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Britain's Queen Elizabeth Hospitalized; Young Parents to Be Die in Car Accident; Toddler Cured of HIV?; Sandy Baby Boom?; Plenty of Blame on Forced Cuts
Aired March 03, 2013 - 17:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome back to the NEWSROOM. I'm Fredricka Whitfield. A look at the top stories right now we are following.
A stomach bug has side lined Britain's Queen Elizabeth act least temporarily. The 86-year-old monarch is now in the hospital being treated for flu-like symptoms but Buckingham palace says it is just a precautionary measure. All of the queen's official engagements had been canceled or postponed for next week.
Police in New York are on the lookout for two hit and run suspects who fled this horrific crash scene in Brooklyn. Officials say the suspects crashed a BMW into a cab carrying two expectant parents. Both the husband and wife were killed. The baby was delivered by c- section and now critical condition. We will have a live report on this tragic accident and the manhunt for the suspects straight ahead.
And a major medical breakthrough to report to you today. Researchers say a 2-year-old girl has become the first child to be functionally cured of HIV and there is hope it can be done for other people. The little girl was born to an HIV-positive mother. She was given treatment almost immediately after birth.
Senior medical correspondent Elizabeth Cohen will join must a few minutes with this development.
New Tampa, Florida demolition crews working near the sinkhole have ended their work for the day. And they have started tearing down the house that was partially destroyed by a sinkhole. One of the home's occupants is missing and presumed dead after he disappeared into that sinkhole Thursday night. Parts of the house were also moved onto the street to help the family recover some of their valuables.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MIKE MERILL, HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY ADMINISTRATOR: The family is being well taken care of. We are looking after all of their needs. We will be looking towards providing some housing on an interim basis and then also, looking for some permanent solutions for them. We believe they've been very pleased with all of the valuables we have been able to recover for them.
(END VIDEO CLIP) WHITFIELD: Demolition crews are expected to finish the work tomorrow.
It is no ordinary Sunday at the Vatican. For the first time since Benedict XVI's resignation, there is no is no Pope to say the angelus prayer over St. Peter's square. Cardinals are still arriving in Rome for the conclave. Tomorrow, they will attend pre-conclave meetings to discuss the future of the church.
All right, back to our top story. Queen Elizabeth II is spending the next few days in unfamiliar surroundings for her. She was admitted to the hospital earlier today for symptoms related to a stomach bug. The queen rarely misses royal engagements. But this week, all her appearances what have been either postponed or canceled.
Royal correspondent Max Foster joining us now outside the hospital to explain exactly what's going on - Max.
MAX FOSTER, CNN ROYAL CORRESPONDENT: Frederica, an interesting one, this, because the queen very rarely cancels anything. She has cancelled a whole week's worth of engagements. We were told on Friday about this gastroenteritis, this stomach bug that she was suffering from. Well now, look Sunday, she has been hospitalized say there is certainly a degree of concern here, even at the palace is fainting now to some extent saying she is in good spirit and actually in good health. But she had not been in hospital for ten years. She hasn't cancelled engagements since last October when she had a bad back. And I can't remember the topic then that she cancelled anything.
So, this is serious. She won't like all this fuss around her. But her aides, her family, made sure that she is in hospital, which in itself is quite a big deal.
WHITFIELD: It is indeed. Of course, everyone is wishing her the best. And knowing that she doesn't like a whole lot of fuss made of her, was it difficult to try and get her to go to the hospital or that was a decision that was made kind of beyond her control?
FOSTER: She has the ultimate choice on all decisions in relation to the royal family. She is head of state of this country, head of state of 16 countries. She can make her own decision. But she I'm sure, would have been urged to go to hospital. She is in her mid-80s, but just as sort of a sign really of how she insists on carrying on with her public work, she was this morning giving medals to a long-serving member of staff at Windsor castle, insisting that she had to carry on with her commitments. And she would have been really, really ill, felt really uncomfortable if she had to come to hospital in the afternoon.
WHITFIELD: Max Foster, thanks so much. Keep us posted there in London.
And now, a heart-wrenching story out of New York a car crashes into a cab carrying a young couple expecting their first baby. The couple dies but their baby survives after doctors worked very quickly to save his life.
Susan Candiotti is live for us in New York.
So, Susan, this is a tragic accident. It's a hit and run case. What more have we learned about the circumstances?
SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, first of all, this certainly is tragic, Frederica, an emotional funeral and burial are already under way following that horrific hit and run cash in the Williamsburg section of Brooklyn today, as the Hassidic Jewish community rallies around the surviving family.
A young couple, 21-year-old parents-to-be, were on their way to a hospital about midnight last night because the expectant mother wasn't feeling well. Police say a hit and run driver crush in to the sight of their cab killing Racy and Nathan Globber (ph). The cab was tattled.
Thanks to quick action by doctors, a 6-month-premature baby boy was delivered by c-section after his mother died. He was the couple's first child. Police say the infant boy is in critical condition. Relatives are standing watched. Investigators are trying to track down the drive of a light-colored BMW which fled the scene on foot. There was also a passenger in that car. Police will only say they have spoken to the registered owner of that car but not much more. We don't know yet whether the car was stolen, relatives and friends trying to come to grips with what happened.
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ISAAC ABRAHAM, NEIGHBOR OF VICTIM'S FAMILY: They have all the resources there to deal with it. All the psychological help they need. The impact of it, as we are all learned as children, go to the grave of the parents, parents don't go to funerals of children. And here we are going to have two sets of parents going.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CANDIOTTI: The driver of the cab survived and is in stable condition. Relatives tell us the couple, Fredricka, had been married less than a year.
WHITFIELD: Oh, my goodness. Thanks so much, Susan. Keep us posted on what is a horrific, very tragic story.
CANDIOTTI: Yes, it is.
WHITFIELD: On to Selma, Alabama, now. Thousands are re-enacting an historic March. It was 48 years ago this month when Alabama state troopers and others attacked a peaceful group of marchers, marching from Selma to Montgomery in support of what would become the voting rights act. Vice president Joe Biden told a commemoration ceremony that the fight for civil rights is not over.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOE BIDEN, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We still have a lot of work to do, but I think it will be easier, a lot easier than it was 48 years ago, for one overwhelming reason. What we all did here 48 years ago changed the hearts and the minds of the vast majority of the American people. That's why I'm absolutely convinced we will prevail in the new fight with regard to voter access and voter rights.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: The vice president said also it was one of his regrets he didn't join the civil rights marchers back in 1965.
A 911 operator begs a nurse at an assisted living facility to help a dying woman but she won't do it. Listen to this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE:
WHITFIELD: The nurse says it's against policy for her to help. Details on that next.
Plus, the GOP throws itself a big party, but it's who they didn't invite that's making news, strong reaction to that decision, coming up.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: One of the nation's most influential conservative groups is holding its annual meeting in Washington later this week. It is called CPAC, but they didn't invite one of the country's most popular conservative New Jersey governor Chris Christie. And the conservative congressman is angry about that. Here's what he told CNN.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. PETER KING (R), NEW YORK: That's a suicide and death threats. CPAC, to me, loses all credibility. You have a governor who is conservative who found some budget was taken on public employee union who is pro-white, and yet he is a 74 percent favorable rating in a Democratic lose state.
Chris Christie is doing the job, but they say because he fought for the aid for New Jersey, in which he was entitled to same aid every other state has got, he won't be accepted. To me, that writes off CPAC as a serious force.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: Michael Gerson is a former speechwriter for President George W. Bush. Ramesh Ponnuru is senior editor at "the National Review," both joining us from Washington.
Good see both of you.
So Ramesh, let begin with you, what is going on here. Is this the kind of - is this an indicator of a widening divide within the Republican party that Chris Christie would be disked, snubbed, ignored? RAMESH PONNURU, SENIOR EDITOR, THE NATIONAL REVIEW: I think that it is an indicator that too many conservatives and Republicans are not interested in are not interesting in venturing outside of the conservative ghetto, if you will. I mean, think about New Jersey. This is a state that last voted for a Republican senor in 1972, last voted for a Republican president in 1988. Conservatives don't have to agree with every single thing governor Christie has done to think, you know, maybe it is a good idea to listen to this guy and see how he is getting to be so popular in such a blue state.
WHITFIELD: So, you know, Michael in you view, is this kind a microcosmic of how bad is it is within the Republican party right now? How broken?
MICHAEL GERSON, FORMER SPEECHWRITER FOR PRESIDENT GEORGE W. BUSH: Well, I do think that CPAC is a little bit of a marginal speaks for a huge portion of the conservative community but it certainly represents a tendency. There are some Republicans out there that are seeking now, in the aftermath of the last election defeat, they are seeking converts.
There is another group of Republicans seeking (INAUDIBLE), people to blame for what's going on. CPAC is doing that. Christie along with people like Bobby Jindal and Marco Rubio and Paul Ryan, they represent a rising generation of reformers. The question is whether the party, and in the primaries next time around, are going to give them the leeway they need to reposition the party, which needs do some repositioning in ways that can win a majority of the American people.
WHITFIELD: In fact, Michael, you know, you kind of remind us when you write that six of the past presidential elections, four have gone to democratic nominees. And in contrast, five out of six elections went to Republicans between 1968 and 1988. So what's behind what you are calling this kind of quote "stunning reversal of electoral fortunes"?
GERSON: While it is a confluence of factors, none of them good for Republicans there are demographic shifts going on. You know in 1976, about 89 percent of the national vote for president was white. In the last election, it was more like 72 percent. And that's a big shift. There's a -- there have been problems with candidate quality, to be honest. But there's also a big problem with economic messaging, a lot of the Republican message now seems stuck in the '80s when it comes to the economy, doesn't really speak to middle class voters who are concerned about the cost of education, the cost of health care, problems of globalization and technology that really have depress wages. But Republicans haven't had as much as they need to say on those type of issues and that's -- somebody's going to have to seize that mantel.
WHITFIELD: So Ramesh, how does that get done? How does the disconnect get fixed within the party?
PONNURU: Well, I think the answer has to be finding ways to apply conservative insights to the problems of today and not the problems of the late 1970s and early 1980s. I think that too many Republicans are always saying how we have got to be just like Ronald Reagan but what they forget is that Reagan succeed on a lot of fronts and so we have different challenge than we don't have., 70 percent top tax rate. So, Reagan faced when he took office, for example, and so we have got to apply our conservative philosophy to the concerns that people have today.
WHITFIELD: Well, the clock is ticking. And I think a lot of people expected that after the presidential election that suddenly there would be this reform that would get under way when you started hearing about, even within the Republican party that something's got give, something's got to change that change would happen overnight. But just this past week, leading up to these forced spending cuts, clearly, it hasn't happened yet. So, are we talking about months to come, weeks to come, years to come? Will it be in time for the next leeks, Michael?
GERSON: Well, first of all, I think that Barack Obama's rather aggressive demand for taxes has actually united the Republican Party in opposition to that. May be not the most popular position in the world but Republicans are not divide when it comes to. This the immediate test, for me is going to be immigration reform, whether Republican can have a reform-oriented message, does genuine outreach to a new demographic reality and the you will mat test is whether primary voters going to allow a reformatory emerge, something like Bill Clinton did in the Democratic matter that 1992 where he repositioned his party. That's what Republicans are going to need and the question whether primary voters ultimately will allow that repositioning to take place.
WHITFIELD: And yes, we see Marco Rubio, we just saw his picture, he is a rising star within the Republican party but you know, Ramesh, there's an awful lot of conversations about, you know, diversifying this party's got to look a lot more diverse and it is just hurting in that category. That is why it is not an attractive option for American voters.
PONNURU: Well, but these things are all linked. If the Republican party had a message on the economy that was more appealing to middle class, lower middle class, working class people that would also be a message that would not only help them with white working class voters but also, I think, increase their appeal among Hispanics, among blacks, it's not just one thing or the other. And I do agree with Michael, it's not the kind of reform that cannot really be driven by a congressional party. It has to be driven by a presidential candidate. And for that reason, I don't think you're going to see the reform really happening right away, although some of the seeds that can and I hope will be planted.
WHITFIELD: Ramesh Ponnuru, Michael Gerson, thanks so much, gentlemen. Always good to see you.
PONNURU: You are welcome.
GERSON: Great to be with you.
WHITFIELD: All right, those force spending cuts, a pretty big deal, but for the market, the Dow actually came close to a record high. Find out what expect this week.
And then, an 87-year-old woman collapses in a nursing home. But, the nurse calls 911 instead of doing CPR herself, this story straight ahead.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: A company policy that bans workers from attempting CPR in people may be the reason why an elderly woman is dead in California today. It was a nurse who stood by that policy at the Glenwood garden senior living facility. She refused CPR to a woman had ho had collapsed after having a heart attack. The 911 operator begged for someone to save the woman's life.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Fire Department, what's the address of you emergency please?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes. We need someone out at the Glenwood Garden as soon as possible. We have a lady that looks like she's a fainted or had a heart problem or something.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We need to get CPR started that's not enough, OK?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes. We can't do CPR at this facility.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Hand the phone to the passerby. If you can't do it, I need - hand it to passerby. I will have her do it. (INAUDIBLE).
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Anybody there can do CPR. Give them the phone please.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I understand if your facility is not willing to do that. Give the phone to that passerby or that stranger. This one is not breathing and that she is going to die f we don't get to it started. Do you understand?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I understand. I am a nurse, but, I can't have our other senior citizens who don't know CPR.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I will instruct them --
(INAUDIBLE)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: OK. I don't understand why you are not willing to help the patient. I am --
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: OK, great. Then, I will walk you through it all. EMS takes liability for this (INAUDIBLE). I'm happy to help you, OK? UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I don't know where he is, but, she is yelling at me and saying that we have to have one of our other residents perform CPR. And she will instruct. And I'm not going to do that and makes that call.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Is there anybody that works that is willing to do it?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We can't do that.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We just going to wait - we are going to let this lady die?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Well, that is why we are calling 9-21-1.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We can't wait. She can't wait right now. She is stopping breathing. She can't wait for them to get there.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He is saying we don't. So, you can talk to my boss and I don't know -
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: OK. They are refusing CPR, they are going to let her die. By the facility, yes.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: When will the fire department be here?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They are coming as quick. They have been on the way all this time. But, we can't wait. This lady is going to die. OK. Well then, if you get anybody, any stranger, that happens to walk by, that's willing to help, I understand if your boss is telling you, you can't do it. But, if there is any, as a human being, I don't, you know, is there anybody that is willing to help this lady and not let her die?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Not at this time.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: Wow, pretty extraordinary.
Nick Valencia is following this story.
So Nick, how does the hospital continue to defend itself or the assisted living facility?
NICK VALENCIA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Fred, this is a story that got a lot of us talking this morning, especially, the moral outrage factor, this nurse who has the ability to help this person, does not choose to exercise that ability. Now, we have tried repeatedly to get in touch with this senior living facility. They have not called CNN back. But earlier this week, Fred, they did give a statement to our local affiliate, KGT and in part that statement reads, in the event of the health emergency at this independent living community, our practice is to immediately call emergency medical personnel for assistance and to wait for the individual needing attention until such personnel arrives. This is the protocol we followed. As with any incident involving a resident, we will conduct a thorough internal review of this matter, but we have no further comments at this time.
Now, if you're watching this at home, you may be wondering perhaps this 87-year-old had a do not resuscitate order. Now, it's reported she did not have a do not resuscitate order around also that her family was well aware of the CPR protocol - Fred.
WHITFIELD: And in fact, the woman's daughter had something to say about this. And what was that?
VALENCIA: She did. The daughter who shockingly herself is a nurse, reportedly is a nurse, spoke to our affiliate KGT in Baker's field and she said that she has no problem with the way the facility cared for her elderly mother. Now, you may be asking yourself as well, if this nurse was culpable or will be culpable at all. Under the Good Samaritan law in California there, she would not have had any liability at all if she helped this 87-year-old person and perhaps something led to injury. It is just shocking us and perhaps shocking you at home as well.
WHITFIELD: All right, Nick Valencia, thanks so much.
Forced spending cuts is now a reality, but the markets have barely taken notice. The Dow even finished higher on Friday. But it doesn't mean there won't be an impact.
Hal Sirkin is senior partner and managing director at the Boston consulting group.
All right, good to see you, Hal. How might this trickle through the economy?
HAL SIRKIN, SENIOR PARTNER, MANAGING DIRECTOR, THE BOSTON CONSULTING GROUP: Well, it is going to begin with some basic spending cuts that have already taken place. That's what we call sequestration. It's going to continue on in a little bit in about 27 days from now in which we will start to see layoffs and furloughs of government workers.
When those government workers stop getting paid, they will start to stop buying things and when they stop buying thing, of course, we will see more of the economy spiral down. The potential here is for about a 1.5 to two percent drop in GDP relative what it would have been and that would be pretty dangerous for our economy. If you remember, right, fourth quarter, GDP was 0.1 percent. So, we could be taking some risks here.
WHITFIELD: All right. So, you see this over kind of long term? Meantime, you have the Dow finished close to an all-time high, just as these forced spending cuts were, you know, about to get under way. It didn't impact the markets right away. Do you see that it would some eight or so months from now, when the forced spending cuts are in high gear?
SIRKIN: Well, I think there will be. I mean, any time you take spending out of the economy, right, the economy starts to slow down. And it starts to spiral, unfortunately, downward. As it spirals downward, the stock market tends to react.
Right now, we haven't seen much reaction from the stock market but been through the deficit and the debt ceiling and so the stock market may be waiting to see what actually happens. We may see something on Monday about this
WHITFIELD: OK, jobs report coming out at the end of the week as well. What are the expectations?
SIRKIN: Well, the numbers sort have been for a while in that 150,000, 180,000 range. And the expectation is they will probably stay there. Right now, with all the uncertainty that we have in the business community, particularly with the sequestration now and the potential even for debt ceiling crisis coming up in the next few months, business community just suspect hiring. We have got to get past this and unfortunately, Congress is taking its time in making this happen.
WHITFIELD: Hal Sirkin, good to see you. Thanks so much from Chicago.
SIRKIN: Great seeing you.
WHITFIELD: A medical breakthrough could change everything in the fight against aids a possible cure. We have all the details when we come right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: Welcome back to the NEWSROOM. I'm Fredricka Whitfield. A look at our top stories we are following for you right now.
Queen Elizabeth II, she's in a London hospital where she is being treated for gastroenteritis. Buckingham Palace says the 86-year-old monarch was taken there as a precautionary measure and she's expected to be there for several days. All of the Queen's official engagements this week have been postponed or canceled.
In the U.S., a deadly hit-and-run accident has claimed the lives of a New York man and his pregnant wife. Police say a BMW crashed into a cab carrying the couple, which were heading to the hospital. Their baby was delivered by a cesarean section and is now in critical condition. Police are looking for the two people in the BMW who fled the scene.
And it's the start of a new era at the Vatican -- Vatican, rather. For the first time since Benedict XVI's resignation, there was no Pope to say the "Angelus" prayer over St. Peter's Square. Cardinals are still arriving in Rome for the conclave and tomorrow they will attend pre-conclave meetings to discuss the future of the church.
All right. Here's what's trending online. Two dogs found lifeless inside a burning California home are now alive, thanks to firefighters who performed CPR.
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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Eventually, I seen the paws starting to move. UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They brought him back. I saw them pull them out. They are like your children. They are part of your neighborhood family. And you love them and you care for them.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: And it's being called the last great race.
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Sled being driven Noah Pereira, winner of the 2013 Jr. Iditarod.
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WHITFIELD: All right. The legendary Alaskan Iditarod kicking off yesterday with the ceremonial start in Anchorage. The nearly 1,000- mile journey started today. Dogs barked, people cheered as 66 mushers and teams set out from downtown Anchorage.
And the unmanned SpaceX Dragon capsule has reached the International Space Station. The capsule appearing more than 1200 pounds of cargo, had a problem with its thrusters after its launch on Friday but engineers were able to fix it and the capsule rendezvoused with the station early this morning.
All right. Now back to that major medical breakthrough that we've been reporting today. Researchers say a 2-year-old girl has become the first child to be functionally cured of HIV and there is hope that it can be done perhaps for other people.
Senior medical correspondent Elizabeth Cohen is here with us to explain.
All right, tell us about this little girl and the word "cure" is huge here.
ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN SENIOR MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: The word cure is huge. In medical journalism, we call it the C-word and we try not to use it.
WHITFIELD: Yes.
COHEN: But there are actually researchers at Johns Hopkins and other places are using the C-word. They say that this girl has been --
WHITFIELD: How did it happen?
COHEN: It's interesting, it was not through anyone's ingenuity. It was through sort of the goof of a mother. So what happened was a baby was born in Mississippi to a mom who had HIV. And they put this baby on high doses of three different HIV drugs, very quickly, in the baby's second day of life. The mother came in for her doctor's appointments. And the baby --
WHITFIELD: Is that what they usually do? COHEN: I'll get to that in a minute.
WHITFIELD: OK.
COHEN: OK. I'll get to that in a minute because that is important. You're asking the good questions.
WHITFIELD: Yes.
COHEN: We'll get to that in a minute.
WHITFIELD: OK.
COHEN: So the baby is in treatment and is taking the medication for about a year, about 15 months. And then they lose the baby. At 15 months, they can't find the baby. The mother is not bringing her in, they have no idea. They sent Social Services after the mother, literally knock on her door, she brings the baby back in. This baby is now second birth day, so this baby was on drugs for about a year to 15 months.
WHITFIELD: OK.
COHEN: Was off of them for another 10 months, they bring the baby back in. It's now around the baby's second birthday, boy or girl, we don't know. And they test the baby and the HIV is gone. Gone. And this baby hasn't taken drugs for eight to 10 months. And there's no HIV. And the pediatrician in Mississippi says, how is this possible? So she called in some other researchers who came in and tested the baby and they couldn't find it either.
They just couldn't find the HIV. They had to use a super ultrasensitive test. They found tinny-weenie very low levels of RNA and DNA fragments, little fragments, and that was it. That was all they could find. So they're saying that this baby is cured, some people are saying functionally cured, of HIV.
Now you asked me, do they usually do this?
WHITFIELD: Yes.
COHEN: So that's the issue. Oftentimes, when a baby is born to an HIV-positive mother, they'll give a low dose of one or two drugs for a couple of weeks until they are sure that baby has HIV. So that's what they did that was different with this baby. This baby got drugs very quickly, second day of life, and got high doses of three drugs. And they're thinking that may be was the difference. The quickness, the drugs and the dose of the drugs.
WHITFIELD: Is there anything to the suspension of the drugs?
COHEN: Well, now they are thinking, wow, if this baby is cured of HIV after taking drugs for just a year and then going off of them, maybe there's a possibility we could do that with all babies. I mean, these drugs can be toxic, and these babies are taking them their entire life, their entire life. So they are thinking, wow, maybe we can just give them for a year and then we'll done.
WHITFIELD: Incredible. So unclear whether --
COHEN: But they are not sure that they can do that. They need study that.
WHITFIELD: Right.
COHEN: But that's the hypothesis.
(CROSSTALK)
WHITFIELD: Unclear whether this will be practiced, you know, for other babies or --
COHEN: Correct. You wouldn't want to do this for other babies right away but this sort of little weird goof may make a difference for other babies.
WHITFIELD: Wow. That's incredibly hopeful.
COHEN: Yes. It is .
WHITFIELD: All right.
COHEN: It is hopeful.
WHITFIELD: Yes. Elizabeth Cohen, thanks so much for bringing that to us. Keep us posted.
COHEN: Thanks.
WHITFIELD: All right. Dennis Rodman, he's got a message for President Barack Obama from his new BFF, Kim Jong-Un. Just give him a call. Find out why Rodman is hanging out with North Korea's leader and why he thinks he is awesome.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: Budget cuts gridlock, White House versus reporters. Mitt Romney and former NBA star Dennis Rodman? All of that being talked about on the Sunday talk shows.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CANDY CROWLEY, ANCHOR, CNN'S "STATE OF THE UNION": Both sides say this is -- this is awful, this is terrible. And nobody is talking about ending it.
GENE SPERLING, WHITE HOUSE SENIOR ECONOMIC ADVISER: I can tell you for a fact that yesterday, Saturday afternoon, the president was working the phone, talking to both Democrats and Republicans who he thought were willing to be part of the type of bipartisan compromise that we need.
SEN. MITCH MCCONNELL (R), MINORITY LEADER: The president is free to call whoever he chooses to. So far I haven't heard a single Senate Republican who say they'd be willing to raise a dime in taxes to turn off the sequester.
BOB WOODWARD, ASSOCIATE EDITOR, WASHINGTON POST: Hi, how are you.
DAVID GREGORY, MEDIATOR, "MEET THE PRESS": Why do you think he's gone public with it, made an issue with it?
SPERLING: I can't really explain it. All I can say, David, is I hope Bob and I can put this answer behind us.
WOODWARD: The answer is, yes. I -- you know, he's a peacemaker, I'm in the business of listening. And I'm going to invite him over to my house, if he will come.
MITT ROMNEY (R), FORMER PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Well, I recognize that I lost. So, I'm not going to be the leader of the Republican Party. Other people will take that mantel. It kills me not to be there, not to be in the White House doing what needs to be done. The president is the leader of the nation. The president brings people together, does the deals, does the trades, knocks the heads together. The president leads and I don't see that kind of leadership.
CHRIS WALLACE, ANCHOR, "FOX NEWS SUNDAY": Were you approached by "Dancing with the Stars"?
ANN ROMNEY, WIFE OF MITT ROMNEY: I was.
WALLACE: And did you consider it?
A. ROMNEY: I did consider it. I love the show. I would have loved to have done it. And I'm turning 64 and I started thinking about it. I'm, like, I'm not really as flexible as I should be.
GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS, ANCHOR, ABC'S "THIS WEEK": You said you love Kim and thinks he's awesome. Were you aware of his threats to destroy the United States and his regime's horrendous record on human rights.
DENNIS RODMAN, FORMER NBA STAR: One thing about that, you know what, I didn't look at all that. I understand what he's doing. I don't condone that. I hate the fact that he's doing it. But the fact is that you know what, that's human being, though. He let his cards down. He did one day to me. Been a friend. I sat with him for two days, and the one thing he asked me to give Obama. Something to say and do one thing. He want Obama to do one thing, call him.
STEPHANOPOULOS: He wants a call from President Obama?
RODMAN: That's right. He told me that. He said, if you can, Dennis, I don't want to do war.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: Hurricane Sandy, well, it's long gone. But some folks will soon have lasting reminders. And what else can you do when the power -- oh man, is out for a week? We're looking into the Sandy baby boom.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: Four months ago, Superstorm Sandy slammed into the U.S. causing tens of billions of dollars in damage and turning the lights off for millions of people along the East Coast. But it also did something else. As Susan Candiotti reports, some couples without power apparently made the best of a bad situation.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CANDIOTTI (voice-over): Meredith Swarmstead is 20 weeks pregnant. She and husband, Hank, are hoping to learn the gender of their baby.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The doctor is going to be right with you, OK?
CANDIOTTI: Down the hall, Stephanie Tisch and her fiance, Brian, are also expecting.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Everything going OK?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes. The baby is doing fine.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Excellent.
CANDIOTTI: Meredith and Stephanie have more than their uneventful pregnancies in common. Both were stuck in a house without power during Superstorm Sandy.
(On camera): OK. I have to ask, and have you pinpointed the night, what? What happened?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Not exactly.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Pinpointed, but I think we have a Sandy.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes. We think we have a Sandy baby.
CANDIOTTI (voice-over): Same goes for Stephanie and Brian.
(On camera): So you were without power for how long?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: About a week?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: A little.
CANDIOTTI: About a week?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: About a week. Yes.
(LAUGHTER)
CANDIOTTI: That must have been tough when you didn't have power, especially at night.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It was. It was. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It was night all day long. It was night from 6:00 on.
CANDIOTTI: So what did you do to amuse yourselves?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Well --
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There was no TV.
CANDIOTTI: Are you blushing, Brian?
(LAUGHTER)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No, not at all.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We just got closer, I guess.
CANDIOTTI (voice-over): Their doctor, Robert Rubino, says his New Jersey practice had a huge Sandy spike.
DR. ROBERT RUBINO, OBSTETRICIAN: And it got to the point where we had to stop seeing new obstetrical patients through the practice.
CANDIOTTI (on camera): This possible baby boom is based on science. Honestly, there's a study about this. Researchers over the years documented an increase in pregnancies not in areas were storm destruction was most severe, but in areas where damage was not too bad. And that appears to be what happened with Meredith and Stephanie.
(Voice-over): The study's author says it makes sense.
RICHARD W. EVANS, PROFESSOR, BTU: You may run out of power, but you're not running for your life. There's probably more opportunities for reproductive behavior.
CANDIOTTI (on camera): So, are you thinking about names?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We started with it.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We started to. But not Sandy.
(LAUGHTER)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Definitely probably not Sandy. But anything else maybe.
RUBINO: Looks like it's going to be a girl. So --
CANDIOTTI (voice-over): Part of a possible baby boom that started when the lights went out.
Susan Candiotti, CNN, West Orange, New Jersey.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: I don't know whether they have a boy or a girl, the name Sandy so appropriate.
All right. The blame game in Washington. Who are you mad at about those forced spending cuts. There's enough blame to go around.
And Michelle Obama still wants everybody to get moving. Find out how she is promoting her fitness initiative now.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: Forced spending cuts are now a reality. But who is losing the blame game?
CNN senior political editor Paul Steinhauser takes a look at what you think of the gridlock in Washington.
PAUL STEINHAUSER, CNN POLITICAL EDITOR: Hey, Fred. The obvious. A lot of you don't like these forced spending cuts. Just over half of those questioned in a recent NBC News/"Wall Street Journal" poll said they're a bad idea. With just 1 in 5 saying the cuts known here in Washington as the sequester are a good idea.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Washington sure isn't making it easy.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
STEINHAUSER: And you seem to agree. With neither Republicans in Congress or even the president scoring well on this issue. Two-thirds in an ABC News/"Washington Post" poll said they disapprove of the job congressional Republicans are doing on federal spending. With a slight majority also giving President Obama a thumbs down. Both sides are blaming each other.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
OBAMA: None of this is necessary. It's happening because a choice that Republicans in Congress have made.
REP. JOHN BOEHNER (R), HOUSE SPEAKER: The House has laid out a plan to avoid the sequester. I would hope that the Senate would act.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
STEINHAUSER: So whom do you blame? More fingers seem to be pointed towards Republicans in Congress than the president, at least right now. That's according to a Pew Research Center/"Washington Post" survey. We'll see if that changes over time.
And finally, most people think the forced spending cuts will have an impact on the economy. But you know what, less than half said the cuts will specifically hurt their personal finances -- Fred.
WHITFIELD: All right. Thanks so much, Paul Steinhauser, in Washington. So as the world waits for the selection of a new Pope, "Saturday Night Live" is getting into the action. Of course they would. In a skit last night during a mock "SITUATION ROOM" report with our very own Wolf Blitzer. Take a look.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Retired Pope Benedict is trying to compete in cuteness and now he's attempting an "oh, no, you didn't" gesture. Not even registering with the crowd. Because the new Pope is riding a cardinal like a horsey.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Look at that. Wow. I could watch that all day, huh? How about that. Horsey rides in the Vatican. That's got to be a first. But probably isn't.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes. Wolf, she is cute as hell.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: But is she enough to turn the fortunes of this beleaguered church?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Is the Pope Catholic?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: She is not. And I don't think anyone cares.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: Oh, my, my, my. Well, you know, they take risks, don't they? We kind of --
ALINA CHO, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: I have to say --
(CROSSTALK)
CHO: I love the real Wolf Blitzer the most but I love Jason Sudekis as Wolf Blitzer just almost as much.
WHITFIELD: I know. That was very clever. Alina Cho, with us now. You've got the NEWSROOM coming up this evening. Good to see you.
CHO: I do. Great to see you. Last time I saw you in person you were pregnant, now you --
WHITFIELD: That's right.
CHO: You've got twins over three months old.
WHITFIELD: Yes. They're doing great, too.
CHO: Great to see you, Fred.
WHITFIELD: Thank you.
CHO: And, you know, I'm not sure if you've heard about this new mission to mars. It was announced this week. The mission itself is fascinating but we also found that the organizers are actually trying to find a married couple to take the trek. We're talking about a man and a woman, 500 days straight in space. Talk about a true test of a relationship.
Now I talked with -- with one married couple who actually spent two years cut off from the world. They lived in that Biosphere 2, that three-acre bubble in the Arizona desert. So this kind of work really inspires them, stimulates them.
You're going to hear what they say about the experience. You know, what it would be like to spend 500 days straight in space together. And we even talked about the possibility of sex in space, Fred. Yes, we did.
(LAUGHTER)
WHITFIELD: OK. No holds barred.
CHO: Yes. That's to look forward to.
WHITFIELD: Talked about everything.
CHO: Plus a live report at the top of the hour on the Queen's condition in London. Obviously a lot of people concerned about that. We'll be talking about that as well.
WHITFIELD: Yes. Lots of concern about her. But, you know, she is a warrior.
CHO: She's a fighter at 86. She sure is.
WHITFIELD: My goodness. Yes, she looks in great condition.
CHO: She does.
WHITFIELD: She's almost going to be -- you know, 87. So we'll be watching.
CHO: Great.
WHITFIELD: Alina, good to see you.
CHO: Great to see you.
WHITFIELD: . All right. All right So what do Jimi Hendrix, FDR and Michelle Obama all have in common? They're all part of our week ahead look. Details straight ahead.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: It's an inaugural speech that has stood the test of time and it tops our look at the week ahead.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD (voice-over): On Monday an anniversary of historic proportions. Perhaps as relevant today as it was 80 years ago. FRANKLIN D. ROOSEVELT, FORMER U.S. PRESIDENT: The only thing we have to fear is fear itself.
WHITFIELD: President Franklin Delano Roosevelt assuring a country deep in an economic depression that there was light at the end of the tunnel.
Tuesday, new music from a long dead rock 'n' roll legend. Jimi Hendrix passed away in 1970, but in just two days, we'll be hearing 12 new tracks on a new album, "People, Hell and Angels." The songs recorded in 1968.
And have you ever wanted to have a conversation with Michelle Obama? On Wednesday, you have a chance, sort of. The first lady will be tweeting to America, answering your questions on her fitness initiative, Let's Move.
On Thursday the Consumer Credit report is released and on Friday the all-important February jobs report will also surface, each giving us more insight into the economic shape of the country.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: All right. A look at the week ahead. That's going to do it for me. I'm Fredricka Whitfield. The CNN NEWSROOM continues right now, with my colleague, Alina Cho.
