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Russian Airport Deadly Blast; Monsters in the Maternity Ward

Aired January 24, 2011 - 10:00   ET

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

RANDI KAYE, CNN ANCHOR: Our main focus this hour though, that breaking news out of Moscow; an explosion has ripped through the city's international airport. The government says at least 31 people are dead, 130 wounded.

Alexei Eremenko with the "Moscow Times" joins me now by phone. Alexei what can you tell us from there?

ALEXEI EREMENKO, "MOSCOW TIMES" (via telephone): Hi there. Apparently not much; nobody seems to figure out what's happening. It's really (INAUDIBLE). We have got a current body count for now; it's probably going to grow some more because the rescue operation is still in progress.

Apparently it was a blast at the international arrival hall. But so far nobody's been able to figure out, like, what - what plane the alleged suicide bomber. And whether there's maybe more of them. So the police don't rule this one out either.

KAYE: This happened just about an hour and a half ago or so. Can you tell us what the situation is at the airport at this hour?

EREMENKO: Well, some planes have been delayed. But the incoming ones have been diverted to the other airports around Moscow. There's thankfully two more capable of accommodating them. We frankly don't know what's happening with - within the airport. Our reporter has been dispatched there.

KAYE: And if you can, just set the scene for us. How busy would it - might it have been in the baggage claim area about this time? The blast took place at about 4:40 p.m. Moscow time.

EREMENKO: Yes, there's been, like, so far we know there's been like four flights, incoming. And apparently people from all of them have been claiming their baggage. So it must have been quite crowded. A crowd of several hundred. But we're still not completely sure if that was really a blast at the baggage area or some place else at the airport just near the baggage area. So it may not have been one of the people flying on the plane. It may have just been someone in the lobby.

KAYE: Right. All right. Alexi Eremenko with the "Moscow Times," good to have you with us this morning.

It has been a very, very busy morning here. Here is what else is happening. Police in Detroit say the four officers shot in a bizarre attack are all likely to recover. The gunman was killed after he walked into a precinct station and began firing. Investigators still trying to identify his motive.

Just about half an hour ago Detroit's police chief spoke to reporters saying safety protocol will change.

New developments out of St. Petersburg, Florida, where police confirmed to CNN that two city police officers and a U.S. marshal have been shot and wounded while serving a warrant. Gunfire broke out just before 7:0O this morning Eastern time. Officials say one wounded officer was stuck in the home for hours but he had just been removed and is now headed to the hospital. The suspect still barricaded in the home.

And ground breaking fitness guru Jack Lalanne has died. He first preached the virtues of fitness on television beginning in the 1960s. He would tell kids to wake their mothers and drag them to the TV so they could work out. Lallane was 96 years old.

A woman suspected of kidnapping a 19-day old infant from a New York hospital in 1987 appears in federal court this morning. Ann Pettway faces federal kidnapping charges. She turned herself into police in Connecticut yesterday. Pettway's accused of snatching Carlina White and raising her as her own.

White who is seen here in this composite sketch recently discovered her true identity. She had an emotional reunion last week with her biological family. Let me walk you back now to where this case first began. In 1987 Carlina White's parents left her in a Harlem hospital's care after she'd been hit with a very high fever. When they returned, their 19-day-old baby was gone.

Vanished. But here's the 3:00 a.m. wake-up call for parents. Since 1983 nearly half of all newborns kidnapped in the U.S. have been snatched from hospitals. CNN's senior medical correspondent Elizabeth Cohen joins me now. and really I guess, he's in the hospital and how do you guard yourself against this?

ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN SENIOR MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: First of all, you want to keep in mind that this is a rare event. I mean, it does happen and you want to be looking out for it, but it is rare. We can actually show you what has happened in one case. There's this video from 2008 from a baby that was abducted from a hospital. See this woman. She's walking down the hallway, and she did this for quite a while. She kind of walked back and forth. That probably gave people a feeling of comfort with her. Then she changed into nurses' scrubs. See there. She's wearing a nurse's shirt. And you see her go into that room. Now, look, she's coming out with a tote bag. Randi, you know what's in that tote bag?

KAYE: The baby?

COHEN: The baby.

KAYE: Yes. So this woman was caught, that baby was returned and there you see everyone figured it out and said, "oh, my gosh, what are we going to do here?" So that baby was recovered. And most of the time babies are recovered. So that's good news. But five are still missing.

And this woman who we're talking about, the case of Carlina White, she figured it out all on her own. So we have the video that you just showed us right there. How often does something like this happen?

COHEN: You know, it doesn't happen al that often. It happened once last year. It happened three times the year before. It doesn't happen as much now as it used to because hospitals are getting better. A lot of times the babies wear these bracelets where an alarm goes off if they get taken out. But it certainly does happen.

KAYE: You know, too often we hear cases of women who have lost a baby who then go ahead and steal a baby.

COHEN: Yes.

KAYE: Is there a profile of the abductors? Is it always women?

COHEN: That's part of the profile. That is part of the profile. What you usually see typically is you see a woman who has lost a child or for some reason can't have a child. So that's part of the profile. Another part of the profile is these women tend to be around - anywhere from sort of - under the age of 50. They live near the hospital.

As we said, they lost a baby or they can't have one and also they're in a relationship that's on the verge of collapse. As you can see, this is a very emotional thing for them to be doing.

KAYE: And is there any way to guard against it? I mean, now the hospitals do have security cameras. But what can you do?

COHEN: Right. There are a couple things you can do. First of all, you should remember that more than half the time the baby is taken from the mother's room. They are taken from the nursery sometimes but most of the time taken from the mother's room.

KAYE: It's amazing you can pull it off.

COHEN: Yes and she wants to do is that you know, moms thinks, OK, I'll just go to the - the baby is with me, I'll just go use the bathroom but don't do that if you have to go the bathroom, even for a second, call the nurse and say could you come take the baby or sit with the baby while I go to the restroom.

Also anyone who comes for your baby, ask for their ID. I mean, know. I have four children. There's like tons of people coming in and out. But ask for the ID. And then also be careful with tests. If someone says they're going to take your baby for a test, ask what test is that? Especially if no one told you that baby needed tests. You know, what tests in that? Can I see your I.D.? Who ordered this test? And also anyone who you don't recognize, because babies are assigned nurses. If this isn't your baby's nurse, you should be asking questions.

KAYE: Yes, it's so easy to pick up a nursing uniform. You never know.

COHEN: Right. Every mall has a store where you buy one. Exactly.

KAYE: All right. Very good advice, Elizabeth. Thank you so much.

COHEN: Thanks,

KAYE: And back to that bombing now in Moscow. Richard Quest is joining me now from Davos. Richard, we understand this may have been a suicide blast, a terrorist attack, according to the news agencies there. You're at the airport. What are you seeing and what can you tell us?

RICHARD QUEST, CNN INTERNATIONAL HOST, "QUEST MEANS BUSINESS": Well, I think there may be a touch of confusion at the moment. I'm in Switzerland at the moment where, of course, the world economic forum is getting under way this week and where President Medvedev, the president of Russia, will be coming here and be giving the opening address on Wednesday.

Now, clearly, a major terrorist attack, the sort of which has just taken place in Moscow, will very much be on his agenda. And when questions maybe even whether he would make the trip being that 20 or 30 people are dead at Moscow's major airport.

KAYE: And Richard, you know the layout well there at the airport. I know you're in Switzerland now. But can you sort of take us through where this might have happened, if it did indeed happen in the baggage claim area?

QUEST: OK. Just the details are extremely sketchy at the moment. If this did happen in the baggage area as the first reports say, it raises the fundamental question for all airports. Usually security is tight at departures.

Now, many airports have security when you enter the airport, even before you've got to check in. I was in Sharm el-Sheik in Egypt just a couple of weeks ago. Right at the entrance to the airport, there was a door and a security barrier to stop people even getting explosives into the building. But arrivals has always been the Cinderella, if you like, of the building.

Because the feeling there is people have taken their bags off the carousel. Their bags have been scanned, and they're leaving the building. If this transpires to be what it is at Domodedovo Airport, then there will have to be a rethink of security at all airports where suicide bombers are a potential risk.

KAYE: All right. Richard Quest, thank you for that explanation from Davos, Switzerland.

Let's get now to Matthew Chance. He's in Moscow at our bureau there with the very latest. Matthew, what can you add to what Richard has already told us?

MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, not a great deal in terms of the casualty figures. They still stand at 31 people dead, according to Russian government officials, and 130 people injured. The explosion clearly took place in a very crowded part of what is the Russian capital's busiest international airport.

We've just heard that the Russian president, Dmitri Medvedev, whom Richard was talking about, will be attending Davos shortly, has called an emergency meeting at the Kremlin to discuss this situation with his security chiefs. Police around the Russian capital have been placed on high alert. Not least because there's a possibility of more bomb attacks as well. Because this isn't the first time, Randi, that the Russian capital and its transport hubs have been attacked by suspected suicide bomber.

Just last year in March, in fact, multiple suicide bomb attacks struck the metro system here in Moscow, killing dozens of people and causing widespread panic, of course, and bloodshed. There's obviously concern that this explosion at Domodedovo Airport, the main airport at the Russian capital could be just one of a series of explosions that could well take place. That's certainly a concern for authorities in place there. Police forces on high alert.

But again, the casualty figures at the moment stand at a terrible 31 people who have been killed in this explosion, 130 have been injured according to government officials, Randi.

KAYE: And Matthew, you go in and out of that airport as well. How would you describe security and how do you get into that baggage reclaim area, as you call it?

CHANCE: Well, first of all, it's not clear that the baggage reclaim area is the site of this explosion. We still don't have that kind of information. That's just one report on one Russian news agency. Another agency, Interfax, is saying that a suicide bomber is responsible for this and may have detonated the explosives in the departure area of the airport.

Certainly what I can tell you about my experience traveling out of Domodedovo and I've done that quiet a lot, obviously over the past several years is that it has very tight security indeed as you moved through the check in areas, the outside areas, the departure area where relatives come and see their loved ones off. This relatively lax security around there and as there is in many airports, the security guards on the doors, a police presence, but you don't have to go through metal detectors to actually get into the airport building.

It's once you check your baggage in and you go through to check- in and passport control, that's when the security really starts. And that's where Domodedovo Airport which remember has been affected by suicide bombers in the past, back in 2004, that's where (INAUDIBLE) Airport now has it's state of the art security, surveillance cameras, it's high tech scanning equipment so it will be very difficult, if not impossible for a suicide bomber or somebody carrying a bomb to get through that very tough airport international standard security that it has before you get into the check-in area. But before then, again, it's possible, apparently.

KAYE: All right. Matthew Chance for us live in Moscow. We'll continue to follow this. For now we'll just take a quick break.

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KAYE: Let's get back to that breaking news out of Moscow. An explosion has ripped through the city's international airport. The government says at least 31 people are dead, 130 wounded. Let's get to Jill Dougherty. Jill, you were our Moscow bureau chief for many years. What do you make of this?

JILL DOUGHERTY, CNN FOREIGN AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: Well I think, you know, the real question is where that - well, number one, who did it. But also where it happened in terms of future security because as Matthew pointed out, when you come into the airport, and that is, (INAUDIBLE) is a modern airport. It does, inside, have pretty much state of the art security in many areas.

The one place that could be vulnerable is the curb side area. Usually at the major airports in Russia they check your bags, they scan your bags as you come into the airport, but they don't scan you. So if this was, and there are big ifs here, a suicide bomber, potentially, and we'd have to see how it was set up that day, but potentially that could be a chink in the armor.

Also, you know, who did it, the immediate concern would be somebody coming from the caucuses, from Chechnya, still continues to be unstable. And of course, there has to be an investigation. Nobody knows. It's very early at this point. But that is an immediate suspicion, of course.

KAYE: We're getting information, of course, from several news agencies. But one of them the Interfax News Agency has sent out a tweet that the explosion occurred in a general area, possibly not in the baggage claim area, an are called Cafe Asia. Are you familiar with that area?

DOUGHERTY: Not specifically.

KAYE: Is it a restaurant in the airport?

DOUGHERTY: Not specifically that one but that is very interesting. Because then it means it was not that really secure area where after you have checked in and you go through security and all that. So that would mean - that makes more sense that it would be a more vulnerable area, that people who weren't getting on a flight could go over and, you know, have a cup of tea or whatever.

KAYE: And we know that the president of Russia has declared a state of emergency there. Has there been any U.S. reaction yet about who might have done this or what the next step is?

DOUGHERTY: No. Certainly - I mean, this just happened. We will attempt here at the State Department, of course, to get reaction and from other places in the U.S. government. But in terms of who did it, I think it is anybody's guess at this point. The Russian government, of course, will be very interested in immediately trying to find out and have an investigation.

But it does remind people, again, and remind Russians, of the insecurity that they live with even in terms of things that are - that are going on right now. You know, the economy is better. The situation in Russia seems to be quite good. You have President Medvedev going off to Davos. All sorts of things. But the soft underbelly continues to be the caucuses. And, again, this is speculation. Who knows who carried this out. But that is a constant problem.

KAYE: All right. Jill Dougherty for us at the State Department. If you do find out any more information, please be sure to get that right to us. We'll continue to gather information on this and bring it to you. First, a quick break.

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KAYE: A Utah state trooper says he was fearing for his life when he punched a 53-year-old woman last year during a traffic stop. The story and the dramatic dash cam video top our look "X Country" this morning. Utah state trooper Andrew Davenport now on paid leave and under investigation after this video of him hitting a female DUI suspect multiple times came to light.

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BRIAN HYER, SPOKESMAN, UTAH DEPT. OF PUBLIC SAFETY: Pursuits can be very, very dangerous. And for that reason, this review process is essential in what we do.

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KAYE: Charges were eventually dropped against the driver who told one Salt Lake City TV station that she doesn't remember what happened.

To North Carolina now.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Things in life happen that you just can't do anything about, and you just have to pick the pieces up and keep walking.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAYE: Ronny Presnel (ph) doesn't let his blindness be his handicap. A 1998 auto accident left him without eyesight. But it doesn't stop him from doing all the things that he loves to do like restoring this old Camaro or building birdhouses. Most recently Ronny built a storage shed for a buddy down on his luck.

A carnival cruiser on the other side of a rescue operation. Here's home video of the pleasure boat assisting in the retrieval of three Americans who were adrift off the coast of Cuba Saturday. The trio and a cat were brought aboard. Cruise boat passenger Carl Ray who shot this video calls the trio rescue a near miracle.

Big stars, big premieres and big protests. There's a lot to talk about as Sundance wrapped up its first weekend. Our Brooke Anderson is in Park City, Utah, with all the Sundance scoop. Good to see you, Brooke.

BROOKE ANDERSON, CNN ENTERTAINMENT CORRESPONDENT: You too, Randi. Thank you. Yes, it certainly has been an eventful time, it was an eventful weekend here at the Sundance Film Festival. I'm at the Treasure Mountain Inn in Park City, Utah. And I want to talk to you a little bit about the "Coming Chaz" (ph). It had its world premiere last night. That's the documentary about Chaz Bono's transition from female to male.

It was a packed house. The theater was full. This is the film that Oprah Winfrey balked before the festival even started. And now we are learning more about Rosie O'Donnell's newest role with Oprah Winfrey and her new network. Oprah has tapped Rosie as her chief curator and consultant of documentary. And we spoke to Rosie last night at the premier of "Becoming Chaz." She told us why she feels this film, in particular, sends a really important message. Listen to what she said.

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ROSIE O'DONNELL, ACTRESS/TALK SHOW HOST: That's a very, very needed topic. And it's a hard thing for most people to understand. And the fact that we've known and loved Chaz since she was a little girl and now he as a grown man I think will make it understandable to people in a way that it has never been.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANDERSON: All right. Rosie told us that she's really excited to help Oprah in her effort to do for documentaries what she's done for reading and books. And Randi, you mentioned, big protest. Yes. About seven people from a church in Kansas turned out for the premiere of Kevin Smith's movie, "Red State." It's a horror movie.

And I talked to the protesters and they told me that they had heard about the contents of the film and they thought it was filth. Well, Kevin Smith himself and high schoolers, kids from Park City High School's Gay-Straight Alliance turned out to counter protest with signs like I like cookies and I like chocolate cake and god hates movie screenings. Those were the counter protest signs.

So Randi, a little bit of real-life drama to go along with the fictional drama that Kevin Smith presented on screen.

KAYE: That's for sure. Before we let you go, I understand you also had a pretty big interview with actor and likely Oscar nominee, James Franco. He's also hosting the Oscars, Has he rehearsing for the big role?

ANDERSON: Not yet. I did hang out with James Franco. And he told me and co-host, Oscar co-host Anne Hathaway have filmed promotional ads for the Oscars but they have not began rehearsing yet. And he's very proud of his current movie, "127 Hours." He's getting a lot of critical acclaim for that.

And he revealed to me why his advisers, his publicist, his managers, everybody, initially told him, "no, no, no, no, no. Please do not host the Oscars. But, of course, he said yes. Listen to what he said about that.

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JAMES FRANCO, ACTOR, OSCARS CO-HOST: They're supportive of what I do. But the truth be told, they did say, James, come on. Does it have to be this year?

ANDERSON (on camera): What were they worried about?

FRANCO: They want me to win the - they want me to win the Oscar. That's what they want. I - you know, people like a British drama. They like a royalty family drama. So Colin's going to win. So I thought, that's fine. I'll host. And I'll just show, like, it'll be a way to tell myself, too, like, just don't worry about it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANDERSON: And, Randi, the Oscar nominations will be announced early tomorrow morning.

KAYE: All right. Thank you, Brooke.

Want information on everything breaking at Sundance and in the entertainment world? Brooke's got it on "Showbiz Tonight" this evening at 5:00 and 11:00 on HLN.

The president is preparing for tomorrow night's "State of the Union" address. Here at CNN we're taking our own measure of vital aspects of the government. Next up, caring for U.S. troops and their families. It's a topic President Obama addresses next hour. We have the experts rate the job in just a couple of minutes.

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KAYE: Brutal temperature, frigid cold and lots and lots of snow. And in Kansas City, lots of wrecks. Snow and ice are wreaking havoc on the roads and highways there. Highway patrol said they responded to four wrecks at the same intersection in just a matter of minutes.

And check this out. No, that is not sand. It's actually snow blanketing a beach in North Carolina. North Carolina. Some areas of the outer banks saw up to seven inches of snow, but no one there is complaining. They say snow like this is a rare sight. What a positive attitude. Wow.

So Reynolds, it appears much of the country isn't off the hook just yet. Many people waking up to some record breaking temperatures?

REYNOLDS WOLF, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Absolutely. I'm sorry. I know what you're saying. But I'm still blown away by just seeing the video of that snowfall in the outer banks. Not too many places around the world where you can have snowfall and also be subjected to tropical systems. Yes, that's the case in the outer banks.

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KAYE: All right. Thank you, Reynolds. We'll watch it along with you.

Checking top stories now. Breaking news out of Moscow, where an explosion at one of the city's most important international airports has left at least 31 people dead and at least 130 more wounded. We're told the blast occurring near the baggage claim area of the airport. Just moments ago, Russia's president addressed the media saying an immediate investigation is underway. He's also vowing to track down and punish those behind the suicide bomb attack. We'll keep you posted on the latest developments as we get them.

Closer to home now, the icy grip of winter tightens for many across the United States with some parts of the country seeing dangerously cold temperatures. More snow is on tap for the Northeast, with even parts of the South again seeing more snow.

Ground breaking fitness guru Jack Lalanne has died. He first preached the virtues of fitness on TV. He would tell kids to wake their mothers and drag them to the television so they could work out. Lalanne was 96 years old.

The State of the Union address. It's kind of an annual progress report on the nation and the government. Tomorrow night, President Obama will also focus on other matters of vital interest to all of us, such as the economy, your money, your job and your future. They are all central themes of tomorrow's primetime address.

President Obama dominates the spotlight and the agenda with tomorrow night's State of the Union address, then lawmakers get their turn to spin the facts and make their case. So, we want to hear from experts. What is the State of the Union when it comes to the military? CNN Pentagon correspondent Chris Lawrence has turned to a number of leading experts.

And Chris, good morning to you. Let's begin with the human element of this equation.

CHRIS LAWRENCE, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Yes, that's right, Randi. We spoke with some of the best defense experts in the country. Some more liberal, some very conservative. In other words, we didn't rely on just one point of view. We combined all of their insight to find that when it comes to caring for the troops, the State of the Union is strong. Why do the experts say that? Because they say when it comes to getting physical care, these troops are getting the best in the world. You sort of saw that with the care for Gabrielle Giffords, how one of the trauma surgeons who helped saved her got his experience in the battlefield with the Navy.

But it goes beyond just fixing wounds, patching up injuries. Also it means support for families. They say there are more programs for kids whose mom or dad may be deployed. Military families are getting better housing now, especially compared to where the military was, say, 20 years ago after the first Gulf War.

Obviously across the board, all the experts felt that post- traumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injuries were huge problems. They say the military has made it a priority, and while they haven't solved the problems yet, they're not ignoring it. Although one expert did say it is -- the problem is so severe, it's foolish to say we're doing enough. He said the real sadness of the last ten years is that the military didn't do enough or the nation didn't do enough to increase the size of the Army and Marine Corps much sooner. Randi?

KAYE: And Chris, let's turn our attention now to military preparedness. What is the State of the Union when it comes to that?

LAWRENCE: Well, again, combing the insight from all of our experts, they found that when it comes to preparedness, in other words, how ready is the military to fight a war, they found that the State of the Union right now is strong.

Again, why? Because they feel like the ground forces are right now the most combat experienced, the most professional, the most well educated that the United States has ever seen. They're extremely capable of fighting a counterinsurgency war. Even though they say the ground forces haven't trained extensively on an army-on-army conventional warfare, they say battle-hardened troops tend to be more proficient across the board.

Now, there are some problems. Why didn't they get a very strong? Because they said when a military like the United States is preoccupied with short-term conflicts, they say it's putting some of its best people, like a General Petraeus, in charge of immediate operational planning. That's sort of a brain drain on the big picture, long-term thinking. They say by its very definition, you're not going to have the same creative juices going into that long-term planning.

They also say there's a real problem with us, society in general, in that fewer and fewer people are really qualified to be in the military. Both physically, you know, too fat, overweight, or they have criminal records or just don't have the mental skills to deal with what the military needs them to do these days. They say that could be a big problem going down the road.

KAYE: And, Chris, when it comes to equipment, how is the U.S. military rated in that regard? LAWRENCE: Of the three, our experts felt that this one rated the lowest. They said when it comes to the equipment of the military right now, the State of the Union is improving. What they mean by that is the military recognizes that the equipment is worn down, it needs to be heavily refurbished or replaced, but they haven't done much to actually get that program going yet. They said they found some real problems even with things you wouldn't think about in a ground war. You would expect the Army and the Marine Corps equipment to be severely run down, and the experts found that.

But they said even the Air Force, they said -- one expert said, you know, some of the pilots are flying airplanes that are older than they are. So, they say that will be a huge challenge going forward down the road in that, you know, we're going to have less resources, you know, diminished budgets. And they said it could cost billions to try to replace some of this equipment. Randi?

KAYE: Chris Lawrence for us this morning, thank you, Chris.

And stay with us. Next hour, President Obama turns his attention to military families and improving the government response to their needs. We'll have live coverage of East Room unveiling of new measures. That's 11:00 Eastern, 8:00 Pacific, right here on CNN.

We want to get you now to some new information coming to us from Russian state TV. We've been talking now all morning about this apparent suicide blast at one of the city's most -- one of the city's busiest airports there in Moscow. The new information coming to us now is that it was, indeed, a suicide bomber, according to Russian state TV. And that it was a handmade bomb stuffed with small metal objects to cause even more injuries, we're being told.

The terrorist, suspected terrorist, activated it in the crowded departure area. We were first hearing this might have occurred in the baggage claim area. Now they're telling us the crowded departure area where many people were gathering preparing for their lives.

This is all happening at the Domodedovo International Airport in Moscow. The blast happened at about 4:40 p.m. local time in Moscow. And in terms of injuries, 130 injured, we're being told, and at least 30 dead.

Coming up, we'll get you up to speed on all things inside the Beltway. Just a day before the president delivers his State of the Union address, one senator wants his old job back. That story is next.

Love, sex and marriage. They don't always go hand in hand. New research says someone is getting gypped. We're talking with one of the authors of that research.

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KAYE: Let's talk about sex, money and marriage. New research shows that men appear to have the upper hand when it comes to relationships. And that trend now affecting the younger generation.

The research says young women in the 18- to 23-year-old group don't feel they need a man to help with finances. And many of them say they can fool around with multiple partners without consequences. They say your early 20s is not the time for a serious relationship.

But problem is, when they are ready for commitment, there are still plenty of women out there ready to have no-strings-attached hook-ups. As one finding from the new book, "Premarital Sex In America: How Young Americans Meet, Mate and Think About Marrying." One of the authors of that book, Mark Regnerus from the University of Texas at Austin, is joining us live. Mark, good to see you.

MARK REGNERUS, AUTHOR: Good to see you, too, Randi.

KAYE: Interesting topic. In doing this research, what surprised you most about unmarried young adults?

REGNERUS: Right. The thing that surprised me the most is how male-centered the - the sort of the sexual economy is when you're talking about 18- to 23-year-olds. Men really do seem to be calling the shots. Which is ironic in the sense -- compared to how successful young women have been educationally and economically. That success just isn't automatically translating into their relationship life.

And part of the reason, I think, is because we're seeing a shift in what people expect out of relationships, out of marriage. Women don't really need men like they used to economically and socially. And so when women don't really need men, the nature of how relationships develop, we argue, is going to change. And it has, in fact, changed.

KAYE: And what did you find in terms of how young adults view marriage? Not much permanence there, is that correct?

REGNERUS: Well, they tend to think that their marriages will be permanent, but that about half of all marriages out there will not be permanent --

KAYE: So, they'll do better.

REGNERUS: Exactly. But since these are 18- to 23-year-olds, most of them are not seriously thinking about marriage. And so now is the time to travel, to finish your education. Your parents certainly don't want you marrying at this age.

So, they push all these things off. But this is sort of the peak period of sexual activity and interest. And so we delay marriage, but we certainly don't delay sexual behavior. But we often find that if you're not careful about how you go about relationships, landing that mate, landing the security of marriage, can become a challenge.

KAYE: We hear a lot about women in their 40s and 50s who are established with careers, having trouble finding love. But what about these younger adults? You spoke to adults who were 18 to 23.

REGNERUS: Right.

KAYE: What are you finding with them?

REGNERUS: Right. Well, typically, you see women who are more interested in commitment than men are. We're not talking about women wanting to marry these people, necessarily.

But women don't have the upper hand in this sexual economy. And so what men want tends to emerge. And sometimes fairly quickly. We found that nearly half of men's relationships turned sexual, meaning they added sex to the relationship, within a month of the formation of that relationship. And a majority of those, it happened within two weeks. And plenty of the people we talked to, it happened even before the relationship started. Which is not a good key to commitment in a relationship.

Now, plenty of people don't want that commitment just yet. But when you do eventually want commitment, what you have done up to that point matters. One of the things we talk about is there's no completely discreet sex. Every sexual act is sort of a price point in what people will expect next in their relationships.

KAYE: All right.

REGNERUS: So, if it's traded away too soon, you may have trouble finding commitment later.

KAYE: Right. Very interesting study, Mark Regnerus. Appreciate your time and discussion this morning.

REGNERUS: Thanks, Randi.

KAYE: Breaking news out of Moscow, where at least 31 people are dead, 130 more wounded in a blast the government is calling a terrorist act. The latest and more on the day's news, including some of our very first pictures from inside the airport, right after this quick break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAYE: We are continuing to follow our breaking news as promised just before the break. These are our very first pictures. EMS crews, emergency crews coming into the Domodedovo Airport, international airport in Moscow where a suicide bomber attacked this morning. Thirty-one people killed, at least 130 injured.

Russian state TV is reporting it was a suicide bomber with a handmade bomb, actually, stuffed with small metal objects to cause even more injuries. We do have more video coming in that we want to get to you. We want to take a look at it first. Some of it is quite disturbing. We'll edit some of that for you and bring you more pictures as soon as we have them.

Now to politics. A former senator wants his old job back. Our deputy political director Paul Steinhauser is here with that story. Good morning to you, Paul. PAUL STEINHASUER, CNN DEPUTY POLITICAL DIRECTOR: Hey, good morning, Randi. That former senator is George Allen of Virginia. Remember, six years ago, he was the favorite to win re-election, maybe going to run for the White House. But he used a racial slur, it went viral on YouTube, which back then was in its infancy, and he lost to Jim Webb, the Democrat.

Now we expect today that George Allen will announce he's going to go for his old job. I'm going to ask (INAUDIBLE), the cameraman to zoom in right here to the CNN political ticker. Another story involving current, longtime Republican senator Dick Lugar of Indiana. The longest serving Republican in the Senate. But today, Tea Party activists are on Capitol Hill. They are urging Lugar not to run for re-election next year. They say he's not conservative enough. Lugar says, I am running for re-election. Randi?

KAYE: I know you have a preview for us. 2012 presidential news tonight on Piers Morgan? What can you tell us?

STEINHAUSER: Yes, this stuff is wild. Remember Rudy Giuliani, the former mayor of New York City? The moderate Republican. He ran last time in 2008 for the Republican presidential nomination. He faltered, dropped out.

Well, he's been making the talk show circuit circuits. He says, guess what? Everything's open, I'm not closing any doors to running again. And with Piers Morgan, they talked about Sarah Palin. Take a listen to this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PIERS MORGAN, CNN HOST, "PIERS MORGAN TONIGHT": Would you be more tempted to run if she wasn't?

RUDY GIULIANI, FORMER PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Maybe the opposite.

MORGAN: Really?

GIULIANI: Yes. Maybe the opposite. Because, you know, my one chance -- if I have a chance, is that -- I'm considered a moderate Republican.

MORGAN: Yes.

GIULIANI: So, the more Republicans in which I can show a contrast, probably the better chance -- the better chance that I have.

MORGAN: So, you've been the acceptable face of the Republican party.

GIULIANI: I don't know if I'm acceptable.

(LAUGHTER)

GIULIANI: But the question is -- the way I got elected mayor of New York City was not being acceptable. My slogan was, you can't do any worse.

(LAUGHTER)

GIULIANI: Things were so bad, you need me.

(END VIDEP CLIP)

STEINHAUSER: Well, you can watch that entire interview tonight, 9:00 Eastern. "PIERS MORGAN TONIGHT." And I guess, Randi, you've got to add Rudy Giuliani of people who may want to run for the Republican presidential nomination. Randi?

KAYE: That list seems to be getting just a little bit longer. Thank you, Paul.

STEINHASUER: Yes, it is.

KAYE: We'll have your next political update in just one hour. And a reminder, for all the latest political news, go to our Web site, CNNpolitics.com.

Look out! This truck was just the start of problems on a very slick highway. See how this plays out.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAYE: I want to show you folks in Prince George's County, Maryland, just outside Washington, D.C. Still dealing with that water main break. These are some pictures coming to us from our affiliate, WJLA. Lots of problems there.

In the meantime, snow, rain, ice and waves. No matter where you live it seems the weather was wicked all weekend long. A lot of it caught on tape, Reynolds.

REYNOLDS WOLF, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Absolutely.

KAYE: You want to take us to Canada first?

WOLF: I'd love to. Let's get things started. This is a new little segment we have, "The Weekend Rewind." We'll begin in Ontario, Canada. Just a horrible thing to see. This was all caught on dash cam. A tractor trailer blasted right through a guardrail, carrying 30 tons of sand. Other vehicles were involved. Thankfully, though, no injuries.

Now, get this, Randi. The truck driver blamed it on poor weather conditions. I'm sure he did.

All right. We're going to jump from that video to some other compelling video from Salt Lake City, Utah. Have you ever heard of a great new sport founded by a couple of fraternity guys called skouching?

KAYE: You hold the record for this one, don't you? WOLF: Yes, we do what we can. What you do is you get an old couch, you put some skis on the bottom, and then you push it. Not sure it'll make it to the next Olympic Winter Games. But it sure looks promising. But the thing is, you can't take it up on a lift. You basically have to push it right back up on the hill on your own and repeat the process.

Now we're going to go from that to something in Half Moon Bay, California. Surfers, beware. It was a series of three waves. Normally, they come in sets of two. The third wave, unbelievable. Just pummeled the surfer. A rescue crew had to go out, pick up the surfer, bring him in. He's now in critical condition. A terrifying event. Normally, in that part of the world, they come in big, smooth sets. Great for longboarders. But there was a third wave that came in, the guy was caught unaware and, again, recovering in a hospital. Thankfully, he didn't lose his life. Terrifying thing to see.

Two scary videos. One, the skouching. Terrifying, but in an entirely different way, you know? Things are a little bit different with that.

(LAUGHTER)

KAYE: Yes. I can't imagine having to haul my couch back up the hill and then do it again. One run for me. On the bunny hill.

WOLF: Hey, bunny hills, they can be fun, too.

KAYE: All right. Thanks, Reynolds.

WOLF: You bet.

We'll have the latest on this morning's deadly blast at Moscow's busiest airport. Plus, our "Fast Forward" look ahead at the day's news, right after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAYE: Of course, we'll keep you informed on the latest on that deadly Moscow airport blast. But we also want to "Fast Forward" and take a look at the day ahead of us.

Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia speaks today in a closed- door meeting with the Tea Party Caucus. Today's session with the 74- year-old conservative justice is being billed as the first in a series of twice-monthly conservative constitutional seminars.

A full report on those controversial USS Enterprise videos is due on the desk of the top Navy official today. The videos contain foul language, anti-gay slurs and simulated sex acts. Navy Captain Owen Honors, second in command on the Enterprise, appears in those videos and has since been relieved of his command.

The case against Casey Anthony is back in court today. She's the Florida mother charged with first-degree murder in the death of her two-year-old daughter, Caylee. It is expected her court-appointed lawyers will actually ask for more money for investigative work. This will be a third request for more cash for her team.

That'll do it for me. I'm Randi Kaye. Let's toss it over to Carol Costello from here.