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Libyan Cease-Fire?; Massive Tornado in Iowa; Presidential Priorities; Boston School Improves Performance; Possible Tornado in Wisconsin; Donald Trump's Media Blitz; France Begins Burqa Ban

Aired April 10, 2011 - 22:00   ET

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

DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: Developing right now. A possible deal in the works to end the bloodshed in Libya. The African Union is saying Gadhafi is on board and asking NATO to cease fire. Will this work? A live report from Tripoli.

Up close and personal. One month after a natural disaster wipes some cities in Japan off the map, newly uncovered video from one family as they run for their lives, in their own words.

Caught on camera. Funnel clouds bearing down on the Midwest. The damage is heavy, and there's more to come with tornado warnings in effect as we go on the air tonight.

I'm Don Lemon at the CNN world headquarters in Atlanta. The news starts right now.

And we begin with a developing story out of Libya. There may be a breakthrough in the attempt to end a nearly two-month-old civil war. African leaders say Moammar Gadhafi has agreed in principle to a road map for peace, but the deal isn't done yet. The delegation is headed to Benghazi tomorrow to talk to the opposition, a group very skeptical about Gadhafi's ties to the AU. CNN's Frederik Pleitgen with our top story tonight from Tripoli.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice over): A defiant Moammar Gadhafi waves to crowds of supporters at his compound in Tripoli. The Libyan leader trying to display confidence as many world leaders are calling for him to relinquish power. Gadhafi met with African Union leaders who are on a mission to stop the fighting between his forces and the rebels.

(on camera): It's been a very long time since we've been able to get this close to Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi. This is clearly a very important moment for him here with these leaders of the African Union. They say they want to broker a cease-fire as fast as possible.

(voice over): Late Sunday night, the AU announced progress. Gadhafi has allegedly agreed to terms for negotiations laid out by the African Union, including an immediate cease-fire and the need for a force to monitor the truce according to South Africa's president. JACOB ZUMA, SOUTH AFRICAN PRESIDENT: I think it's sufficient for me to say as the leader of this delegation they have accepted the roadmap as presented by the high panel.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LEMON: And for more on this, we're joined now by Frederik Pleitgen. He is in Tripoli.

Frederik, we heard talk of a cease-fire before. Any indications that this will work?

PLEITGEN: Well, there certainly are a lot of people who are very skeptical about whether or not this has any chance of working. One of the things that's clearly a big problem is that the Gadhafi troops and Gadhafi himself has announced unilateral cease-fire before, and yet NATO keeps saying that he is still shelling civilians in places like Misrata and also in Eastern Libya.

So, certainly, judging from the past, it doesn't seem to be very much hope there that he will actually stick to a cease-fire.

The other thing is that, yes, the Libyan rebels are very, very skeptical of this initiative by the African Union simply because they are still very close to Gadhafi. Gadhafi has given a lot of money to this organization in the past to allow the countries who are members of the African Union in the past. And clearly, Jacob Zuma, in particular, the head of South Africa, and right now the leader of this initiative by the African Union, is someone who from the get-go is very, very skeptical of the no-fly zone, of the U.N. resolution.

So, certainly, it is a group that the rebels will see if they would buy it. We'll see tomorrow as to whether or not the rebels are willing to even talk about this initiative. I would say the most positive thing about this, Don, is at least some group is making an effort to try and get these two sides to start talking, Don.

LEMON: All right. This will be the big story tomorrow. Thank you, Frederik Pleitgen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is a pretty strong-looking elephant trunk nighttime tornado. Two of them, dual funnels, look at that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: Yes, just look at that indeed. That's the voice of a very brave storm chaser, and this is the incredible nighttime video that he shot as two ferocious funnel clouds pummeled rural Iowa.

In total, three tornadoes ripped through the state on Saturday, but this one was by far the worst, a quarter mile-long twister that leveled entire blocks of the tiny Iowa town of Mapleton. Miraculously, though, no one was killed. Only minor injuries to report to you tonight. But it did leave this behind. There's the damage, so devastating that the governor declared it a disaster area. Today, shell-shocked residents returned to see what, if anything, was still standing. The Red Cross and the National Guard are in the state right now. Officials say utilities could be out for two weeks. More on this in just a moment here on CNN.

We want to go to North Carolina right now. Hail as large as baseballs. That's what people saw just outside of Charlotte last night. Hail so large it easily shattered car windows.

It's a very nasty storm, and it swept through the Carolinas, causing quite a bit of damage. Nine people were injured when they were hit by lightning at a dog show in Burke County in Western North Carolina.

You can hear the burning sound right there. That is wildfires. They continue to burn through tens of thousands of acres across North and West Texas. Bracing for what could have been one of the biggest outbreaks of wildfires in state history, the Texas Forest Service now says firefighters have gotten the upper hand, finally. Six new fires that started today were quickly brought under control.

That is north of the Texas border. That's in Oklahoma today. The governor extended a state of emergency for seven counties to help battle wildfires. A prolonged drought isn't helping, as firefighters on the ground and in the air battle hot spots for this enormous grass fire near the town of Cleveland. More than 350 people were forced to flee the area. So far, there have been no reports of injuries.

And folks in Fargo, North Dakota, are breathing a little easier tonight. That's because, so far, those dikes and sandbags holding back the bloated Red River have worked. The river crested at near 40 feet earlier today. Just under the 44-foot levee. Lighter than expected rainstorms also helped stave off massive flooding.

Our Karen Maginnis joins us now at the CNN severe weather center.

It is not over yet and I said, as we go on the air tonight, you still have tornado warnings in some parts of the country. Bad weather all over.

KAREN MAGINNIS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: We've got a wide swath of real estate of the central United States that is engulfed by the severe weather extending all the way from Wisconsin and Michigan down towards Dallas. Take a look at this line, and along it we are seeing embedded thunderstorms. Some of these embedded thunderstorms capable of producing heavy downpours, frequent lightning and the possibility of tornadoes.

Had a report just to the west of Oshkosh, Wisconsin. They are saying that could possibly be a tornado. Doppler radar indicated some twisting in the atmosphere. Here you see these purple-shaded areas. Those indicate tornado warnings which expire over the next several minutes.

Green Bay, you're just in line for the storms to move in your direction as well.

We've got some pictures from the aftermath of the Mapleton, Iowa. Take a look at this. It bent over telephone poles. They are saying this was an EF3, an Enhanced Fujita 3. Winds topping 165 miles per hour. Minor injuries reported here. The Red Cross at one point was going in to do an assessment and to help the folks there, and now they were saying that there was the potential for a gas leak there. So, major repairs to be done there over the months, in fact, years.

LEMON: And on Sunday nights, we try to get people up to speed on what their commute might be like tomorrow.

So, tomorrow's commute tonight, Karen?

MAGINNIS: Yes. We've got some idea of what we can expect and then that Northeastern Corridor, we're looking at perhaps the lengthiest delays as this weather system moves very fast across the Northeast.

Chicago, I think you'll start out with some clouds. You'll certainly see some wet weather in store. Delays not going to be very significant. Out of the Washington, D.C. metro areas, also in Philadelphia, you're looking at windy conditions starting the morning out with clouds, maybe rain later in the day. Salt Lake City, it is snowfall over the next several days.

LEMON: Snow, rain, hail, fire, and wind from the tornado.

MAGINNIS: Yes. A lot happening. OK.

LEMON: Thank you very much, Karen Maginnis.

Bitter fighting in the Ivory Coast to tell you about. Bodies litter the streets. Refugees are fleeing the country as two politicians battle for control. We have the latest coming up.

Plus, incredible video of the moment the tsunami hit the Japanese coast. It is new video of a couple who recorded it. Their narrow escape on camera.

And here's a reminder for you. You have a voice on this show. It's as easy as logging on. You can find me at donlemoncnn on Twitter, in Facebook at cnn.com/don and on FourSquare.com/donlemoncnn.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: The civil war in the Ivory Coast leads our top stories at this hour. The United Nations is getting aggressive there. Today, its military helicopters fired on this naval base and other weapons positions of self-declared President Laurent Gbagbo. He has violently refused to step down since losing reelection in November. U.N. officials say they had to take out Gbagbo's strongholds to prevent his use of heavy weapons on more civilians and U.N. peacekeepers.

Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi made a rare public appearance today during a break in his negotiations with African leaders. During those talks, African Union officials say Gadhafi agreed to a "roadmap for peace" to end his country's civil war. No details were released, but it's believed to include an immediate cease-fire. The AU delegation will travel to Benghazi tomorrow for talks with the opposition.

Former Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak is speaking out for the first time since the revolution that ousted him from power two months ago. In an audio message aired by Al Arabiya TV, Mubarak denied he amassed billions in wealth during three years in power -- three decades in power. His remarks come as a public prosecutor wants to question Mubarak and his sons about violence against protesters and corruption allegations.

Monday marks one month since a massive earthquake and tsunami devastated Japan and triggered a nuclear crisis. Today, about 2,000 protesters march in front of TEPCO, the headquarters in Tokyo, calling for Japan's nuclear power stations to be shut down. Protesters say they are concerned about the long-term effects of radiation.

The 75th Masters Golf Tournament is history, and we have a new champion. He is not a household name. He is Charl Schwartzel, a 26- year-old South African. Schwartzel finished with a 66 today with birdies on the final four holes for a two-stroke victory. Tiger Woods closed with a 67 and tied for fourth, four strokes back.

We've seen some incredible video from the earthquake and tsunami in Japan. And coming up, new video that shows a couple who barely escaped the powerful tsunami.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

(SIRENS BLARING)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: That was the sound of emergency alarms just moments after that massive tsunami washed up on the Japanese coast one month ago, a month since we first heard the news. First saw the devastating pictures of the tsunami and the earthquake that spawned it. And even after an entire month, firsthand accounts are still coming in. We came across a new one today and it conveys the personal horror that people felt in a way few videos have. Now as you watch this video, you'll hear the terrified voices of a couple as they watch the tsunami crash ashore and then run for their lives.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

(VOICES SPEAKING IN FOREIGN LANGUAGE)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: And now to the nuclear disaster there. The crisis that has crippled the Fukushima Daiichi Power Plant has many in this disaster-torn country on edge. But one journalist determined to get the facts traveled deep into the evacuation zone to monitor radiation levels and see the damage for himself, and what he saw was surreal.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

LEMON (voice over): With radiation detectors on the dash, they enter the evacuation zone just 30 kilometers, 18 1/2 miles from the highly radioactive nuclear plant.

The radiation levels are detectable 21 kilometers from the reactors. Stray dogs roam freely.

As they get closer, 20 kilometers, no traffic lights and only two other cars on the road.

And at 17 kilometers, the radiation levels set off the detectors alarm. And they see truck drivers in radiation-proof suits and heavy- duty gas masks.

And at 15 kilometers in, higher radiation levels and the road is out. They have to find another route via GPS. Along the way, more farm animals and, except for a few lone drivers, this town is abandoned.

At 3 kilometers, they have to get out and walk. The levels keep rising. The damage is unimaginable. More walking. More abandoned dogs. Somehow, they find a way around the damage by car. And finally, their mission to the infamous Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant, just under a mile away, mission terminated.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LEMON: And we have some breaking news we want to tell you about. Our Karen Maginnis at the top of this broadcast told you about the bad weather hitting a wide swath of the country, particularly tornadoes and warnings. We're hearing that a tornado has been spotted now in Green Bay.

Karen Maginnis, tell us what's going on.

MAGINNIS: Well, Don, we have a tornado that has been spotted by storm spotters just to the north of Brillion. Now Brillion is to the east or to the west of Green Bay. And what we're looking at is quite a bit of activity in the area. We don't have any reports. They say it's a tornado from weather spotters, and it looks to be that -- if they say it's a tornado, that must mean it's on the ground as opposed to a funnel cloud, but it is this particular cluster or this particular super cell.

Here we go with Sheboygan down here, so just to give you kind of an idea of where there is. But it is this cell right here that trained storm spotters say that there was a tornado spotted right across or just to the north of Brillion. And the tornado warning will expire in just about 10 or 12 minutes from now, but we'll keep you updated on that -- Don.

LEMON: Karen Maginnis, thank you. Keep an eye on that. Again, a tornado spotted on the ground, according to our meteorologist and storm spotters who are in the Green Bay area. So, take cover if you're anywhere in that area.

MAGINNIS: Exactly.

LEMON: Yes. All right. Thank you, Karen.

Make sure you stay tuned because we'll continue to report on that.

A shutdown averted, I want to tell you about. A memorial remains open. So what happens next? President Obama headed out to greet the people after that late-night budget deal on Friday, but the battles ahead could be even tougher. We'll preview the next budget showdown straight ahead.

But first, over the next few weeks, high school seniors will make their final decisions about where to attend college, then comes the scramble to pay for it all. Our Christine Romans is in New York for us, "Mastering Your Money."

Christine?

CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Don, if you're taking out a bunch of loans, you have to be smart about it. First, gone are the days of the five year plan. Tuition is up 400 percent since 1982. I'm not kidding. You just can't afford to stick around. You also can't afford to switch majors three times.

Make a plan and stick to it. The key is to find out what you're good at, what you enjoy and what someone will pay you to do.

And how much money should you borrow for college? A good rule of thumb is this. Don't borrow more money than you expect to earn in your first year working. That's another reminder that we all need to be saving more -- Don.

LEMON: All right, Christine. Thank you very much.

Back with more news after a break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: There we go.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: All right. That is President Obama two days after taking office signing an executive order to close the prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, but it never happened. In fact, this week his administration gave up plans to try the self-proclaimed 9/11 mastermind in a civilian court. Instead, he'll face a military tribunal at, yes, Guantanamo.

It's a story you might not have heard about with all the budget debate that has been going on. We want to talk about both of these stories now with Errol Louis. He is a CNN contributor and a political anchor for New York One News.

So, Errol, good to see you again. Did people who voted for Barack Obama expect, ever expect, him to be bragging about spending cuts and holding military trials at Guantanamo Bay?

ERROL LOUIS, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: Well, the first, maybe, the second, definitely not. He signed an executive order to close down Guantanamo within a year. Those are one of the very first executive orders that he signed. It was something he talked about incessantly on the campaign trail. It was a big, big part of his appeal. It was a big part of his campaign. And it's all but gone now. And, in fact, the announcement happened to come on the same day that he announced that he was running for re-election.

So, in some ways, he stepped on his own story. Clearly Eric Holder, his attorney general, was not happy at having to make that announcement.

The reality is that reality intervened at a time when it was -- we had to sort of make a decision about are we going to try these people in civilian courts the way the president had promised. It turned out nobody wanted to do it, not New York, not even the president's home state of Illinois. And so the polls show that a majority of the country actually likes what he did by sending the whole thing back to Guantanamo, but no question that it's a major campaign promise that was just absolutely broken.

LEMON: So as you said it's a political reality setting in. What about the timing? Did they time it that way on purpose to sort of downplay the headline of this?

LOUIS: You know, it's interesting. I talked to a number of political consultants who couldn't believe that the president had stepped on his own re-election message in that it was done very in- artfully. That it could have been done on a Friday night or it could have been done in some other way.

Certainly, the attorney general did not have to stand at a podium and rail against the decision, even as he was announcing it, basically saying that he was doing it under protest. But this -- this White House, look, the press operation, their messaging is not perfect. This is a case, though, that they were clearly just beaten. They were simply thwarted and, again, it was the mood of the country that changed. It was the Congress that changed. In the end, they had no choice but to throw in the towel.

LEMON: You said they could have done it on a Friday night. But he's a little bit busy on Friday, and on that note -- on the budget, how would you assess his performance?

LOUIS: Well, I think the president came out of it fine. I mean, almost everybody involved really can claim some measure of victory, and as you folks have been reporting, this really just sets the stage for the next showdown, and the next showdown is a real one.

If a few tourists can't go to see the Statue of Liberty or the Lincoln Memorial, that's unfortunate. If military pay and other federal employees get furloughed or they get their money delayed, that's also unfortunate. Failing to raise the $14 trillion debt ceiling in mid-May, when it comes due, and this is now what the next phase of the budget showdown is.

If the Republicans make good on their threat to not raise the debt ceiling, the United States would default on bond payments for the first time in the country's history. It would be -- it would be a financial Armageddon. Ben Bernanke, the chairman of the Federal Reserve, said it would be a recovery ending event. It would basically plunge the nation into an even deeper recession and the repercussions would be profound. They would be severe, and they would be permanent.

So, the president --

LEMON: Affecting the markets, not only here in the U.S. but worldwide, as you said. It has an overall effect on the economy.

Listen, I want to ask you about one of the big stories last week besides the budget, and that is Donald Trump and this whole birther issue.

You have interviewed him. You know him. What do you make of this?

LOUIS: You know, there's -- there's a narrow political sense in which what he's doing makes perfect sense. If you see a poll saying that four out of five Republicans think that the birther issue, the notion that the president might not be perfectly up front about where and how he was born, four out of five Republicans like that.

If you want to be the Republican nominee, then, you know, expressing some sympathy for that point of view makes some sense. To the rest of the world, including the independent voters who are going to decide who the next president is and whether or not this current president keeps his job, to them this is complete craziness and certainly to Democrats. So Donald Trump is playing primary politics on the Republican side, and the polls show that it seems to be working.

LEMON: Errol Louis, that would have to be the last word. Thank you. Have a great rest of your Sunday evening.

LOUIS: You, too, Don.

LEMON: Up next, one of the lowest performing schools in Boston attempts a turnaround.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: A crisis in American education.

The race is on to transform terrible schools into top performers. President Obama is taking drastic steps. His administration shelling out millions to fix the country's worst schools. CNN's Suzanne Malveaux visited a school in Boston that's receiving some of that money. Officials there say their once troubled school is now on the path to excellence.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Thirteen-year- old Eric Hall is in the seventh grade at Orchards Gardens, one of Boston's poorest performing schools. He says he has seen a lot since he started in kindergarten.

ERIC HALL, SEVENTH GRADE STUDENT: I have seen different teachers and different principals. I'm seeing students come and go.

MALVEAUX: But this year is different.

HALL: Now there's gym, writing, reading, math. I am pretty much enjoying all of my classes.

MALVEAUX: That's because Orchard Gardens is one of 5,000 schools around the country getting millions of dollars from the federal government to turn around. The goal, to become a top-performing school. We first visited principal, Andrew Bott last September.

ANDREW BOTT, PRINCIPAL: We need to do something bold. We need to restart Orchard Gardens.

MALVEAUX: He hand-picked his staff to replace the 80 percent he fired. The turnaround rules mandate he replace at least half. He also has $3.7 million in grants to help him over the next three years. Seven months into the year, with standardized test season in full swing, we checked back in.

BOTT: I did not imagine we would be this far. I know that within three years, we can have over 90 percent of our kids proficient or advanced and on a college track.

MALVEAUX: These could be monumental gains when you consider only 10 percent of the students were proficient in years past.

BOTT: Now, we are anywhere from 35 percent to 50 percent proficient in English and anywhere from 15 percent to 75 percent proficient in math.

MALVEAUX: These are projections. Official scores from state tests won't be available until this summer. Justin Cohen works to improve failing schools. He calls Bott's goals ambitious and cautions against declaring early victory.

JUSTIN COHEN, MASS INSIGHT: What happens is schools that have achieved fragile gains can often slide right back into underperformance once resources are taken away or attention is distracted.

MALVEAUX: He says there's more at stake. COHEN: What I worry about with school turnaround is we hit a plateau, or we increase student's scores to some extent, but we're still performing well below their peers and more affluent neighborhoods.

MALVEAUX: At Orchard Gardens, the improvements go beyond test scores.

ANDREW VEGA, TEACHER: Behavior, it's night and day.

MALVEAUX: Eric Hall thinks his school is doing something right.

HALL: When I found out that this was a turnaround school, I thought it was going to be like headaches every day. But it's -- they actually made it fun.

MALVEAUX: Reporting for "In America," I'm Suzanne Malveaux.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LEMON: How can America compete if our kids don't learn the skills they need to excel?

CNN's Soledad O'Brien is examining our public school. Her report -- her special "DON'T FAIL ME: EDUCATION IN AMERICA" airs May 15 at 8:00 p.m. Eastern.

Some are calling it an obsession. We're talking about Donald Trump's questioning the birth place of President Barack Obama.

This week, he's gotten a lot more vocal, making the rounds on some of the national talk shows including right here on CNN.

Why is he pushing this issue again?

Plus the president's aunt has a few words for the Donald as well. You don't want to miss what she has to say.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: All right. Look at this new video in.

It shows you really just how powerful that storm system that is going through a big part of the country.

Look at that. This is Merrill, Wisconsin, and that tornado or tornadoes that hit there really did some major damage.

Our Karen Maginnis joins us now from the CNN severe weather center.

Karen, look at that. That wasn't something that was weak that hit that area.

MAGINNIS: No, and Don, we are saying possible tornado because it is the local national weather service that comes out and takes a look at this and assesses just how much damage, what force it took to bring some of this buildings down.

There's a report coming for the Lincoln County Sheriff's Department. The 911 administrator who said 25 homes were partially or totally destroyed or damaged in some way. We don't have confirmation that it was a tornado, but there has been tornadic activity across that area and now is occurring in the thumb region of Wisconsin, and we're watching that.

LEMON: Yes. They don't even know how many people have been injured yet. They haven't had time to assess that, but, boy, as you said tornadic activity there. It's just amazing.

MAGINNIS: It is.

LEMON: Downed power lines, trees and you saw all of it. I'm just reading the note again from the Lincoln County Sheriff. Probably the same note that you have. Unbelievable, Karen. So be careful.

Look -- and again, this video is coming in to us from Merrill, Wisconsin, And our meteorologist Karen Maginnis was just reporting what happened in that area and giving the very latest from the Lincoln County Sheriff there. Still trying to figure out exactly how much damage? How many injuries? Many of them had to transport themselves to the hospital, and they don't have a count from the hospitals yet. We'll keep on top of that.

Let's move on now and talk about Donald Trump. He's been all over the media this week telling anyone who will listen that he's not sure President Obama was born in this country and, therefore, shouldn't even be president. He says it could be one of the biggest scams ever perpetrated on the American people.

Look at just some of what he has been espousing.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, ENTREPRENEUR: Three weeks ago when I started I thought he was probably born in this country. And now I really have a bigger doubt.

I just say very simply, why doesn't he show his birth certificate? There's a huge difference between a birth certificate -- and I can show you mine and it's upstairs and it's in great detail and it's certified by everybody and it's got signatures all over it.

His own family doesn't know what hospital he was born in Hawaii. But you have no hospital records in any of the hospitals that he was born in, no bills, no room numbers, no nothing.

Either they don't have one, which is very bad, or there's something on it that he doesn't want people to see. And I think that would be the lesser of two evils, no matter what's on it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: The president and the administration have said their peace about this. Now the president's family is also weighing in.

And our affiliate WHDH caught up with President Obama's aunt who lives in Boston.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You're saying Donald Trump is lying?

ZEITUNI ONYANGO, PRESIDENT OBAMA'S AUNT: A naked lie. In the name of the Lord.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What would you like to say to Donald Trump?

ONYANGO: That I respect him and I respect his wealth, but I only demand him to respect us.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: I discussed Donald Trump's media blitz and his relentless pursuit of the president's birth certificate with presidential historian Douglas Brinkley. And I asked him about Trump's accusations.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PROF. DOUGLAS BRINKLEY, PRESIDENTIAL HISTORIAN: To be calling our nation's first African-American president, making charges that he isn't born here and that you're suspicious and you're hiring private detectives on him. This smacks of the worst aspects of Pinkerton police or McCarthyism. I don't know why Trump feels this is OK to be injecting this sort of poison into our national dialogue at this point.

But it's only out of his own self-interest. Maybe in the end Trump's always just been about Trump, not really what's good for America. But certainly making these kind of allegations against the president of the United States is just it's both silly and it's deeply disrespectful.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: And still to come here on CNN, after more than a year of controversy, the ban on burqas becomes a reality tomorrow in France. We'll tell you about the 11th hour efforts to stop the law against religious face cover.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: Now to the big stories for the week ahead.

From the Capitol to Tinsel Town, we've got you covered, starting tonight at the White House.

ED HENRY, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: I'm Ed Henry at the White House, where this week, President Obama will focus on putting the finishing touches on that big budget deal. But top aids say he's also likely to talk about the rising cost of gasoline. They realize that the price at the pump will become a bigger and bigger issue as we get closer and closer to the 2012 election.

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORREPSONDENT: I'm Brianna Keilar on Capitol Hill. And this week, we are expecting the House to vote on the budget for 2011, the product of that deal that was brokered at the last minute Friday night. And then the Senate should follow suit. But as soon as one fight to reign in spending ends, another begins. The House will start debate on the budget for 2012. It's Republican proposed. It includes a controversial plan to overhaul Medicare and Medicaid. That vote is expected Friday.

PAUL STEINHAUSER, CNN POLITICAL DIRECTOR: I'm Paul Steinhauser at the CNN political desk. Friday is April 15th, the traditional deadline date for Americans to pay their taxes. And a bunch of Republicans who probably will run for the White House will be out in force that day at Tea Party rallies in the crucial early voting states of New Hampshire and South Carolina.

The next day, Donald trump gets into the act. The real estate mogul and reality TV star who says he just might run for president. He headlines a Tea Party rally in Florida.

A.J. HAMMER, HOST, SHOWBIZ TONIGHT: I'm "Showbiz Tonight's" A.J. Hammer. The "TV Land" awards are being given out tonight and will feature amazing reunions of the cast of "Welcome Back Kotter" and "Family Ties."

And we're expecting big news to break tonight at the latest of Charlie Sheen's New York City show. Of course, we are right there so we'll have complete coverage on Monday.

"Showbiz Tonight," live at 5:00 p.m. on HLN. And we are still TVs most provocative entertainment news show at 11:00 p.m. Eastern and Pacific.

LEMON: Now to news beyond our shores.

A major controversy is about to play out, Monday, in France. It is the first day of a new law banning burqas. Those are face covering some Muslim women wear.

Is religious freedom under attack, or is this a matter of equal rights for women?

CNN international editor, Azadeh Ansari joins me now.

There have been some small protests this weekend. So what's going to happen on Monday, Azadeh?

AZADEH ANSARI, CNN INTERNATIONAL DESK EDITOR: Well, we're expecting to have a silent protest march against the full covering of the face and the burqa ban that's in place.

Now, I want to stress that this does not extend itself to women wearing the head scarf or the chadora which is the longer veiling, it's just for people who are covering their face. You know, women who are covering their face, and it's looked as a way -- they are saying it's a security threat of some sort because of the fact that you can't see their faces, but the women are saying, go ahead --

LEMON: Yes, you were saying that this isn't -- they don't cover themselves because of religious reasons. The face at least, these are social reasons they do this.

ANSARI: Well, some religious figures -- some Islamic clerics would say that, you know, it's not a Muslim thing to do, you know, to cover your face. You just have to cover your body and your hair and what not, but the face covering is more of a cultural tradition or a societal tradition.

LEMON: Yes. But again, and so to many people it is insulting that there is going to be a ban, and they are being told that they can't do it.

ANSARI: Right.

LEMON: In the scheme of things, how many people will this affect?

ANSARI: Well, if you look at the general population, you have 65 roughly million people in France. Of that 65 million, you have 5 percent to 10 percent that are Muslim, and a smaller percentage even of that wears the veil. We're looking at less than 2,000 women that are going to be affected by this.

LEMON: What happens if they don't do it, if they defy it and still wear it?

ANSARI: Well, there's a fine that's going to be imposed, and it's about 150 euros, roughly translating to about $200. But they're going to be taken into custody and questioned. And, you know, that -- that's the interesting part, Don is how are they actually going to enforce this? There's a lot of talk, but to actually see what happens when they defy it remains to be something we're looking for.

LEMON: What about support among the French? Do they support this ban?

ANSARI: They do. There was a pool that was conducted by the Pew Research Center, and they said that 82 percent of the citizens, the French citizens, do support this. So -- and, you know, interestingly enough in America though, two out of three say that they -- they don't.

LEMON: They don't support it.

Well, we're going to be watching it because we're concerned about security as well, and if this sets a precedent, you know, we'll see.

Azadeh Ansari, thank you. We appreciate it.

ANSARI: Always a pleasure. Thank you. LEMON: Back now to America and a recent ruling in Arizona.

It's a serious reminder for parents there. If your kids steal your car, you're stuck paying whatever damage is caused. And we'll explain on the other side of the break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: Now it's time to talk issues with Jane Velez-Mitchell. She hosts a show of that name on our sister network HLN.

This week Jane has been showing her outrage over the release of this Utah man, Lonnie Johnson.

Our affiliate KTVX reports he is now escaping prosecution on child sex assault charges because of a legal technicality.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JANE VELEZ-MITCHELL, CONTRIBUTOR, ISSUES: It is absolutely insane. It's happening in Utah. This guy, who was convicted of raping a teenage girl, is now accused of 21 sex-related crimes involving children, is being let go because of a loophole. Apparently, he's incompetent to stand trial because of some mystery cognitive disorder. And nobody can tell us exactly what that is. But by the same token, shrinks have decided he's not a danger to society so they can't keep him many a mental ward. So he is apparently free to go.

Now people are up in arms over this, particularly the mother of one of the victims. Listen to her.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHRISTY DANNER, MOTHER OF SEXUAL ASSAULT VICTIM: So we just wait for more victims and then he uses the same loophole? Is that what we're being told? How many victims do we need before we close this loophole?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: Jane, you know, I was thinking the same thing the mom said there. Because usually when someone has this sort of behavior, they'll say you usually can't fix that sort of behavior.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Absolutely. It's very hard to rehabilitate somebody who wants to have sex with children. And he is convicted of having sex with a 17-year-old girl. Nevertheless, they've decided he's not a danger to society, even though he's facing a slew of sex- related counts involving children. And apparently, the problem is that a danger to society is defined as physically injuring someone.

So apparently, you can destroy a child's life emotionally but, as long as you don't leave a bruise, you're not a danger to society. That doesn't make a lot of sense to me. LEMON: Oh, boy. All right, let's go on and talk about, when will people realize that it's just sports, it's just sports. This Giants fan beaten at the Dodgers' season opener, this guy, 41 years old, never had a fight in his life. And now he is fighting for his life.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: This is absolutely obscene. And this is a strapping guy, so you can imagine what must have happened to him in the parking lot of Dodgers Stadium to leave this poor man in a coma. And what really upsets me is that apparently at least a hundred people watched this. It was in the parking lot of Dodgers Stadium after a game. And nobody came to his aid? And they don't even have a video of this attack, even though it happened in the parking lot? This is really a breakdown.

They are searching for these thugs who beat this father, this paramedic, this nice guy into a coma, all because he's a Giants fan and he had the nerve to show up at Dodgers Stadium? This is insanity to me, Don. I can't believe that we've let America's favorite pastime devolve into something that looks more like professional wrestling.

LEMON: Yes. And you can tell he comes from a good family because his family is thanking everyone for the outpouring of support they've received nationwide for this obviously just brutal attack that didn't need to happen.

Let's talk now about parental responsibility here, Jane. We hear so much about that. 17-year-old, involved in an accident, a teenager, and now the parents are going to have to pay for the injuries, even though the 17-year-old was driving without their knowledge, driving their parents' car.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Yes. And this is really a wake-up call to parents everywhere. Watch your kids.

LEMON: Right.

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Because if they're old enough to get behind a wheel and take off, and they do some horrific damage, which is exactly what happened in this case, it's on you, mom and dad. And so it really is a wake-up call to parents out there.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LEMON: Make sure you watch "Issues With Jane Velez-Mitchell" every night, 7:00 p.m. Eastern on HLN.

OK, we told you about the severe weather hitting big parts of the country, especially in the Midwest and down south. Now we're hearing about tornadic activity in Texas.

MAGINNIS: We are, and let's start off and show you some of the video coming out of Merrill, Wisconsin, and then we'll tell you about Texas.

In Merrill, north of Wausau, Wisconsin, the east central portion of the state. Take a look at the video that comes out of Lincoln County. They are saying that 25 homes partially are completely destroyed. They had some injuries. Most of those people not considered life-threatening injuries. Most of them had to drive themselves to the hospital. This is going to take some time to remedy.

We want to get to Texas pretty quickly here. We'll go on down and slide on through the Midwestern United States, where we're seeing this outbreak of severe weather.

There's a place called a Net. This is outside the Dallas Fort Worth Metroplex region. This particular sell right here, they are saying, meteorologists say they suspect that there's a tornado associated with this super cell.

LEMON: So be very, very careful and make sure you tune in tomorrow morning at 6:00 a.m. Eastern for "AMERICAN MORNING" for the very latest.

I'm Don Lemon. Thanks for watching. Good night.