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L.A. Police Chopper Shot; Tornado Cleanup in St. Louis; WikiLeaks Exposes Gitmo Secrets

Aired April 25, 2011 - 10:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: It is now 7:00 a.m. in the West, 10:00 a.m. in the East. Here's a look at some of the stories we're following today.

A police helicopter in Los Angeles had to make an emergency landing after someone shot its fuel tank. An 18-year-old man has been arrested. He is now facing attempted murder charges.

St. Louis, major cleanup mode after a tornado hit the area. The twister that clobbered Lambert-St. Louis Airport over the weekend was the most powerful in 44 years. The airport is expected to be operating at 85 percent today.

And a passenger on an Alitalia flight apparently tried to hijack the plane. It was heading from Paris to Rome. Airline officials say the man attacked a female flight attendant and demanded the plane fly to Libya. The other attendant subdued him until the plane landed safely in Rome.

This morning chilling new insights into Guantanamo Bay and the terror suspects imprisoned there. Who they are, what they've done, and what they plan to do if they're ever free again. The classified military documents now exposed by the anti-secrecy group, WikiLeaks. It includes this chilling entry on a captured bodyguard of Osama Bin Laden. He wanted his friends in Iraq to find his interrogator, slice him up, and make a sandwich of him.

And then there's the senior Al Qaeda member who had links to the 9/11 plotters. According to his file, he occasionally tagged along with Bin Laden who hiked the mountains every day. The public release of the documents will surely ignite fresh debate over the future of Guantanamo Bay. And you know, remember way back when President Obama was Candidate Obama he did promise to shut down Gitmo over and over again.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: As president I will close Guantanamo, reject the military commission's act.

We are less safe because of the way George Bush has handled this issue.

We need to give our national security agencies the tools they need, and that means closing Guantanamo. (END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: But Gitmo remains open. Brianna Keilar is at the White House. Brianna, in light of these released documents, what is the White House saying?

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Carol, the White House isn't commenting. And this isn't really surprising. Because in the past, the official stance when it comes to these document dumps that we've seen by WikiLeaks, the official stance of the White House has been that they don't comment on the alleged release of classified material.

But the president isn't happy about this. The response from this administration coming from the Defense Department and from the State Department. They put out a joint statement and it called this document dump, "unfortunate." Goes on to say that "Both the previous and the current administrations have made every effort to act with the utmost care and diligence in transferring detainees from Guantanamo and both administrations have made the protection of American citizens a top priority. We're concerned that the disclosure of these documents would be damaging to those efforts.

Carol?

COSTELLO: As we've said, Brianna, Gitmo remains open. Some say these documents really expose why. But in the administration seems to be emphasizing that the WikiLeaks documents don't provide a full picture of detainees at Guantanamo Bay. Is that why he's saying this?

KEILAR: That is certainly what they're emphasizing. They say these are documents from between the years of 2002 to 2009. And not only that, they say that when you look at the statement coming from the Defense Department and the State Department, that there was, when the Guantanamo Review Task Force, which was in charge of doing the overall assessment of all of these detainees and Guantanamo Bay, that they may have had other information, and that also, they said that this may not reflect the current view of detainees. So they're certain emphasizing that, Carol.

COSTELLO: Brianna Keilar live at the White House. Thank you. And stay with us, we'll talk to a "New York Times" reporter who was given advance access to these classified documents before they were released. Scott Shane will join us at 10:15 Eastern time to tell us more about what's contained in these WikiLeaks documents.

Now we turn to Syria and a city under siege. A witness in Daraa says 3,000 soldiers are sweeping across the city and unleashing a reign of terror. You can hear gunfire. Screams also echo across the city. Witnesses say the troops are attacking citizens randomly and that bodies now litter the streets.

CNN's Zain Verjee is in London. She's monitoring newspaper accounts from around the world about the latest in Syria. What do they say? ZAIN VERJEE, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Hi there, Carol. I'm going to give you a flavor of what a couple of the Arab newspapers are saying. Let's start with "Gulf News." The headline is this, "Can Syria move to democracy peacefully?" It goes on to say "In any country, building a functioning democracy takes more than just one or two elections. It's about building respect for the idea that even the deepest political differences should be resolved through deliberation, and negotiation, not violence."

Then "Arab News" has this headline, "If Assad falls, Israel fears that a democratic government in Syria would be an even greater enemy of Israel. The same goes for the United States, so the Syrian protesters are entirely on their own."

Carol?

COSTELLO: And that brings up an intriguing question, especially for Americans, is why does Syria matter so much? As far as the United States is concerned?

VERJEE: It really does, Carol, because, you know, Syria is in the middle of the Middle East. OK. So whatever happens in Syria is going to affect the entire region, which affects the United States. Syria's important with the Arab-Israeli conflict. It's a key player. Any kind of instability, as well, in Syria may spill over into Lebanon, and open up all these sectarian violence issues that they've been dealing with for years.

Syria's also great buddies with Iran. So if Syria were to go down, it would throw into question Iran's closest buddy and it would hurt Iran. And lastly, Syria also sponsors Hezbollah and Hamas. The U.S. views them as two terrorist groups. So what happens in Syria is so key to the U.S.'s security, as well as its energy security.

COSTELLO: Zain Verjee, live in London, many thanks.

Now let's turn our attention to Libya and the stronghold of Misrata. Rebel chops have chased Moammar Gadhafi's troops from that city. But a doctor says that retreating forces opened fire and killed at least 16 civilians. One U.S. senator says it's time to step up the pressure on Moammar Gadhafi.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. LINDSEY GRAHAM (R), SOUTH CAROLINA: My recommendation to NATO and the administration is to cut the head of the snake off. Go to Tripoli. Start bombing Gadhafi's inner circle, their compounds, their military headquarters in Tripoli. The way to get Gadhafi to leave is have his inner circle break and turn on him and that's going to take a sustained effort through an air campaign. I think the focus should now be to cut the head of the snake off. That's the quickest way to end this.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: Fellow Republican John McCain agrees with the call for intensified air strikes. In fact, he's urging President Obama to step up U.S. involvement in NATO air strikes.

Finally, some good news about gas prices. Relatively good news, anyway. At least one expert thinks they have peaked. The national average has gone up 11 cents in the past two weeks. The Lundberg Survey puts the price at $3.88 per gallon. President Obama says the government is looking out for any possible fraud.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

OBAMA: My attorney general also launched a task force with just one job, rooting out cases of fraud or manipulation in the oil markets that might affect gas prices, including any illegal activity by traders and speculators. The truth is, there is no silver bullet that can bring down gas prices right away. But there are a few things we can do. This includes safe and responsibility production of oil at home, which we're pursuing.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: National average right now is about a quarter shy of the record.

The sound of roaring winds in the St. Louis area has been released with the sound of chainsaws and hammers. St. Louis is cleaning up after a tornado tore across the region. The twister that hit Lambert St. Louis Airport was the most powerful in 44 years. Flights over the Easter weekend were disrupted but the airport is expected to be operating at about 85 percent today.

CNN's Dan Simon is in the suburb of Bridgeton. So Dan, when is the airport expected to be 100 percent again?

DAN SIMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, the airport from what we understand right now is about 90 percent and then tomorrow it's supposed to be basically at 100 percent. They were able to take some of the airlines that were dislodged from one of the damaged terminals and then move them elsewhere. So they feel pretty good about the way things are being handled at the airport. I can hear an airplane above me, by the way. So things looking good there.

Let me explain where we are here in Bridgeton. This is Harmonist (INAUDIBLE) Estates (INAUDIBLE) everywhere you look, you see destruction. The guy who lives on this property or who lived at this property actually worked at the airport. So he's been having a rough time. He explained what happened. He was at the airport working for United Airlines. They hunkered down when the tornado hit. And then he got a phone call and I'll let him pick up the story.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TERRY HAYES, TORNADO DESTROYS HOUSE: And then I got a phone call telling me that my house had been hit by the tornado. So, I left work, I came home, I parked about three blocks down the street, hiked over the hills, and there was a big space where my house used to be. And it was just absolutely overwhelming.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SIMON: When there's a tornado, you should go to the basement. So, I want to show you what it looks like. (INAUDIBLE) Come on, we're going to walk down, and this is pretty remarkable. When you think about it. Because, look, you have the foundation, basically, intact. You've got a little bit of the roof collapsing here.

But for the most part, this basement looks perfect, aside from, of course, the debris. But structurally it's good. They had a couple of dogs that were down here that took refuge, and they're OK, too. Carol, we'll send it back to you.

COSTELLO: That really is an amazing demonstration. The basement's intact but, oh, that's just so sad. His house. I can't imagine what he felt like when he came upon his house. I know 750 homes were damaged in the St. Louis area and the cleanup has begun.

Dan Simon, many thanks.

A daring prison break, a frightening drama unfolding. Hundreds of terror suspects pour out of a prison. We'll take you live to Afghanistan for an update.

And about 30,000 people tromping across the White House lawn right now for the Easter Egg Toll and some live rock 'n' roll. We'll show you next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: This morning, hundreds of prisoners are roaming free after a daring prison break in southern Afghanistan. The Taliban says it spent months digging a 1,000 foot long tunnel underneath the prison so those Taliban prisoners could escape.

CNN's Nick Paton Walsh joins us from Kabul. And no one noticed they were digging this 1,000 foot long tunnel?

NICK PATON WALSH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, that really is the question at the end of the day. Already people asking was there any kind of cooperation between the security guards at this prison and the Taliban. Government officials now confirming pretty much what the Taliban came up with early this morning, in a rather proud press release they put out.

One government spokesman saying to us, 488 people have escaped in this tunnel, and only 13 of them are what they refer to as criminals, the rest effectively insurgents, part of the Taliban. The government also saying "Yes, there was a tunnel." It went to a house about 100 meters south of the prison and it seemed inside the jail itself it forked, one part of this quite sophisticated, going to the criminal part of the jail and the other towards where the insurgents were based.

So really this comes at a pretty bad time in terms of PR for the NATO campaign here. The months ahead really in the summer campaign were hoping to make up some ground for what was done last summer and really the Taliban's seeming move today, well it really put NATO on their back feet.

COSTELLO: Well, how significant is this that this 400, I mean are the 400 prisoners extremely dangerous? Are they all Taliban? How significant is this?

WALSH: The overwhelming majority the government are saying are Taliban, absolutely. We have to see in the next few months, really, what this does to the insurgency and the rest of (INAUDIBLE) in Kandahar. I mean, NATO announced last summer huge territorial gains they said in terms of what they've taken back of this Taliban homeland. And really is an influx of dozens, hundreds perhaps of these insurgents into the insurgency in that area. That may well cause severe trouble for NATO in the months ahead. Carol.

COSTELLO: Nick Paton Walsh, joining us live from Kabul, Afghanistan. Many thanks.

She made sure he got the message. Wait until you hear about Charlie Sheen's traumatic text from one his goddesses.

And the first family throws quite a party. The traditional egg roll kicking off a full day of Easter activities. And you are invited. That's next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: This morning we have a chilling new glimpse into the minds of terrorists. They were rounded up after 9/11, and imprisoned at Guantanamo Bay but now their hatred and their penchant for violence are on public display. The anti-secrecy group, WikiLeaks, is publishing hundreds of secret military documents.

Scott Shane is a reporter for "The New York Times." "The New York Times" got early access to these documents, and Scott, I know you've been digging through hundreds of pages. So, are there any game changers in these - in these hundred pages of documents?

SCOTT SHANE, DOMESTIC CORRESPONDENT, "THE NEW YORK TIMES": Well, I don't think so. You called them chilling. I think they're chilling, maybe, in two different respects. It is true, certainly, that some of them portray hardened terrorists who actually state to their interrogators that if they're ever freed they would do nothing other than try to kill Americans.

But there are others that are chilling in a different sense, because they know that people were held by the United States for years, despite having absolutely no connection to terrorism or even to the Taliban or to insurgency. They were just farmers who were caught up in the early days of the Afghan war. Mistakenly. And it sometimes took years to untangle their stories and send them home.

COSTELLO: And did you get any sense of why it took so many years to untangle these stories, that these people were just, you know, simple farmers?

SHANE: Well, of course, as in most prison situations, everybody tends to say that he is innocent. And so they have to sort out those who are truly innocent from those who are just, you know, making up a plausible cover story. In some cases, they were burned, especially in their early years. I wrote about a man who said that he was conscripted by the Taliban, and had been arrested as he tried to free a brother from - who had been conscripted by the Taliban.

It turned out that he had completely fooled his interrogators and he went back to Pakistan, where he was from, and his name was Abdul Mehsud and he became a very active leader of the Taliban and died in a suicide bombing in 2007. So that kind of experience showed how difficult it was to make these judgments. There are many other cases of people who the military analysts judged to be high risk, but who were eventually released, and actually went on to lead quiet lives in other countries.

COSTELLO: There is - there is some new information about Osama Bin Laden and those that help him accomplish his missions, so to speak. What's the most interesting tidbit about that? About Osama?

SHANE: Well, there are glimpses of Bin Laden from various - these are detainee assessments, essentially a summary of the interrogations, and other intelligence about each individual detainee. There's about 700 of them. And many of them had glimpses of Bin Laden, in some cases met with him, saw his movements, particularly in the period after 9/11, when he famously sort of took a stand at Tora Bora in Afghanistan and then fled into Pakistan.

So there are some new details on his meetings with various high- level Al Qaeda officials, and his - his trying to encourage more plotting against the united states, and that his disappearance into Pakistan.

COSTELLO: And just when you look at, you know, when you study the documents overall going back to, you know, keeping detainees in Guantanamo Bay and not shutting it down, does it shed light on why the Obama administration is having so much trouble in coming through with Obama's campaign promise to shut down Guantanamo?

SHANE: It does. As, I mean, we've known previously that many of the folks still left there, the largest national group are from Yemen. Yemen, of course, is in chaos and has an active Al Qaeda branch. So a lot of people have been cleared to go home to Yemen. But there's reluctance to send them there in the midst of this chaos, and sort of a very active Al Qaeda branch. And in other cases, you have people who look like they might be very dangerous, and who, indeed, in some cases, vow to carry out terrorist acts if they are freed. But there's not enough evidence to put them on trial.

So, the Obama administration has said there's about 47 people who they don't - they think it's too dangerous to release, but for whom there's not sufficient evidence for trial. The overall impression is how difficult it was, it has been, for military analysts to sort out who in this group is innocent, who is perhaps a modest threat but could be released, and who might really be a dangerous character.

COSTELLO: Fascinating. Scott Shane from "The New York Times." Thanks so much for joining us this morning.

SHANE: Thank you.

COSTELLO: Checking news cross country. State police in northern New Mexico search Heron Lake after a single engine plane crashed there. Several bundles of cocaine were found floating on top of the lake. There were no survivors but the exact number of people who were on board that plane not yet known.

Fire investigators returned to a home in Vancouver, Washington today. They found six bodies there. But it's unclear if more victims could be in the ruble. KOIN reports neighbors heard a loud explosion before the home was engulfed in flames.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Free gas!

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: Yes, who doesn't like to hear that?

The (INAUDIBLE) church in Tennessee gave away $10,000 worth of free gas at two filling stations. The church said with gas prices so high they wanted to help families in need.

The White House is hoping today - actually the White House is hopping. It's hopping with some 30,000 invited guests. They're on hand for the traditional Easter festivities. President Obama and the first family are presiding over the Easter egg hunt and egg roll.

As you can hear there's live music and a focus on healthy eating with several chefs doing demonstrations. One nice twist to this year's event, the 6,000 hard-boiled eggs delivered to the White House came from a culinary training program for former inmates and the homeless.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JEFF RAGSDALE, CHEF: It makes you feel good to know that you're part of an organization that does so many good things for the community, and to be recognized by the White House, it doesn't get much better than that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: Hundreds and hundreds of people have successfully completed culinary training, in case you're wondering.

OK. Let's talk entertainment now. Charlie Sheen loses a goddess. Simon Cowell makes an announcement and Lindsay Lohan is facing some time behind bars. "Showbiz Tonight" host A.J. Hammer is here with our entertainment news this morning. Hi, A.J., let's start with Lindsay, huh?

A.J. HAMMER, "SHOWBIZ TONIGHT" HOST: All right, Carol. Well I know a lot of people have joked about this that it could possibly happen, but Lindsay Lohan is, indeed, heading to skid row. Yes, a judge has thrown the book at Lohan, sentencing her to 120 days in jail, 480 hours of community service, that's for violating her probation.

Now the troubled actress is appealing the jail time, so she's out on bail for now but she was told to immediately start her community service. That's where skid row comes in. She has to complete 360 hours of her community service at a downtown women's center on Skid Row in Los Angeles. The remaining 120 hours have to be spent working at the L.A. county morgue. That's a relatively common sentence for people convicted of driving under the influence.

And that's what this all stems from. The judge ruled that Lohan violated her probation when she was charged with stealing a necklace from an L.A. jewelry store. Now, the judge said that Lohan, "Thumbs her nose at the court and this community service will hopefully show Lindsay how truly needy women and women who have fallen on real hard times have to live." Well, the trial on the necklace theft will continue on June 3rd.

While we're talking about Hollywood train wrecks, let's talk Charlie Sheen. He's back in the news. He just revealed one of his two girlfriends has dumped him via text message. I'm sure we're all just shocked at this news. Well, Charlie Sheen told a Florida audience during one of his "Torpedo of Truth" shows that Brie Olson has decided to leave him. So Sheen is down to just one girlfriend right now.

Olson's real name is Rachel Overland. She's reportedly gone home to her parents' house in Fort Wayne, Indiana. I'm sure it's much calmer there.

Moving on now to the world of reality TV. Simon Cowell has just revealed who will be joining him on his new show "X Factor." He tells deadline.com that British singer Sheryl Cole and his old "American Idol" partner Paula Abdul will join him, along with L.A. Reed. The judges on the American version of "X Factor." He added that the deal with Paula not fully signed yet, Carol. But the move's been speculated for a awhile. So while it thrills a lot of Paula's fans, it may not come as a huge surprise.

I, for one, think it's brilliant. I've been saying all along among many other people, this is who he needs to hire to make sure his show will be a bona fide hit when it comes to television this fall.

COSTELLO: I have to agree with you. It's a great move. A.H. Hammer, thanks as always.

If you want information on everything breaking in the entertainment world? A.J.'s got it tonight on "Showbiz Tonight" at 5:00 p.m. eastern and 11:00 p.m. on HLN.

While Congress and the White House are locked in a battle over the federal budget Christian groups are weighing in and they're asking this question. What would Jesus cut? Is it clever? Is it crass? Our political buzz panel will tackle that next.

And if you've ever lost your luggage at the airport, stick around for some good news. One airline lets you track your bags like you might track a U.P.S. or Fedex package. You can do that now. That's just ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: It is time for "Political Buzz." A lightning-fast conversation hitting the hot political topics of the day. Each of our brilliant political observers get 20 seconds to answer three probing questions. Dana Loesh is a Tea Party supporter and conservative. Cornell Belcher leans left, and comedian Pete Dominick is back to lend his own unique perspective.

Welcome! ok. On to the first question. The United States has handed over the reins to NATO in Libya. Senator McCain says it's time the U.S. retakes control. Does America need to flex its muscle in Tripoli? Dana?

DANA LOESCH, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: Well, NATO is the United States. So, essentially what we have done here, Carol, is just transfer control from one hand to the other. And I don't really think -- I've never thought that she would have been involved in Libya because Libya and what is happening there is a civil interest and that has no immediate threat to the sovereignty or safety of the United States.

COSTELLO: Cornell?

CORNELL BELCHER, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: I'm going to -- I'm going to agree here. I think it's interesting. We already have two wars that we haven't paid for, and the interesting thing is Afghanistan has become as unpopular as Iraq. So, now we want to double down on that and get involved in Libya? I don't think so. I don't think the American public has the stomach for it.

COSTELLO: Pete?

PETE DOMINICK, COMEDIAN: Well I think Cornell and Dana are both pretty right on. What is our record of success in our recent military intervention? I'm talking about the last 50 years. With all due respect to Senator McCain and his service to our country and in the Senate, how many times does he have to be wrong on foreign policy before we go to other people? Going to Senator McCain on foreign policy is like going to Alan Greenspan on economics. You've been wrong a lot -

(BUZZER SOUNDS)

DOMINICK: We could listen to others.

COSTELLO: Thanks to all. Second question. Another Wikileaks dump. This time on Guantanamo. Do they strengthen the administration's decision to keep it open? Cornell?

BELCHER: Well, it's a real gray area here. I mean, the truth of the matter is when you look at what's happening, there's some dangerous people there. I think what bothers a lot of Americans, and not just, you know, those progressive Americans, but a lot of red- blooded Americans, is this idea that there's no due process. Can we keep this open and still ensure due process?

The other big thing about this is Wikileaks are endangering Americans with this continual leaking. This sort of stuff should not be out in the open, what they're leaking.

(BUZZER SOUNDS)

COSTELLO: Dana?

LOESCH: Well, this is so weird this morning. I agree but kind of disagree with Cornell in that I think it does become a gray area. But at the same time, there's terrorists, they're suspected of terrorist activity if not outright caught in the act. So, there is no due process because they're not American citizens.

That being said, if you look at the number of detainees who, when they were released, like we had one, Ali Al Sayed, who was released to -

(BUZZER SOUNDS)

LOESCH: -- Saudi Arabia and re-education camp, he joined al Qaeda.

COSTELLO: Right. Went on to do some bad stuff. Pete?

DOMINICK: I couldn't disagree more with both these guys, my friends here. The level of criminality at this camp, we now know, is even worse than even its harshest critics were predicting. This is terrible. What Wikileaks is really exposing what the government is doing. These are government documents. I would beg all of our viewers to go read "The New York Times" or "The Guardian's" article so you can find what your taxpayer money is supporting in Guantanamo Bay -

(BUZZER SOUNDS)

DOMINICK: -- which all the --

COSTELLO: OK, third question. A group of Christian leaders lobbying Congress by asking lawmakers what would Jesus cut? You know, as far as the budget goes, what would Jesus cut? Effective or crass? Dana?

LOESCH: Oh, I think it's incredibly crass. And I have to question these religious leaders. I've always said that big government is the moral failing of man. Because when you have good government that takes away the desire for voluntary charity, you are changing something about humanity. You're changing their desire to do it themselves. And as Christian leaders, they should be encouraging people to get involved and volunteer in charity instead of adhere to the government reappropriation of it. COSTELLO: Cornell?

BELCHER: I don't even know who Dana is anymore.

(LAUGHTER)

BELCHER: I agree. Although -- I'll go the middle role. I know it's not effective because the bottom line is these leaders are going to do what they think is right. And obviously, oftentimes, the politician who is wearing his religiosity on the sleeve is often the one who is enforcing the draconian cuts -

(BUZZER SOUNDS)

COSTELLO: Oh, out of time. I'm sorry! Pete?

DOMINICK: Well, listen, nearly every member of Congress claims to be a Christian. If you think a budget for your home or for the government is considered a moral document, I don't think Jesus would have made the cuts that Congress is making. And it's a check on your conscience.

I think it's sad when an agnostic comedian is ten times more Christian than so many people in Congress act like they are. That's me, by the way.

COSTELLO: "Political Buzz." Fun as always. Dana, Cornell, Pete, thank you so much. We'll see you again on Friday.

LOESCH: Thanks.

COSTELLO: Flooding a major concern right now in a Missouri town. Jacqui Jeras is standing by with that story.

And finally some help with luggage. Delta has a service that actually lets you track your luggage, so if they don't arrive with you, at least you don't have to wonder where on earth they are. Because you will know with this tracking system.

Alison Kosik has details. Alison, you have the details right now, so I'm excited to hear about this. It seems long overdue.

ALISON KOSIK, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Oh, yes. And you know, Carol, this really should come in handy when you're standing at the luggage carousel and wondering, hmm, when are my bags going to show up, right?

So, the goal of Delta's new tracking feature is to cut down on worried when your bags just don't arrive on time. And I'll tell you what, it's a nice perk considering passengers are shelling out anywhere from 25 bucks for its first checked bag.

So, here's how this works. Once the bag is handed off to a desk agent, you can track its status online or go to an airport kiosk. You can figure out even if the bag has been loaded onto the plane and even once you've landed, the tracking feature is going to tell you which carousel the bags will arrive on. And if your luggage is delayed or lost, you can file a claim. There's also an option, Carol, to sign up for notification just in case your suitcase doesn't make it on the same flight as you do. Better to know in advance than stand there watching that carousel spin around and around and you wonder where the heck are my bags.

COSTELLO: Absolutely! I love that. But Delta isn't the only carrier trying to improve its baggage service, right?

KOSIK: Exactly. Alaska Airlines actually seems to have one of the best systems. You know, the carrier is guaranteeing that your luggage is going to get there, with you, from the plane, within 20 minutes after the plane parks at the gate. So, everyone's going to be watching their watches on this one. If the baggage is late, passengers receive $20 in discount codes or 2,000 mileage points.

Now United Airlines, it offers overnight FedEx delivery of your bags, or if you have golf clubs or skis. United does charge anywhere from $79 to $99 per item each way. But you know what? It may be worth it. If you're traveling and you don't want to lug around those big items. That could come in handy, as well. With that service, passengers could also track the location of your stuff on the airline's Web site.

You know, it's finally -- these airlines have gotten on board to have you have control of where your luggage is. Carol

COSTELLO: I like that. Alison Kosik, many thanks.

The royal wedding, as you know, is Friday and the royal invite is the hottest ticket on the planet right now. But some surprising A- listers are not invited. We'll tell you who, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: Poor Missouri. Flooding is now a major concern in one Missouri town. Jacqui Jeras standing by with that story. First the tornadoes blow through. And now this?

(WEATHER UPDATE)

COSTELLO: Wow! This has been a nasty spring.

JACQUI JERAS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Yes, it has.

COSTELLO: Really nasty. Enough with the April showers. Are we into May yet?

JERAS: I wish! Next week.

COSTELLO: Thanks, Jacqui.

On Friday,the world will tune in to see Prince William and Kate Middleton tie the knot. Monita Rajpal is at the royal wedding grounds zero, which is Westminster Abbey. Hi! So we're going to be watching CNN at 4:00 a.m. Eastern on Friday because we don't have an invitation. But apparently we're not alone.

MONITA RAJPAL, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Well, we're not alone. That's for sure. There's some notable names that have been left of that all-wanted guest list and invitations. Some notable names, including former politicians, important politicians to this country such as former prime ministers Tony Blair and Gordon Brown. And of course also the Obamas, as I'm sure you know. Now, as for the reasons why the Obamas have not been invited, it's because it's not a state event. Prince Charles -- Prince William is second in line to the throne after Prince Charles, so if he was, indeed, king, then perhaps it would then be considered a state event. But because he's not, it is considered a semi-state event. That's why he is not being there, not being invited.

Now the reasons why Tony Blair and Gordon Brown have not been invited, that's been causing a bit of a kerfuffle I should say, around here, is because other former prime ministers in this country have been invited, such as John Major and Margaret Thatcher. But Clarence House has said the reason why John Major and Margaret Thatcher have been invited is because they have been knighted by the queen. They are members of the Order of the Garter, and that's why they're on the guest list. But also John Major was a guardian to both Prince William and Prince Harry after their mother, the late Princess Diana, passed away.

Now, Margaret Thatcher says she's not going to be able to attend due to health reasons, but that is why they're saying that these two former prime ministers have been invited, and the other former prime ministers have not. Carol?

COSTELLO: My head is spinning. All I want to know is what her dress is going to look like. That's all I care about.

RAJPAL: Don't we all!

COSTELLO: I know! Thanks very much. We appreciate it.

It has been 30 years since we've had a royal wedding like this. And you don't want to be the only one who missed it. And you know, CNN handles international stories better than any other network. So join us at 4:00 a.m. Eastern this Friday. I know it's early. But that's what the DVR is for, right? Be part of our global viewing party with Anderson Cooper, Piers Morgan, Kiran Chetry, Richard Quest and Cat Deeley. Watch, DVR, participate. CNN's coverage starts Friday, 4:00 a.m. Eastern.

Encouraging news for Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords. She will go to Florida to see her husband lead space shuttle Endeavour's final mission. She's come a long way since that devastating day in Tucson. More on her story, coming up.

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COSTELLO: Nearly four months have passed since Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords was shot in the head. Her doctor tells "The Arizona Republic" that she's in the top 5 percent of patients recovering from those kinds of injuries. In fact, Giffords has made such good progress she'll be able to watch her husband, Mark Kelly, lead space shuttle Endeavour on its last mission.

John Zarrella is with us now from Miami. So, do we know much about how NASA will orchestrate the Giffords' trip? Will we get to see her arrive?

JOHN ZARRELLA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: No. I doubt it. It is certainly possible maybe we'll get a shot of the plane coming in, something like that. Although that's pretty questionable. I've tried to get answers from NASA. They're playing it very close to the vest. We know that she's coming in Wednesday or Thursday on a private plane. And accompanied by a nurse, not a doctor. And that, of course, we know the president is going to be there, as well. But we do not know whether he'll be sitting with her, or if he'll be someplace else. We don't know any of that.

But it's certainly miraculous that she is going to be able to make it at all. You know, for awhile, Carol, there was a question as to whether Mark Kelly was even going to fly this mission, because of his wife's condition. You know, I had an opportunity to sit down with Mark back in October, before the incident ever happened, and he and I talked about just how difficult it is to give up space flight.

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ZARRELLA: This is it. Your last shuttle flight.

MARK KELLY, ASTRONAUT: Flying in space is a very difficult thing to give up. I remember after my last flight thinking, well, maybe this is the last time I'm going to do this. And you know, you get a couple months out and you're like oh, I really hope I, you know, this is not the end of my flying in space career. And then to have this opportunity again. I know when I get back from STS-134 from this last flight of Endeavour I'll be thinking the same thing. You know, that I can't really give this up. I got to figure out a way to get back into space again.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ZARRELLA: I don't know if he still feels the same now, given the things that have changed. But back then, he said he was hoping that like his brother, maybe he would get an opportunity to fly a space station flight down the road. I imagine that's probably at least still in the back of his mind. Carol?

COSTELLO: Well, you can understand why Gabrielle Giffords wants him to fly this mission. I mean, she knows her husband, and knows his love of space travel. So, you can certainly understand that.

ZARRELLA: Yes. You know, the way it's always been described to me, Carol, it's quote, "magical" there. And I can't relate to it. You probably can't. But that's what the astronauts all say. It's awfully, awfully difficult to not want to go back again.

COSTELLO: John Zarrella, many thanks. Live in Miami this morning.

CNN's Sanjay Gupta takes a closer look at Giffords' injuries and her recovery. Don't miss Sanjay Gupta reports: "Saving Gabby." That's right here on CNN Sunday night, May 8th at 7:00 Eastern.

Is Franklin Graham, Billy Graham's son, a Trump man? Sure sounds like it. A closer look as we dig in on some politics, next.

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COSTELLO: The Reverend Franklin Graham is showing a lot of interest in one possible White House candidate. CNN's Brianna Keilar is at the White House with our political ticker. Hi, Brianna.

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hi there, Carol. And that candidate is Donald Trump, who is running -- or mulling over a run for the presidency for the Republican nomination. And Graham was on ABC's "This Week." He was asked about Trump. He said at first he thought, when he heard that he was thinking about running, he thought it was a joke. But then he said the more you listen to him, the more you say to yourself, you know, maybe the guy's right. So, a very important Christian evangelist voice considering throwing some support behind Donald Trump.

Graham also talked about the birther controversy. You can see what he said there on CNNpolitics.com. And that's what had New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg talking. He was on Fox News Sunday and he said that if conservatives, if Republicans, continue to fan the flames of the birther controversy -- some conservatives who insist that President Obama actually was not born in the United States -- he says if Republicans continue to talk about that, that they will lose with voters, and that they will deserve to lose with voters. He said the deficit, the economy, those are the issues Republicans should be talking about.

And, Carol, he did also talk about Donald Trump. He said he considered him a friend. But he wouldn't be pinned down on whether he actually thinks that Donald Trump's flirtations with running for president are serious, if he's really serious about it, Carol.

COSTELLO: Interesting. OK, let's talk about the fun part of politics. I know the Easter Egg Roll is going on right now at the White House. What did the president and first lady do on Easter Sunday?

KEILAR: The first family went to Shiloh Baptist Church. It's a Baptist church here in town. It was formed by freed slaves in 1863. They walked into church. They got a standing ovation. They joined in the songs that the choir was singing. They were there for a couple of hours.

And, Carol, they go to church from time to time. But last year, they actually went to a Methodist church. So, this time going to a historic Baptist church here in D.C.

COSTELLO: Anything exciting going on at the Easter Egg Roll that we should know about?

(LAUGHTER)

KEILAR: You know what struck me? I heard first lady Michelle Obama saying, you can do -- she was talking to the kids and saying, you can do all kinds of things, you can do yoga. So, who knew that they have a lot of activities going on? You know, they get tons of kids. They do the roll. There's face painting. There's all kinds of fun activities that they do. President Obama addressed the crowd a short time ago. And those activities are going to continue for a little while yet, Carol.

COSTELLO: Plus yoga. So I can see hundreds of kids doing downward dogs.

KEILAR: Exactly! Who knew?

COSTELLO: Who knew? Thanks, Brianna. We'll have your next political update in one hour. And a reminder, for all the latest political news go to our Web site, CNNpolitics.com.

Botox may smooth your wrinkles, but a new study suggests it can dull your ability to understand the emotions of other people. Botox paralyzes muscles, hindering certain facial movements that, over time, can cause wrinkles. That's why people get Botox injections. But researchers say people read emotions partly by mimicking facial expressions. So, if muscular signals from the face to the brain are dampened, people are less able to read emotions. Follow that?

Researchers say before people get Botox treatments they should consider the possibility they may make it harder for them to empathize with others. I'm not kidding about this study.

Coming up next on the CNN NEWSROOM with Suzanne Malveaux, wildfires raging in Texas are leaving behind a charred path of destruction. We're talking live with a coordinator of the Texas Forest Service to see what they're doing to try to get those fires under control.

Plus, if you're one of those people tired of hearing about the royal wedding, or you just aren't interested, listen up. CNN's Richard Quest live in London to explain exactly why you should care.

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COSTELLO: Taking a look at stories making news later today. Former president George W. Bush is back in the saddle, so to speak. Today through Wednesday, he's hosting Warrior 100. A 62-mile bike ride in the Texas Big Bend area with 14 service members who were seriously wounded in Iraq or Afghanistan.

The issue of pilot fatigue is the subject of an NTSB roundtable discussion starting in just a couple of minutes. Participants will discuss whether pilots get enough sleep, and what can be done to improve things. And coming up in one hour, Dr. Jill Biden, the wife of the vice president, announces the launching of a search for the nation's top community college. The nation's first $1 million Aspen Prize will go to one of 120 community colleges.

Now it's time to toss it over to Suzanne Malveaux. I'll be over in a minute to talk about what would Jesus cut.

SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN ANCHOR: Oh, in the budget?

COSTELLO: Yes.

MALVEAUX: What would Jesus cut? Interesting question, Carol. Very provocative.

COSTELLO: We'll find out if people think it's crass or appropriate.

MALVEAUX: OK. We will find out, that's for sure. Viewers will weigh in. Thanks, Carol. See you soon!