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President's Latin America Trip; Trade Tensions With Mexico; Maersk Alabama Crew on U.S. Soil; President's Latin America Trip; How Did They Get To Carnegie Hall; Feathered Felons; Yankees Stadium Opening Day; Securing our Border
Aired April 16, 2009 - 12:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: President Obama confronting challenges south of the border. The president due to arrive in Mexico shortly. He will meet with that country's president before heading to the Summit of the Americas in Trinidad and Tobago.
White House Correspondent Suzanne Malveaux back with us, live from Mexico City ahead of the president's arrival.
And Suzanne, what are the top issues President Obama will be dealing with on this trip?
SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, Tony, he is just hours away here from Mexico City, and one of the main topics is obviously going to be the drug war. And that is something that we saw just yesterday as the homeland security secretary rolling out this new position, this border czar, to try to deal with the violence that has crossed the U.S./Mexican border. Both sides very much impacted by this.
And Tony, this is just one of many different issues that he's going to be confronting during his trip.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MALVEAUX (voice-over): President Obama's goal -- to forge a new relationship with Latin America.
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We are ready to turn a page and write a new chapter in this story.
MALVEAUX: As a candidate, he slammed President Bush for neglecting the region.
OBAMA: We need to be full partners with those countries, show them the respect that they deserve. That's how all of us are going to move forward.
MALVEAUX: Now he says it's time to reengage our southern neighbors. His first stop, Mexico, to show support for its president, Felipe Calderon, who's taking on his country's violent drug cartels.
FELIPE CALDERON, PRESIDENT OF MEXICO: We need to stop the flow of guns and weapons towards Mexico. MALVEAUX: Here, Mr. Obama will reiterate what his attorney general and secretaries of state and Homeland Security have said visiting this side of the border. The U.S. shares the responsibility and blame for the deadly flow of drugs and weapons across the U.S./Mexico border.
HILLARY CLINTON, U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE: Our demand for drugs is what motivates these drug gangs.
MALVEAUX: Immigration reform which collapsed under President Bush will be another hot button issue.
Friday, Mr. Obama heads to the twin island Caribbean nation of Trinidad and Tobago for the Fifth Summit of the Americas. There, he'll be one of 34 world leaders addressing the summit's official agenda, which includes the global economic crisis, the environment, energy, democracy, and security.
But many political analysts say Mr. Obama's most important task will be to reconcile a bruised and neglected relationship with the western hemisphere.
PETER DESHAZO, DIRECTOR OF AMERICAN PROGRAM, CSIS: That's the key -- the key factor there. A desire to work with the United States just as the United States is going to demonstrate its desire to cooperate with the countries in the region.
MALVEAUX: Aides say the president's approach will be similar to the one he used in Europe last week, to listen and learn, as well as lead. But issues like immigration and Cuba could make changing U.S. relations with Latin America difficult.
Monday, ahead of the summit, the Obama administration announced it would loosen long-standing restrictions on Cuban-Americans who want to visit and send money to their relatives in communist Cuba. The move was aimed at fulfilling Mr. Obama's campaign promise to improve relations between the two countries, but it was also intended to blunt criticism from some Latin American leaders who want Cuba readmitted to the Organization of American States. Cuba is excluded because it is not a democracy.
Cuba's former president, Fidel Castro, called the softening of sanctions a positive although minimal development because it failed to lift the trade embargo between the two nations.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
MALVEAUX: And Tony, I talked with White House aides who say they don't expect any big breakthroughs from this trip necessarily, but what they are really trying to do here is set a different tone of relations between the United States and Latin America -- Tony.
HARRIS: Can't wait to see how this all unfolds.
Suzanne Malveaux for us in Mexico City.
Good to see you, Suzanne. Thank you.
You know, ,a controversial cross-border trucking program with Mexico halted by Congress. Mexico responded by slapping tariffs on some American goods. Now there is speculation President Obama may take up this issue this week.
Details now from CNN's Bill Tucker.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BILL TUCKER, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Trucks and tariffs are at the heart of trade tensions between the United States and Mexico. Congress created those tensions when it stripped all funding from a program granting full access to our roadways to Mexican trucks and truckers in March. President Obama apparently would like to resolve those tensions by reviving the Mexican cross-border trucking program. The Teamsters Union representing employees in transportation and freight opposes any revival.
BRET CALDWELL, TEAMSTERS UNION: The Mexican government has no control over their transportation system. They have no computer databases. They have no drug testing facilities. They have no wage and hour laws. They are just -- every aspect of their system is lower than ours.
TUCKER: Yet a Department of Transportation spokesperson says that the department has submitted a set of principles to the White House regarding the cross border trucking program that are consistent with our obligations under NAFTA and that those principles are currently under review. They've not been made public, but the DOT says the principles will ensure all trucks on the road adhere to the highest standard of safety.
In theory, the program should open up opportunities for American truckers as well, allowing them access to Mexican roads for deliveries. But given the violence at the border these days, few truckers are holding their breath in anticipation, says the head of a group of independent drivers who is against the Mexican pilot program.
TODD SPENCER, OWNER-OPERATOR IND. DRIVERS ASSN.: For some to suggest that there are opportunities for U.S. drivers south of the border, that's sheer lunacy. No right thinking American would take a truck south of the border.
The first thing you lose is your cargo. The second thing you lose is your equipment. And the third thing you lose is your life.
TUCKER: Bill Tucker, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HARRIS: Wow.
All right. Trains on the fast track. Before he left for Mexico, President Obama unveiled plans for a new network of high-speed passenger rail lines. It envisions trains traveling at top speeds of 150 miles an hour. The plan identifies 10 possible corridors in all regions of the country.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
OBAMA: Building a new system of high-speed rail in America will be faster, cheaper and easier than building more freeways or adding to an already overburdened aviation system. And everybody stands to benefit. And that's why today, with the help of Secretary LaHood and Vice President Biden, America's number one rail fan, I've been told, I'm announcing my administration's efforts to transform travel in America with an historic investment in high-speed rail.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HARRIS: The president pointed to the success of high-speed rail in European countries as an example.
Sea Captain Richard Phillips is finally on dry land. He arrived in Mombasa, Kenya, today aboard the USS missile destroyer that helped rescue him from Somali pirates. A charter plane will bring Phillips back to the United States to reunite with his family and his crew. Those crew members arrived in the United States overnight.
Our Pentagon Correspondent Chris Lawrence is at the Maryland hotel where the crew is staying.
And Chris, what are the crew members saying about their ordeal?
CHRIS LAWRENCE, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Tony, we are just hearing some incredible stories about what actually happened on board the Alabama once the pirates got on board.
You know, these crew members are just so happy to be home, so relieved. But at the same time, disappointed that their captain is not here with them. He was just getting to Mombasa when they arrived here.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Before you go, what do you think about the captain of the ship?
WILLIAM RIOS, MAERSK CREWMAN: Very brave man. Very brave man.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He's extraordinary. He's very -- he's outstanding (ph) and he's fantastic.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Do you think he saved your life?
RIOS: Yes. But it was me, the captain, and the third engineer on that boat, in the lifeboat with the pirates. Us three were there.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I can't even imagine how that must have been. How was it?
RIOS: Scary. Scary. All we had were knives. They had AK-47s.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LAWRENCE: All he had was a knife, but he used it to stab the leader of the pirates. They said there was a scuffle, there was yelling, screaming. But what he couldn't know then was that by stabbing that pirate, he probably saved his life, because a couple days later, that pirate would ask the U.S. Navy for medical attention. They took him on board the USS Bainbridge, and that pirate was on the Bainbridge when those Navy SEALs opened fire and shot and killed the other three pirates -- Tony.
HARRIS: That is so true.
Look, Chris, I'm excited to see this reunion. When can the crew expect to be reunited with their captain?
LAWRENCE: Well, like I said, we know that Captain Phillips got to Mombasa aboard the USS Bainbridge about 3:00 in the morning, and we were told that there was a charter flight waiting for him. We expect that he will be on that flight at some point soon, that he will be home, I would say, no later than tomorrow at this point. Perhaps tonight. Perhaps tomorrow.
HARRIS: We need NORAD to track this thing. We need to know...
LAWRENCE: Yes.
HARRIS: All right, Chris. Appreciate it.
LAWRENCE: A lot of people got their eye on him -- Tony.
HARRIS: Absolutely.
Our Pentagon Correspondent Chris Lawrence for us.
Chris, thank you.
Drowning in credit card debt? Where can you go for some help? We will have some tips.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HARRIS: New numbers now to measure the recession.
First, maybe, just maybe here, a sign layoffs are finally leveling off. New claims for unemployment benefits fell to 610,000 last week -- 610,000. Now, that is the third straight weekly decline, but continuing claims climbed past six million for the first time ever.
No new signs of life in the housing market. New home construction dropped almost 11 percent in March. The pace of building the slowest in 50 years.
There are more than 600 million credit cards in circulation in the United States, two for every American. Now the big banks that give you credit cards want to help you manage them wisely? Hmm.
Gerri Willis, our personal finance editor, is joining us from New York.
And Gerri, can we really expect help from the industry that profits from our debt? Come on.
GERRI WILLIS, CNN PERSONAL FINANCE EDITOR: All right. Well, let's take a look at this.
HARRIS: OK.
WILLIS: Let's drill down a little bit.
First of all, this site is sponsored by the nation's most important credit card issuers, Bank of America, Capital One, Citibank, Discover, Visa, MasterCard. They've all come together and cooperated to provide you with a site that helps you manage your debt, communicate better with credit card companies, and hook you up with accredited credit counselors.
Now, having said that, credit card experts tell us that the launch of the site, it was introduced February 18th. Well, it coincides with an increased focus on credit card company practices and moves for, guess what, reform. Already, Senator Chris Dodd's credit card reform legislation is set to be voted on in the Senate, and new Federal Reserve regulations go into effect in July, 2010.
Critics say, hey, you know what? This is pretty much a PR move. And they say it's unusual when all these big competitors come together to work together.
All right. Having said that, I have to tell you, there's some stuff on the site you should know about.
There's a phone number for people in trouble. And that will hook you up directly with the right people and the card operators' offices that you may be trying to get a hold of. That's no small thing. It's a good thing.
You can also learn about credit card terms. There's also a debt calculator on the site. So there's good some stuff in here you might want to pay attention to if you are struggling with credit card debt.
HARRIS: All right. Well, let me spin this a little differently.
All right. I see the Web site address there. What do I do? Where do I go if I am having some trouble, some problems here with my credit card debt?
WILLIS: Well, the good news, Tony, is that you don't have to use this Web site if you don't want to, to fix your problem.
All right, first thing you do, you don't add to your balance. Put the credit card away. Don't use it. Don't buy more things on the card. Pay cash.
And then, secondly, contact that credit card issuer and ask for help. Here's what you can ask for, what they might be willing to do.
Maybe an installment plan where you break up the debt into bite- size pieces. Maybe you delay payments. Maybe you ask for a reduced rate of interest.
All of this, if your credit card get is out of control, how do you know? Well, if you can't make the minimum payment, then it's a very big problem indeed.
One other thing to ask for here that you can do on your own, without the help of the Web site or anyone else, transfer your balance to a new card with a low APR. Of course, you have to watch out for fees here.
That's another step you can take, as well. CardWeb.com is a great Web site to go to, to find out low cost credit cards.
HARRIS: Hey, Gerri, before I let you get out of here today, give us a bit of a preview of your big show this weekend, "YOUR BOTTOM LINE," please.
WILLIS: Well, you're going to love this. We're going to tell you how you can protect your family and your home from foreclosures and even mortgage scams. We're taking an intensive look.
We've got a great story, a great family who will tell their story. You will definitely want to join us. "YOUR BOTTOM LINE," this Saturday at 9:30 a.m. Eastern.
HARRIS: Can't wait. Thank you, Gerri. Good tips, as always.
WILLIS: Thank you, sir. Good to see you.
HARRIS: And check out our special report, "America's Money Crisis." Again, that is at CNNMoney.com.
There you go.
Mexican drug lords, you know, they take their religion pretty seriously. Wait until you see the chapels devoted to narco saints.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HARRIS: A city along Mexico's central Pacific Coast is seen as the cradle of the country's drug trade.
Correspondent Karl Penhaul paid a visit to Culiacan. It's a CNN exclusive.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KARL PENHAUL, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This is the shrine of highway bandit Jesus Malverde. Mexico's narco traffickers have adopted him as their patron saint.
It's an uncomfortable reputation for those who run this chapel in Culiacan, stronghold of the Sinaloa cartel. But they put the best spin on it.
"People don't just ask for help with illegal things," says curator Jesus Gonzalez. "They ask Malverde to protect their families, and don't just ask him for help narco trafficking."
Rosario Pacheco says he's repaying a favor to the villain with the matinee idol looks. He's lighting nine candles, bringing flowers, and paying $100 an hour for a trio of cowboy musicians, out of the price range of many ordinary Mexicans.
In a possibly risky move, I ask him if he was celebrating a drug deal. He says he earned his money as a carpenter in Arizona.
"I went to work there doing normal work," he says. "That's just the way it is."
I asked the accordion player if he recalls ever striking up a tune for Malverde-worshipping narcos. "I don't know anybody like that," he says. "And anyway, if I did, I wouldn't be telling you."
Visitors here seem keen not to be linked to illegal dealings simply because they're paying respects to a narco saint. Men in cowboy hats and ostrich skin boots slip in and out of camera shot. They are paying $400 an hour for two brass bands to play. They decline to speak on camera, but one says he's celebrating a good harvest of beans and corn, of course.
Musician Jaime Laveaga says he's hired to play at Malverde's shrine several times a week. He's forthright about who is calling the tune.
"The narcos have blind faith in Malverde," he tells me. "If they have a good harvest or cut a good deal, then they pay for several hours of music, light candles and bring flowers."
In another Culiacan neighborhood, another cult has taken root. They call this grim reaper skeleton "Holy Death." The faithful leave offerings of cigarettes and tequila, even lines of cocaine stuffed into the skeleton's nostrils.
"There's a meaning to everything, but in this case I can't say whether it was thanks for a job," says Chavela, who founded the shrine.
Critics, including the church, say Holy Death and Malverde are cults for thieves and narcos.
"If they don't get support from the Catholic Church for their killings and narco trafficking, then they look for options which don't question them or force them to change their lifestyle," he says
As you stroll in Culiacan's graveyards, you understand why the living grasp at any superstition that could help them live a little longer. The human toll of the drug war has been devastating. Through the windows of elaborate mausoleums, the faces of wealthy victims stare back, cut down, the newspapers say, by hit men.
Grave digger Jesus Gaston (ph) says most of the recent burials he's seen were young men killed in cartel vendettas.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's just about time before they kill you. Somebody's going to come back for you, yes. And they're going to know. Somehow, some way they'll catch you.
PENHAUL: Take this grave, Jesus Para (ph), known to family and friends as Lupito (ph). A cousin told me off camera that Lupito (ph) loved his life as a gunman. He was killed in a shootout, his AK-47 in his hands. The words on his baseball cap are testimony to the ideals he lived and died for: power, money, respect.
Karl Penhaul, CNN, Culiacan, Mexico.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HARRIS: Amazing reporting.
And in just a couple of minutes, a conversation with our Karl Penhaul in Bogota, Colombia. What issues will President Obama hear from Latin America's leaders at this weekend's summit? We' will find out.
A small businessman in upstate New York hopes to be hiring soon. His green cheese could cut the community's jobless rate, hovering near 10 percent.
Here's CNNMoney.com's Poppy Harlow. Her report is part of our new series, "Money & Main Street."
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
POPPY HARLOW, CNNMONEY.COM CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): For Cuba County, New York, an entrepreneur with an affinity for cheese could be just the stimulus that its struggling towns need.
LARRY ROSENBAUM, SARATOGA CHEESE CORP.: This is the beginning of a trend of bringing back manufacturing industry to New York State.
HARLOW: For 10 years, Larry Rosenbaum has been dreaming of a cheese factory, churning out kosher and halal feta and brie to the tune of 30 million pounds a year.
(on camera): What is the demand? And is it just in the U.S., or is it around the world?
ROSENBAUM: Well, actually, in the United States, the kosher cheese market is -- the type of cheese that's being made is not a high quality cheese.
HARLOW (voice-over): Drawing from local farms and using green technology, Saratoga Cheese Corp. hopes not only to make cheese, but also help surrounding industries.
DALE HEMMINGER, HERNDALE FARMS: It's a real important thing that we're getting another market for our product.
HARLOW: Dairy farmer Dale Hemminger was skeptical of Larry's plan at first.
HEMMINGER: I was a little concerned. I really admire the research they've done.
HARLOW (on camera): As soon as 2010, this barren cornfield on the outskirts of town could be home to a $40 million 64,000 square foot cheese factory. And with the cheese will come the jobs.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There are 75 people that will be employed at the factory.
HARLOW (voice-over): But Larry's dream is still $10 million short. He says he's raised $30 million, but can't break ground until he reaches $40 million.
As for the final slice of funding, Larry says both a dairy company and a private equity firm have expressed interest.
ROSENBAUM: We're not going to quit until we make it.
HARLOW: With 75 jobs at the factory, 150 construction jobs, and an estimated $140 million in local revenue waiting in the balance, a lot is riding on Larry's shoulders.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HARLOW: It certainly is. And Larry, his friends, his family, they've all invested over $1 million of their own money in this project, which has been 10 years in the making, Tony.
We're going to stay in touch with Larry and let you know how it goes for them, when they break ground.
"Money & Main Street" continues on CNNMoney.com around the clock. Also, you can see more of "Money & Main Street" tonight with Roland Martin at 8:00 p.m. Also, every Thursday morning on CNN's "AMERICAN MORNING" - Tony.
HARRIS: You know, I guess, I've got a choice of a couple questions I want to ask you here. What makes this green?
HARLOW: What makes it green is that he's actually -- Larry e- mailed me this morning after the piece ran on "AMERICAN MORNING," and said, "I'm at JFK. I'm taking off to go to Germany to get the final, final technology," because they're importing German cheese makers that we actually saw some video of in the piece that use only 25 percent of the current cheese technology that's general used in this country.
So the energy use is cut, Larry says, by 75 percent. And of course that saves them money. They just still need that final slice of funding, if you will, $10 million in order to break ground. Just a little pun there. Pun intended.
HARRIS: She said "slice."
All right. Poppy, good to see you. Good report.
HARLOW: You too. Thanks.
HARRIS: Can't wait to see more in this series.
Poppy Harlow for us.
What can President Obama expect when he meets with the president of Mexico and other leaders from the region over the next few days? I will get some answers from one of our top reporters in Latin America.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HARRIS: President Obama headed to Mexico right now to show support for the country's drug war. Yesterday, the White House announced that three Mexican organizations had been added to a list of suspected international drug kingpins. The president talked about the king pin law and a drug war in an interview with Juan Carlos Lopez of CNN en Espanol.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
OBAMA: I think that President Calderon has done an outstanding and heroic job in dealing with what is a big problem right now along the borders with the drug cartels. The kingpin law allows us to go after the finances, the financial underpinnings of the cartels in a much more aggressive and much more effective way.
And so that's just part of a broader strategy in which the United States and Mexico will be partnering. We are put more resources on the border. We are providing additional surveillance equipment. We are going to be dealing not only with drug interdiction coming north, but also working on helping to curb the flow of cash and guns going south.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HARRIS: From Mexico, President Obama heads to the Summit of the Americas in Trinidad and Tobago. The president hoping to forge a new relationship with Latin America. But he also faces several challenges.
CNN's Karl Penhaul, as promised, live from Bogota, Colombia, to talk about it.
Karl, good to see you.
I'm curious, what is the top of mind issue on the table for these leaders and the president at this weekend's summit. Is it the drug trade?
PENHAUL: I don't think there's going to be any specific common ground on one issue here, Tony. Yes, certainly what the U.S. administration wants to get done here is some kind of deal that will reduce at least the level of violence and hopefully the flow of cocaine into the United States. But the allies he's going to have for that are Mexico, of course, and Colombia. That's going to be the issue that Obama is wanting to get solved there.
He may also, once again, try and hit on these issues of a free trade area (ph) in Latin America. That's something that most of Latin America really isn't giving much credence to and really doesn't believe in the U.S. terms for that -- Tony.
HARRIS: I see. Karl, but, you know, the side show that could become the show is Venezuela's President Hugo Chavez. Now are there any concerns that are palpable where you are that there could be a Chavez-Obama moment, particularly given the hot rhetoric recently between the two men?
PENHAUL: I don't think we should underestimate that as becoming a side show. I think you're right. I think that that will become the show. Again, I don't think we should characterize it as a confrontation just between Chavez and between Obama, but more between the block that Chavez is leading in Latin America.
Don't forget, Chavez has called a pre-summit in Venezuela today. He's meeting with leaders of Paraguay and Nicaragua, Ecuador, the Bolivian leader is not here. But he was also talking to the Castro brothers over the weekend. And what really, I believe, that he's going to want to establish pretty early on is the new basis of relations between Latin America and the U.S. on Latin American terms.
It's all very well Obama saying, well, yes, we'll ease travel restrictions to Cuba. We've already seen the Castro brothers say that's not enough in the blockade. We also -- and the Latin Americans will know the experience with Kennedy back in the 1960s when he produced this alliance for progress to end poverty for all these social programs in Latin America, which was really nothing more than an effort to stem the rising tide of leftist and communist sympathies in Latin America.
And so the lesson in Latin America today is going to be keen to make sure that Obama doesn't play the social card in an effort to try and head off what Chavez and his allies say is a social revolution going on in Latin America right now -- Tony.
HARRIS: Karl, that's terrific.
Karl Penhaul for us in Bogota, Columbia.
Karl, as always, great to talk to you.
President Obama's homeland security secretary is apologizing to some veterans group offended by a department report about right wing extremism. The report said extremist groups may try to reach out to veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan. Janet Napolitano commented on the controversy earlier today on CNN's "AMERICAN MORNING." (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KIRAN CHETRY, CNN ANCHOR : You've been getting a lot of push back over this leaked domestic intelligence report warning of right wing extremist groups. Conservative and veterans groups saying that it unfairly targeted returning military veterans and gun right advocates without actually citing specific threats. How do you respond?
JANET NAPOLITANO, U.S. SECRETARY OF HOMELAND SECURITY: Well, this is an assessment, not an accusation, as the Veterans of Foreign Wars organization released yesterday. But I know that some veterans groups were offended by the fact that veterans were mentioned in this assessment. So I apologize for that offense. It was certainly not intended. I'll be meeting with the leaders of some of those groups next week.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HARRIS: The commander of the Veterans of Foreign Wars says the government would be negligent if it did not assess security threats.
Spain's attorney general is rejecting a call to investigate six members of the Bush administration over torture accusations. Human rights attorneys filed a complaint with the AG over the treatment of terror suspects held at the U.S. prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. Among the six, former Attorney General Alberto Gonzales. Spain's attorney general says the complaint has no merit. He adds that Gonzales nor any of the others were present when the alleged torture took place.
A group of musicians selected through YouTube auditions played at Carnegie Hall last night. So how did they do?
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HARRIS: A unique, unprecedented event at New York's Carnegie Hall last night. About 100 musicians had their dreams fulfilled thanks to YouTube and many people, like you I bet, who voted. Josh Levs is here to tell us all about the YouTube Symphony.
My favorite story of the week so far, Josh.
JOSH LEVS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: We are so happy for these people.
HARRIS: Yes.
LEVS: You know, it's about dreams fulfilled. How can you not love that? We were bringing you some of their stories just yesterday. I got a chance to interview some musicians in advance. They all sent in their audition videos online. Millions of people visited the website, chose who got to be there.
Well, last night we had a crew there, put together this for you. Take a look.
HARRIS: Awesome.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Welcome to an evening which is definitely a meeting of a lot of different worlds.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It was great to see something that started with one small seed grow into a big tree.
TAN DUN, COMPOSER, YOUTUBE SYMPHONY: When I was conceiving (ph) this work, on the streets of New York, London, Beijing, Shanghai, I heard those street (ph) noises. Then I thought, my God, this is the feel it (ph) beyond. This is (INAUDIBLE) spirit of today.
JENNIFER LINDSAY, YOUTUBE SYMPHONY: I have been to Carnegie Hall before. I've sat in the audience and watched performances and, you know, dreamed about being on stage. Never thought it would happen at all.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The whole world tonight is Googling around what's happening in Carnegie Hall.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: When once you've made it to Carnegie Hall, you've really made it.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Finalists of almost 100 musicians from over 30 countries. It's a great example of already of how YouTube really extends right around the world.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I probably won't know what it means until 10 years down the line when I look back at it.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It brings people closer together and lets them collaborate, you know, transcending geographical and linguistic boundaries.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HARRIS: How cool is that?
LEVS: So awesome.
HARRIS: You know, Josh, I want to ask about the reviews.
LEVS: Yes.
HARRIS: But as I do, you know what comes to mind is a line from the Al Pacino movie, "Author, Author." "The Times," what about "The Times." Did "The Times" review the concert last night?
LEVS: You know what, just for you, I'm going to start off with "The New York Times" review from last night.
HARRIS: That's what I'm talking about.
LEVS: Do you like that? HARRIS: Yes.
LEVS: That's what he's talking about. Let's give him what he's talking about. First graphic here. It's a quote from "The New York Times" review. Check it out, Tony. They say, "How did the symphony play? Quite well, actually. Though a little rough and ready, the performance had drive, color and passion.: Now they did say, "still, I wish the concert had been less gimmicky and more substantive." Anthony Tommasini over at "The New York Times."
But the good reviews overall keep going. We've got the next one for you here. The Associated Press being carried a lot of places here. Martin Steinberg, "from the joyous third movement of Brahms' Fourth Symphony, to the fiery crashes of Tchaikovsky's Fourth Symphony at the end, Thomas" -- that's Michael Tilson Thomas, the conductor -- "led the musicians in a remarkable performance."
The last one I'm going to show you, Tony, "New York Daily News." "The musicians performed works by Bach, Brahms, and Mozart as if they'd been together for years."
Such a good feeling to see these people. You know, some of them had given up on ever being professional musicians. Some aren't. And out of nowhere they get this dream fulfilled. It's a beautiful thing.
HARRIS: You can't give up. We say it all the time, you can't give up.
Josh, appreciate it.
LEVS: Oh, youtube.com/symphony, you can watch it.
HARRIS: We can watch it? OK.
Thanks, Josh.
LEVS: Thank you.
HARRIS: You know, you've heard of school pigeons, of course, but what about criminal pigeons, with feathers?
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HARRIS: Let's take a look at the big board now. Just past -- oh, boy, we're three hours plus into the trading day. As you can see, the Dow, after being down early in the day, is staging a bit of a rally. Modest to say the least. The Dow is up five points. The Nasdaq up as well, 15 points. We're following the numbers throughout the day right here in the CNN NEWSROOM.
Where's my robotics team? Is that my robotics team? Bedford High School in Massachusetts in town at the world headquarters of CNN. Well, not to see us, but actually to participate in a big robotics event at the World Congress Center just a couple of doors away. Good to see you guys. Another wave to your friends at home and family. a hi, mom, is always acceptable here. That's good. All right. Moving on now.
Prisoners are banned from having certain items, as you know. But that doesn't stop them from trying to smuggle in all kinds of stuff. Take a look at this. In Colombia, guards at one prison found a pigeon trying to fly in with parts for a cell phone. CNN's Tim Lister has more.
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TIM LISTER, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Detained on a smuggling charge, name unknown. Hidden in its pigeon-sized suitcase, parts for a cell phone. It's mission? To get the parts to someone on the inside of Combeta (ph) Jail in Central Colombia.
Authorities at the prison say the feathered felon was brought in for question after heavy rains forced it into an emergency landing. Trouble is the area around the prison is home to thousands of pigeons. Any one of them could be in training to be the next smuggler. As for this one, it was dispatched to an animal shelter.
But just what can a small bird carry?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: A swallow carrying a coconut? It could grip it by the half (ph).
LISTER: Carrier pigeons were widely used in the first world war to carry information about troop positions.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE, ACTOR, "VALIANT": I'm just what they're looking for, a pigeon with that -- with that something extra.
LISTER: Disney even made a movie about a carrier pigeon, named Valiant, joining the royal air force pigeon homing service, which really existed.
But in modern times, it's clear that pigeons have turned to crime. Just two weeks ago, a pigeon was detained at a prison in Sodacaba (ph) in Brazil as it dragged a cell phone charger across the exercise yard. Apparently bred inside the pigeon, the pigeon was smuggled out and then just flew home.
Brazilian prison gangs often use smuggled cell phones to organize criminal endeavors beyond the walls. Now they seem to have an accomplice.
Tim Lister, CNN, Atlanta.
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HARRIS: All right. Most of us have a different issue with pigeons.
Let's get a check of weather now. Chad Myers is in the severe weather center.
And, Chad, after a couple of pretty tough days here in the southeast, things are looking pretty good here in Georgia.
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HARRIS: One of the most popular personalities in sports broadcasting is leaving the booth. John Madden is retiring after three decades as an NFL analyst. Before that he had coached the Oakland Raiders for 10 years, leading the team to victory and Super Bowl XI. Madden says, you know what, it is time to play with the grandkids.
The nation's most famous sports franchise showing off its spanking new $1.5 billion home. That is right. It is opening day for the New York Yankees. Our Richard Roth takes us there.
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RICHARD ROTH, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): No one is more in awe of the new Yankees stadium than the New York Yankees themselves.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's blowing my mind.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The first thing that goes through your head is, wow.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I feel like I can see every single seat in the house and every single seat can see me.
ROTH: Those Yankee fans looking down are used to seeing baseball history made. Twenty-six world titles. Only next door, since 1923, at the original Yankee Stadium.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And here's the sultan of swat connecting for a round tripper.
ROTH: Yankee Stadium is the most famous sport ground in America. Club owners were careful to keep some of the traditions of the ballpark in the Bronx, including an opening to see and hear the rumble of the subway and a monument park dedicated to past Yankee great.
Baseball is also a global business. And while the sport may not be that popular around the world, the Yankee name is known.
DEREK JETER, YANKEE CAPTAIN: I can't imagine any stadium being better than this one. You know, so I think it only adds to the whole Yankee brand.
ROTH: And to pay for amenities, the fans will be doing more than offer thanks. They'll be paying a lot more for ticket. Part of the price for a stadium that is estimated at $1.5 billion. It's the world's second most expensive stadium ever built.
REGGIE JACKSON, YANKEE HALL OF FAMER: And you become the sports franchise, I think, of the century. And it gives you the economic support to be able to try to pull off a stadium, you know, with something like this. ROTH: The season opens during the worst economic times in decades. Bad timing for front row seats that cost $2,625 for one game.
HAL STEINBRENNER, GENERAL MANAGING PARTNER, NY YANKEES: I think if anybody in any business had known where this economy was going to go, they would have done things differently. So, look, there's no doubt small amounts of our tickets might be overpriced.
ROTH: The Yankees hope they can provide entertainment to help.
ANDY PETTITTE, YANKEES PITCHER: Times are tough. There's no doubt about it, you know. I'm thankful that people still love baseball and are paying the money to come and to watch us play.
ROTH: One of baseball's most cherished moments was a perfect game pitched by a Yankee at the old stadium.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: A no hitter, a perfect game for Joe Larson (ph).
ROTH: The announcer that day in 1956 thinks the new stadium is almost perfect, too.
BOB WOLFF, HALL OF FAME BROADCASTER: People will come all around the world to see this show piece. It will help even more if the guys who do the playing put on a great show. That's what really counts.
ROTH: Richard Roth, CNN, New York.
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HARRIS: President Obama has chosen one man to get control of America's border with Mexico. Who's the new border czar?
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HARRIS: In our last hour, I spoke with Tony Garza, the former ambassador to Mexico. I asked him about the border, how to secure it and how to deal with the illegal drug trade. Here's what he had to say about it.
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TONY GARZA, FORMER U.S. AMBASSADOR TO MEXICO: I support physical obstacles in some of the densely-populated urban areas. I think that's very important. You have that situation in Brazo (ph) Matamoras (ph), you have some of that Laredo, Nogales, and certainly in San Diego (ph) Tijuana.
But I think we need to spend more on technology, invest more in our partnership with Mexico. The truth of the matter is that you can't confront these transnational threats without a transnational sort of a system. And the Merida Initiative is about a real partnership so that we can work cooperatively against these cartels.
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HARRIS: The problem isn't only on the Mexican side of the border. CNN homeland security correspondent Jeanne Meserve tells us how new U.S. border czar Alan Bersin is approaching the problem.
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JEANNE MESERVE, CNN HOMELAND SECURITY CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Illegal immigrants and drugs coming north, money and guns moving south, and violence. These are the issues the new border czar, Alan Bersin, will grapple with.
JANET NAPOLITANO, HOMELAND SECURITY SECRETARY: You need to be able to have someone to help coordinate those efforts and to ensure that everything we are doing is designed to strengthen our security and trade partnership with Mexico.
MESERVE: As attorney general, Janet Reno's southwest border representative during the Clinton administration, immigrant rights advocates say Bersin's hard knuckle tactics drove illegal aliens to make dangerous desert crossings. Others say Bersin is an excellent pick with a big overarching challenge in U.S./Mexico relations.
STEWART BAKER, FORMER DHS POLICY CHIEF: Politics on both sides. There will be suspicions about our interests and our motive and there will be suspicions about whether the Mexican government can carry out its promises.
MESERVE: In recent years, the number of border agents has doubled, 618 miles of border fence have been built, sensors and drones have been deployed. One expert says Bersin needs to take a different approach.
EDWARD ALDEN, COUNCIL ON FOREIGN RELATIONS: We assume that the solution to every issue on the border is to ramp up enforcement. And we have been ramping up enforcement. We've done it very substantially in the last three, four years, and yet the problems continues to get worse.
MESERVE: Bersin has already taken one thing off the table -- troops on the border.
ALAN BERSIN, DHS BORDER CZAR: We should always be careful to be operating within a very sound, constitutional tradition that served us well.
MESERVE (on camera): In Washington, special czars have a history of being ineffective. But because Bersin is inside the Department of Homeland Security and will report directly to the secretary on a high priority issue, some analysts think he has a better chance of success.
Jeanne Meserve, CNN, Washington.
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HARRIS: And we are pushing forward now with the next hour of CNN NEWSROOM with Kyra Phillips.
