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Unconfirmed Videos Show Police Opening Fire on Protesters in Bahrain; Demonstrations Continue in Madison Wisconsin Over Proposed Anti-Union Legislation; Hundreds Gather to Honor Poisoned Auburn Trees; Dream Award Spotlights Children Who Make A Difference; CNN Hero Stars in ABC's "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition"; Democrats and Republicans Negotiating New Federal Government Budget; Hosts Of "Grannies on Safari" in Egypt During Initial Phases of Revolution

Aired February 19, 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: Good morning.

While you were sleeping the House passes a bill that cuts billions of dollars. Which programs were saved and which were slashed? We break it down for you straight ahead.

From Bahrain to Yemen to Libya, this Saturday morning is off to a violent start. Protesters are facing teargas and guns. We're tracking the latest wave of revolts throughout the Middle East.

From CNN Center, this is CNN Saturday morning. It's February 19. Good morning, I'm Randi Kaye. Thanks for waking up with us this morning.

Also ahead, those teacher protests in Wisconsin could get bigger before things get better. Thousands are expected back at the statehouse to protest drastic budget cuts, and now Tea Party activists promise to join the fray today. Other governors facing tough budget decisions will be watching this showdown no doubt, and we will have a live report from there.

And Auburn University's beloved trees are barely surviving an attack by a vandal armed with plant killers. Later this morning, thousands of students and grads, many brought together by Facebook, are fighting back. We'll have the very latest.

The Republican-led House staying up most of the night doing that old slash and cut routine, removing $60 billion from all kinds of government programs affecting millions of us. But was it all for nothing?

CNN congressional correspondent Brianna Keilar in Washington. The House certainly cut a lot. Can you give us some of the specifics?

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, as you said, $60 billion. Now, that is for the remaining seven months in the current budget. And just to tell you a few of the many changes that were made to this bill, because this is why we have been up late nights for a few days now is the House really has gone into a marathon session over this.

So one of the big ones -- this was the most controversial -- was a change to defund health care reform. House Republicans had said if their effort to repeal health care reform wasn't successful they were going to be trying this other way, which was to defund it through the appropriations process.

Also there was a change in there to cut federal spending for Planned Parenthood. A lot of Republicans on board with this, as you can imagine, a lot of Democrats who said this was a very bad idea.

And then one we covered a lot this week that was an example of how there were all kinds of different amendments proposed to this spending cuts bill, it actually allows the Pentagon to sponsor NASCAR teams, something the Pentagon already does, because there was an effort to stop them from doing that, and it actually failed. So they're going to continue to do that.

KAYE: So was this all a game of show and tell, because the president has already threatened to veto this? The Senate still has to vote on it.

KEILAR: Yes, and Senate Democrats are going to find some of these cuts to not be very palatable. One or a couple in particular, there's one that cuts hundreds of millions of dollars in assistance to the nutrition program for women, infants, and children, WIC you might know it as.

Also, there are cuts to the Environmental Protection Agency. And this raises the specter, Randi, of a government shutdown because the House and the Senate have to come to some sort of agreement. There's right now a temporary funding measure that takes the government through March 4th and then it expires. And if the House and the Senate can't come to some agreement -- and right now they're so far apart -- that could be a real possibility.

KAYE: They'll have really just days to figure it out, right, because the Senate Democrats won't take this up until the 28th of this month?

KEILAR: And that's the week of when this stop gap measure expires. So yes, they have very little time. And we're going to be seeing this play out with some ferocity I think over the next couple of weeks.

KAYE: We might see a few more slumber parties and overnights there at the capital as they try to hash this out.

KEILAR: Long hours.

KAYE: Oh, yes. Brianna Keilar for us. Thank you very much. Good to see you.

Another budget battle, this one in Wisconsin. The battle is actually over unions and their impact on the state budget. Today Tea Party activists are expected to show up in numbers to back Republican Scott Walker who wants to do away with most collective bargaining rights for public workers.

CNN's Casey Wian is in Madison.

And, Casey, 14 Democratic senators fled the state to avoid voting on this plan. Does anyone have a clue when they're coming back?

CASEY WIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: No one has a clue about that, Randi. They're vowing to stay outside of the state so they don't have the quorum that's need to move this controversial legislation forward. The governor is not budging either. The Democrats want him to meet with the unions to try to reconfigure this legislation. He says he's not going to do that.

It is quiet right now, but later today we're expecting the largest crowds we've seen all week. And that's because, as you mentioned, supporters of the governor's ruling on state unions here and require them to pay more for pensions, teachers and other unions, have been here all week surrounding the capital. They've closed schools in many districts here in Wisconsin for the past three days.

Now, as you mentioned, that budget cutting bill itself is on hold. Yesterday in the House here, Republicans tried to move the bill forward, and that angered state Democrats in the House.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GORDON HINTZ, (D) WISCONSIN ASSEMBLY: We show up here and you guys are going to vote without us three minutes before you told us to be here. Are you seeing a pattern here? I find out from the radio, from some group I don't even know who it is. Then when the public wants to talk, you cut them off. Then when we show up to vote, we show up to vote.

I'm elected, I get it, I'm in the minority, you're right. There's only a bunch of us. But if you want to know why there are 35,000 people here, look at yourself in the mirror and have a little respect, at least to your colleagues!

GOV. SCOTT WALKER, (R) WISCONSIN: I knew people would be passionate, I knew they'd be pumped up. They have every right to do that. That's what's great about America. But to me that wasn't going to offset the fact that there were plenty of others across the state including the 19,000 e-mails I got supporting us on this. But what surprised me was Senate Democrats that talked about being upset about democracy are now the ones hiding.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WIAN: Now, the governor said yesterday also that the reason he's not going to sit down and negotiate with unions, is, because, quote, "we can't make a good faith effort to negotiate when the state doesn't have any money." That's what he says this is all about, about money. The unions, teachers and others say this is about stripping labor of their collective bargaining rights.

KAYE: Casey Wian for us in Madison, Wisconsin, this morning. Time for the weekend wheel, a look at other stories we're watching right now. Let's start with Bahrain where protesters are celebrating in the main square. That's because the crown prince ordered the military out of the square and off of the streets.

But it was a very different story yesterday. Take a look. I have to warn you, some of it is pretty graphic. We have some YouTube videos supposedly showing one of the protests in the capital Manama, and then shots ring out.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

(GUNFIRE)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAYE: At least four people were killed. While this is dramatic video, we do have to stress that CNN cannot confirm the authenticity of video posted on YouTube. But does appear to be from the same location where our teams were reporting earlier on Friday. Here's part of a report from CNN's Arwa Damon, who was on the streets shortly after shots were fired.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ARWA DAMON, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: "Covered in blood," Mohammed says, "I told everyone to put their hands up as a sign of peace. Then I saw the military crouch down like this."

A man standing next to him was shot in the head, he tells us. Our conversation ends abruptly when the military opens fire once again --

(GUNFIRE)

DAMON: -- using steel pellets and live ammunition.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KAYE: We're hearing some disturbing news out of Libya right now. A doctor in Benghazi says protesters are being shot from helicopters hovering over the protests. He says dozens of injured people are being taken to the hospital.

Thousands of anti-government protesters have taken to the streets in Libya, but government forces have been brutal with their crackdown. The group Human Rights Watch says more than 80 people have been killed over the past few days.

Egypt's military rulers have given Iran the green light to bring two warships through the Suez Canal. That's not sitting well with some neighbors like Israel. It is the first time since Iran's 1979 revolution that they've sent ships to the canal. Iran says the ships are headed to Syria for training, but State Department officials are certainly a bit skeptical. Four Americans are in the hands of Somali pirates this morning. They were taken off the yacht the SV Quest in the middle of the Indian Ocean. The U.S. Navy in Bahrain is monitoring the situation. The identities of the Americans not known at this point, but an international piracy watchdog group says the yacht is owned by Jean and Scott Adams, so it could be them. This is the Adams' website detailing their around the world journey.

A former juvenile court judge in Eastern Pennsylvania is found guilty of taking bribes and kickbacks for sending young offenders to a for-profit detention center. And after the verdict is delivered an angry mother lashes out at the disgraced jurist.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SANDY FONZO, ENRAGED MOTHER: My kid's not here! He's dead! Because of him! He ruined my life! I'd like him to go to hell and rot there forever!

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAYE: A jury found former judge Mark Ciavarella guilty of a dozen charges, including racketeering, money laundering, conspiracy, and tax evasion.

The mayor of Poughkeepsie, New York, suggested yesterday may have been the worst day in the city's history. Officer John Falcone, an 18-year veteran of the police department died in a shootout with a gunman who also died in that battle. A third person thought to be the suspect's wife was also found dead at the scene. Another officer was wounded but is expected to survive.

If you're thinking about going green for your commute, we're going to show you the top cars you might want to consider.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(WEATHER BREAK)

KAYE: They are known as the Oscars for kids. The Children's Dream Awards feature kids who are making a difference. We'll hear from Bailee Madison about what led to the creation of these awards, also from Daphna Ziman. We'll hear from both of them in a moment about this wonderful project.

If being green meaning saving a little on gas costs, you might like this. The annual ranking of the greenest cars just came out. Counting down from number five, the Honda Civic hybrid, number four is the Toyota Prius, and taking third place is the Smart for two car. Its tiny size and light weight rank it high in fuel efficiency and low in emission, not to mention the marks, my favorite for cuteness. Stay with us for the top two greenest cars of the year.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAYE: We're back with the annual list of the greenest cars of the year. The Nissan Leaf came in at number two. It's all electric and gets a whopping 106 miles in the city. But the top spot goes to the Honda Civic GX. Its fuel economy is lower than the rest of the list but its super-low emissions beat out all the other contenders.

To check out the other cars on the list head to CNNMoney.com.

The Oscars will be handed out in two weeks. But this Wednesday what some call the Oscars for kids will be handed out in Los Angeles. It's the Children's Dream Awards. The test for filmmakers was to produce a short video that featured a kid who was making a difference.

For more on the big night is Daphna Ziman, founder of the organization, and one of the Angel Award recipients, Bailee Madison, co-star in last week's number one movie "Just Go With It." Great to see you both. Daphna, tell me about this Children Uniting Nations. What is it about? I know you were trying to give kids a voice. But tell us more.

DAPHNA ZIMAN, FOUNDER, CHILDREN UNITING NATIONS: That's absolutely correct, Randi. This is about the most voiceless children in our country and our community. And what these awards ceremonies are all about is showing how kids go beyond the call of duty for other kids.

Many of our kid that are receiving the awards have actually risked their lives for other kids. One of the children was a boy soldier removed from his home at three-years-old and escaped saving a lot of other boy soldiers at age 10 and there's a film about him.

Now Bailee's with me, and she has spent a lot of her young life helping other children.

KAYE: I know Bailee -- Bailee, you're getting -- first of all, can I just tell you Ohio adorable you are.

(LAUGHTER)

BAILEE MADISON, "ANGEL AWARD" WINNER: Thank you.

KAYE: When you came on, everybody was like, oh, look at her. But you're getting one of these five angel awards for your role in the movie "Brothers." And you're being honored for your support for the Starlight Foundation, which is a group that actually helps families deal with some very serious illnesses.

Let's take a look at a clip about the Starlight Foundation and then I want to ask you about that.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They had told us that Allison would probably be stillborn, but she's here today, 15 years, and, thank god, doing well.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Growing up, it was kind of hard. I'm not able to walk normally. I have to use crutches and wheelchair for long distances.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We've learned how to give him his factor. He gets it three days a week. It's very painful for him. When he hurts, we hurt, too.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I mean, when she had her transplant, I was in high school. And it was difficult because my family wasn't around when I was starting high school. But you know, it's your family and you do what you have to do.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAYE: So Bailee, how do you feel being honored with this award?

MADISON: I feel completely blessed. I mean, it's incredible. The most important message out there is just really telling kids that they can make a difference. We're here right now. We have the ability to. And we're going out there and we're doing it.

I think if we all join together and join forces that we can really make a change. No matter how young you are no matter how old you are, you can make a difference. That's really what the message is that we're trying to put out there that all children should we able to have a loving home, all children should be able to be healthy and have people to be able to look up on.

And I feel completely blessed to have the life that I have and I'm just completely honored and thankful to the lord and thank you for all of you guys.

KAYE: Well, that is a wonderful message.

ZIMAN: Isn't that amazing?

KAYE: And to others who aren't as blessed as you are. What about some of the other children that are being honored next Wednesday? Can you tell us briefly about them?

ZIMAN: Well, one boy who is nine-years-old asked his science teacher to help him and they raised money in Florida and bought solar ovens for the refugee kids in Haiti so they can have hot meals. One girl stood in front of the Coral Reef and 2,000 other kids joined her to save the Coral Reef.

It's just amazing all of the kids have gone beyond any imagination. And it's truly teaching us adults as gatekeepers of their future to take responsibility. And the message across the board is to give voice to the most voiceless children in our world.

KAYE: And it's so nice to see children, other children like Bailee helping the other kids out. Bailee, Daphna, thank you.

ZIMAN: Thank you for having us.

MADISON: Thank you. Be prepared to make a difference.

KAYE: OK. Good advice from Bailee right there.

(LAUGHTER)

Next, you've got to see it to believe it. This bare naked burglar broke into a clubhouse, and you will not believe what he took.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAYE: It's 24 minutes past the hour, time to take a look at some stories that you really need to see to believe. We start with a little surveillance video at a retirement community near Ft. Myers. Residents there wanted to know who stole their sausage. Boy, did they get an eyeful, a naked man making himself right at home.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We have a lot of rules in here. But I don't think we have a rule against streaking in the clubhouse. But we might have to add that. When you get up here 55 plus, you don't get a whole lot of excitement. So this is great.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(LAUGHTER)

KAYE: "This is great," great excitement. When police saw the tape, they actually recognized the suspected sausage thief and made an arrest.

In London they're celebrating Anna Nicole Smith in song. It is actually a new show at the Royal Opera House that opened this week. The opera chronicles her rise to celebrity and all the rough patches on that road to fame. The guy who wrote the songs did the same thing for an opera based on the "Jerry Springer Show."

And check out this new masterpiece in Cincinnati. It is a take on Michelangelo's famous "Creation of Adam." And yes, that is George Clooney playing the part of Adam. This is put together by an art studio to get the actor's attention. It looks pretty good there, actually. He's going to be in town filming a new movie and they, of course, would like him to stop by. Who wouldn't want George Clooney to stop by, right?

The name of the show is "Grannies on Safari." The hosts were taping their program in Egypt when a revolution broke out. They're going to share that remarkable experience with all of us. It is quite a tale to tell.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAYE: It is coming up on a half past the hour. Welcome back. I'm Randi Kaye. Thanks for starting your day with us. We're glad you're here.

Checking top stories, the budget standoff continues in Wisconsin. Fourteen Democratic lawmakers left the state to prevent a vote on the governor's proposal to slash benefits for state employees. National Tea Party leaders are joining the fray later today, and President Obama called it, quote, "an assault on unions."

As for the federal budget, the House of Representatives passed a government funding bill early this morning after four days of debate. The Republican backed budget cuts more than $60 billion in federal funding. It now moves to the Senate.

And Somali pirates are holding four Americans after boarding their yacht in the middle of the Indian Ocean. The U.S. military confirms the four were kidnapped Friday. A piracy watchdog group identifies the seized vessel as one that belongs to Jean and Scott Adams.

Let's catch you up on the latest developments out of Egypt this morning as the nation enters a second week with its president out of power and the nation's military in charge of running the country. Late yesterday Egypt's high council of the armed forces literally outlawed any more demonstrations, saying ongoing protests are hurting the economy and also threatening national security.

The edict comes on the heels of two Iranian warships that were allowed to navigate through the Suez Canal yesterday, a move that put the country's new military regime in a pretty prickly position with its Israeli neighbor.

Two grandmothers from the U.S. found themselves right in the middle of the conflict in Egypt. They were taping their PBS show "Grannies on Safari" when the revolution broke out. They're OK, but they have quite a store to tell. We'll talk with them in just a moment. But first take a look at their show "Grannies on Safari" and see for yourself why these women are not your ordinary granny.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REGINA FRASER, CO-HOST, "GRANNIES ON SAFARI": You want to try it on?

PAT JOHNSON, CO-HOST, "GRANNIES ON SAFARI": Will you hold it up for her? Tomorrow. Tomorrow.

FRASER: No, I think you should do it today.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAYE: "Grannies on Safari," Regina Fraser and Pat Johnson join us now from Chicago. Good morning, ladies, to both of you.

FRASER: Good morning.

JOHNSON: Good morning.

KAYE: A few weeks ago you found yourself in the middle of quite a mess there in Egypt. Remind us just very briefly, Pat, if you would, about your ordeal and how you managed to get back. JOHNSON: Well, we hadn't planned to be witness to a revolution, but that's how it turned out. We were with a small group of individuals. I think there were 14 of us altogether. A few of our friends and fans had decided to go to Egypt to take a little jaunt down the Nile River. And we were caught up in the beginning of the protest movement and were there for what, ten days, weren't we, Regina?

FRASER: For the total amount of time, yes, ten days.

KAYE: How did you end up getting back? I know you were originally in Cairo. Then I think you boarded a boat or something like that?

FRASER: We were stuck in Luxor. Randi, I have to say thank you to you, by the way. I received a call on my phone. They said that CNN gave us your phone number and we're coming to get you. And they did. They came and they got us. That's how we got back. I got to thank you personally, Randi.

KAYE: We're happy --

FRASER: I don't know if you gave them the phone number.

KAYE: I don't know who did, but I remember we had you on and talked about your ordeal.

I think a lot of people wonder, wow, they made it through this. But what was the takeaway? I would imagine you've never been stranded or stuck like that before, Regina?

FRASER: No, we haven't been stuck like that before. And you know, I think the biggest takeaway for me personally was we went to a country that seemed to have what I think is a civil rights kind of a freedom movement. We were there. It was very historical. We saw what the people were saying. We were scared a lot of the times.

But the takeaway was that it isn't always all bad. That if you're prepared as a traveler, you have to recognize the culture and you have to roll with the punches. In our case know that our government will help you.

JOHNSON: We were evacuated a few days after our initial response, and so we were very happy about that. We did leave Luxor. We did not have to go back to Cairo because Cairo was the seat of most of the activity. So we flew from Luxor into Athens and were greeted by members of the U.S. embassy there, which we were quite startled. We didn't expect that.

KAYE: They must be big fans of "Grannies on Safari."

FRASER: You know, the ambassador was wonderful. He said, I watched parts of your show. We were both like, that's cool.

KAYE: Let's get to some tips before we run out of time here. For others who are traveling and hopefully they won't find themselves in the position that you both were in, but what is your advice in terms of traveling with prescriptions? I know you have good advice on that.

JOHNSON: Well, my first suggestion would be sure to have your prescription drugs with you, not in your checked luggage, but in your hand luggage. And also make sure to have a copy of the prescription just in case something gets lost and you need to refill it. That's extremely important.

FRASER: And I understand that you recommend traveling with dental floss because it comes in handy, Regina. Why?

FRASER: Because, you know what, if you have to watch out anything, any undies or others, you can take that dental floss and string it in the bathroom and use it as a dry line.

KAYE: It's strong enough for that, really?

FRASER: Yes, it is. It really is.

KAYE: Wow, that's pretty good.

What about your cell phone? I know it was hard because certainly in Egypt you didn't have very good -- they had shut down the internet, shut down cell phone service, but the cell phone clearly key when it comes to travels whether caught in the middle of a revolution or not?

FRASER: It was our lifeline. I was able to text and I could get some calls because otherwise we were really just left afloat. I tell everybody, don't leave the country without checking with your cell phone provider to make sure that your phone works. It could be your only lifeline. So I'm really big on that.

JOHNSON: Indeed. I should also say that -- yes.

KAYE: We'll have to leave it there. I know you have lots of other advice. But we're just happy to see you both back home and to see you both safe. So welcome home.

FRASER: Thank you, Randi.

JOHNSON: Thank you.

KAYE: Thanks a lot. Great to see you.

And you can see "Grannies on Safari" on your local PBS station. Regina Fraser and Pat Johnson, great to see you again. You'll have to catch their show.

It is a football rivalry gone very wrong. The trees at Auburn have been poisoned, yes, poisoned. An Alabama fan is under arrest. Today Auburn supporters are gathering. We're going to find out what exactly they have planned and if it's even possible to save these amazing trees.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) KAYE: Hundreds if not thousands of tree huggers are heading to Alabama this morning. They're not your garden variety type of environmentalists, either. Many are university alumni or fans enraged by the recent poisonings of a pair of 130-year-old oak trees. They're Auburn landmarks, and they're not expected to survive.

While the attack sounds like some sophomoric stunt, the accused is a retired Texas state trooper, a reported Tide fan who was angered by Alabama's loss to Auburn this past season.

Erin St. John is one of today organizers, and she is live at Toomer's Corner, which is the scene of the crime. And meteorologist Reynolds Wolf, who is a big Auburn fan, is also joining us for this conversation. Erin, first of all, how surprised are you that this is the handy work of a retired lawman who should have known this was a criminal act?

ERIN ST. JOHN, EVENT ORGANIZER: I think everybody's really surprised and really hurt. You know, we don't ever expect someone to actually come on to the campus and do anything to retaliate against us because we've beaten their team. I don't think anybody at Tuscaloosa thought it was going to happen. I don't think that it's something that both Alabama fans would do.

So I think we're all surprised that that actually did happen. We're keeping the trees and his family, the Auburn family, in our prayers right now.

KAYE: The plan today is what? You're expecting a lot of people to come out there and show their love and support for the trees?

ST. JOHN: Well, hopefully from noon to 3:00 central standard time we're going to come out here and just hug each other, essentially. We started out saying that we were going to hug the tree and we realized that actually the root systems are very fragile. It would be really bad for us to trample on the roots to try to hug the tree.

What we're going to do is come out here and bond together and do what we normally would do after a game or during any time of celebration when we would roll Toomer's Corner. We would come out here and stay together, do cheers, talk to each other about how much we'll cherish the memories of this tree because it might not be here very long. And we're going to do what the Auburn family does best and love each other.

REYNOLDS WOLF, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Erin, this is meteorologist Reynolds Wolf. I'm a lifelong Auburn fan, War Eagle to you.

ST. JOHN: War eagle.

WOLF: That's a greeting that we invoke with each other. We understand how the Auburn family feels about this, but what kind of feedback have you had from the guys on the other side of the state, we're talking about the people in Tuscaloosa. Anything back from Alabama fans? ST. JOHN: Alabama fans have been so supportive. You know, I've never felt more strongly bound to people in my own state than now. We've always said we have a huge rivalry, one of the biggest rivalries in the south if not in the nation, yet Alabama fans are telling us constantly, they really regret what happened, they're on our side and they're praying for the Toomer's trees.

I think a foundation has been set up by tide fans to help with the costs of repairing the trees or trying to keep this tradition alive. So we're really thankful.

KAYE: There's some talk of a dirt transplant in the works. Is that even possible, to save the trees?

ST. JOHN: We've been hearing a lot from horticultural experts and other people who say that they're taking every step, Auburn University is taking every step to try to save the trees, but that there's a less than two percent chance that the trees will survive.

And I know that if there's anything that could be done, I think they'll do it. But I'm not sure about the soil transplant. I know they were worried that it had spread so far that even Sanford lawn and all the trees around the corner would die. So we're hoping that doesn't happen. We're hoping that they're able to save all of our trees and, you know, just keep this place green.

KAYE: Sure. Well, glad that all of you are coming together today. It's certainly an important day for Auburn and its fans.

ST. JOHN: It's amazing.

WOLF: War eagle.

ST. JOHN: Thank you. War eagle.

KAYE: You never say that to me when I come in the studio.

WOLF: It's an Auburn thing.

KAYE: I got you. But listen, speaking of teams, Reynolds, who just can't get along, the Bleacher Report put out a list of rivalries in sports history, nothing as ugly as that, luckily. But I know Auburn and Alabama, of course are huge rival.

But a big factor in making this list is how long the rivalry has actually been going on. At number five, the Green Bay Packers versus the Chicago Bears. That's the oldest and longest running rivalry in the NFL. Reynolds, take number four.

WOLF: Number four, the Los Angeles Lakers versus the Boston Celtics. I know that's not a surprise to many people. Many of us remember that as one of the greatest showdowns, especially the 2010 NBA finals.

KAYE: In third place, the head-to-head matchup that's lasted more than a century, the Dodgers versus the Giants. I know, of course, Reynolds, you're dying to know who the two toughest rivals in sports history are. We'll have that answer after the break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAYE: Before the break we took a look at the toughest rivalries in sports history. Now the number two spot, the Boston Red Sox versus the New York Yankees, a matchup that's lasted since 1901, if you're keeping track.

But nabbing the best or worst, depending on how you look at it, the Ohio State Buckeyes versus the Michigan Wolverines. They have been battling it out on the turf since 1897. You can check out the entire list at bleacherreport.com.

Let's get back to Wisconsin now and the protests over controversial cost-cutting legislation. The uproar has gone national all the way to the White House. CNN Deputy Political Director Paul Steinhauser joins me now from Washington. Paul, good to see you. Tell us all about this. What is the president saying?

PAUL STEINHAUSER, CNN DEPUTY POLITICAL DIRECTOR: I sure will, but I got to say one thing. I'm a New York Yankee fan, my wife is a Red Sox fan. It makes for interesting times.

(LAUGHTER)

KAYE: I'm sure it does. It's amazing you're still together.

STEINHAUSER: Yes, it's a miracle.

But it's not just about Wisconsin. This fight in Wisconsin is happening at the same time here in Washington, the big battle between the Democrats and the Republicans over the national budget and over government spending and government cuts.

So Republicans as you can imagine, Randi, all the way up to John Boehner, the House speaker, are big time supporters of Governor Walker out there. They're saying that governor Walker and other new Republican governors are making the tough choices and the tough cuts.

But the White House says that the president realizes that these governors need to make cuts to get the budgets balanced, but at the same time the White House says the president feels strongly this shouldn't become an assault on the collective bargains rights of workers in any state.

And Organizing for America, which is the grassroots wing of the Democratic National Committee is helping organize some of these protesters out in Wisconsin. Republicans are saying, listen, the Democrats are orchestrating this, but they say, no, we're not.

KAYE: The White House certainly taking some heat for that. The Tea Party folks are heading there today as well. So it's going to be interesting. All right, Paul Steinhauser, good to see you. Thank you.

STEINHAUSER: Thank you. KAYE: It has been another strange week for Charlie Sheen. Yes, seems like every week is strange for Charlie Sheen. We'll talk about that in the "Gray Zone" just ahead. And coming up at 11:00, financial infidelity, what kind of money issues lead to the most cheating? We'll explain.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAYE: Dan Wallrath was honored as a CNN hero for building mortgage-free homes for injured Iraq and Afghanistan veterans. That caught the attention of the TV Show "Extreme Makeover, Home Edition." Together they helped a soldier who survived the Fort Hood shooting find his way home. And that episode airs Sunday on ABC.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ANDERSON COOPER, CNN HOST, "AC 360": It is my honor to present CNN hero Dan Wallrath.

(APPLAUSE)

DAN WALLRATH, CNN HERO: Being a top ten CNN hero was just very humbling. The true heroes are servicemen and women who answer the call. Since the show aired, we've been getting phone calls and e- mails and donations from all over the world. It's just been incredible.

GEORGE VERSTHOOR, "EXTREME MAKEOVER, HOME EDITION": We had seen Dan on CNN Heroes tribute, and we thought that's a perfect guy we got to team up with.

WALLRATH: Good morning, Patrick and Jessica!

COOPER: ABC's "Extreme Makeover, Home Edition" joined forces with Dan to build a home for an Iraq War veteran wounded in the 2009 attack at Ft. Hood in Texas.

WALLRATH: He was shot four times, once in the head. He's made a remarkable recovery.

COOPER: For Dan who normally works with around 200 people, it's a chance to build a home on a much larger scale.

WALLRATH: It's been about 4,000 volunteers involved. We have tons of military folks helping us. God bless you. This will be built in a hundred hours where normally we take about six months.

COOPER: In an event at Ft. Hood honoring Patrick and his fiancee, Jessica, Dan made a special announcement.

WALLRATH: We have established a Ft. Hood victims fund to reach out to all the families affected by this tragedy.

(APPLAUSE)

I feel so good all the time about seeing these lives change. Now we'll be able to change a lot more.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KAYE: And once again, you can see the entire "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" episode featuring CNN Hero Dan Walwith tomorrow night on ABC.

And if you know another amazing person like Dan who is making a big difference in your community, be sure to let us know at CNNheroes.com.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAYE: In the Gray Zone today, from one star with a new video to another tweeting under the influence, yes, the juiciest pop culture scoop from CNN producer Jack Gray. Good morning, Jack. Lots to talk about, always great to see you. Let's start with Charlie Sheen, who is, of course, making headlines again.

JACK GRAY, CNN PRODUCER: Yes, Charlie Sheen. The only thing worse than a TV star battling addiction is a TV star battling addiction and then calling in to talk shows, but that's what happened this week. Did you hear, Randi?

KAYE: Yes. I love his advice.

GRAY: Syndicated Dan Patrick show. And the advice was - and I think he might have stolen this from my grandmother, but the advice was stay off crack unless you can manage it socially, which I don't know about you, but that doesn't sound like a great sobriety bumper stinger, but we should leave that up to Dr. Drew.

KAYE: It sounds like part of home rehab.

GRAY: Exactly.

KAYE: Billy Ray Cyrus also making some headlines with a "GQ" interview. What's that all about?

GRAY: Billy Ray Cyrus opening up to "GQ" about parenting a superstar. This is the part where my head really exploded. I don't know if you read the interview. I think we have a quote from it. You want to listen to this.

He was recalling the days before Miley was born, "Her name should have been Destiny Hope Cyrus because I feel like it's her destiny to bring hope into the world." So did you get that, Randi, Destiny Hope?

KAYE: I'll make a note of that. What about Britney's new video? She's back. What do you think?

GRAY: She's back and she's wearing underwear, which I think is great. Her new video is called "Hold it Against Me," which is the hit single of her new album. She'll let the music speak for itself. It's a great song. All I can tell is that she, you know, wants to be loved and enjoys sparkly outfits. She's not that much different from Wolf Blitzer.

(LAUGHTER)

KAYE: I don't think we'd catch Wolf wearing that, but OK.

GRAY: You don't hang out in the right places.

KAYE: Lady Gaga dressed as what on "Good Morning America"?

GRAY: She was dressed as a latex condom inspired outfit to draw attention to safe sex. She can draw attention to anything she wants. She's Lady Gaga. She showed up in the egg at the Grammys. She had the big interview with Anderson, who, by the way, I think is still kind of missing her. He was kind of walking around kind of melancholy this week talking about her meat dress and holding a bottle of steak sauce. It was kind of sad.

(LAUGHTER)

KAYE: Before we run out of time, we want the celebrity tweet of the week from you. What do you got?

GRAY: Oh, my favorite celebrity tweet, Christen Chenowith, star of stage and screen, who apparently -- and we've all heard about the crazy things that happen when people are on Ambien. My friend Lisa pops it and starts ordering Tupperware.

Kristin Chenoweth, she starts tweeting under the influence of Ambien. The first one said -- there you go, "Ambien is great." Obviously she missed a few letters. First one was like "Sammy loves me." And it was crazy. You got to look at her page. But it's nowhere near as bizarre as some of the stuff you text to me in the middle of the night.

KAYE: We'll have to leave it there. Luckily we're out of time and can't talk about that.

GRAY: Thank you.

KAYE: The Gray Zone with Jack Gray every Saturday here. Lots of fun. Thank you, Jack.

GRAY: Talk to you soon, bye.