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Tropical Depression Now Less of a Threat to the Gulf; New Poll Suggests President Obama Less Popular With White Americans; Black Farmers Still Waiting on Department of Agriculture to Pay
Aired July 24, 2010 - 12:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: All right, we've got a lot going on. We're going to begin with an update on some breaking news that has unfolded this morning. Word from Afghanistan now that two International Security Assistance for service members are missing. They are members of the coalition force in Afghanistan survey. Afghan intelligence sources say the two missing troops are Americans and they were abducted south of Kabul.
NATO's command says they were last seen yesterday leaving Kabul. The search for both missing troops now is ongoing. We'll update you as we learn more information.
Meantime let's turn to weather. It was a big threat, earlier. Now, let's just call it a lot weaker and less of a worry. The second named tropical storm of the Atlantic hurricane season is winding down as it approaches the U.S. Gulf Coast. Bonnie was the name, it is now just a tropical depression and let's check in with our meteorologist, Reynolds Wolf and Jacqui Jeras. They've been keeping close tabs on this storm.
Reynolds is in New Orleans, Jacqui is here in the CNN Severe Weather Center.
Jacqui, let's begin with you. Do we still call it Bonnie even though it's a tropical depression?
JACQUI JERAS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Yes, you sill can, until it's a remnant low, then it loses its name. Or we can call it "what's left of Bonnie." But it is still a tropical depression and it does still have some threats with it. It's been weakening very significantly and that's been some good news because of the impact on the oil spill.
Of course, all the vessels have moved on out, and so that's rather unfortunate, but the seas, we think for the most part, are seeing rather minimal. The tide will be maybe one to three feet above average, but as the winds move in a little stronger, southeasterly, later on tonight, that can push any of that existing oil that's out there a little closer towards the shoreline.
We don't expect this thing to strengthen any longer. In fact it's possible that it could even continue weaken a little bit as it gets closer to shore. We've got this upper level area of low pressure over here in the northwestern gulf and that provides what we call windshears, strong winds, which have been really just knocking this storm out. You really need light winds for a storm to develop anymore.
Landfall is expected for later on tonight. We're expecting to see showers and thundershowers continuing and kind of increasing a bit throughout the day, today, and expecting to see anywhere between one and three inches.
Now, speaking of rainfall, oh, my goodness, it has been a real mess across parts of the Midwest the last couple of days. The Chicagoland area, in particular, getting hit very hard this morning. Quite a bit of flooding across the area. If we have those pictures, go ahead and roll them. The rivers have been rising, as well as the small streams and creeks. And there you can see this in the suburbs, but we've also had a lot of downtown, too, and some of the major interstate has been closed down at times due to some of that high water.
If you've been trying to travel, it's been a mess at the airports, too. O'Hare has canceled dozens of flights and we're in contact with them right trying to get a better handle on just how many, but I know at least 60 have been canceled there for today.
Storms could become severe later on today. We'll be watching the Midwest, Great Lakes and on into the northeast for that threat. And south of this system, oh, my goodness, is the heat on. There are millions of people today that could very well be experiencing the hottest day of the summer. Oh, yeah, not fun. The heat index well into the triple digits. This is New York City, Philly, D.C., Baltimore, down to Raleigh.
WHITFIELD: A hundred to 110?
JERAS: Yeah. St. Louis, Cincinnati, Cleveland, so many cities being impacted by this, Fredricka.
WHITFIELD: Unbearable.
JERAS: It is. And it's really dangerous.
WHITFIELD: Not heat index. Not feels like.
JERAS: Well, some cities will see a triple digits. Like, Washington, D.C., could hit maybe 102. But most of them will see upper 90s, like 97, say in New York City for today, but it will be feeling like about 105 to 110, this afternoon.
WHITFIELD: Oh my, stay in the shade. Mom and dad, you stay inside.
JERAS: And then throw Bonnie into the mix for the southern states. That's just going to increase with the humidity.
WHITFIELD: Oh, bad hair days, man. That's what humidity -- that's the translation for me on humidity. Don't go outside. Really bad hair day. All right, thanks, Jacqui. Appreciate that.
All right, well, weak or not, we're talking about that system called Bonnie. There are those in the gulf who have been a little nervous about it and that's why during the cleanup efforts, had to evacuate some of the ships that were in the area, a lot of personnel. Our Reynolds Wolf is actually in New Orleans to give us update about what now as this storm kind of crumbles. Do they kind of very quickly kind of resume efforts, there? What's the window of opportunity?
REYNOLDS WOLF, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Well, it looks like it's going to take a little bit of time for the storm to die down. I mean, even though the storm is falling apart, which is some great news, I mean, the water is still going to be pretty rough out there.
So, we've got many ships that are still in harbor, but latest information that we have that one particular ship, the developing driller 3, the ship that is responsible for drilling in the first relief well is already starting to venture out. This ship is designed, actually, handles some fairly rough seas and that's what they're going to be experiencing out there today.
You know, there still is a handful of ships that happen to be out there. They're mainly handling the ROBs the Underwater Robotic Cameras, keeping a very sharp eye on that cab, which is actually holding pretty well. The pressure going up just a little bit, but everything seems well for the time being.
So, they will remain busy out there. The ships, again, that skeleton crew, if you will, just keeping a very sharp eye on things.
I can tell you, though, Fredricka, things have been fairly busy on land. You have a lot of crews along the coastline that have been putting out some addition boom in case the tides, and of course, the heavier wave actually starts pushing some of that oil closer shore. They're taking those steps to actually kind of hold that stuff back. At the same time, places like Grand Isle, Louisiana, are not only taking those steps, but also trying to take some steps that will help them in the pocketbook.
They've got an investment today to start at 10:00 Local Time it will go until 8:00 tonight and it is called Island Aid 2010. So, trying to do what they can to earn up some money to certainly help out some people that have just been decimated by really tough times as far as tourism is considered. You know, obviously we already have a tough economy, unemployment's high, but then with the oil spill, a lot of people hurting and that's one step that may help.
WHITFIELD: All right. Thanks so much, Reynolds. I said you were in New Orleans, didn't I? Grand Isle, Louisiana. There you are. All right. Thanks so much.
Oh, OK, I was right, you are in New Orleans. All right, Reynolds Wolf. Thanks so much. Holding down the fort, there, in New Orleans. You know, I recognized the tunes there, off St. Charles. So, that's why I knew where you were.
Anyway, OK, bye-bye.
All right, we're also keeping a close watch on North Korea. It's ratcheting up its treats against the United States. Today Pyongyang warned that they will use a "powerful nuclear deterrent" to respond to joint U.S./South Korean military exercises planned for tomorrow. About 8,000 military personnel expected to take part in the drill off the South Korean coast. The U.S. says the exercises are in response to the deadly sinking of a South Korean ship blamed on the north.
So, after 1-1/2 years in office, president Obama is still popular with African-Americans, but a new CNN/Opinion Research Poll suggests that he's much less popular with white voters.
CNN deputy political director, Paul Steinhauser has been crunching the numbers.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
PAUL STEINHAUSER, CNN DEPUTY POLITICAL DIRECTOR: Fred, our new poll suggested African-Americans don't see eye-to-eye with white over some crucial issues. Let's start with President Barack Obama. More than nine out of 10 respondents in our new CNN/Opinion Research Cooperation national survey say they approve of how Mr. Obama is handling his duties in the White House, but the president's approval rating drops to 57 percent among Hispanics and down to 37 percent among whites.
According to the poll, nearly six in 10 African-Americans say they think race relations will always be a problem. That's up 14 points from last year. The number of whites think race relations will always be a problem here in the U.S. is up five points from last year to 47 percent.
What about the year-and-a-half-old Tea Party movement? Our survey indicates that a quarter of you believe that almost all or most Tea Party supporters are prejudice against minorities with another 35 percent saying that at least some are prejudice.
Our polls also suggests that those numbers clime when asked only of black respondents -- Fred.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: All right, Thanks so much, Paul.
African-American farmers owned monetary settlements by the federal government. We'll dig deeper into a big issue, this week. Concerns about racism within the Agriculture Department, as well.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: All right. There's no word yet on whether Shirley Sherrod will return to the U.S. Agriculture Department. She was forced to resign because of that she discriminated against a white farm couple. But those claims were discredited after the couple came to their defense saying she helped save their farm.
Sherrod was reunited with the couple, Roger and Eloise Spooner, right there at a Georgia restaurant. It happened just yesterday. The Spooners say that back when Sherrod rescued them they never expected they'd one day they would be able to return the favor.
Much more on this story of this uniting of the three, here. And, of course, a closer look at Shirley Sherrod, tonight, from her early years growing up in rural Georgia to what has happened just this week. Join us for "Who is Shirley Sherrod," the woman behind the controversy tonight at 7:00 Eastern and again at 10:00 p.m. Eastern.
Earlier this year, the Department of Agriculture agreed to pay one-and-a-quarter billion dollars to settle claims of racial bias against black farmers. The farmers are still waiting for that money.
CNN congressional correspondent, Brianna Keilar, looked into the delay.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): For years now, John Boyd has divided his time between growing soybeans and pressuring Congress. He fights for tens of thousands of black farmers like himself discriminated against by the Department of Agriculture in the 1980s and '90s.
JOHN BOYD, NATIONAL BLACK FARMERS ASSOCIATION: It takes almost 380-and-some-odd days to process a black loan application and it takes less than 30 days to process a white loan application. They went through hell. They went through living hell. We lost land, we lost our livelihoods, our way of life.
KEILAR: The U.S. government still owes 70,000 farmers more than $1 billion in damages. Congress missed a March deadline to pay up and now an August deadline is looming. And Boyd says President Obama needs to break the logjam.
BOYD: I will be calling on the president to step in, intervene, take a look at this process.
KEILAR: So, what is the holdup? Let's start at the White House.
ROBERT GIBBS, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: And you should check with members on Capitol Hill that might have quite honestly better intelligence about the level at which or what is in different drafts of supplemental appropriations that need to go through.
KEILAR (on camera): The House of Representatives has already passed a bill that includes the so-called Pigford Farm Settlement. So, we asked House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, where's the money? And she pointed at the other side of the Capitol, the Senate.
REP. NANCY PELOSI (D-CA), SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE: It is a must- pass for us. That is not what is happening in the United States Senate. They have -- the Republicans in the Senate have rejected over and over again any legislation that has had the Pigford settlement in it.
KEILAR (on camera): We asked a number of Senate Republicans to talk to us on camera about this, but none would. Their aides insist they support paying the black farmers, but only if it does not add to the deficit and they blame Democrats for failing to pass a bill.
(voice-over): So, why not cut spending somewhere else? We asked the Senate's top Democrat.
SEN. HARRY REID (D-NV), MAJORITY LEADER: You know, this is an interesting game we are playing around here. First of all, they want everything paid for. And then when we pay for it, they don't like how we pay for it. So, this is just an effort for them to stall.
KEILAR: Back and forth, the finger-pointing goes and still the black farmers don't have their money.
BOYD: You know, these farmers are tired of waiting. They are dying. They're older. And I say now is the time to do this, and now is the time to make these farmers whole for the few that are left. Let's do the right thing and compensate them, so that we can move on with our lives.
KEILAR (on camera): Boyd is calling for Congress to vote on the standalone measure before the August break. But, the thing is, time is running out. The House recess is after next week, the Senate a week later and there is still a number of big issues including the confirmation of Supreme Court nomination of Elena Kagan that Senate has to deal with.
Brianna Keilar, CNN, Capitol Hill.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: And coming up, our legal guys will be joining us. We're going to talk some more about the Shirley Sherrod case, but in this case we're going to explore whether she should be heading down the legal road.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: A look at our top stories, right now. A bloody summer for American troops in Afghanistan takes an even deadlier turn. Five U.S. troops were killed today in two bombings in southern Afghanistan. The U.S. death toll for the month is now more than 50. A search is also underway for two missing troops. An afghan intelligence source tells CNN that they are Americans and they were abducted south of Kabul.
An angry threat from North as the United States and South Korea prepare for joint military exercises. The communist north is threatening nuclear retaliation. The military exercises start tomorrow and they will involve about 8,000 American and South Korean troops.
And the Washington, D.C. public school system is firing more than 300 workers for poor performance and licensing issues, 241 of them are teachers. We'll have more top stories in about 20 minutes.
And coming up, we're going to hear from legal guys, Richard and Avery and they're going to explain why former Illinois governor, Rod Blagojevich, promised that he'd testify and why the defense rests without his testimony.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: All right. It is the biggest clean-up operation in the world, the oil recovery in the Golf of Mexico, and getting started may be the toughest part about the job. While, onboard the U.S. Coast Guard cutter Elm, CNN's Rob Marciano shows us just how difficult it is.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You take all the slack out, I'll make it up.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Roger.
ROB MARCIANO, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Once the barge was in place, we had lash the two vessels together.
(on camera): Are you just trying to tighten up this slack here?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Take all the slack out.
MARCIANO: We're going to make this as tight as possible. I can feel the tug pulling against me.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're about as good as we're going to get there.
MARCIANO: I'm just doing that for 20 seconds. I'm exhausted, bro. We haven't even started.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Three-one-four, it sounds good.
MARCIANO: This whole process has taken hours. I mean, we're almost into the afternoon and we haven't skimmed a thing or even deployed any sort of skimming equipment. It's giving me a real appreciation for what these guys are doing every day.
You think you just come out here, you drop some boom and throw a vacuum cleaner on it and suck up the oil. There is so much more to it when you're talking about a project of this scope and a mess this big that needs to be cleaned up. It's painstakingly slow.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
MARCIANO: That process is slow. The nighttime video we'll show you in the next hour. And I guess that illustrates the point of how much time it takes to unplug that relief well rig. You know, four days just to get it unplugged and out of there, and another two or three days to bring it back. That's why we've got a 10- to 14-day delay because of Bonnie coming into the Gulf.
WHITFIELD: All right, CNN's Rob Marciano joining us live now from Gulf Port, Mississippi in advance of the primetime special that will be tonight, "Rescue: Saving the Gulf." So Rob, that is some tough work and until people can really see what's taking place onboard the cutter or any of the other vessels, it's hard to really visualize what they're going through.
MARCIANO: No, and we wanted to spend a little bit more time to show the step-by-step process and progress which is painstakingly slow. These guys do this work day in, day out for 12, 14, 16 hours at a time and you really get a sense for the strength, the grit, and determination for these people to try to save the Gulf of Mexico and there are thousands of them working hard, especially in the last couple of weeks, even before Bonnie.
So, it's an hour of inspirational television and I certainly had an eye-opening experience and I think our viewers will enjoy the journey.
WHITFIELD: All right. Rob Marciano thanks so much. Appreciate that.
So, of course, we are seeing firsthand and Rob was bringing it to us some amazing stories of resilience in this clean-up effort. So, you don't want to miss his special tonight, "Rescue: Saving the Gulf," tonight and tomorrow 8:00 Eastern Time, it's something you will only see on CNN.
And this information we're just receiving from Admiral Thad Allen who is now saying that the vessels involved in the repair of the well, there in the gulf, they are beginning to make their way back. As you recall, just what is now tropical depression Bonnie, when it was more threatening, there was an evacuation, there was movement of a number of those vessels to head further inland away from the well area.
Well, now as a result of the crumbling of this tropical depression Bonnie, and our Jacqui Jeras is going to be joining us in a moment to tell us more about that -- as a result of that crumbling, now those vessels are starting to make their way back as we're getting that information from Admiral Thad Allen.
So, let's check in right now with Jacqui Jeras who has a little bit more -- in fact, a whole lot more of what's taking place, there.
JERAS: Yeah, you know, this all is some great news is that this storm has weakened a lot, Fredricka, and the wave action has been lower and there hasn't even been a lot of thunderstorm activity with it and so they've been able to get those vessels back on their way out there to take care of business.
So, this is great. Bonnie weakened a lot overnight. It is a tropical depression, maximum wind, 30 miles-per-hour. So, it's hanging on as tropical depression status, but it's possible that it could even weaken a little bit more before it reaches land.
We've go an area of low pressure, an upper-level low out here in the north-western gulf and that's bringing in strong winds out of the southwest and that's what breaks apart systems. You really want very light, calm conditions to be favorable for tropical systems to develop and that is not the case today and that is certainly some good news for a whole lot of folks.
The forecast track, though, is still right on target here and we're expecting to see it make landfall, we thing late tonight, maybe early tomorrow morning. And the main impacts are going to be those winds that could gust at times, maybe 30, 40 miles-per-hour with the thunderstorms and then we'll see a little bit of storm surge with this, just a couple of feet above average tide.
But with the winds pulling in from the southeast that will likely pull any existing oil that's out there, potentially a little further inland. So, we'll continue to monitor that situation there as well.
Now, we've got a couple of other really big weather headlines that I want to tell you about and the first one breaking this morning out of the Chicagoan area. And showers and thunderstorms have just ripped through here, bringing torrential downpours, five to eight inches and flooding parts of the metro area. We've seen rising waters in the suburb, as well as downtown. There you can see the pictures of flooding streets.
There are roads closed all over the place, including some of the interstates reports of cars getting stuck in the waterways, and also some flooded basements. So use a lot of caution if you're traveling this way, by the roadway.
Don't drive through the water, you just never know how deep it is and you don't -- see, look at that, see what happens. This is what happens. Your car stalls out and you can't get anywhere. It is not safe, most people die in flood because they get stuck in their cars and they dry and drive through it.
We also have a number of cancellations in and out of Chicago O'Hare. So, if you do have some flight plans there, today, make sure that you do call ahead. There are flood watches and warnings in effect scattered all across the Midwest as the system continues to be on the move. And some of the thunderstorms later on today, could become severe and I think damaging winds will be the greatest concern. And there you can see it through the Great Lakes on up into the northeast.
South side of the system, that spells weather story, No. 3 three of today.
WHITFIELD: Oh, boy.
JERAS: And that is the heat. Oh, my goodness. Doesn't that look beautiful?
WHITFIELD: Gorgeous.
JERAS: Try feeling it in Washington, D.C., today, already at the Noon hour, take a guess at the heat index.
WHITFIELD: OK, Noon hour. Oh, heat index. I'm going to go with -- I'll go with 101.
JERAS: Oh, close, 103.
WHITFIELD: Really?
JERAS: Yeah, 103. A lot of the big cities in the northeast stretching over towards the Midwest under heat advisories and warnings, today -- 105 to 110 is actually going to be common, Fredricka throughout the weekend.
WHITFIELD: Really? Oh my goodness. Yeah that is brutal. Brutal summer. Really those kind of temperatures, at least in the Washington, D.C., area, you may typically experience in months of August, but not usually this kind of early in the summer. August is kind of a brutal month.
JERAS: Yeah, a lot of cooling centers are being open, Fredricka. The power company in New York City is advising people to not use as much power as they typically do because they're going to have outages if you're not careful.
WHITFIELD: Oh, OK. That's so much, Jacqui, appreciate that.
All right, earlier we were talking about what's going on in Chicago, something else involving Illinois, the former Illinois governor, Rod Blagojevich, all along he has said he cannot wait to clear his name, he cannot wait to take the stand. Well, guess what? He does not take the stand. Why? Our legal guys will be along with us to explainn.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: Tried and convicted in the court of public opinion with videotaped evidence, however, taken out of context. It happened this week with Shirley Sherrod. Let's talk about the ramifications and whether she has a legal case in which to pursue. Our civil rights attorney Avery Friedman is with us from Cleveland and New York defense attorney Richard Herman in Las Vegas, both professors.
OK, gentlemen. So, there are so many opinions that have swirled around all week long about what happened, et cetera. But now, the focus is on whether indeed Shirley Sherrod has a legal case in which to pursue, perhaps against the blogger who's responsible for this video or a portion of the video getting all this attention in the first place.
So, Richard, does she have a case, a defamation case in the making? She lost her job.
RICHARD HERMAN, CRIMINAL DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Well, Fred, it -- yes. In my opinion, she may have a defamation case, but it's not a viable case against Breitbart, the blogger who put this up, and I'll tell you why. Number one, the swiftness within which everything happened. There was a 48-hour period of time within which the blog came out, she got fired, then she got rehired. So, that's No. 1. Her damages, I don't think she has any damages.
WHITFIELD: But she hasn't been re-hired yet, though. But go ahead.
HERMAN: Well, but they offered her her job back. She -- they offered her the job. She hasn't taken it yet. No. 2, whether she was damaged or not, I don't know. I think her reputation has been enhanced by all this. So, that's No. 2. And look ...
WHITFIELD: So, that's what Andrew Breitbart might argue.
HERMAN: No. 3 -- right. Well ...
WHITFIELD: He actually helped her.
HERMAN: ...he's going to say look ...
AVERY FRIEDMAN, CIVIL RIGHTS ATTORNEY: Well ...
HERMAN: He's going to say she's a public figure and because she's a public figure, they ought to prove maliciousness by me because she's a public figure and Breitbart laid out his defense this week. He said look, I wasn't doing this to hurt her ...
WHITFIELD: So, she's a public figure because she was a government employee?
FRIEDMAN: She's not a public figure.
HERMAN: Yes.
WHITFIELD: Not at the time of the videotaping, but currently a public employee, that makes her a public figure? That would be his argument?
HERMAN: Yes, I would say that.
FRIEDMAN: No.
HERMAN: That would be the argument. Wait a minute, that would be the argument.
FRIEDMAN: No, come on. She wouldn't ...
HERMAN: No, no ...
WHITFIELD: Avery, go ahead.
FRIEDMAN: Look, she became a public figure after Andrew Breitbart put up his cut-and-paste job on his blog.
HERMAN: That's not how the law works.
FRIEDMAN: She is no more a public figure than, you know, Ralph Kramden driving a bus. I mean, the bottom line is there is a viable claim. It's not exactly defamation. It's what's called false light and there is something there.
WHITFIELD: False light. FRIEDMAN: And if she can establish that, if she were to do it, Fredricka, damages are presumed. It doesn't matter if she has actual losses. The whole area of law when it comes to defamation is a very important one in terms of damages. Just because someone can't establish actual loss doesn't mean they're not entitled to damages.
However, I'll tell you. On one point that I do agree with Richard, it is that I think it is unlikely she 's going to pursue it because the fact is there are so many opportunities out there for her right now, the last thing I think she's thinking about is Andrew Breitbart. He's irrelevant at this point.
WHITFIELD: Well, I wonder if Andrew -- yes, and I guess that would be picking up on your point, Richard, Andrew Breitbart might say you know, hey, he's actually helped her, he's raised her profile now as a result. But at the same time, is this in part why we haven't heard from him publicly as it pertains to an apology, that perhaps that apology might be used in some way if she were to pursue a legal case? I don't know, I'm taking a stab.
HERMAN: Well, that would be except for the fact that you know -- that's a great stab. But the fact is he has -- he's discussed it this week on talk shows and to his defense ...
WHITFIELD: But he hasn't recepted (ph) her.
HERMAN: ...and I don't agree with this, what -- he's not reaching out to her, but what he said is, you know, he's a Tea Party fanatic and he was trying to expose racism within the NAACP to show them applauding when she was making the brief comments ...
WHITFIELD: Yes.
HERMAN: ...that were taken out of place. That's his defense. That takes away the maliciousness or the intent by him and therefore, there is no case against him for defamation. No case, Fred.
FRIEDMAN: I don't buy it.
WHITFIELD: OK, all right, well ...
FRIEDMAN: I don't buy it. I think it was intentional and malicious, but you know, we'll see what happens.
WHITFIELD: Interesting. Somebody else who says there is no case is Blagojevich. Rod Blagojevich's attorneys who are saying there is no case here. This is why -- their explanation -- this is why Rod Blagojevich, th former Illinois governor, is not testifying on his behalf because they don't want to help the prosecutors because they allege that the prosecutors have no case.
Avery, is that reasonable?
FRIEDMAN: Yes, actually, you know what? This is the biggest story that isn't because any experienced lawyer would tell you that the last thing you would ever see is Rod Blagojevich taking the stand. He is puffed and huffed and made all sorts of public statements that he was going to do it, but the fact is it would blow him up. Whatever weaknesses the prosecution has on him, I don't see too many, the fact is ...
WHITFIELD: You do not see weaknesses.
FRIEDMAN: ...Blagojevich would take the stand would be a field day for Andrew's -- for the prosecution for the U.S. attorney's office.
HERMAN: Fred ...
WHITFIELD: All right. So, you think the prosecutors do have a case. So Avery, what about you then -- I mean, I'm sorry, Richard, what about you?
HERMAN: Yes. Fred, with all the chest-pounding and all the boasting, the government, as I predicted, put on a paper thin case against Blagojevich, believe it or not, paper thin. And jurors like to follow the money trail. Well here, there is no money trail because they didn't prove one dollar going to Blagojevich. So, as a defense strategy, there's no reason to give them fodder.
Now, listen. They prepped him over and over again and they tried to rehearse him for testimony and apparently, he was horrible. So, rather than risk that, rather than risk that ...
WHITFIELD: Gosh, Blagojevich was horrible?
FRIEDMAN: Is that really a surprise?
WHITFIELD: Yes, isn't it? I mean, the man has been quite the talker for a long time. It is surprising. But you know, he said the biggest lesson that he learned in all this is that he talks too much.
So, let's move on to ...
FRIEDMAN: Right.
HERMAN: Well, that's a good lesson.
WHITFIELD: ...two other cases that we can really quickly get through them. Lindsay Lohan, she's in jail now, but 90 days really may be reduced to something more like two weeks or three weeks.
FRIEDMAN: Yes.
WHITFIELD: Are you in agreement with that, Richard?
HERMAN: Yes, I think by next Saturday, she's probably going to be out, Fred.
WHITFIELD: Why? Why, why, why?
HERMAN: And -- yes, because the jail overcrowding in California. They don't keep them in there for any substantial period of time or even 25 percent of the sentence.
FRIEDMAN: Non-violent, right.
HERMAN: I think by next Saturday, she's going to be out, she'll be in some cushy rehab facility, she'll get out of that probably early as well. But she signed a million-dollar interview deal before she went in.
FRIEDMAN: She'll be in Robert Shapiro's facility.
WHITFIELD: Oh gosh. And so, Avery ...
FRIEDMAN: Right.
HERMAN: No, she's not going there. She's not going there.
WHITFIELD: ...now, what about -- all right. Avery, quickly, what about actor Wesley Snipes, you know, found guilty of tax evasion. He appealed his three-year sentence, but now the appellate court has said, no, you're actually going to serve three years. Will he?
FRIEDMAN: Yes. I really believe that. I mean, he took a shot. I never understood the argument in the court of appeals. He basically was saying, look, I'm convicted, but I'm college educated and I have a family. I mean, every defendant in the world says things like that. So, I think his chances of success in the U.S. Court of Appeals there in Atlanta was unlikely and that's what happened this week.
Whether he seeks further review by the entire federal appeals panel or tries to go to the U.S. Supreme Court, one thing for sure, he's been out on bond, that bond is going to be no longer. He's going to jail.
WHITFIELD: OK. Avery, Richard, thanks -- go ahead.
HERMAN: Fred, I'm sorry. The lesson here is don't tug on Superman's cape. He went after the IRS and they spanked him. They went after him.
FRIEDMAN: Yes.
WHITFIELD: Yes, ouch. OK. We're going to see you again.
FRIEDMAN: Well, three years is a lot of time.
WHITFIELD: OK. We're going to see you again. We're going to talk about this case of rape by deception. It happened in Israel. Could it happen here in the United States? Our legal guys will be right back right after this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: All right, updating a story that we're following this hour in Afghanistan, the search is on for two ISAF servicemembers. That's a coalition forces working there. Afghan intelligence sources say both of the troops are Americans and they were abducted south of Kabul. NATO's command says they were last seen leaving the Afghan capital yesterday.
And in Jerusalem, a married Palestinian man admits that he had consensual sex with a woman who misstook him as a Jewish bachelor. Well, besides breaking his marriage vow, did he break the law? An Israeli court found him guilty of rape by disception.
CNN's Ben Wedeman has the details.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BEN WEDEMAN, CNN SR. INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): He's been under house arrest for the past two years. His name is Sabur Kashur (ph), a Palestinian resident of east Jerusalem. He goes by a very Israeli nickname, Dudu and speaks flawless Hebrew. Kashur was recently sentenced to 18 months for rape.
He didn't force himself on his alleged victim, however. Both concede that the sex was consensual. He was charged with rape by deception because he managed to seduce the woman, who has not been identified, by claiming to be unmarried and Jewish. As it turns out, in addition to being Palestinian, he is married and has two children.
(on camera): The two met outside a shop on this street in central Jerusalem, they chatted just for 15 minutes, then went into a nearby building and did the deed, then parted ways. A month and a half later, the woman went to the police and claimed Kashur had raped her.
(voice-over): The case has sparked accusations of racism. Civil rights lawyer Leah Tsemel has defended Palestinians in Israeli courts for decades. To her, Kashur was just trying to get by and get a few sexual perks on the side in an environment where Palestinians are viewed with suspicion.
LEAH TSEMEL, ISRAELI CIVIL RIGHTS LAWYER: Of course, it's very clear for every Palestinian that they better not look like Palestinian, not be accepted, not be seen as a Palestinian, otherwise he will be stopped in every road block, by every policeman in the street, by every young soldier.
WEDEMAN: Dana Pugach runs a victims' legal aid center. To her, it's a cut and dry case of deception and the verdict is fair.
DANA PUGACH, VICTIMS' RIGHTS ADVOCATE: He did say he was single while he was married and actually, the court decision emphasized much more the fact that he claimed to be single than the fact that he claimed to be Jewish.
WEDEMAN: Kashur rejects the notion he raped the woman, but concedes he has done harm.
"The only people I hurt," he told Israeli channel 2, "are my wife and children. I hurt them badly."
Israel does have harsh rape laws and there are previous cases where Israeli men have been convicted of rape for misrepresenting themselves to gain sexual favors, a practice that is hardly unique to Israel it should be added.
Ben Wedeman, CNN, Jerusalem.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: All right, rape by deception. Are their similar statutes in the United States? Our legal guys are back. Avery Friedman is live in Cleveland and Richard Herman in Las Vegas.
OK, so Avery, you first. Can something very similar happen here in the U.S.? Are there statutes, you know, in certain states that are similar?
FRIEDMAN: Well, in 48 of the 50 states, there are no such laws. Massachusetts is thinking about it. But in California and Tennessee, there are similar laws, they call it rape by fraud. But it seems to me that a guy who runs around with the nickname Dudu, if you're a woman looking for something, I think this is the guy you want to stay away from, wouldn't you think?
WHITFIELD: I would think so. So Richard, you know, for example maybe in California, you profess to be a bachelor but come to find out you really are married and if you get involved with someone and they thought you were single, this is when this law could actually apply?
HERMAN: I -- you know, remotely, maybe it could, Fred, but this makes such a mockery of the rape laws and the rape statutes. You know, rape is a violent crime and here -- I mean, if you go into any nightclub on a Friday or Saturday night or any night and you took down what was said between people, I mean they could -- I don't know, they could maybe arrest 80 percent of the people in there because no one's telling the truth. Everyone's puffing and making up crazy stories.
So, this is absurd to me. This is absolute insanity and it's the legal system gone crazy.
WHITFIELD: And so Avery, do you agree that it -- do you agree with what Richard is saying, that it kind of waters down sexual assault/rape charges?
FRIEDMAN: No, I don't agree with that at all. I think from a perspective of victims, women literally every day all over the world face running into Dudus like guys like this. And I think there should be ...
HERMAN: Oh please.
FRIEDMAN: ...laws strengthening rape laws a rape indeed we know as a violent crime, but should it not be more? That's exactly what the legislature in Massachusetts is considering right now.
WHITFIELD: OK. Well, let's talk about some -- a law that's about to kick in next week in Arizona. Some have called it a very severe, others just controversial. It's a law that not everybody necessarily agrees with there. But at the same time, there are some legal challenges outside of the federal government trying to challenge Arizona's law.
So, Richard, say for example the police officer who says I'm not going to be able to enforce this law and so, he's filing a suit. What are the chances of his suit?
HERMAN: Yes. Well, you know, Fred, the judge has spoken and I think she's spoken volumes when she's said, listen, with respect to the restraining order that's been requested here, I'm not so sure that the Arizona statute does not conflict with federal law.
And that's the point Avery and I have been making every week about this. Federal law trumps the state laws and therefore, at least portions of the Arizona statute are definitely going to be deemed unconstitutional. But I don't believe the whole statute's going to get thrown out, so I think a partial restraining order is going to be granted before it goes into effect.
WHITFIELD: So Avery, you're nodding your head. You agree in large part with that.
FRIEDMAN: Yes.
WHITFIELD: So, what portions would the federal government not be able to challenge?
FRIEDMAN: The extent to which -- well, the federal government will succeed on its so-called supremacy argument, preemption argument. There are portions of the law in which Arizona seems to be doing what Congress says and the United States says it is its exclusive province. So, in one respect, I agree with Richard.
On the other hand, I think the private individuals that you've asked about have joined with the U.S., challenging preemption, but also the question that Susan Bolton, who's the U.S. district judge has to answer, Fredricka, will be whether or not this constitutes racial profiling. Not an issue for the U.S. right now, but it is an issue for the private plaintiffs moving forward.
WHITFIELD: OK. Yes?
HERMAN: And let's face it, Fred. Arizona knew this from the outset when they enacted this statute. They wanted to draw attention to the problem and they have done that, and you know ...
FRIEDMAN: That's right.
HERMAN: ...I clap my hands to them for trying to do something, yes.
WHITFIELD: OK. Quickly, we're talking about now the prom in Alabama and the young girl who is lesbian. The school district or that school said nope, we're not going to have a prom as long as there are girls holding other girls' hands. Well now, there is a settlement in that case. This young girl actually prevailed, did she not, Avery?
FRIEDMAN: Yes, she won. She won a first amendment case, U.S. district court. The question that was left was to what extent a federal judge is going to enter a remedy. Well, the parties got together, settled it, a conservative settlement. The school district is going to pay her $35,000, but they're going to change their policy so when it comes to sexual orientation, the government, the public school district, is not going to interfere with those kinds of relationships. That's the right decision.
WHITFIELD: So Richard, how did they -- how did $35,000 come about? I mean, what -- you know, how do you prove because we know in terms of her personal expenses, it didn't amount to that. But how did they come to that agreement ...
FRIEDMAN: Right.
WHITFIELD: ...of that figure?
HERMAN: You know, that's what it is, Fred.
WHITFIELD: One of the things to take into consideration, I guess that's a better way of asking the question.
HERMAN: Yes. You know, it's a settlement figure maybe to offset some of her legal fees. I'm not sure. They arrived at something and to me, that's a nominal settlement for a case like this. But let me tell you, Fred, what Avery said that the school district has enacted, you know, non-discriminatory measures for the future, that's not true. They have said we've already had those in place. So, the school distruct is basically denying any sort of discrimination here. They haven't learned their lesson. There's going to be probably future problems with this.
FRIEDMAN: They denied it, but they're going to going to change it.
WHITFIELD: There'll always (ph) be future problems.
FRIEDMAN: No. They denied it, but they're going to change it.
WHITFIELD: OK.
FRIEDMAN: You know, and look, look. They say the conservation resolution, we both agree; she walks away with a couple bucks. Also, she got a $30,000 anonymous scholarship and some other funds. She actually won at being the grand marshall of the Gay Parade, Gay Pride Parade in New York City. So, she'll be -- Constance will be just fine.
WHITFIELD: OK. Avery, Richard, thanks so much. Always good to see you, Avery in your usual Cleveland and Richard in what's become kind of a usual Las Vegas, too though.
FRIEDMAN: Yes, right.
HERMAN: All over, Fred. Vegas, New York, everywhere.
WHITFIELD: Yes, all right. Your home in two cities. All right, thanks so much, gentlemen. Good to see you all.
FRIEDMAN: See you soon.
WHITFIELD: All right, appreciate it.
HERMAN: Take care.
WHITFIELD: OK, how about you? Are you ready for your close-up? Today is the day to actually pick up your camera and make a video about your day-to-day life, whatever you think is out of the ordinary or perhaps ordinary, it wants to be on videotape. Josh Levs will explain why.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: All right, don't be surprised if you see a few people with cameras today and they point it on you and they want to document you because you're part of their day-to-day life.
JOSH LEVS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right.
WHITFIELD: Josh Levs is here to explain why.
LEVS: YouTube "Life in a Day" is today, today's the one day to do it. We have a video that's all about it. Take a look at this. This is from YouTube.
WHITFIELD: All right.
LEVS: And they're encouraging people all over the world to grab a camera, go out and show what your day is like. And they want total diversity, they want whatever your day is like.
WHITFIELD: And whoever's in it.
LEVS: And whoever's in it, right. We'll have -- show the people we got, talk to them. But yes, I mean they want to represent people all over the world. So, today's date is 7/24 and they're going to check out the world 24/7, right.
WHITFIELD: Oh, that's clever, a little flip-flop, OK.
LEVS: So really, it's just 24 in one day. Yes. But here's the thing. We don't get -- know the videos that have been sent in, but there's this one video that they asked someone to do actually as an example of what an interesting kind of video might be.
Let's go to the next video and watch this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: White walls, green floors, three-meters by four. It has become a home of sorts and I live here for your protection. Today will be my 180th day in this place.
(END VIDEO CLIP) LEVS: This is a guy named Christian Van Vuren (ph) who has a certain strain of tuberculosis who has had to hide away for six months and couldn't deal with anyone.
WHITFIELD: Wow.
LEVS: And Kevin Macdonald, who is this Oscar-winning director, who will be directing this project, he asked this man to put up his video. This is not from today, but this is an example of what a really interesting life in the day might be.
WHITFIELD: Yes, OK, so -- yes. And he didn't shoot this himself. The other director had crew that helped. So, this is kind of high quality.
LEVS: Well, he put this together himself. Well, he put this together himself.
WHITFIELD: Really?
LEVS: But this is someone who knows what he's doing. He's been a lot of videos lately he's been wrapping. He edited it himself, he put together the music, he did all this stuff.
WHITFIELD: Interesting.
LEVS: Let's hear quickly before we go from Kevin Macdonald talking about what he's looking for in this project.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KEVIN MACDONALD, EDITOR, "LIFE IN A DAY": You just need to go ahead, take your camera, hopefully something of reasonably good quality, go and film something. It could be something that to you seems really banal, it could be your journey to work, watching your baby at bath time, going to the hospital to visit a friend, your birthday, going for a walk in the countryside.
Or it could be something much more meaningful to you, much more emotional. They're knocking down the building next to where you live that you've always loved, the death of a friend. It's a little snapshot of your life.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEVS: So, he has the tough task of piecing through tens of thousands of videos, choosing which make the documentary.
WHITFIELD: Whew, that's going to be a big job.
LEVS: It'll be at Sundance in January. Ridley Scott's producing the whole thing and all the details, YouTube.com/lifeinaday.
WHITFIELD: Wow, that's going to be extraordinary because it's going to really make people look at things that they think are mundane, ordinary, things they take for granted, you'll be looking at the finished product. It will make you look at these things in a whole new light.
LEVS: Yes, and they're handing out cameras to poor areas of the world to get -- make sure as many people as possible can take -- I'm going to be fascinated to see what's in this thing.
WHITFIELD: Yes. All right, thanks so much, Josh.
LEVS: Thanks, Fred.
WHITFIELD: Appreciate that.
LEVS: You got it.
WHITFIELD: We want much more on that storm that was once called Bonnie. Well, it's weakened quite a bit. We'll give you the details after this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: A look at this top story we continue to follow. Bonnie is hanging on as a tropical depression with 30-mile-an-hour winds. All tropical storm warnings were discontinued today after the storm system weakened. It's now headed for the Gulf Coast and expected to actually make landfall in Mississippi tonight. That state and parts of Alabama and Louisiana could see up to three inches of rain.
And I'll see you back here at the top of the 2:00 Eastern hour. We'll get some important tips on talking to your aging parents or grandparents about money from financial expert Michelle Singletary.
Stay with us. "YOUR MONEY" starts right now.
