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Deadly Flu Spreads; Captain Phillips Testifies Before Congress
Aired April 30, 2009 - 15:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
RICK SANCHEZ, CNN ANCHOR (voice-over): On day 101, it's time for another fact and fiction. Today, the socialism drumbeat.
And as if he knew we would do this segment, the president finally answers back.
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I want to disabuse people of this notion that somehow we enjoy, you know, meddling in the private sector.
SANCHEZ: Swine flu shuts down the Forth Worth school district, and the WHO sounds the alarm.
DR. MARGARET CHAN, DIRECTOR GENERAL, WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION: It really is all of humanity that is under threat.
SANCHEZ: And this congresswoman is forced to apologize for calling the hateful, torturous killing of Matthew Shepard (ph) a hoax. And she said it in front of his mom. How would you feel?
Tell us on the country's first national news conversation, which begins right now.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SANCHEZ: And hello again, everybody. I'm Rick Sanchez with the next generation of news. It's a conversation. It's not a speech. And it's your turn to get involved.
First, and quickly, the swine flu outbreak raised, as you may have heard, to a category five as a health alert by the World Health Organization, while they also said this
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CHAN: It really is all of humanity that is under threat.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: Yes, those are strong words, a number of confirmed cases in the United States and around the world frankly rising faster than we can report it.
This is a clinic in California that we're going to be seeing. There it is. This is where patients are packed into a waiting room. They're worried, a lot of them, about their kids, parents, of course, right now. And this may change, by the way, during this hour. And we expect it probably will. The CDC is reporting 109 confirmed cases in 11 states. And in Fort Worth, that Texas school district has now shut its doors because of some students may have contaminated the disease.
We expect more news on this. And as we get reaction from Washington, during this hour, we are going to bring it to you right away.
Meanwhile, this story now, what would you rather be, a pirate's hostage or a witness testifying on Capitol Hill? Not many people are both. Captain Richard Phillips is in Senate chambers as we speak. We're going to be hearing from him in just a moment. You may have heard during Kyra's show that he is prepping. There were opening statements. Then they took a recess and he should be coming out any moment now.
Here's why this is special. He was rescued from pirates by the U.S. Navy earlier this month. Today, for the first time, he's telling the Senate Foreign Relations Committee what he thinks needs to be done to fight off piracy off the Horn of Africa. The House panel talks pirates today as well, by the way.
All right, what's he going to say? Put guns on merchant ships? Jack up the military presence in the Gulf of Aden? Avoid those waters altogether? What can we do militarily, economically?
Let's talk to Congressman Joe Sestak, former Admiral Joe Sestak, probably knows as much as much as anybody does about this. He's a Pennsylvania Democrat now, retired three-star Navy admiral, I should say.
What do you expect to hear from him? What do you want to hear that you think may clear things up that you were not -- that you were perhaps confused about before?
REP. JOE SESTAK (D), PENNSYLVANIA: Rick, what I think I would like to hear, but I'm not so sure we will, is what did this crew do on there that they knew how to respond to the captain? Were there certain signals that they knew? Did they have a safe place to go?
So, those types of more covert anti-piracy measures, I don't think we're really going to hear about it. But let's hope we get them out to the other types of merchant ships.
Second, I know he's going to say -- and I have read his testimony -- that we should have five senior officers on each vessel be armed and the captain to be able to control those five.
I think it's an understandable measure. But these are rocket- propelled arms that they are using. They could be shoulder-armed missiles tomorrow. We have seen an escalation. Really, if you want to squash this, it will take the U.S. Navy.
I have said it before. We have four ships there. We can place more. But, more than that, they have to transform to the unmanned air vehicles that can see down everywhere and get the small ships there with their helicopters armed that can go out and do -- stop this mischief.
It's a needed change, and I have heard nothing from the Navy on this yet.
SANCHEZ: Hey, Congressman, let's take a shot, Rog, if you can, inside the room where this -- where this testimony's going to be heard. There it is. We understood they took a recess just a little while ago. We were told it was a 10-minute recess. But you know how those politicians are. They will tell you 10 minutes, when it actually lasts....
SESTAK: I actually heard they had to go over for a vote, the senators.
SANCHEZ: Oh, is that's what's going on?
SESTAK: That's what I just heard before I came on.
SANCHEZ: So, what's your best guess for when you think these guys will come back?
SESTAK: I think, if they -- if I -- if they just went over for a vote, it could be as much as 30 minutes.
SANCHEZ: You know, I'm really -- I'm really interested in for the first time hearing his story, because the story in and of itself is captivating. And we have heard it from so many sides, but to actually hear this man sit there and describe what it was like to be inside that enclosed vessel...
SESTAK: Yes.
SANCHEZ: ... with literally three pirates who were all shot and killed by the Navy snipers...
SESTAK: SEALs.
SANCHEZ: ... it's an amazing story. You don't hear these kind of stories, certainly, a lot.
Do you think there's going to be any surprises in this? Or do you think what we have reported is pretty much up to par with what he's going to be saying?
SESTAK: I think that you have heard what you're going to hear about the inside story, because this is a pretty self-deprecating man, the best type.
And, you know, I have operated out there. I had SEALs in my battle group. I went out and operated with them and others. There's nobody better than our U.S. Navy, particular our SEALs. That said, though, what I would like also to hear him say is -- and he does have this somewhat in his testimony -- how good is our communications, particularly from all U.S.-flagged vessels, to the U.S. Navy? If you are able to communicate and tell that something is going on, and we have the right types of flying vessels out there, maybe we can even do more. So, I hope that is what we're hearing. But I have to tell you...
(CROSSTALK)
SANCHEZ: Hey, Joe, I think -- I think we got him. I think he's just -- he's starting to speak. Let's, you and I, listen in a little bit. What do you say?
SESTAK: You got it.
SANCHEZ: All right. Let's do that.
(JOINED IN PROGRESS)
CAPTAIN RICHARD PHILLIPS, FORMER HOSTAGE: And I'm a licensed American merchant mariner.
I was captain of the Maersk Alabama when it was attacked by pirates off the coast of Somalia on April 8. We have returned home safely. And for that, my entire crew and I greatly appreciate the actions taken by the administration, the Department of Defense, and, most specifically, the U.S. Navy SEALs, the Navy SEALs and the crew aboard the USS Bainbridge.
I want to thank you the management of Maersk and Waterman Steamship Corporation, who handled the situation, the crew and our families with great care and concern.
And equally important, I want to publicly commend all the officers and crew aboard the Maersk Alabama, who responded with their typical professionalism in response to this incident, the licensed deck officers who are members of the Master Mates and Pilots Union, the licensed deck officers and licensed engineers, who are members of the Marine Engineers Beneficial Association, and the unlicensed crew who belong to the Seafarers International Union, our dedicated merchant mariners, typical of America's merchant seamen, who are well- trained and who are ready and able to respond when necessary to protect the interests of our country.
I need to make it clear at the outset that I am unable to discuss the incident itself because of the ongoing investigation and pending legal action against one of the pirates. But I have had a lot of time to think about the difficult and complex issues of protecting vessel, cargo and crew in crime-ridden waters.
So, the focus of my comments will be my beliefs based on years of experiences at sea and what can or should be done to respond to piracy and to protect American vessels and crew.
I should also say at the outset that I realize my opinions may differ in some ways from other recommendations you have heard before and may hear today from others on the panel. Nevertheless, I do believe that all of us in the maritime industry understand that it is imperative that we work together to address this complex problem.
And I believe we are in general agreement on the main principles of keeping crew, cargo and vessels safe.
First, I believe that it is the responsibility of the government to protect the United States, including U.S.-flagged vessels that are by definition an extension of the United States. They're U.S. citizens crews and the nation's worldwide commercial assets. So it follows, then, that the most desirable and appropriate solution to piracy is for the United States government to provide protection through military escorts and/or military detachments aboard U.S. vessels.
That said, I'm well aware that some will argue that there's a limit to any government resources, even America's. In fact, due to the vastness of the area to be covered -- and the areas of threat are continually growing larger -- our Navy and a coalition of other navies currently positioned in the Gulf of Aden region may simply not have the resources to provide all the protection necessary to prevent and stop the attacks.
So, what other things can be done? In my opinion, the targets, the vessels, can be hardened even beyond what's being done today and made even more structurally resistant to pirates.
In addition, more can be done in terms of developing specific anti-piracy procedures, tools and training for American crews. I do, however, want to emphasize that, contrary to some reports that I have heard recently, American mariners are highly trained, and do receive up-to-date training and upgrading at the private educational training facilities jointly run by the maritime unions and their contracted shipping companies.
I have also heard the suggestion that all we have to do to counter piracy is just arm the crews. In my opinion, arming the crew cannot and should not be viewed as the best or ultimate solution to the problem. At most, arming the crew should be only one component of a comprehensive plan...
SANCHEZ: Well, there's a buzzword that we have heard so much of before.
Joe Sestak, come in on this, will you? Americans have been wanting to know now for certainly more than a month, why can't we arm these crews, so that they can protect themselves against these pirates? And we just heard the captain of a ship that was taken hostage say he doesn't think it's a good idea.
Can you shed some light on this?
SESTAK: No, I think he has a point here. We start arming our mariners -- and, first of all, what a great hero he is.
SANCHEZ: Yes, no question. This guy gave his life -- this guy, in cased you missed it, viewers, this is the man who gave or sacrificed his own life for the sake of his crew, and then was taken hostage by the -- I'm telling you, it's a movie of the week.
I'm sorry I interrupted you.
SESTAK: No, it's fine.
You know, my experience is that, once you begin at a certain level of conflict, it inevitably rises, unless you have overwhelming force. And that's why we have a Navy that's forward-deployed, not sitting here at home, in order to be out there with that overwhelming force. You can begin arming them, but is it just five men and then all of a sudden it's 10 men and women? How far do you escalate this?
No, this inevitably has to be why we purchased our Navy and why the U.S. Constitution says maintain navies, raise armies when you need them. This is our job in the U.S. Navy, because we could convoy them. There's only 50 ships that go northbound past Somalia each day and 50 southbound. We did it in the Persian Gulf in the mid-'80s in the middle of the Iraq-Iran war.
There's various ways for us to do this. Beginning to put the onus on the mariner isn't how we have done it historically, nor should we now.
SANCHEZ: And who better to be a part of the process of setting up some strategy or some technique for doing that than you? I mean, you're not only a congressman. You're a former admiral and you're probably as proficient with these types of strategies as anybody else.
Speaking strategies, before I let you go, because I know we're going to be monitoring this situation, I do have to ask you a political question.
SESTAK: Sure.
SANCHEZ: Given what's been going on in the state of Pennsylvania, given that you're a Pennsylvanian, given that Arlen Specter is now a Democrat, there was lot of talk that would you be running for that Senate seat. What are your plans now? Have they changed? Have you spoken to the president? Have you spoken to Democrat Specter?
SESTAK: No, actually, I have spoken to no one.
Senator Menendez actually gave me a call. I responded. But I haven't heard back yet. And he's got much more important things to do. And I'm pretty low on the totem pole. Here's what I believe.
The political Democratic -- the Democratic political establishment in Washington, D.C., can say whatever they want. And we need to listen to it. But, at the end of the day, this decision is going to be made by us very independent-minded Pennsylvanians. I'm in a district that's 53 percent Republican, 37 percent Democrat.
I wouldn't have gotten elected as a Democrat unless they were independent-minded. And I always remember, Rick, when I got out of the Navy, and I went up to my district and told a county chairman I intended to get in the race, he said, call the DCCC. I said, call the what? Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee.
And when I called them, they said, we don't want you in the race. We have someone else, called me back the next day to say the same thing.
(LAUGHTER)
SESTAK: And I said, I wasn't asking. I was informing you.
(LAUGHTER)
SESTAK: I learned from there. You need to listen to the Democratic political leadership. I have high respect for them. But at the end of the day, it's -- Arlen Specter found it was too hard to run against someone.
SANCHEZ: Yes.
SESTAK: that is not what politics is about. It's about, what are you running for? And I haven't seen his vote is going to change. So, what is he going to run for? And if he's got the right answers, he may be the man.
SANCHEZ: And if he doesn't? And if he doesn't?
(CROSSTALK)
SESTAK: If he doesn't, I have not made my final decision. And I think the types of issues we confront in Pennsylvania, health care reform, where he opposed it in the '90s.
SANCHEZ: Yes.
SESTAK: But, now, today, does he have a plan to cover everyone, in an accessible, affordable way? Think about what we have overseas and our defense reformation, transformation we need that Secretary Gates has proposed.
What does he say about that? Because we have, in Pennsylvania, the largest deployments and (INAUDIBLE) of our National Guard overseas. How do we take care of them with the right future? So, those are the issues I got to hear.
(CROSSTALK)
SANCHEZ: Yes. Well, you know, I will tell you, it would be -- Admiral Joe, if you go after Arlen Specter's seat, I can tell you this. It would be a fun -- it would be a fun race to watch either way. The only issue here, though, is, he seems to have gotten assurances from the president of the states -- president of the United States, pardon me, both in terms of resources and commitment to appear and campaign for him.
SESTAK: Yes, he has.
SANCHEZ: That would be tough to buck. SESTAK: Well, you know, again, I was quite taken that my election across the country and his also was coming to Washington to change the establishment, not to reestablish the establishment, which is kind of happening here.
SANCHEZ: Yes.
SESTAK: I was also, though, taken by this wonderful president, by what he said when Arlen came over. He said, look, I expect him to disagree.
So, I think he's that kind of a man that if a Democrat were to disagree, he would understand.
SANCHEZ: Joe Sestak, Admiral/Congressman, always get those in, as usual, thanks so much for taking the time to take us through this.
SESTAK: Thanks for having me, Rick. And thanks for thinking about the guy who is sitting in the diner in Upper Darby, Llanerch Diner. Take care.
(LAUGHTER)
SANCHEZ: All right. See you later.
SESTAK: That's who has got to make the decision. Bye-bye.
SANCHEZ: You got it.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MIKE HUCKABEE (R), FORMER ARKANSAS GOVERNOR: The Union of the Soviet Socialist Republics may be dead, but the union of the American socialist republics is being born.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: You heard it over and over again, President Obama's critics painting him as a socialist. He's talking about it, 100 days -- no, 101 days, fact and/or fiction, another installment tonight.
This is crazy. Was this an accident or was the queen of the Netherlands targeted by a car speeding out of control?
And then is the Republican Party becoming over-purified, as Senator Arlen Specter warns or charges? And what does that really mean? We're going to be talking to Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison. There she is. And she's going to give us the lowdown/strategy for revitalizing the Grand Old Party.
Stay with us. We will be right back. Promise.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SANCHEZ: All right. Got a lot of comments that have been coming in from you. And we are going to be checking them from time to time. We promise.
But there is absolutely no denying that the Republican Party was caught completely off-guard by the defection of Arlen Specter. Specter then went on to pour salt in the wound by suggesting that the party was both, A, eating its own and, B, becoming way too far right- wing.
When Specter said that, a lot of people were thinking. But is it fair? Is it true and how worried should Republicans be about their status and their relevancy as a party?
Here are some of the facts. One poll just recently showed that only 21 percent of Americans now call themselves or identify themselves as Republicans. Most of the growth for the party is regionally centered in the South. Hispanics and blacks are voting against Republicans in bigger numbers than before.
And now one of the party's few household names has defected.
Joining us from Capitol Hill is Texas Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison.
Senator, always good to see you.
SEN. KAY BAILEY HUTCHISON (R), TEXAS: Thank you, Rick.
SANCHEZ: What's happening to the party of Abraham Lincoln and Ronald Reagan? Are you worried, and what are your plans?
HUTCHISON: Of course we're worried.
I think we would have to be ostriches with our heads in sand if we weren't worried.
(LAUGHTER)
HUTCHISON: We need to look at ourselves thoroughly inside out. And anyone who is whistling past the graveyard, saying, oh, we need to do exactly what we're doing, we're right, by God, is wrong.
You cannot do that. You have to assess either your message is wrong or the message that -- the way you're putting it is wrong. And, of course, we stand for principles. We stand for very important, unifying principles.
SANCHEZ: So, you need to be more inclusive.
Do you feel like -- I mean, I know inclusive is one of those words -- you know, I'm getting a lot of press for being hard on Senator DeMint, which I didn't mean to, when he was saying we want to become the big tent -- or we are the big tent of freedom.
And that's one of those generalistic words and people go, what? But inclusiveness is something you have kind of got to shoot for if you can come up with some kind of strategy to get those people who don't normally vote for you. What would that strategy be? HUTCHISON: Well, I think we have to determine, what are the unifying principles to be a Republican? And then what are areas where we are going to disagree because of regionalism or representing our own states or perhaps a difference in philosophy on an issue that isn't a core principle, but is something that we could agree that maybe if someone differs on that issue, they are still welcome into the Republican Party.
SANCHEZ: So, do you agree -- when Arlen Specter says the problem for me running as a Republican -- and, look, let's be honest about this. Arlen Specter looked like he was going to get his fanny handed to him. And that's the underlying real reason he left. We all get that.
But he did say some things that were interesting about purification. He said that -- and I can't wait to get your take on this -- that some people are trying to purify the party so much that the litmus test is so difficult that when the person comes out the other end, there's no way he can be accepted by the party.
Is that too stringent, do you think, Senator?
HUTCHISON: I think that it is too stringent, if we are saying that you have to agree with a Republican platform or a Republican other senator on every single issue. We can differ on issues, like, you know, a social issue, an education issue, a better-approach issue, health care access, cancer. Many of these issues, we can differ -- and maybe in a regional way, there is a different take on it -- but not on core principles.
And I think we have to establish, what are the core principles that unify us? And I think it's pretty clear. It is the economic issues. It's looking at the long term, rather than just the expediency of the moment. It is free enterprise. It is small business.
We are a party that champions small business, and we want the regulatory environment to accommodate small business to grow and create new jobs and have a healthy, thriving economy. That should be the center of our party.
Then, if there are other issues where we disagree, we ought to be able to accept people in the party and welcome them. And that's what Ronald Reagan did.
SANCHEZ: Even if -- even if there's a disagreement. Those are strong and important words that you just shared with many of our viewers.
And I guess, you know, the best news out of all this, if you are a person who is a Republican and wants to see this party come back, which to a certain extent I think all Americans should, whether Republicans or not, is that these things are generally cyclical, that you could look back in history and see times where both sides were way up and they thought the other party was doomed. And somehow they have come back, both sides. So, you know, it's just an interesting caveat to share with you as we close out the conversation.
(CROSSTALK)
HUTCHISON: It's when the parties go too far. That's when it starts turning back.
SANCHEZ: Because Americans tend to live in the middle. Even if -- even if there are news stations and radio shows who make it look like that 10 percent on the fringe is actually the middle, it's not true. And you and I know that.
Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison, thanks so much for taking time to take us through this.
HUTCHISON: Thank you, Rick.
SANCHEZ: Good conversation.
HUTCHISON: Thank you.
SANCHEZ: Cameras mounted inside a bus capture a crash moments after the driver is seen texting on his phone. You don't want to miss this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CARRIE PREJEAN, MISS CALIFORNIA: Ever since I was a little girl, you know, I read in my Bible that a marriage is between a man and a woman.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: Miss California capitalizing on the very issue that may have cost her the Miss USA crown, campaigning for opposite-sex marriage.
Opposite. Huh?
Also, as more schools close and threat levels remain on high alert, we continue talking to experts about the H1N1 virus, also known as swine flu. I know. It gets a little confusing. It may be for a couple of days. But we will get you through it.
Stay with us. We will be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SANCHEZ: Looking for a couple of tweets I want to share with you here. Let's go, Johnny B. Goode. Let's go to the Twitter board.
This one says: "GOP needs to go the way of the Whigs." Wow, remember them? It's like taking out your history books.
All right, let's flip it around. Let's go to Facebook, if you can, Johnny.
Daniel Hervey is watching, too. He says: "Arlen Specter changed a letter underneath his name. It didn't change what he stands for, whatever that really is."
Wow, you guys are being harsh today.
We welcome you back. If there's one thing this show is known for, it's interactivity. We converse. We Twitter. We Facebook. We Skype. We text, right? And it's all good, right. Sure, unless you're a driver, a bus driver, in Texas trying to text while you're driving disabled passengers in your bus.
Watch as this driver pulls his phone out of his shirt pocket and then crash. Let's take the first view. Hit it, Rog. Boom. And now, for your viewing pleasure, here's another angle still, the view of the passengers on board. That is absolutely crazy. And he's actually caught on the tape reaching into his pocket, taking out the text, and doing this while he's trying to drive the car. Not a good idea. For that, he has lost his job.
Driving and texting, not good. Texting while watching this show, good. Got it? Get it? Good.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They're coming with the SWAT car.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They're coming with the SWAT. Damn it!
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: It is a sign of the times. Kent State in many ways begun a movement 39 years ago. Guess what gets students in streets these days? This one's a riot.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
OBAMA: I can report that the necessary steps have been taken to give one of America's most storied automakers, Chrysler, a new lease on life.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: Why is the president of the United States making announcements for a private company? His critics call him a socialist. And now you're going to hear what he is saying about that which his critics say about him.
And this, why would a U.S. congresswoman talk about a young man's brutal murder as a hoax, and in front of his mother, no less? You have to hear this one to believe it. And you will.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SANCHEZ: You know, it's interesting watching the market today. It turned down really big, then rallied, and then went down, and now it's just kind of flat. It's kind of hanging around 9 under and then 9 up and on and on it goes.
(INAUDIBLE), give me that quick shot over there of that Twitter. Go ahead and flip that around. Yes, go ahead, you know why? Because we've been getting these for quite some time and I want to be nice enough, I guess, I don't know, Christian enough to help this guy out. Let me read that if you can. Donna (ph), move it back just a little bit.
"Appeal from the heart. Last day, Autism Awareness Month. If you are aware, please take action. Help now. Causecast.org. Hope." There you go. TannersDad, good luck to you.
I can't show you this to comment enough times, though, it's seven seconds that sums up the flu emergency perfectly, and somewhat alarmingly. Hit it, Raj (ph).
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DR. MARGARET CHAN, WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION: It really is all of humanity that is under threat.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: It really doesn't get more serious than that now, does it? If you inhabit Earth, you are in danger of being infected, is what she seems to be saying, by the h1n1 virus that we've come to know as the swine flu. Here are some of the latest figures from the World Health Organization, the CDC in this country.
Let me look at a couple of these for you. First of all, 257 cases confirmed worldwide. More than 100 of them now apparently in the United States. This is Mexico. Take a look at that. This is where thousands of people are packing clinics and hospitals with flu symptoms or are just afraid of the virus that may have killed more than 150 people. That is still unconfirmed, by the way.
The WHO has a six-level pandemic threat scale, and today that global threat level is five. Meaning the virus is jumping from person to person very easily. Health officials say there is no vaccine, and right now, really, we hate to say, no good answers either.
This is crazy. Was the queen of the Netherlands the target of this completely out-of-control vehicle that took out many people?
Also, her answer put her -- her -- her in the national spotlight of scrutiny during the pageant. Now she's turning her loss into a gain by promoting opposite-sex marriage. That's right, opposite sex.
And Jon Stewart does the unthinkable, to me! You're not going to believe this. It's something this guy never does! Check his temperature. Could be swine flu or something. Nah, we'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) SANCHEZ: For two days now we have been wanting to bring you a segment that we call "100 Days" Fact and Fiction," about President Obama, with an emphasis on the accusation that he is a socialist, much heard. We didn't think the segment would even ever make air, until for the first time last night the president talked about it.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: But I want to disabuse people of this notion that somehow we enjoy, you know, meddling in the private sector. If you could tell me right now that when I walked into this office that the banks were humming, the autos were selling, and that all you had to worry about was Iraq, Afghanistan, North Korea, getting health care passed, figuring out how to deal with energy independence, deal with Iran and a pandemic flu, I would take that deal.
(LAUGHTER)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: We're going to be talking this Amy Murphy about this -- Patricia Murphy, pardon me, with in just a little bit, this business about him being a socialist in a special segment we've been planning for several days.
Meanwhile, Miss California is cashing in on her 15 minutes of fame and then some. She's now starring in a new campaign to promote opposite-sex marriage, you heard it right. Not marriage, not traditional marriage, but rather, opposite-sex marriage. And where does that all come from? This...
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CARRIE PREJEAN, MISS CALIFORNIA USA: Well, I think it's great that Americans are able to choose one or the other. We live in a land that you can choose same-sex marriage or opposite marriage. And you know what, in my country, and in my family, I think that I believe that a marriage should be between a man and a woman, no offense to anybody out there, but that's how I was raised, and that's how I think that it should be, between a man and a woman.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: That was two Sundays ago, and now as of last night, there is this. There's a brand new campaign sponsored by the National Organization for Marriage to promote, quote, "opposite-sex marriage." We've looked at the video. You'll see parts of it.
First, though, I want to bring in now Marvet Britto, she's an entertainment and brand specialist in New York.
Marvet, what's going on here? It's like turning a difficult situation -- because she has every right to say what she said, by the way, and anyone who is probably watching here will defend it. However, she was not particularly articulate, nor was she correct. She started her statement by saying, there's a choice in the United States, everyone has a right to same-sex marriage. Well, no, they don't.
MARVET BRITTO, ENTERTAINMENT AND BRANDING SPECIALIST: You're right. We don't. And I think she was nervous, and probably surprised at the question. Nonetheless, I think that what she really wanted to communicate was that she had standards and beliefs from which she was raised.
And, you know, I don't think she was passing judgment on anyone's decision. And I think what she was saying, in error, is that we do have the right to choose. And we actually don't. It's not legal. We have a right to make decisions, but we don't have the right to choose.
SANCHEZ: But the idea of taking this and now turning it into a campaign is certainly not new. Taking a negative and trying to turn it into a positive, it's probably smart. I understand her spending $1.5 million on this. The title is kind of interesting, though, promoting opposite-sex marriage. What -- what's going on here?
BRITTO: I don't think they know what the title should be. I think they're really leveraging the equity built around the verbiage that she used. That's essentially what they're doing. But what they really are doing are leveraging her position.
Corporations seek to align themselves with individuals based on their character and moral standard. And that's really the reflection of what we see the structure of this campaign being built around. She took a position which in this day and age people are afraid to do. Opinions are never unanimous.
So, therefore, you know, what she did...
SANCHEZ: But wait. But wait, no, wrong. No. You know, you know, I'm going to disagree with you here. I don't think there's anything wrong with taking a position.
BRITTO: Right. Exactly.
SANCHEZ: No matter what your position is.
BRITTO: So why are we...
SANCHEZ: It's how you state your position.
BRITTO: Exactly.
SANCHEZ: And a certain level of education, articulateness, and diplomacy is necessary when stating a position.
BRITTO: Well, but we have to look at...
SANCHEZ: She didn't exhibit either, any of those three traits, did she?
BRITTO: But, Rick, this was a beauty pageant. You know, what -- I don't think we expect -- she wasn't running for office. So, our level of expectation from beauty contestants, she was standing there answering the question in a bathing suit.
SANCHEZ: Well, then don't ask the questions.
BRITTO: Well, but she was asked the question. So I think that the question becomes -- you know, she stated her position and she gave her opinion, so at this point I think we really should support her opinion.
We may not all agree with it, but I think the fact that she was woman enough to stand behind it when she could have backed away from it, you know, we're living in a day and age...
SANCHEZ: You're right.
BRITTO: ... where people are celebrated...
SANCHEZ: You're right.
BRITTO: ... for their bad behavior. So, she had character, moral standards, integrity. We should celebrate that.
SANCHEZ: You're absolutely right. And you and I both compliment her for that. Some of the other stuff, I suppose she could probably use a little criticism or maybe a little help with.
BRITTO: Yes, she does.
SANCHEZ: And we'll leave it at that. But she's young and will learn. Marvet, thanks so much. Great having you on.
BRITTO: Thank you.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They are coming with the SWAT car.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They're coming with the SWAT?
SANCHEZ: Kent State wasn't this, the place where students once had a purpose? Well, what's the purpose now, a beer shortage? My, how times have changed.
And why did this U.S. congresswoman call accounts of the killing of a gay young man a hoax, with his mother in the room? I'm going to tell you what she's saying today.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. JIM DEMINT (R), SOUTH CAROLINA: The biggest tent of all is the tent of freedom.
SANCHEZ: The biggest tent is freedom? Freedom? I mean, you've got to get...
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: Play-offs? Another one of the interviews from the show is going viral. This show. Kind of weird how that happens a lot, huh? And now Jon Stewart is in on the mix. You will see what Stewart says.
And you know what else you're going to see? Some real cool video of Jon you've probably never seen before of him looking really goofy. We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SANCHEZ: We are getting so many comments on that conversation we had a minute ago about Miss California.
Anyway, 1970, Kent State University became the clarion call for college students all over the United States. You recall this? Kent State was the place where National Guard troops shot and killed four protesters and just about paralyzed the Nixon presidency. It was the protest that sparked many more protests. A bold and poignant time for all Americans, no doubt.
This past weekend, though, at Kent State there was another disturbance. And this one began as a party. Yes. Here, too, men in uniforms clashed with students. But unlike its namesake protest, there is nothing honorable or even memorable about this clash.
This one is about students, who unlike many in their era before them, simply have nothing to say, except maybe more beer here. Here are the pictures, uninterrupted.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hey, if I can reach in my...
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: The good news is there were no injuries. But there were 50 arrests. University officials say the students got out of control. Kent State, students got out of control. As aforementioned, not because of a weighty cause but rather, quote, "because of warm weather mixed with alcohol," stop quote, from university officials.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. VIRGINIA FOXX (R), NORTH CAROLINA: The hate crimes bill that's called the Matthew Shepard bill is named after a very unfortunate incident that happened...
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: Have you ever wished you said something that you could take back? A congresswoman made some hurtful comments about a young man whose brutal murder inspired a hate crimes bill.
And then, Jon Stewart of "The Daily Show" does something completely, completely unexpected regarding me. Jon Stewart doing something unexpected. Stick around. You're going to see it, next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SANCHEZ: Welcome back. I'm Rick Sanchez here in the world headquarters of CNN. There are now, we are happy to report, a list of interviews that we have done on this show that have gone viral. That's when somebody picks it up, sends it to somebody else, links it to a Web site, or another Web site, then it gets posted on YouTube, wala, you know the drill, viral.
There was, as you'll recall, the famous Goldfarb interview, also known as the "no, Michael, I don't who you're talking about" interview. There was the "Joe the Plumber" interview. There was the Tony Alamo interview. And now the senator, Jim DeMint interview.
And nobody can make a TV moment go viral faster than Jon Stewart of "The Daily Show."
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DEMINT: What we need to do as Republicans is convince Americans that freedom can work in all areas of their life, for every American, whether it's education or health care.
JON STEWART, HOST, "THE DAILY SHOW": What the hell does that mean?
(LAUGHTER)
DEMINT: Every American, whether it's education or health care or creating jobs...
SANCHEZ: What the hell does that mean?
(LAUGHTER)
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
STEWART: Sanchez! Nice! Nice work, Sanchez. Wow, saying that feels weird.
(LAUGHTER)
STEWART: You know what? In honor, Mr. Sanchez, of saying what everyone at home was thinking, "The Daily Show" will now officially retire the videotape of you getting Tasered that we've had so much fun with over the years.
(LAUGHTER)
STEWART: We'll never, ever show it again, except perhaps for this one last time.
(LAUGHTER)
SANCHEZ: Uh! Guh-ai-ayah-oh! Oh, oh, oh, oh! (LAUGHTER)
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
STEWART: You know what? I'm sorry. I changed my mind. We're keeping it.
(LAUGHTER)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: Don't Tase me, bro! In fact, let's do this, Jonny boy. You hold back on that Tasing tape and I might just consider holding back on what's contained inside this video. Johnny (ph) be good, you've got a shot of this, you see what that says right there? "Rick's ultimate revenge tape." I've been saving this for a very special opportunity here. You see it? Rick's ultimate revenge tape. All right, you hold yours back and I'll hold this one back.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
STEWART: Jon Stewart, Patty Rosborough, a show called "Short Attention Span Theater," Comedy Central. Those viewers' choice (ph), the five neat guys (ph), for killer whale (ph) in Stamford, Connecticut, hey, call the forest rangers, we're into livestock, we're going to the sportsman's club. Today, we're going on a snake safari.
Yes, we've got juggling in this for you.
PATTY ROSBOROUGH, CO-HOST, "SHORT ATTENTION SPAN THEATER": Oh, you juggle.
STEWART: Yes.
ROSBOROUGH: Do a little.
STEWART: All right. Here we go. Here to do some juggling for you are Michael Motion (ph) and Bob Nelson (ph).
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: Oops! We ran it. On second thought, I think I'm going to hold this one for a while myself. Jon Stewart, ladies and gentlemen, that was kind of fun actually.
And all week by the way, I've been marking the president's first 100 days in office, as has everyone else in the media, including Jon Stewart, I'm sure, in part because the suits in New York told me that this was a network-wide initiative, and partly because I saw it as really a great opportunity to separate fact from fiction, as much as anyone can.
For example, there has been this relentless charge from the critics that the president of the United States is a socialist. If it were on bumper stickers and radio talk shows only, you'd say, OK, so what, right? But these are statements that have been coming from respected politicians, Senator Jim DeMint, Republican of South Carolina. He calls Mr. Obama the "world's best salesmen of socialism."
House Minority Leader John Boehner has called the president's budget proposal "one big down payment on the new American socialist experiment." And not to be outdone, here's Mike Huckabee comparing America under President Obama to the Soviet Union.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MIKE HUCKABEE (R), FMR. PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: The Union of Soviet Socialist Republicans may be dead, but the "Union of American Socialist Republics" is being born.
SANCHEZ: Patricia Murphy joining us now from Washington to take us through this. Go ahead, get your laugh out about the Jon Stewart -- you liked that, didn't you?
PATRICIA MURPHY, "THE CAPITOLIST": I forgot about the Tasing. I just...
(LAUGHTER)
SANCHEZ: Don't Tase me, bro.
MURPHY: I'm sorry. OK.
SANCHEZ: Patricia Murphy writes a column for Politics -- what do you write a column for?
MURPHY: For Politics Daily, and the column is called "The Capitolist," to prepare us to talk about socialism, but it's with an O, not an A.
SANCHEZ: And if you're doing it, I'm sure you're doing it well. By the way, why has this been such a prevalent charge? And who's it hurting the most, the accuser or the accused in this case?
MURPHY: Well, this is being done -- a Republican go-to move is to call Democrats socialists, to accuse them of liking the French, they eat french fries, they go to the socialism well all the time. The difference this time is that if you define socialism as government ownership of industry, we are there.
Now George Bush started it, Barack Obama has continued it. The real question will be once we get past this economic crisis, what does Barack Obama do to divest the U.S. government of the car companies and the banks?
SANCHEZ: Well, down to 30 seconds, but isn't it -- it used to be chic, or it used to more liberal rather than socialist or communist. Just call him a liberal, that's bad enough. Has liberal become chic or something now where they don't use that?
MURPHY: Well, you know, what see happening is not that liberalism has become anything that anybody wants to be. You don't hear Barack Obama calling himself a liberal. Conservatism has taken a few hits lately, especially with Arlen Specter leaving the Republican Party. And I think that they've got to go to a bigger word. They got to go to socialist, they've got to go nuclear, and that's what it is.
SANCHEZ: All right. Hey, thanks so much, Murph. Always great talking to you.
MURPHY: Thanks.
SANCHEZ: Wolf Blitzer is standing by now to bring us up to date on what's going on.
Are you in New York or Washington today, Wolf? I know you have a tendency to bounce back and forth.
WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: I'm in New York.
SANCHEZ: There you go.
BLITZER: Yes. We go back and forth. It's not very far, but I'm in New York still. I'll be back in Washington tomorrow.
We're going to be all over the swine flu crisis that's unfolding right now. We're standing by for Janet Napolitano, the secretary of homeland security. She's about to have a briefing. We're going to go there live and get all the latest on what's going on. Is it safe to fly right now? Is it safe to go on a subway?
The vice president of the United States, Joe Biden, had some controversial remarks, as you know, earlier today, and we're all over this story. We're also, all over the Chrysler bankruptcy, Rick. So we have a lot coming up.
SANCHEZ: All right. Thanks so much. Wolf Blitzer, look forward to it.
Why did this congresswoman call accounts of the killing of a gay young man a hoax with his mother in the room? I'm going to tell you what she said and what she's saying now. Stay with us, we'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SANCHEZ: Here's another one of those "what the?", it must be what the mother of Matthew Shepard said to herself as she heard a U.S. congresswoman describe her son's tortuous death as a hoax.
North Carolina Republican Congresswoman Virginia Foxx is seen here arguing against a hate crime bill, which has been named the Matthew Shepard Act. She tries to make the perfectly legitimate point, by the way which many agree with, that crime is crime and should not be categorized by the supposed intent of the perpetrator, fair enough.
But then she seems to go to too far. Listen for yourself. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
FOXX: That young man was killed in the commitment of a robbery. It wasn't because he was gay. The bill was named for him -- the hate crimes bill was named for him, but it's really a hoax.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: Actually, Shepard was killed by two men who pretended to be gay and lured him in. He was pistol-whipped, driven a mile out of town, tied to a fencepost so he couldn't get away. He was beaten repeatedly. He begged for his life. But it was to no avail. He wasn't found for 18 hours, and in that time, he slowly bled to death while tied to the fence in freezing temperatures.
Oh, but the congresswoman was right, he was also robbed. Congresswoman Virginia Foxx is apologizing today for her "poor choice of words."
That's it for us. We'll see you again tomorrow right here. Wolf Blitzer is standing by in New York -- Wolf.
