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American Morning
Rebels: Gadhafi Wants a Deal; Race for 2012 is On; Obama Reverses Gitmo Stance; U.N. Asking for $160 in Relief Funds; U.K.'s Prince Andrew Under Fire for Certain Friendships with Middle Eastern Leaders; Russian Rave Party in Honor of Vladimir Putin; Subway Takes Global Supremacy in Fast Food Market; Philadelphia Priest Sex Abuse; Interview with Rep. Michele Bachmann; Many Happy Alohas
Aired March 08, 2011 - ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
T.J. HOLMES, CNN ANCHOR: Hello there on this AMERICAN MORNING. We've got a breaking story out of Libya.
Moammar Gadhafi now said to be looking for a way out of Libya. But what he's saying, possibly, doesn't necessarily match what his air force is doing. We've got the latest ahead.
KIRAN CHETRY, CNN ANCHOR: Also, game on, 2012 officially underway. People in Iowa saying what took so long this time around? Some of the contenders facing a key group of evangelical voters. Today, Congresswoman Michele Bachmann is here. Will she be in the race? And why she won't budge on the budget.
HOLMES: Also, take a look this morning at an avalanche of mud. We got extreme weather to tell you about that has buried cars and homes. This comes after a winter thaw.
CHETRY: Also, a raunchy stripper, stripper-filled fist-pumping tribute to Vladimir Putin? Why the Russian prime minister's macho image is quite safe this morning. All that on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHETRY: Good morning to you on this Tuesday, it's March 8th. I'm Kiran Chetry.
HOLMES: And hello to you all. I'm T.J. Holmes. Thank you for being here with us. We have three major developing stories from overnight. None bigger than this first one we need to tell you about.
Breaking news out of Libya where members of the opposition are now saying that the Libyan dictator, Moammar Gadhafi, is trying to strike a deal, possibly trying to get safe passage out of the country saying he'll leave, but wants immunity. Our Arwa Damon joins us now on the phone with details of this from the center of the resistance, Benghazi, there in Libya.
Arwa, help us make sense of this. This doesn't seem to mesh with some of his rhetoric over the past days and weeks. Is this real?
ARWA DAMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT (via telephone): Well, T.J., that really is what everyone here is trying to figure out at this stage. Now, what we know from some of the opposition leadership is that they're saying that via intermediaries, they received an offer stating that Colonel Gadhafi would convene his people's Congress, he would step aside. He wants to guarantee the safe passage for him and his family and guarantees that he would not be prosecuted. They're saying that in return for them to even begin thinking about any sort of negotiation, he would first have to come out and publicly state that he was no longer the leader of Libya. There would have to be a sustained cease-fire and he would also have to publicly acknowledge the authority and legitimacy of this newly formed national council.
However, we did just hear from our Nic Robertson in Tripoli who spoke with people within Gadhafi's government that these -- this offer is basically baseless. I just went back and spoke with some people who are very close to the opposition bringing them this information. They said that they were not all that surprised believing that Gadhafi is up to some sort of a trick. That he's up to basically his old tactics of trying to, perhaps, appease the opposition and then maybe people fear launch an even stronger counterattack, T.J.
HOLMES: All right. Our Arwa Damon, thanks for the update. Trying to decipher what exactly is going on there in Libya. We'll continue to check in. But again, different reports from two sides about whether or not, in fact, Moammar Gadhafi is trying to negotiate a deal to step down and leave Libya.
Of course, the developments we've been watching there have been having a huge impact on the oil prices this morning, having an impact on what you pay at the gas pumps. Right now, the oil prices are -- where are they now? Down -- had been down about $2, but they have since rebounded. The drop came after the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries or OPEC, as it's called, they said they were going to talk about boosting production. But the unrest in Libya, even though they don't export a lot of oil, it has still spooked the market because of the uncertainty. Yesterday, prices rose to more than $106 a barrel. So, yes, gas prices have been going up, driving the stock markets down, creating those huge fears that the high oil prices could reverse an economic recovery.
CHETRY: The other big story we're following this morning, the race for the White House. Perhaps it kicked off last night in a tiny church in a tiny Iowa town. Five Republicans who all would like to be the next president were there last night, including former Speaker Newt Gingrich, former Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty, former Pennsylvania Senator Rick Santorum, Herman Cain, former CEO of Godfather's Pizza, and former Louisiana Governor Buddy Roemer. They all addressed an influential group of people at an event organized by the Faith and Freedom Coalition and all of the speakers had a similar theme.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
NEWT GINGRICH, FORMER HOUSE SPEAKER: Morality matters in economics because balancing the budget is an essentially moral, not economic question about whether or not politicians ought to have to follow the same rules as the rest of us. So there should be no distinction between economic, national security and social conservatives. We should also base our principles on fundamental questions of morality.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHETRY: And there's Newt Gingrich.
Coming up a little bit later, we're going to be talking to House Republican Michele Bachmann who has been hinting, perhaps, at a talk of a presidential run. She has been a huge critic of the president, including what she says was $105 billion slipped into the health care bill. And would she rather see a government shutdown than the health care bill implemented? We're going to talk to her a little bit later.
HOLMES: And it may be the biggest about face of his presidency. President Obama says the U.S. will resume military trials for terror detainees at Guantanamo Bay. This move comes after months-long standoff with a Congress over transferring prisoners, including those accused terrorists to U.S. criminal courts. The president on his second full day in office signed an executive order, you may remember, to shut down the military prison within one year, promising to return America to the, quote, "moral high ground in the war on terrorism." The president says his administration remains committed, though, to shutting down Gitmo.
We will be talking about this exactly what it means with our legal analyst, Jeffrey Toobin. He's going to be joining us a little later this morning.
Also, the prime suspect in the disappearance of Natalee Holloway is now admitting to killing another woman in Peru.
Dutchman Joran van der Sloot was accused of killing a woman in a hotel room there in Lima last year. His lawyers now say he'll claim temporary insanity. He's going to use something that's called the violent emotion defense. That would be the equivalent to manslaughter in the U.S. He would get a five-year prison sentence for that instead of the 15-year minimum prison sentence for first-degree murder. He, of course, you remember the prime suspect in American Natalee Holloway's disappearance in Aruba back in 2005. But he was never charged in that case.
CHETRY: And with heavy hearts, Michigan's Fennville High School basketball team took to the court just days after the tragic death of their star player, Wes Leonard. Fennville won last night's big tournament game, running their record now to 21-0 and advancing to the tournament's second round. The game, though, was overshadowed by the loss of Leonard. There was a moment of silence before the game. And Fennville sent just four players onto the court before the opening tip in a symbolic tribute.
Last week just moments after sinking a game-winning shot, 16-year-old Leonard collapsed and died. Doctors say he suffered cardiac arrest due to an enlarged heart.
Today at 7:40 Eastern, we're going to be speaking with former NBA star Bo Kimble, who knows what the kids at Fennville High are going through. His college teammate and best friend, Hank Gathers, collapsed and died on the court, as well, back in 1990.
HOLMES: We're going to turn now to some weather. Some incredible pictures to show you out of Massachusetts where a wall of mud has come down on a town there. A hillside in particular. Take a look at that. An SUV stuck in that mud. They've had heavy rain combined with some melting snow that triggered this in Greenville's mud slide. At least two families forced to leave their homes, and parts of a cemetery, we're told slid down that hill, as well. However, we're also told no graves were believed to be disturbed. Parts of central and western Massachusetts got up to four inches of rain yesterday. Rivers went over their banks, closed several roads there, as well.
CHETRY: New video shows the sheer force of a deadly tornado that struck southern Louisiana over the weekend. Authorities say one person was killed and at least two dozen others were injured by the EF-2 tornado. Winds reaching 135 miles per hour. You can see from some of this video just how strong those winds were. More than 150 homes were damaged, and many of them destroyed because of those winds.
HOLMES: Well, it's seven minutes past the hour now. Let's turn to Rob Marciano. Say good morning to him for the first time in the extreme weather center.
Hello there, Rob.
ROB MARCIANO, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Good morning, guys. You have amazing video out from that surveillance camera. You can actually see the doors being sucked open by that tornado as it ripped through. Unbelievable stuff.
And the rainfall across the northeast also remarkable with some amounts getting over four inches in some spots across this area. And Virginia and parts of upstate New York and Danbury, Connecticut, and this all led to some of that flooding that you saw on that video, that mud slide across Massachusetts.
Still have some rivers that are in flood stage here, hence the bright green. That's flood warnings that are posted. But it will be dry today. That's the good news across the northeast, but it won't stay dry all week long.
We're watching a very big system that's taking shape across the plains and ejecting out of the Colorado Rockies with some heavy snow there and some snow expected across parts of the plains today with winter storm warnings posted for parts of Kansas and Nebraska and winter storm watches now posted for parts of the upper Midwest.
We will also see some severe weather with this system later on this afternoon and tonight across areas that saw that tornado over the weekend. So it could be a rough ending to Mardi Gras later on this evening. We'll be tracking that system as it moves east throughout the day today. Back to you guys up in New York.
CHETRY: All right. Thanks, Rob.
Well, Charlie Sheen out of a job this morning. I don't know if it comes as that huge of a surprise for many who have been following this back and forth. But he was fired yesterday from "Two and a Half Men" following the bizarre string of public rants about the show creator and others. Sheen who was reportedly making $2 million an episode has threatened to sue CBS insisting that he was, quote, "clean, focused and ready to go back to work." On his Twitter page under his bio, Sheen writes, quote, "born small, now huge, winning, bring it."
HOLMES: He's got to get a trademark on the winning.
CHETRY: Yes.
HOLMES: It's become his thing now.
CHETRY: It sure has. There's some other questions about whether not only will they let go of him. I mean, not only has he been fired, but will they try to recoup money? Because, I mean, they're losing a lot of money.
HOLMES: Yes, they're losing a lot.
CHETRY: Because, I mean, this was the network's biggest star and the biggest hit show.
HOLMES: Wow. All right. We know that's not over.
But coming up here on AMERICAN MORNING, this isn't over either. This back and forth between the governor of Wisconsin and the Democrats who fled the state. But we thought we were getting somewhere. There was an offer to meet with the governor at the border, at least. The governor, though, calls that offer ridiculous.
CHETRY: Also, ahead, an embarrassing situation for Prince Andrew just weeks before the royal wedding. Could it be a royal pain for the queen and for Prince William?
HOLMES: And quick, name the largest food chain in the world. Yes, you would naturally say McDonald's and you would be wrong this morning. We'll tell you who has surpassed them as the world's largest chain.
It's 10 minutes past the hour on this AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHETRY: Thirteen minutes past the hour. Welcome back.
Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker is showing no signs that he's backing down from the now three-week-old standoff with Democrats over his plans to slash union bargaining rights in his state. The governor is refusing to negotiate with Democrats who, as we know, have been AWOL from the state Senate. He calls their latest proposal ridiculous. The assembly has approved Walker's plan, but all 14 Senate Democrats fled the state to prevent a vote on the measure. What he's calling ridiculous is this offer by some of them to sort of meet at the border.
HOLMES: Yes.
CHETRY: They're not coming to Wisconsin and see if they can hammer out anything.
HOLMES: We'll be talking to one of those state senators a little later this morning.
Also, to Arizona now. Shooting suspect, Jared Lee Loughner, he is refusing a government request for a writing sample. Prosecutors want to compare it with notes found in his home that mentioned Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords. Loughner, as you know, accused of gunning down six people and wounding 13 others, including Congresswoman Giffords in that shooting in Tucson in January.
CHETRY: National Transportation Safety Board is releasing a preliminary report on the fatal crash between a barge and a Philadelphia tour boat. You may remember it happened last summer. The NTSB says a mate on lookout duty was talking on the phone when that barge struck a disabled duck boat in the Delaware River. Two passengers were killed and 26 people were injured.
HOLMES: Also, to Arkansas now. We've been hearing a lot about earthquakes there lately. There is a fault line. We understand that. But this is getting a little ridiculous.
There's been dozens and dozens of small earthquakes there recently. One of the strongest was a 4.7 last week. Well, now some experts think they could be manmade, could be related to natural gas drilling, specifically, the disposal of waste water into injection wells underground. So two water wells, two of those injection wells have been shut down but still not enough evidence to know for sure if that is the cause.
CHETRY: You know what's been going on this morning while we're sitting here at work. Mardi Gras. Yes, it sure it. The biggest party of the year is underway in New Orleans. It's Fat Tuesday, the last day of Mardi Gras celebrations which has been underway for days now. And of course, the real highlight of all the festivities was on Sunday, when our own Anderson Cooper was co-grand marshal of the big parade, along with Kelly Ripa.
HOLMES: He gets all the good gigs.
CHETRY: Can you believe that? Look at that.
HOLMES: That's just cool. But you know, any weekend you go to New Orleans, it seems like that. It seems like they're partying that hard.
CHETRY: I know -- It always seems -- the couple of times that I've gone, it's really felt like Mardi Gras all the time.
HOLMES: It's always like that.
Well coming up, Wal-Mart, you know their theme, their slogan, "Always low prices, always." But would you believe that another big-box retailer might have even lower prices? We'll tell you who.
CHETRY: Also, thumping base, half-naked women.
HOLMES: Please continue with this story. Where are you going with this?
CHETRY: Yes. I don't know where this is going. It's the nightclub bash that you'd expect to see, perhaps the Hollywood -- the young Hollywood partiers. Well, it was actually thrown in honor of Vladimir Putin, a rave to launch the prime minister's new campaign. We have more pictures next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHETRY: Well, there is a new warning about the growing refugee crisis in Libya this morning. The United Nations now says one million people, foreign nationals and others, will need emergency aid, food, water, health care, and sanitation to prevent spreading disease.
HOLMES: The U.N. now asking for $160 million. Let's turn to our friend here Zain Verjee, she's live in London for us this morning.
Zain, we say $160 million, but is that just the beginning of what could possibly be needed?
ZAIN VERJEE, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Yes, it is just the beginning. The U.N. is saying that they need $160 million, but that they say is over a period of three months. There's a lot of people they still can't access, about 200,000 people have gone across the borders to Tunisia and to Egypt, as well as a few in (INAUDIBLE) and Algeria also. But there are still so many people in certain sections of Libya that they just can't access. So they're really worried about it.
The money is going to be used for things like just managing refugee camps, getting out health care, water, food, hygiene, and sanitation. Things like that. So the humanitarian crisis is something that everyone's got their eye on and is really worried.
CHETRY: We'll continue to follow that.
Also, this is interesting, as the royals are getting ready for, of course, Prince William's huge wedding to Kate Middleton, there are some problems for Prince Andrew that could be getting in the way.
VERJEE: Yes. And it's kind of bad timing and embarrassing just so soon. The wedding is just around the corner. Essentially Prince Andrew is the U.K.'s special representative for trade and investment. And he's coming under fire because the kind of relationships and friendships that he has. For example, with Gadhafi's son Saif al- Islam, with the former Tunisian president Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, also Jeffrey Epstein, who's a convicted sex offender.
The "Times of London," guys, wrote an editorial that said, look, he just needs to step down because of his boorishness, arrogance, sloppy preparation and dubious friendships. But the royal family as well as the U.K. government basically defended him and said they have full confidence in him. But it is bad timing.
HOLMES: All right. Finally, here, Zain, we're starting to think you have a thing for these politicians behaving badly and some of their seedy dealings (ph).
(LAUGHTER)
HOLMES: You have to talk about Berlusconi all the time on this show, but now Vladimir Putin.
VERJEE: Yes.
HOLMES: I guess a party in his honor that we never could imagine would take place here in the states.
VERJEE: Yes, you know, I can't resist any opportunity to show Vladimir Putin's pecks on TV, you know? So, while we're taking a look at those, I also want you to take a look at this video, actually, it's this huge raunchy party held at a very exclusive club in Moscow. And it was a Putin party. There were a lot of half-naked women dancing around, they were only wearing stockings. And there was this banner, T.J., that said, "Without Vlad life sucks."
The women there said too that Putin the President, Russian women, and it's International Women's Day, so they kind of felt it was appropriate. Well, you know the official response from the prime minister's office was, well, we frown upon this, you know, this is too much. Actually I think they kind of enjoyed it.
CHETRY: I get it. So just to clarify, he was not there. He was not there. This was just a party in his honor?
VERJEE: Yes. He wasn't there. I'm sure he loved it. You know, he has this macho image. The pecks, the hunting, you know, he's on a motorbike, he's firing at a bear. He does portray that kind of image. A lot of people are saying it could be politically useful for him as he's planning to launch a presidential campaign.
I think, Kiran, we should have a banner that says, "Without T.J., life sucks."
CHETRY: Exactly. Especially for International Women's Month (ph), right -- International Women's Day. How appropriate.
HOLMES: We'll get that made tomorrow.
Zain, thank you. Good to see you as always, Zain.
VERJEE: Thanks, guys.
CHETRY: And you can catch Zain every morning 5:00 a.m., on "WORLD ONE" right here on CNN.
Coming up next on AMERICAN MORNING, no more McDonalds in terms of number gone, global -- biggest global fast food giant. No, no, no. There's a new king in town. We'll tell you who, coming up. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: Twenty-six minutes past the hour on this AMERICAN MORNING. For so long, BlackBerry has been in charge. Yes, you can't find your BlackBerry? We don't use them anymore.
CHETRY: No, I'm just laughing because you and I we both have our iPhones.
(CROSSTALK)
CHETRY: We're talking about BlackBerrys and Android.
HOLMES: People are moving away now, it appears, from the BlackBerry. New Smartphone sheriff in town, we're talking about now Google's Android is now the most used operating system in the U.S. The BlackBerry operating system had been on top for so long. This is a big deal and an amazing, really, accomplishment considering that Android didn't even exist just over two years ago.
CHETRY: That is amazing. So how does it -- where does iPhone technology factor in?
HOLMES: Who are they? Who are they? Which one do they -- a blackberry Apple is -- number three. Yes, they overtook Apple not too terribly long ago. I think it might have been last summer. I think I might have that right. But, yes.
CHETRY: That's pretty amazing, though. For you to have 27 months on the market, and boom. Doing something right, I guess.
Well, in the battle of the big box office (sic) stores, or the big box stores, Target and Wal-Mart, right? People always say Target's sort of the high-end the target and Wal-Mart's more the utility. Well, actually, according to one research group, you pay slightly less for food and non-edible items at Wal-Mart. Health and beauty items cost you less at Target. So when you take a look at the entire basket of goods, if you ignore all of the sales, Target's total actually came up 50 cents cheaper.
HOLMES: Fifty cents, though.
CHETRY: But still, they can technically say they're cheaper on the whole than Wal-Mart.
HOLMES: OK. I bet Wal-Mart has a press release out right now.
CHETRY: Yes, I know. Exactly. French fries or foot longs? What's the world's largest restaurant chain? You may be surprised. Our Christine Romans Minding Your Business. For so long, we've just thought, duh, McDonalds.
CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: I know. And McDonald's has been on top for how long? Those golden arches, over a billion served. Now they don't even count them anymore because they've served so many billions. But now, in terms of global supremacy in the fast food market, it is, drum roll, please, Subway. Around the world, Subway now has more restaurants than McDonald's -- 33, 749 of them. Subway seeing huge growth overseas, about half of its growth overseas in places like Brazil, Mexico, India, China, France. McDonald's still has the most stores in the United States.
But when you talk about the U.S., this is a mature and saturated market. I mean, they are looking overseas for where they're going to find growth. One of the reasons also why Subway's been able to do so well, it's finding some non-traditional places to open up its stores, like in churches, for example, is one place they've done it, in schools, in grocery stores, in other --
HOLMES: I'm sorry, did you say churches? How does that work?
ROMANS: According to the "Wall Street Journal," there's a church in Buffalo, New York, that has -- it must be, I don't know, I'm assuming it's a mega church, but a church --
CHETRY: A church with a food court. That's a big church.
ROMANS: Well, I'm just saying they found new places, not just necessarily your standalone just like McDonalds.
CHETRY: Right. You see it at gas stations --
ROMANS: Yes, that's right. Now, in terms of the king of sales, McDonalds still brings in more money. McDonalds has $24 billion in sales, Subway has $15.2 billion. We don't know Subway's profits because Subway is a privately held company.
Another thing about McDonalds and Subway here, all of these are franchises. So when you think about it, these are all small business owners who are percolating around the world, trying new strategies, trying to get a foothold in the fast good game.
So, the golden arches, Ronald McDonald, well, he still has the big red win for sales. Yes, he's got his pockets. But Subway, also, just like the industry you're telling, a newer trend -- a newer trend but really taking hold consumers around the world seem to like it.
I'll tell you, though, all the growth, overseas.
HOLMES: All right. Christine, we appreciate you as always this morning.
ROMANS: I'm hungry.
CHETRY: I know. And you also -- you told us about the importance of a brand and now in my head I can eat fresh.
ROMANS: That's right. You're right. Branding.
CHETRY: All right. Thanks, Christine. Top stories now, and we're following breaking news out of Libya this morning. These are new developments within just the last hour. Dictator Moammar Gadhafi said to be looking for a deal. An official with the opposition tells CNN that he wants safe passage out of the country for himself and his family, that he's willing to step down for that with a guarantee he won't face charges.
Still, again, this is coming to CNN from the opposition. No signs, yet, that he is willing to give up power. New air strikes this morning in Libya continue near the city of Ras Lanuf. He said that's an area that is a key strategic position because of the oil fields. It's also a position held now and controlled by the opposition.
The regime is also denying that Gadhafi wants any deal. And again, we're following this very closely.
HOLMES: And we want to turn now to the space shuttle Discovery, getting its last wake-up call, one of its last. Yes, it's sad, isn't it? Listen to -- they've got a live concert. Take a listen here.
(MUSIC)
HOLMES: This is blue skies --
CHETRY: They want you to continue, apparently.
HOLMES: Yes. Big Head Todd and the Monsters here. This band actually won a contest. They asked people what was the best wake-up music, they won out. So, they got to play. This is the last full day in space for Discovery, not just on this trip, but ever. They are set to touch down tomorrow just before noon. Its next journey will be to a museum.
CHETRY: Yes, Smithsonian. We can all visit it after that. Pretty cool.
Well, tomorrow, the president and first lady will welcome students, parents, and teachers from across the country. They're having a White House conference on bullying prevention. It will bring people together victimized by bullying, as well as those who are taking steps to prevent it.
HOLMES: I'm going to turn now to what we're seeing could be another sex abuse scandal within the Catholic Church, this time in Philadelphia, where a man who says he was molested as a child now suing the archdiocese there.
CHETRY: Jason Carroll has been following the story and he joins us now.
Just how widespread are the allegations of abuse there?
JASON CARROLL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: They are widespread. I mean, a lot of people are looking at what's going on in Philadelphia and remembering what we saw in Boston several years back. You know, the archdiocese of Philadelphia was already reeling from allegations, church leaders covered up sexual abuse by priests. Now, lawyers have filed a new civil lawsuit, once again accusing archdiocese of failing to protect a minor who said he was abused by a priest.
The alleged victim, Phil Gaughan, now 31, says the abuse happened when he was 15 years old. He accuses Father John E. Gillespie of molesting him between 1994 and 1997. The lawsuit also says church leaders, including Cardinal Justin Rigali and Monsignor William Lynn, allowed Gillespie to keep his post even after he allegedly admitted to abusing children. Gillespie died in 2008, Gaughan says he could not bear to keep his secret any longer.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIPS)
PHIL GAUGHAN, ALLEGED VICTIM: I mean, the kids need to be protected. Nobody should have -- no other kid should have to go through this. No other person should have to live even for two minutes, let alone 15 years, 20 years, 30 years, with this secret inside them. It is so hard to come out.
PHILIP J. GAUGHAN, FATHER: It's a shock for a parent. It challenges our faith. And you actually quite wonder if there are some things that can explain behaviors that we didn't really understand for a lot of years.
(END VIDEO CLIPS)
CARROLL: Well, the civil lawsuit comes just three weeks after Monsignor Lynn became the highest-ranking Catholic Church official to face charges in the United States. A grand jury report claims the archdiocese protected as many as 37 priests accused of sexual abuse or inappropriate behavior towards minors. Many of those priests are still serving. The archdiocese did not respond to our calls for a comment.
Cardinal Justin Rigali placed Monsignor Lynn and three other of the accused priests on administrative leave. He also hired a former assistant and district attorney who specialized in sexual assault cases to re-examine all of the allegations and give them some recommendations.
I spoke to a source yesterday who said those allegations are -- you know, about the allegations the recommendations could come down as soon as today. And we're expecting Rigali to make some sort of announcement. We could hear from him as early as Wednesday -- of course, that being Ash Wednesday.
HOLMES: All right. You're right. It brings back so many painful memories for a lot of folks of what we saw in Boston, in particular.
All right. Jason Carroll, we appreciate you following the story for us.
CARROLL: All right. HOLMES: Well, also coming up this morning, a lot of people thought it might have been Hillary Clinton who was going to be the first female president. Well, some are questioning whether or not our next guest could be the first female president. She is here. Michele Bachmann, a darling of the Tea Party, to talk politics, to talk budget battles, to talk Obama, and also her possible presidential run.
It's 35 minutes past the hour on this AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHETRY: Thirty-eight minutes past the hour right now.
Tea Party favorite Congresswoman Michele Bachmann -- she's been very critical of the Obama administration, voted no on a bill that passed last week to avoid a government shutdown, and she's called the administration a gangster government, also accusing the administration of tucking more than $100 billion in spending in the health care bill.
Congressman Michele Bachmann -- Congresswoman -- I'm going to be (INAUDIBLE) with that one this morning -- joins me. Thanks for being here.
REP. MICHELE BACHMANN (R), MINNESOTA: Good morning. Thank you.
CHETRY: I want to tackle this question about de-funding President Obama's health care. You say that anything in terms of agreeing to a budget has to come with that basic tenet, that it's going to de-fund government health care. At the cost of a government shutdown?
BACHMANN: Well, I think what happened was absolutely unconscionable. Members of the House and members of the Senate weren't told, much less the public weren't told that $105,464,000,000 was tucked away in order to implement Obamacare.
You can't do that. You can't ask members of Congress to vote for a bill and not tell them a material part of what's in the bill. It's a violation of our form of government, because under our form of government, we debate, we know what's in a bill, the people know what's in a bill.
One hundred five billion is a lot of money. That equals to about $1,000 for every household in the United States. To not tell members of Congress that they're going -- that their vote equals spending $105 billion is unconscionable.
And we didn't know about it. A report came out in February that told us that there was $105 billion in spending tucked in the bill. No one knew because it was all broken up and scattered here and there. And no one knew.
Part of the reason --
CHETRY: I want to ask you -- but I want to ask you a couple of questions about that. BACHMANN: Part of the reason is because we didn't get the bill until just a couple of hours before we voted on it. You can't read 2,900 pages in a couple of hours. And that's why you have to read these bills before you vote on them.
CHETRY: Well, I want to ask you about that, because, first of all, the initial House bill did pass in early November, as you said. But the final version didn't pass both chambers until mid-March. So, technically, there were three months to go over the finer points of the bill.
Are you saying it was not feasible to be able to discover this -- your number, $105 billion, in appropriations until 2019 in those three months?
BACHMANN: Well, remember, on the Senate side, they voted on the bill Christmas Eve. And they did not get the bill until just a couple of hours before. In the House, we were debating the House version of the bill. At the last minute, we were given the Senate version of the bill to vote on. So, we had spent all of our time working on the House version. And it wasn't until the very end when we got the Senate version and that's what --
CHETRY: Well, what about the ultimate passage in March, then -- the time between that?
BACHMANN: Right, right.
CHETRY: You're saying there was no time doing that?
BACHMANN: We were looking at the House version at that time. And then at the last minute, we were given the Senate version. But all you have to do is look at your CNN tapes. There was no mention anywhere in the media of $105 billion in spending to implement Obamacare.
CHETRY: Now, I want to ask you about that number, as well because you're claiming the $105 billion and, you know -- I mean, you have the paperwork.
BACHMANN: That's according to the Congressional Research Service.
CHETRY: Right.
BACHMANN: We've got a grid that is $105 billion and that's according to the Congressional Research Service.
CHETRY: So, let's just take that at face value. So, we're talking about this $105 billion, but the Congressional Budget Office, when they analyzed the whole bill, they say that, including these appropriations, it still reduces the deficit by $130 billion between 2012 and 2019. And they say repealing the bill -- and this is again according to the Congressional Budget Office -- you end up increasing by $145 billion during the same time period.
So, what are getting at by fighting over the bill, if in the end, repealing it is going to add more to the deficit?
BACHMANN: Actually, it will be just the opposite and everyone knows that. That Obamacare --
CHETRY: You don't agree with the Congressional Budget Office?
BACHMANN: Well, the Congressional Budget Office has actually said that it's going to cost more money to implement Obamacare. So, there might be two different reports that are conflicting.
Because remember, President Obama famously said that we'd all see about a $2,500 decrease in the price of our premiums. We're actually now seeing spikes of 20 percent, 40 percent, 50 percent in our premiums. We were told that this was a mandate, not a tax. Now, President Obama's arguing it's a tax, not a mandate.
Now, we have over 1,000 people that have gotten waivers to Obamacare. So, we're not getting what we were promised. And it's incredulous to believe that 30 million more people will be getting government subsidized health care and it's not going to cost more money. Of course, it's going to cost more money. And the people that were paying for health care before will be the ones who are paying more later.
CHETRY: All right. Let's get to some of the other issues before you --
BACHMANN: The moral outrage -- the moral outrage is the fact that the American people should have been told that $105 billion would be dedicated between now and 2019 to implement this bill. That's a crucial piece of information that wasn't told to senators or congressmen or to the American people. That's a fraud.
CHETRY: I want to ask you just a couple of other questions.
BACHMANN: And you can't do that in our system of government.
CHETRY: You have called the president -- you said that he's running a gangster government. What did you mean by that?
BACHMANN: Well, for instance, when the White House had the automobile task force and they issued 3,400 pink slips to car dealerships across the country and effectively put car dealerships out of business overnight. That was wrong. And people who were politically well- connected to the White House or had some sort of a political pull, they got their dealerships back.
CHETRY: Well, what does gangster mean? What does that term mean?
BACHMANN: Well, crony capitalism. Crony capitalism. So that if you have a political connection to this White House or to the administration or to Washington, D.C., you fair better than someone else. The 1,000 waivers to Obamacare -- if you're connected politically to the White House, people have been able to get waivers. And if you aren't, you can't.
We're a government of equal --
CHETRY: I want to ask you -- I want to say a quick question.
BACHMANN: I just to mention, we're a government of equal protection under the law. We should all be equal under the law. Not if you're politically well-connected. That's what I mean about the corruption in Washington.
CHETRY: Do you think he's done anything right? I know that you've been a critic of President Obama. What about his decision to basically re-enforce the Bush era thoughts on Guantanamo, meaning that military tribunals are going to continue?
BACHMANN: I agree with that. I think the president's making the right step. That is the most logical place to hold these tribunals and I applaud the president for doing that. I think that's a very good decision.
CHETRY: So, time is running out in terms of -- time is ticking, let's put it that way -- about we're under a year now until the Iowa caucuses and the New Hampshire primary. Are you going to run for president in 2012?
BACHMANN: Well, I haven't made a decision either way. I haven't made a decision to jump in and I haven't made a decision to get out. And I've gone to some of the primary states for the reason, really, to go and talk about the bigger issues that we have to focus on. Our nominee will be chosen and probably about four states.
CHETRY: Are you happy with some of the other candidates out there on the GOP side?
BACHMANN: I think that we'll have a very good contest and a very good field of candidates that are running, but I think that it's important that people keep in mind with all of the issues that we have in front of us that we need a nominee who really understands the times that we live in, who knows what to do in response to that, and who has the political courage to do what has to be done.
Very tough decisions we've made, and I think our nominee needs to be willing to be a one-term president if that's necessary in order to get the job done, because we have to get back on a good financial footing, and we have to get gasoline prices back down to, I hope, below $2 a gallon.
CHETRY: When are you going to make your call? I mean, is there a time frame?
BACHMANN: I think there's a natural time frame, and I think probably by about early summer, a decision should be made. I think that's kind of a national timeframe. Yes, I think, a decision will be made by then.
CHETRY: All right. It's great having you. Great to talk to you this morning.
BACHMANN: Thank you.
CHETRY: Congresswoman Michelle Bachmann, always a pleasure. Thanks for coming in.
BACHMANN: Thank you.
CHETRY: T.J.
HOLMES: All right, Kiran.
Coming up, your travel forecast that you need to see. Rob Marciano will be along for that.
Also, the list is out depending on where you're waking up this morning. You could be in a good mood or a bad mood. The happiest states in the country coming up. It's quarter till top of the hour on this AMERICAN MORNING.
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CHETRY: Forty-eight minutes past the hour. We check in with Rob right now for a look at the weather headlines across the country. Hey, Rob.
MARCIANO: Good morning, guys. Boy, I tell you what, the northeast just got pounded yesterday with the heavy rain and heavy snow. And now, we've got another system that's rolling in through the midsection of the country that's really gathering shape here. A lot of snow last night in parts of Salt Lake City and through the Wasatch, as well, all the way down to the valley floor.
So, this is a pretty dynamic storm system, and it's rolling into the central part of the country, and it will be delivering a lot of the same stuff that this last thing did. And look at some of these numbers across parts of upstate New York and Bloomingdale, 32 inches, Jericho, Vermont 30 inches, Newport, Vermont seeing 29 inches, and parts of Maine seeing over 20 inches, as well.
This video coming to you from Binghamton, New York which also saw over 20 inches of snow yesterday, and even the folks in upstate New York and Central New York, the Finger Lakes region which gets a lot of snow. They had a hard time getting around yesterday, as well.
We mentioned that further south you were, you've got a lot of rain. So, all the I-95 Corridor got nothing but rain. Some of it heavy, and yesterday, we saw over four and five inches in some spots from Virginia all the way to the Massachusetts and some of the flooding has been tremendous, and we had a couple of areas that saw some mud slides, as well.
Flood watches still in effect for parts of these areas because of rivers that are still swollen, and flood watches now new ones posted for parts of the Appalachians all the way down to the Gulf of Mexico with this next system that's coming in over some saturated ground. We're going to have a threat for seeing severe weather, as well, beginning tonight in through tomorrow morning, especially across parts that got it over the weekend, including the I-10 corridor of Louisiana.
It could be a rough end to Mardi Gras tonight and early tomorrow morning as this thing makes its way off towards the south and east. So, pretty dynamic storm system that's making its way. Not much of a break, although, the bigger cities and through the northeast today will have a break in the way of some dry weather and some calm weather until this thing gets to you later in the week. T.J., Kiran, back up to you.
HOLMES: All right. Rob, we appreciate you as always. Talk to you again shortly.
Also, coming up, your top stories just a couple minutes away, including a story you may been hearing about that has outraged many in the American-Muslim community over hearings on radical Islam set to take place this week in congress. We're taking a look at one community this morning of American-Muslims making a decision to police themselves.
CHETRY: Also, a basketball team taken to the court with heavy hearts just days after the tragic death of their star player, Wes Leonard. We're going to speak with former NBA player who suffered to a similar tragedy. Fifty-one minutes past the hour.
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CHETRY: I don't know how much of a surprise this is. It's the sun, the surf, and not even the occasional volcanic eruption can stop Hawaii from being officially the happiest state in America. The Gallup Poll asked over 350,000 people across the country to evaluate their well-being, and the Aloha State had the most happy people.
It was followed by Wyoming and North Dakota. The south did not fare so well, however. The top three unhappiest states, West Virginia, Kentucky, and Mississippi.
HOLMES: The fourth unhappiest state, my home state of Arkansas.
CHETRY: Really? Why aren't they happy in the south?
HOLMES: I don't know. So, I had to get out of there.
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HOLMES: I'm just kidding. I'm coming home, folks. Let me back in, OK? We're getting close to the top of the hour. Your top stories coming your way after the break. Stay with us.
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JOSH PASTNER, HEAD COACH: Hi. I'm Josh Pastner, head coach at the University of Memphis men's basketball team. I spend roughly 200 days a year traveling around the country. I've got to have a phone charger, my wall charger, my cell, and my Blackberry. These are the old school museum phones. Just look at this. It just gets it done for me. My running shoes and my workout clothes. I always carry my duffel bag. You can squish it like that if you need to so you can make sure you get it into the bins above. I always used to think I would be a good bellman to be able to put stuff on the back of the trunks and everything. The fastest way to get through security is to be ready when you're up there.
It's my old adage of proper preparation prevents poor performance. The number one dislike being in the road is being away from your family. My daughter's eight months now. I'm always calling, and that's why the whole reason I try to get home at night even if it's two or three in the morning just so I can see them when I get up. There's no place like home with good over of the bus (ph).
Thanks for spending the day with me today, and I look forward to seeing you on the road in the very near future.
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