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Tornado Hits Clinton, Mississippi Friday; Nicolas Cage Arrested for Domestic Abuse; Trump Meets the Tea Party

Aired April 16, 2011 - 17:00   ET

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

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DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: Right now on CNN.

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DONALD TRUMP, BUSINESSMAN: Our current president...

(BOOS)

They all want me to say "you're fired." I mean, this is been like...

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LEMON: You're fired. What else did Donald Trump say about President Obama? We're live at the Tea Party rally where he's speaking today.

And you're looking at Nicolas Cage's mug shot. The actor was hauled off to jail late last night in New Orleans. Did he rough up a woman?

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UNIDENTIFIED MAN: Holy crap.

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LEMON: Yes. Holy crap is right. Tornadoes, hail, and rain living a trail of death and destruction. Still on the move right now, and as we go on the air, more tornado warnings in a big part of our country. And we begin with the severe weather. Of course, as powerful weather system has ripped a path from southeast, up in the southwest to the southeast, and now it is headed to the mid-Atlantic, Jacqui Jeras.

JACQUI JERAS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: It's been an unbelievable day, Don. We have had a number of unconfirmed tornadoes, lots of damage. Come along here and take the clip, this is coming in live as we speak. This is the first time I have seen it, so, it's raw video, so keep in mind, it's not going to be pretty and edited. This is from Raleigh- Durham, North Carolina, this is our affiliate, WTVD TV, it's about an hour ago that a large tornado was confirmed on the south side of town, moved all the way through the city, and continues to be on the move at this hour. Quite a big a damage, we're hearing from homes, as well as power lines down, trees down. Take a look at all this damage. Just really, really incredible. We have been in a touch with those affiliates there. We have not heard any reports of injuries as of this time, of course that could change but we'll keep you up to date as information continues to unfold out of Raleigh-Durham in North Carolina. Now, that severe weather threat stretching from South Carolina through the mid- Atlantic, these are tornado watches in effect mean conditions are favorable for tornadoes to develop. And those southern watches that we're watching in the Carolina, that will be called a PDS watch, or particularly dangerous situation where we expect large and violent tornadoes stay on the ground for a long period of time, and that's exactly what's happening.

All right. Let's talk about some of these warnings which are in effect. We've got two storms right now, this one right now, we just got roared on a Smithfield, that we has some extensive damage at that area, some depriving reported at the hospital, tornado emergency in effect from Microkenry (ph), Lucomma, those are all serious towns in this area, right along I-95, it's where the storms going to be moving, eventually, heading up towards Rocky Mountain. The second one, this is the one that already moved through the Raleigh area. We're getting reports now of its tornado on the ground. This is for Louisburg, Centerville, Arcola, Airly (ph), Littleton, and Rose Mary, only to be taking cover as we speak. It's on the lowest level of your home, away from doors and windows. When those sirens go off today, you need to take it seriously.

This is a really rare day for the Carolinas. Days like this only happens a couple of times a year, to see an outbreak like this. Really, really incredible. Take a look at all the purple boxes, those are tornado warnings. We told you about the two that have the confirmed tornadoes on them. And then we want to tell you what is going on in the mid-Atlantic, into Washington, D.C. and Baltimore. You guys are doing OK right now. But look at this line of severe thunderstorms. They're capable of producing winds around 70 miles per hour. A lot of hail expected with this storm as well. So, you need to be getting in a place that is indoors, a safe place before the storms roll on through because you just really haven't seen anything just yet for today.

Here is a big picture, look at the severe weather outbreak today. It's the pink area where the greatest concern is, and it really stretches from Sicily (ph), on southward. Best thing I can tell you about today is that tomorrow is right around the corner Don, and we're not expecting any more severe weather out of the system.

LEMON: That's good. But still, it's got to finish.

JERAS: It can be rough by another couple hours ago. Yes.

LEMON: Thank you very much, Jacqui Jeras, we appreciate it.

You'll the first to feel the storm's brunt on Thursday, Arkansas and Oklahoma. Nine people died. On Friday, a weather watcher captured the funnel cloud forming and people are scrambling in Clinton, Mississippi where one person died.

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UNIDENTIFIED WOMAN: They told us to take cover, and I went in the bathroom, we didn't shut the door, and this roof fell on my head, and so I stayed until it was over, and I don't have anything left.

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LEMON: Mississippi's governor declared a state of emergency.

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UNIDENTIFIED MAN: Wow. Holy crap.

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LEMON: Yes. The sparks flew in Mississippi with tornadoes touched down in six counties. Six people are dead, forcing another state of emergency.

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UNIDENTIFIED MAN: Did you get that? Wow.

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LEMON: Late last night, it was Georgia's turn. In an Alabama suburb, a reporter gets rattled by the power and sound of thunder and lighting. Meantime, rescuers went over drive, they hit the free one family who scrambled to the lowest part of their home.

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UNIDENTIFIED MAN: Where were you guys inside the house when the storm here?

UNIDENTIFIED WOMAN: We run down into the laundry room, and as soon as we got down to the laundry room, that's when, you know, the trees starting falling. You know, it was like, it happened really, really fast.

UNIDENTIFIED MAN: Could you hear it falling?

UNIDENTIFIED WOMAN: Yes, we heard hail. And as soon as we heard the hail, we ran down into the basement.

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LEMON: There you heard it, people in Georgia also reported hailstorms.

To another story now. Air traffic controllers taking the phrase sleeping on the job to an entirely new level. Another one suspended just today in Miami makes it seven this year. The incident was reported to a manager by another controller. A dozen controllers were on duty at the time. This fall is an incident on Wednesday, at an airport outside Reno, Nevada. The head of the FAA's Air Traffic Organization Hank Krakowski resigned on Thursday.

Another movie star mug shot on the books. New Orleans police arrested Academy Award winner Nicolas Cage late Friday night on charges of domestic abuse, battery, disturbing the peace, and public drunkenness. Police say Cage was arguing with his wife about whether the house they were standing in front of, was the one they've been renting in the French Quarter. Cage -- began hitting the cars on the street, then tried to get into a cab, that's when police approached him trying to get him out of the cab, bond for the 47-year-old actor was set to $11,000 with his next court appearance, May 31st.

Donald Trump, always good for a good quote. His latest just this afternoon slamming President Obama, but surprise, he wasn't talking about Barack Obama. He was slamming the president, say they wasn't talking about Barack Obama. His target in just two minutes here on CNN. And make sure, you check us out on our social media accounts. We're back again, two minutes.

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LEMON: Let's talk a little politics right now. Donald Trump is firing up the Tea Party faithful in South Florida, this afternoon, talking presidential politics of course, and offering new hints about his own political future. CNN Political Producer Shannon Travis is in Boca Raton. It's like pretty nice weather where you are, Shannon. It sounds like the Trump though gave the crowd what they came for it.

SHANNON TRAVIS, CNN POLITICAL PRODUCER: He gave them what they came for and probably then some, Don. He talked a lot about the key signature issue of the Tea Party groups, which is less spending. He also went off and talked about other things, talked about China taking U.S. jobs. He described himself as being pro-life and against gun control. He even used a curse word. That was a little bit strange, but a lot of people laughed it off. But as he slammed President Obama and the administration, he also had some tough words for Republicans. Now, really quickly, Karl Rove who you know worked in the Bush administration, recently said that Donald Trump is becoming somewhat of a joke by going on this questioning President Obama's birth place. You know, you don't get something like that by Donald Trump that easily. Take a listen at this.

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TRUMP: Hey, whether you like him or not, George Bush gave us Obama, and I'm not happy about it, OK? I'm not happy about it. We have a disaster on our hands. We have a man right now that almost certainly will go down as the worst president in the history of the United States.

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TRAVIS: Now, you didn't hear it. And it was a little before of the beginning of the bite that you just heard where he actually slammed Karl Rove saying that things didn't work out too well for Karl Rove. One other interesting point, he's now saying, Donald Trump is now saying that President Obama is the worst president in the history of U.S., but he said that same thing about George Bush just a few years ago -- Don.

LEMON: OK. So, Donald Trump is not the only one who has an officially declared, there were other potential presidential candidates making around this weekend, Shannon.

TRAVIS: That's right. Sarah Palin, everyone is wondering if she'll run. She was at another Tea Party event in Madison, Wisconsin today. She was there basically as a show of support for the movement, and also show of support for Governor Scott Walker. A lot of our viewers remember the mess that was on his hands between him and unions as he fought to over collective bargaining rights. She was there basically saying that the governor is doing the right thing, she's trying to save worker pensions and work and jobs -- Don.

LEMON: All right. Shannon Travis, Boca, Raton, thank you, sir.

Basketball players at a major university arrested.

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JOSHUA ADEL, TEAM MANAGER: Bro, do you know how (bleep) because of your dumb (bleep.).

ERIK MURPHY, BASKETBALL PLAYER: Do you know, how (bleep), I am?

ADEL: Do you know, how (bleep), I'm fired.

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LEMON: Just a small part of what they were caught saying in the back of a police car. You got to hear the rest.

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LEMON: You know him as an actor, a very famous actor, an Oscar winning actor, but now he is in the news for other reasons, as we reported earlier. Nicolas Cage was arrested last night on several charges including domestic abuse, I want to talk about this now with Sunny Hostin, she's a contributor to IN SESSION, our sister network on TruTV. So, Sunny, New Orleans police say, it was a rough night for Nicolas Cage and his wife, but do we know what exactly happened? He's accused of roughing up the woman, but do we know specifics?

SUNNY HOSTIN, TRUTV CORRESPONDENT: Well, apparently what is being reported and what we have heard is that he was intoxicated in the streets of New Orleans. They were renting a home or property in New Orleans. And try to get back to that property. His wife told him that it was a different home, he insisted that she was wrong and apparently or allegedly pulled her in front of another home. Then, finally got into a taxi cab. And by that time, the police got involved, took him out of the taxi cab at which time he was arrested for public drunkenness, disturbing the peace, and domestic abuse battery. That is actually what we're hearing right now. LEMON: I said, do we know, I'm not if he has other incidents like this in his past, but, you know, a lot of actors do, the acting community is not immune to domestic violence if this is indeed true.

HOSTIN: That's right. And I mean, the bottom-line is to prove the case like this. Of course, you would really need his wife to testify against him. And often times, quite frankly Don, that is difficult. So, too soon to tell what is going to go on with this case, but not a great day for Nicolas Cage. That is very clear.

LEMON: Nor his wife. Thank you very much for that.

Let's move on now. We're talking about college athletes, Sunny, arrested and then caught on tape. This is a real mess and the real pr nightmare for the University of Florida. The Gators basketball coach has suspended two players who are arrested early Sunday morning, they've seen breaking into a car in bar parking lot. The manager was also arrested, accused of serving, as a look out for this? So, Sunny, what makes this interesting? Is the first coast news in Jacksonville obtained audio from inside the police car at the scene? The manager and then one player can be heard talking to each other, they also talked with a teammate by phone who is still at large and being sought by police. Listen to the team manager here.

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JOSHUA ADEL, TEAM MANAGER: Bro, do you know how (bleep) because of your dumb (bleep.).

ERIK MURPHY, BASKETBALL PLAYER: Do you know, how (bleep), I am?

ADEL: Do you know, how (bleep), I'm fired, like you'll have another shot. I'm done. Like, I have second shot, bro.

MURPHY: I don't have a second shot, either.

ADEL: I'm done.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: You can hear in their voices, Sunny. They know they're in big trouble, right? It's obvious.

HOSTIN: Right. It is obvious. And I mean, they basically implicate each other and themselves in these alleged crimes. It really is unbelievable. Unfortunately for them, this was, you know, in a police car. They were apparently handcuffed and there is no expectation of privacy in a police car. And so, it's unusual that this police recording has been released this early, but this is going to have to be a fight in court. Because again, I have heard these tape recordings and it sounds like they're implicating themselves.

LEMON: Yes. Now, listen here as one player who is trying to consider ways that they could explain their actions to police. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MURPHY: Know what we could say? Listen, listen, listen, when we went back in, the dude was being, (bleep) to us, and was like, "you got to leave." I was looking for my wallet.

ADEL: Come on, man. Just (bleep) it.

MURPHY: We could say we were being (bleep) and just (bleep) with them and went in their car just to (bleep) with them.

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LEMON: So, again, this can be use in court?

HOSTIN: Usually. I mean, bottom-line is again, there is expectation of privacy in the back of a police car. Apparently, that's where this was surreptitiously tape recorded. Of course, this is something that a defense attorney will try to get kicked out of court. Try to get it suppress, but typically, especially in Florida courts, this half of evidence does come in.

LEMON: All right. Thank you very much, Sunny Hostin, we appreciate it.

Joining us from New York, always Sunny with Sunny Hostin, we're also learning more information that we've been talking about, this serial killer case. We're going to do special coming up at 7:00 p.m. Eastern right here on CNN. A cruel, taunting phone call, a cruel taunting phone call from the sister to the sister of one of the victims. Our Susan Candiotti is at the scene where investigators are hitting a snag. She's going to join us live at 7 p.m. Eastern.

In the meantime, we're settling through the cruise on Long Island tonight, talking with experts who know these deranged minds. You know, these deranged minds, we'll even hear from the people who turned these kinds of cases into primetime TV shows. It is causing some people to maybe exhibit this sort of behavior.

All part of our special coming up tonight at 7 p.m. Eastern right here on CNN. And this just in, we want to show you some new video, it's coming in live from the Raleigh, North Carolina. Here it is. Courtesy of our affiliate WRAL, meteorologist Jacqui Jeras is here to tell us what's going on. Jacqui, that video is amazing. It shows the power of the storm system and really, looks how it is just a path of destruction there.

JERAS: Yes. This all just unfolded just over an hour ago, Don. So, bits of pieces of information, continue to come in. You could see our life signal a little bit spotty as well. There are a lot of people without power, there are a lot of people without homes. And we've heard literally that there are hundreds and hundreds of trees down all over the place. As of this time, the good word is, I have not heard of any injuries as of right now. Let's hope that, that will hold true. But obviously, you can see we've got a huge mess going on there and people are going to be going door to door to check on their neighborhoods and check on their friends. And see how everyone is fearing in this situation.

A large, a very violent tornado touched down just before 4:00 local time. Touched down well before it got into Raleigh with a lot of damage and places like Bethel Hill and Sanford, as well. There you can see. All of the debris, homes have literally been planned. We've also have reports out of downtown Raleigh that some of the brick buildings sustained some damage in that area as well. There you can see, emergency officials are on the tree. Look at that tree, Don right here in front of that. That thing was just snapped in half. Just gives you a real idea of the power of this tornado that moved through. And storm spotters were there. People did see this tornado, so you know, this is an f.

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LEMON: Yes. Jacqui, I just want people to look at this video. And you saw the people standing on the ground. And, you know, they are just surveying the damage. Because many times they see it when we're seeing it. It's always sad to be on the scene like this watching what is left of their positions.

JERAS: Yes. You can see a mobile home and just, yes, a lot of damage there. We still have a lot of warnings in affect too, by the way. Don, that same tornado that hit Raleigh is still on the move, heading up towards Roanoke right now. We've also had a tornado emergency and Smithfield with a storm right now. And that one is moving along I-95, up towards the Rocky Mount area, and really, this whole area along the east coast is riddled with severe storms at this hour. It's going to be a rough another couple hours still yet.

LEMON: All right. Thank you, Jacqui Jeras. With that again, new video coming in from Raleigh, North Carolina of the path of destruction of this storm.

Up next, you have to love stories like this. A high school student's efforts to bring joy to the troops, it made her a CNN hero. You have to hear what she's done now.

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LEMON: I want to show you the breaking news is live. Pictures from our affiliate WRAL. This is near Raleigh, North Carolina, Wake Country, look at the tree through a home there. And that is just a small part of the destruction that this storm left behind. And it's still on the move. We'll continue to follow that story. One of our 2008 CNN heroes has reached a major milestone. Five years ago, Tennessee high School student Kaylee Radzyminski started sending CDs and DVDs to our troops overseas. Her project became her non-profit organization, Tunes 4 the Troops, and this week, it celebrated a major milestone.

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ANDERSON COOPER, CNN HOST, "ANDERSON COOPER 360": Kaylee Marie Radzyminski became a CNN hero in 2008 when she was a sophomore in high school. At a time, her organization Tunes 4 the Troops had shipped more than 200,000 CDs and DVDs to U.S. military members overseas. It was Kaylee's way to say thank you.

KAYLEE MARIE RADZYMINSKI, CNN HERO: Tunes 4 the Troops has gone so far this past five years. There was absolutely nothing that I would change because it has made a difference in so many people's lives.

COOPER: Today, Kaylee is on a military ROTC scholarship at Tennessee Tech University which has become the new home of her organization.

RADZYMINSKI: Tunes 4 the Troops is now part of the service learning center here at the university. There's basically a staff and student workers that volunteer for community service hours. This way, Tunes 4 the Troops will be able to continue even once I graduate.

COOPER: This week, volunteers gather to pack the latest shipment of CDs and DVDs, which included a special milestone, the group's one millionth disk.

RADZYMINSKI: One of the guitarists from Lynyrd Skynyrd, show up at our packing party to actually pack the one million CD.

UNIDENTIFIED MAN: One million.

RADZYMINSKI: Once I graduate, I will be able to know that Tunes 4 the Troops have been in wonderful hands. And who knows, once I'm an officer in the United States army, I could potentially benefit from Tunes 4 the Troops getting CDs and DVDS. And, that's, I mean, pretty cool.

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LEMON: To nominate someone you know is making a big difference in your community, go to cnnheroes.com.

Brooke Anderson and A.J. Hammer are next. It is a showbiz tonight, special, "Summer Movie Blockbusters." I'll see you back here at 7 p.m. with the special, "LONG ISLAND SERIAL KILLER."

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