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U.S. Soldier Kills 5 Comrades; Will Miss California Stay?; Trump on Miss California's Title; Miss California Gets to Keep Crown, Title; Mental Toll of War, Rep. Sestak Discusses How We Can Help Our Troops Overcome, Treat PTSD; Remembering China's Devastating Earthquake

Aired May 12, 2009 - 11:00   ET

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

TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: And good morning, everyone. It is Tuesday, May 12th.

Here are the top stories in the CNN NEWSROOM.

An American Army sergeant in Iraq charged today with the murder of five U.S. soldiers. We will explore the role combat stress may have played in the strategy.

Florida's Republican governor announces he wants a new job in Washington. Charlie Crist for Senate and implications for this critical battleground state.

Anti-gay marriage remarks, racy photos -- will pageant owner Donald Trump strip Miss California USA of her crown? An answer live this hour.

All right. Let's go.

Good morning, everyone. I'm Tony Harris, and you are in the CNN NEWSROOM.

The U.S. soldier accused of gunning down his fellow troops is now identified and charged. Five American forces killed at a stress clinic at Camp Liberty near Baghdad. New details coming from the military.

Let's get straight to our Cal Perry. He is in the Iraqi capital.

Cal, what do you know?

CAL PERRY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Tony, we have a name for the shooter now. His name is Sergeant John M. Russell. He's based with the 54th Engineering Battalion out of Bamberg, Germany.

Now, a number of red flags immediately raised as we continue to hear details from the military. First and foremost, a week ago, his commander took his weapon from him based on actions and things that he had said. So clearly this soldier was pegged as a potential problem.

He managed to get his hands on another weapon. We understand it was either an M-4 rifle or a pistol. Those are military-issued weapons, so it was not his weapon. It must have been somebody else's. We do not know how he got his hands on that weapon.

He went into that clinic, he shot five U.S. soldiers. Two from the 55th medical unit. They were both officers, three others were enlisted soldiers. Unclear at this point if they were being treated for potential stress, as well -- Tony.

HARRIS: Cal, do we know why the commanding officer took the weapon away from the sergeant? Do we know anything about his psychological condition, his medical history?

PERRY: We don't. We don't have a motive for the shooting yet either, Tony. But what we do know, according to General Perkins, who's the lead spokesman here in Iraq, is that the weapon was taken away from the soldier based on actions and things that the soldier had said. So, reading between the lines, we can tell if the commander took his weapon and sent him off for psychological, you know, training or help, clearly this guy had been pegged as a potential problem.

How he managed to get his hands on that second weapon is of huge concern, obviously, to the U.S. military if they've launched two investigations, one a simple criminal investigation into the shooting. The second is really an investigation into the U.S. military, how they can prevent things like this from happening in the future. They want to look at length of tours, because this guy, they say, was at the end of his third tour -- Tony.

HARRIS: OK.

Our Cal Perry in Baghdad for us.

Cal, appreciate it. Thank you.

The shooting is a tragic reminder of the psychological toll of war. Our Anderson Cooper discussed the need for counseling with the founder of Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ANDERSON COOPER, CNN HOST, "ANDERSON COOPER 360": The fact that there is a stress clinic, for lack of a better word, in theater is actually a good sign. I mean, that's a new -- that's a relatively new development.

PAUL RIECKHOFF, IRAQ AND AFGHANISTAN VETERANS OF AMERICA: It is. It's huge progress. We didn't have that when I was in theater...

COOPER: It was always when they came back, they would maybe go through a little brief kind of course on coming back.

RIECKHOFF: That's right.

COOPER: But now they've kind of moved doctors out into the field.

RIECKHOFF: That's right, and that's what they need to do. They need to get them out on the front lines so if you have a casualty in a unit, if you have someone killed, they can go and get immediate counseling, get immediate therapy. They've got relaxation techniques, they've got mental health experts on staff. But we need to do a better job of screening them.

Right now there is no mandatory face-to-face mental health screening with a qualified mental health professional. Our organization, IAVA, has been calling for that for years. We need that and we need to really ramp up the number of people who are working in this area across the board.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: We will look at what more needs to be done to help troops returning from war with PTSD. I'll be joined by Congressman Joe Sestak, a retired Navy admiral now serving on the House Armed Services Committee. That interview in about 10 minutes.

In another case of a U.S. soldier on a killing spree in Iraq, testimony continues today in the sentencing phase of the trial against Steven Green. He was convicted in Kentucky last week of murder, rape, conspiracy, and obstruction of justice.

Authorities say Green was the ringleader when he and other soldiers barged into the home of an Iraqi family in 2006. They raped a 14-year-old girl, killed her and her family, and set their home on fire. Surviving family members testified that their lives have been ruined by the murder rampage. Green could face the death penalty.

Her comments about gay marriage set off a firestorm, but it is the topless photos that could dethrone her. We are waiting to hear if Miss California will keep her crown. Pageant owner Donald Trump expected to make the announcement this hour.

In the meantime, let's get you up to speed.

Here's Dan Simon.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DAN SIMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Miss California may soon be missing her title, and it's not because of the interviews or the implants the pageant helped give her. It may be because of this -- a photograph taken when Carrie Prejean says she was 17.

The picture was posted on the gossip site TheDirty.com. It shows Prejean posing at a modeling session wearing underwear and nothing else.

(on camera): At first, Prejean told pageant officials there was just one photograph, but now she admits there were more of her taken at the same time. Either way, it could spell trouble.

HARVEY LEVIN, EXECUTIVE PRODUCER, TMZ: There are several things that Miss California pageant officials are concerned about. One is she lied in her contract. She said that she never posed nude or seminude. Well, she did. SIMON (voice-over): Some, including a Miss USA judge, are calling for her head -- make that crown.

ALICIA JACOBS, JUDGE, MISS USA PAGEANT: She is in horrible breach of contract. She signed a morality contract -- a morality clause within her contract that says that she has never posed for nude or seminude or inappropriate photos. That right there is my belief that she should lose the crown.

SIMON: Prejean calls it a witch hunt, telling CNN in a statement the pictures were part of a "... vicious and mean-spirited..." effort to silence her for defending traditional marriage. And it was that position that first ignited the firestorm and earned her worldwide publicity.

CARRIE PREJEAN, MISS CALIFORNIA: I believe that a marriage should be between a man and a woman.

SIMON: Her traditional values stand hit the airwaves with Prejean appearing on cable programs to push her message.

NARRATOR: They are called liars and bigots.

SIMON: She also joined an ad campaign against same-sex marriage.

PREJEAN: Marriage is good...

SIMON: Preaching morality, but posing nearly naked, some think it speaks of hypocrisy. But that's a charge also being leveled at the pageant, which helped Prejean get the breast implants and paid for them.

The organizers are now considering disqualifying her. The co- executive director of Miss California USA plans to meet with the Miss California runner-up, Tami Farrell, to discuss the possible next steps.

Whatever happens, Prejean has stolen the spotlight. And as they say, there's only one worst thing than being talked about, and that's not being talked about.

Dan Simon CNN, San Francisco.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: And once again, we are waiting for Donald Trump to make his decision.

OK. We've got a live signal and a live picture up. Very good.

Nicole Lapin is in the newsroom monitoring this.

Because, Nicole, we know that this is -- there is a lot of interest in this story.

NICOLE LAPIN, CNN.COM CORRESPONDENT: Absolutely. HARRIS: It is one of the top stories at CNN.com. So let's sort of drill down on this and make sure we are framing at least our discussion of the issues raised by this case.

LAPIN: Yes, you're right, we're looking out for answers to a few big questions this story raises here, Tony.

First, we want to flesh out what's at the heart of this dispute. Is it what she believes about gay marriage, or is this a contract issue about photo disclosure? So, Tony, if she's booted, obviously we want to know the reason for stripping her crown.

We also want to know if her right to free speech has been violated. And we want to hear if officials believe Miss California has been hypocritical in any way. Has she, in other words, not acted as the role model she is supposed to be?

So, Tony, our west desk is monitoring this, some activity, as we see, on router 7 right now. No word yet on whether Prejean herself will be there, but when this news conference happens live at Trump Towers, as we're looking at right now, we'll certainly get it on the air.

HARRIS: And we don't know whether she will be in attendance, do we?

LAPIN: No. No, we will find out shortly though.

HARRIS: What's her name again?

LAPIN: Carrie Prejean.

HARRIS: All right.

So let's do this -- we asked a lot of questions there. So on the fly here, let's do this -- we've got this blog page, right?

LAPIN: Yes.

HARRIS: CNN...

LAPIN: CNN.com/newsroom. There you go.

HARRIS: Thank you.

So let's do this -- we've asked a lot of questions, and why don't we have folks -- if you're watching at home and you'll be watching the news conference, give us your reaction to the news conference. Go to the Web -- what is it again?

LAPIN: CNN.com/newsroom.

HARRIS: OK. And post your thoughts there and we'll read some of those next hour.

The news conference scheduled any minute now. Nicole, I know you're watching this for us. Thank you.

LAPIN: You're welcome.

HARRIS: We'll get back to you in just a couple of minutes.

And the president is just minutes away from meeting with business leaders to talk about the soaring health care costs. More on that story in a minute.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(WEATHER REPORT)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: So the Donald Trump news conference is under way in New York City.

Let's listen in.

(JOINED IN PROGRESS)

DONALD TRUMP, OWNER, MISS USA PAGEANT: ... is off the war. It's off network television.

And the Miss USA and the Miss Universe pageants have become monsters, in effect. NBC is soon announcing that they're extending the term of Miss Universe and Miss USA for another three years, at least. So everybody is very happy.

But importantly, we had a little bit of a dilemma with Carrie, who's here, who's lovely, and who gave a very, very honest answer when asked a very tough question at the recent pageant. It's the same answer that the president of the United States gave. It's the same answer that many people gave.

And at the same time, it was a controversial question, it was a tough question, it was probably a fair question because it's asked of many people. And I've often said it, if her beauty wasn't so great, nobody really would've cared. But that's not the way it worked out. So she gave an honorable answer, she gave an answer from her heart, and I think for that she has to be commended.

Now to the pictures. We've reviewed the pictures very carefully. Paula Shugart is here with me, the president of Miss Universe Organization. And we are in the 21st century.

And I talked about relevance, and the pageants have been updated tremendously, both of them. And Carrie's a model. She's a very successful model.

We have determined -- and we have the absolute right under the contract -- we have determined that the pictures taken are fine. So we've made a determination that everything we've seen to this date that she's done -- some were very beautiful, some were risque, but again, we're in the 21st century. So we've made a determination that the pictures taken were acceptable, they were fine. In many cases, they were actually lovely pictures and, in some cases, they were modeling pictures.

So I think that's very important to understand.

The last thing is we have Keith and Shanna from the pageant, the directors of the Miss California Pageant. I met them today for the first time. I spoke to them previously.

They do a fantastic job in California with this pageant. It's a very, very successful organization.

And I commend you for that.

They were having some miscommunication with Carrie. And I use the term "miscommunication" somewhat loosely, but they were having miscommunication.

The communication problem, I believe, is totally solved. And this is, I think, really very important to understand. They are really getting along very well. They've been meeting for hours in my office, and I really think that they are -- and have developed a relationship that they didn't have before.

Carrie will remain Miss California, very importantly. She...

(APPLAUSE)

When the paparazzi claps, you know that was a popular decision. I've never heard the paparazzi clap before.

She, I believe, will do a fantastic job. The pageant will take place in November, the new Miss California will be chosen, and I think that Carrie will go down as somebody that really that Shanna and Keith will be very proud of in the end.

So with that being said, I've asked Carrie to say a few words. But we're very proud of her. It's been a very tough period for her.

She's really taken a tremendous amount of abuse. And really by, in some cases, that people that shouldn't be handing out abuse. But she's strong, she's tough, she's smart, and she's very nice, and she's also very beautiful, and that's why she's Miss California, and that's why she came in as runner-up in the Miss USA pageant itself.

So Ladies and Gentlemen, our Miss California.

Please, Carrie, say a few words.

PREJEAN: Thank you all for coming.

First of all, I would just like to thank Mr. Trump for believing in me and for allowing me to continue as Miss California USA.

Second of all, I would like to thank the Miss California Organization for their support thus forward. And again, believing in me and believing in women and the empowerment of women, and how women can really make a difference in the world.

So I just want to thank both of you for that.

I would like to thank the Miss Universe Organization for allowing me to be here today in New York City.

I would like to thank the thousands of Americans who have sent letters, sent e-mails, messages. I cannot count the number of fan mail that I've received in the past three weeks, just the people expressing their support of me. They've confided in me that they have found hope and inspiration in my story.

I want to thank my mom and dad who are here with me today. And my sister. She is serving in the United States Air Force. I would like to thank her.

Thank you, sis, if you're listening.

And most importantly, I would like to thank God for trusting me with this large task and giving me the strength to stand by my beliefs.

Three weeks ago, I was asked a politically-charged question with a hidden personal agenda. I answered my question honestly and sincerely from my heart. I was very careful to articulate in saying that I did not want to offend anybody and that this is how I was raised, and this is what I believe a marriage should be, between one man and one woman.

I was given a question asking for my opinion and I stated my honest belief. Not only do I hold this belief, but as Mr. Trump said, the president of the United States, the secretary of state, and many Americans agree with me in this belief.

Immediately after the pageant, judge number eight began a cultural firestorm in the media. It went national, as he was trying to be self-promoting and hateful, while I have remained silent since I am honored to be here today to finally let my voice be heard and address the hateful attacks, despicable rumors, and false allegations I have had within the last three weeks.

To be standing here today on behalf of the great state of California and the greatest country in the world is by the grace of God. Being at the center of a media firestorm is not something that I had planned or signed up for. But the days since have taught me to stand up for what you believe in regardless of the consequences, personal attacks, or disagreements.

I am a strong woman, and because of that I am now able to move forward and be the best Miss California USA that I can be. I'm excited to fulfill my duties and continue serving the great state of California.

Let me be clear. I am not an activist or anything, nor do I have a personal agenda.

I was thrown into this firestorm from the time I was asked the question on stage. I have become an advocate for the importance of not redefining marriage based upon my own upbringing and beliefs. While I'm not the most vocal proponent of traditional marriage, it appeared by my singular response I have become the most visible.

I am proud to be an American, I'm proud of the freedoms we enjoy because of the brave men and women serving this great country, and who have served. My grandfather served under General Patton during World War II and someone I admire greatly. He never spoke about the Battle of the Bulge that he participated in as a rifleman or the honorary medals he received because of his bravery, but he did speak about the freedoms he fought for and taught me to never back down and never let anyone take those freedoms away from you.

On April 19th on that stage, I exercised my freedom of speech, and I was punished for doing so. This should not happen in America. It undermines the constitutional rights for which my grandfather fought for.

Mr. Trump has graciously asked me to speak from my heart today. And I need to address some concerns, rumors, and hateful attacks that have been reported about me as recent as this morning.

First, my faith commands us to forgive one another. This means anyone who has made malicious, slanderous or untrue allegations about me, and I willingly forgive them before all of you today. But I believe no one should be silenced if they are speaking from their heart.

I am a model. I am a Christian. Many of you are aware of an Internet photo that was posted last week of me when I was 17 years old and first entered into the modeling industry.

A girlfriend took some shots of me at home and to include them in my portfolio, which were submitted to several different agents, as the photo was intended for application rather than publication. And I did not anticipate anyone was in a position to release such an image.

I answered truthfully on my pageant application, and I had not been photographed in seminude or nude publications. I subsequently told pageant officials that there was only one photo session. In every photo shoot there's usually more than one photo taken, especially when you first begin modeling. You're asked to take a variety of shots, all of which help launch your modeling career.

The second and third photo were Photoshopped, meant to further harm me and my reputation and discredit me from my beliefs. While I don't know who released the photos from this morning, I do know who released the photos that were actually just released as of a few hours ago. And I find it appalling that a professional photographer would violate my trust by releasing an unauthorized and inappropriate image taken in between pose shots on a windy day which I was unaware of.

I am excited to continue my duty as Miss California USA. All I want to be able to do is tell my story, which no one can take away from me.

Not everyone may like me or agree with me, but I hope at the end of the day everyone can respect my rights as I respect theirs. And together, we can bring back civility back to our social and cultural discussions. I am convinced now more than ever of the importance of standing up for your beliefs and convictions.

For everyone out there listening, do not be silenced. Take this story of mine and apply it to your own life. I hope I have inspired others to maintain compassion, civility, respect, and tolerance while staying true to your convictions and to never, ever compromise your beliefs in the pursuit of his or her own goals, regardless of the consequences.

I want to share this message. I am a representative of my generation. Young adults and teenagers are greatly impacted by both media and culture, and I want to encourage them to maintain their integrity and not concede their values because of what they see or hear going on around them.

It is this message that I will incorporate into my Miss California USA duties, as the pageant has embraced my message of recognizing and respecting diversity. Think about how much better our society would be if we could just agree to disagree and show respect.

As I wrap it up today, I want to reaffirm my commitment to the Miss California USA Organization as we all come together in mutual faith and fair dealing. It has been a long journey for me, as you all know. But through all of this, I stand here before you today a stronger woman than I was yesterday. And I am proud of that.

Thank you very much.

(APPLAUSE)

TRUMP: That was really beautiful. Thank you, Carrie.

We're going to take some questions if you'd like.

Go ahead.

Question, anybody? Reporters always have plenty of questions.

QUESTION: (OFF-MIKE)

TRUMP: They're very happy.

Let's do another. Nobody could hear. Go ahead.

QUESTION: Do you believe that you were made runner-up because of your answer to your question?

TRUMP: Be careful. She's a friend of mine, but she's very tough.

PREJEAN: Can you ask the question again? QUESTION: You were runner-up, correct? And (INAUDIBLE) you were targeted because of the way you answered that question?

PREJEAN: I can't give you an answer for that. I'm not sure. I do know there was a personal hidden agenda there, and I just gave my honest answer.

QUESTION: By whom? Who had the personal agenda?

PREJEAN: Judge number eight.

QUESTION: Judge number eight. OK.

TRUMP: He gave her very low marks, Andrea (ph). And they were -- you know, understandably, he really gave her low marks. So it certainly didn't help. There's no question about it.

QUESTION: Is she going to fight that decision and try to get it...

TRUMP: I don't think she's going to fight that decision. She's very content.

QUESTION: OK.

TRUMP: OK?

Yes?

QUESTION: Are you going to continue to speak out and speak for the National Organization on Marriage? And also, if those photos were taken, you explained both sets this morning. But why not just tell them about that when you entered the -- you know, there are some things I took and they may or may not ever come out, but they're out there and I want you to know about it.

PREJEAN: Well, I think when you're entering a beauty pageant, you don't think about possibly every single photo shoot you've ever done. And I don't think you think about a photographer, a professional photographer, releasing photos like that. So...

QUESTION: (OFF-MIKE)

PREJEAN: This is a 12-page contract that we're talking about. So...

TRUMP: I mean, the fact is, so many things happen in somebody's life. You do so many different things. And...

PREJEAN: Do you remember what you did when you were 16?

TRUMP: It's very tough.

QUESTION: (OFF-MIKE)

PREJEAN: OK. I wasn't naked. TRUMP: Well, neither did she.

QUESTION: Mr. Trump, you said obviously you supported Carrie for giving an honest answer. I'm curious -- I would think it's relevant to ask in light of that -- how would you articulate your view on the subject of gay marriage?

TRUMP: Well, I don't think this is about me, so I don't think it would be appropriate.

QUESTION: But you're an outspoken person.

PREJEAN: Come on, Donald. Come on. Come on.

TRUMP: If you don't mind, I think I'll take a pass.

PREJEAN: Say it. Say it.

TRUMP: You know, honestly, it's not up to me. It's a very, very big issue. It's a very complicated issue, and it's an issue that has two sides. And I understand both of the sides very well. I'll pass on that question.

QUESTION: Will Perez Hilton be coming back as a judge next year?

TRUMP: I'd love to have him back. I mean, I'd love to have him back.

Yes, ma'am?

QUESTION: (OFF-MIKE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, yes. I can tell you, if Mr. Trump was in the Middle East, we wouldn't have any problems. So that's what happened when we were upstairs going over the conflict between both parties.

TRUMP: They were upstairs and they frankly got along very well after a short period of time.

Yes, sir?

QUESTION (OFF-MIKE)

TRUMP: Well, in a way -- and the question is, how does this situation compare to Tara Conner, where many of you were here also. In a way, this is a bigger issue.

Tara had serious alcohol and drug problems, and I'm very proud of her. We gave her the second chance, which was obviously a very controversial situation for a number of reasons. And I'm very proud to say that as of this moment, Paula Shugart, she's been doing fantastically.

She's got a television program. She is drug and alcohol free for a year and a half, almost two years. So I'm very proud of Tara. That was a personal -- that was a personal problem that she had. This is a very big issue. This is an issue that probably will be debated for a long time. I think because of the relevance of the pageant, we brought the issue to the forefront and it's being talked about more than ever before. And maybe through that resolution will happen. So I think this is more important.

I can tell you from a press standpoint, there's more press here than even there and so I guess it's probably a little bit more of an important situation.

OK, yes, Andrea?

QUESTION: Carrie.

QUESTION: (OFF-MIKE)

TRUMP: What does Rosie think? Honestly - Rosie, she had a lot, yes, she'll probably have something to say about this.

QUESTION: Carrie, you are a role model for young girls.

Over here, hi.

You're a role model for young girls, and whether or not the pictures were taken for applications, as you said, or publication, the fact is these pictures existed and they've made their way out there, pictures that you said didn't exist. And to some young girls it may make you look like a liar. So, my question is, what does that say about being a role model to young girls if it appears the way to get ahead in your game is to be dishonest?

TRUMP: By the way, I want to say, I think it's a very unfair question. There's no dishonesty here. I think it's a very unfair question. There's no dishonesty there. And these pictures, I mean, I looked at the pictures and you all looked at the pictures, and these were not pictures like you're talking about.

You know, we had to terminate somebody a year ago. And if you want to see pictures, I'd show you pictures. So, you know, you can't talk about the dishonesty.

OK. Go ahead.

PREJEAN: Thank you. Any other questions?

TRUMP: Question.

QUESTION: (OFF-MIKE)

PAULA SHUGART, PRESIDENT, MISS USA ORGANIZATION: You know, one of the things that happened upstairs in Mr. Trump's office is that we got to sit down face to face and we got to talk. And she got to vent and I got to vent, and I think something very positive has come out of it. Right now, we want to work with Carrie on things like we want to do with all our title holders. We want to work on what's passionate to them and also what's great for our Miss California USA organization. So, you know, when it comes to future things, we're going to sit down and communicate and we're going to try to work together. I think Carrie's excited to get back to being Miss California.

HARRIS: OK, have we all had enough of that? OK. Let's move on.

Just a couple of thoughts on this. I think, in the final analysis, Donald Trump says Miss California gets to keep her crown, her title.

Nicole Lapin has been watching this with me. A couple critical questions here.

LAPIN: Yes.

HARRIS: I don't know -- is the suggestion here that, I guess the suggestion here is that this judge, this...

LAPIN: Perez Hilton.

HARRIS: ... asked a politically charged question. Do you know anything about that? First of all, who is he? And do you know anything about that process? Is there a question that was designed specifically for Miss California? Or could any of the contestants received this question?

LAPIN: Yes, he is a well-known blogger, of course, Tony. And she was basically saying that he had a hidden agenda, and hidden...

HARRIS: A hidden political agenda.

LAPIN: ... deflecting the question, as you and I both saw.

HARRIS: Right. The critical question here is whether or not -- and her answer to the question of what do you think about a gay marriage, the suggestion is that is what led to the witch hunt that led to these photos being revealed. But what does the disclosure form say? She had than obligation - is that overstating it here? - to disclose, according to the form, whether she had posed nude or seminude, am I correct?

LAPIN: Right. And her argument, and I think Donald Trump's argument as we were listening to that news conference, is that they weren't scantily clad photos, that they were actually modeling photos. And essentially what she was saying is that it helped her with her portfolio toward her career.

But look, it's not the only time we've seen this controversy, Tony. He mentioned during that news conference Tara Connor from 2006. You were on the air live when that was happening.

HARRIS: I was on the air when that happened. And I know you've got -- we've got a little interactive here of some of the past scandals. Maybe we can get to that next hour.

But I think that is still the critical question of whether or not she's -- I don't know if this is so much about -- and I know this may sound a little naive to some folks watching this, about her comments on this question or whether or not she was dishonest on this form. And I think the critical question was, you know, did you take these photos to advance your career and then did you, at a critical moment, lie about having taken the photos? And maybe that is the question, maybe it's not the question.

LAPIN: There are a lot of questions is basically what we're getting to. And the question that you and I were both surprised she didn't answer was about being a role model or not. So that's another thing we really have to pin down.

HARRIS: That's probably more than enough of this subject for now.

All right, Nicole, appreciate it. Thank you, see you next hour.

LAPIN: You're welcome.

HARRIS: A community of veterans are banding together to get help for their hidden wounds. That story next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: And the military is reeling after five U.S. troops was killed by one of their own in Iraq. It's the deadliest soldier-on- soldier attack since the start of the war and it is raising new awareness about the hidden wounds of war, post-traumatic stress disorder.

Our Jason Carroll takes a look.

JASON CARROLL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Tony, as you know, this is a major problem that the military is having to deal with. I spoke with one former soldier who is still dealing with combat-related stress. He says there is a stigma associated with asking for help, part of a military culture exists for those on active duty and veterans, as well.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CARROLL (voice-over): As news spreads about the shooting at Camp Liberty in Iraq, thousands of miles away in Colorado, Alan Pitts questioned whether the soldier in custody was fighting the same kind of battle he deals with every day.

ALAN PITTS, FORMER SERGEANT, U.S. ARMY: It's not the first time I've heard about this. I've had friends that had, you know, committed suicide back in the states or, you know, did other horrible things to other people.

CARROLL: Doctors diagnosed Pitts with post-traumatic stress disorder. His convoy hit two IEDs in western Iraq. Insurgents attacked, killing his driver and shooting Pitts. He recovered physically, but not mentally.

PITTS: Sleepless nights, flashbacks, hearing things that aren't there. It's just hard to deal with people that don't understand or have never seen the things I've seen or gone through the things I've seen.

CARROLL: Five years ago, Pitts was discharged. He continues treatment under a doctor's care.

A recent study found one in five veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan reported PTSD symptoms like depression and aggression. A separate Army study, more alarming. It found a record number of suicide, 143 in 2008.

HEIDI KRAFT, FORMER NAVY PSYCHOLOGIST: It still has a long way to go.

CARROLL: Heidi Kraft wrote a book about soldiers in combat and treats combat trauma patients. She says overcoming the stigma associated with needing help is a major obstacle.

KRAFT: The long-standing culture that has had no tolerance for anything that looks like less than emotional perfection.

CARROLL: Military leaders acknowledge more needs to be done.

ADMIRAL MIKE MULLEN, CHAIRMAN, JOINT CHIEFS OF STAFF: It does speak to me though about the need for us to redouble our efforts and concern in terms of dealing with the stress. It also speaks to the issue of multiple deployments.

CARROLL: PTSD experts say military leaders have to better prepare soldiers for the psychological effect of combat.

STEVE ROBINSON, PTSD EXPERT: We have not broken through to our military leaders that understanding how your brain and your body works in war and recognizing the signs and symptoms of distress is as important as knowing how to use your weapon.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CARROLL: The military has put out a public service announcement to talk about the stress that servicemen face, and they set up a website communityofveterans.org. Veterans can go there to get information about mental health resources and transition back to home life.

In terms of treatment, experts say if on active duty, it may mean getting off. Regardless, they say, talking to a qualified therapist as soon as possible is key - Tony.

HARRIS: Jason, appreciate it. Thank you.

So what more can be do done to help servicemen and women battling post-traumatic stress disorder? Joining me from Capitol Hill - we appreciate the time, Congressman - Congressman Joseph Sestak of Pennsylvania. He is a retired Navy admiral now serving on the House Armed Services Committee.

Let me start this way with you. Again, former naval officer, how far have we come in recognizing and treating PTSD?

REP. JOSEPH SESTAK (D-PA), HOUSE ARMED SERVICES COMMITTEE: Not far enough. You know, we have to recognize also that when a veteran's hurting like this, his family or her family is hurting.

And this war is different. In World War II, your average vet went through combat over four years about 180 days, Gudal Cannel, Normandy, but dwell time to rest in between those horrific battles. Our vet over there in Iraq, he or she goes outside the wire every day, for 15 months, not knowing if that car beside them is going to explode, comes home for 12, and goes back.

This is why, for one example, one out of every three veterans of military that comes home and is diagnosed with post traumatic stress disorder. The other two tell us, even though they've not been diagnosed, but on surveys, that they never were able, in theater, to get care for what they felt was PTSD.

So between 2004, when that one soldier that you had there on just before me, who used to be 780 in theater mental behavioral types of specialists. Today we're down to about 350. We need to even take care of it in theater before they even come home.

HARRIS: Representative, is it the length of service that is the determining factor as to who gets PTSD? Or is it the simple nature of the work of war itself that is the determining?

SESTAK: The reason, and I've sat down three times with mental health specialists of Philadelphia VA. And last night, actually, we had over 700 veterans and their family members come together at the VA Summit. And this was a major issue because General Shinseki sent up his chief of staff to discuss mental health with us.

And during this discussion, it came out -- it was very obvious that it is the length of time, yes, but more than that, it's the unremitting every day that they're in a combat-like situation. Because your physical nerves and being tense and out there affect your mental state. So, because of the length of time they're there, 15 months, but in addition to that, it's every day is what truly that causes it.

The second factor we have, Tony, which is very important, is that if 20 percent, one out of every five veterans coming home, had cancer, we would not be having self-referrals being done for cancer. We don't have a mandatory, confidential systematic approach that includes the families in order to see if we can't better take care of these men and women. We can do much better at this and we need to do that.

HARRIS: So we can do much better, but I have to ask you a question here. Do we know how to get people better? How to make them whole again?

SESTAK: We don't do it very well. But take, for example, the University of Pennsylvania, when I went to - is next door to the VA's hospital in Philadelphia. When I met with the mental health specialist three times in the past four months, they talked about a doctor at the University of Penn that truly probably has one the key breakouts of how to do it.

Now, our military has put about $1 billion into more research and development. Post traumatic stress disorder of combat is different than if you're living in a very hard place in Washington, D.C. or something where it's unremitting - you know, they have gunfire. But we need more research and more development.

One last point, if I might. Eleven percent of our veterans coming home have at least mild traumatic brain injury. Fifty percent of them never get treated for it, and that compounds PTSD.

Look, we've got an issue here and we have to stop, as we've done so many times, shooting behind the rabbit. A mandatory, confidential, working with families, to try to get the veterans not to self-refer themselves, but have the right type of confidential talking with them can help remove the stigma. Because it's going to feed into our society otherwise. We failed to do it with Vietnam vets, we must do it with these men and women.

HARRIS: Bottom line on this, once you have it, you have it, very difficult to be whole again. There is no pill, and no one knows right now the real effects of therapy on making these people whole again.

SESTAK: No, they can be whole again. And that is why we passed, last year, the Mental Health Parity Bill for Civilians. We don't have it really there yet in treatment for our military . If they get the right intervention early, they really can take care of their issues.

But you're right, it's more than that. Last night, what we heard at our summit was, look, it's just not - I mean, we had someone stand up and said about his father, suicidal, a veteran and the impact on the family. But he also said he was unemployed, he didn't have a job. What are the educational opportunities? That's why this GI bill we passed was instrumental. But jobs, it's why our economic stimulus bill said 40 percent of the first $6,000 in wages we will pay the federal government to hire a vet after - but so much more needs to be done.

We can treat them. It is like a physical illness, we can fix it. Not in all cases, but we have to get better treatment, and I have to agree with you on that.

HARRIS: Well, if -- Representative, if we're going to get serious about it, we've got to talk about it a lot more. And we've got to take more time on programs like this to do that.

Thanks for your time.

SESTAK: Thank you for having me.

HARRIS: No, no, it's my pleasure. China, one year after a deadly disaster, parents grieving and placing blame.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: Today, China remembers the devastating earthquake that killed almost 69,000 people exactly one year ago. Fifteen million others were left homeless, and thousands are still missing.

Our Josh Levs is here covering that important story for us - Josh.

JOSH LEVS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: We'll never forget it, Tony, will we.

HARRIS: That's for sure.

LEVS: You can't forget that, especially the school at the beginning of it. And still, today, for parents, the wounds are sore, the questions unanswered.

Here's our John Voss.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JOHN VAUSE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This is how officials in China keep reporters away from grieving parents. A police checkpoint outside the village of Wufu where more than 100 children died when their school collapsed.

You can't do interviews here, the policeman tells me, unless you have the right credentials.

So instead, we met Liu Xiaoying in a secret location. She says she's being watched by local officials and can't stay long.

I first met Xiaoying in the days after the quake. Her daughter had died when her primary school collapsed. Every other building in the village was left standing. The passing of a year has not dulled the pain.

When I dug her out of the rubble, I just hoped she would come alive, she says. When I touched her ice cold face the next morning, I knew there was no hope.

But what makes this so much worse is what she calls a government cover-up. The school building was made from substandard material, she says, and officials refuse to listen.

If this was caused by the earthquake, if it really was a natural disaster, we'd let it go. But this wasn't a natural disaster, she says.

In Beichuan, where more than a thousand students died, police are never far away. Zoltan Finn (ph) never found the body of her 18-year- old son. She sells flowers at the site, the only way she could earn a living. They don't allow us to file a lawsuit or stage demonstrations she told me. The government is on the side of the contractors, there's nothing common people can do.

During our interview, a policeman standing off camera warns her to think about what she says and then he leaves.

Chen Nianhuai wants to show me where his son died. This anniversary really hurts. We're full of grief, he says, because the government hasn't given us any answers.

Again, the same policeman, this time with a video camera records our conversations.

(on camera): The government maintains that all of the schools collapsed because of the sheer force of the earthquake, not because of how they were built. They say, so far, there is no evidence of any corruption during the construction process. No evidence these buildings were made from substandard material.

But a year on and so many parents whose children were killed just don't believe it.

(voice-over): In recent days, the rubble at Beichuan has become a shrine. They burn incense and fake money. It's for the dead in the afterlife.

But here and now for parents like Liu Xiaoying there is only anger, grief, and at times guilt. I never really protected her enough, she says. The day of the quake it was like the sky fell down.

John Vause, CNN, Beichuan, China.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LEVS: Seeing reports like that makes you want to reach out and help. And you can, we're making it a little easier. At CNN.com/impact, Impact Your World. We're going to zoom in quickly here. I want to show you this. This is our main story right now today on this anniversary. We link you to several organizations including the Red Cross of China, World Vision, Direct Relief International, and also right here, Mercy Corp has some healing the future focusing on that region.

You can see all that and help in your way at CNN.com/impact.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: Transcripts from the final moments before a fatal plane crash near Buffalo, one of the top stories we're working on in the next hour in CNN NEWSROOM. Did problems with pilot training and fatigue play a role in that crash that killed 50 people? We will have the latest from the NTSB.

Atlanta, Georgia, authorities say this southern city has become a hub for Mexican drug cartels? CNN's Brooke Bolduan gives us an inside look at the deadly trade officials say are operating in the city suburbs.