Return to Transcripts main page

CNN Newsroom

War May Break Out At Any Moment?; Petraeus Apologizes for Affair; Supreme Court on Same-Sex Marriage; Heat to Go for 28 in a Row; Prince Harry to Visit New Jersey

Aired March 27, 2013 - 09:00   ET

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

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Happening now in the NEWSROOM. Same-sex meaning front and center. This morning, how our nation defines marriage on the line.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's not something that should be imposed on the American people.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I believe in equality. I also believe in our judicial system and I have great faith in it. But more than anything, I believe in love.

COSTELLO: This morning Facebook and Twitter, as a ready (INAUDIBLE) you're seeing everywhere.

Also a response to the Steubenville rape case.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Real men treat women with respect.

COSTELLO: The University of Oregon video that's exploding on the Internet.

Plus Prince Harry, Jersey bound to see Sandy victims. And Chris Christie has a word of advice. This ain't Vegas.

GOV. CHRIS CHRISTIE (R), NEW JERSEY: But believe me, nobody is going to get naked if I'm spending the entire with him.

COSTELLO: No "Full Monty." No nude romps in a hotel room. Keep it clean. Papa Christie is watching.

You're live in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: And good morning. Thank you so much for being with me. I'm Carol Costello. We begin this hour with North Korea's belligerent talk of war turning to action. The communist regime is cutting off a key communication hotline to South Korea because it says war may break out any moment. The move ratchets up tensions even higher after weeks of threats against South Korea and the United States.

Joining us now is Christopher Hill, a career diplomat. Several years ago, he also led the U.S. talks with North Korea over its nuclear arms program.

Ambassador, welcome.

CHRISTOPHER HILL, FORMER U.S. DIPLOMAT: Thank you.

COSTELLO: We've heard this kind of talk from North Korea before. How worried should we be?

HILL: We've certainly heard this kind of talk before. But this is rather prolonged and rather intense, and I don't think we should be ignoring this. At the same time, I think there is a big element of domestic North Korea politics, if one can understand that concept, where clearly this Kim Jong-Un is not being well received and I think they are trying to kind of boost his status as some sort of war-time leader, so obviously it bears very close watching.

COSTELLO: So he may be saying things like turning Seoul into a sea of fire and nuking the United States, just to improve his image at home?

HILL: Yes, believe it or not. But that said, I mean, these threats have gone on for some time. They have really engaged the North Korean public. They've herded people down into bomb shelters. They've painted city buses camouflage. So this has gone on much further and I think to ignore it would be at our peril.

So I think we need to really keep focused on it. Now that said we have a U.S. military and a South Korean military who obviously have eyes on the North Korean military and they have a very good sense of what the North Korean military is really gearing up or whether this is entirely political show.

COSTELLO: So what does the United States do?

HILL: Well, I think, first of all, we need to work very closely with partner, South Korea, with Japan, clearly Secretary Hagel, I mean, the first thing he did out of the box was to announce some missile defense that we're going to deploy in South Korea. So I think that's very important.

Second very important element, of course, was to deal with the Chinese, who have much more in with the North Koreans than anyone else does. And thirdly I think we need to sort of be calm in the face of these provocations not to put any fuel on the fire.

COSTELLO: Ambassador Christopher Hill, thank you so much for joining us this morning.

HILL: Thank you.

COSTELLO: Now let's turn to a man who once was one of Washington's most respected leaders, now he's apologizing for the sex scandal that ruined his career. As a four-star Army general, David Petraeus once ran the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan before being unanimously confirmed as the director of the CIA. His downfall was swift and breathtaking. Petraeus announced his resignation and acknowledged an extramarital affair with his biographer, Paula Broadwell. And hours ago Petraeus opened a rare public appearance with a very personal apology.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEN. DAVID PETRAEUS, FORMER CIA DIRECTOR: Please allow me to begin my remarks this evening by reiterating how deeply I regret and apologize for the circumstances that led to my resignation from the CIA and caused such pain for my family, friends, and supporters.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: CNN's Chris Lawrence is at the Pentagon this morning.

And, Chris, Petraeus spoke at a dinner honoring the military at the University of Southern California, that's where he made those remarks.

So how is he viewed by the military today?

CHRIS LAWRENCE, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Carol, I've been asking that question to a lot of folks over the past several months, and basically the thing I have got from all of this, the folks who love David Petraeus before this, still love him. And the people who weren't that keen on him don't like him anymore today.

There were a lot of people in the military who felt -- they gave him this nickname, King David. Felt that he was too ingratiated to the media, was always looking to sort of inflate his own profile and that rubbed some people in the military the wrong way. Other folks I talked to said he was incredibly intelligent. That he liked to surround himself with other intelligent people and wasn't afraid to sort of step out of the box and apply different things that he had learned in military strategy.

He has said and he said last night basically that overcoming this rocky path that he himself created is vital and something that he's obligated to do.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PETRAEUS: I know that I can never fully assuage the pain that I inflicted on those closest to me and on a number of others. I can, however, try to move forward and as best possible to make amends to those I have hurt.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LAWRENCE: Obviously, that starts with his wife Holly, who has been a big advocate for veterans' issues over the years. She did not attend this speech last night -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Chris Lawrence, reporting live from the Pentagon this morning.

Now let's head to the U.S. Supreme Court, where small crowds are starting to gather outside and history could be unfolding inside. Justices are wading into their second day of arguments over same-sex marriage. Today is over the Defense of Marriage Act, DOMA, a federal law, which defines marriage as between a man and woman. A sobering contrast to yesterday when thousands of people circled the iconic marble building.

Any decision could be months away, but the impact that profoundly affects American culture and how families are legally defined.

CNN's Joe Johns is outside the court.

Good morning, Joe.

JOE JOHNS, CNN CRIME AND JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol. This case is very much about the pocketbook and what the federal Defense of Marriage Act does when it treats same-sex couples differently from straight couples. The focus is on a woman in her 80s name Eddie Windsor who got hit with a huge tax bill when her spouse died.

All of this followed by one day the time when the court took up the issue of Proposition 8 in California.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JOHNS (voice-over): Same-sex marriage week at the Supreme Court. Day one. Culture war on the docket.

CHARLES J. COOPER, ATTORNEY SUPPORTING PROPOSITION 8: The place for the decision to be made regarding redefining marriage is with the people. Not with the courts.

JOHNS: Charles Cooper, the lawyer in favor of California's Proposition 8, argued that traditional marriage must be preserved for straight couples because it's all about procreation. But Justice Elena Kagan picked apart the premise, asking whether a state could deny a marriage license to people over 55.

JUSTICE ELENA KAGAN, SUPREME COURT ASSOCIATE JUSTICE: If you're over the age of 55, you don't help us serve the government's interest in regulating procreation through marriage so why is that different?

COOPER: Your Honor, even with respect to couples over the age of 55, it is very rare that both couples -- both parties to the couple are infertile, and the traditional --

KAGAN: I can just assure you if both the woman and the man are over the age of 55, there are not a lot of children coming out of that marriage.

(LAUGHTER)

JOHNS: Justice Antonin Scalia repeated tried to pin down Attorney Ted Olson on when gays and lesbians first got the right to marry.

JUSTICE ANTONIN SCALIA, SUPREME COURT ASSOCIATE JUSTICE: I'm curious. When did -- when did it become unconstitutional to exclude homosexual couples from marriage?

THEODORE OLSON, ATTORNEY FOR PROP 8 OPPONENTS: May I answer this in the form of a rhetorical question? When did it become unconstitutional to prohibit interracial marriages?

JOHNS: The question even got asked whether same-sex marriage has been around long enough to understand its social impact.

Justice Anthony Kennedy questioned whether the court should have taken up the case at all. But he also seemed worried about almost 40,000 children of same-sex children already in California.

JUSTICE ANTHONY KENNEDY, SUPREME COURT ASSOCIATE JUSTICE: They want their parents to have full recognition and full status. The voice of those children is important in this case.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

JOHNS: Justice Kennedy himself is seen as very important because he could be the swing vote if this is a close case. None of this expected to be decided before sometime in June -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Fascinating, Joe Johns reporting live from the U.S. Supreme Court this morning.

Other top stories for you. New clues coming out detailing the connection between slain Colorado prison chief Tom Clements and the suspect in his murder, Evan Ebel. There are reports there was some sort of encounter at Clements' door, possibly a struggle, just before the shot rang out. Whatever the encounter was about, it lasted only a few minutes.

CNN has also learned directions to Clements' house were found inside Ebel's car in Texas. And for the first time the Texas sheriff's deputy who was shot by Clements remembers what happened when he pulled the gunman over.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DEPUTY JAMES BOYD, MONTAGUE COUNTY SHERIFF'S OFFICE: At that point in time I remember seeing the gun shoot off in a number amount of times. And I can see the car just fly. At which point I blacked out. I had no clue whether I was standing, sitting, laying, whatever.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: Deputy Boyd remains in the hospital. He is expected to make a full recovery.

We're about to show you what a young man does to a girl while she's passed out on a couch. But it's not what you think. Watch this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hey, bros. Check who passed out on a couch. Guess what I'm going to do to her. Real men treat women with respect. (END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: There you go. It's the YouTube public service video made by a University of Oregon student who says she was frustrated by the Steubenville rape case. Samantha Stendal calls this YouTube video a needed response. It's already gotten more than one million views.

Other top stories, incredible video out of China shows the quick reaction of a bus driver. This bus was carrying 26 passengers when a lamp post collapsed and smashed through the windshield. The driver was able to stop the bus, get out of the way just in time. But he did suffer a ruptured spleen.

The Miami Heat looking for number 28 tonight. Putting them within five games of the all-time NBA mark. Redemption for (INAUDIBLE) rewriting the record books. Joe Carter here to talk about that.

All is forgiven. Everybody loves the Heat now.

JOE CARTER, HLN SPORTS: I know. Maybe that Tiger we know, the Nike ad, that we talked about yesterday that --

COSTELLO: Winning takes care of everything?

CARTER: Maybe this is more appropriate for LeBron James and -- well, LeBron James. Not so much the Miami Heat to me. It sort of is. I mean, we saw it last week when LeBron and the Miami Heat went back to Cleveland. And there were some fans in the stands wearing LeBron Jerseys. He did receive some cheers. I mean that's a big difference from a year ago when people wanted to burn his stuff and booed him every time he touched the ball.

COSTELLO: And did burn his stuff.

CARTER: You're from Cleveland, right?

COSTELLO: Oh, yes, it was nasty.

CARTER: You know, what do you think of it now? I mean, do you think that the shift -- there's been a seismic shift among Cleveland fans? Are they more accepting of LeBron James? They want to see him complete this streak? Do you think that they're happy for his success in Miami?

COSTELLO: I think they want him to come back and they want the Cavaliers to win.

CARTER: Sure.

COSTELLO: I think that. And they don't care who does it, whether it takes LeBron coming back or not. I'm not sure it's a seismic shift, but it does matter that LeBron is again a winner because when he first went to the Heat, the Heat wasn't doing so well and it is now.

CARTER: And there's a lot of talk as you said of LeBron returning to Cleveland in a couple of years because in order for the Miami Heat to remain the Miami Heat, it's obviously going to be very, very expensive. And with the addition of Kyrie Irving, Dion Waders, you've got a pretty good team now in Cleveland and LeBron obviously got a lot of years left in his legs.

COSTELLO: He ain't coming back, come on.

CARTER: Come on, it's a possibility.

COSTELLO: Not.

CARTER: But we're seeing something special here in sports. I mean, aside from the '71-'72 Lakers, no team in the major force sports has won this many games in a row. So obviously sports fans are rooting on a possible history-making event here. I think, are they ready to cheer for LeBron and the Miami Heat outside of Miami? I'm not quite sure about that yet. I mean, I'm a Denver Nuggets fan. I cheer for the Denver Nuggets but I'm a sports fan and I'm enjoying seeing this because I wasn't alive during the '71-'72 Lakers streak.

And I am now and I'm very much enjoying watching them each night win. And the way that they're winning, I think, is really captivating sports and sports fans by coming from behind and being able to go on the road. But two games you got to watch out for tonight against the Bulls. That's going to be a tough one. And then Sunday against the San Antonio Spurs. A lot of people circling that game as a potential loss in the streak.

COSTELLO: Well, I'm not quite cheering LeBron James, but I am watching. So many -- maybe winning this take care of everything.

(LAUGHTER)

I don't know. We're going to ask that question later actually. Joe, thanks so much.

CARTER: You bet.

COSTELLO: Just ahead in the NEWSROOM words you might not expect from Governor Chris Christie.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHRISTIE: Believe me, nobody is going to get naked if I'm spending the entire day with him.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(LAUGHTER)

COSTELLO: So what is he talking about? It has to do with a certain guest known for his wild visit to the United States.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: Seventeen minutes past the hour. Time to check our top stories. Abortion right activists gearing up for a fight in North Dakota. The state now has the most restrictive abortion ban in the whole country. It outlaws the procedure once a fetal heartbeat can be detected. That's usually about six weeks into a pregnancy. And another new law bans abortion based solely on genetic defect.

The so-called heartbeat bill which takes effect August 1st has an exemption for the mother's health but not for rape. Opponents say both laws are unconstitutional.

In Georgia, we have new pictures of the two women charged in connection with the case of a slain toddler. Katrina Elkins and another woman are accused of lying to police. Both are related to one of the two teenagers charged with killing a 13-month-old. In the meantime, better equipped police in Glynn County are taking the lead in the investigation. Until now, authorities in Brunswick, Georgia, have been in charge.

In money news, anyone who chauffeurs around kids in a minivan, your prayers have been answered. Honda says its 2014 Odyssey which goes on sale this summer will come in with a built in vacuum cleaner. It's installed in the back and has a hose that reaches every corner. It's on display this week at the New York Auto Show.

And Victoria's Secret is under fire from parents who are outraged over its new Bright Young Things collection. Parent say the line is targeting tweens and teens with slogans written on panties like "call me". The company says it's not marketing to younger girls and the brand is actually aimed at college spring breakers.

We checked Victoria's Web site and we cannot find the Bright Young Things collection online anymore. We've also put in a call from Victoria's Secret for comment. We have not heard back

Now is your chance to talk back on one of the stories of the day. The question for you this morning: does winning trump everything? Tiger Woods is high atop the rankings. When it comes to golf, he is number one. Take that, doubters.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REPORTER: What does this mean to you to be back on top?

TIGER WOODS, PRO-GOLFER: Damn, it feels good.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: The only people damn happier are the good folks at Nike, who have a brand new slogan celebrating the newly recycled Tiger. This is it. "Winning takes care of everything."

Really? Everything? A 13-under-par at the Arnold Palmer Invitational takes care of all of those adulterous affairs?

I don't mean to be mean. But Woods, a married man with kids, money, fame and plenty of goodwill, blew it all because he liked the ladies, a lot -- a bunch of affairs, a tarnished image, a public apology tour.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

WOODS: I know I have bitterly disappointed all of you. For all that I have done, I am so sorry.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: Through it all, Nike stood by Tiger. The company even used the voice of Woods' late father to refurbish his image, a few days before Tiger Woods returned to the Masters in 2010.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

EARL WOODS, TIGER'S FATHER: I want to find out what your thinking was. I want to find out what your feelings are. And did you learn anything?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: Nike's ad did not work then. Tiger's reputation and game continued to tank.

But three years later, maybe Nike knew something we all didn't, mainly winning really does take care of everything. Although Bill Glenn from Marketing Arm, a research firm, said in "USA Today", quote, "Maybe that's not true for everybody. Tiger Woods could win every tournament for the rest of his career, but there are going to be people who will never forgive him. There's that adage that winning maybe everything, but for Tiger, it might not be the only thing."

After all, a poll conducted for Glenn's marketing firm found consumers see Tiger Woods' truthfulness, ranked 2,735 out of 3,000 celebrities. That puts Tiger in the same company as Mike Tyson and Kim Kardashian.

Talk back question today, does winning trump everything? Facebook.com/CarolCNN, Facebook.com/CarolCNN, or tweet me @carolCNN.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: From the desk of Chris Christie to Prince Harry, New Jersey is not Las Vegas. The prince will visit New Jersey in May to see the devastation from Sandy. He'll also make stops in D.C., Colorado, New York, and Connecticut.

You might remember last year, photographs of the prince naked were splashed across newspapers and magazines worldwide following an alcohol-fueled party in a Wynn Hotel Las Vegas suite.

On this trip, New Jersey Governor Chris Christie says he will supervise Harry.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GOV. CHRIS CHRISTIE (R), NEW JERSEY: I'm thrilled that he's going to come. He wants to come and see the destruction himself first hand and he wants to be helpful. And I'm going to be spending the entire day with Prince Harry. And so, believe me, nobody is going to get naked if I'm spending the entire day with him.

(LAUGHTER)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: In all seriousness, it's not the visit by Prince Harry that concerns many in these coastal towns. It's the lack of money.

Sea Bright, New Jersey, Mayor Dina Long joins us now.

Hello, Mayor.

MAYOR DINA LONG, SEA BRIGHT, NEW JERSEY (via telephone): Good morning, Carol.

COSTELLO: Hi. I understand you wrote a letter to Prince Harry. What did you say in the letter?

LONG: Well, I invited Prince Harry to come and visit Sea Bright on his trip to New Jersey.

COSTELLO: Did he respond?

LONG: No, we just sent it. And we're hopeful that he chooses to come to Sea Bright. But either way, it's very exciting he's coming to New Jersey during this trip.

COSTELLO: Why are you so excited that Prince Harry will come and tour the devastation?

LONG: Well, we think it's really important and we're very grateful actually to Prince Harry for helping to bring worldwide attention to the flight of those of us who are still trying to recover from Sandy. So, I'm glad that he'll be able to see up close the devastation that was caused. But also he'll be able to see our recovery and the signs of rebuilding that are popping up all over. So, we look forward to showing Prince Harry the spirit of the people of New Jersey.

COSTELLO: Oh, most definitely. Does Prince Harry's visit -- I mean, do you hope Prince Harry's visit illustrates the problems you are still having in getting money to repair the damage?

LONG: Oh, we do. We do. Any attention and awareness that can be raised is very helpful at this point. Life has gone on back to normal in other places. But in those towns that were really hard hit by Sandy, we're still struggling.

And so, we really appreciate the attention and help that he can provide.

COSTELLO: Mary Dina Long of Sea Bright, New Jersey, thank you so much for joining us this morning.

LONG: You're welcome. COSTELLO: Still ahead, they weren't ever supposed to become public, but they did, and now these tasteless Ford ads have caused some people their jobs.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)