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American Morning
United Airlines Grounds Boeing 757 Fleet; CBS Reporter Attacked in Egypt; Inside Berlusconi's "Bunga Bunga" Parties; Knox Parents Charged with Slander; FAA Expects More Travelers; War on "Bath Salts; Protests in Bahrain; Coca-Cola's Recipe Exposed?
Aired February 16, 2011 - 06:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KIRAN CHETRY, CNN ANCHOR: Next on AMERICAN MORNING, United Airlines voluntarily grounding every single one of its Boeing 757s. Nearly 100 planes idle this morning. And that means thousands of travelers could face delays today. We'll tell you why United says it had to be done.
T.J. HOLMES, CNN ANCHOR: Also, Bernie Madoff says he is not the only bad guy. In a jailhouse interview, he says there are others who had to know he was operating a Ponzi scheme.
CHETRY: Also, Italy's Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi charged with paying for sex with an underage girl. He's set to go to trial in April. And this morning, we've got an exclusive interview with Nicole Minetti, the woman who allegedly procured prostitutes for the prime minister.
HOLMES: Also, an 84-year-old Arizona man stranded for five days in the desert and survives with the help of windshield wiper fluid. You will hear his remarkable story next on this AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHETRY: United Airlines grounding all 96 of its Boeing 757s for emergency maintenance. The problem with those planes and how your travel plans could take a hit today.
HOLMES: Also, Bernie Madoff giving a jailhouse interview and he's pointing the finger at others, saying others just had to know about his Ponzi scheme. So did the big banks turn a blind eye?
CHETRY: Italy's prime minister now facing trial in April accused of paying for sex with a minor. In a moment, CNN's exclusive interview with Silvio Berlusconi's accused madam.
And welcome, glad you're with us on this Wednesday, February 16th. Welcome to AMERICAN MORNING. I'm Kiran Chetry.
HOLMES: And good morning to you all. I'm T.J. Holmes. Let's tell you about what's happening right now.
Thousands of passengers could have their travel plans disrupted today after United Airlines grounded its entire fleet of Boeing 757s. Why? They're going to have to perform emergency maintenance on computer systems of 96 planes. So far, we know at least 25 flights were cancelled on Tuesday.
Allan Chernoff here with the story to see what the impact could be today. Explain the problem, I guess first of all.
ALLAN CHERNOFF, CNN SENIOR CORRESPONDENT: Right. Well, these are for 757s, their entire fleet. And the problem is computers on the planes that actually track the speed of the altitude and feed that information into the autopilot. So this is really, really important stuff. And United says, look, the computers have been operating. So it wasn't the real danger.
Let's look at a statement from them. They say further operational checks were necessary following a modification to the 757 air data computers. All systems have been fully functional. However, the airline did have to cancel at least 25 flights inconveniencing passengers.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They said we just found out that the FAA has sent a message to all 757s that they have to be inspected before they can fly. They haven't told us what the issue is. We don't know how long it's going to take.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They just said there were some mechanical difficulties. And I just called the automated system and they said there were some computer difficulties. So you just wait.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHERNOFF: Here's the big question. United is complying with an FAA directive from 2004, the summer of 2004. Why is it that the airline took until now to actually conduct this maintenance? And that is a question we have not yet had answered from the airline. It clearly would indicate faulty monitoring of their maintenance systems.
HOLMES: Yes. Who was supposed to monitor? Was the FAA supposed to make sure this was done?
CHERNOFF: The airline is responsible for making sure these things are done. The FAA tells the airlines you need to check these computers. The airlines are supposed to do it. Apparently it didn't happen.
Now, again, the computers are fully functioning. So it doesn't seem that anybody has had any risk whatsoever. But the danger here is that apparently there's a possibility of a malfunction where a siren, an alarm goes off telling the pilot that, oh, you're going too fast or to slow, when, in fact, that may not be the case. And that could be dangerous.
CHETRY: We'll see how long it takes to get these up and running again.
CHERNOFF: They are supposed to be able to fix them real fast. The problem should be gone by today.
CHETRY: All right. Allan Chernoff for us this morning on this. Thanks so much.
CHERNOFF: Thank you.
CHETRY: Well, some disturbing news this morning about a brutal attack against a CBS news correspondent in Cairo. Lara Logan is in a U.S. hospital this morning. The "60 Minutes" reporter was covering the celebrations in Tahrir Square Friday, the day that President Mubarak resigned when she was surrounded by a mob, beaten and sexually assaulted. CBS has released a statement about Logan. It says, "In the crush of the mob, she was separated from her crew. She was surrounded and suffered a brutal and sustained sexual assault and beating before being saved by a group of women and an estimated 20 Egyptian soldiers." CBS went on to say it will have no further comment out of respect for Logan and her family's privacy.
This is clearly a very upsetting situation. At 8:10 Eastern, Judith Matloff will join us. She's a professor at Columbia University graduate school of journalism, a former network correspondent. She's known Lara Logan for 20 years and she will be talking to us more about whether or not this is a very dangerous beginning in terms of women being able to cover war zones. What happens now? She also says that in many cases, assaults are not reported because female correspondents are afraid they will then not be allowed back into war zones. So we're going to be talking with her about that in a couple of hours.
HOLMES: We turn now to the political unrest in playing out in Bahrain. It's another key U.S. ally in the gulf region. So far, two people have been killed in clashes there with police. Thousands of people, protesters have taken to the streets of the capital city. The king there in a rare television appearance, a national TV appearance there. He promised to investigate the deaths and also promised to deliver on earlier promises of reform in that country. The U.S. State Department has issued a statement expressing concern about the violence there and also urging restraint.
Our Jill Dougherty will be at the State Department for us a little later this morning. We'll check in with her.
CHETRY: Meantime, brand new this morning. The Italian prime minister's accused madam is now speaking exclusively to CNN. She sat down with our Dan Rivers on the day that a judge ordered the prime minister, Silvio Berlusconi, to stand trial on charges that he paid for sex with an underage girl. She was at those so-called "bunga bunga" parties and insists that the evenings were innocent.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This was not how the evenings used to finish, I mean, in anyway. Absolutely not. There's a music group, let's call it, in which there can be some soft music, rather than more modern music. But I would not absolutely describe it as nightclub in any way.
DAN RIVERS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Some of the evidence suggests that you were topless at some of these parties that you were dressed up in some sort of uniform. Is that true? Have you ever been topless in the presence of the prime minister?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No, I haven't.
RIVERS: And you're laughing --
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm laughing because it seems -- it's very much -- I mean, laughable, that's all I can say.
RIVERS: So you completely deny --
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHETRY: If you're wondering what "bunga bunga" party means in this instance, it's been used to refer to the parties that the prime minister held that allegedly ended in sex. Well, she's being investigated for providing girls to the prime minister. Dan Rivers is going to be joining us live from Milan next hour with more.
HOLMES: Also new this morning, the parents of American student and convicted killer, Amanda Knox, are now facing charges of their own today. Knox, you may remember, the American student who was studying abroad in Italy was convicted of a satanic murder and sexual assault of her female roommate back in 2007. Her boyfriend was also found guilty.
The trial became a tabloid sensation. And in a 2008 interview, Knox's parents told a newspaper that their daughter was physically and verbally abused by authorities. And for that accusation they have now been charged with slander. Knox's parents spoke to our Drew Griffin exclusively just a few hours ago.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
EDDA MELLAS, AMANDA KNOX'S MOTHER: I don't know how seriously I take it. Only because our focus is so much on Amanda and what's happening with her appeal that this is just kind of a, you know, side thing. One more hoop that we have to go through. One more thing it's like really? You know, what else do you want to try to get us with? It feels very personal now. It feels like, OK, you're after our daughter. You're after, you know, us.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: Now that slander charge in Italy does -- could be punishable by up to three years in prison. Amanda Knox's appeal is coming up this spring. Also, our Drew Griffin who did that exclusive interview will join us live in about an hour with more.
CHETRY: Well, Bernie Madoff speaking out for one of the first times since he was busted back in 2008 for that epic billion dollar Ponzi scheme. He told the "New York Times" that he never thought his crimes would cause so much destruction to his family. He also maintains that they knew nothing about his elaborate fraud. Madoff does, however, accuse unidentified banks and investment groups of turning a blind eye to his game. Telling the "Times," quote, "They had to know, but the attitude was sort of. If you're doing something wrong, we don't want to know."
HOLMES: We turn now to our Rob Marciano who's standing by for us in Atlanta in the extreme weather center.
Good morning to you, Rob.
ROB MARCIANO, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Good morning, guys. A little chilly for you yesterday and it's chilly this morning. But a rebound in temperatures is on the way. Twenty-eight degrees right now in New York. Twenty-eight, as well, in Philadelphia. Everybody pretty much east of the Rockies, the continental divide will be for the most part dry today. And some spots, going to be downright toasty.
These are record highs for yesterday. Garden City, Kansas, 70. Rapid City, South Dakota, come on, 67 degrees. Even Billings, Montana getting into the act at 62. All while a very powerful series of storms continue to pummel the West Coast and slamming the sierras. We'll talk more about that in a little bit and how much warmer these temperatures are going to get. You'll be at least 10, in some cases 15 degrees warmer today than you were yesterday across parts of the northeast.
Won't last forever. We'll detail the long-range forecast as well in about 30 minutes. Guys, back up to you.
CHETRY: Sounds good, Rob. Thanks so much.
HOLMES: Thanks, Rob.
MARCIANO: All right.
CHETRY: Up next, if you thought that flying the friendly skies was a pain now, wait until you hear what the government predicts will be coming up in the coming years when it comes to how many people will be in the air and whether or not the airlines can handle it.
HOLMES: Also, an incredible scene caught on tape. A parking garage in Texas collapses. We'll show it to you and show you the aftermath, as well.
It's 10 minutes past the hour on this AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: Thirteen minutes past the hour. Christine Romans coming up in a second. She just said hold on to your handbag. She'll explain more about that in a second. But thanks for being here with us. Get a look at some of the things we're keeping a close eye on this morning.
CHETRY: This is -- I thought this was an implosion when I first saw it.
HOLMES: Right.
CHETRY: This is a parking garage that collapsed. It happened near a hospital in San Antonio, Texas. It caved in and was caught on a surveillance camera. Here's a look.
The collapse happened in two parts. First, the concrete beams and the columns crumbled. Seconds later, the side columns toppled over. The whole structure clearly destroyed. The 112-man construction crew escaped. There were only -- there were two that were injured by some falling debris. One is in critical condition. There is still no word yet on what caused that collapse.
HOLMES: Also this morning, the president issuing a veto threat. Put out a statement saying that the administration rejected billions in proposed GOP cuts to fund the government for the rest of this current fiscal year. He said he will veto a bill that undermines the country's, quote, "ability to outeducate, outbuild, and out-innovate the rest of the world." At the same time, the president said he's open to bipartisan talks on tackling social security, Medicare and Medicaid cuts.
CHETRY: Well, this is a story we've been on top of from the beginning. JPMorgan Chase now trying to make amends after overcharging 4,500 military families on mortgages and accidentally foreclosing on 18 service members' homes. The banks pledged yesterday to lower interest rates to four percent for eligible soldiers and to strengthen modification programs for distressed military homeowners. They also will donate a thousand homes to military families and veterans over the next five years.
HOLMES: Nice to hear they're trying to make that right.
Also coming up, now, Christine Romans. Like I said, hold on to your handbag. That was the tease when she sat down. But we're talking about the crowded skies and they're about to get even more crowded. Christine Romans "Minding Your Business."
Good morning to you.
CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Hold on to your handbag because you're going to be on a plane by the year 2021 with a billion other passengers just holding on for dear life in a very crowded sky. The FAA folks are saying that by 2021, you will see a billion people a year traveling in the U.S. and they're expecting domestic air travels will double over the next 20 years.
Well, how does that compare with right now? About 712 million passengers are flying the crowded skies already. What's the cost of unclogging this air space? What do we have to do according to the FAA and aviation officials to make sure we can handle all that traffic?
We've got to open up some new lanes, some new highway lanes in the sky, and that will involve not using the radar-based air traffic control system that was frankly the way that our parents traveled and was in the system when we were born. But instead, we have to switch to something called the Next Gen, a satellite-based system that allows more planes to fly closer together and opens up new places and more direct air - air routes for them.
The cost of that is - HOLMES: Did you say allowing planes to fly closer together?
ROMANS: Well, with more precision, yes, but in a good way. A satellite-based system that allows more lanes in the sky allows more - more planes in the sky. The air traffic control system, you know, they have certain distances between planes -
CHETRY: Right.
HOLMES: That doesn't make you feel good to see you're flying closer (ph).
ROMANS: That's why I say hold -
CHETRY: (INAUDIBLE) incoming traffic on the highways, I mean.
ROMANS: Hold on to your handbag because there's a lot of people - no. So, look, it could cost $160 billion over the next 15 years, this Next Gen system. The government is saying we have to stay on track for that. We have to have a more modern air traffic control system.
CHETRY: Right.
ROMANS: We've heard this from them before. They estimate that the cost of the economy without a new system by 2033 will be $40 billion a year. And also it could mean a very congested way of flying in this country. So there you go. Flying the crowded skies.
CHETRY: So for T.J., hang on to your man purse.
HOLMES: Oh, well, I didn't know you saw that.
CHETRY: Thanks, Christine.
HOLMES: Christine, thank you so much.
Well, coming up, we're going to introduce you to the nation's top dog. Yes, Westminster's Best in Show revealed.
CHETRY: And I believe it's the first time this breed won, right? This - you're a cat guy, never mind.
HOLMES: Yes. Thank you.
CHETRY: An 84-year-old Arizona man stranded in his car in the desert five days, but he was saved. How windshield wiper fluid helped him survive.
Seventeen minutes past the hour.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: Twenty 20 minutes past the hour on this AMERICAN MORNING.
Well, an 84-year-old Arizona man telling his story of survival today after being stranded in the desert for five days. Hank (sic) Morello is his name. He was leaving his favorite restaurant near Phoenix last week when he apparently made a wrong turn and he ended up stranded in his car.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
HENRY MORELLO, SURVIVED FIVE DAYS STRANDED IN DESERT: I ran right into a ditch and I got stuck in that ditch. Then the battery went dead, my phone went dead and I went dead. Windshield wiper, I broke the top off the thing with a rock and sucked some of the water out of there. They say you're lucky you're alive because that's poison, isn't it?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: Yes, that's the - I think that wiper fluid. They don't recommend you ingest that stuff, I don't believe. But you heard him there.
CHETRY: Wow.
HOLMES: Made a wrong turn, ended up in a ditch and everything went wrong it sounds like from there. But he used his floor mats he says to keep warm at night, passed the time by praying and reading - listen to this - the car manual cover to cover.
Hikers eventually found him on Sunday. He suffered damage to his kidneys, dehydration, and exposure, but doctors say he's going to be all right.
CHETRY: That's unbelievable. Oh, man. He's - I'm so glad he's OK.
HOLMES: Poor guy.
CHETRY: Oh, so lucky they found him. Poor thing.
Well, it's all about poise and pedigree, who took home this year's Best in Show? Take a look.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Best in Show is - the deer hound.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The deer hound.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHETRY: Well, there he is, the deer hound. How about it? History was made at the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show. Hickory, a Scottish deer hound came out on top. It was a big surprise for many of the dog show elite. The five-year female is the first of her breed to take the coveted title. And also this is the hound group. This is only the fifth winner from the hound group. The hound group doesn't win a lot, OK? Hickory outshined more than 2,000 other dogs. Congratulations.
HOLMES: I've always wanted to go to that show. CHETRY: (INAUDIBLE). What's that (ph)?
HOLMES: I've always wanted to go to that show.
CHETRY: I know. It's so cool. I love it (ph). Congratulations.
HOLMES: Congratulations.
Well, coming up. A story we've been telling you about here the past couple of weeks that is a concern to many health officials in this country. Something called "fake cocaine" has the same effects, but check this out. It's easy to buy and perfectly legal in a lot of places.
Our Deborah Feyerick coming up.
CHETRY: Also, a major drug find, a 100-foot long Narco sub. Who found it? And where was it headed?
It's 23 minutes after the hour.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: Well, 25 minutes past the hour on this AMERICAN MORNING.
A U.S. immigration agent was killed and another wounded in an attack in Mexico. This happened on Tuesday. These I.C.E. agents were driving between Mexico City and Monterey.
Now, according to federal officials, they were doing routine work, is what they call it, when they were forced off the road and surrounded by up to 10 people and shot. The other officer who is recovering right now, he has gunshot wounds to the arm and leg. These are the first I.C.E. agents ever shot in Mexico according to the Immigrations and Customs Enforcement.
CHETRY: And check this out. In Colombia, the military seizing a fully submersible drug-smuggling submarine capable of transporting up to eight tons of drugs. They call it a Narco sub. It was empty when soldiers found it.
Authorities say it was able to travel to the Coast of Mexico without having to surface. They say this is the first time they've seized a drug-carrying vessel that operated completely underwater.
HOLMES: We're going to turn to a popular and disturbing trend, especially among teenagers. These things called "bath salts", but they're anything but. They have a similar effect to cocaine and meth and it's legal in most places.
CHETRY: Yes. That's the most shocking part is that you can actually buy this at the store. This "fake cocaine" as they call it. You don't need to even leave your home to get your hands on some, because you can order it online, as well.
Our Deb Feyerick gives us an inside look on how easy it is to buy this dangerous product. And this is the amazing part, you could never come in here and be carrying cocaine with you, but you have these two little vials.
DEBORAH FEYERICK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's exactly right. And this is what we ordered online. They come in these sleek little packages just like this. They come under a variety of names - Blizzard, Ivory Snow, Stardust.
MDPD which stands for methylenedioxypyrovalerone or mephedrone for short is a synthetic chemical. It's marketed under the name bath salts and it doesn't show up in any drug tests and is extremely addictive.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
FEYERICK: This one's called Bliss. It's 500 milligrams. People have taken as little as 10 milligrams and had really bad reactions to it - hallucinations, suicidal impulses. Basically it took us less than two minutes to order this fake cocaine.
FEYERICK (voice-over): But demand is so high, the seller calls to say it's sold out. Instead we'll get something twice as potent called Serenity Now.
FEYERICK (on camera): On a scale of one to 10, I mean, how scary is this, would you say?
GARY BOGGS, DEA SPECIAL AGENT: I'd say - I'd say 15.
FEYERICK (voice-over): After it arrives, we open one of the small vials in front of DEA Special Agent Gary Boggs.
FEYERICK (on camera): It looks like cocaine.
BOGGS: I don't know anyone that buys bath salts in a quarter gram or half gram and they spend $40 or $50 for that.
FEYERICK (voice-over): And it's done in total anonymity.
BOGGS: With drugs like these, there's no back street, you know, alleyways where you're meeting your drug dealer or whatever. You just Google it.
FEYERICK (on camera): Right.
BOGGS: You know, you Google your drug dealer and you've got it delivered to your own home with a credit card.
FEYERICK (voice-over): The package doesn't say what's in it or how much to take.
BOGGS: How it affects you may not be the same way it affects me or someone else. You could take it one day and be fine, take it another day and have a completely different response.
FEYERICK: Triggering in some cases severe psychotic episodes.
FEYERICK (on camera): How big is the threat, the danger?
BOGGS: You just don't know what you're buying. You don't know what you're putting in your body. The long-term effects of these drugs can be very dangerous.
FEYERICK: So technically I'm holding a jar of poison and somebody could very well ingest this?
BOGGS: That's - that's exactly right.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
FEYERICK: Now, we went to YouTube and we Googled mephedrone and we watch people reportedly on the stimulant, one man was moving uncontrollably, almost as if possessed. And, again, this comes from places like Pakistan, in China, India, but nobody knows exactly what's in it and you're paying, you know, really, $40 or $50 for this.
CHETRY: Yes, I mean, it's - I mean, we're showing it here but it's just - it looks innocuous.
FEYERICK: Yes.
CHETRY: It's just very easy to get.
FEYERICK: That's 500 -
CHETRY: It actually could look like one of those make-up, you know, the mineral powder vials.
FEYERICK: That's exactly right. That's exactly right. And that's 500 grams in there. Now, it takes 10 grams to trigger a psychotic episode in some people.
HOLMES: Wow.
FEYERICK: -- some people, so you really have to be careful. And we're talking about it. But the - the Drug Enforcement Administration's really, really worried about this and they're trying to get the message out that this is not safe. That you have to be really careful. That if you're going to try this, you have to really beware of the consequences.
CHETRY: Well, hopefully people wouldn't. But are they - are they going to be able to sort of head this off? Shut this down? Or at least try to get some legislation?
FEYERICK: Well, it's outlawed in a couple of states. Florida has now made it a felony to even carry it in the states. The reason they did it is they did it just now in time for spring break because they were afraid that kids would walk into gas stations or tobacco stores or anywhere else trying to pick this up and saying, hey, let's try this thing and they just didn't want to take that risk.
HOLMES: That is scary stuff.
FEYERICK: It is.
CHETRY: It really is.
HOLMES: Deb Feyerick, thank you so much for that this morning.
At the bottom of the hour here now, giving you a look at some of the stories we're keeping a close eye on, including what could be a rough day for passengers who are flying United. The airline has temporarily grounded its entire fleet of 757 jet liners for emergency maintenance. Ninety-six planes will be taken out of service officials say. This is to perform follow-up checks on air data computers. Only domestic flights are affected here. United hopes to return to full-service sometime today.
CHETRY: Well, Bernie Madoff tells "The New York Times" that he suspected some banks knew about his Ponzi scheme and turned a blind eye to it. In his first prison interview, Madoff maintained that his family knew nothing about the Ponzi scheme. He said he also never thought that they would suffer so much for his crimes.
Madoff's son Mark committed suicide back in December. He said he wanted to attend the funeral, but the prison would not allow it. Madoff is serving a 150-year sentence.
HOLMES: And we're seeing reports of peaceful protests in Bahrain this morning. At least two demonstrators, however, have been killed this week in violent clashes with security forces. Bahrain's king has apologized, he's promising an investigation -- also promising to make good on the promises of reform.
Bahrain, of course, is a key U.S. ally in the region. But the State Department has expressed concern about violence and urging all parties to exercise restraint.
Meanwhile, we have, like I said, thousands of people pack into the streets, especially in Bahrain's capital. Scene similar to what we've been seeing in Cairo.
Nicholas Kristof is a Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist for "The New York Times." He's been covering the protest there, joins us on the phone from Bahrain.
Nicholas, always good to have you here with us. Is it clear what these protesters want?
NICHOLAS KRISTOF, NEW YORK TIMES (via telephone): Well, their demands are changing. Initially, they talked about wanting more democracy and to have political prisoners released. But they were really outraged at the government's brutality toward the peaceful protests earlier in the week and at those two deaths. And -- so, increasingly, they're calling for the -- essentially -- the overthrow of the ruling family and the conversion of Bahrain into a real constitutional monarchy in which the king would reign, but not rule. HOLMES: We talked -- you just mentioned those two deaths, though, and there have been some violent clashes. Has that been the norm or the exception there? Does it seem to be a concerted effort by the government to really crack down violently on these protesters?
KRISTOF: Earlier in the week, there's no question. That there was a concerted, deliberate effort to use a truly stunning amount of force. The -- when you had very small groups of peaceful protesters, even of women just sitting unthreateningly on the ground, the riot police would charge them, fire extraordinary amounts of tear gas at them, shoot rubber bullets at them and that was what led to the first fatality. And then in the funeral for that person yesterday morning, the police fired buck shots at the mourners and killed another person.
And I was at the -- at that second funeral this morning, a few hours ago. And that went peacefully. The police stood back and they -- I think they realized that they went too far and aggravated the situation.
HOLMES: Nicholas, does it seem like the government's efforts are working at this point? Or are these protests continuing to gain momentum?
KRISTOF: Well, the attempted crack down certainly raised them to a new level, outraged people all the more. I spoke to a young businessman this morning who said that he would never have dared go out and protest. But he was so infuriated by the government crackdown by the way they were killing these people that he, for the first time, did decide to go out in the streets and fight to overthrow the regime.
Now that the regime has backed off, it's a little hard to say where things will go. It is possible that, you know, that similar concessions will win the day and that there will be some kind of a truce and agreement to have more democracy, some more concessions. And then people will go home. It's just very hard to predict.
HOLMES: All right. Nicholas Kristof for us in Bahrain -- Nicholas, always good to talk to you. Thank you so much for hopping on the line this morning.
CHETRY: And up next, Will and Kate reportedly planning their first trip as a married couple this summer. We're going to tell you where they might be headed and some of the other details for the soon-to-be royal couple.
HOLMES: Also, we'll have your fashion fix coming up. It's not just about the clothes. It's not just about the models. It's all about who has that coveted front row seat.
It's 34 minutes past the hour on this AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHETRY: Wow. What a (AUDIO BREAK). But man, things are changing. This is great, 34 right now. It's going to be a high of 56 in Washington, D.C. HOLMES: Sounds good.
CHETRY: Yes, a nice, pleasant change from some of the colder temperatures we've been seeing, at least on the East Coast.
Rob Marciano is keeping an eye on all of that for us.
I can't wait. I thought it was going to be -- I thought all that wind this weekend meant it was going to be warm yesterday and ended up getting even colder.
ROB MARCIANO, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Yes, winds of change, right?
CHETRY: Yes.
MARCIANO: We'll have some winds of change today, too, though, a kind of seesaw weather pattern for the Northeast where just when you're getting used to the cold, the warmth comes and vice versa.
On the West Coast, it's been the same way for a couple of days and will remain that way for a couple more, very stormy weather pattern out here and that's pretty much the reason that the East Coast is quiet. From Seattle all the way down to San Diego now is where the rains are falling and some of these heavy at times. The focus has shifted really towards the sierras and to parts of northern California, and the sierras will see anywhere from one to two, possibly three feet of snow. And that's stretching into the Wasatch of Utah, getting into the Colorado Rockies just to build on that base.
Now, you go east and down slope from the Rockies, and you've got some more. Look at these record high temperatures yesterday. Garden City, Kansas, 70; Rapid City, South Dakota, 67; North Platte, Nebraska, 62; Boise, 64; and 62 degrees in Billings. These are typically spots that we're talking minus numbers at least this time of year.
So, there's your warmth in the same spot that got the two feet of snow last week. So, a big melt is happening right now. Chicago is seeing some melting as well.
And today, you will be windy also. And because of that, we have some travel delays potentially throughout the New York City metro area, the airports there. Houston also some wind; rain and wind in San Francisco; and rain as mentioned getting all the way down to San Diego and Los Angeles and all the way over the mountains into Reno, Nevada.
Seventy-six degrees for the high temperature in Dallas; it will be 61 degrees in Kansas City, 80 in El Paso. There you go. You know, the February sun is getting a little higher in the sky, getting just a little bit stronger. Once you get to work on it, it's OK.
A little bit of cloud cover. You saw it on the picture there in D.C., just enough cloud cover to kind of frame the shot. Forty-six degrees for the high temperature in New York, that's warmer than yesterday by about 10 or so degrees. And then tomorrow will be warmer than that, 61 degrees, might touch 70 again in Washington, D.C. So, we're looking good here as far as the warm-up is concerned. But don't get used to it. Come this weekend, another shot of some cold air coming in. We're not quite spring yet. But Mother Nature is trying.
T.J. and Kiran, back up to you.
CHETRY: Trying hard. We need it. Thanks, Rob.
MARCIANO: All right, guys.
HOLMES: Well, coming up, we are going to give a rare look at a comet up close. That's coming up.
It's 40 minutes past the hour on this AMERICAN MORNING.
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HOLMES: It's 42 minutes past the hour on this AMERICAN MORNING.
It was the showdown between man and machine on "Jeopardy." You had some all-time "Jeopardy" champs taking on a computer by the name of Watson. This is an IBM super computer. But this was day two yesterday of a three-day competition. Watson, the computer, is now way ahead of his human challengers. Watson the computer now has more than $35,000. Number two, the guy has $10,000; the other guy has $4,800. So, he's really whipping them.
But listen to this, the computer in the final "Jeopardy" question got that question wrong. The category was U.S. cities. The question was about particular airports and the computer guessed Toronto, in the category of U.S. cities. So, still, some flaws there with the computer a bit. The final match is going to air tonight.
CHETRY: I wonder if they had, you know, dumped all the information dumped North America, maybe they did continent instead of countries. That's a programming issue. Poor Watson.
Well, they're calling it a Valentine's Day rendezvous -- a close encounter with a comet 200 million miles away from earth. Prince William and Kate Middleton have reportedly selected a destination for their first official trip as a married couple this summer.
How do these two stories go together? It's because Zain Verjee is covering both of them for us live from London this morning.
What are you -- what are you more fascinated with? The comet or the royal wedding?
ZAIN VERJEE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, you know, I would say it is a wedding out of this world. That's what -- that's how I would put it, guys.
Let's start with the wedding with William and Kate. Well, they're going to get married April the 29th, and their first official trip as husband and wife is going to be where? Canada. That's cool, eh. What they're going to do is go to about three provinces. They're also going to go to the Arctic, as well. Canada wants to issue some stamps to honor their very first visit there.
You know, guys, Canadians -- they love the royals here. They love the queen. She's very popular there. She's the head of the state in Canada because she's head of the commonwealth.
So, guys, that's where they're going to go first.
CHETRY: Pretty cool. And, of course, every move they make is analyzed, right? And every single thing they do, everybody wants to know why they came to that choice. Can't they just say well, you know, it's because we wanted to do it?
VERJEE: No, you see -- because the queen is the head of the commonwealth. That's the first official -- usually that they would tend to make and acknowledge Canada's position in the commonwealth. So, there's the duty part of it. And then there's just the fun part of it.
And the fun part for us is, what is she wearing? You know, what about the jewelry? How does she look? You know, we like that gossipy stuff.
CHETRY: Absolutely. Well, this is another thing I know you're fascinated with and I am, too. The planning that goes into trying to figure out more about space, and this rendezvous, a Valentine's Day rendezvous getting closer than we have to this particular comet. Tell us more about that.
ZAIN VERJEE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, that was amazing. I mean, this is -- this happened about 200 million miles away from us. And what happened was that there was a spacecraft having an encounter with a comet. It went by it. It took some pictures. About five years ago, scientists just crashed this probe on to this comet, and it created this big crater. Now, just take a look at the picture. Do you see the crater there, Kiran? I don't.
And what scientists are saying happened and oops that it blew this massive hole and the debris came up, and then, the debris fell back into the crater. So, you can't actually see the big hole there, and it kind of healed itself is how they're describing it, but what's great about this is they passed it a couple of times, this particular comet, and they've got all of this information that they're going to be analyzing.
But that is a pretty amazing picture, and a romantic Valentine's Day rendezvous is what you called it. Out of this world.
CHETRY: Yes, it is amazing. Some people would say why do they even -- what do they need to find out? I mean, I guess the comets are from the earliest days of the solar system, so they can just sort of try to figure out how all of this came to be?
VERJEE: Exactly. It tells us about the universe, the space we live in, and it tells us something also about us, because you see, a comet is small, it's cold, it follows the path of the sun, and it's made up of grains and gases. So, to study it tells us a lot of information about the history and the age of the universe.
And now, I haven't been so lucky as to feel this, but I'm given to understand that if you feel commentary material, it kind of feels like a badly packed snowball, right? And so, it's fascinating to learn more.
CHETRY: Absolutely is. Well, Zain, thanks for joining us this morning. And everyone, just so they know, you can watch Zain every morning at 5:00 a.m. eastern on "World One" right here on CNN. Good to see you.
VERJEE: You, too.
T.J. HOLMES, CNN ANCHOR: All right. It is one of the most closely guarded recipes in the business. Coca-Cola secret recipe allegedly (ph) locked away in a bank vault in Atlanta, but, a radio show claims it has popped the top on this closely guarded secret. Take a look here. They're saying they have uncovered a list that shows the ingredients and shows the quantities. The exact recipe here.
Now, that list was actually published back in 1979 by the Atlanta Journal Constitution, and according to the paper, the ingredients include sugar, lime juice, vanilla, caramel. Coke says the recipe is just flat out wrong.
CHETRY: Lime?
HOLMES: Lime?
CHETRY: I didn't think lime juice.
HOLMES: Yes, there was a hint of lime --
CHETRY: Really?
HOLMES: Oh --
CHETRY: You have a discerning palate. I didn't know that.
HOLMES: Coming up, your top stories in just a moment, including why United's 757s have been grounded. How is this going to affect travelers? And are these planes safe?
CHETRY: What exactly went on inside of Italian Prime Minister Berlusconi's alleged parties? He's now been ordered to stand trial for allegedly paying for sex with an underage girl, but there is another woman talking. His suspected madam coming to his defense saying no sex happened. Forty-eight minutes past the hour.
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CHETRY: Fifty-two minutes past the hour. The stars are out for New York's fashion week, and only the elite few get the best seats in the house, which, of course, is in the front row.
HOLMES: OK. Apparently, this is a big deal. I'm just learning about this morning. So, it's important to know who is lining the runway, not just who's walking down that runway. Alina Cho, can I get a seat on the front row?
ALINA CHO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: You must certainly can. Of course, you can. You're very big deal.
HOLMES: Please.
CHO: You know, I guess, you can. Come with me, darling. You've got to work really hard, though, in the fashion industry because, you know, it's really a representation of your status. In a word, status, a front row seat means that you have made it in fashion as an editor, a retailer, celebrity. These days, even a reality star, but it's not easy getting that front row seat. There's a lot of politics involved. And the seating wars begin weeks before a show.
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CHO (on-camera): Anna Wintour, the powerful editor in chief of "Vogue" has been sitting in the front row for more than 20 years. She earned it. Fashion's equivalent of an Olympic gold medal.
ASHANTI, SINGER: You get to see everything magnified head to toe. You know, you can see the toenail polish.
CHO: The fabric, hair and make-up, all the details you can't see from rows two, three, and four.
GLENDA BAILEY, EDITOR-IN-CHIEF, HARPER'S BAZAAR: It's very practical because you can see the full looks very clearly. If you sit behind, you're missing the shoes.
CHO: Who sits in the front row? Top editors, big buyers, celebrities.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: People send letters and gifts and -- I mean, it's just insane.
CHO: Owen Davidson is in charge of seating for several fashion shows, including Carolina Herrera's 980 seats.
OWEN DAVIDSON, FASHION SHOW DESIGNER: It's so incredibly political. I mean, you can't put, you know, the Harper's Bazaar right next to Anna (ph) "Vogue" (ph) magazine, for example.
CHO: What's in it for the designer?
It's all about the press, isn't it?
CAROLINA HERRERA, FASHION DESIGNER: I think so. What do you think this show is all about? It's about the press.
CHO: The reason the paparazzi is here, covering who's at the show, not what's on the runway. Why we could see some unlikely folks show up.
Could we see a Snooki?
ERIC WILSON, NEW YORK TIMES: It's actually going to point of debate whether Snooki will actually come to fashion week.
CHO: Speaking of reality stars.
ANDY COHEN, BRAVO'S REAL HOUSEWIVES: Just more leg room. That's it. I mean, I have no business being here.
CHO: It doesn't matter. "Real Housewives" host, Andy Cowen, is a paparazzi magnet. Part of the currency that could land you in the front row.
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CHO (on-camera): And it's not just reality stars, it's some shows, even some teenage bloggers with a cult following are infiltrating the front row. And of course, this is causing a bit of tension with the fashion elite because people work years to move from row four to row three to row two to row one, because, again, it is a physical manifestation of your status to sit in that front row. Everybody in fashion is there.
And again, these fashion shows last just ten minutes, maybe less. But people are arriving at the venue for more than an hour. And as one fashion insider told me, during that hour, there's a lot of picture taking of celebrities. And the designer is hoping that those shots get into the paper the next day. It is all about the press, whether it's about the collection or about the people sitting in the front row.
CHETRY: See that, T.J.? You learn something everything day.
CHO: You learn something every day.
HOLMES: I really do. And again, you're not paying for tickets to these shows.
CHO: You can't buy the tickets. You can't buy tickets. You've got to earn it.
HOLMES: All right. I've got some work to do.
CHO: Yes, you do.
CHETRY: Somebody who is always in the front row, Victoria Beckham. We know her as a fashionista, of course, and as David Beckham's wife, but you may not be able to get her husband, at least, at this -- you can't get him to dress like -- well, she's taking the fashion world by storm with her very own collection. Now, tomorrow, we're going to sit down with Victoria Beckham, the designer, and hear about her inspirations and her successes.
You know, I think this is interesting because people made fun and scoffed at the beginning, and now, her line is extremely well thought out and highly regarded. Yes.
CHO: Well received, rave reviews. She's really got industry credit, if you will. And we talked to her. She talked about a lot of things, including being pregnant with her fourth child and about how she's really shying away from celebrity now that she's found her passion.
CHETRY: That's really cool. Good for her. We look forward to hearing it. Thanks, Alina.
HOLMES: Thanks, Alina. Quick break. We'll be right back with your top stories.
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