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World Autism Day April 2; Underdog VCU Makes It To Final Four; Libyan Rebels Claim They Are Hit By NATO Airstrikes; Gadhafi's Family Are His Closest Remaining Advisers; Anarchists Plan to Disrupt Britain's Royal Wedding; Statue Dedicated to Little Girl Killed in Arizona Shooting

Aired April 02, 2011 - 10:00   ET

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

T.J. HOLMES, CNN ANCHOR: Good Saturday morning.

That is not what you want to see when you are flying in a passenger jet. Oxygen masks come down and a hole pops open in the ceiling and you can look up and see blue sky. But that's exactly what passengers saw aboard one flight, Southwest Airlines flight 812. That is a live picture of the actual plane that is about to get a good looking up and down from investigators now. We'll explain in a live report.

Also, violence in Afghanistan intensifies after something that a pastor in Florida did. He's getting all the blame. This is your CNN Saturday morning. Glad you could all be here. Thanks for spending some of your weekend with us. I'm T.J. Holmes.

So let's start with that Southwest Airlines plane that now has an unexpected sun roof. A three to four-foot piece of that roof just tore away, giving the passengers a clear view of the blue sky. Here are some of the pictures from inside. Federal investigators are getting a look at it today. The passengers, they got a look they did not want to get yesterday. And 118 of them were on board that plane. They were all OK after an emergency landing.

The plane was supposed to be going from phoenix to Arizona, instead, it had to make an emergency landing in Yuma, Arizona. Earlier I spoke to two of the passengers who were on board.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DEBBIE DOWNEY, PASSENGER ABOARD SOUTHWEST FLIGHT 812 (via telephone): My husband and I looked up. You could see blue sky. You could see the wiring, the cabling. We looked at each other and thought, oh, my gosh, this is not a good sign.

Immediately put our head down, looked up, see the air masks fell down immediately within seconds. So we grabbed our mask, started to kind of look out the window. As soon as I tried to look out the window and put up the screen, the aircraft went into a complete nose dive fast.

LARRY DOWNEY, PASSENGER (via telephone): We descended so quickly that it was -- and it was so noisy that the plane actually decompressed pretty quickly. If you didn't get your mask on, it was a pretty scary situation.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOLMES: Let's go right to our Ted Rowlands now. He's live for us, made his way to Yuma. Is this investigation just yet underway?

TED ROWLANDS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Absolutely, T.J. And it is an investigation that has very high stakes. The 737, as you know, is the workhorse of the industry. It is critical that they figure out the FAA, NTSB, Southwest, and Boeing investigators, they're all coming here, they figure out exactly what happened here.

Generally there are only a few options. Either somebody or something did something to this aircraft either intentionally or unintentionally, nothing's been ruled out. Or the skin of the aircraft was compromised, what they call a fatigue in the skin of the aircraft, basically the exterior of the aircraft. What they're going to do today is take an initial look at the aircraft and pore over the maintenance records of this aircraft.

Southwest also has pulled 81 planes out of service so they can look at the skins of those. These were planes that were either due or the window for their inspection is coming up. Out of an abundance of caution they've pulled those planes out. Clearly very critical that they figure out what happened and that investigation will start in the next few hours here in Yuma.

HOLMES: And do we have any idea, do we see things like this? You mentioned a couple of possibilities, a compromise of that plane on the inside, but do we have any idea if things like this have happened in the past? I don't want to kohl them routine, necessarily, though.

ROWLANDS: This is absolutely not routine. The idea that a 737 that has maintenance schedules routinely would actually have a hole burst open in the middle of a flight is absolutely uncommon. And so it's critical that these inspectors figure out exactly what's happening because, you know, there's the gamut of possibilities, as I said.

And one of them is the plane exterior, for whatever reason, the skin of it, was suffering from fatigue and it burst open because it became weak. Is that happening in other planes? What exactly caused this is key to be able to predict if there are going to be other potential problems in the thousands of 737s that are in the sky every day.

HOLMES: And like you said there, good way to put it there, Ted, absolutely uncommon certainly for those folks who were on board. We appreciate the update. We'll check in with you again.

We have another emergency landing to tell you about now. This one happened yesterday afternoon in Little Rock, Arkansas, Little Rock international airport. An incoming flight from Atlanta was on approach 20 miles from touchdown when the nose of the plane hit a flock of birds. Despite the obvious beating that that plane took, and you can see it there from the nose of the plane, the flight did land without any further problems.

Take you to Afghanistan now where new anti-American protests are happening now. At least nine people dead in Kandahar, dozens injured in clashes with Afghan security forces. A school burned as well. This comes on the heels of yesterday's attack on a United Nations compound in northern Afghanistan. Seven U.N. workers were killed in that attack; a handful of protesters killed as well.

CNN Pentagon Correspondent Chris Lawrence has more now on what exactly has sparked these new anti-American protests.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CHRIS LAWRENCE, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Last September, a Florida pastor, Terry Jones, threatened to burn a Koran. But that burning was initially canceled after the Pope, President Obama, and the defense secretary all urged him not to do it.

About two weeks ago it threatened to put the Koran on trial. Then a subsequent post said that the Koran had been found guilty of causing rape, murder, and terrorism, and a copy had been burned inside the building.

Pentagon sources say this news initially hit very quickly in Pakistan, and they saw several demonstrations there, nothing to this level of violence. And then just a few days ago, the Taliban put out a statement basically saying, look, this is proof that the U.S. is against Islam.

That set off massive protests across Afghanistan. The one in Mazar-e-Sharif, they tried to fire into the air to hold off protesters, but they were no match, they stormed the wall and that's when they got inside and attacked those U.N. workers.

Now an e-mail in reaction to what happened today, the Florida pastor and his church said they're not really backing down. The e- mail says, quote, "We must hold these countries and people accountable for what they've done as well as for any excuses they use to promote their terrorist activities."

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HOLMES: Thank you to our Chris Lawrence there. Meanwhile, the Taliban saying they are not behind any of the violence saying what happened today is just a feeling of the nation.

On CNN tonight, "TWO WORLDS, TWO TRUTHS," does freedom of religion mean freedom from suspicion? CNN's Soledad O'Brien chronicling the dramatic fight over the construction of a mosque in the heart of the Bible belt. "UNWELCOME: THE MUSLIMS NEXT DOOR." You can see that tonight at 8:00 on CNN.

Now to what's happening in Japan. The island weathered another rumble this morning of an earthquake. Meanwhile an eight-inch crack has been found in a concrete basin outside the number two reactor at the Fukushima nuclear plant. The plant's owner says highly radioactive water now leaking into the Pacific Ocean.

Japan's prime minister visited the disaster zone today. He thanked workers who helped with the crisis. The casualty count, however, still continues to rise. The latest figures from Japanese authorities put the death toll at nearly 12,000 with still some 15,000 more missing.

Turning closer to home now, Thursday's Los Angeles Dodgers opening game was marred by a brutal post game assault in the stadium's parking lot. Police say a couple of Dodger faithful attacked a trio of San Francisco Giants fans. One victim was hospitalized with what's being called serious head injuries. The police are now looking out for two suspects who they say were in fact decked out in Dodger gear.

On another sporting note, a much different one here with just a couple of hours away from the tipoff of college basketball's final four. This is happening in Houston, Texas. No matter who wins, you might be able to call a Cinderella in the finals in the championship game, unlikely underdog. VCU has made it all the way, taking on another small school, Butler. You can't call them underdogs any more. They made it to the final four last year as well. UConn and Kentucky going at it in the late game today.

It is April, it is springtime but that means volatile weather. Bonnie Schneider is in for Reynolds Wolf today.

Also, the focus in Libya now is on Moammar Gadhafi's inner circle. Could his own family members be planning Gadhafi's departure?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HOLMES: Well, 12 minutes past the hour now. We turn to Libya and the fierce fight for precious territory.

Our Reza Sayah who is in Benghazi describes it as an accordion right now, both sides swapping ground day by day, some of the biggest battles coming in from Misrata.

We're hearing that army defectors are now leading the forces against Moammar Gadhafi's troops. NATO now is investigating a report from the city of Brega that airstrikes actually hit opposition vehicles. Rebel leaders say some of their fighters were killed in that strike.

Also word of a possible transition plan being tossed around in Tripoli, an end to Moammar Gadhafi's reign? But sources close to Gadhafi say his inner circle would still play a key role in a new government. CNN's Brian Todd takes a look at just who is in that inner circle.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: There's a phrase in Arabic for them, "Al Al Hima," people of the tent, the closest confidant a leader can have. Moammar Gadhafi is said to be so paranoid that it's hard to know who is in the inner circle. Analysts say with the high level defections of foreign minister Moussa Koussa and others Gadhafi is now relying more on his own family for advice.

And any look at the family begins with his second oldest son Saif al Islam Gadhafi. He was once thought to be one of the leading reformers in the regime. But since the uprising began, he's been one of his father's most visible defenders, threatening the opposition and saying the regime would fight to the last bullet.

CNN National Security contributor Fran Townsend has met with Saif Gadhafi and says his demeanor belies his ruthlessness.

FRANCES TOWNSEND, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY CONTRIBUTOR: It's clear Colonel Gadhafi has begun to train -- he's the heir apparent in waiting. The question is will he be able to retain control.

TODD: You met with him. What are your impressions of him? Does he have gravitas to him?

TOWNSEND: He's very bright. Western educated, speaks beautiful English.

TODD: Saif Gadhafi has a shadowy figure by his side also trusted by his father, a man named Mohammed Ismail. They describe him as a key aide to Saif Gadhafi, always by Saif's side when needed, paying a high personal price including once gets detained by a foreign regime.

Saif Gadhafi's chief rivals are his own brothers, Mutassim Gadhafi who has met with Hillary Clinton and Khamis Gadhafi, leader of the brutal 32nd brigade, he held an internship with engineering firm Acomm until the fighting broke out.

Also close to Gadhafi is Abdullah al Senussi. He's Moammar Gadhafi's brother-in-law, linked to the Lockerbie bombing plot as well as massacre of inmates at the Abu Salim prison and the bombing of a passenger plane over Niger.

GUMA EL-GAMATY, LIBYAN OPPOSITION LEADER: He's been gloomed by Gadhafi since day one, 42 years ago when Gadhafi came to power. He's totally loyal to Gadhafi. He never questions any orders that Gadhafi gives him. He has been used in a very brutal way to deal with any opposition.

TODD: Will Abdullah al Senussi, Mohammed Ismail, and the sons stay with him till the bitter end? Senussi will probably die with Gadhafi. But the sons are different. He believes they'd get out if they had opportunity to get access to the money and the lifestyle they could enjoy outside Libya.

Brian Todd, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HOLMES: And a quick programming note for you. Our Fareed Zakaria is looking at Al Qaeda's involvement in Libya. You can see that on "Fareed Zakaria GPS" at 10:00 eastern time tomorrow.

It is April, it is springtime. That could only mean one thing -- snow.

(WEATHER BREAK)

HOLMES: Did you realize it's world autism awareness day? Coming up, I want to talk to someone you would certainly recognize, Actress Didi Conn. We're talking to her this morning. She joins me right after the break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HOLMES: It's 20 minutes past the hour now. When you're out this evening, take a look around. You might notice something, a building near you that's bathed in blue lights. That's because a lot of places around the world taking part in the "light it up blue" campaign, all to recognize world autism awareness day.

Actress Didi Conn is here to talk more about this. You recognize the name and the face. She's known for playing Frenchie in those grease movies.

ACTRESS CONN, SPOKESPERSON, AUTISM SPEAKS: Thank you, yes.

HOLMES: But today you're here to talk to me as a spokesperson for autism speaks and as a mother with a son with autism in New York. Thank you very much for being here with us. What's the significance of the blue lights this evening?

CONN: Well, the significance is for blue that one out of four children that are diagnosed with autism are boys, but even greater than that, blue is a healing color. Blue is bright and gives us hope for the future.

And tonight the empire state building is going to be blue, Niagara Falls is going to be blue. Over I think a thousand sites all over the world are going to be lighting up blue to bring awareness to autism, the autism awareness month, which is this month. Today in New York, it's a blue sky.

HOLMES: For a change.

CONN: For snow, we've had everything. Perfect.

HOLMES: Tell me about your story here. When was your son -- when did a doctor -- how long ago was it, how many years back did a doctor say to you that your son has autism?

CONN: Well, that was about 15 years ago. And my son was a little over three. He was presenting with terrible, terrible tantrums that would be triggered by the slightest thing, you know, putting on an alarm clock or a blender or hair dryer or an airplane coming over. His sound, any sounds that were unexpected would trigger these enormous tantrums. And you know, he was two, three years old and kids have tantrums, but there are more things that were happening. The main thing he didn't like to be held. I couldn't -- I could feed him, but you know, you want to cuddle up and put your face in there and love a kid. I couldn't do that. He wouldn't make eye contact.

You had to find the things that you could have relation to with him. So it was a very difficult time. We weren't sleeping. He was having tantrums at night.

HOLMES: For you at the time, you said that many years ago, was that a time when not as much focus and emphasis was being placed on autism and looking for the signs. Do you think things could have been different for your son had the focus been on autism at the time?

CONN: Absolutely. That's like the dark ages of autism. Now, the exciting thing for a parent getting the diagnosis for the first time, you go on the internet, you go to autismspeaks.com -- dot org. And they have everything there, they have a special package for parents who are just getting the diagnosis for what to do for the first hundred days, how to ask for help, how to relate to your family, let them know how they can help.

Because there wasn't that much information when my son Daniel was diagnosed, I was in denial. And that just makes you suffer. But now there's so many resources and techniques and strategies to help you.

HOLMES: You talk about that research and certainly so many people go to the Internet, but there's so much out there, certainly they need to get help and identify early. But people still want to go back to what is exactly the cause of it, which we don't know for sure, a lot of theories. But one of the most -- as you know, one of the controversial ones is about whether vaccines cause it. Now for you, what do you believe?

CONN: Well, listen, Autism Speaks has already spent $160 million for science for research about this. So it's being done right now. They've given your vaccinations when Danny was vaccinated all three, the mumps, measles, rubella were given all at once, they were also preserved in a kind of mercury. They don't do that anymore. So they've taken precautions to make it safer for parents to vaccinate their children.

Go on autismspeaks.org, you will get every information, the most up-to-date information on insurance, on therapies. And, unfortunately, there are many, many different ideas of what causes it. They're coming up with very specific genetic component. So much is happening, but the great news is there is support there, your family loves you, they want to support you, my family are all walking today for autism speaks so ask for help.

HOLMES: Ms. Conn, I have to go here, but I have to ask this because this is maybe the most important thing I will ask. Apologies to my producer, I know I need to run. But you say one of the blessings of having an autistic child is you notice every little achievement and it becomes cause for celebration. To parents who might be dealing with this, to parents who are fearful they may have to deal with this in the future, explain to me what that statement means.

CONN: Oh, thank you, T.J. It's just that, you know, life goes by very quickly, and every little thing, the fact that I can say "good morning, Danny" and I say, "Danny" and he'll look at me and say, "good morning, mommy." This took years, but he does it now. You know? I can say "I love you, Danny." And he'll say, "I love you, mommy."

Now, you know, I have to prompt him, but we have this communication now. Every single thing, the fact that he can feed himself, dress himself. You miss these things because they happen really quickly in a kind of just regular kind of situation of rearing children. So thank you for mentioning that.

HOLMES: I wanted to make sure I did, because I'm sure that's helpful to a lot of parents out there. Didi Conn, it's an absolute pleasure to talk to you this morning.

CONN: I like your blue tie. Everybody can wear blue today.

HOLMES: Thank you so much. Didi Conn, thank you for your time this morning.

We're at 27 minute past the hour. We'll talk about a Boston doctor coming up, taking health care to the streets. You'll find out why as we profile another CNN hero.

HOLMES: We're at the bottom of the hour here on this CNN Saturday morning. Welcome back to you all. I'm T.J. Holmes. Let's give you a look at some of the stories making headlines right now.

Investigators with the FAA and the NTSB hope they can find why a three-foot hole erupted yesterday on a Boeing 737 in flight from Phoenix to Sacramento. Southwest Airlines flight 812 made an emergency landing at a military base in Yuma, Arizona, 118 people on board. They are all OK. As a precaution the airline has grounded 80 other 737s.

A controversial pastor in Florida igniting an angry response from the Muslim world by reportedly burning the Koran in northern Afghanistan yesterday. Protesters stormed a U.N. building and a dozen people killed. Also today in Kandahar province another nine killed in protests today.

HOLMES: In Japan, authorities may have found the reason behind spiking levels of radiation in the Pacific Ocean. A crack of more than half a foot has been found in the number two reactor at the Fukushima nuclear power plant.

Also in Libya, a couple of cases of suspected friendly fire. NATO says it's investigating a report that coalition air strikes in Brega hit opposition fighters. Rebel forces say several of their vehicles were hit in an airstrike near Benghazi as well.

So a helping hand for homeless women in Boston -- one doctor is offering them much need medical assistance for free. And that makes this doctor a CNN hero.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DR. ROSEANNA MEANS, MEDICAL MARVEL: You OK? Every week I talk to women who are sleeping outside. It's only 17 degrees out. So I didn't want you to get frozen. There's so much pain and suffering right on the fringes of our perspective. Do you need some help, hon?

Boston, despite all the resources for the homeless population, I was seeing very few of the women using the services. For women who are poor, homeless, or battered to deal with a system of health care becomes overwhelming. They don't have an address, they don't have a phone. There are psychiatric issues. I just didn't like the idea that they were falling through the crack.

I'm Dr. Rosanna Means, and I bring free, high quality medical care to the women in the shelters in Boston. The women come in to the shelters to get warm, to feel safe, and we're there. There's no registration. We're not charging anything. If they want to come see us, we'll use that moment to try to build a relationship.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This is my safety net right here.

MEANS: The women learn to trust us as ambassadors of the health care system. Over time we can teach them how to use the system as it was intended. And eventually they do move forward.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Because I knew she really cared, I started wanting to take care of myself.

MEANS: I love these women no matter what. That starts to get taken inside, that if I matter to somebody else, maybe I matter to myself.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOLMES: Now, Dr. Rosanna Means and her team have helped 2,500 women and children each year for the past decade. Remember all of this year's CNN heroes are from people you tell us about. To nominate someone you think is changing the world, go to CNN heroes.com.

She was the little girl born on 9/11 and was shot and killed in Tucson, Christina Green. She now has a statue that's been unveiled in her honor. You will hear from those who loved her, coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HOLMES: It's 35 minutes past the hour now.

A statue has been put in place for the youngest victim of the Tucson shootings. The statue of an angel honors nine-year-old Christina Green. She was killed in that January shooting rampage that injured Arizona Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords.

Christina was born on 9/11. The statue incorporates materials from the World Trade Center, Pentagon and the flight 93 crash site. Ted Rowlands with more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

TED ROWLANDS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The images of nine-year-old Christina Taylor Green from her huge smile to the tiny coffin carrying her body are easily the most heartbreaking of the Tucson shooting.

SUZI HILEMAN, CHRISTINA'S FRIEND: I knew when we were lying on the ground outside of Safeway. The light went out of her eyes.

ROWLANDS: Suzi is the neighbor that took Christina to see congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords that morn. Hileman said she and Christina were next in line to meet Giffords.

HILEMAN: And then -- gunshot. The next thing I remember is standing there with blood coming out of my leg and a hole in my jeans.

ROWLANDS: Christina had been shot in the heart.

HILEMAN: Then I was holding hands with Christina on the sidewalk outside of Safeway. And we were just eyeball to eyeball. I don't believe I blinked. I know she didn't. And she was confused and scared and no words, but eyeball to eyeball. And I'm telling her that I love her and that she shouldn't leave me alone there on the sidewalk.

ROWLANDS: Christina was born on 9/11, something her parents talked about in the days after her death.

JOHN GREEN, CHRISTINA'S FATHER: It kind of does say something about our society that my daughter was born on a tragic day and she went out on a tragic day.

ROWLANDS: Steel from the World Trade Center, pieces of the Pentagon from 9/11, and two rocks from the flight 93 crash site were transported to Tucson last week by volunteers who were moved by Christina's story. The material was joined with a steel angel statue made in Christina's honor.

Christina's parents and older brother Dallas watched as the angel was unveiled at a ceremony attend by hundreds of people at the little league field where Christina played baseball.

GREEN: For a nine-year-old girl, she had an advanced idea about sense of community and caring for others. I think 9/11 had a bit to do with that. You know, unfortunately, January 8th this year, she lost her life. She's up there with god right now.

ROWLANDS: The little league field was renamed Green field in honor of a nine-year-old girl who won't be playing baseball anymore but who will never be forgotten.

Ted Rowlands, Oral Valley, Arizona.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HOLMES: We're about 20 minutes till the top of the hour now. Are we done talking about the so-called underdogs at the final four? If you make to it the final four, you earned your way there. But some are still causing the VCU of the world, even Butler, underdogs in today's big semifinal game in Houston.

Houston is where we find our Mark McKay. Hello to you. I don't know what would happen if VCU ended up winning the whole thing, but where why would we doubt them now?

MARK MCKAY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I don't think we should at all considering where they've made it to the final four city, T.J. Yes, the most improbable teams have converged on Houston to decide the NCAA men's basketball championship. You know, for first time there's not a number one or a number two seed represented, but this final four features a team that most certainly fits quite well in to Cinderella's slipper.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MCKAY: The sign says it all for VCU, a university of more than 32,000 students situated in the heart of Richmond, Virginia. It's a school now on the map thanks to its ambitious basketball team.

TIM LAYDEN, "SPORTS ILLUSTRATED" WRITER: Virginia Commonwealth was essentially the last team into this tournament on an inflated basis. One of the greater fields in the NCAA tournament was that the little guy can win. It is only supposed to happen on the first weekend, but to keep winning only heightens that appeal.

MCKAY: VCU's appeal reached stratospheric heights after they beat top seed Kansas in the southwest regional final. Richmond was the scene of raucous celebrations. And for these final four-bound players, they truly became big men on campus.

BRADFORD BURGESS, VCU GUARD: I tried to walk through the bookstore when the final four shirts came out, which was a mistake, because I was in there for like an hour, hour and a half, just trying to sign autographs and shake hands, you know, do all that.

ED NIXON, VCU GUARD: It's like we're the Beatles or something. I can't go get a sandwich without, you know, some people asking for an autograph or a photograph.

JAMIE SKEEN, VCU FORWARD: My teacher changed up her whole lesson plan just so she could talk about basketball. She related everything to basketball in sociology.

MCKAY: VCU players are feeling the love here in Houston from a number of their peers. The school held a lottery which for $25 a ticket gave 200 lucky students the chance to travel to Texas to experience the final four phenomenon.

ELIZABETH BOWLER, LOTTERY WINNER: When I got the e-mail, I was running around, I couldn't believe it. I still can't believe it.

RODRICK BROOKS, LOTTERY WINNER: I thought I had no chance. I actually just -- since it was only $25, I didn't want to miss such a cheap opportunity.

MCKAY: If there's a calming force in the midst of this emotional storm, it's VCU's youthful head coach. The 33-year-old Shaka Smart may look like he can suit up for a college team, but he's been able to instill a grown-up confidence into a group of fearless young men thanks in large part to the teachings of his mother.

SHAKA SMART, VCU HEAD COACH: The biggest thing I think she taught me is that when you are coaching or you are parenting it's not about you. It's about the kids.

MCKAY: Still thinks he can play. He thinks he's a better passer than me. I tried to tell him we're in the final four.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MCKAY: Love that youthful enthusiasm. If the rest of the world didn't know where VCU does, they certainly do now. With two wins the senior-laden team can put their mark on college basketball history. First, though, they got to get by those tenacious Butler Bulldogs tonight in Houston.

HOLMES: That was the Cinderella last year. Everybody is taking butler seriously this time around. Got to love Shaka Smart. Just love that name.

MCKAY: Fantastic, love it.

(LAUGHTER)

HOLMES: Mark, good to see you this morning.

As we get closer to the top of the hour now, it's tax time. Have you filed your taxes? Not yet? We want to tell you about some things you need to probably avoid. CNN money did research and came up with the craziest tax deductions the IRS has ever received. You should probably not try these.

Number five on the list, somebody tried to write off buffalo meat. Number four on the list, somebody tried to write off sponges. At number three, somebody actually tried to write off underwear. This was actually a musician who said it was part of his stage outfit.

So what are the top two wackiest tax deductions that the IRS has ever gotten? I'll have them for you in a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HOLMES: All right, about 12 minutes till the top of the hour now.

The deadline to file those taxes April 18th this year. If you have not filed yet, you got some items to leave off your deductions.

We told you these, some of the top five wackiest ever seen. Buffalo meat, sponges, underwear someone tried to write off once as well.

Number two that CNN research put together, a scientology class. They thought just matter buy the book, you'd be OK.

The number one wackiest tax deduction, prostitutes. A New York attorney that tried to write off some $65,000 for prostitutes, claiming that they were actually some kind of a medical expense. The IRS denied that one as well.

Let's turn to some politics now, shall we? Another full week for some of those possible Republican presidential candidates. CNN deputy political director Paul Steinhauser checking out their schedule.

PAUL STEINHAUSER, CNN DEPUTY POLITICAL DIRECTOR: Hey, T.J. You know it's a busy weekend in the race for the White House with some probable Republican presidential candidates in crucial states. Most make sense. How about Mitt Romney, he's in Nevada. Former Massachusetts governor ran last time around, he'll probably do it again in Nevada which holds an early contest in the race for the White House.

Tim Pawlenty is in Iowa. He's probably going to toss his hat in the ring and Iowa's caucuses, they go first. Rand Paul is also in Iowa. Wait a minute, rand Paul who was just elected to the Senate from Kentucky. He's the son of congressman Ron Paul who ran for the White House last time around and he may do so again. Rand Paul says he won't if his dad does. If he doesn't, then he just may make a bid. So say tuned. T.J.?

HOLMES: Thanks to Paul Steinhauser.

We'll transition to the royal wedding. It's coming up in a month. When you think about it, you may be thinking about wedding dresses, cakes, guests and that kind of stuff. But what if you were royal security? You're thinking about other things. You're thinking about what, breaking glass, panicked crowds. This is all part of getting ready for William and Kate's big day.

And ahead in next hour, could you pass the federal budget IQ test?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What percentage of the federal budget do you think we spend on foreign aid?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: About 40 percent.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: About 20 percent.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOLMES: They are way off. The answers for you at 11:00.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HOLMES: I feel like I need to get myself together when I hear that music. We're going to start making that the theme of the CNN Saturday show.

We're talking about the royal wedding. When you hear that music, that's what we'll be talking about. A lot of people into this stuff. It's a grand affair being attended by dignitaries and world leaders. But as our Dan Rivers now reports, it's also a prime target for protesters who hope to get some prime time attention.

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DAN RIVERS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: This is the nightmare scenario for those planning the royal wedding, anarchists attacking a car carrying the royal family. On this occasion, it was Prince Charles and Camilla, but this is the same car that will be used to take Kate Middleton to the wedding, and anarchists are vowing to do their best to interfere with the event.

CHARLIE VEITCH, ANARCHIST: For the royal wedding we'll see a disruption spectacular.

RIVERS: Charlie Veitch is an ex-city banker who was laid off and is now a committed anarchist protester. He was among this student protest against austerity cuts last year and is warning there will be more of the same on April the 29th, which he describes as --

VEITCH: A shock and awe campaign. It will involve a lot of fireworks. It will involve a lot of people dressed in black. It will involve a lot of very, very loud music.

RIVERS: Security expert Roy Ramm shows me the aftermath of the latest protest.

ROY RAMM, SECURITY ANALYST: You see them here doing this kind of damage, which is just completely ridiculous. This is just one window of hundreds.

RIVERS: He says the royal wedding presents an incredibly difficult challenge.

VEITCH: The police have got a job to get the public in, close up to the wedding, but they've got to keep the people who want to cause disorder and damage like we're seeing here away from the royal wedding. It could be immensely disruptive. You know, it's a very unenviable position the police are in.

RIVERS: The big problem for the police is getting evidence to stop the anarchists doing something before they get to the wedding route. There is talk of using stop and search powers. The problem is, who do they stop and search? Experts say intelligence before the big day will be crucial.

Anarchist websites are already humming with references to the wedding.

VEITCH: There are plans, which are being passed around online in encrypted forums and through encrypted e-mail which the government cannot hack, to basically disrupt the procession route as well.

RIVERS: But knowing exactly where to deploy riot police is tough. The protestors could strike at almost any location in central London.

COMMANDER BOB BROADHURST, LONDON METROPOLITAN POLICE: There's a lot of chatter out there, no real intelligence. But we must bear in mind people have the right to come and protest.

RIVERS: The anarchists will have to blend in with a crowd like this, and these staunch royalists could be the best defense the police have.

ANDY HAYMAN, LONDON METRO POLICE: I don't think it will be very easy for the anarchists to infiltrate. The great majority would stop that happening. On the other hand, if there was a pint of paint thrown, that would be a worldwide embarrassment.

RIVERS: An embarrassment that the police are trying to avoid, one that the anarchists would consider a huge victory.

Dan Rivers, CNN, London.

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HOLMES: And CNN's coverage starts bright and early, or dark and early I guess you could say, for a young Friday, April the 29th. That's the wedding day for them. You can win a trip to London to cover the royal wedding. Yes, you. If you think you're the ideal royal wedding reporter, submit your iReport at iReport/royalwedding, but get them to us by April 10th.

Also, another detail about this wedding. Have you heard that Prince William has decided he actually will not wear a wedding ring after he gets married? Do you have a problem with that? But also, women, do you have a problem if your husband wanted to do the same thing?

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HOLMES: All right, we asked your opinion today and boy, you gave it to us today. We are talking about Prince William he has decided he is not going to wear a wedding ring. His wife Kate is, he's not. Palace says he just doesn't like jewelry. See if that works. Well, if doesn't work for some of you all who tuned in today and chimed in on Facebook.

Andrew telling us that, "That's like having your cake and eating it too. The sisters I have dated would never have gone for that. I would have lost a finger." Well, Heather also says to us, "He doesn't really need to wear one". Talking about the Prince. "He can just get a tattoo on his finger instead, just as my husband did when he didn't want to wear a ring."

Also this one from Jyl posted on our blog. It says, she says, "My husband didn't want to wear a wedding ring, so being a reasonable person, I gave him a choice. A tattoo on his forehead saying, I'm married, or wear the ring." He's been wearing the ring now for over 25 year."

Thank you all for chiming in. Let's get this next hour started.