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Obama to Resume Gitmo Trials; Cheney's Request Denied
Aired May 15, 2009 - 15:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
T.J. HOLMES, CNN ANCHOR (voice-over): Coming at you now, members of the bad Pearl Jam robbed outside an Atlanta studio, and it's all caught on camera.
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: As president, I will close Guantanamo, reject the military commission's act, and adhere to the Geneva Conventions.
HOLMES: President Obama swept into office as almost the opposite of President Bush, but doesn't restarting the military commission sound kind of Bushlike?
Murder at 13. Exonerated at...
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HOLMES: All right. Hello, everybody, sorry about the technical issue off the top there. But hey there, we're going to get this thing started.
I'm T.J. Holmes sitting in today for Rick Sanchez.
Going to get to a breaking story we have. We just got this a few minutes ago.
CIA Director Leon Panetta sticking by his agency's story that Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi was, in fact, informed of waterboarding in 2002 despite her flat denials that she was not told around that time. Now within the past half hour, Panetta put out a statement and here it is for you. We'll give you the crux of it, if you will.
Says, "It is not our policy or practice to mislead Congress. That is against our laws and our values. As the Agency indicated previously in response to Congressional inquiries our contemporaneous records from September 2002 indicate that CIA officers briefed truthfully on the interrogation of Abu Zubaydah, describing the enhanced techniques that had been employed. Ultimately, it is up to Congress to evaluate all the evidence and reach its own conclusions about what happened" -- again, saying, "It's not our policy and practice to mislead Congress."
That's his direct quote, the CIA director, Panetta. You can read into that what you would like to read. She is saying she was misled on this particular issue. His statement saying, "It's not our policy or practice to mislead Congress." Sure some will be reading into that.
Now, as we did show you yesterday, in a bit of detail, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said the CIA told her the agency was not using water-boarding at a briefing in the fall of 2002. She says now the CIA flat-out lying and misleading her.
We're waiting now on more response. This story likely not going away anytime soon, but the ball now back in Pelosi's court, it appears, now that the CIA has came out and said, uh-uh, we did not mislead anybody.
We will turn to another story we have been watching right out here outside here of Atlanta. What you're seeing here is a robbery that took place in broad daylight. It seems like some of these robbers getting braver by the day. Surveillance video you're seeing right there, this is a little outside of downtown Atlanta.
This was happening in the middle of the day outside of a recording studio. Some bad guys pretty much jumped out of the bushes and went after this jeep. We will show you the full video here now. There's going to be a guy you see on the left side getting out there, taking off running in the red.
And he was chased down. As you can see, somebody looks like they have their hand up. Well, they are wielding a knife, that robber, it appears, but the one that is running away is Jeff Ament. And he plays bass for the rock band Pearl Jam, big deal, big band. I'm sure you heard of it. You know their songs if you don't know their name.
But he's knocked down. He gets cut in the process, actually is cut I believe on the back of the head. The robbers get away with more than $7,000 in cash and personal items.
Mike Brooks, former Washington police detective, is here with us now.
Always good to have you on some of these things.
MIKE BROOKS, CNN SECURITY ANALYST: Good to be with you, T.J.
(CROSSTALK)
HOLMES: Scratching our heads here. But, at first, the police were saying that it doesn't appear that Pearl Jam was targeted. What do you think?
BROOKS: Yes, I know where this is.
This is off old Clairmont Road, not too far actually from the FBI field office for Atlanta. But it's kind of remote. It's kind of out of the way. And it backs up to a wooded area. And that's where these three masked thugs, if you will, are with knifes. They ran out when they pulled up.
Now, DeKalb County police are saying that they don't believe that they were specifically targeted. As a former investigator, the first thing I'm thinking about, what do you do? You hang out in the woods all day with ski masks on and with your knifes waiting for somebody to come up as victims in that remote area? I don't think so.
HOLMES: And, again, that's the key there. The location we're talking about is not just the high traffic, something you're driving by here and around Atlanta. We're familiar with it.
BROOKS: Right.
HOLMES: It's not something -- you have got to be going there.
BROOKS: Right. It's a place called Southern Tracks. It's a recording studio, well known here in Atlanta.
But it's not something you're -- you're just going to show up at, you know? I don't think so. And the other thing, too, (INAUDIBLE) over $7,000, $3,000 of that was cash. Who carries around $3,000 worth of cash with them? That's not walking money for you or I.
HOLMES: OK. So, does it appear that these are just thugs? Did they have some inside information? Do they -- I mean, they camel, obviously, with the masks on and they were prepared at least.
BROOKS: Right.
HOLMES: So, does it seem like just some kind of a random street crime? Or these guys knew -- they did a little reconnaissance, if you will?
BROOKS: You know, they -- I think they did a little recon. Now, they probably know that there's a lot of traffic of fairly wealthy recording artists coming in and out of that place.
But in the middle of the daytime, just to be hanging out in there, looking -- hanging out in the woods, looking for a victim in that particular spot? It's just not -- it's just not adding up to me.
If I was DeKalb County investigators looking into this, I would take a look at everybody who knew the schedule of Ament coming in and maybe going out and maybe someone who knew that he was going to be in that specific place at that specific time, because when they run out, T.J., you see they smash the window of the driver's side and he gets out and runs.
(CROSSTALK)
BROOKS: And they -- and they chase him down and cut him in the back of the head and take his personal items.
HOLMES: And we understand, yes, that the drummer we're talking about here, or the bassist which you're talking about, he's expected to be OK.
BROOKS: Right.
HOLMES: But, still, you can see it's kind of a scary scene there.
BROOKS: Absolutely.
HOLMES: Last thing here.
BROOKS: Sure.
HOLMES: Intelligence is probably going to have to be the thing that solves this case, because you can't glean that much from the video, because they are -- I assume, again, their face are covered.
BROOKS: Right.
HOLMES: You can see them running, but can you get that much from the video?
BROOKS: Well, you can get a little bit from the video, at least general description, size, weight, that kind of thing. But some of the personal items, they are going to probably try to sell some of those personal items.
And he also -- they also took his passport. So, if they -- if they're able to find that passport, maybe they can get some fingerprint evidence off of that. Or maybe somebody will talk. You have got three people, someone usually runs their mouth. And that's usually how they get caught.
HOLMES: Middle of the day like this?
BROOKS: I know. It's unbelievable to me, just very unusual, very unusual.
HOLMES: Well, if it's unbelievable to you, it's -- you have seen a lot, so it's unbelievable.
(LAUGHTER)
BROOKS: Yes, I have.
HOLMES: Mike Brooks, always good to see you.
BROOKS: All right, T.J.
HOLMES: All right, thanks so much.
Stay with us here. We're going to be talking about a story here now. The president is now being accused of being too much like President Bush. This time, we're talking about the military commission announcement that is forthcoming. Stay with us for that.
Also, arrested for murder at 13, exonerated at 30, a young man now finally getting to start his life.
Also, a story that many of you are commenting on so far online on our Facebook pages, our Twitter pages as well, University of Tennessee offering a football scholarship to a young man who was convicted at the age of 13 of rape and kidnapping. Good move by Tennessee? Or a second chance, is that all right?
Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: Well, welcome back, everybody.
The president says today he will revive a remnant of the Bush administration, those commissions of terrorism suspects, with new legal protections for those defendants.
Now, as a candidate, Obama howled and protested at the system set up by the Bush administration down at Guantanamo Bay. And now he's being challenged by human rights groups, who say the changes he's announced still fall short of what is acceptable.
Here is what he's doing. First, statements that have been obtained from detainees allegedly using cruel, inhumane and degrading methods will no longer be admitted. Second, the use of hearsay will be limited, so that the burden will no longer be on the party who objects to hearsay to disprove its reliability. Did you get that?
Also, third, the accused will have greater latitude in selecting their counsel. Also, one more thing here: Basic protections will be provided for those who refuse to testify.
Now, here is the thing that some are pointing at. Fewer than 20 suspects at Gitmo are expected to go on trial anytime soon, among them Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the self-confessed mastermind of the attacks of 9/11.
Now, as far as other prisoners at Gitmo, more than 200 in all, there's a lot to be decided to meet the president's goal of closing that facility. That deadline he wants by the end of January coming up next year.
Also, a reminder for you here, the president speaking on Sunday at commencement at Notre Dame, as you probably know, a lot of controversy surrounding his visit there. A lot of people say they should not be inviting someone who goes against Catholic doctrine in some of his policies.
Well, CNN will have live coverage beginning at Sunday -- on Sunday, 2:00 Eastern time. Expecting some protests to be taking place that day as well, but full coverage right here, CNN, 2:00 Eastern time.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Very terrifying, because, if she stayed in that car, no telling what would have happened.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: Well, she didn't stay in that car, and thank goodness she did not. You will see more of this video of a woman who was pulled out and rescued just minutes before that happened to her car.
Also, there she is, Ashleigh Banfield.
ASHLEIGH BANFIELD, TRUTV ANCHOR: Hi, T.J.
HOLMES: We're so excited to see her, we had to put her in the tease, and not just the segment.
But hello to you.
We're going to be talking to her in just a second about a young man who actually, finally, maybe gets to start his life, after he's exonerated after being convicted of murder back when he was a teenager.
Stay with us. Ashleigh and I will be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: All right. Take a look at that video there.
You're seeing a lot of smiles there and a happy young man when you do see that face, mother happy as well. The reason they're so happy is because he is a free man now. His name is Thaddeus Jimenez, a free man today, released from prison because a judge decided he was wrongly convicted.
But this is what makes this case a little strange. Thaddeus Jimenez was sent to jail when he looked like that, folks, when he was 13 years old, convicted of murder. He's now 30 years old, and he says he owes his life to one person now.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
THADDEUS JIMENEZ, EXONERATED: Because of the love and support that I received from my mother, who battled cancer and other illnesses while I was away in prison, and who fought -- who fought to survive, so that she could be here when I was released.
I hope my story will give hope to others that, when wrongful convictions occur in the criminal and juvenile justice systems, those injustices can be corrected.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: All right, Ashleigh, Ashleigh Banfield from "In Session" with me now.
Ashleigh, these things just make you crazy here to hear that a young man lost so much of his life. Thank goodness he's still a young man at 30, but lost so much of his life...
BANFIELD: Half.
HOLMES: ... because of a wrong conviction here.
So, tell us. We have seen some cases like this before, but what jumps out at you on this one?
BANFIELD: Everything, the hearsay issues. There was somebody who actually admitted to committing this crime, and it was on tape. And it was excluded from two different trials. The first jury trial conviction was overturned because of issues within jury selection. That's understandable.
But the second jury trial, again? It's so counterintuitive, T.J. You have someone saying, "I did it," and it can't come in as evidence?
HOLMES: But, still, what was the logic behind not allowing that evidence in, not once, but twice?
BANFIELD: There are a number of different reasons why things like that don't get in, and fairly so, hearsay, classic hearsay.
In this particular case, it may have actually been the way that the recording of that other person's confession was made, the chain of custody of that recording. Could it have been doctored? There are all sorts of reasons why things like that don't get in.
But, my God, you know, just within the last few years, two of the witnesses in the original trials have recanted their testimony. And this is a 13-year-old kid, to boot.
HOLMES: And also -- and just to throw more fuel into this fire, there was no physical evidence linking him to this crime?
BANFIELD: No. And, listen, that's not unusual. A lot of cases go to trial and get convictions on just circumstantial evidence.
And I have got to be honest with you. Sometimes, circumstantial evidence is more powerful than even direct evidence. Never discount it as, oh, it's just a circumstantial case. It's not the case.
But, in this particular story, I'm so troubled by not only the fact that we had yet another exoneration after half this kid's life, but we really need to apply this to our theory of thinking of the death penalty. If we're this imperfect, my God, what if it -- what if -- what if he had actually been executed?
HOLMES: God forbid that we actually ever executed an innocent man.
Last thing here on this particular case: Does he have a case against the state now? Are we going to expect him to sue?
BANFIELD: Oh, baby.
HOLMES: Ah.
BANFIELD: Let me tell you, it's -- listen, prosecutors have a lot of immunity when it comes to this sort of thing, unless they do really naughty things, like withhold evidence or act in an egregious way. You can still bet your bottom dollar there will be some kind of suit against the state, and I think he will probably come out with something. It's never, ever going to be commensurate with what he's lost.
HOLMES: Yes. Oh. All right, but, again, he's 30 now. Maybe he can get a new start in life.
BANFIELD: Yes.
HOLMES: Certainly has a new start, but young enough to get something going still.
Ashleigh, thank you. But don't go too far.
BANFIELD: OK.
HOLMES: We're actually going to have Ashleigh Banfield back in just a second to discuss another case of a controversial move made by the University of Tennessee, giving a football scholarship to a young man who has a rape conviction and a kidnapping conviction on his resume. So, stick around. We will see you in just a second again, Ashleigh.
Also, he's had a bit of a setback right now. Some classified documents the former vice president wants declassified, well, he's not going to get his way on this one. We will tell you about that.
Also, the pageant answer, it's not the one you're probably thinking about. We have got another one to show you, and this one will leave you shaking your heads.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: All right. Beauty contestants have been in the news a lot lately for the wrong reasons, but oftentimes people say that beauty contestants are better seen than heard. You know, we like the swimsuit competition, but then, when it's time for the Q&A, you might want to turn away.
All right, you might remember Miss Teen South Carolina from a while back. Remember she was talking about how maps are good and we need to send maps to the Iraq, that whole thing she did. Well, she may have been outdone now by the contestant in the Miss Panama contest, who probably won't now get a chance to be Miss Universe.
Check this out.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): Confucius was one of whom invented confusion, and that s why -- one of the most ancient, he was one of the Chinese, Japanese, who were one of the most ancient. Thank you.
(END VIDEO CLIP) HOLMES: OK. If you didn't understand her there, what she -- well, you're seeing it again. We're rolling it for you again.
"Learning without labor is labor lost." That's a quote from Confucius. You know he had a lot of them. But listen to the rest of it. "One of the most ancient. He was one of the Chinese Japanese who was one of the most ancient. Thank you."
And she gets off the stage. All right, her brilliance has now gone viral, of course. It's all over the Web, not much to be lost in translation, another quote comes from Confucius: "Everything has beauty, but not everybody sees it."
Thank goodness she's beautiful, huh?
We're showing you some football video here for a reason. That young man is a stud, if you will. In the football world, at least, that's what they would call him. That young man, tight end, Mr. Football in Tennessee in his class of football, led his high school to their first-ever state championship. He's going to the University of Tennessee on a football scholarship. And you know what else is on his resume? Rape and kidnapping. Does he deserve a second chance or did Tennessee go too far here?
Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN SENIOR MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): They are mothers and teachers, wives and workers, but put a pair of skates on them, and they become the Mason-Dixon Roller Vixens. This group of dangerous divas is just one of many women's roller derby clubs popping up all over the country.
It may look like a breeze, but racing around the rink trying to bump blockers and jostle jammers is no easy task. On the average, these women can burn up to 400 calories an hour.
Amber Mori, otherwise known as Psychosis, has been skating for over a year.
AMBER MORI, ATHLETE: After probably eight or nine months, I just started dropping pounds like crazy. I think I have lost 16 since I started.
GUPTA: Competitions like this one against the Dutchland Derby Rollers are tough enough, but the workouts, even tougher. Each practice, their coach requires the gals to do sit-ups, pushups, stretches to help them with their endurance.
Team captain Jocelyn Bassler has always been athletic, but says this is the best workout she's always had.
JOCELYN BASSLER, TEAM CAPTAIN: I don't go to gym anymore. I just have roller derby.
(LAUGHTER)
GUPTA: Clubs like the Vixens are looking for new members. But think before you skate. Most of these ladies know the pain of bumps and bruises, as well as the thrill of victory.
Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN, reporting.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: All right, listen to this. Sounds good, right? He is a national honors student. I believe it's a 3.8 GPA he had. High school player of the year, recently signed to play football for his home state school at the University of Tennessee over in Knoxville. He's going to wear the orange and white.
But there's also this. He took part in a brutal rape when he was 13 years old. His name is Daniel Hood, said his scholarship offers dried up when schools looked in to his background and found, yes, there was in fact a rape and a kidnapping in there.
But the new head coach of the University of Tennessee, Lane Kiffin, opted to give him a second chance, also like the victim did.
Here now, April Lamb of CNN affiliate WBIR.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
TIFFANY, SEXUAL ASSAULT VICTIM: I would never, ever worry that he would ever do anything like that again.
APRIL LAMB, WBIR REPORTER (voice-over): Sexual assault victim Tiffany did not want her last name revealed. She was the victim of a sexual more than five years ago involving Catholic High School standout Daniel Hood, seen here wearing number 99.
Court documents show that Tiffany was 14 and her cousin, Daniel, was 13 in 2003 when she was duct-taped and sexually assaulted. She feels that then 17-year-old Robert Sanico, who was also convicted in the case, made victims of them both.
TIFFANY: I feel like maybe he was scared or intimidated, you know. And, at that age, you know, it's hard to make any decisions in life.
LAMB: After time in the Mountain View Development Center, Hood began attending Catholic High School. And Tiffany believes he has been rehabilitated.
TIFFANY: And he has been very apologetic to me for what has happened.
LAMB: University of Tennessee coach Lane Kiffin said in a statement that the university did consider Hood's past. That statement says: "We didn't go about this lightly. We spent a lot of time researching the issue and talking to a lot of people who are well-respected in the community."
Tiffany wrote a letter to the university recommending Hood be admitted.
TIFFANY: I wanted to write that letter for him so, you know, he could do what he's always wanted to do. And that's why I done it. And, you know, I will never regret doing it.
LAMB: April Lamb, 10 News.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HOLMES: OK, I put this out a little earlier when we knew we were going to be doing this story on my Facebook page and also at Twitter at tjholmesCNN.
The response has been huge. I will share just a few things over here, this first board. This is my Twitter page here.
DiamondPrince82 says: "No deal. He was old enough to know better."
Also, right below that: "Not OK. He may be rehabilitated, but he's still convicted of a violent crime."
Another: "No. There must be many more deserving students who need financial help."
That was kind of the theme that I saw develop.
There were others -- Ashleigh Banfield, let me bring you back in here -- who say everybody deserves a second chance. In a situation like this -- and, again, there were a lot of circumstances here with this young man. Rape and kidnapping, yes, it's bad, and he was convicted. But there were a lot of other extenuating circumstances with this particular situation.
Should that come in to play?
BANFIELD: It all comes in to play. People should know, first of all, that, whether it matters or not, something they should know, that he was not the rapist.
HOLMES: Yes.
BANFIELD: He stood by and didn't do anything about it in the room while this young woman was violated with a foreign object. That -- those are the facts of the case.
He was also treated as a juvenile at the age of 13. Like our last story, the kid wasn't treated as a juvenile at the age of 13. In this case, he was treated as a juvenile. The other perpetrator was not and is serving 10 years. You know, T.J., this is exactly the way of our system of justice is supposed to work. We're supposed to be able to give people second chances if they can rehabilitate and do their time and become contrite and become apologetic and try to make good.
And this kid, by all accounts, has done all of the above. How long do you want to punish a 13-year-old kid for making a terrible decision at the age of 13?
HOLMES: But you say that's how the justice system is supposed to work, and in this case it appears maybe it did work. But how society is supposed to work, we can be forgiving, but when people hear that this young man is getting this honor, this privilege, this money to get an education and then they hear rape and they hear kidnapping, how forgiving are they going to be?
(CROSSTALK)
BANFIELD: Look, he did the crime. He did his time, and he's making good, and he earned -- he earned what he's doing.
HOLMES: Yes.
BANFIELD: He's not being given this because of the crime. It's a big difference. He earned this.
By all means, I think the most important thing in all of this is that the victim has been consulted and has played a very big role in all of this. Not only has the victim come forth and given her opinion, but the school actually sought out her opinion and met with her and cleared all of this.
Everybody's kind of done the right thing here. I know it's not a popular thing that I'm saying right now, but this is the way justice is supposed to work. We're supposed to fix criminals, not just punish them forever.
HOLMES: Yes, but the other young man in this case who was 17, who was actually the one who -- I guess the guiltier party, if you will, if that had been this young man -- you know, he was standing by, but a lot of women's groups will say it doesn't really matter.
BANFIELD: Sure.
HOLMES: A lot of victims groups will say it doesn't really matter. Can you be rehabilitated? He was in the room, Ashleigh.
BANFIELD: Right. I know. And I have got to be honest with you, and you have got to think back to your teenage years, too. You were a different person at 13 than you were at 17, which is why our legal system has constructs that allow a 13-year-old to be treated as a juvie or as an adult, and also allow a 17-year-old the same privileges.
It's all about the facts in each individual case. And in this particular case, personal opinion and the opinion of other legal experts here, this was treated appropriately. This young man did exactly what the system expected of him and he is actually reaping rewards from trying to turn his life around.
T.J. HOLMES, CNN ANCHOR: Yeah, well, you know, what, we will see down the road. Again, Lane Kiffin the new coach at the University of Tennessee who has certainly stirred the pot since he --
BANFIELD: And T.J., you take all the e-mails about people who hate what I'm saying right now, please?
HOLMES: I will take them, I'll accept them here. But you know, the details of this case make this case and his case in a lot of ways different. You just have to -- you have to acknowledge that, that it is a little different in his particular case. We're going to share a couple more, Ashleigh, here from the twitter page. Again, Tjholmescnn here. One charming says did he pay his debt to society? Rehabilitated, earn the scholarship? If so, then it's ok. Continue to punish for his past is wrong. That's in line with what you're kind of saying, Ashleigh. And one more underneath says yes, people change. Sometimes all people need is a second chance. I will end on one from my Facebook page, coming to me from Angela Marcus saying, plain and simple, no. What kind of message does this send to other kids? Some mistakes we are fortunate to outlive and others never stop costing us. He deserves a second chance, but the scholarship is a privilege he does not deserve. Thank you all for sending your messages and Ashleigh Banfield, thank you so much for contributing to us today on this story and the earlier one as well. Always good to see you, thank you so much.
BANFIELD: Thank you, T.J.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Very terrifying because if she stayed in that car, no telling what would have happened.
(END OF VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: Well, what would've happened if she would have been swept along with that vehicle in that water? We will show you and tell you what happened to the woman who was inside that vehicle. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) NATASHA CURRY, CNN ENTERTAINMENT CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): He towers over Cannes, from the front of the Carlton Hotel to the pages of the newspapers. And everyone it seems can't wait to see him.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm very excited to see Brad Pitt.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Brad Pitt.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Brad Pitt. I mean, he's a great star.
CURRY: For the third year in a row, Brad Pitt will be stepping out on the red carpet at the Cannes film festival.
BRAD PITT: We're going to be doing one thing and one thing only. Killing Nazis.
CURRY: This time it's to unveil the new movie from Quentin Tarantino "Inglourious Basterds." Tarantino's trying to earn the second palme d'or of his career. Back in 1994, he snared the festival's top prize for "Pulp Fiction."
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Quentin Tarantino had a big success here with "Pulp Fiction", his career really started when "Pulp Fiction" won the palme d'or.
CURRY (on camera): When it comes to buzz at Cannes, no film is more highly anticipated than the "Imaginarium of Dr. Parnassus." That Terry Gilliam film features the final performance of the late Heath Ledger.
(Voice-over): Ledger died in the middle of filming the movie. Three stars stepped in to take over his role. Johnny Depp, Colin Farrell, and Jude Law. But Cannes audience is about to see the results.
KENNETH TURAN, FILM CRITIC, LOS ANGELES TIMES: Heath Ledger's last film, I think there's a lot of interest. That's why people come here, because interesting films are here, so people show up to see them.
CURRY: Natasha Curry, Cannes, France.
(END OF VIDEOTAPE)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: All right. We're going to show you some of these responses that have been coming in on the story about the young man who has now gotten a scholarship to the University of Tennessee to play football after being convicted of rape and kidnapping at the age of 13. Starting with the twitter page, on the left there it says all the people unwilling to forgive probably never made a mistake ever. Have they? I bet. Also Adrian right under that says, give this kid a chance. He was 13. Where are we as a society to not help people rebuild their lives if they did their time? Also on Myspace, Rick Sanchez's Myspace page, says you never know he may have been scared to death of this guy. Referring to the 17-year-old who was actually the one who did the actual act of the rape. Also one other says under the circumstances, I think this guy should be given another chance.
I want to point out here that a lot of people now, the responses I'm getting, after they've gotten the full details of that story and how he played a role into it, the young man from Tennessee, are now coming out and most saying he should be given another chance and agreeing with Ashleigh Banfield, who we just spoke to right here.
Let's show you this video we've been giving you a little snippet of. This is what happened last night during a flash flood in Indianapolis. SUV headed downstream as you see there. Take a close look there. See the interior lights? See that? Still on, still glowing inside the vehicle starts to roll. And then roll and roll some more were, and it's gone. The good news here, this happened just after rescue workers extracted the vehicle's driver. So, there was a woman in that vehicle who they were able to get out just in the nick of time. Of course, flash flooding, this stuff can come up on you and you don't have any options, really. Some more video of the scene there but she was able to get out of that SUV, thank goodness.
All right. The former vice president, you may have seen him around a bit, doing some interviews, and talking quite a bit, it seems, these days. And a lot of what he's saying is critical of the current administration. Well, he had a little request that was denied. He wanted to declassify some documents, huh-uh, not happening. We have the story coming up.
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HOLMES: And we appreciate you all participating in this newscast. A lot of comments coming in about the University of Tennessee football player who has now earned a scholarship to the University of Tennessee after being convicted of rape and kidnapping back when he was 13. We want to continue to share some of your comments. This one coming in to Rick's Myspace page here over on the right. He says I think the kid has done his time. This will stick with him forever anyways, what is the alternative. Flush him down the toilet, let him waste what skills? So he can be homeless or worse? Then turn to the left there, my twitter page at tjholmescnn.
Jennifer at the top says convicted ballplayer may deserve a second chance, but doesn't deserve a free ride. Shows that sports stars are valued over all else. One more under that says he deserved the scholarship. He earned it. He did something wrong in the past and he paid for that already. So again, we do appreciate those comments coming in again about that young man, honor student, Mr. Football in the state and led his school to his championship. But still had that on his record from the past and some debating whether or not Tennessee should have given him a second chance at that scholarship. Thank you for your comments, keep them coming.
Next here, gone are the days when Dick Cheney stay confined to that undisclosed location. You remember that? Now out of office it seems that Cheney is just about everywhere leading attacks against the current administration. Yesterday he suffered a highly public defeat, however. Here now, CNN's Ed Henry.
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ED HENRY, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): While in office Dick Cheney was arguably the most secretive vice president in history. He once went all the way to the Supreme Court to block release of White House records. But now a new approach when it comes to anti-terror policy.
DICK CHENEY, FORMER VICE PRESIDENT: I made a request that two memos that I personally know of written by the CIA that lay out the successes of those policies and point out in considerable detail all that we were able to achieve by virtue of those policies that those memos be released.
HENRY: In an array of TV interviews, Mr. Cheney has become a cheerleader for transparency, so long as it vindicates his push for enhanced interrogation tactics.
CHENEY: But when you have memos out there that show precisely how much was achieved and how lives were saved as a result of these policies, they won't release them.
HENRY: The CIA officially denied the request Thursday, pointing to an executive order preventing release of documents tied to pending litigation. And making it clear the current White House had no political influence on the decision. A loss for the former vice president, though a Cheney biographer argues he's succeeding in another way.
BART GELLMAN, AUTHOR, "ANGLER: THE CHENEY VICE PRESIDENCY": What he's managed to do very effectively is frame a public debate and keep that debate focused on the things Cheney wants to talk about, which is do harsh methods work, rather than are they legal or are they moral or are they something we want to do?
HENRY: But some republicans are squeamish about Mr. Cheney refusing to leave the stage. Which may explain why President Obama has not been shy about countering the former vice president's campaign.
OBAMA: Public reports and the public justifications for these techniques which we got information from these individuals that were subjected to these techniques doesn't answer the core question, which is could we have gotten that same information without resorting to these techniques. And it doesn't answer the broader question, are we safer as a consequence of having used these techniques?
HENRY: Mr. Cheney is showing no signs of giving in.
CHENEY: No regrets. I think it was absolutely the right thing to do. I'm convinced, absolutely convinced, that we saved thousands, perhaps hundreds of thousands, of lives.
HENRY (on camera): An aide to Cheney tells CNN he's already preparing his appeal to the CIA. The stated reason is that he wants these memos included in his memoirs, but more broadly, the former vice president also wants to put his stamp on history. Ed Henry, CNN, the White House.
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HOLMES: And among the many ironies here is that a lot of people believe the more we learn about Cheney, the bigger his headaches might get. Yesterday Rick talked to democratic senator Sheldon Whitehouse about Cheney's support for enhanced interrogation methods such as waterboarding. Take a listen.
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RICK SANCHEZ, CNN ANCHOR: We're hearing from ex chief of staff Lawrence Wilkerson and he's making the argument that he believes that what the Bush administration was actually doing with enhanced interrogations was trying to make a case for the invasion of Iraq. And trying to justify what happened in Iraq. Do you believe that is actually what enhanced interrogation, so-called torture, was being used for?
SEN. SHELDON WHITEHOUSE, (D) RHODE ISLAND: I've heard that to be true. There is some further evidence of that in Chairman Levin's armed services committee report. There is not a great deal of evidence that came out on our hearing one way or the other about that. The one thing I will say about that is that if that is true, then it takes the application of these techniques out of the protective scope of the office of legal counsel opinion.
SANCHEZ: And it makes them political. And it makes them -- it's not about we were scared, we wanted to defend the country anymore, now it's about we needed to have some political justification for something we wanted to do. That would sit a lot worse --
WHITEHOUSE: And it's subject to being a criminal prosecution.
SANCHEZ: I'm sorry, I didn't mean to step on you. Say it, again, sir, I'm sorry.
WHITEHOUSE: I said, that raises the prospects of there being a criminal prosecution that could justifiably emerge from these facts.
(END OF VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: And, again, that was Senator Sheldon Whitehouse yesterday with Rick Sanchez.
Got a very special guest here in this hour.
BETTY NGUYEN, CNN ANCHOR: Hello, T.J.?
HOLMES: My co-anchor, my dear, dear, friend, Betty Nguyen, here after the break, talking about a big week we have ahead. We've got a big weekend coming up this weekend.
NGUYEN: Yeah.
HOLMES: But how you doing?
NGUYEN: Usher, Bob Barker, Chris Gardner.
HOLMES: Yes.
NGUYEN: I mean you name it, we have it on the show. You don't want to miss it. We're going to give you a little preview, right after this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) HOLMES: All right. Again, we appreciate your comments coming in to us. A lot of response from you on this story. A young man, and, Betty Nguyen, sitting here next to me, she's going to be talking to us about the weekend in just a moment. But going to get some more of your comments. But if you haven't heard, this young man got a scholarship to the University of Tennessee to play football after he has a kidnapping and rape conviction on his record at the age of 13. Here's some of what you're saying, that's tjholmescnn, my twitter page there. One says, agreed, he was 13, he is probably reformed now, but scholarships should be awarded to those with exemplary records. One down Nardo58 says why shouldn't he get a scholarship? If he's that good, I wish him well. Do you want him treated like a criminal forever? We'll turn to Rick's Myspace page now to the right.
What kind of person drives through a flood? Don't know if you all saw this video. A little earlier a lady was pulled out before the flood water took her vehicle away. But says, don't they know the water could sweep a car off the road? I say they should be billed for the money spent on their rescue. And Betty how many times? We know we have heard it, Reynolds Wolf on the weekends. Do not attempt, you don't know how deep that water is. Don't do it and it never fails.
NGUYEN: And it doesn't take that much to carry a car away. And just to see an SUV flip over and over in the water like that is quite a sight.
And speaking of things that are quite a sight.
HOLMES: We've got quite a weekend this weekend.
NGUYEN: We have got a show coming up for you this weekend. I talked with Usher yesterday, he was actually inducted into the Boys and Girls Club hall of fame. He gave me a backstage tour, has a studio there in Atlanta.
HOLMES: How did you dress for this interview here Betty?
NGUYEN: I was going to record something, but I can't sing and I can barely dance.
HOLMES: You look like a pop star. You really do look like a pop star.
NGUYEN: I had to step up the game, it's Usher after all. Any way, he's done a lot with his life. He dropped his first album when he was 15 years old, he has won five Grammys, he's got this new look foundation which is really helping young people get started in the entertainment business as well as the sports entertainment business. And he's also working with the U.N. to bring mosquito nets to countries that absolutely need it. That's going to help in the prevention of malaria. So we talked to him about all of those things and he gives us a backstage tour. Like I said, of the studio and some of his awards. It's really interesting, not only where he's been, but where he is going. And we're going to talk about that.
And listen to this, you remember Bob Barker right, from the Price is Right?
HOLMES: We all know Bob Barker.
NGUYEN: You're the next contestant on "The Price is Right", come on down.
HOLMES: Had the skinny microphone and the whole -- yes, of course.
NGUYEN: Exactly. Well we talked to him about a number of things, he has a new book out called "Priceless Memories".
HOLMES: This was out in L.A. you went to see him?
NGUYEN: Exactly. I traveled to his home in the Hollywood Hills and learned quite a few things about Mr. Bob barker, like for example, he was invited, asked to be in a porn flick.
HOLMES: He turned that down, though, right?
NGUYEN: Can you imagine that? Yeah, the price is not right for that one. But also he learned karate, he learned martial arts from none other than Chuck Norris. So there's a lot of history there for a man as you can see who's spent 51 years on television as a host.
HOLMES: Well, if he would have taken that other job, I guess there would have been different kind of women all over him from what we're seeing there.
NGUYEN: Absolutely. I guess lucky for us and his wife especially, he didn't take that job.
HOLMES: But you have Usher, Bob Barker this weekend, we're looking forward to seeing. But we also have, this weekend coming up, Betty and I starting at 6:00 tomorrow morning, Chris Gardner, the author of "The Pursuit of Happyness." Too many people are familiar with his story because he lived on the street, he was homeless with his son.
NGUYEN: Will Smith was in the movie and his son.
HOLMES: In the movie, yes there are some clips from that. He's going to be with us tomorrow, has a new book out. It doesn't break it down in chapters, 44 little lessons for life. Every single one of these nuggets you can use. And he'll be with us live tomorrow as well.
Also, Richard Petty, I know you're a big Nascar fan.
NGUYEN: Oh yeah!
HOLMES: Nascar --
NGUYEN: This is the Nascar fan right here.
HOLMES: I am a Nascar fan. But Richard Petty, he's on a cross country trip, essentially raising money for charity but while he's completing his trip we're actually going to get him on the phone while he's driving. You and I will talk to him live tomorrow.
NGUYEN: Let's hope he's got a blue tooth and he's not -- because he is driving, right?
HOLMES: He is driving. Nascar, these guys go super fast. We can't have him talking on the cellphone to us.
NGUYEN: I don't know, I've seen some of those accidents and they're not pretty.
HOLMES: And one more we have got here, we're going to have Al Sharpton on with us tomorrow. Big march about education. The anniversary this weekend Brown versus the board of education. And also something I'm tickled about, because I'm from Arkansas, the Little Rock nine, a member of the Little Rock nine, the nine group of students, brave young souls who integrated that school will be with us as well. Betty we're busy.
NGUYEN: We are and just look at the spectrum of what we're covering this weekend, we've got a lot for you. So hopefully you're going to tune in, 6:00 to noon eastern on Saturday and 6:00 a.m. till 9:00 a.m. on Sunday. Don't miss it.
HOLMES: Thank you for sticking around because I know you need to go and get some work done. But I appreciate you coming in and being a part of the team. Won't you stick around till four now?
NGUYEN: No, that's all right.
HOLMES: Betty and I will be right back.
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MELISSA LONG, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A sports car and a scooter, an unlikely pair, but they have something in common.
STEVEN SHAPIRO, VECTRIX OWNER: You just plug it into a regular socket and charge it.
LONG: Neither use gas. Steve Shapiro bought this highway friendly Vectrix Maxi Scooter last year when gas prices were high.
SHAPIRO: It takes two hours to charge and then you have about 50 or 60 miles of driving. Underneath the seat and in this back storage compartment, I can get the equivalent of three bags of groceries.
LONG (on camera): We know the trunk could hold a couple of bags, but could I actually fit my work bag? Let me find out. The trunk, will it hold my lap top? It's a tight squeeze, but it fits.
(Voice-over): For those willing to give up gas but not the trunk space, the Tesla roadster might be a better fit.
JEREMY SNYDER, TESLA MOTORS: Ninety five percent of America drive less than a hundred miles a day. The roadster has a range of 244 miles. So for daily driving purposes, this suits 95 percent of Americans.
LONG: For about $100,000, it goes from zero to 60 in under four seconds. A bit faster than the Vectrix.
(On camera): This vehicle has a lot of pick up. It can go from zero to 60 in 6.8 seconds. Gun it.
(Voice-over): This may change the quintessential road trip. No more gas stations.
JOHN ANTHONY, RIDES SCOOTER TO WORK: When you're riding this, you do keep an eye out, there are a lot of outside outlets and I have plugged in.
LONG: Melissa Long, CNN.
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HOLMES: Well, Betty, my co-anchor, Betty Nguyen is gone, but not forgotten. But we did forget while she was here with me just a second ago, she was talking about her big interview she had with Usher. We forgot to play you this sound bite. Listen to her and Usher for just a second.
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USHER RAYMOND, R&B STAR: I didn't have a father as a child, so I definitely was in a position where I could have been influenced to go and be in a gang and I was little. So I knew that I needed to find a way to protect myself. Well protection was being in a gang. Protection could have been any of those things, you know, survival. A lot of kids are trying to find a way to survive out here. But if there's a way to get a child in a positive direction, I think that we as parents, we as parents have to be very open minded. And the Boys and Girls Club gives -- they gave me that opportunity and I'm blessed to have made it through it.
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HOLMES: And, again, Usher inducted into the Boys and Girls Club hall of fame. You can see that interview with Betty this weekend on our show Saturday and Sunday morning. Also the Bob Barker interview she was talking about just a second ago, we have a couple of comments onto Rick's Myspace page. One saying Bob Barker porn? I guess he'll release the tape if the price is right. LOL. The other says ewwwwwwwww, Bob Barker naked, my eyes, my eyes. That refers to the story Bob Barker told our Betty Nguyen in an interview that yes in fact he was offered a job as a porn star. We appreciate you all participating in this newscast today, a lot of comments today about the young man who has now gotten a scholarship to play football at Tennessee who was convicted of rape and kidnapping in his past. A lot of you sending comments in. I'll end with one here from Phillip. It says as long as he's meeting all of the enrollment and scholarship requirements and criteria, where is the problem? He has clearly worked hard to excel. Thank you all for your comments. I'm T.J. Holmes sitting in today for Rick Sanchez. I want to hand it over now to Suzanne Malveaux in "THE SITUATION ROOM".
SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN ANCHOR: Hey, T.J.
