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Train Driver Charged in Crash; Bus Crash Kills At Least 38 In Italy; San Diego Mayor Will Not Resign; Anthony Weiner Investigation Costs $43K; Pope Francis: "Who Am I to Judge Them?"; Violence Erupts After Surfing Competition; "Simpsons" Co-Creator Giving Away His Fortune; Starbucks' Sales Surge in China; Deadly, Extreme Weather Across U.S.; Obama and Hillary Clinton to Meet for Lunch
Aired July 29, 2013 - 10:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Happening now in the NEWSROOM --
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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It started with like a fight and then they just broke out like they were tipping port-a-potties and everyone was just running down Main Street.
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COSTELLO: Oh, it was ugly. So much for laid-back surfers, police had to use pepper spray and tear gas to calm the crowd after a California surfing competition.
Pope Francis says he's in no position to judge gay church members. And that's not all he talked about today -- women, divorce, church corruption. Wait until you hear what the Pope had to say about all of those things.
The time, 12:00 noon sharp. The place, 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. The guest list, just two. Hillary Clinton is coming to lunch at the White House.
Plus, vegans and stray animals win big as the co-creator of "The Simpsons" races to give away his fortune. You're live in the CNN NEWSROOM.
Good morning. Thank you so much for being with me. I'm Carol Costello in Washington this morning. We begin with a cathedral in Spain that's getting ready to hold a memorial tonight for the 79 victims of last week's deadly train derailment. One of those being remembered tonight will be Merda Farcia of Houston, one of two Americans killed in that crash. She and her husband were heading to a Catholic festival. He survived and her family is remembering the woman they lost.
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BRIAN BUERKETT, VICTIM'S SON-IN-LAW: One of the best women I've ever met, a great mother, a beautiful person inside and out, wonderful soul. She's been an amazing person to anyone she's ever come in contact with.
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COSTELLO: In the meantime, the driver of that train has now been charged with 79 counts of homicide and a judge has set the condition force his release from jail. Karl Penhaul is live in Spain this morning. The conductor has admitted as much, he was going too fast and he was doing it on purpose?
KARL PENHAUL, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: No, not really, Carol. I mean, there has been a lot of speculation about that and there have been parts of alleged conversations that he's had been leaked to certain members of the Spanish media. But as far as the investigation itself is concerned, what both the politicians and the investigators have said is that they are keeping an open mind on all factors.
Yes, speed does seem to have been a factor. They limit the speed on that curve where the train derailed is about 45 miles an hour and certainly from that chilling surveillance camera that we've seen, the train seemed to be going a lot faster, but it's still in dispute, very much so, about what the driver did say and didn't say in the moments before and after the accident and that is something that the investigators will be looking at.
And amongst the evidence they will be combing through are the black boxes from the train. We understand those haven't been opened yet. But yes, the train driver, as you say, now accused, formally charged actually of 79 counts of reckless homicide. But he was released conditionally on the condition that he came every week and reported to the judge. His passport has been withdrawn so he can't travel outside the country and of course, at least while the investigation is going on, his train driver's license has been suspended -- Carol.
COSTELLO: All right, Karl Penhaul reporting live for us this morning.
A weekend of spiritual renewal for dozens of people at one of the most visited Catholic shrines in the world, but their bus ride home ended tragically, too, in Italy. At least 38 people were killed when their bus plunged off a bridge near Naples, Italy last night. Only ten people survived. The bus fell nearly 30 feet into a wooded area, damaged cars and broken guard rails were left in its wake. Investigators now looking into the possibility the bus may have had mechanical problems just before it crashed.
San Diego Mayor Bob Filner says he's staying put despite calls for him to resign amid allegations the mayor has sexually harassed seven women. CNN's Stephanie Elam has the latest on what the mayor plans to do next.
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MAYOR BOB FILNER (D), SAN DIEGO: I apologize to the people of San Diego and most of all I apologize to the women that I have offended. STEPHANIE ELAM, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Apologizing once again, San Diego Mayor Bob Filner is still refusing to resign instead he plans to go to therapy.
FILNER: On August 5th, I will be entering a behavior counseling clinic to undergo two weeks of intensive therapy to begin the process of addressing my behavior.
ELAM: But the drum beat for his resignation continues now that seven women have publicly accused the mayor of inappropriate conduct.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He got very close to me and he ran his finger up my cheek, like this, and he whispered to me, do you have a man in your life?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I turned and he just slobbered down my chin and I was so violated.
ELAM: Laura Fink worked for Filner in 2005. She says he grope her at a fundraising dinner.
LAURA FINK, WORKED FOR FILNER IN 2005: One of the guests said, you should be nice to this girl because she's worked her behind off for you. He then proceeded to tell me to turn around, which I did and he then patted me on the behinds and laughed and said, no, it's still there.
ELAM: Fellow Democrats like Senator Dianne Feinstein are joining the growing calls for Filner to go.
SENATOR DIANNE FEINSTEIN (D), CALIFORNIA: I don't think that somebody who is lacking a moral compass really sets a role model or really will provide the kind of leadership that San Diegans want.
ELAM: In a new poll conducted last week by the San Diego Union Tribune, 60 percent of the San Diegans polled said they believe Filner will ultimately be recalled. The numbers not in Filner's favor just by gender or political affiliation and a majority believe the sexual harassment allegations against the mayor are true.
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ELAM: Now, a couple of the women who have already publicly accused the mayor of inappropriate conduct have also said that this plan for him to go to therapy is just too little and is not going to make a difference. The other thing that we should also note about this is that the process to begin recalling Filner is on its way. There is a citizens group that plans on having a press conference this evening at 5:00 p.m. Pacific Time and they will then say that they are going to do what they need to do to get him out of the office if he will not resign -- Carol.
COSTELLO: All right, Stephanie Elam, reporting live for us from Los Angeles this morning.
New details emerging about the first sexting scandal that led Anthony Weiner to resign from Congress, as his run for New York mayor reaches a critical junction, there's this. According to the "New York Daily News" Weiner's congressional campaign spent more than $43,000 to find out who hacked Weiner's Twitter account and sent out all of those lewd photos.
Of course, we now know that Weiner knew along who sent out all those lewd photos. It was the congressman himself, Anthony Weiner. And this morning, Weiner faces a similar scandal in his run for mayor. And now he's without a campaign manager. Danny Ketam left the campaign this weekend. No word on who will take over that job.
A quiz for you this morning, are you ready? Who said this, quote, "If a person is gay and accepts the Lord, and has goodwill, who am I to judge them?, end quote. If you said Pope Francis, you get a big gold star this morning. Catholics are a little taken aback because of what the pope said.
In fact, they are taken aback because of so many things the pope said. Maybe that's why so many millions of hopeful Catholics flocked to Pope Francis on that beach in Brazil. Yes, we know he's a rock star, but we didn't know he'd be quite this controversial.
John Allen is CNN's Vatican analyst. He is with me now. Good morning, John.
JOHN ALLEN, CNN SENIOR VATICAN ANALYST: Hi, Carol. I want you to know I would have passed that quiz because I was on the pope's plane when he made that remark that you just quoted.
COSTELLO: Well, tell me about his demeanor. He was reportedly relaxed and laughing?
ALLEN: Yes, first of all, this is not unprecedented. In the early John Paul years, John Paul would always come back to the plane and conduct these kinds of free-wheeling spontaneous exchanges usually in about six languages. It almost made you feel stupid sitting there listening to him. We haven't seen that for a long time. When he got older and more frail he couldn't do that.
Benedict, when he would meet the press, always had this very carefully controlled appears whereas Francis today basically came back, Carol, and asked, what have you got? For an hour and 20 minutes he answered questions under every topic of the sun. No notes, no rehearsal, not a single question that he ducked.
As somebody who gets paid to follow the pope around and watch him do this thing, I have to tell you. This was a fairly remarkable experience, flying back with Francis from Rio De Janeiro. And one of the three million people that he brought to Copacabana Beach, the beach was going to be known as popacabana rather than Copacabana.
COSTELLO: OK, let's go back to one of his statements. He said, if a person is gay and has goodwill and accepts the Lord, who am I to judge them? Why might Catholics be taken aback by this statement?
ALLEN: Well, I think it's the tone rather than the substance of it. I mean, if the level of substance, this is not a change in church teaching. It has always been in the books in terms of the Catholic catechism, as the formal code of teaching, that homosexual persons are to be treated with respect and love. I think in terms of perception, what gays and lesbians often hear from the Catholic Church is precisely judgment. To hear a pope saying I don't judge you, in terms of perceptions of welcoming and outreach and trying to change the way the church is seen. The message it's trying to deliver, I think that's what has got people worked up.
COSTELLO: The other thing, the pope recently said something about atheist. He said an atheist could get into heaven if an atheist performed good things on earth. He said women should have a greater role in the church although he doesn't know what that is yet. These are really interesting things the pope is saying.
ALLEN: Yes. You know, I think in some ways we've already called Pope Francis the pope of the poor because this is a pope who has a deep love of the poor. While he was in Brazil he visited a Brazilian slum and said the measure of society is greatness is how it treats the poorest in that society.
But I think in the end, Carol, we might refer to him as everybody's pope. He has an outreach for everyone. He's reached and I don't know if there's going to be a constituency done on the planet, but he's gotten love from Pope Francis.
COSTELLO: Interesting. John Allen, reporting live for us this morning, thank you so much.
Police have restored order finally in Huntington Beach, California, after a huge fight broke out in the streets. Watch. It's crazy, right? The violence erupted at the end of the U.S. open of surfing. It was actually a surfing and skating event when officers first tried to disperse the crowd, the crowd moved into the downtown area and, as you can see, people were still fighting and they were also damaging property.
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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It started with like a fight and then it just broke out. They were tipping port-a-potties and everyone was just running down Main Street.
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COSTELLO: There's the port-a-potty video. I hope no one was in any of those port-a-potties. No injuries were reported. Police arrested eight people and they are looking for more suspects. They are also asking the public for any video or pictures so they can make more arrests.
More charges expected for a man accused of causing a horrific boating crash. Jojo John, the driver of the boat is facing vehicular manslaughter and assault. This crash involved a bride-to-be. The bride-to-be was killed and also killed was the best man in the wedding party. His body was recovered yesterday. Four others were injured when the boat slammed into a parked barge at night. Alcohol may have been a factor and the barge may have not been properly lit. We'll keep you posted.
Investigators in France trying, searching for clues in one of the country's biggest jewel heist, an armed robber made off with about $53 million worth of precious gems. It was the third such heist around the city of Cannes since May.
An unbelievable story about the spirit of giving, Sam Simon, one of the Simpsons co-creators announced he is giving away his television fortune to charity, the announcement coming on the heels of his cancer diagnosis. He's been given only a few more months left to live. Alison Kosik is in New York with more on this story and what a touching thing to do.
ALISON KOSIK, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Yes, you know, you hear a story like this and it really puts things in perspective. Here's a guy who is diagnosed with terminal colon cancer. He's got maybe six months to live. He's not thinking of himself, he's thinking of how to help others. We're talking about Sam Simon. He is a co-creator of "The Simpsons."
He's given away his "Simpsons Royalty," the money is going to animal rights, to children's charities and he has his own foundation, the Sam Simon Foundation, it rescues dogs and works with veterans and hearing impaired. He's got a lot of money but he's not focusing on his own fate. He's focused on leaving a legacy, which helps others by leaving a good portion of his money to causes that he cares about -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Alison Kosik, thanks so much.
Cars buried under water. Anyway, there was terrible flooding in North Carolina, as you can see we had to rescue drivers from their cars. We'll tell you more when NEWSROOM continues.
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COSTELLO: It's 17 minutes past the hour, time to check our top stories, the deacon of an Indiana church is asking for prayers as members recover from a bus crash. The driver says the bricks feel as he was trying to make a turn. A youth pastor and his pregnant wife were killed, as well as a mother of five. Eight of the 19 people injured still in the hospital. One of them remains in critical condition.
In money news this morning, job lovers in China really seem to like their fill of Starbucks. The company is seeing a tremendous growth in the past year. Maybe not a big surprise considering Starbucks opened 500 new stores there last year. By 2014, Starbucks expects China to pass Canada as the second largest market after the United States.
COSTELLO: Newly released home video shows PRESIDENT JOHN F. Kennedy vacationing with family and friends 50 years ago. These pictures were taken in Massachusetts and just four months later the president was assassinated. Dangerous weather slammed parts of the country, but North Carolina may have seen the worst of it where dangerous flash floods shut down roads and are being blamed in the drowning death of a 10-year-old girl and 48-year-old man. Meteorologist Indra Petersons is tracking all of the extreme weather we're experiencing. Good morning, Indra.
INDRA PETERSONS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Good morning. What an unbelievable week, they had about six inches to 10 inches of rain, Carol, there over the weekend and they were not the only ones. Check out Philadelphia. They broke a single day record, the most amount of rain they've seen any day of the year. Eight inches fell yesterday for the month of July, 13 inches that's also a record, I mean, unbelievable amounts of rain.
Of course, the flooding went along with that. Here is the good news, the low that produced all of that heavy rain staying with that cold front. Finally they are drying out what they need to and even the south east there's a couple of thunderstorms possible. We're really not looking for that severe weather we saw over the weekend.
Where we do have a potential for severe weather, the low is making its way farther to the east. Anywhere from Kansas through Missouri, this is the threat for flooding. Two inches to four inches of heavy rain is possible. Of course, flash flood watches will be in that area.
The other main concern is you can see it deteriorate and see it breaking apart, very hard to see it organizing, by any means so that's the good news, 50 mile per hour or steady winds. The change in the last track is that it's moving faster, westerly, at 17 miles per hour. It's more of a southerly track, 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time, we're waiting for it to make landfall, six to ten inches of rain. Some places could see 15 inches of rain, of course, another area looking for, yes, more flooding -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Wow. OK. Indra Petersons, thank you so much.
President Obama and Hillary Clinton are meeting today for lunch, but they are not saying why. We'll tell you what it could be next.
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COSTELLO: President Obama and Hillary Clinton are having a private lunch at the white house in just a few hours, but it's not exactly clear what they are meeting about. Clinton hasn't been a regular since leaving her position earlier this year. Brianna Keilar is at the White House. So, there's got to be something more than just ham sandwiches at this lunch.
BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: I completely agree with you, Carol, and I think it's fair to say that. The White House is being very mum on exactly why this lunch is taking place. But you look back at some of the other meetings that we've seen President Obama and Hillary Clinton have and it's pretty clear that part of this is keeping her in the limelight in the administration since the New Year. Back in January, President Obama did an extremely rare interview with CBS "60 Minutes" with then sort of Hillary Clinton thanking her publicly as she left his administration, something that you haven't seen him do with other members of his cabinet. Thanking her and trying to make it very clear that they have a strong relationship personally and professionally and that she's been a confidant to him. He met with her and former President Clinton so she's kept the ties since she left the administration.
COSTELLO: What about Joe Biden? He's talking about running for president. What about Joe?
KEILAR: Obviously, you know, the president's right-hand man, the vice president. You wonder if that's a little awkward, potential competitors here and he certainly does meet a lot with Vice President Biden, but the reality is when you look at poll numbers for who would be -- if the election were today, the best contender, Hillary Clinton would beat Joe Biden, hands down. The last poll taken in July, Democrat's choice for the nominee in 2016, 63 percent said Clinton and only 13 percent Biden. So obviously neither one of them has said that they are going to be certainly throwing the hat and the ring, but I think everyone realizes that they are both eyeing it and expect that to happen -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Interesting. I know you'll stick around until after that lunch. Thank you, Brianna Keilar, live.
With Middle East back on track, musicians like Roger Waters of Pink Floyd. He is pro-Palestinian, but they have giant inflatable pig. May have gotten Roger Waters or not. I'll tell you why, next.
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