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Libyan Government Unraveling?; Fashion Designer Under Fire; Piers Morgan on His Exclusive Interview With Charlie Sheen; Breaking Down Myths of Tax Season; 'On the Case'

Aired March 01, 2011 - 16:00   ET

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

BROOKE BALDWIN, CNN ANCHOR: Now, top of the hour here in the CNN NEWSROOM, watch this.

Charlie Sheen opens up about drugs, mental health and his very public fight with CBS. I will talk to the only man who has interviewed him on live TV for a whole hour, Piers Morgan. That's just minutes away. I'm Brooke Baldwin. The news is now.

Moammar Gadhafi denies there's any violence in his country, and he still refuses to step down as thousands leave Libya by the hour. And the United Nations now says this mass exodus is becoming a crisis.

Plus, a high-profile fashion designer saying he loves Hitler, and the whole thing is caught on video. Now John Galliano learns his fate, and Natalie Portman responds to the controversy.

And a couple is accused of kidnapping a little girl, then forcing her to live in their backyard for 18 years -- now word of the confession.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Mr. and Mrs. Garrido have given -- quote -- "complete statements" to the sheriff's department.

BALDWIN: Jaycee Dugard reportedly meets the couple face to face.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BALDWIN: Hello once again. I'm Brooke Baldwin. A lot of things happening right now and unfolding. Let me get you caught up first with this.

Let's some take live pictures there of the House floor. They are getting ready. This is not official the vote here, but they are getting ready for that vote as to whether they want to keep the government running. The clock is ticking closer for that compromise as we get closer that midnight Friday deadline. Will that happen? We're monitoring.

Also, minutes from now, the governor of Wisconsin is expected to release his controversial budget plan. This proposal, of course, has been the center of angry, angry protests across his state and has sparked a fiery debate really about unions nationwide.

But, first, if it's happening and it's interesting right now, you're about to see it rapid fire. Let's go.

Developing right now, it is being called one of the biggest gang busts in history, the feds arresting more than 600 gang members and their associates all across the country. We are told they allegedly have ties to Mexican drug cartels. This whole operation took three months. The suspects are said to be involved in a laundry list of crimes, including human trafficking and identity theft.

Frightening view here near Cleveland. Look at all of that water, flash flooding in several neighborhoods down from the Gates Mill Dam, which burst just yesterday. The Chagrin River is already out of its banks, and officials are predicting all that flooding you see in and around Cleveland, it's going to get worse before it gets better. Several folks who live in the area in these homes had to be rescued late Monday to be taken to higher ground.

OK. You think a shuttle launch is pretty impressive to see, right? We watched Discovery last Friday, but how about this? This is a bird's-eye view. You need to be in the right place at the right time, and who was there? Airline passenger Neil Monday whipped out the old trustee video camera on his flight as the shuttle Discovery launched from Florida last -- forgive me -- it was Thursday, not Friday.

If you watched the video online, you could actually hear the passengers applauding, woo-hooing as Discovery streaked toward orbit on its final flight.

Pensacola, Florida, a dad pretty ticked off today, partly because his 10-year-old son got his hands on a hunting knife that is as long as the boy's arm. Look at this. That's a knife -- but mostly because a tool store sold it to him. The boy says he walked in, plunked his money down and, voila, the knife.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Grabbed the knife, went up to the cash register, waited a few minutes, then pulled out a $20 bill to pay for it, and it was only $9.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And they just said -- they gave you your change and said thank you, and that was it?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, ma'am.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: Well, the boy's father called the police complaining that a store sold his kid a giant knife. Florida has a law against furnishing a weapon to a minor other than an ordinary pocketknife.

In-flight emergency, bad -- stretch of road to land on, good -- road that's got a lot of cars on it, really bad. East Alabama, a private pilot in trouble set his small plane down right on top of that car Sunday. Couldn't avoid it, apparently. Fortunately, no one was badly hurt. What, pilots have to watch the road and the sky now? It's not a tough job.

Blame it on the rain here, Toronto, Ohio, Jefferson County. Look at what happened to this shopping center after days and days of soaking rain and flooding. You see it. It's a massive sinkhole. A few miles upstream, the raging Ohio River flooded roads and trapped people walking and driving along.

And here we go. Pop superstar Christina Aguilera was arrested and taken into custody today, but here's the story. Police say she was detained only to ensure her safety after it was her companion who was arrested on suspicion of DUI. They say it is a routine move when a driver is arrested and a passenger is determined to be too intoxicated to take care of herself. Aguilera did spend the night in jail, but police say she's not facing any charges.

The United Nations says it's becoming a crisis, and really they fear a catastrophe here, tens of thousands leaving Libya, heading across the border either to Tunisia or Egypt. Well, what happens to the country they are leaving behind, as a defiant leader targets his own people? Brand-new developments there on the ground in Libya. We're all over that next.

Plus, a fashion designer goes on a racial rant. John Galliano says he loves Hitler. Well, now there is a brand-new fallout in that controversy, and it's not only making waves across the fashion world, but a big-time Hollywood celebrity who is also fresh off her Oscar win is now weighing in. Stay right there, "Globe Trekking" next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: We are "Globe Trekking" now, going to talk about today's developments in Libya. There are several. Plus, in the fashion world, one of the biggest stars in one of the biggest houses is now in the center of a scandal.

Hala Gorani from CNN International is with me.

And, Hala, let's talk Libya, where we know that the support for Moammar Gadhafi's regime is eroding. At the same time, you have thousands and thousands of people getting out of the country, either into Egypt or Tunisia.

HALA GORANI, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR/CORRESPONDENT: And that's one of the biggest headlines today, because the United Nations, the UNHCR, the United Nations High Council for Refugees, is saying that 40,000 people right now are waiting to cross on the western border into Tunisia from Libya, and that 140,000 total might be needing to flee, and this is causing a situation where the people on the other side of the border in Tunisia don't necessarily have either the manpower or the supplies to feed, take care, shelter all of these individuals.

Most of the people who are fleeing are Egyptian. They are workers who were making a living inside of Libya. But then there's also Bangladeshis and Chinese, and all these people once they hit the border have issues with paperwork and where to go sort of once they have reached that border area.

On the eastern side, on the Egyptian side of the border, it's easier because the Egyptians can then just go on to wherever they come from inside of Egypt.

BALDWIN: When we heard Arwa talking about how the UNHCR is calling this a humanitarian crisis, with the potential of becoming a humanitarian catastrophe, is that referring to what to do with the thousands of people?

GORANI: Yes. And it's also What happens when you don't have the food, you don't have the medicine, you don't have the clothing or the tents to take care of this sea of humanity that is crossing over into the border.

So right now, we're hearing from the United States that the U.S. Navy is positioning some battleships, some in the Mediterranean, that two of them are going to be crossing through the Suez Canal.

But the United States is very clear, saying this is for humanitarian purposes and any military action, though nothing is off the table, would be extremely complex to execute.

BALDWIN: OK. So that's the latest out of Libya.

Also wanted to follow up with you as we were talking about John Galliano yesterday and we have an update in his career, and also Natalie Portman finally weighing in.

GORANI: And Natalie Portman saying that she's essentially disgusted with what she heard, something from John Galliano in that video that went viral on the Internet.

She herself is Jewish. So he was saying, "I love Hitler" in that video that we saw over and over again. It really made the rounds.

BALDWIN: And she's connected quickly because of the Dior connection.

GORANI: Because she has an endorsement deal for Miss Dior, the perfume.

BALDWIN: OK.

GORANI: So she's a celebrity spokesperson for Miss Dior perfume. She appears in commercials, in print ads as well.

So, John Galliano, here's the -- what's going on right now. The Dior House is saying that it's starting proceedings to fire him, so there are legal issues involved with dismissing him, but comments coming from people who are close to him are saying, look, we didn't know he had this in him, but at the same time there's something very pathetic about it and that this unraveling of John Galliano started in earnest when he lost his partner, Steven Robinson.

This was what one fashion industry insider told CNN just a short while ago about John Galliano.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MADELEINE CZIGLER, FASHION EXPERT: When Steven died, you see this man unraveling slowly but surely, to the point where he becomes this pathetic person who sits in a cafe alone at night next to his house, totally drunk, wasted, and comes out with really ugly words that I'm sure he didn't know what he was saying.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GORANI: And "The New York Times" is quoting sources as saying that his friends have finally convinced John Galliano to check into rehab, because, clearly, clearly, he has huge issues right now.

BALDWIN: Issues. OK, Hala Gorani, thanks for the update. Thank you.

Also now this, breaking news out of Washington. We have been talking about this vote today. The vote now is happening. Members of the House of Representatives, U.S. House voting on that spending bill. Remember, if they don't vote, and it has to pass the House, then it has to pass the Senate. The deadline is Friday. We are going to be talking to Brianna Keilar, who has been watching this whole thing unfold on Capitol Hill, coming up.

Also, did you watch this last night?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHARLIE SHEEN, ACTOR: I can't find a label other than just alive. There's this great quote going around: Yes, I'm high on a drug. It's called Charlie Sheen.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: Coming up next, Piers Morgan himself will join me live. He interviewed Charlie Sheen for the entire hour live last night, so what was Charlie Sheen like off-camera? What did they talk about in the commercial breaks? Who was in the room? What did Piers think of the actor's behavior. Stay there. Don't miss this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: Breaking news out of Washington. The gavel just hit, so it's official, the vote here passed. They passed that bill to extend funding of the federal government for at least two weeks.

Want to go to Brianna Keilar covering Congress for us there on Capitol Hill.

And, Brianna, talk to me about the numbers here. They had to get what for this thing to pass?

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Two hundred eighteen, and they got well over that, 335 to 91 this passed, Brooke, so a lot of Democrats jumping on board here.

But remember, this is a two-week extension that will continue to fund the federal government beyond Friday to avoid a government shutdown. It cuts $4 billion in spending over that time, and a lot of these cuts, even though this was proposed by Republicans, what they kind of did here was they called the bluff of Democrats. They put in this short-term bill cuts that Democrats were on board with, cuts that President Obama himself had proposed.

So the next step here is that this goes over to the Senate, and the indication that we got from Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid today, Brooke, is that they are going to move on this, pass this through the Senate. Obviously, it would then go on to President Obama who would presumably sign it. We would expect that he would sign it so that we can avoid a government shutdown. and then the hard bargaining begins, because as I said, this only goes for two more weeks.

BALDWIN: Yes. So this goes for two weeks. This is just also the 2011 budget. They haven't even tackled the 2012 budget for which President Obama presented on Valentine's Day, if I remember correctly.

So they have to tackle 2011 and then 2012, correct, Brianna?

KEILAR: That's right. So 2012 they're going to deal with starting -- that'll be a process that we're going to see going into the spring. But this is something that we'll be talking about here over the next couple of weeks, Brooke, this spending cuts for the rest of this budget here, because House Republicans already passed $61 billion in budget cuts, and there are, unlike this short-term bill, tons of cuts in there that Democrats don't like that really undercut Democratic priorities.

And so, this next couple of week is going to be all about negotiations between House Republicans, Senate Democrats and the White House trying to see if they can come to a compromise, and they might not be able to do it, Brooke. There may have to be another short-term measure to keep kind of kicking the can down the road until they can reach an agreement.

BALDWIN: Well, we will let our conversation continue in that case.

Brianna Keilar for me live for me on Capitol Hill. Bri, thank you.

Now let's talk Charlie Sheen, upping the ante really for the last couple of weeks on radio, on TV, in print. His hit TV show, "Two and a Half Men" co-star here fighting a public war of words with CBS. Firing shots that really derailed the show, at least for now, and launching this media blitz that has prompted his own publicist's resignation.

Sheen says that he is a winner, that he's winning this fight, and he seemed just as bold when he sat down for this exclusive live interview with Piers Morgan last night, even joking about using cocaine.

Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PIERS MORGAN, HOST, "PIERS MORGAN TONIGHT": You take cocaine, right?

CHARLIE SHEEN, ACTOR: I used to. I've got to be careful because there's lawsuits and things going on.

MORGAN: Until you stopped, you were taking a lot of cocaine?

SHEEN: Yes, I'm not taking it. I had to pay for it, dude, I mean, come on.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: Piers Morgan. Piers Morgan, there you are, with more on that rare and fascinating interview.

I tell you what, friend. I could not -- I could not blink. It was fascinating. It was riveting television, so bravo to you for that hour-long, live interview.

I do want to begin with, how did you land this? Because, as we mentioned, it was the same day his publicist resigned. How did you get Sheen to come on your show?

MORGAN: Well, I had one of my bookers that was playing a great game in getting to his entourage who were around him at his house. But it was actually one of those weird strokes of luck.

I got a number which I dialed and one of Charlie's children answered the phone, and I just asked to pass on a message that it was me from CNN. And Charlie and I did an interview back in the '90s in Aspen in Colorado, and I knew that he would remember if I could get that message to him. And he did, and he came on the phone, we had a half hour conversation.

And I said to him, look, Charlie, here's the thing, I'm a huge supporter of yours, big fan of yours. I think you're a great guy. Clearly, you're going through a huge crisis and the interviews he was giving seemed to me to be not portraying him in the best light. They were quite erratic, I thought they were too high octane, too inflammatory.

And actually, what you have here in the end is a man's right to lead the life that he wants to lead and the question then becomes, does that lifestyle materially damage or affect the show that he was doing. I'm not sure that it did.

I mean, ratings of his show are phenomenally high. They remain phenomenally high. He's the highest paid star in American television, nearly $2 million a show, which even you, I would think, would blink at, Brooke. So you're talking about a guy who, you know, I think has a fair point to make.

BALDWIN: He has a point to make --

MORGAN: And I think he made it last night in a more considered way.

BALDWIN: But, but -- hang on, I want to just walk me back. Because you tweeted, I think it was right before the show, you tweeted the fact that, you know, I know you picked up the phone, you got Sheen to come. He got there four minutes, Piers --

MORGAN: He did.

BALDWIN: -- before show time. So just paint the picture for me. Do I see Charlie Sheen in his entourage kind of hustling into the studio or what?

MORGAN: Well, it's what we call in Britain "squeaky bum time."

(LAUGHTER)

MORGAN: So I was -- I was -- to put it mildly, fairly anxious given we had --

BALDWIN: Were you?

MORGAN: Well, we had a whole hour to fill if Charlie didn't turn up, which would have been probably me calling you and continuing to persuade you to dance with me at the CNN Christmas party, not quite the scoop that I had in mind.

BALDWIN: Yes, I don't think people would want to see that. They wanted to see your Charlie Sheen interview.

MORGAN: Well, judging by your Twitter, actually, they really do want to see that, but we'll move on.

So the seconds were ticking by.

BALDWIN: Yes.

MORGAN: And we kept getting messages saying, he's on his way, he's nearly there. And it got to like five minutes to 6:00, which is Pacific time, obviously my kickoff time, and sudden there was this huge Maybach car a huge car swept in, out got his entourage and there was Charlie, cigarette in hand, gave me a big bear hug and I was sort of by now panicking. He's like, don't sweat, man. Let's go rock 'n' roll it. And it was brilliant. And he walked straight on set, he had a little bit of powder and off we went.

And he was -- he was completely compelling. The thing about Charlie Sheen is he's a very bright guy. So whatever you think of his lifestyle, he's a smart guy who is a brilliant actor. And he's not the first entertainer in the world who likes to have a party. I made the point to him, if he was a rock star, his lifestyle would be a brand extension and be saluted. It's the fact that he's doing a family comedy that makes it more complicated.

(CROSSTALK)

BALDWIN: On that point, Piers Morgan, you know, I was watching your show. I was tweeting with my viewers in watching your show, and some of them were tweeting to me that you were too soft. One phrase you said to Sheen last night that he was alarmingly normal, and my Twitter board sort of blew up.

Do you still stand by that?

MORGAN: Yes, I do, because Charlie has always been like this. I mean, when I knew Charlie back in the early '90s, he was a mad, crazy party guy then. I don't think Charlie Sheen has changed. I think our attitude towards him has changed.

And frankly, I -- I do stand by my position last night, which is I actually think everyone is entitled to lead the lives that they want to lead within the context of not hurting other people. If his behavior was damaging his show, then fair enough, but I don't see any evidence that it was. He turned up on time. He did his work. It was the number one rated comedy in the country, and he's the highest paid star. I mean, I'm not really sure what his big crime has been here.

BALDWIN: And that's not for us necessarily here to judge.

But what -- tell me, Piers, what happened when the cameras were off, in the commercial break, after the show. What was he like, and what was the last thing he said to you?

MORGAN: The last thing he did was he pulled out a piece of paper and signed it, and I wasn't quite sure what he was doing. And he handed it had to me as a thank you memento for the interview. And it was actually his negative drug report from three days ago which showed that he was drug-free, and he'd sign it with the words, "To Piers, let's go and get hammered. Love Charlie."

BALDWIN: Now what are you to make of that?

MORGAN: I quite fancy going and getting hammered with him, to be honest with you. I mean, people are allowed to have a party. I mean, I do think there's a certain piousness about all this. You know, people may not like his lifestyle, they may choose to have a totally different lifestyle.

BALDWIN: But, Piers, he has admitted to being an addict in the past. Is that the right thing to be doing with him?

MORGAN: He has. But he says to me that he's been clean for the last seven weeks. He says he's not an addict. He's somebody who likes to occasionally party when he wasn't filming. Said he never did it when he was filming.

I mean, come on, Brooke, I mean, how moralistic do we want to be here? How many stars do you and I know between us who -- who lead not exactly the same lives because not many party like Charlie, but who certainly likes to have a good time when the cameras are off?

And I do think you have to give the guy a little bit of slack. And if his behavior was damaging lots of other people, fair enough. I don't really see that it is.

BALDWIN: Well, it was riveting television, and I wish him well. I'm sure you do as well, and we'll have to follow his story and perhaps we'll take him up on having him back on if anyone from CBS decides to come on, I think he said he'd provide --

MORGAN: Well, I have thrown that out to him. And I did get a message back from one of them today, actually, a senior person at CBS, saying they do love Charlie. This is a strange situation where they love him.

I've actually got a big interview with Bret Michaels on Wednesday and he's a very good friend of Charlie's. So people should look out for that one, too.

BALDWIN: We will look out for it.

MORGAN: He has a really fascinating insight into it.

BALDWIN: We're following it. You're doing a great job and following you on Twitter, and I recommend anyone does as well. It's quite entertaining. Piers Morgan, bravo.

MORGAN: You can follow me any time, Brooke.

BALDWIN: Thank you, Piers. Appreciate it.

There are millions of Americans, maybe not Piers, I don't know if he likes football, but a lot of you love football. The clock is ticking for the NFL and the dealers to -- or, I should say, the players reach a deal. Could it be the end of the league? That is ahead.

Plus, oh, my goodness, breast milk ice cream. I'm not making this up. One store is selling it. In fact, it sold out. But there is a new twist to the story. Alison Kosik and I have tackled some pretty interesting, Alison, shall we go there, pretty interesting topics together, but nothing like this one. That is next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: And now let's head to Washington, check in with Gloria Borger with the latest news crossing the Political Ticker.

Gloria Borger, good to see you here, and let's talk Newt Gingrich, plans to announce presidential exploratory committee. What does that even mean, and how does that change the game, Gloria?

GLORIA BORGER, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: It means alert the contributors, I'm thinking of running for president, you ought to start knowing that you can contribute legally to my presidential campaign.

It doesn't mean, Brooke, that he's actually going to run for president. He could decide -- he could decide after awhile, you know, it didn't work out so well for me, I've decided not to run for president.

But right now, it's sort of a way of raising money and getting himself on the radar screen of those of the people with the deep pockets.

BALDWIN: Well, he's been on the radar screen. You know, he's among top candidates in some of the current polls, but how much of that is simply name recognition? Might there be a risk that it will be viewed as politically divisive?

BORGER: You know, it's interesting.

First of all, he is well known. He was the man who brought back the House Republican majority in the early '90s, and people know him as the House -- former House Republican speaker.

He's also a very polarizing guy. He sees himself as a transformational kind of politician. He is a man of ideas.

But when you look at the polls that we've taken, we see that his unfavorable ratings, about a quarter of Republicans view him unfavorably and that's only topped by Sarah Palin.

So, you know, you can see that inside the Republican Party there are lots of people who think, you know, Newt Gingrich has a lot of good ideas, but he's not really going to be our next generation candidate to go up against Barack Obama for the presidency.

BALDWIN: OK. Gloria Borger for me with the latest off the Ticker. Gloria, thanks to you.

BORGER: Sure.

BALDWIN: And now, breast milk ice cream for sale, but there is a new twist in this story. First, though, let me get you this. Millions of Americans could suddenly be free on Sundays in the fall.

Allison Kosik live in New York.

And, Alison, I know that the clock is ticking for the NFL, it's players to reach this new labor agreement. What's the latest there?

ALISON KOSIK, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Oh, yes. You know, it's getting serious. You know, the negotiations, Brooke, have been continuing today to try to head of a pro football lockout. The National Football League's current agreement with its players is expiring Thursday night, and players say they expect to be locked out if there's no sign of progress towards an agreement.

Now, if that happens, it could mean we won't have pro-football come September. Say it ain't so! No Super Bowl, either. (LAUGHTER)

KOSIK: But the good news is that if they do wind up sitting out some games, if they do come back mid-season, you could you see ticket prices to games pretty low just because they want to kind of reel viewers, reel, you know, those fans back in to watch the games.

BALDWIN: Yes, they've been getting expensive. What's up with that? So, I like that. Make the ticket price go down, so that could be an advantage.

And then to a story that's making a lot of people cringe, including writers and producers in my editorial meeting this morning. Breast milk ice cream. I know it was being sold --

KOSIK: I know. This is disgusting.

BALDWIN: It does kind of sound disgusting, but I read about it in London. It, like, sold out, but it's not for sale anymore? What's the story here, dare I ask?

KOSIK: Exactly. So, this is ice cream literally made of human breast milk. It came out Thursday and literally sold out Friday in the UK. I'm talking about in Westminster. Just so you know, when people bought this it came in a martini glass for about 22 bucks.

BALDWIN: What?

KOSIK: It was made by the ice creamist - yes, that's the ice cream parlor that's marketing this ice cream, and there's actually just one donor. The breast milk came from one UK mom. And what they did is they blended this breast milk with vanilla pods and lemon zest. Yummy! Good stuff.

So, what happened is the government wound up confiscating this ice cream which by the way they call Baby Gaga.

BALDWIN: Why?

KOSIK: You know, a lot of questions -- this is what they came up with. So, there are a lot of questions about how safe this soft serve is, you know, coming from mom. So, you know, the question was should the store sell this ice cream made from other people's bodily fluids? So, you know, these questions came into play. Health officials stepped in and said that the worry is that hepatis can be passed on through the milk to the person who is eating it. So that's why they confiscated it.

So, you know, there's some concern, though the ice cream store, the head of the ice cream store said, you know, they did everything by the book. They used a private clinic to screen the milk. They say, you know, it was very safe. But, you know, it's a huge ooey factor, here, Brooke.

BALDWIN: But it's often the market. No more breast milk ice cream in London. I still can't believe you said it came from one person. I have so many questions, but I'll just leave them up here. Alison Kosik, thanks.

KOSIK: Would you have it, Brooke?

BALDWIN: I don't think so. I don't think so.

KOSIK: Me either.

BALDWIN: Thank you, Alison.

Next to this. The governor of Wisconsin about to make had a huge announcement here. We're minutes away from this. And the federal government is banning a substance called Spice. Heard about this stuff? They are ling up now. ""Reporter Roulette"" is next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: The Wisconsin governor is getting ready to make a big announcement here, and the feds ban this drug called Spice. Time for "Reporter Roulette."

I want to begin in Madison, Wisconsin with Casey Wian. Casey, I know we're minutes away from Governor Scott Walker's budget proposal. What do we know about that?

CASEY WIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, right now, Brooke, is that he's going to propose serious cuts in education and money to local governments. Over a billion dollars, from the people who are familiar with his plans, they are saying. Of course, the protesters who have been here now in their third week, some of them are still here at the state capital. (AUDIO GAP). They have been here throughout the series of votes. (AUDIO GAP)

BALDWIN: Casey, I think you're going in and out. Maybe we can get you to hop on the phone. Are you with me, Casey?

WIAN: Yes, I've got you. You got me now, Brooke?

BALDWIN: Yes, I've got you. I got you. Kind of pick up where you left off, and if you could also just talk about how many jobs could be at stake here, talk about layoffs.

WIAN: Yes. First of all, if I can show you just over my shoulder here, that's where the governor will be giving his speech. And these protesters have been playing drums and chanting, and we understand that he'll be able to hear that when the governor is making his proposal.

What the governor is going to propose is because the 14 Democratic lawmakers have not come back to the state, he says that 1,500 state workers are going to have to lose their jobs by April 1st and perhaps as many as 12,000 over the next two years. What he's also going to say in the speech, though, is what he's trying to do is create 250,000 private sector jobs over the next four years. So, he's clearly threatening to take away the public union jobs and promising to create private sector jobs. Brooke.

BALDWIN: OK. Casey Wian for me in Madison, thank you, Casey.

And next here on "Reporter Roulette," the fed ban a type of synthetic marijuana, and they are doing it for at least one year. Elizabeth Cohen is joining me. Elizabeth -- Spice. What is Spice?

ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN SENIOR MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Spice is one of the brand names that this is sold under. These are -- they kind of look like herbs, kind of look like something you might see in your kitchen. But they contain a chemical very similar to THC, and THC is the active ingredient in marijuana.

But here is the catch, Brooke. These chemicals are actually legal. No one has actually made them illegal before. So, therefore, they are legal, and so they have been sold and kids have been buying them online, in head shops, drug paraphernalia stores.

BALDWIN: So then, why the ban?

COHEN: Well, the ban is because since September, poison control centers have gotten 1,500 phone calls from people with emergencies. I mean, people are getting pretty sick off of this stuff. For example, seizures, hallucinations, paranoia, nausea, vomiting, racing heartbeat, elevated blood pressure. Some people say this stuff is actually more potent than pot.

BALDWIN: And just quickly, it's just banned for one year?

COHEN: Banned for a year, but that's just sort of a bureaucratic thing while they take a look at it. I think people expect that it will be banned for longer than that.

BALDWIN: Got it. OK, Elizabeth Cohen, thank you very much. And that is "Reporter Roulette" for this Tuesday.

You know, it hasn't happened in 50 years, but today, the White House is releasing this brand new study on women in the workplace. There's some pretty surprising results. Joe Johns has the "Political Pop." That is next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JESSICA PARE, ACTRESS (as Megan on Mad Men): You sure you don't want some help?

JON HAMM, ACTOR (as Don Draper on Mad Men): This is a little complicated.

PARE: That's okay. I'd really like to learn what goes on here.

HAMM: Really?

PARE: Well, first of all, I think would help me for making mistakes with your work the way I have. And secondly, I think I'd like eventually to do what you do. (END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: That is a clip from AMC's "Mad Men." It's a show, maybe you watch, it based on the workplace back in the '60s. So challenges for women, especially in the office, were a lot different than they are now. In fact, today, the White House released -- here it is, just sort of two pages of this White House study. You can find this online. Whitehouse.gov. For the first time in 50 years, they have done this study on the status of American women.

The last one, mind you, was 1963. Was commissioned by JFK, chaired by Eleanor Roosevelt. So, what is different in today's study than say '63? Want to bring in Joe Johns, our go-to-D.C. guy with our "Political Pop."

Joe, I don't even know where to begin. What's different?

JOE JOHNS, CNN SENIOR CORRESPONDENT: Well, begin with today is the first day of women's history month, Brooke. And when you look back at the record, what has changed over the last 40 or 50 years or so is just mind-boggling.

See, back in 1963, John F. Kennedy was the president. Eleanor Roosevelt was the chair of his commission that was looking into all these things. Back in those days -- get this -- there were state laws that actually cut women out of things like jury duty, owning property, businesses. You can't even imagine that today.

There was even an issue in some states about whether married women could control their own earnings. So, the Eleanor Roosevelt commission said all of this stuff had to change. A lot of it has, but, you know, in some areas, there is still just a long way to go.

BALDWIN: Wow, that's amazing. I wouldn't mind getting off the hook for jury duty, but I guess that's another issue.

JOHNS: Yes, exactly.

BALDWIN: So, obviously, Joe, still gender equality issues very much so alive and well here in 2011. But perhaps the better question is what hasn't changed since the '60s?

JOHNS: And certainly what hasn't changed enough, and pay and income is one of those things.

BALDWIN: yes.

JOHNS: The Kennedy commission endorsed what was then called the Equal Pay Act. The president signed it back then, but the fact of the matter is, we all know women and men are still not equal economically. And this commission, the Obama commission, really sort of spells it out. The average man still makes more money than the average women. Women earned only about 75 percent of what their male counterparts earned last year or two years ago. And they are more likely to live in poverty than men. Probably the most stunning fact is that men make more money in spite of the fact that the education gap has sort of come out more equal. Younger women actually are more likely to have a college graduate or graduate degree than men. Pretty amazing.

BALDWIN: Yes. All levels of education, the same here. Women earn 75 percent of what their male counterparts earned in 2009. The economic inequalities were even more acute for women of color.

Joe Johns, I tweeted this report out. So hopefully, people can take a look here. So, thank you, sir, for your "Political Pop."

And to this. Have you heard this story? This is out of Texas. You had a fire at a day care, killed several children. So, police say the person in charge decided to go out grocery shopping. Left these kids behind.

But that's not all. She's reportedly left the country. But did police have time to catch her? That is ahead.

And I'm just getting word here that police are going to hold a news conference with breaking developments just minutes from now. We'll be right back.

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BALDWIN: Right now millions of Americans, maybe you, getting a head start on your taxes. But there are a lot of myths out there, so right now I want to separate fact from fiction, and you may be surprised about who is getting off scot-free.

With that, here's Poppy Harlow.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

POPPY HARLOW, CNNMONEY.COM: We've heard it over and over, big companies don't pay much in taxes, and the richest Americans don't pay their fair share. But is it true? Well, you've heard Warren Buffett make the point that he's taxed at a lower rate than his employees.

WARREN BUFFETT, CEO, BERKSHIRE HATHAWAY: We're going to have to get more money from somebody. Now, the question is, do we get more money from the person that's going to serve me lunch today, or do we get it from me? I think we should get it from me. And I have a lower tax rate, counting payroll taxes, than anybody in my office.

HARLOW: So, how is that possible? Well, in Warren Buffett's case it's because most of his income comes from his investments, and those capital gains are taxed at 15 percent. The average American pays 19 percent in federal taxes, but let's take a look at some of the tax myths.

First of all, you probably didn't know this. Forty-five percent of Americans won't pay taxes at all this year because their income isn't high enough or because they have claimed enough deductions. And what about the myth that the uber-rich don't pay taxes? Well, guess what? 99.7 percent of people that make over $1 million a year will pay taxes, although some super-wealthy people won't pay a dime to Uncle Sam thanks to elaborate tax planning.

And how about all those big companies that you may think get off virtually scot-free? Well, take a look at this.

The official tax rate in this country for corporations is 35 percent, but the IRS says most companies on average pay just over 27 percent. But some pay even less, much less.

For example, Blackstone Group, one of the biggest private equity firms in this country, over a five-year period Blackstone paid less than one percent in taxes. So how can that be? Well, it's because it's a limited partnership.

What that means is that the partners take home the profits and then pay individual taxes. And Blackstone tells us the average partner pays 45 percent in U.S. income tax, including state and local.

And when it comes to corporate tax breaks, there are tons, billions of dollars worth of them out there. But they might not be targeted at the industries you think. Take a look at this.

The oil and gas industry gets $2.8 billion in targeted tax incentives, but the renewal energy sector gets $11.3 billion worth. So the bottom line here is that some companies are getting by paying very little in taxes. But there are legal ways that they are doing it.

And you know President Obama has called for closing tax loopholes, but that would take major tax reform. And that is something we haven't seen in this country since 1986.

In New York, Poppy Harlow, reporting.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BALDWIN: Poppy, thank you.

I want to take you to Washington now to check in with Wolf Blitzer, getting ready for "THE SITUATION ROOM."

Wolf, I know you were watching that House vote within this last hour. And also, Libya, I know the U.N. High Council calling the problem there on the border a humanitarian crisis.

WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: It's a real, real disaster, what's going on. Hundreds of thousands of refugees flowing out of Libya, into neighboring Tunisia, into Egypt. Many of them trying to get to Europe, to Malta. This is a real problem, and the United Nations is working on it right now. International organizations, other ones are working on it.

We're going to explore what's going on, but there's a real humanitarian crisis unfolding on the borders of Libya right now because of all of these refugees.

We're going to be speaking, by the way -- we just established contact with a woman who is in Misurata, one of these towns not far from Tripoli. There's really, in effect, a war going on between the Libyan forces loyal to Gadhafi and the opposition forces, the rebels, as we're calling them, and she's sort of stuck in the middle. We'll get her eyewitness account of what's going on.

All that and a lot more coming up right at the top of the hour -- Brooke.

BALDWIN: We will watch as always at the top of the hour. Wolf Blitzer, thanks to you.

And a couple is accused of kidnapping this young girl. Then they keep her in their back yard for some 18 years. Now there are new reports Jaycee Dugard recently came face to face with one of her suspected kidnappers. Plus, word here of a confession.

Sunny Hostin is all over this. She's "On the Case." Sunny is next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(NEWSBREAK)

BALDWIN: Imagine getting your life back 18 years after being kidnapped and held captive in a backyard compound. Would you ever really want to come face to face with one of your alleged kidnappers?

Well, there is word today that that happened to this young woman, Jaycee Dugard, who was kidnapped at age 11, forced to live in a series of tents, sheds in this California back yard. Now, a lawyer says Jaycee was there when his client confessed to kidnapping her.

We're "On the Case" here today with Sunny Hostin.

And Sunny, isn't this also the first we're hearing about a confession by the alleged kidnappers, Phillip and Nancy Garrido. Are we talking both?

SUNNY HOSTIN, "IN SESSION," TRUTV: Absolutely. My understanding is that both have confessed to some of these allegations.

Nancy Garrido's attorney has said she hasn't confessed, of course, to the sexual charges, but she has confessed to the kidnapping. And so this is what I would call sort of breaking legal news. We hadn't heard about this.

BALDWIN: Why would they confess at this point?

HOSTIN: I think the name of the game right now is let's make a deal, Brooke. I mean, the prosecutors have offered Phillip Garrido 440 years in prison. They've offered Nancy Garrido 241 years and eight months. They're both in their 50s. These would be life sentences for them. So, certainly, they want to make a deal. Nancy Garrido's attorney has said, you know, she deserves maybe 20 to 30 years in prison.

BALDWIN: Twenty to 30 years. So why is it that this defense attorney says Nancy Garrido deserves this leniency?

HOSTIN: Well, one, because she wasn't involved in the sexual conduct. But, two, he says that she led a really normal life before meeting Phillip Garrido. Let's take a listen to what he says would be argued on her behalf at trial, Brooke.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

STEPHEN TAPSON, NANCY GARRIDO'S ATTORNEY: So, obviously a trial. If we go, we're going to have to argue, you know, Stockholm Syndrome and Patty Hearst stuff, and so on. And there's already psychiatric evidence to show that she was under his thumb, or his -- whatever you want to call it. I mean, even the D.A. said he's a master manipulator.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOSTIN: So, interestingly enough, she led this normal life, so he says, until she became sort of under Phillip Garrido's spell. Thus, he said, she really deserves a more lenient sentence and that she should be allowed at some point in her life to sort of walk on the beach.

BALDWIN: So, am I understanding this right, Sunny, that both of these Garridos confessed and Jaycee Dugard was in the room? Why would she be in the room?

HOSTIN: You know, that's what is being reported. And I will say, that's highly unusual.

I tried child sex crimes, Brooke, and it's always very traumatic for the victims to face their -- you know, the people that did these things to them. And certainly you don't want that to happen unless it has to happen at trial. So this is very, very unusual, especially given the sexual charges in this case.

BALDWIN: We'll stay on the case. We'll follow it.

Case number two here, Houston Texas, four toddlers are dead after a fire at a home daycare. Now, police say the children were alone.

The owner up and left for the store when this fire started. By the time the D.A.'s office filed charges, the owner here -- and we'll see her in a second, she's the one wearing red -- she was gone. She has left the country. She's in Nigeria now.

Sunny, we know the fire happened Thursday. Charges were filed Sunday. What took so long? There she is. HOSTIN: Well, everyone is saying that their investigation was ongoing. The district attorney's office is saying that the fire department and the fire department's arson investigators just didn't have enough to show that she was the only one in the home and the only one responsible for these children.

However, the fire department and the arson investigators are pointing the finger in the other direction. They are saying we were made to go through so many hoops in this case, we had sufficient evidence to go forward on certain charges, and bottom line is, you know, the district attorney's office dropped the ball. So a lot of finger-pointing in this case.

BALDWIN: Yes. I guess we'll just have to wait and see if she can be forced to come back to the United States, to Texas, to face some of these charges. We'll stay on it.

As always, Sunny Hostin "On the Case."

Sunny, good to see you. Thank you.

I'm Brooke Baldwin. Thanks so much for watching here the last two hours of CNN NEWSROOM.

Wolf Blitzer taking the helm now in "THE SITUATION ROOM" -- Wolf.