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Michael Jackson's Memorial at the Staples Center in Los Angeles; Obama in Russia, Day Two; City of Los Angeles Asks Jackson Memorial Attendees to Donate Money to Help Pay for City's Services Today

Aired July 07, 2009 - 09:57   ET

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

HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: All right, very good, Rob. We'll check back a little bit later on.

Here's a look now at some of the stories we are following for you today. President Obama on the second day of his trip to Russia. He met with former president and current prime minister Vladimir Putin today. The president wants to restrengthen ties between both countries, and he wants to reduce the number of nuclear weapons.

Another deadly attack in Afghanistan one day after ten NATO-led troops were killed. The U.S. military says a coalition soldier died today from injuries in a roadside bombing attack on a convoy in western Afghanistan.

And police say the woman who was found dead with NFL quarterback Steve McNair bought a gun that was found at the scene. They say Sahel Kazemi purchased the weapon two days before the double shooting. Police call McNair's death a homicide but have not yet said how Kazemi died.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

EBONI BUTLER, MICHAEL JACKSON FAN: I have -- I have the hottest ticket on the planet right now. That's for sure. This is priceless. I would never give it up for any amount.

ZACH MOSS, MICHAEL JACKSON FAN: Incredible, seeing an e-mail that said congratulations is like getting into college again, but it is even bigger. You know, there are 1,000 colleges in the United States or 10,000 colleges and there's one show ever, period.

And it is to get here is priceless. It feels like it's family. Everyone is there for the same reason. You know, it doesn't matter who you're with. It doesn't matter, you know, any other problem, when you hear "Beat It," when you hear "Thriller," when you hear "P.Y.T.," you're screaming M.J., M.J.. I mean, it's indescribable. Taking part in it and being able to hear is the biggest memory of my lifetime.

DIANE COPELAND, MICHAEL JACKSON FAN: The fact that the Jackson family did this for the fans and actually put this together while they are in mourning, I want to thank them because I think it's really important.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COLLINS: The Michael Jackson memorial is scheduled to begin just three hours from now. Fans are already streaming through the gates. Those are the lucky ones who got the coveted tickets to the event. The Jackson family is gathering at Forest Lawn Cemetery this morning. That's where the private service is taking place just about an hour from now.

Our Don Lemon is in Los Angeles for us this morning at the Staples Center helping to cover all the angles of this story. Don, good morning once again.

DON LEMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning to you, Heidi. I wish you could see -- I'm going to show it to you at one point during our broadcasting, the crush of media. I have covered a lot of huge events, but I have never seen this much media. Look at that. You are looking at live pictures now from the Staples Center. And that is only a small part of this. Imagine if they would have been able to bring crowds in.

You know, people have been gathering here to honor the legacy of Michael Jackson. The family will be here a little bit later. And even though Jackson really seemed to shy away, you know, from the public over the past few years, well you know, Teddy Riley knows all about that, why he shied away.

But I want to tell, as I talked to Teddy -- because Teddy knows this as well. We have breaking news here. Michael Jackson's body will indeed be here at the Staples Center. And you said the reason behind that is...

TEDDY RILEY, PRODUCER, WORKED WITH JACKSON ON ALBUMS: The reason why is because it wouldn't be fair not to -- for the fans who are actually here and will be here at the Staples Center. It wouldn't be fair that they not see at least the casket. I'm just hoping that they don't open it...

LEMON: Really.

RILEY: You know what I'm saying? Because I feel like just him being in this presence, you know, being there with the performances, he'll be honored in performing and celebrating his life. I think it's going to be great to do that, but I don't know about opening it.

LEMON: Well, Teddy, for those of you who may not know Teddy. Teddy was on "2300 Jackson Street," that was your song. You worked with Michael Jackson on four albums as producer and you are also still very good friends with his brothers. And you have been speaking to them throughout this. There was a decision whether or not to drive the body here or to fly it in. Originally, they were going to fly it in because they didn't want to create chaos, right?

RILEY: What I was told is it's going to be flown in, but I think what I have heard from some of the people here and some of the people who are close to the family members, it is going to be driven in. Because it would be dangerous to fly it in. They wouldn't know where to land it here or how to land it.

LEMON: Yes.

RILEY: So I just hope that, you know, everything is done right. I think it was more of an insurance thing.

LEMON: Yes. You have been speaking to the family for the past couple of days, really for the past week or so now, how are they holding up? Janet is going to speak - you said today. You said the entire family is going to be here. Tell us what we are looking forward to today.

RILEY: I'm sure you will see a few of the family members speak and a few of the friends speak. It is going to be something that is unexpected because as we celebrate him, you have people who were not expecting to come, but they are going to be here. I'm sure if it's someone that's meaningful to him, they are going to ask them to come up. So it's going to be a great show. I know there's going to be a performance.

LEMON: There's going to be a performance?

RILEY: Yes.

LEMON: By whom?

RILEY: Well, I know the dancers, because my daughter is part of the dancers, something like that. So they are going to actually be doing a thing - I think there's going to be some conducting with the band and some of the superstars that are going to come up and sing some songs. We are just going to jam.

LEMON: Yes. And celebrate Michael Jackson's life, the legacy. Hey, so what about the people who were involved in the AEG stuff, the London tour? Are they going to be here? Are they going to perform?

RILEY: I think they are going to be here and, I think, as a matter of fact, the same band members I think, they are all going to be here (inaudible) he did the "Bad" tour. He did the "Thriller" tour. He is the one that knows everything.

LEMON: I've seen the Michael Jackson thing that everybody is going to be doing now. I've seen it done over and over.

RILEY: It's going to be a (inaudible).

LEMON: Yes.

RILEY: And what I hope to see is that some of the young guys like Chris Brown, and I hope those guys get up there and do something. It will be crazy because Michael really admired Chris and Usher.

LEMON: Yes and they got a lot from him. You know, if you look at their performances, they get a lot from him. But also, you know, Michael Jackson really took a lot of, I think, one of his mentors was Sammy Davis Jr. If you look at the hat and the candy man and the black outfit and you know, the dance move is Fred Astaire.

RILEY: Well, when I was working on the "Dangerous" album and I first went into his private room, he had a collage of pictures. And Fred Astaire was up there. Sammy Davis Jr., Bing Crosby and who else, Sarah Vaughan. Just a lot of the incredible legends from back in the '60s and '70s.

LEMON: He learned from them and then the younger people came along and...

RILEY: Kid Creole.

LEMON: Kid Creole. Yes, and they learned from Michael Jackson. You were on our air last week and got so emotional, you broke down. We actually had to end the interview. And I had people reach out to me all over saying, "You know, this guy really was a good friend to Michael Jackson." Why were you moved so much?

RILEY: Well, because, you know, just that song, you know, I was trying to finish it. I can finish it now, but that song was the first song, people asked me and put me in a room with a piano, we wrote that song first.

LEMON: "Black Away."

RILEY: No. "Remember the Time."

LEMON: "Remember the Time." OK. All right. "Remember the Time."

RILEY: When you played that, it brought back all the memories of how we did it. It was just him and I. And he did all of the melodies, how he wanted it, and what I did was I handed it over to Bernard Belle, who actually wrote the song with us. Bernard just slipped the words in the slot. See, one thing Michael always says is, and he says all the time, "Melody is key."

LEMON: Right.

RILEY: So, if you got a great melody...

LEMON: You got the song.

RILEY: ... people are going to love it. That's why when they always say if he doesn't pronounce his words, it is sometimes true.

LEMON: It's poetic license, right? You're taking poetic license.

RILEY: That is it.

LEMON: Teddy, unfortunately, we have to run.

RILEY: I know.

LEMON: But thank you. Thank you so much. Teddy, you're going to come and talk to us after the service.

RILEY: Yes.

LEMON: I'll be inside up in one of the suites and I'll be watching this. I really appreciate you coming and sharing that very personal information and really, give our best to the family.

RILEY: Yes.

LEMON: Michael Jackson's former producer and very good friends with the family.

The Jackson family is gathering for a private memorial service this morning. And there was also one last night, a gathering, as well. The one is at Forest Lawn Cemetery, and CNN's Ted Rowlands is over there right now. Ted, what are you seeing at Forest Lawn?

TED ROWLANDS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Don, no sign of the family yet here at Forest Lawn. Last night you mentioned they did come here for a gathering as well. There was a hearse at that point, too. It is part of that gathering last night. And now that we know that Jackson's body will be going to Staples Center, it begs the question, will the body then be going with the family? That's probably is a good assumption at this point. What we do know is at 8:00, within the next hour, family members will be gathering for what they are calling a private gathering.

And from there they will be escorted, and there is enough police here to escort a president. They will escort the family and possibly Jackson's body then to the Staples Center for this 10:00 a.m. memorial. At this point though, Don, heavy security, heavy media presence but no family members have arrived yet. We do expect them though soon considering that this private gathering will begin at the top of the hour.

LEMON: All right. Hey, thank you very much for that, Ted.

You know, I just have to say that I'm hearing here that possibly the gathering that was at Forest Lawn last night may have been the only family gathering. So stick by it, Ted. If you see the family, let us know, but I'm hearing that that may be the only gathering and that there is a private gathering after this at an undisclosed location in Beverly Hills. So we will try to get that -- some clarification on that.

Our Ted Rowlands is standing by, and we also have other team members standing by to find out all the details on the Michael Jackson memorial, both public and private. That's the story from here.

I'm headed inside the Staples Center right now to get ready for this memorial. And I'll be back later in the hour, Heidi, with that view, but now I want to throw it back to you. I wish you were here with me to share this. I know that you are a Michael Jackson fan. And Heidi, one of my good friends, we talked and shared a lot. So I wish you were here to witness this with me, Heidi. COLLINS: Certainly an event, no question about it. And a lot of people behind you, and I know they are all hoping to get into place. So, a lot more people not going to make it, unfortunately, because there's got to be some type of crowd control. The facility is only that big, only so big, I should say. But we will continue to follow it throughout here as we get closer and closer, our Don Lemon coming there to us live from Los Angeles this morning. We'll check back with him in just a little while.

Meanwhile, Michael Jackson, of course, the hot topic on our blog this morning. Certainly, we have been asking you to recall some of your favorite memories of Michael Jackson. Maybe the first time you heard one of those songs that might have moved you. What is your favorite M.J. moment? You can now go to cnn.com/heidi and you can share your moments with us. We will certainly bring some of those comments to you in just a little while. I'm sure we do appreciate your participation in all of that.

Meanwhile, stay with us all day right here for our coverage of the memorial, celebrating the life of the worldwide pop icon as family, friends and fans say goodbye. "Michael Jackson, The Memorial," special live coverage all day today.

Vladimir Putin may not be Russia's president anymore, but he still has the power to get a face-to-face with President Obama. We'll take you live to Moscow.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: Day two of President Obama's trip to Russia now. Yesterday he meet with President Dmitry Medvedev. Today he began a sit down with Medvedev's predecessor, the still very powerful prime minister, Vladimir Putin. Ed Henry spoke with President Obama just a short time ago. He is live for us now, directly from Moscow. Ed, good morning once again.

ED HENRY, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, good morning, Heidi. What is interesting is the president is trying to navigate exactly who is in charge here. When he got that question in a press conference yesterday with President Medvedev, he essentially ducked it because he didn't really want to get in the middle of it, but then after that meeting with Prime Minister Putin today, I sat down for a one-on-one with President Obama and I pressed him on the point. And I said, look, before this trip you said you believe Mr. Putin has one foot in the old camp, the old way of doing business and one foot in the new way of doing business. What did you really mean? Here's what the president said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: In a lot of ways, Prime Minister Putin is representative of Russia. He is very popular here. And I think that Russia is still, on the one hand, processing the transition out of the Cold War and the dissolution of the Soviet Union. On the other hand, they recognize an interest in modernizing, diversifying and recognize, I think, the economic power is going to be the most importance currency in the 21st century.

I found him to be tough, smart, very unsentimental, I think he is a practical person. And to the extent that there are common interests like fighting terrorism, potentially nuclear proliferation, where he believes that working with the United States advances Russian goals. I think he can be a potential partner.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HENRY: One of those nuclear hot spots the president talking about a lot during this summit is Iran, of course. And I asked the president about the fact that vice president Biden made some comments over the weekend suggesting the U.S. would not stand in the way if Israel wanted to launch a preemptive strike against Iran's nuclear site that caused some alarm around the world about whether or not there could be an impending military strike. The president made a little news.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

HENRY (on camera): Are you giving Israel a green light?

OBAMA: Absolutely not. And I think it's very important that I'm as clear as I can be and our administration is consistent as we can be on this issue. I think vice president Biden stated a categorical fact, which is we can't dictate to other countries what their security interests are.

What is also true is that the policy of the United States is to try to resolve the issue of Iran's nuclear capabilities in a peaceful way through diplomatic channels. This is a tough job and nobody is under any illusions that it will be easy and I've always said that we, the United States, reserve the right, and I as commander in chief reserve the right to take whatever actions are necessary to protect the United States.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HENRY: Now, I pressed the president on that point about trying to open diplomatic channels, direct diplomatic talks with Iran, and that it can be especially difficult right now given the disputed election, given the fact that Iran doesn't seem ready, prepared to sit down at the same table. The president acknowledged that is a problem right now but said he essentially sees it as a door of diplomacy and it's up to Iran whether or not they're going to open that. Heidi.

COLLINS: Obviously, some very heavy topics there. They haven't even talked about the global economy yet, which obviously coming a little bit later in the week in the G-8. We sure do appreciate that from Moscow this morning. Our White House correspondent, Ed Henry. Thank you, Ed.

Not a quitter but a fighter. That's how Governor Sarah Palin describes herself a few days after suddenly announcing her resignation. CNN's Drew Griffin caught up with her during a family fishing trip in the remote part of Alaska. (BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GOV. SARAH PALIN (R), ALASKA: ... tough as been. No, I'm not going to take that comfortable path. I'm going to take the right path for the state. I'm going to let the state progress, and then I'm going to be able to get out there and help people, help affect change in our state and positive change in our nation. That is my goal. Helping to work for other people to do such a thing, and I don't need a title to do that and they don't need titles, either, to affect change, but I want to help people who want to fight for the right thing.

DREW GRIFFIN, CNN SPECIAL INVESTIGATIONS UNIT (on camera): But governor, if that is the right road for Alaska...

PALIN: Yes.

GRIFFIN: ... is it a dangerous road for you to be labeled in this land of tough people a quitter?

PALIN: I'm certainly not a quitter, I'm a fighter. And that' why I'm doing this, to go out there and to fight for what is right without the constraints surrounding me in these final months. And anybody who lives in Alaska will tell you, of course, our administration has been paralyzed. We spend most of our day fending off frivolous losses.

No, it's not a matter of retreating or quitting, it is a matter of progressing and forwarding a good positive agenda in an unconventional way and I think that's what caught people off guard.

"Wait a minute. This is kind of out of the box and unconventional." Well, that's who we are as Alaskans. That's certainly how I am as a public servant, as a person very proud of my state, seen great potential in my state, unconventional in the way that we are getting things done, but we are certainly getting things done.

GRIFFIN: Is this your unconventional way of announcing you're going to run for president in 2012?

PALIN: As I said, I do not need a title. Nobody does to affect positive change.

GRIFFIN: Are you running for political office?

PALIN: I can't see me totally being out of public service because that is within me, it is the way that I'm wired is to -- desire to help.

GRIFFIN: Governor, I'm asking you, are you ever going to run for president? Are you ruling it out?

PALIN: All options are going to keep on -- continuing to be on the table as they have been for me my entire life. I'm not going to close any door that may be open for me out there, so all options are on the table.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COLLINS: Governor Palin plans to hand over her duties to lieutenant Governor Shaun Parnell at the end of the month.

Millions of fans saying goodbye today to pop icon Michael Jackson and many still want to know what caused the cardiac arrest that killed him. We'll check in with our Dr. Sanjay Gupta.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: Michael Jackson's memorial today is bittersweet for the millions of fans looking for closure as to why he died of cardiac arrest. Let's go ahead and bring in our chief medical correspondent now Dr. Sanjay Gupta, who has been working on this aspect of the story as well as many others.

So Sanjay, everybody is kind of wondering if officials are getting closer to determining what brought on this cardiac arrest. Because we do know that to be the cause of death, but people, obviously, are still very confused as to how that happened.

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, my guess is, going out on a limb here - my guess is they already know.

COLLINS: Yes.

GUPTA: Everyone is focusing on the toxicology because I don't think anything really obvious, no signs of trauma or foul play, as I mentioned, initially were found. So they focused on the toxicology. Those tests do come -- they take a few days -- but they probably would have come back by now. So my guess is they know, but there's still finishing off the entire autopsy and looking at the tissues in the brain and the liver, areas that they focus on in these sorts of cases and piecing it all together. But they probably already have a very good idea already, if not the answer.

COLLINS: It's interesting, too, because we were talking during the break. Autopsies are not always made public. I mean, the family has to agree to that, right? I know that they, at least, originally, requested their own private autopsy. So what really does the public have the right to know, and what are we likely to learn?

GUPTA: You asked a great question. I don't think anyone has brought up this point as of yet, but we really have no right to know anything. You know, this is a family matter, for the most part, and the only way that the results of the autopsy will be released is if the family agrees to it. Now, we do know the coroner's office came out and said that they expect the results to come back in four to six weeks. I don't know if they said implicitly that they will release the results at that point, but just that they will have the results finalized at that point.

As far as the second autopsy, the private autopsy, for sure the family gets to control all the information there. It's all just their information. It is not going through a public coroner's office in that case. So, and again, even with that autopsy, they may have already have a lot of answers. A lot of the data may have already come back. So I think they are still probably deciding what to do with all this.

COLLINS: Yes, there's a question about it. All right. Well, keep us abreast with any developments.

GUPTA: It is interesting when you cover these sorts of stories because the famous people you expect we're going to have all these details, but they still have their family private lives.

COLLINS: It is really none of our business, really.

GUPTA: In some ways.

COLLINS: Yes.

All right. Dr. Sanjay Gupta, sure do appreciate it. Thank you so much.

And more on this story this morning, crowd control, security, the city's finest are in place. You see many of them right there in that live shot, but at what cost to Los Angeles? The city is $530 million in debt. We're going to talk to a senior member of the mayor's staff.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: As we continue to cover the memorial for Michael Jackson today, we want to get out to our correspondent Thelma Gutierrez, who is at the family's home in Encino right now where some activity is taking place. Good morning to you, Thelma.

THELMA GUTIERREZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Heidi. It appears that this convoy is set to begin any time now. We can tell you that there is a lot of activity out here. Take a look right across the way here. This is the entrance to the Jackson family compound. You can see that there are police who are staged right in front of it. Up above there is a CHP helicopter, news choppers that are flying overhead.

The road that comes into this home had been closed down. The only people who have been allowed to come close to the house are the fans that you see there behind the barriers. Many of these people have been here for the last four or five hours. We have seen a steady flow of SUVs and limos and Rolls Royces that have entered the compound. We have also seen this very large convoy of unmarked Range Rovers and Escalades that have been parked.

We are told that several of the people who have come into this area -- we believe in one of the cars, several people mentioned they saw Jermaine Jackson. He waved at the fans, and then the car ducked down behind the compound. Now, it is difficult to tell exactly who is in those cars, but you take a look down this road right in front of the Jackson family house, and you can see a long line of SUVs. Again, all ready to start the convoy. We are told that the CHP will escort the convoy to Forest Lawn Cemetery in the Hollywood Hills, which is about 11 miles away, and there they will have a private service. Heidi.

COLLINS: All right. CNN's Thelma Gutierrez for us there in Encino, California. We do appreciate that, Thelma.

In fact, you can't go anywhere in central Los Angeles today without seeing police. The Staples Center is pretty well covered. Thelma just mentioned at family home as well. How much is this costing the city? And can Los Angeles really afford it?

Joining me now, the mayor's senior press secretary, Matt Szabo. Thanks so much for being with us, Matt. I know it's a very busy day for you there.

Any idea, off the top of your head, or with the research you guys have been looking at -- how much all the security and emergency services and in case somebody gets ill? Sanitation, I imagine, there are a number of things you would need to be paying for as a city. What is it going to cost?

MATT SZABO, SENIOR PRESS SECRETARY, L.A. MAYOR'S OFFICE: Well, that's right. Obviously, this is an event as big as we have ever had here in Los Angeles. It is the city's obligation, first and foremost, to provide public safety. We have all our officers at our disposal, firefighters, sanitation, paramedics, that's the number one obligation. It could cost the city several million dollars. That's the estimate -- you know, it could be anywhere from $2 million to $3 million or more than that. But again, that's our number one obligation, and we're going to be doing that.

COLLINS: Yes, and it's important that you point out obligation, not necessarily choice. I just wonder if you can elaborate on that a little bit. As the people who are in charge of the police, obviously, the mayor's office, you have to protect people. You have to make sure everybody is going to be safe in an event like this.

But what about the budget for the city? I mean, everybody knows California as a state is about $24 billion in the hole. The city of L.A., $530 million, according to our records here at CNN. The debt is big and it is strong. Where do you find the money?

SZABO: Well, look, Los Angeles, of course, is a world-class city. We are used to putting on world-class events. But that said, even though we are the entertainment capital of the world, we are not immune to the economic recession.

What we are asking -- we are asking Michael Jackson fans to help be a part of this event. We are asking them to contribute online and actually literally support this great memorial that you see behind us. Essentially, nothing could tarnish this event more than having a public safety disturbance of any kind. We are committed to making sure that doesn't happen, and we are asking fans of Michael Jackson to help contribute to a world-class memorial for a world-class superstar by helping contribute to keeping this place safe.

COLLINS: Now, is that the first place that the mayor's office went to -- was to the fans online to help pay for security and potentially emergency services? Have you spoke with the Jackson family or perhaps AEG, the people who were promoting the upcoming concert of his?

SZABO: Well, look, our understanding -- AEG has -- is putting on this entire event. What we are concerned about is paying for all the other auxiliary services and providing for public safety. Which is what the city does, that's our...

COLLINS: Understood, understood.

SZABO: What we are asking, though --and this is a unique event. We're also in a unique time, and we are asking all people who want to do something, who want to contribute in some way to the memorial of Michael Jackson, we are providing them an option that they can help provide for the safety of this event so that it goes off without a hitch and without any kind of compromise to public safety, because, of course, that would tarnish the entire event.

COLLINS: No question about that. We certainly wish all of the officers the best of luck out there today to make sure everybody stays safe. No matter the cost, we certainly will continue to follow up on that story.

Matt Szabo, we sure do appreciate your time -- again, on a busy day for you. Senior press secretary to the mayor of Los Angeles.

Stay with us on CNN all day as we bring you live coverage of the memorial. Celebrating the life of the worldwide pop icon Michael Jackson as family, friends and fans say goodbye. "Michael Jackson: The Memorial." Special live coverage all day today.

A small town in South Carolina relieved after police say a suspected serial killer is off the streets. How it all came to a dramatic end.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: President Obama spending a second day in Russia. He may have met with Russian president Dmitry Medvedev first, but today began with a face-to-face with prime minister Vladimir Putin. Still a powerful player in Russian and world politics, of course.

Ed Henry spoke with the president just a short time ago and is joining us live in Moscow. Good morning to you once again, Ed.

ED HENRY, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Heidi. You're absolutely right. There was a hefty agenda to cover here, and the president off camera and at the beginning of the interview -- he acknowledges and understands back in the States, the Michael Jackson funeral, the death of Michael Jackson getting a lot of coverage. But he is trying to stay here, plod away on some of the big, big issues. So we covered a lot of ground. We started with Russia, because, as you mentioned, the president had his first face-to-face with the powerful Russian prime minister, Vladimir Putin. But we also covered Iran, a very delicate nuclear situation going on and playing our right now.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I think that in a lot of ways, Prime Minister Putin is representative of Russia. He is very popular here, and I think that Russia is still, on the one hand, processing the transition out of the Cold War and the disillusion of the Soviet Union. On the other hand, they recognize an interest in modernizing, diversifying. And recognizing that, I think, economic power is going to be the most important currency in the twenty-first century.

I found him to be tough, smart, very unsentimental. I think he is a practical person. And to the extent that there are common interests, like fighting terrorism, potentially nuclear proliferation, where he believes that working with the United States advances Russian goals, I think he can be a potential partner.

HENRY: Some Iranian clerics came out yesterday, raised more questions about the disputed election. How do you engage with a government that doesn't seem to want to, maybe, be engaged, and may even be thumbing its nose at the democratic values?

OBAMA: The events we've seen over the last several weeks have not just disturbed us in America, they have disturbed the world. Violence, tensions have been, I think, not only heartbreaking but really raising questions about the direction that Iranian leaders want to take their country. And it obviously raised issues of legitimacy that haven't yet been resolved in their own country.

We have to wait to see how the dust settles. Right now, we have to continue to speak out and bear witness to the fact that the Iranian people need to be treated with justice and fairness. But it certainly complicates our efforts because there's the possibility that those who are now in power in Iran choose to retrench and dig in as opposed to open up.

And that's where having conversations with Russia, China, other countries that still do business with Iran is so important. And it is something that I raise consistently in conversations here.

HENRY: On Iran over the weekend, vice president Biden seemed to leave -- sort of suggest that the U.S. would not stand in the way if Israel wanted to launch a preemptive strike against Iran's nuclear sites. Are you giving Israel a green light?

OBAMA: Absolutely not. I think it is very important that I'm as clear as I can be, and our administration is as consistent as we can be on this issue. I think Vice President Biden stated a categorical fact, which is we can't dictate to other countries what their security interests are. What is also true is that the policy of the United States is to try to resolve the issue of Iran's nuclear capabilities in a peaceful way through diplomatic channels.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HENRY: So, it is interesting, you can hear the president really try to tamp down about the suggestion that the U.S. is giving Israel a green light to launch a military attack against Iran, but at the same time saying, "Look, if they are going to do something in their sovereign country, essentially, they can do it. That's still on the table." These are very, very serious negotiations going on right now.

COLLINS: Such heavy topics when you talk about nuclear proliferation. Obviously, kind of strange to then hear him comment on the death of Michael Jackson. You said that he was very aware, you asked him a question about it, but to hear the president of the United States in this forum talking about the death of a pop star, it is very unusual, yes?

HENRY: Unusual, but I have to take the blame for that. I'm the one who asked the president the question. At the end of the interview after covering the ground on Russia and Iran, clearly the president, I would guess, and it is a safe, fair guess, would have preferred not to talk about Michael Jackson in this context.

But you can't ignore the elephant in the room that, which is that while this is playing out back in the States and around the world, this is a global event that people are paying attention to. That's why I asked it. And the president said, "Look, bottom line, he was a cultural icon." He said he listened to him himself as a young kid. He remembers the song "ABC, 123." He didn't start singing it or anything, but he talked about that -- the president did.

He said the reason why people are paying attention is because he broke through, beyond many other entertainers along the lines of Elvis and Sinatra, someone who really rose above. The president concluded by saying there was also a tragic element to Michael Jackson's life and that's part of the story as well, Heidi.

COLLINS: Yes, he gave you a very lengthy answer. We do appreciate all the reporting. Thank you so much. Our White House correspondent traveling with the president in Moscow, Ed Henry. Thank you, Ed.

Relief in Gaffney, South Carolina, after a man suspected of killing five people dies in a shootout with police. Investigators say 41-year-old Patrick Burris was shot to death by officers investigating a burglary complaint at a home in Dallas, North Carolina. That's about 30 miles from where the killing spree began on June 27. Police say Burris was a career criminal.

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REGGIE LLOYD, S.C. LAW ENFORCEMENT DIVISION: Folks, look at this. This is, like, a 25 pages. At some point, the criminal justice system is going to need to explain why this individual was out on the street. We owe that to the victims in this case, we owe that to the citizens who lived in terror for days, and we owe that going forward. Somebody is going to have to explain why this individual who should have been away behind bars was out on the street.

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COLLINS: Two people who were with Burris were also taken into custody, but we do not know right now if they will face charges.

Paying tribute to the King of Pop. Millions of fans get ready to say goodbye. More coverage from the Staples Center in Los Angeles.

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COLLINS: Quickly, we want to give you a live look right now of Encino, California, where the motorcade looks to be -- a proper motorcade there for the family of Michael Jackson's. We believe they are preparing to head to Forest Lawn Cemetery any minute now. We have not seen them come from the home, though we have aerial pictures coming to us from the affiliates in the area. But I imagine very shortly they'll be getting into the cars and heading, once again, over to Forest Lawn Cemetery.

Back now with more of our Michael Jackson memorial coverage. Here's what we know right now. Michael Jackson's body will, in fact, be at the memorial service at the Staples Center. Thousands of fans will also be there.

As to the investigation into Michael Jackson's death, the police, with the help of the DEA, are trying to piece together Jackson's prescription drug history. Our Don Lemon is inside the Staples Center in Los Angeles with the latest that's going on there. Don, hello.

DON LEMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi to you, Heidi. This is the first look inside the Staples Center here. They are just setting up. They have not started letting people inside, the people who got these wristbands or who won the tickets to come in here, but look. The lights were up earlier, but you can see the lights have been turned down now. The stage is the only thing that's lighted.

Behind the stage there's a huge monitor that says "In loving memory of Michael Jackson, the King of Pop, 1958-2009." This place -- you can see all the flowers, and, obviously, there are instruments on stage, drums and what have you -- because the people are going to be performing. We heard all about the big-name performers that will be here. I'm tell you about that in a little bit.

I'll just show you what's happening here. The folks are setting up lighting, the sound system and the big cameras. This will be a huge production. Dave -- you're pushing, I can see you're pushing into the stage -- if you can go up to the monitors here at the Staples Center. A lot of this will be seen because not everyone has a front row seat, right? So, the monitors that are at the top of the Staples Center is where people will be looking, the people up in the higher levels, or the rafter seats, as we call them here. So, on all of these suites in the upper area are some media, some people who have, Heidi, season tickets or what have you, they will be able to go and sit in those seats because they get first dibs on them. But the remainder of the seats, the thousands and thousands of people who we want online and did that lottery, they are going to be here and inside of the Staples Center.

Before I get to my guest, I just want to show you, on the front of "The New York Times" today -- excuse me, the "Los Angeles Times" today. And it is Michael Jackson. It talks about Michael Jackson right here, right at the top of this. There you go.

I want to get to my guest. I have a guest in New York who knows all about Michael Jackson, everything going on here, the legacy of Michael Jackson. He is the editor, I think it is the editor in chief of Essence.com, Emil Wilbekin. Did I get that right?

EMIL WILBEKIN, MANAGING EDITOR, ESSENCE.COM: Yes. It's managing editor. How are you, Don?

LEMON: Managing editor. I remember when you were with "Vibe" and with other magazines. It is hard to keep track of you, Emil. In the time I have known you, we have talked about a lot of people and how a lot of folks got started. I never thought I would be reporting, at least this early, the death of Michael Jackson. It is surreal.

WILBEKIN: It is surreal. The thing that everybody is kind of thinking and mourning is, could this really happen? Could Michael Jackson, the King of Pop, the guy we all grew up with, the guy we remember doing the moonwalk on the Motown's 25th anniversary, "Thriller," could he be gone? And how did this happen? For a lot of us, it puts our own mortality in context, but it also reminds us of our lives and different aspects of our lives. I was in high school when "Thriller" came on.

LEMON: Yes. Hey, Emil, I just want to hang on a second. I just want to say the Jackson family has just moved and left Encino. We have pictures of them on their way, we believe, to a private gathering that will be at the Forest Lawn Cemetery. Joe Jackson, we saw video of him, or live pictures of him, waving to the crowd there from the Encino home.

Again, you are looking at live pictures, you can see the motorcade there of the black cars, the black limos, getting ready to bring the Jackson family either to Forest Lawn or here to the Staples Center. There was a bit of confusion as to whether or not there will be another gathering at Forest Lawn because there was one last night, so it will depend on where the motorcade goes, whether it goes to Forest Lawn or here.

Again, we have learned Michael Jackson's body will be here at the Staples Center. So, Emil, as we look at the live pictures -- to be very honest, I have been looking at Pew studies, and the reporting done on Michael Jackson, there appears to be a cultural divide. A few studies show eight of 10, two out of three African-Americans are following this very closely. And if you look at the number of people tuning in online, logging in, the number of people tuning in on television and reading about this, it shows a worldwide interest in it, but again, a cultural divide is here in America.

WILBEKIN: Well, yes, it is very clear that to black Americans, Michael Jackson is a hero. I think his death has the same type of impact that, say, Princess Diana had or Kennedy. This is huge. I think for black people in America, it is a very sad day, because he really broke through a lot of racial barriers, he was very liberating to a lot of black Americans, and I think he did cross over worldwide.

You know, you guys were just reporting on how Obama was talking about, you know, him and Russia. It is huge. The Russians have already created a shrine for Michael Jackson. He has global impact.

LEMON: Yes, and Emil, you heard the president this morning answering questions and talking about the broad appeal for Michael Jackson and how he broke barriers in many ways and not just in music.

Emil, we'll talk to you a little bit later on. We are up against a break here, and we have this breaking news here. I'm sorry to cut you a little bit short here. I really appreciate you talking, and I appreciate you coming into CNN and sharing your memories of Michael Jackson. Real quickly, in 15 seconds, do you have a special memory of Michael Jackson to share real quick?

WILBEKIN: Special memories of running home and sitting and waiting to watch "Thriller" on MTV when I was in high school. It changed my life.

LEMON: Emil Wilberkin, thank you so much. The managing director of Essence.com. We appreciate it. Heidi, you can see the stage is literally be set here, and you see the Jackson family leaving the compound in Encino, California, making their way either to Forest Lawn or here at the Staples Center. We're going to throw it back to you, Heidi.

COLLINS: All right, very good. Don Lemon for us live inside the Staples Center. That's right, we have been watching the family in that motorcade, well on their way to Forest Lawn Cemetery right now as we speak.

You can join us around the clock for coverage of the memorial, celebrating the life, the worldwide icon, of Michael Jackson as family, friends and fans say goodbye. "Michael Jackson: The Memorial." Special live coverage all day today.

I'm Heidi Collins. CNN NEWSROOM continues right now with Tony Harris.

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