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Fierce Fighting Raging in Libya; Mickey Rooney and Abuse of the Elderly; What to Make of Charlie Sheen?; Lockerbie Families Try Gadhafi; Fighting Deaths in Misrata; Adoptive Mom Charged in Murder; Waiver Saves Choking Customer; Mardi Gras Rolls On; Tapping the Strategic Oil Reserve

Aired March 06, 2011 - 16:00   ET

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

DREW GRIFFIN, CNN ANCHOR: Ahead this hour in the CNN NEWSROOM, fierce fighting raging in Libya. We got an eyewitness account from the battle zone.

Abuse of the elderly. Mickey Rooney, the actor, speaking from experience. We're going to hear his story and tell you how to protect your loved ones, maybe yourself.

And what to make of Charlie Sheen. Our legal guys weigh in on the actor's troubles. I'm Drew Griffin in Atlanta and in for Fredricka Whitfield.

Now to the fight for Libya. Opposition forces and those loyal to Moammar Gadhafi have been battling all day for control of key cities. They include a major oil city and another city two hours outside of Tripoli. More on that in a moment.

Meantime, four more U.S. military flights headed back to Cairo from Tunisia today. They were carrying Egyptians who have fled the fighting in Libya. Earlier today, our Randi Kaye spoke several times to one eyewitness in the fighting in Misurata. We are going to listen to different parts of the various interviews.

You will hear him start off worried for his safety earlier in the morning, then switch to jubilation later on. Take a listen to how this played out.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: For the last 50 minutes or so I have been in the middle of gunfire, live gunfire between militias and the opposition. People are taking to the street. It does seem that the fighting is taking place (INAUDIBLE) I'm sorry, I just have to find a safer way to talk to you.

RANDI KAYE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Absolutely.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Sorry. The courthouse, which was the center of the assault by the Gadhafi loyal militias on the city of Misurata. Literally in the middle of a -- what seems to be a way in a battlefield (INAUDIBLE). I can't believe it. I mean we're talking about rockets on the ground, we're talking about blood everywhere. KAYE: And have the tanks left? Has the Army pulled out? Has the opposition moved back?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, they have. They have pulled out from the city center at the courthouse.

KAYE: Are they still celebrating?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They are celebrating, exactly. And I'm seeing people distributing juice and water and people holding hands up and singing songs. Here you go. There. Listen to this listen to this.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

GRIFFIN: Now, the government claims it has regained control of the city of Zawiyah. CNN has no way yet to independently verify that crime. Meanwhile, the key Libyan city of Ras Lanuf is still in the hands of opposition forces.

CNN's Ben Wedeman is in that area. He says the Libyan officials claim that the government forces have retaken the city is patently false. Ras Lanuf is a major oil pipeline hub in Libya.

The U.S. State Department urging Americans not to travel to Yemen. It has issued an advisory saying civil unrest and terrorist activists in the Middle Eastern country have elevated the security threat level to an extremely high level. The State Department also asking Americans already there to consider leaving Yemen.

12 civilians were killed today when their vehicle hit a landmine in Afghanistan's Paktika province. Two children, five women among the dead. Five others were injured in that blast. Afghan president Hamid Karzai says the attack is against all principles of Islam.

Back in this country, investigating homegrown terrorism and the focus, the radicalization of Muslim-Americans. Congressman Pete King of New York plans hearings later this week and already there are a lot of arguing over it, whether the hearings should be held at all.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. PETER KING (R), HOMELAND SECURITY COMMITTEE CHMN.: We are talking about Al Qaeda, we are talking about (INAUDIBLE) of Al Qaeda who have been radicalized and self-radicalization going on within the Muslim community, within a very small minority that is where the threat is coming from at this time.

REP. KEITH ELLISON (D), MINNESOTA: We are concerned about the breadth of this. I mean, I think that there's - it is absolutely the right thing to do for the chairman of the Homeland Security Committee to investigate radicalization, but to say we are going to investigate a religious minority and a particular one I think is the wrong course of action to take.

(END VIDEO CLIP) GRIFFIN: And ahead of the hearings, a rally in New York City. Right now, our Susan Candiotti is right there. Whose turned out on this dreary day, Susan?

SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Drew. Yes, the rally started about two hours ago and it is a group that includes business leaders, community leaders and an interfaith coalition. As I said, about 400 or so gathering here today despite this dreary day and pounding rain really. But their main message is this. It is that in their view, their position is that Congressman King's hearings only serve to incite fear among Americans against the Muslims as a whole, even though he says that he is only focusing on a few Muslims in the country who have been radicalized. And the other message is that there is a fear that Americans will be seen overseas as attacking Islam and not a small minority of Muslims who have been radicalized.

I spoke with one of the organizers of today's rally and he is business mogul Russell Simmons. And he says that in his view, Congressman King's hearings will only serve to demonize Muslims in this country.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RUSSELL SIMMONS, ENTREPRENEUR: (INAUDIBLE) All over again and to criticize the whole or to demonize the whole community because of the actions of a few is very un-American. And I think that it leads to a cycle of more hate.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CANDIOTTI: Of course, this rally is scheduled to be going on for another half hour or so. Many of these people here say they will be watching closely what happens on Capitol Hill this week.

GRIFFIN: Not a big rally though, Susan. Anybody on the - supporting the congressional hearings also in New York?

CANDIOTTI: Absolutely. There was another hearing - rally, rather that happened at the same time, but it only lasted about an hour or so and whereas about 400 people were here, maybe about 50 people or so showed up at that one. Their main contention is that Muslims, in fact, there needs to be - Congressman King is doing the right thing by concentrating on security here in the United States. In fact, it is a real serious issue, the radicalization of Muslims. And they - we will be bringing more of what their views are in the next hour. So we will tell you more about what they had to say at that time.

GRIFFIN: All right. Susan Candiotti live in New York. Thanks, Susan.

What a wet day out there for her.

So, who is really in control of Libya? Good question the answer changes practically every day, sometimes two or three times a day. The big picture and casualties from today's fighting in a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) GRIFFIN: We want to get you updated on what is happening in Libya and where. Here is the country behind me on this map. Most people live on the Mediterranean Coast, that's where most of the big cities are. The capital, Tripoli, far to the northwest. Benghazi, the oil-rich city over here to the east.

When we talk about who is in control, we mean whether the city is firmly occupied by opposition forces, as is the case in Benghazi or Gadhafi forces, which is in the case in fact, in Tripoli right now. Benghazi is where the rebels control and are trying to get a government started there. Tripoli has not seen much street fighting, relatively speaking, still under government control.

Here's where it gets very dicey though, the cities of Bin Jawad, Misurata and Zawiya, all scenes of clashes and battles over the past few days. Rebels say they're in control here. People in Tripoli say it's not true. CNN has no way of verifying these accounts and we don't have people directly on the ground there Misurata, not definite, Zawiya, not definite, Bin Jawad, not not definite. We have unconfirmed reports that the fighting in Misurata where more than 40 people have been reported dead today. I have to tell you that we are getting this information from witnesses and CNN does not have independent confirmation of the fighting or the casualties there.

In the meantime, there is a new call for Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi to be prosecuted for his involvement in the bombing of a Pan Am jetliner, which is still one of the most deadly act of terrorism in history. We have details now from CNN's Mary Snow.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MARY SNOW, CNN CORRESPONDENT: This interview last week with Libya's former justice minister is what's behind new calls to prosecute Moammar Gadhafi for the 1988 bombing of Pan Am flight 103. 270 people were killed, most were Americans. CNN obtained this video of Mustafa Abdul Jalil, heard here in a translation telling a Swedish newspaper that Gadhafi was directly involved.

MUSTAFA ABDUL JALIL, FMR. LIBYAN JUSTICE MINISTER (THROUGH TRANSLATOR): The secret is that Moammar ordered this.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is a fact or you think?

JALIL: This is a confirmed fact.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: To who?

JALIL: To his supporters, to the intelligence officers.

SNOW: Jalil didn't provide evidence but in a letter to President Obama and the secretary of state, two families cite Jalil's words in calling to prosecute Gadhafi. Hillary Clinton told the Senate foreign relations committee that she has reached out to the Justice Department and FBI.

HILLARY CLINTON, U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE: I don't think it's only Gadhafi. I think that there may be others as well who were involved in some way and, like you, I would like the families to have whatever information they can finally get and then whatever legal action we can take.

SNOW: (INAUDIBLE) Mohammed Ali al-Megrahi was the only man ever convicted in the Pan Am 103 bombing, said to be near death, suffering from prostate cancer, he was released from a Scottish prison and returned to Libya in 2009 on compassionate grounds. He is still alive.

JACK FLYNN, LOCKERBIE VICTIM'S FATHER: I think we have to have a fair trial.

SNOW: Jack and Kathleen Flynn lost their son, JP, who was returning home with other students from a semester abroad. They say they have always believed Gadhafi was behind the bombing.

KATHLEEN FLYNN, LOCKERBIE'S VICTIM'S MOTHER: It is a very horrible scenario to go through life knowing that someone murdered your child and there was, you know, no justice done.

SNOW: Bert Ammerman isn't hopeful he'll ever see Gadhafi tried. His brother, Tom, was killed in bombing. Ammerman wants the U.S. to be directly involved in removing the Libyan dictator from power.

BERT AMMERMAN, LOCKERBIE VICTIM'S BROTHER: His just reward should be capital punishment, but if he is removed from power, that, to me, would mean that our loved ones didn't die in vain and that's why our inaction is frustrating and irritating to me immensely.

SNOW (on camera): A spokesman for the Justice Department says the investigation into the bombing of the Pan Am flight 103 remains open and New Jersey's two senators who represent families of the victims say they are anxious to hear from Libya's former Justice Minister and see what evidence he has.

Mary Snow, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

GRIFFIN: In Louisiana, a trail of destruction as tornadoes pounded that state. And here is a story about a young mother, she was killed sheltering her child during the tornado. The 21-year-old woman died a tree fell on her house in Rayne, west of Baton Rouge. And I guess, Jacqui Jeras, she kind of covered for her daughter. What an act of selfless love for that child.

JACQUI JERAS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: So sad.

GRIFFIN: Yes.

JERAS: A lot of damage with that storm. Same system on the move today. Not expecting much in the way of severe weather, maybe some isolated storms, we think, in parts of the Carolinas, but this is a real super soaker. What a rainmaker and what a lousy Sunday afternoon, unfortunately, for so many people up and down the East Coast, through the megalopolis. Take a look at this picture from Philadelphia, from our affiliate, WPVI. Yes, a picture says a thousand words.

Drew is over there feeling nauseous because it's so lousy. You can hardly even see the tops of the building there. 56 degrees, rain coming down in Philly, you have had had a quarter inch to half an inch. You got a flood watch in affect, things are very saturated there. We could get up to two inches and two is kind of that magic number for you in Philly right now. That's what's really going to push some of the rivers over their banks. So we are watching the areas like the Schuylkill (ph) River as well as the Delaware River and some of these may be cresting early next week, so Monday maybe into Tuesday. So hang in there Philly. Things are going to be getting a little bit better in the next day or two.

Well, let's go ahead and zoom in. We will talk about some of these thunderstorms. These are the ones I'm concerned about popping up here in parts of the Carolinas, just to the west of Raleigh right now, maybe a little bit of wind damage potential with those.

For the warning, you hear those sirens go off, heed them seriously today. And nothing severe into the northeast, just that heavy rain we were talking about and look at the snow on the backside of this system. We could be seeing as much of a foot of snow a few of these locations. So yes, winter really hanging on for you in places like Syracuse, on up towards Burlington and that is going to be a big issue, if you are trying to travel tomorrow. If you're trying to travel today, the low clouds and the rain socking you in by a couple of hours. Many of those northeastern airports as well as San Francisco, 15-minute delays should be winding down a little bit better for you tomorrow, but New England, still feeling the impact of that storm and then we will focus on things out west tomorrow. Drew?

GRIFFIN: All right. Jacqui, thanks for that report.

Well, mush will be heard far and wide today as the famed Iditarod sled dog race getting under way in Alaska.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: One, go.

From Jamaica, Newton Marshall.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GRIFFIN: I just love that guy. They are from Jamaica. They had a ceremonial start that's in Anchorage yesterday. And yes, there is a Jamaican sled dog team. They will probably have that in the airport, Jacqui. You know how they have the bobsled in the Jamaican - a total of 62 teams taking part this year. The mushers and their dog teams will travel over 1,000 miles in the competition.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's what we do. It's a pretty neat feeling when you're out there on the Iditarod even training and you realize there are very few people that can or are doing what you're doing right now. The connection with your dogs is incredible, watching your dogs develop over the years is amazing. My system, it's a neat situation, also being in the middle of nowhere, sled dogs.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GRIFFIN: You know, Jacqui, I don't think the dogs are Jamaican. I think the dogs are probably not Jamaican. Well, what do they win? They win $50,000 and a new truck. And I think the dogs get some, you know - probably some fresh meat, maybe a little kibble when they do well.

A Hollywood legend makes a passionate plea to Congress.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MICKEY ROONEY, ACTOR: I'm asking you to stop this of elderly abuse. I mean, to stop it. Now. Not tomorrow. Not next month. But now.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GRIFFIN: That's Mickey Rooney and he is not acting. We will have his story.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GRIFFIN: Time for a CNN equals Politics update. We are keeping an eye on all the headlines on CNN.com politics web site. And here's what's crossing at the moment.

Potential presidential candidate Mitt Romney visited the key political state of New Hampshire this weekend. He headlined a Republican Party dinner last night. He called for lower taxes and then criticized President Obama for the country's economic conditions.

An adviser to Donald Trump will be in Iowa tomorrow to meet with leading Republicans. The real estate tycoon considering his own run for president but says he is not going to make that decision until after the last episode of the TV series he hosts, "Celebrity Apprentice." Not everyone enthusiastic about the prospect of Trump entering the Republican race.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. LAMAR ALEXANDER (R), TENNESSEE: It says more about the media than Donald Trump. I mean, there is always someone like Donald Trump who runs, who has absolutely no chance of winning and who is well known. I mean, he is famous for being famous. He may be good in business but he is not going to be president. Tim Pawlenty has a much better chance than Donald Trump of being the Republican nominee.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GRIFFIN: If you are Republican and want to be president, Iowa apparently the police to be tomorrow. Republicans Newt Gingrich, Tim Pawlenty, Rick Santorum and Buddy Roamer will all be there, potential presidential candidates going to address a group of social conservatives. And for the latest political news, you know he where to go, cnnpolitics.com.

Well, victims of elderly abuse have a new advocate, Hollywood legend Mickey Rooney. He is 90 years old and pushing Congress to strengthen protections for seniors like him. He says his stepson abused him physically and financially.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ROONEY: For years, I suffered, silently. I didn't want to tell anybody. I couldn't muster the courage. And you have to have courage to "I need help." And I knew I needed it. Even when I tried to speak up, I was told to shut up and be quiet, you don't know what you're talking about. It seemed that no one, no one wanted to believe me.

But ladies and gentlemen, I want you to know that I - I never gave up. I continue to share my story with others. I told them about the abuse I and my family have suffered that I'm now taking. I'm now taking steps to right all the wrongs. I'm now taking steps, ladies and gentlemen of the Senate, to right all the wrongs that were committed against me.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GRIFFIN: Well, that was Rooney testifying on Capitol Hill this week. His stepson denies those abuse allegations. Marie Therese Connolly also testified this week. She is an expert on elder abuse and joins us from Washington. Marie, what actually happened to Mickey Rooney that he is talking about to Congress? What wrongs were committed against him?

MARIE THERESE CONNOLLY, WOODROW WILSON CENTER SENIOR SCHOLAR: Well, the allegations are that his son-in-law withheld food and medication and also verbally abused him and also isolated him, which is a common form of vulnerability to elder abuse is isolation.

GRIFFIN: And I guess the question is - well, actually, the statement is if it could happen to Mickey Rooney, a guy who can deliver, quite frankly a stunning line to Congress like that, this can really happen to just about anybody.

CONNOLLY: That's exactly right. Mickey Rooney has really taught us an important lesson and raised awareness for millions of Americans and one of the really important things, if you're trying to keep someone that you love safe from elder abuse is to educate yourself about abuse neglect and also financial exploitation as well as to ask questions if you think that something is amiss and if something's amiss, you don't have to be sure, but you need to report it to whoever is the responsible authority so that could be Adult Protective Services, which is like Child Protective Services for children or law enforcement or to a geriatric professional, somebody who has expertise in geriatric medicine.

GRIFFIN: A lot of these crimes, these alleged crimes though, happened in complete secrecy. As people get older they tend to stay inside more. There is less interaction with other people and a lot of their affairs are considered private by many. Is there a stigma attached to coming out publicly that keeps elderly people from reporting this?

CONNOLLY: I think there is, yes. I think that's a really important point and one that hopefully Mr. Rooney will help us make some progress on and that he's saying very emphatically that there is no stigma attached and that you should come forward, you should ask for help, you should tell somebody else what is going on.

Unfortunately, a lot of people are not able to ask for help and so that makes it more important for the rest of us to be watchful. And one of the things that was really clear at the federal - at the hearing this week is the need for federal leadership, both in Congress and in the administration to shine a light on the problem like we have had for years with child abuse and domestic violence and it's made a tremendous difference in terms of enhancing our capacity to address those problems.

GRIFFIN: All right. Marie Therese Connolly, thanks for joining us on an issue quite frankly a lot of people didn't know about but certainly Mickey Rooney and people like you are making us aware of.

CONNOLLY: Thank you so much for having me.

GRIFFIN: All right. We certainly appreciate that.

Well, "Fortune" magazine just released its list of the world's most admired companies. Coming in at number five, Procter & Gamble, number four, Southwest Airlines, number three is Berkshire Hathaway. And the top two well, you will hear about them when we come back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

GRIFFIN: Well, before the break we asked if you knew the world's most admired companies? According to "Fortune" magazine, you could guess them, number one, Google. No, Google is number two, Apple is number one. You get a free iPad probably.

Here is our top stories.

In Libya, opposition forces and those loyal to Moammar Gadhafi have been battling all day for control of key cities. They include a major oil port. Government officials and opposition leaders are giving conflicting accounts of the fighting and who controls which cities.

Let's take a closer look at one of those disputed cities, it's Misurata. Witnesses are telling us about a fierce battle between rebels and forces loyal to Gadhafi. A doctor now says 42 people have been killed in this town, although pro-Gadhafi forces claimed they've recaptured Misurata. A witness speaking with CNN by phone says opposition forces are prevailing there.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (via telephone): They are celebrating, exactly. I'm seeing people distributing juice and water. People are holding hands up and singing songs. They say (inaudible), which means be patient, Gadhafi, be patient in Misrata. We'll dig your grave.

GRIFFIN: An apology just not enough that is what Afghan President Hamid Karzai told General David Petraeus about a NATO air strike that inadvertently killed nine Afghan children last week. The apology came during a very tense meeting today in Kabul.

Petreaus is the commander of U.S. and NATO forces in Afghanistan. He called the deaths a great mistake that would never happen again. Karzai told Petraeus civilian casualties are no longer acceptable and apologies will never heal the wounds suffered by the Afghan people.

Back in this country, a rally wrapping up in Times Square, 400 people or so turned out in the cold rain to protest hearings that will be held later this week on the radicalization of Muslim Americans. Protesters told our Susan Candiotti they feel these hearings will, quote, "demonize Muslims and incite fear against all Muslim."

The man accused of beating the -- being the east coast rapist is said to be fine after allegedly attempting to kill himself. Police say 39- year-old Aaron Thomas tried to hang himself in his jail cell. The police are also saying that DNA evidence links Thomas to 12 sexual assaults on women in several east coast states over the past dozen years.

An arrest in a horrific case out of Florida. Police arrested the adoptive mother of a little girl who was found dead and wrapped in a plastic bag. Carmen Barajona is charged with first-degree murder and seven counts of child abuse and neglect. The child's body was found last month in a truck owned by her adoptive father. The girl's twin brother, by the way, was also found in that truck and he was treated for burns but is alive.

At least eight people, including one firefighter injured Saturday in Chicago after a fire ripped through a motel on the south side. According to our affiliate WLS a combination of high winds in Chicago and construction flame caused the flames to spread quickly. The building is a total loss.

And despite the death of a key player, a Michigan high school team is scheduled to play in tomorrow night's basketball playoff game. Wes Leonard collapsed after making the game-winning shot Thursday night. That closed out a perfect regular season for the Fennville Blackhawks a doctor says that he died then from cardiac arrest due to an enlarged heart.

Wisconsin not the only state where angry state workers are taking to the streets.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GRIFFIN (voice-over): This is 5,000 teachers marching in downtown Nashville. They are marching against a proposal to scale back collective bargaining rights in Tennessee. That plan now under consideration by state lawmakers.

DIANE LILLARD, TEACHER: This is citizenship, right here. This is democracy happening. When children see that teachers are going to stand up for themselves, stand up for the children, they are going to stand up for the education all over the country.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GRIFFIN: And if you like your classical music mixed with hip-hop then a little rock, I have the perfect group for you.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GRIFFIN (voice-over): That is "Nuttin' but Stringz." I will tell you about them next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

GRIFFIN: They are fusing classical music with hip-hop and rock to create a sound like, well, nothing you may have ever heard before. Fredricka Whitfield introduces us to "Nuttin but Stringz."

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What's up, y'all, my name is Damian?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: My name is Tory. Together, we are "Nuttin' but Stringz."

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Don't let the name fool you, there is nothing simple about the way these talented siblings have taken what is classic and infuse it had with a unique sound they call "Urban Rock 'n' Roll."

DAMIEN ESCOBAR, NUTTIN' BUT STRINGZ: We're from south Jamaica Queens. So we got a different type of swagger vibe. We bring our swag to the instrument.

TOURIE ESCOBAR, NUTTIN' BUT STRINGZ: Probably in fourth grade and after I picked it up, I didn't really, like I said you have the patience for it so I put it down and then two years later with my brother --

D. ESCOBAR: It was my turn and as long as he brought it in the house, I fell in love with it.

WHITFIELD: Younger brother, Damien's, love of the violin reignited Tourie's interest in the strings. When Tourie was 12 and Damien 10, the acclaimed Julie Yard School of Music took notice. The brothers from the streets of Jamaica Queens, were in, but that didn't mean they were ready to tell everyone.

D. ESCOBAR: Tourie did his own thing. Me, I was playing basketball. You know, so I was -- I was ashamed of my instrument, you know? So I used to walk down the block and saw them, I would duck behind the car but things change.

WHITFIELD: The duo won a spot on Showtime at the Apollo and from there, "Nuttin' But Stringz" was hot, making the rounds from Jay Leno to Ellen to the CBS morning show to the White House and to a second place finish on the second season of "America's Got Talent." Their signature sound was labeled by critics as street-wise fusion of classical, R & B, pop and hip-hop that spread from their neighborhood to New York subway trains.

T. ESCOBAR: They were just fun and just playing on the trains and seeing all different types of musical act. You see everything in New York underground and we just take from that, that, that and we just learn how to create music.

WHITFIELD: Real life inspired their debut album, "Struggle From the Subway to the Charts" and receptive fans made the album a multiplatinum success.

D. ESCOBAR: Young black boys grow nothing men and you know, we weren't really talking about what we saw, you know, growing up and talk about dreaming of where we wanted to be and you know with that album it kind of charted that.

WHITFIELD: Now older and wiser about their careers and the music business, the duo is ready to take center stage again, releasing new music, five years after their debut album.

D. ESCOBAR: You get past the actual business and really start making music for the people and it took us a while to do that. That's why we didn't have an album for five years. It took a while for us to do that.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Ladies and gentlemen, please make welcome, "Nuttin' But Stringz."

D. ESCOBAR: When we perform in concerts, it just takes us away. We just get taken away and people in the audience actually watching, like --

T. ESCOBAR: They can feel it with them.

D. ESCOBAR: I got to say, may sound cliche but it comes from the heart, just the passion just, like, loving the issue and loving the music that you create.

WHITFIELD: Two talented brothers with one passionate commitment, creating their own sound, and inspiring so many. Fredricka Whitfield, CNN, Atlanta.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

GRIFFIN: From that to this. We are going turn up Lady Gaga and watch a bird dance.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GRIFFIN (voice-over): You should know this is more than just fun video for fun's sake. This bird and his antics have a medical application. Stick around it is right after the break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

GRIFFIN: We are going cross country to check some of the stories our local stations across the country are covering.

First stop, Atlanta, a restaurant customer has the waiter to thank for saving his life. Matthew McConnell performed the Heimlich maneuver on a customer who was choking. McConnell learn the maneuver as part of his job training. Pretty good.

You've seen the TV ads now, check this out, the Snuggie in a pub crawl in San Francisco. Yes. There were lots of styles on display, everything from a Notre Dame Snuggie to a Superman Snuggie. You can get a CNN Snuggie.

And nothing puts a damper on Mardi Gras in New Orleans, not even torrential downpour. Partiers didn't miss a beat, in spite of street flooding in the French quarter. That city is drawing, to a close, midnight Tuesday, fat Tuesday.

Now, a little break from today's other stories. Here is Jacqui Jeras with this week's viral video.

JACQUI JERAS, METEOROLOGIST: We need a laugh today.

GRIFFIN: I need a laugh.

JERAS: I know there's so much serious news. It's depressing me.

GRIFFIN: I almost made a joke about Mardi Gras, torrential rain, I won't. People in New Orleans will be mad at me.

JERAS: I like the Snuggie story. I didn't know we could get a CNN one.

GRIFFIN: Right downstairs.

JERAS: Guess where I'm going after this.

GRIFFIN: Right downstairs.

JERAS: Right downstairs. Who doesn't need a Snuggie? OK, we need a laugh. What better way to get a laugh than watching a baby. This is my favorite video of the day. What happened was a father got a rejection letter from a job interview, decided to rip it up.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JERAS (voice-over): The baby thinks it's funny. As you go through time watching this video, first you just hear a couple of giggles and then like belly laughing. I could watch this thing all day. They got tired of the rejection letter so they move on to apparently credit card statements.

GRIFFIN (voice-over): That is cute.

JERAS: Adorable. I could watch laughing babies all day. All right, we will move on though. I digress. --

GRIFFIN: How can we turn away from this guy? Let's leave him up the rest of the show in the corner.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

JERAS: All right, so what do you get a 25-year-old for her birthday? Perhaps a ponytail holder. Here's why. Take a look at this video.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JERAS (voice-over): It was a cute, young lady's birthday, big party, a cake, candles, the whole shebang, but don't get too close when you blow them out. Watch what happens.

And there it goes. The end of the hair, I don't know the hairspray or the hair got in there too fast. She was OK. Nobody was injured. You can see it went out right away but, I've never seen that happen before, have you?

GRIFFIN (voice-over): I have seen that happen. I thought I saw that happen at one of those Rapster's parties.

JERAS: That could be. Hold your hair back next time. Just saying. All right, this next one will probably have you laughing as well snowball is a web superstar now. He gave us a tease on this before. Take a look.

GRIFFIN: This is snowball.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JERAS (voice-over): Not just the head bob there, Drew, but look at the legs going.

GRIFFIN: And who is the -- look at these people.

JERAS: I know. It's a good song. Do you blame them? There's actually good purpose to this. Guess what they found out? Researchers are saying this is the first time they have seen a nonhuman synchronize to a musical beat.

So this isn't just a little bit of movement, this is exactly timing with the beat and they say that that this research could provide insight on the power of music and movement, how it could potentially help people with Parkinson's disease. Lady Gaga.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GRIFFIN: Just -- I don't know. Something weird about that.

JERAS: Do you like it?

GRIFFIN: I do, But I could watch the baby all day.

JERAS: Yes, the baby was my favorite. GRIFFIN: Not the Lady Gaga thing. OK, thanks, Jacqui.

JERAS: Sure thing.

GRIFFIN: Good laugh.

JERAS: I know.

GRIFFIN: Let's cue up the baby just one more time in case it comes in handy later in the show.

Meanwhile, investigating whether American Muslims are being radicalized, serious. We will tell you which powerful member of Congress plans to set the wheels in motion next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

GRIFFIN: Congressional hearings on the potential radicalization of American Muslims and the U.S. possibly tapping the strategic oil reserve plaintiff two major topics today on the Sunday morning talk shows. Here are the highlights.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Calls to tap the strategic petroleum reserve that have comes up during these spikes. Is the president considering doing something that can arrest that spike?

BILL DALEY, WHITE HOUSE CHIEF OF STAFF: Despite the issue of the reserves is one we are considering. It is something that only is done in -- has been done in very rare occasions.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: But it's on the table, which I think is significant development.

DALEY: All consider, all matters have to be on the table.

SENATOR JOHN KERRY, (D) MASSACHUSETTS: It is certainly an option that's always been on the table when there's a huge spike in prices and we want to try to protect the American consumer. I think it is premature. I don't think we need to do it yet.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Has the president handled this in a way that has made things more difficult now it looks like Moammar Gadhafi has some staying power?

BILL RICHARDSON, FORMER NEW MEXICO GOVERNOR: What I think the U.S. needs to do is one, covertly arm the rebels. We should take that step. Develop a no-fly zone. I think that is going to be needed.

DALEY: Lots of people throw around phrases of no-fly zone and they talk about it as though it is just a game on a video game or something and some people who throw that line out have no idea what they are talking about. This has to be an international effort.

CHRIS WALLACE: Democrats are proposing $10.5 billion in real cuts from current spending, that's from total spending of 3.7 trillion are s that are the best that Democrats can do?

SENATOR DICK DURBIN, (D) ILLINOIS: Chris, I'm willing to see more deficit reduction, but not out of domestic discretionary spending. When you are cutting education, innovation and infrastructure, you are not dealing with the reality of this recession.

SENATOR JOHN MCCAIN, (R) ARIZONA: We have got to get our budget balanced and that's vital to the future, by the way it has to include Social Security reform, Medicare, Medicaid reform.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Something that you said to the Associated Press caught my attention. I want to read it here for our viewers. This was the end of February.

"There is a real threat to the country from the Muslim community and the only way to get to the bottom of it is to investigate what is happening."

And I read that and I thought, whoa, you know, that just signed like kind of blanket guilt here, something in the Muslim community that's threatening us. What is it?

REPRESENTATIVE PETER KING, (R) NEW YORK: The overwhelming majority of Muslims are outstanding Americans, but at this stage in our history there is an effort to radicalize elements within the Muslim community.

REPRESENTATIVE KEITH ELLISON, (D) MINNESOTA: It is absolutely the right thing to do for the chairman of the Homeland Security Committee to investigate radicalization, but to say we are going to investigate a religious minority and a particular one I think is the wrong course of action to take.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

GRIFFIN: From this morning's talk shows.

Well, if your client is a train wreck, like some say Charlie Sheen is, what do you do with him? Our legal experts weigh in after the break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

GRIFFIN: Here's two names that have people rolling their eyes, Charlie Sheen. What now? He is in a fight with his latest ex over their kids. Listen to what our legal guys Avery Friedman and Richard Herman told CNN's Tom Foreman.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

AVERY FRIEDMAN, CIVIL RIGHTS ATTORNEY: This is real easy, Tom. I mean, there was an order where he had to relinquish the twins after the weekend and then he decides he is not going to do it and he decides that based on the -- we saw his interview with Piers Morgan and others.

He is just going to do what he wants to do so now he violates a court order. On top of that the ex-wife asserts that he threatened to cut her head off. And on top of that --

TOM FOREMAN, CNN ANCHOR: He strongly denies that. He says I didn't do that, right?

FRIEDMAN: Of course he denies it and of course, he promises in a settlement agreement in the divorce that he is not going to say anything disparaging about the ex, which of course, he does.

So he is piling up legal the issue after legal issue. I don't know who is representing him who has control to basically tell the client, Tom, keep quiet. He is doing the opposite.

FOREMAN: Richard, let me ask but that. If you are an attorney and off client tangled up in something like this where there just seems to be no end to it what on earth do you say to them?

RICHARD HERMAN, CRIMINAL DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Yes, I'm quitting. Get another lawyer. It is easy. Except that he makes -- he has too much money, the lawyer is getting paid a ton of dough on this case.

Look, Tom, this man it is like a car accident when you're driving. Everybody turns to look and watch. Everybody can't keep their eyes off him. It is just -- every day it is something new it sin incredible. He is not winning. Carlos Estevez is not winning, Tom, drunk, drugs, violence, losing his contract to the studio. He is not winning and now he lost his kids.

It's -- he threatened to cut his wife's head off and send it to her mother in a box. He is violating restraining orders. He is not acting in the best interest of the kids and Carlos, man-to-man, they are not goddesses, OK? Please, come on, buddy. They are not goddesses.

FOREMAN: Avery, let ask you quickly, are there times at times like this I don't know how do you this business, every time at times like when lawyers talk to each other behind the back and say we got to get our clients of ours off the headlines because -

FRIEDMAN: I got to tell you, those conversations happen every day, Tom. Any good lawyer who sees client is out of control gives the client a choice. Either you're going to continue doing what you're doing or pay attention, stick with you. Richard's right, I don't know what these lawyers are doing. I think they are just used to getting big bucks.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

GRIFFIN: Yes. Well, here is the latest on Charlie Sheen. He is telling "Access Hollywood" that he is going to join his friend Sean Penn on a trip to Haiti. Charlie Sheen going to help with the relief effort in Haiti.