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U.S. Military Bus Involved in Fatal Airport Shooting in Germany; Bombing in Libyan Oil Town; Study Assesses Women in America; Sheen's Twins Taken From Him; Talk Back Question; False Claims About President Obama; Informing North Korea

Aired March 02, 2011 - 12:00   ET

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

SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN ANCHOR: Top of the hour. I'm Suzanne Malveauz.

I want to get you up to speed with this developing story. American troops come under attack at Frankfurt Airport in Germany. At least one U.S. airman is dead, another severely wounded in the shooting. An shuttle bus driver may be dead, as well. A U.S. official says he believes German police may have a young man from Kosovo in custody.

Our Frederik Pleitgen, he is following the story. He joins us now from Berlin.

And Frederik, if you could clear up for us, do we know if it's one or two U.S. personnel that may be dead?

FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (via telephone): Well, still unclear, Suzanne. I just got off the phone with the police there in Frankfurt and they're saying there's definitely one U.S. service member who was killed. The other person who was killed was indeed the bus driver of this U.S. Military bus.

Now, it's not clear whether or not the person who was supposed to drive that bus is a German national or possibly, also, an American civilian, or also an American service member. So that's still unclear at this point in time. The police, they are not willing to make any statement of that.

They are also at this point now saying that there's at least two people, both of them apparently also U.S. service members, who were severely wounded in that incident. And the U.S. military, of course, has been saying that the American troops who were killed and injured in that incident were U.S. Air Force personnel who are normally stationed in the United Kingdom.

Now, about the shooter, the police have now confirmed to me that the man they have in custody tells them that he is from Kosovo. He appears to be in his early 20s. They also say that they have confiscated the weapon that he has used, but the person that I spoke to from the police was not able to tell me whether or not that was a rifle or some sort of pistol. But we do know, Suzanne, that he managed to get on the bus, and then opened fire there, and then at some point was obviously overwhelmed by some people -- Suzanne.

MALVEAUX: Frederik, do we know how he got on the bus? Was he in a vehicle aside the shuttle bus, or did he just jump on the bus? Do we have any idea where this suspect was in all of this?

PLEITGEN: Well, it appears as though that he just jumped on the bus. I mean, the bus -- from what we are seeing from the video, and also from what I know from the Frankfort Airport terminal, is that the bus was parked directly at the sidewalk, at the curb, which is a bus lane. So he couldn't have really gotten in from another vehicle or jumped out of another vehicle.

It appears as though he got in through the public area there at Terminal 2 at Frankfurt Airport, which is one, by the way, that is very frequently used by American troops to fly to deployments, also to fly back to the U.S. The U.S. military often flies its troops from Frankfurt commercially, back to a destination that they might need to reach. So it certainly isn't uncommon to see U.S. personnel there. And that, of course -- the shooter appears to have known that. It's still very much unclear whether or not he planned this, how much planning went into this, or whether or not this was spontaneous -- Suzanne.

MALVEAUX: And Frederik, it may be too early to tell, but do we know if any of the military personnel, were they armed? Were they able to shoot back or defend themselves in any way?

PLEITGEN: It doesn't appear as though they were armed. It would be quite a stretch to think that they would be in the airport terminal in Frankfurt Airport armed. Normally, that's a place where only the German security forces there would be armed.

It also doesn't appear as though from what I have heard from the German police that the shooter himself was wounded in any way. However, we do have to note that that terminal area is one with very heavy security. The Germans actually beefed up security there recently because they were expecting or fearing terror attacks against German installations.

Of course, airports, very sensitive. So it would have been a place that would have had quite a large security presence by German police with automatic weapons -- Suzanne.

MALVEAUX: OK.

Frederik Pleitgen, thank you so much for your report. Obviously, we will get back to you as we learn more details.

But so far, we do know that one U.S. serviceman was killed, the bus driver as well. We're not sure if he was an American soldier or not. And we do know that one man in his early 20s has been taken into custody, someone who is a citizen of Kosovo.

We are also following a developing story out of Libya. That is where our CNN's Ben Wedeman, he's confirmed that there was another bombing that took place near a town called Brega. He joins us on the phone.

And Ben, you described an amazing scenario of seeing this aircraft, Libyan aircraft, and these explosions on the ground, and all of you just scattering. Can you tell us what happened?

BEN WEDEMAN, CNN SR. INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Suzanne, the bomb that took place was when we were outside the town of Brega, after, to the best of our knowledge, anti-Gadhafi forces that managed to retake the town after a daylong battle.

We were with a group of some of the fighters and some of the local residents who came out to celebrate what they believed to be a victory. And we heard an airplane overhead, and then the telltale sound of a bomb falling.

We all hit the ground. And the bomb, a huge explosion went off, I would say, about just 100 feet perhaps away from us, throwing dust and rocks into the air. And, of course, immediately causing a panic. Everybody trying to get away, running for their cars, just trying to get away from this crowd of people which is an obvious target for any planes flying overhead -- Suzanne.

MALVEAUX: And what was the reaction of the people on the ground when they realized they were being bombed?

WEDEMAN: Well, initially, it was shock. But very quickly replaced by anger.

Many of the people who had guns in the crowd started to fire in the sky. I even saw a man throw his box of juice into the sky to try to hit that airplane.

People were very angry. People were well aware that Moammar Gadhafi had made another long speech in which he denied that Libyan forces were being used against the population, in which he denied that there was anything to his opposition other than al Qaeda operatives and young people on hallucinogenic drugs. So there was a good deal of anger expressed at the time, at the scene, against Moammar Gadhafi and the forces that remain loyal to him -- Suzanne.

MALVEAUX: Ben, thank you so much. Obviously, we'll get back to you as the details warrant.

Well, the Libyan protest leaders reportedly may ask the United Nations for military help. "The New York Times" and "Washington Post" report that rebels say it may take air strikes to uproot Gadhafi. Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman John Kerry says that the global community must prevent a slaughter.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. JOHN KERRY (D-MA), FOREIGN RELATIONS CHAIRMAN: The no-fly zone is not a long-term proposition, assuming the outcome is what all desire. And I believe we ought to be ready to implement it as necessary.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MALVEAUX: Two American warships are moving through the Suez Canal today, headed into the Mediterranean Sea. The Pentagon ordered the move to have options in place during this crisis.

And the U.S. Supreme Court reaffirms the First Amendment right to free speech, even if it's ugly and painful. In an 8-1 decision today, justices say that a Kansas church can push its anti-gay message outside military funerals. The father of a dead Marine brought the case.

Just last hour, Congress headed off a government shutdown that was set for Friday. The Senate followed the House lead and voted to fund the government through March 18th, just two weeks. Republicans got $4 billion in cuts that they demanded.

Also developing today, tennis great Serena Williams has emergency surgery in Los Angeles. A spokeswoman tells "People" magazine that Williams developed a blood clot in the lung which was treated last week. But Monday, she was diagnosed with a hematoma. That's when blood leaks from a blood vessel and collects in the tissue.

MALVEAUX: And here's a look at what's ahead "On the Rundown."

Women making strides in education and employment, but a new report says they still don't make as much money as men.

And some are calling for a no-fly zone to protect Libyan protesters. Find out what the U.S. military says about all that when we go "Globe Trekking."

And finally, your chance to "Choose the News," the stories that you get to pick, straight up ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MALVEAUX: Well, was it an innocent mistake or a calculated slip? Questions are swirling around Mike Huckabee's statement about President Obama.

The possible Republican presidential candidate, so he said that Obama is influenced by where he grew up. Some say, OK, harmless enough, but the only problem is he went on to name the wrong country.

Well, now it's your turn to "Talk Back" on this story. Our Carol Costello is joining us.

Carol, I know you're getting a lot of folks weighing in on this one talking back.

CAROL COSTELLO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Oh, I am. And the question here, you know, political gamesmanship, it can be vicious, it can be unfair, it can be misleading. Take Mike Huckabee, former Arkansas governor, Fox News personality, and potential 2012 presidential contender.

During an appearance on "The Steve Malzberg Show," Huckabee falsely said President Obama grew up in Kenya.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) MIKE HUCKABEE (R), FMR. ARKANSAS GOVERNOR: I would love to know more, but what I know is troubling enough. And one thing that I do know is having grown up in Kenya, his view of the Brits, for example, very different than the average American.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: Huckabee's spokesperson later told CNN he misspoke. Huckabee meant to say Indonesia. That's where President Obama lived from the time he was 6 years old until the time he was 10 years old, and then he left for his native Hawaii.

OK, Huckabee admits, the president was born in the United States. But his spokesman told CNN, "The governor would, however, like to know more about where President Obama's liberal policies come from and what else the president plans to do to this country, as do most Americans."

So, what funny ideas did the young Mr. Obama pick up overseas during elementary school? It makes you wonder if Thomas Jefferson changed his politics when he lived in France for five years, or Herbert Hoover, when he lived in China as a boy. Hoover was even fluent in Chinese.

So, "Talk Back" today: Why does Huckabee imply living abroad made President Obama more liberal? Facebook.com/CarolCNN. I welcome your comments, and we'll read some of them later this hour.

MALVEAUX: OK. Sounds great. Thank you, Carol.

COSTELLO: Sure.

(NEWSBREAK).

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MALVEAUX: We have some breaking news here we would like to bring to you.

This coming from Fox News. It has announced that its on-air personalities, they've suspended the contracts of contributors Newt Gingrich and Rick Santorum as they consider their presidential bids. The network making this announcement on air, saying that the contracts would be suspended for 60 days and then re-evaluated on May 1st.

So, the contracts would be terminated unless they say they are not running. Clearly, they are making room and making way for these two individuals who contribute to their network to go ahead and throw their hat in the ring for a presidential run. So, that significant political news coming from Fox News as they say those contracts that have them beholden to that network now suspended.

(NEWSBREAK)

MALVEAUX: Well, it's the start of Women's History Month. The White House is releasing a comprehensive report on the status of American women. It's the first in more than 40 years. Our CNN's Carl Azuz, he's got some of the highlights when it comes to education, employment.

I guess the bottom line is, how are women doing? Are things getting better? Are they getting worse? There are some surprises that we are learning.

CARL AZUZ, CNN STUDENT NEWS: There are some surprises, and so many changes. I mean, many of the norms of 40 years ago, Suzanne, have completely reversed, at least as indicated by this report from the White House.

First, I want to start with education and one field where women are getting more degrees than men. That's across the board. More women are earning college degrees, a very significant shift from 40 years ago.

Next is these degrees they are getting are not so much in the fields of engineering and computer science. In fact, those degrees by women are fewer than 20 percent and declining. Women are going more into health and education fields. And their graduation rates across the board at all academic levels are higher than men.

MALVEAUX: So, bottom line here, you know, you get your degrees, we follow -- like many other folks, we've got our degrees. Is it helping or hurting, the more education? Does that translate into more pay?

AZUZ: That's the big question. We always talk about sort of the pay gap between men and women.

The good news is, it's shrinking. It's not as prominent as it used to be.

When this study was done 30 years ago -- so we're looking at around 1979 -- women made 62 cents for every dollar men made at full-time levels. Now, you flash forward to 2009, they're making 80 cents on the dollar, so 80 percent of men's salaries.

And something else I found really interesting with this report was, as far as unemployment goes, it used to be in a recession, unemployment was higher among women. Now, in more recent recessions, we have seen that totally reversed, with unemployment being slightly higher among men.

MALVEAUX: And Carl, where do you find most women in the workforce? Has that shifted significantly as well?

AZUZ: No. That hasn't. In fact, the White House says that women are still going into traditionally female professions, in their terms. I can show you the top five professions for women right now, which might not surprise many folks.

They are going into teaching. I mentioned education earlier. Secretaries, being the number one. This is according to the Bureau of Labor. We're looking at elementary and middle school teachers, cashiers, nursing and home health aides. And the White House says -- they call these traditionally female occupations. And the White House says that women who are seeking degrees at the college level are continuing to seek degrees in these areas.

So we're not even expecting a shift in that in the years ahead -- Suzanne.

MALVEAUX: Fascinating.

AZUZ: Thank you very much.

MALVEAUX: Thank you, Carl. Appreciate it.

AZUZ: My pleasure.

MALVEAUX: Well, think you live in an area with a lot of smog? Forbes.com has ranked America's most toxic cities, and it's based on such things as hazardous material, as well as air quality.

Baton Rouge, Louisiana, it finished at number five. New York finished number fourth. Then Fresno, California.

And if you live in one of the top two cities, well, we have got that up next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MALVEAUX: Now the rest of the most toxic cities list from Forbes.com.

Before the break, we told you Baton Rouge came in fifth, then New York and Fresno.

Number two, Bakersfield, California. That's just 110 miles from Fresno. And finally, Philadelphia. It was named the most toxic city in the country.

Well, how far should the U.S. and other countries go to prevent Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi from killing his own citizens?

Gadhafi's forces have used air power to fire on towns that the opposition has already won. The U.S. and the U.N. have imposed sanctions. And now there's a no-fly zone that is being considered.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HILLARY CLINTON, SECRETARY OF STATE: We have also, with our NATO allies and with the Pentagon, begun to look at potential planning, preparedness, in the event that we feel it's necessary for both humanitarian and other reasons that there would have to be actions taken. One of those actions that is under review is a no-fly zone. There are arguments that would favor it, questions that would be raised about it, but it is under active consideration.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MALVEAUX: Our CNN's Michael Holmes joins us to take a look at the no- fly option.

And Michael, it's interesting that we heard Secretary Clinton say that, because then you had Secretary Gates, at the Pentagon, really kind of backing away from that. This is a controversial and very involved process, a no-fly zone.

MICHAEL HOLMES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It is, yes. Not just militarily, but also diplomatically as well.

You know, we heard Secretary Clinton there. Also, the military leaders not taking this lightly in any way whatsoever. They have been expressing those doubts about how serious this is, how difficult it might be as well.

Have a listen to this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEN. JAMES MATTIS, U.S. CENTRAL COMMAND: My military opinion is, sir, it would be challenging. You would have to remove the air defense capability in order to establish the no-fly zone. So, no illusions here. It would be a military operation. It wouldn't simply be telling people not to fly airplanes.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ADM. MIKE MULLEN, JOINT CHIEFS CHAIRMAN: With respect to the no-fly zone, specifically, it's an extraordinarily complex operation to set up. It has been done historically. We did it in Iraq for many years, north and south. And certainly if we were to set it up, if that were something that was decided to do, we would have to work our way through doing it in a safe manner, and certainly not put ourselves in jeopardy doing that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOLMES: Yes. So, you have got both the Joint Chiefs and the U.S. Central Command, CENTCOM, saying that setting up a no-fly zone, it's not simply telling the Libyans not to fight. You've got to actually go in there and take out the air defense capability first.

That, of course, is an offensive military corporation. You're dropping bombs, you're firing missiles, before even you get to the point of saying don't fly anywhere. It's essentially attacking another country, despite the best of humanitarian intentions.

And the Arab League today, we saw them meet to consider a resolution rejecting foreign military intervention in Libya. Very delicate stuff.

MALVEAUX: And why is there a concern that the international community would get too involved in what is taking place in Libya? Because it seems counterintuitive. Folks say, hey, we want to help out these rebels, these folks who are trying to overthrow Gadhafi. HOLMES: Yes. All good, altruistic rationale there, but it could backfire. It could give extremists ammunition, saying, look, here's the West sticking their nose in again into another country's business.

And let's remember, this is a popular uprising in Libya, homegrown. A lot of people want to keep it that way on the street.

NATO's secretary-general hesitant to go in the no-fly direction at the moment, mainly because the U.N. Security Council needs to approve it first. You are talking there about Russia and China, already on the record to oppose it. And they have got, of course, veto power.

MALVEAUX: And we have also seen no-fly zones in the past. And sometimes they work, sometimes they don't.

HOLMES: Yes, you're right. We just heard that mentioned there.

During the early '90s, after the first Gulf War, we had a no-fly zone to protect Shiites from being fired upon by Saddam Hussein's forces. In that case, the international community was already heavily involved.

Need to point out it was only partially successful, too. Saddam Hussein managed to get around that by flying helicopters in and killing plenty of Shiites.

In the Bosnian conflict in '93, it was again instituted to prevent further slaughter by Slobodan Milosevic. That was backed by a U.N. mandate.

So, it's a complicated thing, and not just militarily. Politically -- well, you've got this whole thing with the U.S. again, do we, don't we? There's humanitarian issues. They might have the best of intentions, but it could backfire.

MALVEAUX: And the American people, do they have the stomach for perhaps another conflict?

HOLMES: Another conflict, yes.

MALVEAUX: Another war that is taking place in the Middle East?

HOLMES: Exactly, yes.

MALVEAUX: Thank you, Michael.

HOLMES: Good to see you.

MALVEAUX: Well, a reminder now about your chance to "Choose the News." All you've got to do is vote by texting 22360.

Vote 1 for "Guarding Libya's Oil." Vote 2 for "Informing North Korea." Or vote 3 for Reynold's NASCAR Experience."

The winning story is going to air later this hour. Well, false claims about President Obama, the latest from possible presidential candidate Mike Huckabee. Are these misstatements or part of a political strategy?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MALVEAUX: Following a number of breaking news stories. We want to tell you a little about what's taking place at Frankfurt International Airport. That is where a U.S. military -- a shuttle bus was attacked by a suspect who is now in custody. A young man from Kosovo. One U.S. military personnel killed. The bus driver of that shuttle bus also killed. It's not determined yet whether he is also a U.S. soldier. They are looking into how this happened, whether there were security breaches along the way. But that at Frankfurt International Airport.

The other story we are following is out of Libya. A number of serious developments. The latest - our own Ben Wedeman telling us that people witnessed Libyan military attacking those on the ground, crowds on the ground out of Brega. That's where there were several explosions where bombs were dropped on people. They are on the ground. They scattered. Some were armed, some not armed. But they were protesters who panicked.

Ben Wedeman describes a chaotic scene on the ground there, were people were actually fired upon and had bombs dropped on them. Citizens of Libya, as they called for Mommar Gadhafi to step down.

Our other story is tax time. It is drawing closer. It is time to think about saving money, as we all know. And of course, the deductions is a good way to do it.

Well, you wouldn't believe what some taxpayers are actually trying to claim. Our CNN Money's Poppy Harlow, she joins us from New York. Poppy, I do all those deductions, but I have never - I have never! -- heard some of the ones that you will talk about today.

POPPY HARLOW, CNNMONEY.COM: I pray you can hear me, because I sort of lost you in my ear just for a minute there. But I want to go through some of these insane tax deductions that are out there that CNNmoney and our team tracked down.

Take a look first here. Someone tried to actually write off buffalo meat. This was a bodybuilder from Wisconsin. And he said, hey, it is a business expense because it has more protein than other meat. I guess he ate some three pounds a day, tried to write off thousands of dollars. The court said absolutely not. That is a personal expense. Anyone can eat buffalo meat.

They did, Suzanne, though, let him write off tanning oils and products specifically targeted to body builders. So, half of it worked for him.

And yes, this one is pretty whacky. Take a look at the next photo. Underwear. We are not kidding, but a professional musician in Rod Stewart's band actually once tried to claim that his underwear was his stage clothing. He tried to deduct other things like silk boxers, leather pants, hats. $700 worth of clothes. He did get the go-ahead for some of those flashy items, but no for the underwear.

And this one -- I just can't even believe that someone tried to write this off. A prostitute. Guess what? Sex with prostitutes is not a legitimate medical expense, folks. A lawyer in New York actually tried to deduct the services to the tune of $65,000, Suzanne. And what the tax court obviously said was, sorry. Paying prostitutes is illegal. You can't deduct it on your taxes.

MALVEAUX: All right, Poppy. Amazing, amazing what people will try to get away with.

HARLOW: Unbelievable.

MALVEAUX: All right. We appreciate it. Thanks, Poppy.

Well, two astronauts stepped outside today to attach a closet to the international space station. You are looking at live pictures there. Past crews used the Leonardo module to transfer cargo from the shuttle to the space station. Let's take a quick listen here.

(JOINED IN PROGRESS)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: -- Al Drew still working on this thermal cover removal from ELC-4. That is express logistics carrier No. 4. That is the payload - one of the payloads that Discovery brought up to the station. He's about halfway through the steps of this particular task. He is continuing to talk to Nicole Stott (ph), who is serving as today's intervehicular activities officer, helping both Drew and Steve Bowen -

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MALVEAUX: Mickey Rooney will go before a Senate committee this afternoon to discuss abuse of the elderly. The 90-year-old actor will talk about his personal situation. He says his stepson denied him food, medicine, stole his money as well as his Oscar and Emmy. The stepson denies those allegations.

All right. Not much time left for you to Choose the News. Here is what you got to do. Vote by texting 22360. One for guarding Libya's oil. Two for informing north Korea, or three for Reynolds' Nascar experience. The winning story will air in just a few minutes.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MALVEAUX: New trouble for actor Charlie Sheen. Police have taken custody of his twins. Our "Showbiz Tonight" host A.J. Hammer joins us from New York. A.J., you have got the details on this. Clearly this is a drama that continues to unfold.

A.J. HAMMER, "SHOWBIZ TONIGHT" CO-HOST: It really is a saga. And Suzanne, just when you thought we had seen it all with Charlie Sheen, now his ex-wife, Brooke Mueller, did get a court order to remove their two sons from his house. Here is what members of Brooke's family are telling CNN. "Brooke went and had papers filed for a temporary restraining order and for a custody order today. An off-duty sheriff, the attorney, Brooke and the nanny went to Charlie's house to get the boys. The kids are with Brooke and her mom and the nanny."

And the whole thing was caught on tape, which isn't really surprising, given how this has all unfolded in front of the media. Radar Online posted video showing Sheen handing the children over. And in the video, you can actually hear Charlie telling the kids that he will see them soon. And all of that to me is really just bringing home how sad this is, seeing the kids being taken out of the house like that and that they're being dragged into all of the drama.

Well, Mueller has had her own substance abuse problems. And those same members of Brooke's family are telling us that she is attended a sober living facility on a daily basis.

Now, all of this in stark contrast to Brooke Mueller posing for pictures with Sheen and his two girlfriends not all that long ago. But now, we have the back-and-forth between them really heating up. It wasn't that long ago that Mueller alleged that Sheen threatened her. And Radar Online has video of Sheen trying to prove that Mueller is still using drugs.

And even before the sun had risen in California, Sheen was continuing his media blitz. He was live on NBC's "Today Show" with his attorney. He was telling the whole world about what had happened, and saying he actually didn't even know where his boys were. He also spoke with our affiliate, KTLA this morning, talking about how surprised he was by what has gone down here. Listen to what Charlie said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Did this come out of left field for you?

CHARLIE SHEEN, ACTOR: Absolutely. Yes, it came out of the bleachers, actually. Yes, I was told that a restraining order was being delivered. I thought okay. I can deal with that. And then it was revealed that it was something much more serious.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HAMMER: And if you want to follow the story much more closely, Charlie has started his own Twitter account. He already has about 850,000 people signed up and getting his tweets about his tiger blood and his Adonis DNA. He has been tweeting this morning and asking fans for questions.

Suzanne, among what he said: "My sons are fine, my path is now clear, defeat is not an option." But Suzanne, I don't know if you've noticed. When he talks about his kids, he takes a decidedly different tone. All of a sudden, he seems calm and lucid. Again, in stark contrast to the more erratic Charlie Sheen we have seen over the last few days. MALVEAUX: And we watched that interview with Piers Morgan recently where he seemed like he was very vibrant and at times, agitated. A lot of energy that he had that evening, leading to Piers Morgan to ask whether or not he was still clean, whether he was still sober at that moment.

HAMMER: Yes. And the moment the subject of the kids come up, it's much less excited. Suddenly, something is really hitting home with him. Will the kids being taken away be sort of that rock-bottom that people are looking for with Charlie Sheen right now? That remains to be seen.

We only hope things are good for the kids right now. Unfortunately, as somebody pointed out on my show earlier today, they have a lot of money and a lot of nannies around, so the kids are being looked after by the proper people right now.

SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN ANCHOR: And how do we know that they're actually OK? That they're in good custody? That there are people who are actually able to care for these children during this difficult time?

HAMMER: Yes, well, again, it really comes down to holding out hope that the fact that there are nannies employed here. That they're doing what needs to be done.

And, remember, every custody case is a two-sided battle. At the moment that the judge issued the restraining order and the temporary custody change, that was because the judge had determined this is what's best for the kids right now. But now Charlie's going to fight back because he thinks that the kids are best suited with him or at least that custody should be shared with him.

So I think this back and forth is going to continue. Again, it's just a temporary order. So we're going to have to wait and see how it unfolds. But we can only hope that the kids are getting the care they need being with these people who are being paid to take care of the kids right now.

MALVEAUX: Well, we certainly hope so. A.J., thank you for clarifying all of that.

Be sure to watch "Showbiz Tonight" for more on Charlie Sheen's new war. Find out the real story behind his battle for his young sons. Our TV's most provocative entertainment news show. It airs at 5:00 and 11:00 p.m. Eastern on HLN.

Now is your chance to "Talk Back" on one of the stories that is making headlines. There are questions swirling around about Mike Huckabee's statement about President Obama. The possible Republican presidential candidate said that Obama is influenced by where he grew up. Well, a lot of people say, that's harmless enough, right? The only problem is that he went on to name the wrong country. Our Carol Costello, she's here.

Carol, I know a lot of people have been talking back, talking with you. Very strong opinions about whether or not what he said was appropriate.

CAROL COSTELLO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Very strong opinions. You know, Mike Huckabee said that President Obama was first raised in Kenya and then he said Indonesia. Never mind President Obama actually grew up in Hawaii here in the USA. The implication was it was bad that Mr. Obama was raised somewhere else other than the United States because it influenced the president's politics. So "Talk Back," why does Huckabee imply living abroad made President Obama more liberal?

This from Quinn. "It doesn't, but it does make him a "them" and not an "us." Huckabee is pandering to the so-called "real" Americans, not those fancy elitist liberals."

This from Julia. "I am glad President Obama has experienced other countries. It makes the person more tolerant and knowledgeable about other cultures."

This from Karen. "He did not misspeak, Carol. This kind of parochial thinking is making millions of Americans think we are an island and need not interact with or be part of the international community. Very sad indeed."

And this from Mary. "Instead of Huckabee letting the people know what he would do as president, he'd rather make false statements about the president. Wow! Now there's a president I want to vote for. Not!"

Keep them -- I told you there were strong opinions.

MALVEAUX: There are.

COSTELLO: Keep the conversation going. Facebook.com/carolcnn. Thanks, as always, for your comments. It is always interesting to read them.

MALVEAUX: And we're going to talk a little bit more about that later in the show as well.

Thank you, Carol.

COSTELLO: I'll be listening.

MALVEAUX: OK. Well, your votes are in. The winner for the next "Choose Your News," that's up next.

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MALVEAUX: Well, even he admits he has a funny sounding name and an unusual life story. But, still, more than two years into his presidency, Barack Obama faces questions from critics about his citizenship, his religion and his background.

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MALVEAUX (voice-over): A gaffe on a radio program by one of the most prominent Republicans, a possible presidential contender.

MIKE HUCKABEE (voice-over): One thing that I do know is his having grown up in Kenya.

MALVEAUX: Really? Mike Huckabee, former Arkansas governor, says he misspoke. But Huckabee, a popular 2012 favorite to challenge Obama, is just the last in a long, long line of people who continue to get Obama's background wrong.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He is not an American citizen. He is a citizen of Kenya.

MALVEAUX: In covering Barack Obama during the 2008 campaign, it was arguably the single most important issue. Barack Obama telling the American people, I'm just like you. Born in the United States, raised by a white single mother, and abandoned by his Kenyan father. He spent two years as a child with his mother in Indonesia. Admittedly, he says he isn't just like you. His background's unusual.

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: He's got a funny name and he doesn't look like all the presidents on the dollar bills.

MALVEAUX: But the persistent questions and misstatements about Obama's background have successfully birthed a whole movement.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Let's see some background on you, you know?

RUSH LIMBAUGH: They tell us August 4th is the birthday. We haven't seen any proof of it.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Which I am fortunate enough to be an American citizen by birth, and I do have the birth certificate to prove it.

MALVEAUX: People who question his American identity, his faith and his authenticity. Political calculation or innocent mistake? It works. As a matter of fact, nearly a third of Americans have doubts about whether or not their president is an American. Now going into the 2012 election season, the misstatements continue.

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MALVEAUX: And the president has provided a birth certificate, being born in Hawaii. I want to talk about this -- what is behind all of the continued false claims about President Obama.

Michael Eric Dyson, professor of sociology at Georgetown, thank you for joining us.

First, do you believe Mike Huckabee misspoke?

MICHAEL ERIC DYSON, GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY SOCIOLOGY PROF.: No, I don't. I think this is part of a well oiled strategy on the part of conservatives and Republicans to pick holes at Mr. Obama's, you know, background and birth and to suggest that he's not quite American. He's un-American. Not quite a patriot. He's to be viewed skeptically and we should be suspicious of him because he's not inside the ark of our normal story about what it means to be an American.

Now, of course, it includes being an immigrant. Mr. Obama is an immigrant. And he's -- from his background. His father being Kenyan and the like. But I think it's not the European immigrant. So because it's the African immigrant, we bear a different relationship to Kenya versus say coming out of some -- in Italy or France and the like. So I think that this is a well placed strategy trying to erode the confidence of the American people in Mr. Obama's legitimate American identity and therefore his ability to lead.

MALVEAUX: Well, we know his mother was from Kansas, his father from Kenya. That he was born in Hawaii.

DYSON: Absolutely.

MALVEAUX: This strategy, back in 2012, if it was a real Republican strategy, it didn't work back then in 2008. Would it be part of -- why would it be part of the playbook in 2012?

DYSON: Well, I think, Suzanne, things are tighter now. Mr. Obama was an unknown entity then. We didn't know how he would govern. It's one thing to campaign. It's another thing to take the seat of authority and to issue edicts, so to speak, from the chair of the president.

Now that we know who Mr. Obama is, his chorus of naysayers have grown and there's a tighter race. Recent polls suggest that 45 percent of Americans, potentially, would vote for Mr. Obama for re-election, 45 percent would vote for the as yet to be named candidate on the other side. That means it's a much tighter race.

So this kind of strategy, though it didn't work effectively four years ago or three years ago when people were competing for the presidency, may be just enough to get them over the edge. To nudge them forward to have that horse's nose that will stick forward on the cross -- finish line to suggest that they might have success here. So it's much more important now and it's much more consequential now than it was a few years ago.

MALVEAUX: Do you think this is about race or is it beyond that?

DYSON: Well, it's both and (ph). It certainly has to do with race in the sense that Mr. Obama is the first African-American president, so people are skeptical and view him with suspicion and doubt. On the other hand, I think it's more broadly about ethnicity as well. Who is this man who occupies the most prominent seat of American society, who is the voice and face and tongue of American democracy to the world.

So if there's internal debate and dissention around the issue of race, here we are about to celebrate 150 years of the Civil War. So America is still arguing over what race means. Mr. Obama is the face of America as we continue those conversations. But even more broadly, I think it's about ideological and political pedigree as well.

MALVEAUX: And, Michael, really quickly here. Why do you suppose there are still people who have doubts? The president has come out. He's defined himself very clearly. Why are there some Americans who just refuse to believe that he is truly an American, that he is like everyone else? DYSON: Well, I think partly it has to do with the fact we've never seen anybody like him before occupy this space. So he's like Jackie Robinson. Jackie Robinson was as great a ballplayer as one could imagine during the time he became the first. But people were skeptical. Can he hit, can he throw, can he endure the infamous assaults upon him?

Mr. Obama is like Jackie Robinson. He's walking a tight rope. People who support him know that he's dealing with difficult offenses on the one hand, and people who oppose him will never accept him until he continues to prove that he is worthy of that office. And we know he already is and we have to continue to assert his legitimacy. This is why questions are still being raised. We have unresolved racial, ethnic and legitimate national interests as well.

MALVEAUX: All right, Professor Dyson, thank you so much, Michael, appreciate it.

DYSON: Thanks for having me.

MALVEAUX: Well, you texted. We're going to air it. Your winning story for "Choose The News." By now who in the world has not heard about Libya and the revolutions throughout the Middle East in North Africa, right? Well, some South Korean activists say North Korea. And they're spreading the word. Our Paula Hancocks reports.

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PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This is the propaganda war. DVDs showing the rotund North Korean leader, Kim Jong-il, next to his starving people. Footage that South Korean activists often fly north across the border attached to helium balloons.

The content of these DVDs has changed in recent weeks. DVDs are now showing what North Korea state TV is not. News footage of people in the Middle East and North Africa standing up to their dictatorial leaders. The power of the people shown to a population that has no power and little knowledge of the outside world.

This reads, the lesson to be learned from the anti-dictator prodemocracy struggles in Tunisia and Egypt is that freedom and democracy can only be won through physical sacrifice. The DVD was made before the unrest in Libya started.

This man defected from North Korea recently. He now works to Seoul for North Korea Reform Radio. He tells me he was affected by seeing a South Korean propaganda DVD showing how affluent and modern Seoul was and it helped him make his decision to defect. He tells me, people will draw a comparison between dictators in Egypt and Tunisia and Kim Jong-il. People will wake up to the fact that the Kim's have been holding on to power too long and their lives are miserable because of it. I think what's happening in the Middle East will help in changing the North Korean mindset.

But most agree any changes will be painfully slow and a revolution in today's tightly controlled North Korea is just not realistic. PROFESSOR ANDREI LANKOV, KOOKMIN UNIVERSITY: People are disunited, people are isolated from the outside world and people are terrified to death. And it's not going to change any time soon.

HANCOCKS: South Korean politicians helped activists launch these balloons last month. Local media claims more recent DVDs with updates on Libya have been sent north by South Korea's military. The defense ministry is not commenting, but last May, after a deadly attack on a South Korean warship was blamed on North Korea, the government relaunched a policy of psychological warfare with propaganda broadcasts. These propaganda balloons could certainly be part of that.

Paula Hancocks, CNN, Seoul, South Korea.

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MALVEAUX: CNN NEWSROOM continues right now with Don Lemon, in for Ali Velshi.

Hey, Don.

DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: Hey, Suzanne. How you doing?

MALVEAUX: Good.

LEMON: Hope you've had a great day.

MALVEAUX: Thanks. Good show.