know, to the women that are girlie girls. I'm very excited. I can't wait for tonight. I'll see Sarah Palin. There hasn't been very many political people that I've really looked up to a whole lot until I got to hear Sarah Palin, you know, speak publicly, and I really enjoy everything she has to say.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The most famous moose-hunting hockey mom in America, Governor Sarah Palin.
STUBEY: And when my husband is on a tour in Afghanistan or Iraq, I want to feel safe at home.
SARAH PALIN, FORMER ALASKA GOVERNOR: Greetings from the last frontier where our men, they proudly use firearms and our women do too.
STUBEY: When I have my child, I -- I need to feel like I can protect both of us, you know? And if someone tries to break in that front door, I want to feel ready.
PALIN: Because the fear of a strong armed law-abiding citizen is often enough to stop a crime. Criminals don't target people who can defend themselves.
STUBEY: She -- Sarah Palin is one of those people who -- who would fight for that right for us.
PALIN: God bless you.
STUBEY: She talks about her family. She needs in our life (ph) a constitution and the second amendment. It means a lot to her. So, we're very, very much alike. And I am very proud to been here and heard her speak today. So, go Sarah 2012!
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: Coming up, tackling some of the Hollywood's stereotypes on gender and race.
A look at Queen Latifah's brand-new movie. It's called "Just Right" and the dangers of the deep.
A couple of ocean predators do the dance of death. Who do you think would win if an octopus, kind of small, takes on a huge shark? Who would eat who? You're going to see this play out, folks, in a real aquarium. We're going to be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SANCHEZ: Welcome back. Amazing medical breakthroughs are breathing new life into America's wounded warriors. Coming up, the bionic man who is ready to return to battle, but first, I want to take a look at some of the other stories that we're following for you in the news tonight.
First, BP says it's going to try again to stop that leak that has gushed millions of gallons of oil into the Gulf of Mexico. The latest attempt, you heard it here, will involve a tube designed to be inserted into the ruptured pipe, collect the oil, and then send it to a vessel which will be on the surface. At the White House today, President Obama laid into the companies involved in the gulf disaster. The president called this week's finger-pointing by BP, Transocean, and Halliburton, quote, "a ridiculous spectacle."
Something was brewing at a Long Island Dunkin' Doughnuts before the Times Square car bombing attempt, and it wasn't just coffee. A federal law enforcement says suspect, Faisal Shahzad, received money when he met with someone at a donut shop. Investigators are now taking a close look at a surveillance video from a Dunkin' Doughnuts. They wouldn't say who Shahzad met with or how much money was exchanged before the attempted bombing on May 1st.
A British actress is now saying that she was sexually abused when she was 16 years old by academy award-winning director, Roman Polanski. Polanski, as you know, in a lot of trouble already, pleaded guilty to having unlawful sex with a 13-year-old girl in 1977, but then fled to Europe before he was sentenced. The latest accuser, Charlotte Lewis, says she is only coming forward now because Polanski's legal team is portraying his previous offense against a minor as an isolated incident.
Now the shark. A supposedly invincible predator meets his match. Here we go. This is at a Seattle aquarium. They started noticing a lot of dead fish on the ground. So, they said, you know, let's put a camera and see what's going on. Who's killing the fish? You're about to see who's not only killing the fish, but who is killing this shark. Actually, you're about to watch it. The shark doesn't even have a chance. The octopus grabs him, pulls him in, and just makes a quick meal out of him.
The poor shark is saying what can I possibly do to get out of this situation. He gets the shark, controls the shark, and then eventually just walks away. Well, I don't know. Do octopuses, octopi walk? No, they waddle. He waddles away with the shark, and the poor thing is like sitting there, trying to do the very best he can. Poor thing shark, look at him. Right there. There he goes. What a story. What video. We thought you'd like that.
Coming up, Queen Latifah's new movie "Just Right" is not your average date night flick. What this movie does is it confronts some age-old Hollywood stereotypes on race and on gender. Kind of a modern day Cosby Show, and it just so happens that Clair Huxtable herself, Phylicia Rashad, is in the movie and is going to join me here in just a moment to take us through it. Stay right there. We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SANCHEZ: Welcome back. You're going to like this. Hollywood's famous for cranking out cliched cookie-cutter romantic comedies, right? You've seen one, you've seen them all. It turns out there's a new movie out today. It's called "Just Right." It doesn't fall into that cookie-cutter. It doesn't fall into that trap. Yes, it's a Cinderella story, but with a real twist. It raises some fascinating questions about race and about gender. It stars Queen Latifah as a plus-sized woman looking for love against some model-thin competition. Let's watch a little clip.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You --
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'll so make it up to you. Was he looking at me when I walked away?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes. I mean a volunteer from a shelter?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Well, you said he was different, so I gave him different.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The girl next door.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Of a girl living in this big house. I'm tagging this. Girl, I can feel it.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Wait a minute, you didn't give him your number when he asked you for it.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes, which is probably the first time a woman has done that to him since he got to the NBA. Trust me. I'll be hearing from him.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: Trust me, I'll be hearing from him. Actress, Phylicia Rashad, plays the mother of Queen Latifah's love interest. What an honor and a pleasure it is to have you here.
PHYLICIA RASHAD, ACTRESS, "JUST RIGHT": Thank you.
SANCHEZ: Also with us, the film and television producer, Crystal McCrary Anthony, author of "Home Court Advantage." Nice title. Also here, CNN Contributor, Roland Martin. How can we do this segment without him? Roland, good to see you.
ROLAND MARTIN, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: Hey, Rick. And of course, great movie. I saw it last week. Loved it.
SANCHEZ: All right. Phylicia, I want to start with you. Why is this different that -- because we just alluded to the fact that you've got all these cookie-cutter romances out there. Why is this not your cookie-cutter romance?
RASHAD: More I think is these characters are so very well developed. The relationships are very real. You know, people are behaving like people.
SANCHEZ: Which means what about? What does that say about us?
RASHAD: We are very interesting creation in the universe. SANCHEZ: But Hollywood would tell you that's all they ever try to do is do things that are real. Are they lying to us?
CRYSTAL MCCRARY ANTHONY, CO-AUTHOR, "HOME COURT ADVANTAGE": Well, I think that's a very loaded statement that Ms. Rashad. I'm so honored to be with you here as well. You did a fabulous job in the movie. I must tell you, I went to see it just right at 12:20 this afternoon, upper west side, totally mixed audience, and she's right. What distinguishes "Just Right" from so many of the other cookie- cutter romantic stories we see in Hollywood is number one, the characters work.
They were three dimensional. They were complex. They were sophisticated. They were elegant, and they were varied and they represent we, African-Americans, in this country. We're multicultural and we're not monolithic.
SANCHEZ: That's interesting. I got to bring role into this. You know, oftentimes, as a minority myself, I see Hispanic representations on --
MARTIN: Right.
SANCHEZ: You know, in Hollywood, and I come away scratching my head and talking to my kids and saying, you know, that's not what we're really all about. But you understand that that's, you know, that's movie making.
MARTIN: Yes.
SANCHEZ: So, they do some of that. You're saying there's too much of that and this movie cuts against that grain, are you?
MARTIN: First of all, what I'm looking at is that you look at movies like "Love Jones" and "Love in Basketball" "The Best Man," also these romantic comedies starring African-Americans, and so, it is important, I think, for America to see a Queen Latifah, a Paula Patton, a common in this kind of film where you typically see Sandra Bullock or Jennifer Aniston or Katherine Heigl.
Also, when you actually go into the film, can you have plus-sized woman in terms of Queen Latifah, a basketball player --
ANTHONY: Can we stop saying that, Roland? She is not plus- sized. She is the normal size for most women in this country.
MARTIN: Allow me to make my point. Allow me to make my point. Here's what you have. You have people -- when it comes to relationships, Rick, and they sit here and say OK, I want this perfect Halle Berry type, but the reality is, what this movie says is it's not how somebody looks. It's not about money. It's what are her values. What does she bring?
SANCHEZ: But some people say we crossed that bridge. The Huxtables were the ones who crossed that bridge. They introduced America -- RASHAD: Wait, wait, wait, wait.
SANCHEZ: All right. Here we go. Mrs. Huxtable wants to speak.
ANTHONY: You better listen.
RASHAD: Can we just be human here for a minute?
ANTHONY: OK.
MARTIN: She'll teach us a lesson.
RASHAD: You know, this is what acting does. This is what script-writing is about. This is what direction is about. This is what production is about. What we're doing is presenting the picture of human existence.
SANCHEZ: Right.
RASHAD: What we're doing is to quote that line from Shakespeare, "to hold as 'twere the mirror up to nature. That's what we're doing.
SANCHEZ: But have we failed? You know, pardon my reference to the Huxtables, but most -- many Americans will say that's when White America was introduced to an average black African-American family. That can be something other than what was portrayed in the media. Have we lost that in those years, and this movie brings it back?
ANTHONY: I think, well, first of all, I think that Roland makes a great point that we did have the movies like "Boomerang" and we had "Love in Basketball" that showed great romantic stories.
MARTIN: The few and far between, yes.
ANTHONY: What did you say, Roland?
MARTIN: The few and far between.
ANTHONY: That's right. They are and that's why --.
MARTIN: So, all the other movies are too much about crime and the hood and all that?
ANTHONY: Yes, I mean, that's not what our existence is. We're not all about extremes.
SANCHEZ: Right.
ANTHONY: We're not all about stereotypes. We have nuances of our existence that make real stories. I mean, like with "Home Court Advantage," my novel that we're turning into a film now, it's a little bit just right. It's a little bit "Sex & the City." It's a little bit "Jerry Maguire." In fact, I don't know if you remember this role in both, when Rita Ewing and I, my co-author, went on tour and you were a beat reporter in some city, and we were struggling young writers and you gave us one of our first great interviews. SANCHEZ: Yes.
ANTHONY: We were having a struggle trying to get our stories told. I mean, I remember as a young producer trying to present something to a studio exec, talking about African-American, skiing at the black ski summit, and a studio executive says to me black folks ski? It's like yes, yes, we do. You know these stories.
SANCHEZ: Let me ask you a question. Your body language changed a little bit when I brought up the Huxtables, and I characterized it the way I think some Americans would characterize it. Was that a mischaracterization? No, because Americans say, well, look, that's where we got to know -- were Americans wrong about that?
RASHAD: No.
SANCHEZ: No?
RASHAD: No. We were being human.
SANCHEZ: Right.
RASHAD: We were being ourselves. We were being human beings. Let's all -- let's -- people.
SANCHEZ: Right.
RASHAD: And I mean all people on this planet are much more alike than we could ever be different.
SANCHEZ: That's so true.
RASHAD: Which is depicted in "Just Right," the universality of it, the universal truth.
SANCHEZ: That is the perfect way to end the segment. You have nailed it once again. She hit her mark. She hit her mark.
ANTHONY: She is Ms. Rashad, fabulous actor.
MARTIN: And, Rick, I have to say she is a graduate of Yates High School in Houston. That's the way we do it at Yates.
SANCHEZ: You always know all these little things. By the way --
MARTIN: I went to Yates.
SANCHEZ: Looks divine tonight.
ANTHONY: I know, you're looking kind of fly there, Rick.
SANCHEZ: We'll be right back. Stay there.
MARTIN: Rick's got the black on black going. So, I had to dress it up little bit.
SANCHEZ: We'll be right back. Everybody, stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SANCHEZ: Welcome back. I'm Rick Sanchez. Now our top science story.
Tonight also, the picture of the day for all of you science geeks out there. The shuttle "Atlantis" blasting into orbit for the last time. The launch was a pretty big deal in the Twitter-verse by the way. 150 space fans held a tweet-up at the Kennedy Space Center just before the liftoff.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Three, two, one, and zero and liftoff of space shuttle "Atlantis," the crest of its historic achievements in space.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Picture-perfect at the Kennedy Space Center this afternoon as the shuttle "Atlantis" blasted off on its 32nd and final journey. A 12-day mission to the international space station.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: "Atlantis" and its crew of six will deliver supplies to the orbiting outpost. All of the astronauts aboard the shuttle are men. 40,000 people gathered on the Florida space coast for this launch, the biggest crowd to watch the shuttle liftoff off in several years.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: No question they've got the right stuff and that brings us to our own right stuff, a new segment we're starting tonight. Every week we're going to pick someone or something that helps make the world just a little bit better. Tonight, how one wounded warrior is bouncing back with the help of some remarkable new technology.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): These days, specialist, Benjamin Ballard, spends his time on the sidelines.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Good girl!
PHILLIPS: A stark difference from serving on the front lines in the Iraq war. Where 18 months ago, in the blink of an eye, Ballard became a different man.
BENJAMIN BALLARD, U.S. ARMY: It was August 13th, and it was ridiculously hot outside. It was about 117 degrees when we got briefed that morning. We were just going to do a patrol. We were going to go pick up some soldiers to take them to a different fob.
PHILLIPS: Forward operating base?
BALLARD: Right. And we about five maybe seven minutes outside of our gate, and we got hit. PHILLIPS: Ballard was attacked by a road-side bomb.
PHILLIPS (on-camera): So after you got hit, what happened then?
BALLARD: Well, everything kind of froze, and then maybe about a second later, like a big rush of wind came through the Humvee. And it was carrying all kinds of like dirt and soot with it and then dust. And it kind of blanketed my windshields. I remember it was really difficult being inside the vehicle because, you know, the smell of the burning flesh.
PHILLIPS: So, when you got hit, you didn't even realize your arm got blown off?
BALLARD: I knew that it wasn't completely gone because I could feel it. It was bumping against my leg. But I also remember that it was a lot lower than it should be because I could feel it on my knee.
PHILLIPS (voice-over): Ballard lost his team leader and translator in that attack, and at the age of 21, this young soldier barely out of high school, began the long road to rehab.
BALLARD: This is my armory. This is the only arm-related joke you're going to hear me make all day. So, I hope you got your fill. I've got a different prosthesis for pretty much every situation.
PHILLIPS: Ballard's goal, getting back to the battlefield. And how will he do it? Bionics.
BALLARD: This is my TMR arm. This is the only I'll be wearing later today with the powered elbow.
PHILLIPS: Wow, this is the bionic arm?
BALLARD: Yes.
PHILLIPS (on-camera): It's really beautiful.
PHILLIPS (voice-over): Ballard's doctors want bionics to give him back an arm as close as possible to the real thing. Real thing, real time that means tapping into Ballard's nervous system, picking up his brain signals, and transmitting them to the motors of his prosthetic arm.
BALLARD: Just Think hand open and hand close. And that's as easy as it is.
PHILLIPS: It looks simple. Wow. Not really. So how does it work? A revolutionary surgical technique called TMR, or Targeted Muscle Re-enervation. The surgeon took Ballard separate (ph) nerves and replanted them in the muscle of his upper arm, placing electrodes just beneath the skin to pick up the brain's electrical signal. So hand close. Wow!
BALLARD: So, now, elbow flex. Keep your hand on there.
PHILLIPS: OK. Yes.
BALLARD: And then hand close. See the difference here?
PHILLIPS: I do. I feel the difference. So, when the arm comes on, it's this part in here that he is flexing that triggers what part in the arm?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What we look at, if you look inside his socket in relationship to his arm.
PHILLIPS: Right here. Oh, there they are. And would you believe this?
Oh, down in front!
The prosthetic arm came with an added bonus. Ballard's aim is actually more accurate.
BALLARD: They didn't get my trigger finger.
PHILLIPS: Ballard has a hard-won appreciation for life.
BALLARD: It could have been me with my team leader. We both could have blown in the truck that day, absolutely. I consider myself pretty lucky.
PHILLIPS: And a quality hard-won at any age, wisdom.
PHILLIPS (on-camera): So, when you think about the attack now, how's it changed your life?
BALLARD: I found out that I was really uncomfortable being helped. I wanted to do everything by myself. Now, I know when I need help, I can ask for it. I don't feel bad about it. I don't feel ashamed.
PHILLIPS (voice-over): Unashamed, yet anxious about his future.
PHILLIPS (on-camera): Could you grow up with Ocho and maybe this would be your bomb-sniffing dog in Iraq?
BALLARD: I don't know. It's not my job yet.
PHILLIPS: Is that your goal?
BALLARD: You know, if my aspirations pan out, let's see, I hope so.
PHILLIPS (voice-over): Kyra Phillips, CNN, San Antonio.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SANCHEZ: By the way, "Larry King Live" is going to start in just a couple of minutes. But up next, tonight's punch lines. Can you get enough of Jon Stewart these days? He says he's had it up to here with the oil spill or is it here? (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Maybe the smaller dome is a miniature, more high-tech intricate piece of technology. What do they call it?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: A smaller containment box called a top hat.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, a top hat. What a great idea. I mean, it's the only thing that keeps Mr. Peanut from spewing deadly peanut juice into the atmosphere.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SANCHEZ: It is time for the punch line. Our nightly roundup of the funniest lines in late night. Tonight, Letterman, Leno, and company are cracking wise on the top stories of the week. Here we go.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Trouble in the Sherwood Forest. Robin Hood shot by Dick Cheney. Honestly, how old is that joke?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: At a stop in buffalo today, woman walks up to President Obama. This is real. A woman walks up to President Obama and says "you're a hotty with a smoking little body." She said that to the president of the United States. I'll tell you, Betty White, is out of control, OK. She's just out of control!
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Jon Gosselin was spotted working as a celebrity bartender in Maryland this week. Bar tending is tough. Jon admitted there were a few things he had no idea how to make, like money.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oil is still filling the Gulf of Mexico. Black tar is already starting to wash up on the beach. And, you know, they say once a beach goes black, it may never go back.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: Good stuff. Thank you so much for watching, everybody. I'm Rick Sanchez. Follow me on Twitter, ricksanchez@CNN. "Larry King Live" starts right now.
