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Chinese President Hu Meets With Congress; Update on Congresswoman Giffords' Condition; More Than 100 Arrested in Mafia Raids; At the Sundance Film Festival with Harry and Gina Belafonte

Aired January 20, 2011 - 11:00   ET

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

CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Live from Studio 7, I'm Carol Costello.

CNN's big stories for Thursday, January 20th. This one happening right now.

Attorney General Eric Holder is about to announce a big mob sweep in and around New York today. FBI agents are hauling in about 100 suspected Mafia members. The raids targeted five notorious Mafia families, including the Gambino and Lucchese clans.

We're monitoring the announcement. We'll take you to it live as more details come out.

A baby stolen from a New York hospital in 1987 has been reunited with her family. It's an amazing story. DNA tests confirm 23-year- old Nedra Nance (ph) is actually Carlina White. White discovered her true identity on a missing children's Web site. Police are searching for the woman who raised her.

Now it's Haiti's former president who is homesick. Jean-Bertrand Aristide says he wants to go home, too.

Aristide was forced it flee to South Africa in 2004, following unrest. Aristide's plea follows Sunday's return of ex-dictator Jean- Claude Duvalier, who may face prosecution.

Let's go live now to Capitol Hill, where the man whose country holds the bulk of U.S. debt is paying a visit. Chinese President Hu Jintao is facing some of his biggest critics. Congressional leaders are outraged over China's economic policies and human rights record, and they have been very vocal about it.

Congressional Correspondent Brianna Keilar joins us now from Capitol Hill.

So how is President Hu being received?

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Carol, Mr. Hu just met with House leaders. He is, at this moment -- just moments ago, he walked over to the Senate side, where he's meeting with Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and other top Democrats and Republicans. But, you know, we just pressed -- I mean, just here in the last few minutes, we were pressing lawmakers who are in this meeting, what did you ask him? And as it turned out, in this 35-minute meeting with House leaders, really there were only a couple of questions that were able to be asked. That came from Speaker Boehner and Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi.

Listen to what House Majority Leader Eric Cantor said about the issues they pressed Mr. Hu on.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. ERIC CANTOR (R), MAJORITY LEADER: The Speaker raised the issue of intellectual property protection and reforms that we believe are necessary in order to enhance the trading relationship. The president indicated that the Chinese were addressing this, they were taking it very seriously. He admitted that they weren't as far along as they would like to be, and maybe came to the game late, but had indicated that they were hard at work trying to meet the expectations of the global economy.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KEILAR: So, Carol, intellectual property, this is one of the big concerns certainly that was brought up by Republicans, by Speaker Boehner. There was actually -- one of the chairman of the Subcommittee on Trade, Kevin Brady, he said that by his estimates, the way he understands it, only two percent of China's software used by the government -- we're not talking about all of China, just the government -- that only two percent is actually legal. So this is a very big concern, obviously, for software that would be produced in the U.S.

Now, the other big issue in this is something that House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi really pushed Mr. Hu on, was human rights. She has an extensive history.

As you know, her district in San Francisco has a huge Chinese- American population. We were told, generally, the issue of human rights came up and, specifically, the issue of Nobel Prize Liu Xiaobo was brought up specifically. And there was an acknowledgement on the part of Mr. Hu that this was an issue.

But, certainly, I think one of the frustrations that we heard from some House members who were in this meeting is that they really only got to ask a couple of questions. Then Mr. Hu had to head over to the Senate side. We do know that Speaker Boehner submitted some additional questions that he wants answers to, to the Chinese ambassador -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Well, at least they're talking. I guess that's a positive to come out of this.

Why did they only get to pose a few questions? Just because of his tight schedule? KEILAR: Tight schedule, and I think that you had 11 members in this meeting. So I think that this was a meeting really about kind of headlining the issues that are important to U.S. lawmakers.

What was sort of fascinating to me was that this issue of currency manipulation, that allegations from Democrats and Republicans that China undervalues its currency to give itself a leg up in trade, that didn't even come up. And this is a huge concern, but it really did come down to scheduling.

I think, bottom line, this meeting was kind of about just pressing and saying, hey, these are the headlines. And we heard from a lot of lawmakers they're going to continue to follow up with the Chinese government on their concerns.

Brianna Keilar live from Washington. Thanks.

In the next hour, President Hu, as you heard Brianna say, delivers a speech at a luncheon hosted by several U.S.-China interest groups. It's his only public policy address during this visit to the United States. You can watch it live, 12:30 Eastern, on CNN NEWSROOM.

Two former presidents, Bill Clinton and Jimmy Carter, were among the dignitaries at the State Dinner for the Chinese president. The guest list also included Barbra Streisand, her husband, James Brolin, actor Jackie Chan, and designer Vera Wang. In all, 225 guests dined on what's described as an all-American menu: poached Maine lobster, aged Ribeye, and old-fashioned apple pie with ice-cream for dessert.

President Obama raises a glass to the common interests between the United States and China. In toasting the Chinese president, Mr. Obama said the United States and China share a reverence for family, a belief in education and hard work, and a desire to give our children a better life.

In his toast, the Chinese leader applauded President Obama for bringing the two countries closer together.

There's always breakthrough in panda diplomacy between the U.S. and China. The two giant pandas at the National Zoo were scheduled to return to China this year, but they will be staying for another five years. President Obama made the announcement at last night's dinner.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Mr. President, today we've shown that our governments can work together as well for our mutual benefit, and that includes this bit of news. Under a new agreement, our National Zoo will continue to dazzle children and visitors with the beloved giant pandas.

(APPLAUSE)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: See, something happened. You laugh, but those pandas have been at the zoo in Washington for the past decade. They've become part of Washington, D.C.'s family.

They voted on the repeal. Now House lawmakers say they'll work on an alternative to replace the health care reform law. House Speaker John Boehner says he will ask congressional committees to come up with commonsense reforms.

Yesterday, as you know, the House passed the repeal legislation by a vote of 245-189. Three Democrats joined the Republicans. The bill stands little chance of clearing the Senate.

Doctors in Tucson will update us on Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords at the top of the hour. She continues to make remarkable progress.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DR. PETER RHEE, UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA MEDICAL CENTER: Today we were getting her out of bed again, and we were able to stand with assistance on her, as she's got the strength to stand on her own, lift her head up. And these are -- I see improvements every single day.

Then, for a period of time, we were also able to get her into a chair, a mobile chair, and then we went to a window so she could see the mountains of Tucson, which there is no doubt in my mind really lifted up her spirits, I think.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: Doctors plan to move Giffords to a rehab center in Houston tomorrow.

CNN's Elizabeth Cohen is already there.

So, Elizabeth, what kind of therapy is the congresswoman likely to face?

ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN SR. MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Oh, she's likely to face quite a bit of different kinds of therapy, and over a pretty long period of time. As one doctor told us, this is a marathon, it is not a sprint.

In fact, when she gets here, she won't even immediately go into the rehab hospital that you see here behind me. She'll be admitted to a regular hospital nearby to be assessed and to make sure that she's even ready for rehab. So she has a lot of steps to go before they can start getting her on her way to hopefully being fully functional again.

COSTELLO: So tell us why Houston, why this facility.

COHEN: This facility is really known for the work that it does with brain injuries, Carol. Plus, it is near where her husband works over at NASA. So I imagine that those are the two things that went into it.

What they're really known for is looking at all the different parts of the person that need to be rehabilitated. There's the physical part -- is she going to have weakness on one side or the other? There are cognitive things -- will she be able to think through the steps of a problem? All these things that we take for granted.

And emotional. Obviously, our emotions are controlled by the brain. And if the brain has an injury, sometimes the person can become overly emotional, or sometimes they can become, as one doctor told us, a bump on a log and not show many emotions at all.

COSTELLO: Well, we're happy she's going to Houston soon. And Elizabeth, we're going to interrupt for you just a second because we want to go to New York City, that live presser.

This is Attorney General Eric Holder talking about 100 Mafia figures under arrest in New York City. Let's listen.

(JOINED IN PROGRESS)

ERIC HOLDER, U.S. ATTORNEY GENERAL: -- families have been charged, including defendants from all five New York-based families: the Bonanno, Colombo, Gambino, Genovese and Lucchese families. We have charged mob associates and mob bosses alike, including the boss of La Cosa Nostra operations in New England; the street boss, acting underboss and consigliare of the Colombo family; and the Gambino family consigliare and a member of that family's ruling panel.

Their alleged crimes include numerous violent and illegal acts from murder and narcotics trafficking, to extortion, illegal gambling, arson, loan-sharking, and labor racketeering. Now, some allegations involve classic mob hits to eliminate perceived rivals. Others involve truly senseless murders.

In one instant, a victim was allegedly shot and killed during a botched robbery attempt, and two other murder victims allegedly were shot in a public bar because of a dispute over a spilled drink. Other charged criminal activity reflects the Mafia's continued influence in various economic sectors, and its alleged schemes to steal money by preying on vulnerable Americans.

One fraud scream carried about the Colombo crime family alleged defrauded consumers with poor credit histories out of one-time payments that the consumers believed they were making to secure loans. Other charges allege that the crime families extorted money from various labor union members, including local chapters, local unions of the International Longshoreman's Association and a concrete union here in New York.

Now, today's arrests mark an important and encouraging step forward in disrupting La Cosa Nostra's operations, but the reality is that our battle against organized crime enterprises is far from over. This is an ongoing effort, and it must and will remain a top priority for all of us in law enforcement.

Members and associates of La Cosa Nostra are among the most dangerous criminals in our country. The very oath of allegiance sworn by these Mafia members during their initiation ceremony binds them to a life of crime.

Now, as we've seen for decades, criminal Mafia operations can negatively impact our economy, not only through a wide variety of fraud schemes, but also through the illegal imposition of what in essence are mob taxes at our ports, in our construction industries, and in our small businesses. In some cases, La Cosa Nostra members and associates allegedly seek to corrupt legitimate businesses and those who have sworn to uphold the public trust. And many of them are lethal. Time and again, they have shown a willingness to kill to make money, to eliminate rivals and to silence witnesses.

Now, today's successful arrests across multiple cities and involving multiple Mafia families sends a clear message that in our fight against organized crime, the Justice Department is targeting federal resources and working with our state and local law enforcement partners like never before. We are committed and we are determined to eradicate these criminal enterprises once and for all, and to bring their members to justice.

Now, as part of our commitment to battling organized crime, the Justice Department's criminal division, headed by Lanny Breuer, has announced that it is working to emerge its historic organized crime and racketeering section with its gang unit, a move that will bring together an elite group of prosecutors with extensive knowledge and experience in combating criminal enterprises. In addition, due to the continued threat that these criminal organizations pose, in September of last year, I issued annual an order directing the department's criminal division, United States attorney's offices, and the FBI to ensure that sufficient resources are allocated to effectively combat these domestic organized crime groups, as well as international criminal organizations, that threaten our nation's security.

I want to thank my colleagues in the criminal division, in the U.S. attorneys offices, and in the FBI for their outstanding efforts and their commitment to collaboration.

Today's actions are a reflection and a direct result of that renewed commitment. I'm grateful to and proud of all the investigators, the prosecutors, law enforcement officers, and our agency partners who were involved in today's takedowns. This investigation and these prosecutions reflect unprecedented collaboration among four United States attorney's offices, the department's criminal division, and the FBI.

I want to thank you all, and congratulations on a job very well done.

And now I'd like to turn things over to Assistant Director Fedarcyk.

JANICE FEDARCYK, ASSISTANT DIRECTOR INN CHARGE, FBI, NEW YORK DIVISION: Early this morning, hundreds of FBI agents and other law enforcement officers in the New York area, Newark, and Rhode Island carried out the arrests of well over 100 members and associates of La Cosa Nostra families. In New York alone, 127 mobsters from all five New York families and the DeCavalcante family are charged in several separate investigations, with crimes covering the traditional stop in trade of the LCN -- murder, extortion, labor racketeering, and narcotics trafficking.

Today's operation marks the largest mob roundup in FBI history. Well over 800 law enforcement officers from the FBI, the U.S. Department of Labor, U.S. Secret Service, New York State Police, New York City Police Department --

COSTELLO: We're going to jump away from this news conference, but as you heard, the U.S. attorney general announcing huge busts for authorities in the New York City area. Also in Rhode Island and New Jersey. One hundred and ten alleged Mafia figures already under arrest, 127 charged with crimes.

Mary Snow has been monitoring all of this. She's also been checking her sources in New York to find out more about organized crime. It had been declining in recent years, but it's made somewhat of a comeback. She's going to explain that for us when she can spring free from that news conference.

We'll check in with Mary Snow.

An infant snatched from a hospital 23 years ago finds her way back to her family.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Carlina was a missing link, and we have gotten her back! In the name of Jesus, hallelujah, hallelujah, hallelujah!

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: It is amazing. Their baby girl is finally home. The incredible story of how she got there.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: The House Speaker, John Boehner, is giving his weekly address right now. He's expected to talk about the health care repeal vote in the House.

We're monitoring this, and we'll check back when he says something of vital interest. We'll get it right to you.

Moving on now, though, an infant snatched from a hospital 23 years ago now reunited with her mother. The incredible story of "Lost and Found" began with a distraught mother pleading and praying for her baby.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOY WHITE, MOTHER OF MISSING BABY: I hope she's all right. For the love of God, I hope she's taking good care of my baby.

(END VIDEO CLIP) COSTELLO: Well, her baby finally found her own way home. She acted on a nagging feeling that she was different from the people raising her.

Sonia Moghe of affiliate News 12 has details.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Carlina is back!

SONIA MOGHE, REPORTER, NEWS 12 (voice-over): Family members emotional after finding out the missing link to their family has finally been found.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I knew she was coming back one day. Twenty-three years later, she's back.

MOGHE: On August 4, 1987, then-19-day-old Carlina Ray (ph) White was taken to the hospital by her mother, admitted for having a high fever. But when the mother returned, her baby was gone.

The abduction sent the family into a frenzy, leaving her mother, Joy White, devastated.

PAT CONWAY, AUNT: She was broken! She was broken for so long!

MOGHE: And on January 4th of this year, the girl who had been raised as Nedra Denise Nantz (ph) in Connecticut found her picture on a missing children's Web site. She contacted the woman listed as her mother and authorities. Family members say her mother didn't need DNA test results to know the girl was hers.

CONWAY: I knew she was coming back, because when you see her, the whole family got the trait. The whole family!

MOGHE: A DNA test result did come back confirming Nedra Denise Nantz (ph) is indeed Carlina Ray (ph) White, the girl who was taken.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: Amazing story. So far, police are not commenting on the criminal investigation, as in the people who raised that young woman.

We have more insight into how Carlina found her family. Ernie Allen, head of the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, spoke to Kyra Phillips earlier on CNN.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ERNIE ALLEN, NATIONAL CENTER FOR MISSING AND EXPLOITED CHILDREN: She called us around Christmas, and she conveyed the sense that she was suspicious about who she was and where she was. She had gone to our Web site, she'd looked at a number of cases. She hadn't zeroed in on Carlina White alone. Our call taker took a lot of information, asked a lot of questions, gathered facts and details. And then our analysts went to work on the case.

We looked at physical descriptors, we looked at timelines. What we tried to do was rule cases out. Could she have been a missing child?

We reached out to the New York Police Department, that had worked this case for almost 24 years. And ultimately, they were also pursuing it. They sent two investigators down to meet with Carlina, with Neddy (ph), and they took DNA samples, expedited the tests, and we learned that this is in fact Carlina White.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: Amazing. We are told Carlina White is still in New York City getting to know her real family.

When this mom says no junk food during the school week, she means it. She calls herself an anti-obesity activist. Critics say it's an example of extreme parenting.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: We've been preparing a series for this week called "Extreme Parenting," when, out of the blue, a woman who calls herself "Tiger Mother" blasted on the scene. A memoir from a Chinese-American law professor on her ultra-strict parenting techniques triggered a national debate and led CNN NEWSROOM to try to figure out what exactly is an extreme parent, as in, you know you're an extreme parent if -- blank.

We'll have plenty of stories to help you fill in the blank, and plenty of parenting experts as our guides.

We begin with a mom who calls herself an anti-obesity activist, but critics say her children's regimented diet is extreme.

CNN's Stephanie Elam has the story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MEME ROTH, MOTHER: Even 100 percent organic juice is a straight sugar shock.

STEPHANIE ELAM, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): When it comes to her kids' diet, Meme Roth has some pretty hearty opinions.

ROTH: What are we doing pushing junk food on other people's children during the school day?

Just a little bit.

ELAM: After a 6:00 a.m. breakfast prep, scrambling egg whites, washing and chopping veggies -- ROTH: She likes hers raw and he likes his blanched.

ELAM: -- Roth's kids are almost ready to head to school. Almost.

MASON, ROTH'S SON: This one just has, like, Vitamin D.

ELAM: Before they go, it's fish oil pills --

MASON: Kids who hate to eat vitamins, I feel sorry for them, because their parents feed them incorrect food.

ELAM: -- and a check of their backpacks to make sure they've got what mom calls junk food collectors, containers for storing treats. Meme has a strict policy of no sugar during the school week.

ROTH: We get home and we decide, eat it, don't eat it, eat it later, or, like, maybe it's so gross, we just do something else.

ELAM: Like toss it in the trash.

Roth's crusade to combat obesity has roots in her own family.

ROTH: I know I have to break that cycle because I can't pass it on to my children.

ELAM: So Roth founded National Action Against Obesity, making it her mission to raise awareness about what she calls secondhand obesity, unhealthy eating habits passed from generation to generation.

ROTH: So when I see a child that's already overweight at 4, I'm furious, because it's hard to make a child overweight. Their metabolism is blitzing (ph). So if your child is already overweight, you are feeding them so poorly.

ELAM: Roth blames parents and schools for serving junk food to kids. She's boycotted Girl Scout cookies and fought to ban cupcakes in class.

ROTH: After every baseball game, soccer match, someone tries to shove a doughnut in their mouth.

JANINE WHITESON, DIETICIAN: Completely extreme.

ELAM: Some dietitians think Roth's methods are too harsh.

WHITESON: In my practice, children confide in me. They feel so restricted Monday through Friday that they can't eat any chips or candies or cookies, and what they do after school is go to the candy store and they binge.

ELAM: But Roth's children hit the gym after school. She enforces an hour of exercise every day.

JULIA, ROTH'S DAUGHTER: A girl said to me that her parents -- her mother thinks that my mother is weird, and I was just, like, why? She's healthy and she's what everybody else should be.

ELAM: Strong endorsement from kids who, so far, have taken their mom's regiment in stride.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ELAM: So it may seem, as you take it a look at this story, that maybe Meme Roth is a bit extreme with her tactics, but she says it's paid off. Last year, the kids didn't miss a day of school, and they both got straight As.

Other people look at this and say, you know what? The kids are still young. Let's see what happens when they get to, say, 15, 16, and see if they're sticking along with these regiments for that time period. A lot of people saying it's just too young when we talked to a few experts in the field.

But overall, she says Americans just aren't taking obesity serious enough, especially in schools, and the food that we're feeding our kids needs to be healthier if we expect them to learn and then compete on a world platform -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Are they allowed to have a birthday cake?

ROTH: She says it's just during the week. During the weekend, if they want to have some sort of treat, they can do it. But her whole thing is during the school week, your brain needs to be functioning at its best level, and therefore all that sort of fake sugar has to be out of that.

They can go to birthday parties and do all that thing that they want to, but she's pretty much saying that she's instilled in them the idea that they should pick the better type of cereals, try to have fruit, vegetables as all. So these kids, when I asked them, that's what they say they do when they do sleepovers. But the kids do hear about it from their friends, and also from the other parents, that they think that what she's doing is just a little bizarre.

COSTELLO: The next time I go on a diet, I'm calling her.

ELAM: Yes. I think she might be able to help you with that for sure, Carol.

COSTELLO: Thank, Stephanie.

ELAM: Sure.

COSTELLO: A lot of talk about a Toyota commercial that was changed after the NFL had some complaints. It's trending online, and Jacqui Jeras has the story.

Ooh, this must have been a doozy, Jacqui.

JACQUI JERAS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Yes. Lots of people are talking about this, about the power the NFL has, about the helmet-to- helmet collisions which have been a big deal in the NFL. And you may have seen this commercial. I'll explain it to you, and watch for the helmet-to-helmet in this commercial as I explain it to you.

What happens is during the commercial, there you can see the mother. She's a mother of a football player. And she explains about how Toyota has shared some software that simulates head injuries in a car crash with researchers at a university that are studying head injuries. This ran during a Monday Night Football Game. NFL didn't it, they asked Toyota to pull it. Toyota didn't pull it, but they took out the head to head contact portion. So lots of people talking about this online. And we'll have more trending coming up right after our break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: A state dinner is Washington's chance to glam it up Hollywood style. Last night's gala for Chinese President Hu was no exception. Let's talk to Annie Groer, a writer for PoliticsDaily.com.

Welcome, Annie, thanks for being with us.

ANNIE GROER, POLITICSDAILY.COM: Great to be here.

COSTELLO: So this kind of thing doesn't happen every day. A big state dinner with glamorous guests and high-powered political types.

What was the take away, do you think?

GROER: Well, it's ceremonial. It's the dessert on a state visit. And last night was no exception. There's the First Lady, see, in this Alexandra McQueen gown. Most of the guests got very, very glammed up. And you even had a very interesting take on a tuxedo by Jackie Chan.

And, you know, it's not the Golden Globes, you know. There was no red carpet. You walk through the book sellers area, which is a marble floor. But there was a chance to eyeball what people were wearing and it was very.

There's Vera Wang.

COSTELLO: Vera Wang. You mentioned Jackie Chan. The guest list -- it was eclectic. It was kind of a strange mix at the head table where President Hu sat with President and Mrs. Obama. And the actor B.D. Wong and his mom were front and center there.

GROER: Well, it's very interesting because I then read a second report that said that Barbra Streisand and James Brolin were going to be at the head table because President Hu is a big Streisand fan. So it's not clear. I haven't been able to clear up that little mystery yet.

But, President and Mrs. Carter were at the head table and the CEO of GE, because after all, the purpose of state visits is to get a little business done. And so you've got that going on. COSTELLO: There were a lot of people who had invitations who declined the invitation to go. We know that House Speaker Boehner didn't go, Senator Reid did not go. But there were Republicans in the mix because this is also supposed to be -- is also to show President Hu that there is a spirit of bipartisan in America.

GROER: Absolutely. And it's always been the aim of presidents to do that. And so you had Governor Christie of New Jersey. You had Jon Huntsman who's the U.S. ambassador to China; a Republican, a possible presidential contender. Senator Lugar from the Foreign Relations Committee. And you had a couple former sects of stat secretaries of state. You had George Schultz, you had Henry Kissinger, who came from previous Republican administrations.

So, yes, you need to do that.

COSTELLO: And the big takeaway -- and everybody is sort of laughing about it -- is the pandas. The pandas will stay in Washington.

GROER: Oh, stop the presses.

COSTELLO: President Hu's gift to America.

GROER: But that fell a tad short, you know, even as the people who are complaining that human rights are a problem in China, there are people who will say, well, gosh, you know, yes, we get these loaner pandas for another five years.

There were zoo officials who were hoping for 10 years. There were zoo officials hoping maybe we would get another cub because panda pregnancy is a real problem. We, in Washington, who love the National Zoo, there's always come spring a preg watch. And -- so, but, yes, that was a very sweet, light note.

COSTELLO: It was a sweet, light note. And as you say, there's controversy surrounding everything. Hopefully we'll get more out of China than just pandas, though.

GROER: Exactly.

COSTELLO: Annie, thanks for joining us. We appreciate it.

GROER: My pleasure.

COSTELLO: Harry Belafonte is perhaps best known for singing the -- there it is -- the "Banana Boat" song. A documentary produced by his daughter details his prominent role in the civil rights movement, though.

Brooke Anderson sits down with Harry and Gina Belafonte.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: We're just getting these pictures in from Miami. A law enforcement officer of some sort has been shot. We do not know his condition. We reviewed the video and we see a body on the street covered with a white sheet which we are not going to show you right now. We do not know if that is the law enforcement officer. When we get more information, of course, we'll pass it along.

In other news today, actors, producers, distributors and cinema buffs. Park City, Utah, has them all as Robert Redford's Sundance Film Festival kicks off tonight. Almost 200 independent films will be screened over the next 10 days, including a powerful documentary on Harry Belafonte produced by his daughter, Gina.

Here's a look at "Sing Your Song."

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

(MUSIC)

HARRY BELAFONTE, ENTERTAINER/ACTIVIST: Couldn't believe it. Like I couldn't. All of a sudden our worst fears were being awakened.

(MUSIC)

BELAFONTE: I really did not give myself much time to be preoccupied with any personal, deep sense of loss.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: CNN's Brooke Anderson joins me now from Park City.

You got a chance to sit down with Harry Belafonte and his daughter. What did they say about this project?

BROOKE ANDERSON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, they're with me right now, Carol, actually. I'm joined by the legendary singer, actor, and civil rights activist Harry Belafonte and his daughter Gina, one of the producers on this powerful, biographical documentary, "Sing Your Song."

Gina has actually been her dad's acting coach for 17 years. I love it when I see family members working together successfully. That can be unusual.

And in the film, Harry, you talk about how devoted you were to being a good dad. In fact, you say at one point that you were very preoccupied with how you were going to be as a father.

What do you mean by that?

BELAFONTE: Well, I think everybody who is a young parent has a list of things they feel they must do, be attentive to and do it with great discipline.

But when events come into one's life as enormous as the civil rights movement, there's such great social upheaval and you're called to do the inevitable, there's a conflict. How much I'm can you spend with the family and how much time do you owe to destiny? And when Dr. King called and John Kennedy called and all the people who made up the agents of change in that period, I just had to make myself available because there was something a little bit bigger than just me and how I was going to work it out with the kids.

ANDERSON: Well, in the film, it chronicles your efforts to promote social justice around the world, of course. And Harry, I was reading an interview the director of the film did recently. And she said that in one of the chats you and she had over tea one day, you got tears in your eyes and you said you don't think you have successfully passed the baton to the next generation.

Why not?

BELAFONTE: Well, in this next generation, so much of that which we have gained seemed to have lost its way. Young people didn't quite pick up the baton. Everybody was drifting. It became a very selfish me-service kind of generation.

And I had just finished having a meeting with Nelson Mandela, a man for whom I have great respect. And I had been visiting with him. And he and I were reminiscing on whether or not we felt we had missed the boat somewhere in what we had done in our lives. And in that conversation, which is in the film, he pointed out that we did not quite touch all the bells we should have touched. And that made me feel sad to hear him say that.

ANDERSON: Well, you're not a sad guy, though. You've said you live your life in a perpetual state of optimism. Why is that constant state of positivity so important especially in today's world?

BELAFONTE: I think if you look at the universe, you look at the planet, you look at living things, there's a miracle here that's just unbelievable. To be able to greet it every day of one's life is in itself its own joy.

And I just always felt that I have an obligation to do something about making that happen. And one of the biggest obligations was to pass the baton on to the younger generations so that they would know what history they came from so they could make decisions about the history they must build on.

ANDERSON: And very quickly, Gina, why was it so important for you to preserve your father's legacy with this movie?

GINA BELAFONTE, PRODUCER: Well, very much about like what he just said. You know, I think that artists and activism is an important legacy to uphold. And I think that in many ways he has passed the baton and I think Mandela has baton. And I think there's lots of us out there that are ready to take the charge, we just have to get together, make the commitment and organize properly so that we can make a difference.

ANDERSON: "Sing Your Song," the opening night documentary, it's in competition here with the other documentaries. Best of luck. It's a beautifully done film about your life and it's been a real honor talking with you. Thank you so much, Harry Belafonte.

H. BELAFONTE: Thank you so much, Brooke.

ANDERSON: And Carol, of course it's up for grabs. It's up for sale. We'll keep you updated on who snaps it up and when, where and how you can see it.

COSTELLO: Fascinating. Thanks so much, Brooke, and thanks to the Belafontes as well.

A Democratic lawmaker stands by his comment about Republican, health care reform and Nazis. Details in our political update.

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COSTELLO: Michael Steele speaks out about his ouster as head of the Republican National Committee. Mark Preston, part of "The Best Political Team on Television" is live from the Political Desk in Washington.

So what is Michael Steele saying?

MARK PRESTON, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL EDITOR: Well, Carol, I can't get enough of Michael Steele. He's no longer the chairman of the RNC, but as you said, he's starting to speak out, starting to talk about why he didn't win a second term as the chairman of the Republican National Committee.

Well, he spoke our own Wolf Blitzer yesterday. He said he thinks that there are people in the party right now who are breathing a sigh of relief that he is no longer the chairman. He said that, look, they have control of the RNC now and let's see what they can do with it.

He also goes on to have which choice words for Karl Rove, of course who was President Bush's chief strategists, considered one of the best Republican strategists in the country. Karl Rove has been very critical of Michael Steele. Michael Steele fired back and said, look, Karl Rove had been attacking him for years, Karl Rove doesn't know what he's talking about.

So Michael Steele doing a lot of talking now that he's no longer the chairman of the RNC. Although, I guess he always did do talking as chairman of the RNC.

So much for toning down the rhetoric. There's been a lot of talk, Carol, about toning down the political rhetoric. Well, the Tennessee Republican (sic) Steve Cohen used very inflammatory language recently comparing Republican's efforts to repeal health care to the works of Joseph Goebbels, who is the famous Nazi propagandist.

Last night, Steve Cohen was on "JOHN KING USA" and he told John that he wasn't necessarily backing down and he said that he didn't compare them to Nazis, but he did say that Goebbels was the master of political propaganda. He said repeat it, make it short, make it simple and repeat it over and over, and that's what they've done. And when he says, "they've done," he means that's what Republicans have done talking about health care.

Now he has come under criticism from the Republican Jewish Coalition as well as the Tennessee Republican Party -- Carol.

COSTELLO: It's just like they can't help themselves, it just comes out. I mean, where is the self control? Although, he says he does not really regret it.

Let's talk about President Obama, because he apparently is being showered with gifts. What are they?

PRESTON: God, you know, you talk about all of the perks that a president gets, but he also gets a lot of gifts in addition to his salary and of course having security and living in that big White House down at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. But heads of state, whenever they come over to meet with him or whenever he goes to visit them, they may give him gifts.

Let me give you a couple examples of some of the gifts. He received a small wooden CD holder from the Russian president, Dmitry Medvedev.

Listen to what the Saudi King Abdullah gave President Obama. He gave him a large gold medallion, a large brass and glass clock and a marble base featuring miniature figurines of gold palm trees and camels worth an estimated $34,500.

You can read it more about this on CNNMoney.com. Charles Raleigh (ph) has the story up there. It's pretty an interesting read, Carol.

COSTELLO: Ultimately, does the president get to keep the gifts?

PRESTON: He doesn't get to keep them. It actually gets sent to the warehouse and the National Archives and they keep them because obviously there would be a conflict of interests. But still nice to get a gift now and again.

COSTELLO: It's true, especially one like that. Mark Preston, thank you.

Next Political Update in an hour. And for the latest political news, you know where to go, CNNPolitics.com.

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COSTELLO: We told you about a shooting in Miami, and we have a little more information to pass along right now.

We understand initial reports are two local police officers assigned to a U.S. marshal's task force in Miami were shot while executing an arrest warrant. That is about all we know. We don't know the condition of the officers. We know nothing more than that. When we get more information, of course, we will pass it along to you.

In other crime news today, federal agents swoop in on organized crime families. More than 100 people arrested in three states and Italy. Charges include murder and other serious crimes.

CNN's Mary Snow is live from New York.

Tell us more, Mary.

MARY SNOW, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Carol, the attorney general, Eric Holder, is calling this the biggest single day takedown, one of the biggest single day takedowns of the mob in FBI history.

And just to give you a sense of the charges we are talking about, these are the indictments: 16 indictments in all, 127 people charged, as you said, New York, New Jersey, Rhode Island, even an arrest in Italy.

And one of the questions was, these indictments are unrelated and why are they all brought together today. Why was the attorney general here in New York to announce the indictments? And he said that this one of the most -- an unprecedented force between local law enforcement, and federal law enforcement, and one of reasons why he was here today was to because of the significant impact.

There had been the notion that the mob had been receding in terms of its influence, and the attorney general said that he would not say that the mob is resurgent, but he says it still poses a significant threat.

To give you an idea, you mentioned some of the charges from murder to all the way to illegal gambling, and one of the oldest people arrested is an alleged mob boss from Rhode Island who is 83 years old -- Carol.

COSTELLO: These were mostly traditional crime families, and I guess that surprised me, because I thought they were on their way out.

SNOW: Absolutely, and that's really what was the one of the questions posed for the attorney general. And some of the law enforcement officials who were at the press conference saying that no, they are not on the way out, that they are a significant threat.

Have they lost their force, yes. They said that they are not as strong as they once were particularly nationwide, but in terms of the economy, they still, they say, have a pretty big impact.

COSTELLO: Mary Snow reporting live from New York, thanks.

We are back after a quick break.

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