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Erin Burnett Outfront

Senators Raise Questions On NSA Programs; George Zimmerman Pulled Over In Texas; Victim To Speak At Cleveland Kidnapper's Hearing; Senate Approves First ATF Director Since 2006

Aired July 31, 2013 - 19:00   ET

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


ERIN BURNETT, CNN HOST: Law again. What he had in his glove compartment when police pulled him over.

Plus the NSA's deputy director faces really tough questions about Edward Snowden today, the former head of the NSA OUTFRONT to respond.

What is going on at America's airports? More than 9,000 cases of misconduct by employees of the TSA, a surging organization. Let's go OUTFRONT.

The National Security Agency under fire again for its spying programs, today the Obama administration declassified and released three documents outlining the NSA's phone and internet data collection programs. Right before that agency's deputy director faced some very tough questions on Capitol Hill about Edward Snowden.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: For a 29-year-old school dropout to come in and take out massive, massive amounts of data, it is obvious that there weren't adequate controls. Has anybody been fired?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No, sir. Not yet.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Who double checked Mr. Snowden?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There are checks at multiple levels. There are checks in terms of what an individual might be doing at any moment in time.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You obviously failed.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BURNETT: OUTFRONT tonight Retired General Michael Hayden, he ran the NSA from 1999 through 2005. He is also the former director of the CIA. General, thank you very much for being with us. I want to start with the back and forth that you heard there. Obviously as you know, nearly half a million private contractors, people like Snowden, have access to top secret classified information. That is a lot of nongovernment employees with access to some crucial things. In Snowden's case, there was a failure somewhere. Should someone be fired? MICHAEL HAYDEN, FORMER CIA DIRECTOR: Well, look, I don't know the fine print. You had Chris Inglis, the deputy director there today answering the senator's questions. I'm sure that Chris took some questions for the record to get back to Senator Leahy. Erin, I'd suggest it is not so much at the front end of the clearance process because this young man was cleared several years ago and perhaps he didn't even have any of those at that time.

I think what we need is better monitoring of what goes on, on our networks so that we can pick up almost in real time unusual and anomalous activity, which would be someone downloading large volumes of information.

BURNETT: Right, absolutely. Obviously when you talk about Snowden, you know, my understanding from sources is that he obtained a lot of his information by actually taking his supervisors password and then a lot of things he did with it they believe were above his technical ability as in that he had some kind of help from inside or outside. I mean, do you have any idea who might have helped him?

HAYDEN: No. I don't. Look. I would put out there as one of the hypotheses to be tested that he did indeed had some sort of assistance either internally or perhaps more intriguingly, Erin, externally. He went to China. I have no evidence. This is not fact-based, that he received any kind of assistance from the Chinese, but you have to put that out there as a theory and test it against the available information.

BURNETT: Now there are a lot of myths out there, General, of course, maybe they aren't myths, right. But there are a lot of allegations about what exactly the government can and cannot do in terms of spying on Americans. Just today, "The Guardian" came out with a new article based on documents provided by Edward Snowden and their headline was NSA tool collects nearly everything a user does on the internet.

And the article then went on to explain, I'm just quoting from the article now, a top secret National Security Agency program allows analysts to search with no prior authorization through vast databases containing e-mails, online chats and the browsing histories of millions of individuals according to the documents provided by whistleblower Edward Snowden. True?

HAYDEN: Yes. It is really good news, Erin, and let me tell you why it is. What "The Guardian" was trying to describe today was a tool that has been developed over the years and Lord knows we were trying to develop similar tools when I was at the National Security Agency, a tool that will allow an analyst as he is working his day to day tasks to ask a straightforward question, a single query that will then allow that question to percolate throughout all the data that NSA has already lawfully collected in its foreign intelligence mission and allow the pertinent data to come back to the analyst so that he can continue his task.

I mean, if you read it without the scaremongering elsewhere in the article this is really quite an achievement and it is exactly what you want American intelligence analysts to be able to do to find the needle in the hay stack.

BURNETT: We have breaking news. George Zimmerman pulled over by police in Texas, his crime, speeding. CNN has just obtained dash cam video of the incident, which took place on Sunday afternoon in the town of Forney, Texas. You are looking here from the officer point of view. From the officer's comments, it is clear the driver of the truck had a firearm in the vehicle.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The reason for your stop is for your speed. I want you to slow down a little bit for me. Just take it easy. I want to expect your glove compartment and don't play with your firearm, OK?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BURNETT: Zimmerman hasn't been in contact with his defense team since Friday when he was still in Florida. But after viewing the video, a spokesperson said, quote, "It's probably George." David Mattingly is OUTFRONT. As you know, he's been covering -- he covered the entire trial. David, what was George Zimmerman doing in Texas?

DAVID MATTINGLY, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, we talked to people who are closest to him and they are not saying at all. They are pointing out security reasons for that. We got a statement from his family just a short time ago and it reads our family received enumerable death threats on a daily basis. We all continue to take our security and privacy very seriously and go to great lengths to ensure our safety and that includes not talking to people about where George Zimmerman is."

We also received a tweet from his defense team talking about this saying we won't make any comments about Zimmerman's whereabouts and we will work to protect his privacy. Zimmerman himself was somewhat vague today in talking to the police officer. You can hear some of that exchange on the police video. The officer asked him where he was headed to and Zimmerman would not give him a firm answer. So again, security clearly on everyone's mind here for George Zimmerman's whereabouts.

BURNETT: A lot of people obviously as you say might be shocked to know that George Zimmerman has been traveling and traveling with a gun. But, you know, David, I mean, you have reported on his fears for his own safety trying to get that permit back. Should we be surprised?

MATTINGLY: Both his family and his defense team has been talking about this almost since the moment of his acquittal. That he was not guilty of any crime. That he is legally able and because of the security threats around him they feel like he not only has the right to, but needs to protect himself and that means carrying a firearm.

Now, this is not the weapon that he used to kill Trayvon Martin. That is in the possession of the Justice Department along with all of the other evidence in this case that has been turned over to that agency for investigation. Right now, George Zimmerman clearly carrying another handgun concerned about his security.

BURNETT: All right, thank you very much, David Mattingly, breaking news on George Zimmerman tonight.

Still to come, the day before he is going to be sentenced, Ariel Castro's family is talking and what they are saying about the man who held three women captive for more than a decade and the complaint I'm looking at here, which just crossed moments ago. We are seeing that he had told the women that he held captive that there were other women in the past, some of whom he said never made it home.

Plus another million dollar jewelry heist in France. How the thieves are staying a step ahead of the police?

And then a teenager kills himself after being bullied over the internet. Is Facebook going to be criminally responsible for his death?

And for four decades after it was shot, video of President Nixon revealed for the first time shot by his own staff and what he says might surprise you.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BURNETT: Our second story, OUTFRONT, we have breaking news on Ariel Castro. New details coming in, in just the past few minutes here, this complaint about the sentencing hearing for Cleveland kidnapper, Ariel Castro. Castro's sister telling CNN that Michele Knight, one of the women he held captive for more than a decade will make a statement tomorrow.

Pamela Brown is in Cleveland and spoke exclusively to Castro's sister. Pamela, what can you tell us about Michele Knight?

PAMELA BROWN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Erin, what we know so far is that one of the three victims of Ariel Castro's victims will be making an impact statement tomorrow at his sentencing. I have been told this by a couple of sources and also as you said, spoke to Castro's sister, Marisol Alicea, and she confirmed and corroborated the information that Michele Knight is likely to be making an impact statement tomorrow.

Again, things could change between now and then but that is the expectation. The other two victims, Amanda Berry and Gina Dejesus are expected to be represented by family members at Castro's sentencing tomorrow, but they are not expected to make an appearance. But Castro's sister tells me that Michele Knight is actually expected to come and make an appearance at the sentencing.

We have heard from Michele Knight, Gina Dejesus and Amanda Berry in that YouTube video that came out several weeks ago. It was the first time that we heard from them and Michele Knight talked about the hell that she went through saying, "I'm not going to let this situation defy me. I'm going to define the situation." Let's take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) MICHELLE KNIGHT: I may have been through hell and back, but I am strong enough to walk through hell with a smile on my face and with my head held high and my feet firmly on the ground.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BROWN: Erin, Castro's sister also told me, reiterated that Castro will be speaking at the sentencing tomorrow. She told me we are going to see another side of Ariel Castro and he is going to be explaining a lot that he is not the monster we think he is. In fact, Erin, she is one of only two relatives that have visited Castro in jail and she told me that he is very loving. He is the brother that she has always known. She kept saying just wait and see what he has to say tomorrow. A lot is going to come out. So we'll have to wait and see.

BURNETT: That would be amazing because, of course, you know, Pamela, as you have been there reporting when we heard him a few days ago it was blaming, right, when he was talking about the pornography and the abuse in his own life rather than remorse or any sort of empathy as you're saying perhaps he might exhibit tomorrow.

Obviously, a surprise that Michele Knight was not maybe the person that a lot of people would have expected, they might have thought Amanda or Gina may have spoken. But you've also had a chance I know to go through the complaint itself and there are some new information in here. When I was reading through it was sort of surprising. What stood out to you?

BROWN: Yes, you're right, Erin. A lot of the information is what we already know. And you talk about Michele Knight, it just reiterated how Castro caused the death of her unborn child and went into more detail about that. But it also talked about how Castro threatened them and made them feel powerless. And one way he did that was by telling them there were other victims before them. And according to this document from the prosecution's office, he told the victims that some of the victims prior made it home and others did not, indicating that other victims were killed. So this was his way of controlling the women and making them feel powerless.

It also talks about how he controlled their every movement through food and drink. In fact, it said they weren't allowed to use the bathroom on the first floor, that there was a plastic toilet in the rooms that emptied infrequently. I mean, really, really disturbing details here. But it talked about the courageousness of these women, how they kept a diary detailing the abuse they went through and talked about their dreams of making it home one day. And of course, we now know this happened this past May when they were able to escape. It did have a happy ending. But they have a long road of recovery ahead of them still. Erin?

BURNETT: Thank you very much. Pamela Brown, as you could see, breaking so much of the news on this story from Cleveland.

One of Castro's victims, Amanda Berry, gave birth to his daughter while in captivity. A little girl named Jocelyn. Tens of thousands of pregnancies each year are the result of rape. And for many of the victims, sharing custody with their attacker is a very real and a very frightening possibility.

Ted Rowlands has this OUTFRONT investigation.

(BEGNI VIDEOTAPE)

TED ROWLANDS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: When Ariel Castro asked to see the six-year-old girl that he fathered by raping Amanda Berry, one of his three captives, a judge ruled no, that it was inappropriate. The idea that a monster like Castro would have any parental rights is hard to believe, but in 31 states, rapists do, in fact, enjoy the rights of a father.

SHAUNA PREWITT, CHICAGO ATTORNEY: I was astonished.

ROWLANDS: Shauna Prewitt daughter was six months when she found out that the man who raped her wanted partial custody.

PREWITT: How could I possibly entrust by beautiful, beautiful baby to him? But beyond that, I didn't know how to spend the next 18 or more years of my life tethered to my attacker.

ROWLANDS: Shauna, who was raped at the age of 21, is now a lawyer and is helping to enact new federal guidelines that push states to pass laws to strip rapists of their parental rights. According to a 1996 study by the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology, each year there are approximately 32,000 pregnancies resulting from rape. While the majority of those pregnancies are terminated, as many as a third of those women give birth. Shauna says she kept her daughter in part because being pregnant helped her get through the pain of being raped.

PREWITT: Just not feeling so alone, not feeling so dead inside because I actually have this life growing within me. And it was a comfort to me.

ROWLANDS: But critics say most cases aren't as clear as the Castro case and that judges currently have enough power to prevent unfit fathers from seeing their children.

AVIVIA ORENSTEIN, ATTORNEY: There are lots of solutions that are short of this. And I think a lot of time when things come in this top-down fashion based on one or two truly tragic stories, we end up making bad law.

PREWITT: Shauna says there are other women out there just like her who had no idea when they decided to keep their children that their attackers had parental rights.

PREWITT: If we knew that this possibility loomed on the horizon that we could spend the rest of our lives tethered to our attackers because of our decision to have our children, would we have made the same choice? And I think that is hard to answer.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ROWLANDS: And Shauna was, Erin, able to prevent her attacker from having any custody rights. He has never met her now almost nine-year- old daughter. The federal government has created or is trying to create a pool of money to use as an incentive for states to give some of these mothers the resources to fight their attackers if they come up against custody battles.

BURNETT: All right. Thank you very much, Ted Rowlands. Powerful story.

Still to come, it is like something out of a movie. Another high-end jewelry heist in France. That is at least five this year.

And a shocking story about America's justice system. A suspect locked in a cell for five days with no food or water. He almost died. And the disgusting thing he had to do to survive. He comes OUTFRONT.

O.J. Simpson granted parole. Why it doesn't mean he will be walking free.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BURNETT: Our third story OUTFRONT, a Cannes crime spree. Tonight, police in the French resort city are investigating another jewelry store heist. Not the one of about $140 million earlier this week. This one just basically across the street at another high-end watch store just three days after one of the biggest jewelry thefts of all time.

Tom Foreman is OUTFRONT. Tom, this is better than a movie. I mea, seriously. What is happening?

TOM FOREMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: This is unbelievable! The resort town of Cannes has just been riddled with high-end robberies this year. The latest was at a fancy watch store where two robbers came in, one with a grenade and the other with a gun. And they made off with about 40 watches. We don't know how much these watches are worth, but we do know the same place was robbed earlier this year, and about 150 watches taken valued at $1.3 million. So, no ordinary watches there.

The other robbery, they've now revised up the value of it. Just a few days back, the Carlton Intercontinental Hotel had an exhibit of jewels there, $163 million taken by a lone gunman in about a minute. And then back in May, two big robberies made news. A safe was broken into at another hotel; about a million dollars in jewels taken there. And at yet another hotel, a necklace worth $2.6 million was snatched. Erin?

BURNETT: I mean, it is amazing. Authorities are saying this criminal network can be involved. And when you talk about the guys going in, it is like a guy in a hoodie. He goes in, he comes out the side door with $140 million diamond. You think it's crazy that could happen.

But I know they think the Pink Panthers, this group, could be behind them, right?

FOREMAN: Yes, absolutely. And this just looks like their work. Interpol says the Pink Panthers are a loosely-affiliated group of a couple hundred criminals who operate all over the world, really. And these are their hallmarks. They like to hit the playgrounds of the rich. You want to get money, you go to people who have it. And certainly the French Riviera qualifies as that. They target really expensive jewelry, and importantly, Interpol says have come up with ways to sell it, which really is the key here. And they typically hit very fast with very precise plans. And certainly some of these latest robberies look just like that, Erin.

BURNETT: That is just a pretty incredible thing. They have no leads on this right now? I know there was a very important member of the Pink Panthers who was in a jail break just recently, too, who got out of jail. I mean, I am not saying he was specifically involved, but he could have been. Any leads?

FOREMAN: This is one of the things they are looking into with this group. They obviously have leads in all these crimes. They have to figure out which ones are real and which ones are not. But yes, there was this jail break in Switzerland just a few days ago. And two armed men there in this very brazen assault broke in, and they busted out two other men, including Milan Poparic, who is a known member of the Pink Panthers. At least two other Pink Panther members have been busted out of jail this year alone.

Does that prove they are involved, as you properly noted, Erin? No, it does not, but it is another reason that the authorities are looking very hard at this group, which Interpol believes since it started in the 1990s -- look at this -- may have stolen almost $400 million worth of jewels. Erin?

BURNETT: $400 million. It is enough to make you think -- I don't know. The insurance companies are involved.

(LAUGHTER)

BURNETT: All right, thank you very much to Tom Foreman. I mean, just stunning. We have been watching this. It is day after day. It is not out of a James Bond movie. It's real life.

Still to come, an embarrassing report -- a really embarrassing report -- about the people hired to keep people in this country safe. Thousands of incidents of misconduct. TSA workers sleeping on the job, stealing from passengers. Our special coverage continues.

Plus, a horrible mistake by the DEA. A suspect left in a cell for five days. No food, no water, no light, no bathroom. The disgusting thing he had to do to survive.

And nearly 400 people infected with cyclospora. We'll tell you which common food item health officials caused the outbreak.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BURNETT: Welcome back to the second half of OUTFRONT. We start with stories where we focus on our reporting from the front lines. Well, while protesters continue to crash in Cairo today, American lawmakers on Capitol Hill went head to head over whether to cut off aid to Egypt.

Here is Senator Rand Paul making the case to cut off $1.5 billion in annual largess.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. RAND PAUL (R), KENTUCKY: When a military coup overturns a dramatically elected government, all military aid must end. That's the law.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BURNETT: Still, only 13 senators voted to actually cut off the aid. Egypt, of course, is a top recipient of American aid. And whether you agree with cutting the aid or not U.S. is giving aid to a country whose government was toppled, which is technically against American policy.

If the U.S. government formally called it a coup, they would be forced to end the aid. And, of course, the Obama administration has chosen not to do so.

An OUTFRONT update on the Cyclospora update that we first told you about last week. Right now, at least 378 people are infected with the stomach bug in 15 states. Authorities in Iowa and Nebraska say prepackaged salad mix may be the source of the outbreak. But the CDC tells OUTFRONT it actually can't say whether all of the cases are connected to the prepackaged salad.

Meantime, the FDA is trying to track down the source of the ingredients in those salads and tells us that the process is so labor intensive, it requires the collection of thousands of documents.

Well, O.J. Simpson gets parole, but not actually his freedom. I'll explain. The former NFL star was granted parole today on some charges related to his 2008 robbery convictions for seizing memorabilia he said belonged to him. But the thing is, Simpson is also serving consecutive sentences and other charges. So, it could be another four years or so before he's actually free, even with this parole granting. The family of Ron Goldman was not comforted by the news, telling OUTFRONT it's unsettling for our family to know that the person we believe responsible for Ron and Nicole's murder could soon have his freedom. Simpson was acquitted in their murders nearly two decades ago.

BURNETT: It has been 725 days since the U.S. lost its top credit rating. What are we doing to get it back? Well, the Federal Reserve today is doing a whole lot. And today, they characterized, recent economic growth is modest and at the same time, said it's expecting economic growth to pick up. But the Fed and this man, Ben Bernanke was mum on when it might slow down its stimulus programs, which a lot of people interpret it as a sign the Fed will keep the accelerator going and pumping money into the economy.

And now our fourth story OUTFRONT, the TSA gets a pat down or slap down. Let's see what you think is appropriate. A congressional committee held a hearing today to discuss an embarrassing report that shows the Transportation Security Administration had more than 9,000 cases of misconduct in the past three years. Top leaders of the TSA, an agency that was only created after September 11th had some very tough questions to face on Capitol Hill today. Rene Marsh is OUTFRONT.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

RENE MARSH, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The TSA on the hot seat again.

REP. JEFF DUNCAN (R), SOUTH CAROLINA: If integrity is a core value then, TSA, it's time to prove it. Stop with the napping, the stealing, the tardiness and disrespect and earn American's trust and confidence.

MARSH: The agency scolded and TSA leadership grilled on Capitol Hill by lawmakers for two hours. The agency has grown to become one of the largest government workforces. The TSA has 56,000 screeners operator at 450 airports. The cost to taxpayers: $5.4 billion last year. That's according to nonpartisan watchdog group Taxpayers for Common Sense.

So when a government report came out showing 56,000 screeners were involved in theft and more than 1,900 incidents that could hurt security like sleeping on duty and allowing family and friends to bypass security, the agency's big price tag raises questions.

JEFF PRICE, METROPOLITAN STATE UNIVERSITY OF DENVER: I think that's a really good question, we are well-past a decade past-9/11 now. And it's very fair for the American people to ask if they are getting for their money the security that we need.

MARSH: Jeff Price, a professor and airport security expert, is most alarmed by instances where screeners allowed family and friends to skip check points.

PRICE: If you look at most of the major terrorists attacks on aviation, from Pan Am103, PSA 1771, the list goes on and on. There has been an insider that facilitated or carried out the attack. A report like this exposes an insider security risk at a far greater level than we should be willing to accept.

MARSH: While the TSA agrees to improve how they monitor and follow up on misconduct investigations, they maintain the bad behavior is only a sliver of their workforce.

JOHN HALINSKI, TRANSPORTATION SECURITY ADMINISTRATION: Every single time we have one knuckle head who decides he is going to do something bad, it tarnishes the image of our organization. I have our people on the line, 365 days of the year, and they know if they fail, someone can die.

MARSH (on camera): Well, despite the TSA's no tolerance policy, one of the lawmakers said in today's hearing that not all of the screeners who stole from travelers were fired. Some were only suspended, others only given a letter of reprimand. Now, the TSA defended the move, saying they cannot fire an officer unless they can prove guilt -- Erin. (END VIDEOTAPE)

BURNETT: Imagine being locked up in a cell for five days with no food and no water, drinking your own urine to survive. That is what happened to 25-year-old Daniel Chong, who just settled a $4.1 million lawsuit against the Drug Enforcement Agency. The University of California San Diego student was detained in April after DEA raided a house where Chong was visiting friends. In that house, they found about 18,000 ecstasy pills, marijuana, prescription meds, several guns, and thousands of rounds of ammunition. Chong says he knew about the drugs or the guns and he was never charged.

He's OUTFRONT tonight to tell his story.

Now, Daniel, thank you so much for taking the time. I mean, just even talking about what you went through on those basic headlines is shocking.

Five days locked up in a 5x10 windowless cell. You thought you were going to die. You had a piece of glass on your arm. You wrote your mother a goodbye message.

Tell me what happened.

DANIEL CHONG, LEFT IN DEA CELL FOR FIVE DAYS: For the first few days, I was pretty much in denial. I couldn't believe what they were doing to me because I didn't think it was an accident because of how many people were involved. I really didn't think that they forgotten. So, I was -- I was a bit worried about what they were going to do and confused, all kinds of emotions, just a clash of emotions, all of it.

BURNETT: You had hallucinations. You were close to kidney failure. You had to go to intensive care.

CHONG: I just about to lose my mind.

BURNETT: It is not an exaggeration to say you had to die. You almost thought you were going to die.

CHONG: No, that's not an exaggeration at all. I was -- I could have died at any moment.

BURNETT: You lost about 15 pounds, right, during that time?

CHONG: I did.

BURNETT: And how did you survive. I mean, I know we talked about you having to drink your own urine which is horrific to even talk about. But that was your sustenance, right?

CHONG: That probably is what saved me. I knew I needed to drink some fluid. The only fluid that was around was from myself, which was urine. And scientifically you just know you are going to die without it.

I do watch "Survivor" shows and I did learn that you have to drink your own urine if that's all you have. So, I went ahead and did that.

The other thing I did was try to get the sprinkler going. There was a sprinkler attached to the ceiling. I tried to get that to spill some water so I can drink some of it or at least swim in it or something. It took a lot of energy because it was in the ceiling. I was barely tall enough to even reach it.

I also kicked the door, cries for help. I put shoe laces and pieces of my jacket under the door to let them know that I was there.

I did all kinds of stuff, whatever you can think of to survive in there I did.

BURNETT: Daniel, when you look back -- nine people, including you, were detained during the original raid by the DEA. And the agents, as you heard, they found all of this ecstasy, drugs, other kinds of guns, ammunition, they never charged you.

What were you doing in that house?

CHONG: No. I was celebrating 4/20. It's a holiday that a lot of college students, many college students celebrate to celebrate marijuana.

So I was smoking marijuana to celebrating like a party, a small party.

BURNETT: A party. And you weren't aware of the ecstasy and the really heavy kinds of drugs and guns in the house?

CHONG: Absolutely not. I knew about some spot but definitely not that stuff, no.

BURNETT: You were never formally arrested, never formally charged. You settled with the DEA for $4.1 million. Now, I know you are working towards a degree in economic, I believe, at UC-San Diego -- $4.1 million is a lot of money. I don't mean to say that you didn't go through hell because you did and it was horrific and you almost died.

But $4.1 million is a lot of money. What are you going to do with it?

CHONG: I'm going to buy a home for my family. And other than that, I'm pretty much going to protect it for myself and I'm going to lock it all away.

BURNETT: And save it.

CHONG: Right. I'm going for the retirement.

BURNETT: All right. Well, Daniel, thank you very much for telling your story and taking the time. We appreciate your coming OUTFRONT.

CHONG: Thank you.

BURNETT: Amazing story.

Still to come, a teenager kills herself after, first of all, being cyber bullied. Was Facebook responsible for her death?

Plus, there is no crying in baseball. But what about in the business world? Are tears a sign of weakness.

And why bars around the world are pouring some of the best vodka in the world down the drain?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BURNETT: Breaking news: the Senate has just voted to confirm B. Todd Jones as the head of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.

This is a big deal. It's significant because the politically controversial agency has not had a permanent director since 2006, of course, as there have been so many high profile and mass shootings. Senators voted 53-42 to approve Jones. He has been the ATF's acting director since fall of 2011. So, he's not someone new. But as you can see that vote is far from overwhelming. They were a lot of people who voted against.

And now to tonight's "Outer Circle" where we reach out to our sources around the world. I want to go to Italy tonight where Facebook is at the center of a suicide. Italian authorities are questioning teens who posted abusive messages on a 14-year-old's Facebook page and Facebook could actually be the target of a criminal complaint.

Samuel Burke is OUTFRONT.

And, Samuel, what is the allegation against Facebook?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SAMUEL BURKE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Erin, an Italian prosecutor tells CNN he is looking into throwing the book at Facebook for failing to remove offensive content that may have played a role in a 14-year-old girl's suicide. In January, Carolina Picchio jumped out of her bedroom window, landing head first on the concrete below. Before that, a video showed up in Facebook in which she appeared to be drunk and disoriented.

And then the prosecutor says her ex-boyfriend and his friends posted a steady barrage of abusive messages aimed at Carolina. Friends and family tell us they had reported the material to Facebook but say nothing happened. A Facebook spokesperson told us, we are deeply saddened by the tragic death of Carolina Picchio, and our hearts go out to her family and friends. Harassment has no place on Facebook, and we actively encouraged teens and parents to report incidents of bullying -- Erin.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BURNETT: All right. Thanks to Samuel.

And I want to check with Anderson Cooper with a look at what's coming up on "A.C. 360" tonight. Hey, Anderson.

ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR: Hey, Erin. Yes, we are keeping them honest tonight in the program.

A year-long investigation reveals how California's federally funded Medicaid system, MediCal paid out $94 million in the past two years to drug clinics that have shown signs of deception or questionable billing practices, including phony patients for drug treatments never provided, or treatments the patients didn't even need. State officials announced action. Tonight, Drew Griffin asked them what took so long and whether their processes to get tough actually add up.

Also tonight, new claims from NSA Edward Snowden about just how easy it is for government officials to dig up information on Americans just a few key strokes and even low level employees and contractors can do it. We'll speak with Edward Snowden's father Lon about those allegations, allegations that the NSA denies, by the way, and about why the FBI asked him to travel to Moscow to meet with his soon. All that and tonight's "Ridiculist," a lot more at the top of the hour, Erin.

BURNETT: All right, Anderson. Looking forward to seeing you in a few minutes.

And now our fifth story OUTFRONT, for crying out loud. Is it not OK for a woman to shed a tear? "Newsweek" has just released an article about "New York Times" executive editor, her name is Jill Abramson.

And for nearly 2,400-word about her career, lots of detail in there. But apparently only two words are important enough to make headlines. You can see it right there. Front page of the Drudge Report, "I cried."

Abramson admitted that she cried after an article suggested she was a failure. But would we see the same headline if it was a guy who cried.

OUTFRONT tonight, Margaret Hoover and John Avlon, who's also senior political columnist for "Newsweek" and "The Daily Beast."

All right. Great to see both of you.

We have been through this really, really nasty stuff. You know, hey, I appreciate it if it was one nasty article. But, you know, I want to read what Abramson told "Newsweek" after reading the "Politico" article. This was the article that, you know, had she believed called her a failure.

"I cried. I should say it went right off me but I'm just being honest. I did cry. By the next morning, I wasn't completely preoccupied by it anymore. I had my cry and that was that."

Do you think there's a double standard when it comes to men and women admitting tears -- JOHN AVLON, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: I do. I do think there's double standard. I mean, first of all, there's no crying in baseball. Crying in the workplace is more acceptable for women, definitely than men. But in this specific instance as well, I think that gets picked up because it's seen as a chink in the armor, and that's very unfair. You know, she is a tough woman. She is a successful woman. That out of (INAUDIBLE) entire piece, which was great. That was picked up.

And there is an element of meanness, as well as the humanizing element that draw this to that.

MARGARET HOOVER, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: OK. That you said, there is no crying in baseball means that there is no double standard. The standard for women is the same as the standard for men in the workplace. In other words, she's not expected to cry. Men aren't allowed to cry, women aren't allowed to cry.

And in finance, in news, in all these tough, hardcore industries where men have been at the top, the standard for women is the same as the standards for men. There is not a double standard. It's not acceptable. That's why this has made news.

BURNETT: Women do cry, people do talk about it. They do dock them for it.

AVLON: Yes.

BURNETT: So, that would mean, I mean, to her -- to Margaret's point, if you don't cry, it's OK, if you do, OK, people may say it's fine but --

AVLON: Fair enough guys. But, I mean, first of all, men and women are different. Men are more likely to get angry and punch a wall and I don't know what would happen if Jill Abramson had done, maybe just the same kind of pickup.

BURNETT: I punched a wall.

(LAUGHTER)

HOOVER: The whole story is her junior editor, got angry punched a wall. Men and women are wired differently. You know this, I know this.

BURNETT: We know this too well.

AVLON: We have experienced this. But I mean, look, I do think if a guy goes and cries in an office, it's a different thing. It's a little more acceptable for a woman to cry at work, not a dude.

BURNETT: All right. Margaret, Hillary Clinton, you know, remember that infamous, famous, whatever you want to call it during 2008, when someone asked how she's balancing and making everything work.

Here is Hillary.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

THEN-SEN. HILLARY CLINTON (D), NEW YORK: This is very personal for me. It's not just political. It's not just public. I see what's happening.

We have to reverse it. And some people think elections are a game. They think it's like who is up or who is down.

It's about our country. It's about our kids' futures. It's really about all of us and she cried.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BURNETT: And then she cried. And that won her the primary.

HOOVER: And then she cried, and then she won.

BURNETT: Because you know what? People thought she was a robot and too inhuman. That was for her --

HOOVER: And it humanized her. And it also humanized her.

Remember, that was a group of women, 16 undecided women voters. So, it was like, women on women and it played differently with women than with men. She was widely criticized by men, not so much by men.

BURNETT: All right, John Boehner.

AVLON: Yes.

BURNETT: I got a point of view on this but in case you forgot John Boehner's problem with the faucet area.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIPS)

REP. JOHN BOEHNER (R-OH), HOUSE SPEAKER: Making sure that these kids have a shot at the American dream. It's important.

I put my -- myself through school, working every rotten job there was --

And I think the top of our list is provided for the safety and security of the American people. That's at the top of our list.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BURNETT: I love that he cries. All right? If Nancy Pelosi did that, she would not be on top.

AVLON: Clearly, John Boehner is a man who's not afraid to cry. I mean, waterworks at the drop of a hat. I think, here's -- there is a double standard, I do think if Nancy did that, as much as John Boehner be held against her. On the other hand, the fact that Boehner does it, still a speaker, probably makes it a safe place if Nancy Pelosi goes down the waterworks --

BURNETT: Final word.

HOOVER: The issue is it's not about emotion, it's about emotions that men perceive as weakness. And crying men perceive as weakness. So if a man cries, we know a man is tough, if a woman cries, maybe she's not up to the job.

BURNETT: All right.

AVLON: OK.

(LAUGHTER)

BURNETT: Margaret gets the last word.

HOOVER: I don't agree with that. I just think that's the supposition.

BURNETT: Thanks to both of you.

All right. Well, every night, we take a look outside the day's top stories for something we call the OUTFRONT "Outtake." Do you know bars declared war on Russian vodka?

So, it started last month because Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a law on some very strict anti-gay measures. And since then, members of the gay community had been attacked and arrested. It's a horrible thing in Russia.

So, in protest of the laws, bars around the world have decided to stop serving Russian vodka, particularly Stoli. In the past week, the #dumpstoli has popped up on Twitter and bars across the United States have organized Stoli dumping parties.

There are just a few problems with the boycott. First of all, Stoli is really not Russian. Despite its name and Russian history, the company is based in Luxembourg and the Vodka is made in Latvia. Now, this is actually according to a letter from the CEO which they put on Stoli's new gay friendly Web site, which also describes the events they sponsored and the good works they've done.

All right. But this has not been enough for the organizers of the Stoli boycott. They say Stoli should be using its influence over the Russian government on behalf of the gay community. For example, the owner and founder of Stoli, Yuri Scheffler, has not met with Vladimir Putin once about the issue. And you know what, people? He isn't going to because Putin is trying to throw him in jail.

Ten years ago, Vladimir Putin tried to seize Stoli, launching what some called the Russian vodka wars. Stoli's owner fled Russia for fear of arrest, he hasn't been able to go back. Yes, it is true. Vladimir Putin is at war with the very company that's been boycotted for supposedly supporting him.

Now, look, the situation in Russia is very serious. But boycotting vodka won't accomplish anything. Stoli brings in $2 billion a year worldwide. If a few bars in America stop serving it, it's not going to make a dent in their business, never mind that they have absolutely nothing to do with Putin.

If they're really serious about civil rights in Russia, we should be lobbying leaders to do something when it comes to that country.

OUTFRONT next, exclusive, never before seen footage of former President Richard Nixon in the White House, shot by his own staff.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BURNETT: I've been fascinated by Nixon ever since I first saw the David Frost interviews. It was something about it, a human side to him that I always wanted to know more about.

Richard Nixon, of course, is one of America's most infamous presidents and yet, there are details about his life and his presidency that have not been revealed, which maybe amazing to think about but it's true and it's about to change.

Three of Nixon's top aides actually documented their experiences with home movie cameras, and it must have been, you know, really when that was a nascent technology, but they did it during their time in the White House, and that footage was seized by the FBI during Watergate and went largely unseen until now. Now, it's been compiled in a new documentary called "Our Nixon." The film introduces us to a Richard Nixon that few people knew. One interesting moment comes when Richard Nixon and his staff are discussing the TV show "All in the Family", which Nixon thinks is a movie.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RICHARD NIXON, FORMER PRESIDENT: I told Bob the other day, I was trying to tune into the damn baseball game, and then the game went off and CBS came on with a movie. They had two magnificent handsome guys and a stupid old fellow in it. They were glorifying homosexuality.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BURNETT: Things have changed. There's a lot more of these exclusive clips and you can see them on "Our Nixon" debuts, tomorrow night at 9:00 right here on CNN.

"A.C. 360" starts now.

COOPER: Erin, thanks.