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Prince Harry Tours Superstorm Sandy Damage; Fallout Over IRS Conservative Scandal; Interview with Rep. Sander Levin; STD Tech Tools

Aired May 14, 2013 - 10:30   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: And good morning. Thank you so much for joining me. I'm Carol Costello. It is 30 minutes past the hour.

Let's head back to Seaside Heights, New Jersey. And take a look at this ecstatic crowd of people. Right there in the middle in the greenish shirt there is Governor Chris Christie and beside him in the white shirt is Prince Harry. As you can see they are surrounded by residents of Seaside Heights and also by emergency responders.

Governor Christie is taking Prince Harry on a tour to show him the devastation left over by Superstorm Sandy but to also show him how much that community has rebuilt. And how supportive the residents are of one another and how grateful those residents are to the first responders because no lives were lost in Superstorm Sandy but of course, there are still so much to rebuild out in that area.

Prince Harry will stay on the Jersey Shore for a couple of more hours. Our Poppy Harlow is there. We're going to get back to Poppy in just a second. But I just wanted to show you that terrific picture.

Other top stories to tell you about this morning -- the actress Angelina Jolie is going public with a very personal decision. This morning she is announcing she's undergone a double mastectomy to remove both breasts. Jolie discovered she had a mutant gene that puts her at greater risk of breast and ovarian cancer. It was the same disease that killed her mom.

In Moscow Russia's FSB counterintelligence agency says they turned over a man they're calling a spy for the CIA. The man is identified as Ryan Fogle. He's a U.S. diplomat that Russia claims he's really a spy. FSB photos showed this man was carrying a spy kit, wigs, knives and lots of money. Fogle was detained briefly before being turned over to the U.S. embassy. There has not yet been a response from the U.S. government.

In money news: Square, the mobile payment service, is banning gun sales. A company spokesman says the move is not related to the recent gun control debate in Washington. Square allows retailers to use mobile devices to process credit cards.

Back now to one of our big stories of the day: the fallout from the IRS's targeting conservative groups. The agency now admitting mistakes were made. President Obama vowing that anyone involved will be, quote, "Be held fully responsible." Now that could start with a hearing this Friday before the House, Ways and Means Committee.

Joining me now, Michigan Congressman Sander Levin, ranking member of that committee. Congressman, welcome.

REP. SANDER LEVIN (D), MICHIGAN: I'm glad to be with you, Carol.

COSTELLO: I think there has been some critique that Democrats haven't exactly rushed forward to condemn the mistakes made by the IRS. Why haven't Democrats been more forthcoming?

LEVIN: Well we have been. The President said what was happening was outrageous and I made it clear that the singling out in 2010 Tea Party Patriots was outrageous as the President said. It should never have happened so we have been very clear about that.

COSTELLO: And Congressman, there were IRS officials who testified before congressional committees and said they didn't know of any targeting of conservative groups. We now find out that that wasn't true. Do you think that they were lying? I mean, what do you think happened there?

LEVIN: I don't know if Commissioner Shulman was telling the truth or not. I don't know when he was informed but I'll tell you this is clear. If he was informed after that hearing, he should have come back to Congress and said what he knew. There was a total failure by the Commissioner and others to let us know what was going on and that is outrageous.

COSTELLO: I spoke with Republican Congressman Kevin Yoder earlier. Here is what he had to say about this IRS scandal and its impact on the Obama White House.

Let's listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. KEVIN YODER (R), KANSAS: I think what the American people want to see is the administration as a whole held accountable. I'm not sure how the President can continue to say these are things that happened without my knowledge, I was ignorant of them and I'll hold people accountable. Because ultimately it lies at the President's feet -- these are things going on within his administration targeting opponents of the President.

These are mostly groups that didn't support the President's re- election. Was there suppression of that information? You know the President said on Friday that he learned about this essentially by watching CNN. And you'd think that the President had greater access to information than following it on cable news like the rest of the country.

And so if that's how the President is learning about these things, who in his administration is hiding these facts?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: Is it possible that the President didn't know any of this?

LEVIN: Sure, it is. Look. I don't think we should politicize this. I heard the Representative's statements. We should not politicize this. Commissioner Shulman was appointed by President Bush. I'm not holding President Bush responsible. We need to get at the bottom of this. Why in 2010 they singled out Tea Party Patriot that was a serious, serious mistake it was worse than a mistake that never should have happened.

And then after that there were three different formulations used by the IRS as to how they were going to handle this.

And look they made serious mistakes. They should have let us know what was going on. We should not have heard about this at an ABA meeting when Lois Lerner said she had something to say. That isn't the way it should have been conducted they should not have started on that path in the first place and when they learned about it at the very top of the IRS they should have immediately been back in touch with us.

I want this very clear. Chairman Camp and I were holding the hearing on Friday, the highest ranking and we made it very clear we're not going to proceed on a partisan basis. We're going to get at the truth, we're going to hold people responsible, period.

COSTELLO: Well if you want to take politics completely out of this, why not, why not you know, employ somehow an independent investigator to go into the IRS to find out exactly what happened?

LEVIN: Look. The IG report is coming out tomorrow. Dave Camp and I are holding the hearing on Friday. The person who made that report is going to come before us also Mr. Miller, the acting commissioner, is going to come before us. He is going to have tough questions from Democrats and Republicans. This should not become a partisan vehicle. We need to protect the people of this country when the IRS is wrong and that's what we're doing.

COSTELLO: Congressman Levin, thank you so much for taking the time and talking with us this morning. We appreciate it.

LEVIN: Thank you very much.

COSTELLO: And let's take you back to New Jersey for just a second. We can see more pictures of Prince Harry speaking with the Governor of New Jersey touring the neighborhood of Seaside Heights. And you can see he's surrounded by residents. We're going to take you back out and we're going to check in with Poppy Harlow. She knows all about what's going on.

We'll be right back.

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COSTELLO: I'm watching these live pictures out of Seaside Heights, New Jersey. The Governor giving Prince Harry a tour, he's surrounded by all of these residents and I'm sure there are a couple of reporters in the mix but they are taking pictures and Prince Harry was signing autographs and mothers were carrying their babies over to him. And as you can see Prince just got into an SUV right now so they're probably going to the next spot.

But Poppy Harlow is also in Seaside Heights although she's outside the crowd in a way. But he seems to be so personable, Prince Harry.

POPPY HARLOW, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: He is. I mean that's what we hear. This has been by all accounts a very successful U.S. tour thus far for Prince Harry. Our royal correspondent Max Foster has been along with him the whole way. And overall it has been very successful.

You know he was in Washington at the White House. He went to Walter Reed to see some wounded veterans, something very close to his heart. He then went on to Colorado to the Wounded Warriors games and now he is here in New Jersey.

You know, you mentioned, Carol that he just got into an SUV that's because he's headed to where I'm standing so in just a few minutes he should be here on the Boardwalk in Seaside Heights. This was something that the Prince personally wanted to do. We're told that he had heard about Sandy from some of the fellow officers that he served with in the British Army and that he wanted to come see the destruction for himself so Governor Christie is giving him that tour, similar to the tour that Governor Christie gave President Obama after Sandy.

We're also told that Prince Harry specifically wanted to see some of the worst hit areas in New Jersey. So that's the town that he was just in looking at some of the worst devastation from the storm that even seven months later is not fully repaired by any means.

So as we await the Prince I do want to play our viewers some sound from the interview that I just did with the Mayor of this town Seaside Heights talking about just how important it is to have this visit.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HARLOW: It has been seven months since Sandy and you know, I've seen it around here. A lot of progress has been made but there's still a lot of work to be done. Does this help a lot in putting New Jersey and the coast back on the map in terms of the aid that that many argue is needed here?

WILLIAM AKERS (R), MAYOR SEASIDE HEIGHTS, NEW JERSEY: I would hope that it does. And not just for Seaside Heights; I like the way you put it. Aid for not only here but for the coast. There's a lot of towns that were hurt Seaside Heights was hurt some towns were much worse than Seaside Heights. I would hope that everybody is getting the help that they need to rebuild because the Jersey Shore is only going to be better if we all come back together.

HARLOW: You know, interestingly there is this royal frenzy whenever the royals come to the United States. And -- and you told me that the frenzy here about Prince Harry's visit is even larger than when Vice President Joe Biden was here.

AKERS: I'd have to say that to be perfectly honest and not taking anything from the Vice President, but I think as Americans, we're used to seeing the Vice President and he has more exposure on a daily basis. Whereas seeing the Prince actually come here and be here in person is something that Seaside Heights has never had and this is our 100th -- 100th year in existence.

HARLOW: What can you tell me about what you and Governor Christie are going to show Prince Harry today?

AKERS: I think we're showing each other different things. First, the Prince is coming here and I know one thing that was very important to him coming into the visit. He wanted to meet the first responders. I think that's something that's near and dear to him and we were very grateful for that. Because everyone forgets while we're rebuilding we didn't have any loss of life and they are responsible for that so we're grateful for that.

What we do want to show, not only the Prince but we want to show everybody that Seaside Heights is doing it. We said we were going to be ready and we're going to give you the visual aid to let you know that we are going to be ready for that holiday weekend.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: All right Poppy, we want to stay on these pictures because we want the exact moment that Prince Harry arrives where you are because millions of women all over the world will be jealous that you're so close to Prince Harry and we're not.

He has been -- I'm telling you, he is just so charming. He took part in so many things in the few days that he was in the United States.

It's amazing. He was in the warrior games out in Colorado and then he dressed up in his military uniform in Washington, D.C. where he visited the Tomb of the Unknowns and took part in a wreath-laying ceremony. Everywhere he has been, he has been received so warmly.

HARLOW: Well, and I think, Carol, it's important to note this has been a very professional tour of the United States doing all of those things. You know, he was at the British embassy in Washington and having dinner with some important folks networking. He is having that event later today in Manhattan with Prime Minister David Cameron promoting British trade but also doing things that are personally close to his heart.

I mean, you know, he has served in Afghanistan. He is a member of the British military, a helicopter pilot. So Wounded Warriors is very personal for him. He visited some wounded warriors at Walter Reed in Washington and then he went out and participated in those games in Colorado, the Wounded Warrior Games and even saying that he wants to try to take that international, perhaps a UK version of that. And then, to come here. We are told one of the reasons why the Prince wanted to come here to see the destruction from Sandy is because he heard about it from some of those that he served with. So he wanted to see the worst hit parts; that's what he did. This tour comes after the last time he was in the United States that made headlines because of, you know, some scandalous, reportedly scandalous behavior, however you want to put it, the photos that were taken in Las Vegas. You know?

So, I mean Carol, this is a very different kind of tour from that. So far it has been scandal-free.

COSTELLO: He must have a sense of humor because Governor Chris Christie was joking about, you know, went down in Vegas, didn't stay in Vegas and it wouldn't be happening in New Jersey. I'm sure Prince Harry heard all of that before he came to the United States and it doesn't seem like it fazed him at all.

HARLOW: It doesn't seem like it. We personally haven't had a chance to speak with the Prince and I can't say that I think we will. I think we're going to be blocked off because of these barricades pretty far away from him.

But our Max Foster has been on the trail with him throughout the United States for the last six days and he has been saying that he is taking this very well, that he is coming off very well.

And also, Max points out this is someone who is a bit weary of the media throughout his life. The paparazzi following his mother, Princess Diana and the media following he and his entire family. So he is one to often keep a distance from the media but, at the same time, recognizes the importance of the media in shedding light on things that are important to him much of which he has been doing throughout this U.S. Tour.

COSTELLO: OK. We're going to pull away from you and take a quick break and hopefully, the motorcade will hit the parking lot behind you when we come back from a commercial break. We will be right back.

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COSTELLO: All right. We are taking a live look at Prince Harry's motorcade. He's in a car there, right in the front actually in that black SUV with Governor Christie. They are on their way to Seaside Heights which is, of course, home to MTV's reality show "Jersey Shore". The Prince actually will get to see that famous image left over from Superstorm Sandy -- that roller coaster that plunged off an amusement pier and into the ocean. That's actually set to be demolished a few hours after Prince Harry leaves the area.

It's only a couple of miles from where he just left moments ago so it's going to take him a little while to get there. When he arrives on the Boardwalk, we're going to head back to Jersey.

Right now, we have to go on with other news. At any given time, 110 million Americans have a sexually transmitted infection. Our senior medical correspondent Elizabeth Cohen is here. It's very difficult to talk about.

ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN SENIOR MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: But important.

COSTELLO: I admire you for doing it.

COHEN: Thank you.

You know, the reason why is that STDs are still at epidemic levels despite all of the things that doctors and public health folks have tried to do. So some folks in high tech have said we're going to take it upon ourselves to try to get rid of STDs as much as we possibly can.

So I want to talk about a couple of different apps and Web sites. So let's talk about the first one which is an app. I have it here on my phone. Not that I need it. I'm married. I'm not worried about this.

But let's say, you have a rash on some private part of your body that you're wondering, should I get this checked out? But you're too embarrassed to go to the doctor. You can go on this app and take a photo of your rash wherever it might be, and send it in and for $40, a doctor will tell you.

You can see this one, they say you have herpes. Then you know that you have it. Of course, they encourage you to go to a doctor -- to go to, you know, a doctor in person as well. But then you know it and you get an answer.

COSTELLO: Anything else?

COHEN: That look on your face -- I know. It's so embarrassing. And it's so difficult but that is exactly why STDs aren't going anywhere and why they're still here in such huge numbers is that people don't want to talk about it. So this lets you do it in private. Your iPhone is the only person who knows. But once you do find out you have an STD you really should tell people who you've had sex with.

I want to show you the old-fashioned way of telling former lovers. OK. We have a video.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's kind of awkward.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, I'm kind of busy so spit it out. What is it?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: OK. I've got this -- it's chlamydia, which is --

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I know what chlamydia is.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Oh? Perhaps you should get yourself tested.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I've been tested.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Recently?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COHEN: OK. So that is the 1990s version of how to do it. The 2013 version of how to do this is that you can actually send an e-mail, anonymously to someone that says, hey, someone you know has chlamydia and you should get checked out.

COSTELLO: I know I'd appreciate being told that way.

COHEN: Can you imagine you're at work, looking at work e-mails and then one pops out that says you have -- your former lover had chlamydia. But you know what; it's better than not knowing.

So here's what it say. Someone you know has been diagnosed with chlamydia. They would like to anonymously tell you this and the Web site is so they can know.

Now, another thing that technology can do is let's say you've met someone -- you know, you meet at a bar or whatever. You're thinking about maybe you want to have sex with this person you can actually get that person's STD results as a text. So if that person has gone and gotten tested they can send you their verified results to say -- I guess people will sort of wave it around at the bars. Look, see, I'm Std-free, you can sleep with me.

It's sort of -- it's one way to know, right, that people are going to be bragging about it, I guess. It's better to know than to not know.

COSTELLO: That's true. That is true.

Elizabeth Cohen, thank you so much for talking about a difficult topic. We appreciate it.

OK. Let's take one final look at New Jersey before we have to take a break. There it is -- Prince Harry is still traveling to the Boardwalk in Jersey.

We will be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: Prince Harry has arrived and unfortunately that helicopter shot froze but you can see Prince Harry. He is at Seaside Heights now right by that amusement park right near the Boardwalk to meet and greet people.

Poppy Harlow is not far from the Prince so I'm going to bring in Poppy right now. Set the scene.

HARLOW: well, I think I can definitively tell you, without eye-to-eye confirmation, that Prince Harry is here because of the screams that I am hearing from women by his motorcade. But actually I do see Prince Harry now just walking onto the Boardwalk -- Carol. He is right next to Governor Chris Christie. Right on time -- a little bit late but people have been here for hours waiting and waiting for him. This is his second stop here in new jersey. This whole coast really ravaged by Sandy. The Prince making it a point to stop here, spend a few hours here with the governor and tour the devastation. We can tell you that he did just wrap up the time in that nearby town. He was (inaudible). What he did there included meeting the local mayor there. He went to see some towns -- some homes rather that were very, very severely damaged by Sandy. He spent time shaking hands with firefighters and other first responders similar to what we will see him do here. We also know that people are surrounding him with American flags and British flag, Union Jack, and he did get a hat from a local police officer.

And as I take a look, you've got photographers surrounding Prince Harry. He is going to greet people, rows and rows of onlookers and everyone with their camera here to see the Prince. The first time of course, that he has been here in New Jersey. A big honor to the mayor of this town, Seaside Heights, told me Carol to have him here. And to put the spotlight on this area it really has a long way to go in terms of rebuilding.

COSTELLO: Yes. There are important reasons that Prince Harry is visiting the state of New Jersey along the Jersey Shore but we will have much more coverage out of New Jersey. Poppy Harlow, thanks to you. I really appreciate it.

And thank you for joining me today. I'm Carol Costello. "CNN NEWSROOM" starts now.