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NYPD: Terror Sting Nets Two Arrests; Gadhafi Resurfaces on State TV in Libya; Lawmakers Grill Oil Execs; Libyan Rebels Take Hold of Misrata; The Navy's Abandoned Helicopter

Aired May 12, 2011 - 10:00   ET

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

CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: It is 10:00 a.m. on the East Coast, 7:00 a.m. out West. Good morning. I'm Carol Costello sitting in for Kyra Phillips.

Police in New York say they've arrested two men who were planning to attack a Manhattan synagogue. A law enforcement source tells CNN they were arrested in a sting trying to buy guns and a grenade. Both men are said to be of North African descent.

In Libya, NATO launches a new attack on the Tripoli compound of Moammar Gadhafi. Just hours earlier, Gadhafi appeared on state-run television for the first time in two weeks.

And right now on Capitol Hill, oil and gas executives are in the hot seat. They're facing questions over why they deserve billions of dollars in tax breaks while raking in nearly record profits. We'll listen in a bit.

But first, the latest developments in the death of Osama Bin Laden. Intelligence experts are pouring over a prize discovery in the raid, a personal journal, handwritten by Bin Laden.

According to "The Washington Post," the diary and other documents show Bin Laden urged his followers to recruit African-Americans and Latinos within the United States.

And the first members of Congress have now seen the photos of Bin Laden's body. Lawmakers are largely split along party lines on whether the images should be released to the public.

One Republican senator who saw the photos say some may be fit for public viewing.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SENATOR JAMES INHOFE (R), OKLAHOMA: No question about it, a lot of people out there say I want to see the pictures. I've already seen them. That was him. He's gone. He's history. Now, I still believe they should release these pictures, some of the pictures to the public. At least the ones during the cleanup period on the "USS Vincent" that's just personal opinion.

(END VIDEO CLIP) COSTELLO: More on the latest information gleaned by intelligence experts, you know, from the Bin Laden compound. According to "The Washington Post," Bin Laden was still obsessed with attacking the United States, and that put him at odds with some of his followers.

They wanted Osama Bin Laden to move on to safer targets and other countries. Reza Sayah is in Islamabad, Pakistan. So, Reza, can you put this into perspective for us?

REZA SAYAH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I think some of the al Qaeda affiliates groups were at odds with Osama Bin Laden. They didn't really want to focus on the U.S. attacks on U.S. soil because they were concerned perhaps about blowback, retaliation attacks by the U.S. in the region.

They were more concerned with regional issues and grievances with their own governments instead of focusing on attacks on the U.S. soil. But certainly in looking at these documents, it looks like Osama Bin Laden was, indeed, fixated on carrying out another 9/11-style attack on U.S. soil.

He had marked off key U.S. states like Fourth of July, Christmas, the 9/11 attacks, and he preferred to carry out one of these big attacks on these particular days. This is really no big surprise of course to Osama Bin Laden. The U.S. was enemy number one.

It was his view that the U.S. was one of the leading causes of oppression, injustice, and conflict this region, and he thought the best way of getting U.S. troops, U.S. presence out of this area was to kill as many innocent civilians as possible on U.S. soil.

But again, very interesting according to this "Washington Post" article that put him at odds with some of his affiliate groups in other regions like Yemen, Somalia, Algeria, who didn't want to focus on attacks on U.S. soil, Carol.

COSTELLO: Reza, one other thought. I mean, does this data show whether Osama Bin Laden had any help hiding out in Pakistan, you know, from Pakistan?

SAYAH: Well, that was the big question after the raid. How could he possibly stay in this compound without any help? But in poring through some of these documents according to the "Washington Post" article, there is no evidence that, indeed, Osama Bin Laden had any links to elements within Pakistan security establishment -- the army and the spy agency.

So for now, that should come as relief for Pakistan security establishment that's come under deep suspicion after this raid on the Osama compound.

COSTELLO: Reza Sayah live in Pakistan, thanks so much. As we mentioned just a few minutes ago, Bin Laden believed that American minorities could become valued operatives in future al Qaeda strikes.

"The Washington Post" quotes one entry urging his network to, quote, "make America weak using Latinos and African-Americans, people who are oppressed in the United States."

Let's head now to the Pentagon and CNN's Barbara Starr. Barbara, how active was Bin Laden in plotting attacks, and can this compound be called a command and control center?

BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Well, you know, Carol, U.S. officials are calling it a command and control center. They believe that Bin Laden did have communications with his operatives on the outside and that they were communicating back to him.

But the question that they say they are still really assessing is how effective those communications were. Look, they are going through mountains of material. Remember, they talked about it being enough to fill a small college library. They have to go through it all.

They have to find the leads, track these leads down, match I against other information, and try and come up with an overall assessment about what it all really means. A U.S. official this morning said it could take months to go through all of this.

So the question of effectiveness, what he wrote down, but what he was alleges able to achieve. There may still be some time before we get a final answer on it. Not to say that they're not going after every lead and they don't remain very concerned that they still might uncover plots that they need to go after.

But right now they say nothing so far that falls into the category of actionable, you know, time, date, and place of a potential attack that they need to shut down. Carol --

COSTELLO: Barbara Starr live at the Pentagon. Thanks.

COSTELLO: Big oil executives are in a Senate hearing right now. They're defending the tax breaks their companies get from, you, the taxpayer, the government.

Senate Democrats say big oil should not get any tax breaks given the billions of dollars in profits they've been making lately and given the average cost of a gallon of gas. It's $3.98 nationwide. That's up from two cents from yesterday. The head of Chevron was the first to speak at this hearing.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOHN WATSON, CHEVRON CHAIRMAN, CEO: The most sensible path is simple. Don't punish our industry for doing its job well. Create energy and tax policies that make our country a more attractive place to do business.

Allow us to develop our nation's vast energy resources and strengthen, don't weaken, our ability to compete against large national oil companies who are major players in the U.S. and global energy markets.

(END VIDEO CLIP) COSTELLO: Watson and others are saying their industry pays their fair share of taxes and should not be treated any differently than other companies. Hearings are still going on. We're going to take you back live to Capitol Hill later this hour for the latest.

To Libya now where we could be witnessing a turning point in the nation's civil war as rebels claim to have liberated the port city of Misrata from pro-Gadhafi forces.

CNN's Monita Rajpal is monitoring the latest developments. She's live from our London bureau. Fill us in.

MONITO RAJPAL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Carol, according to the spokesman for the Transitional National Council, which is the, I guess, the opposition to the Gadhafi forces and the representative of the rebel groups in Libya.

They're saying that they have liberated, I'm quoting that, "liberated" the city of Misrata. Indeed, if this is true, it would be a key hold for the rebels as it would be a port -- they would have the airport and the seaport, which means they would be able to bring in logistics as well as humanitarian aid for the thousands of Libyans who are caught in this conflict.

However, this is yet another development in this very confusing war in the sense that the Libyan government is saying that actually no, they hold control of Misrata. In fact, a government spokesman has said that the government forces would control the airport and the seaport in Misrata.

He said that the rebel forces have been there for a short time and then left. Of course, this comes just, you know, hours after earlier this morning Libya time when NATO forces launched four rockets and struck the compound of the Libyan leader, Moammar Gadhafi.

And that time according to the government, they said that six people were killed and some 27 were injured in that time. Carol --

COSTELLO: Monita, thanks.

Terror arrests after a police sting in New York City. We'll have a live report for you next.

And it's been a crazy week for pilots and passengers alike. Cockpits rushed, flights diverted, people messing with exit doors. A flight crew veteran weighs in on all of this next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: Two men in custody in an alleged terror plot against New York City. The suspects arrested in a police sting. National correspondent Susan Candiotti was following this story. Tell us what happened, Susan.

SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, apparently this alleged terror plot was hatched a few months ago and long before the death of Osama Bin Laden. This was part of the New York City Police Department undercover sting operation.

According to a law enforcement source, two men had talked about blowing up a synagogue in the New York City area. But it wasn't at the point where they had even named, which synagogue they were going to target when police got wind of this.

They set up an operation, and it all came together late last night in an undercover buy, when according to the same source, the two men purchased a few guns and a hand grenade.

Again, they had not yet carried out the attack or even determined which synagogue they were going to attack. According to the sources we have spoken with, these appear to be lone wolves.

These are two men of North African descent. That's how they're being described. At least one is a U.S. citizen. Both have some local rap sheet, one longer than the other. And so they do not appear at this time to be part of any larger organization such as al Qaeda or another extremist group.

We're going to be learning more details about this, Carol, later this afternoon at a press conference where the police commissioner will be there as well as New York's mayor, Michael Bloomberg.

COSTELLO: And as far as we know, this had nothing to do with the death of Osama Bin Laden?

CANDIOTTI: That's right. There appears to be no connection here. Again, this was hatched months ago, and it came to the attention of New York police investigators as part of another investigation that they were working on. They heard about this and followed through with it.

COSTELLO: Susan Candiotti reporting live from New York.

Let's head to the skies now shall we. In the third in-flight incident in a matter of days, a Massachusetts man has pleaded not guilty to interfering with the operation of an aircraft.

He was arrested on Tuesday night when his Delta flight landed in Boston for messing with an emergency exit door. He says it wasn't as bad as it sounds, though, and authorities have totally overreacted.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ROBERT HERSEY, CHARGED WITH INTERFERING WITH AIRCRAFT: It was a plastic cover. You know?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Were you surprised -- when you got to Logan --

HERSEY: Surprised. Well, when it landed in my lap, there was nobody more surprised than I was.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You weren't making some lunge for the door.

HERSEY: Not at all. Sitting in my seat and, you know, just farting around, flipping the tray.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Bored on the plane?

HERSEY: Exactly.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: There were also two previous incidents of passengers allegedly rushing the cockpit doors or trying to open exit doors. We've also seen a case of alleged discrimination by a pilot against two Muslim imams.

So it's been quite a week. Former FAA official says he knows what's up, a total outbreak of insanity. So it's time to bring in Veda Shook, international president of the Association of Flight Attendants. She is also a flight crew veteran nearly 20 years and counting. Welcome.

VEDA SHOOK, INTERNATIONAL PRESIDENT, ASSOCIATION OF FLIGHT ATTENDANTS: Good morning.

COSTELLO: So there have been all of these incidents in just a matter of days. What is this about? Is it in any way Osama Bin Laden related?

SHOOK: I don't believe so. Just seems to be an anomaly this week, but, you know, we can never be too cautious.

COSTELLO: Is it just an overreaction, perhaps, as this man just suggested who says he was just like -- he was not actually messing with the exit door in flight. He was just touching it?

SHOOK: Well, I mean, really nobody has any business touching a door that's, you know, in an airplane that's in the air. But I can't speak to that specific incident.

I can say, though, that obviously we need to ensure we have a zero-tolerance policy on any kind of attempts in flight to harm with the doors or try to reach the cockpit.

COSTELLO: How did Bin Laden's death affect flight crews in how they do their jobs?

SHOOK: Well, after Bin Laden's death that was really a time for flight attendants to revisit the events of 9/11. And obviously this year marks the 10-year anniversary of that tragic event that forever changed our industry.

And that -- his death does mark a moment of justice, you know, obviously, flight crew members were the first to die that day, unfortunately. But beyond that, our training has changed and strengthened.

Obviously, there's other training that we would still like to have, but we take any incident on board an aircraft very seriously.

COSTELLO: When you say other training you'd like to have, what is that?

SHOOK: Well, we would like to have some mandatory self-defense training to ensure that if anybody does try to rush a cockpit that we would have all of the appropriate tools that we would need at our disposal to ensure that the flight remains safe.

COSTELLO: Why aren't you getting that kind of training?

SHOOK: Well, we have -- because it hasn't been funded through Congress. So we've asked to be able to have that mandatory training, but all we have right now is a voluntary self-defense training.

And flight attendants given these schedules and where they live and the lack of trainings, we have very few flight attendants who have actually been able to participate in a voluntary program.

COSTELLO: From what we've seen and heard they do a pretty good job without the training.

SHOOK: I mean, I think that this week is really a prime example of the efforts of the crew and actually passengers that acted swiftly and with measure to ensure that, you know, any person that was trying to reach cockpit door or open a door in flight was, you know, handled appropriately to ensure the integrity of the flight as well as the integrity -- to keep the cockpit secure.

COSTELLO: Absolutely. Veda Shook, thanks for joining us this morning.

SHOOK: You're welcome.

COSTELLO: Nearly a year after his death, actor Gary Coleman -- there still hasn't been thinking done with actor Gary Coleman's body. He hasn't been buried yet. We'll tell you why.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: Checking stories cross country now. A heart breaking loss for the family of an Iraq war veteran, thieves stole a special coin memorial from the Indiana grave site of Army Specialist Joseph Joey Strong. Coins are part of the military tradition dating back to World War II>

A proposed bill to ban teachers from talking about homosexuality in Tennessee schools is drawing widespread protest. About 150 students rallied against "The Don't Say Gay" measure at the state capitol.

And Commander Mark Kelly and the crew of the space shuttle "Endeavour" arrived back at the Kennedy Space Center today. They are there to prepare for Monday's planned launch. As you know, last month's liftoff was scrubbed due to electrical problems.

The next episode of "Law and Order" won't be airing in its usual prime time slot in Tucson, Arizona. "SHOWBIZ TONIGHT" host A.J. Hammer has that story and more. He's live in New York. So why? A.J. HAMMER, HOST, "SHOWBIZ TONIGHT": Well, Carol, next week, no "Law and Order" in Tucson because KBOA is the NBC affiliate there. They're choosing not to air the upcoming episode of the show that mirrors the January shooting of Gabrielle Giffords.

Now this episode airing on Monday everywhere else has a plotline where a female legislator is shot at a public event. They released the statement to their news department, and in it the general manager of KBOA says he decided the it was just too soon to run this particular episode.

Here's exactly what he said. "It's not just the story and it's not just the storyline. It's something that is impacted all of us in a very direct personal way. It's not something I'm going to watch. I don't think."

And it's tough to blame them for not wanting to run the show, Carol, but for anyone living in Tucson who does want to see it, the full episode will be available online the very next day.

COSTELLO: Yes, I can understand that. A sad story, Mia died?

HAMMER: Yes, this is a very sad story. You may remember the actress and plus-size model from her role in "Road Trip." She had this memorable seduction scene in that.

We don't have a cause of death just yet, but the 36-year-old had just undergone routine knee surgery so a lot of people are suspecting maybe there was a complication there.

Mia Davis was also an editor at "Plus Size Model" magazine. They characterized her has a dear friend, plus-size model, industry leader and colleague in this very touching memorial that they posted. Carol, I know she touched a lot of people.

COSTELLO: Geez, after knee surgery. That's very strange. Strange in another sense. Gary Coleman. This is like the most bizarre thing I've heard lately.

HAMMER: You know, I got to tell you, this is just an unfortunate end that doesn't seem to end for really what was a troubled life. Gary Coleman was cremated after his death, but his estate has been the focus of a battle between his ex-wife and his parents.

Coleman's former manager, Vic Perilo is the one who's bringing this story to light. Now the news web site when obtained this essay, and in this essay, Perilo revealed that this court battle has prevented Coleman's ashes from being properly buried and it's been a long time now.

Perilo's apparently trying to put together some sort of televised memorial for the late child star and saying all of Coleman's accomplishments have been overshadowed by tabloid headlines and negative stories.

That's really true, Carol, but again, really a sad ending to a life of hardship for the former child star. I got to know him a little built I guess towards the end of his life a few years ago, and he was a complicated guy.

But, you know, it has been true that all the accomplishments he had, his great success, and talent was really overshadowed by all the many stories that always surrounded him.

COSTELLO: Just a very sad end. A.J. Hammer, thanks, as always. If you want information on everything breaking in the entertainment world, A.J.'s got it tonight on "SHOWBIZ TONIGHT" at 11:00 p.m. on HLN.

Big oil companies that are making monster profits, well, right now executives are defending the tax breaks they get from Uncle Sam. Senate Democrats are asking why do you need any tax breaks? We'll take you to Capitol Hill for the answers next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: Checking top stories now.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO (voice-over): At least eight people have been killed in an earthquake in southern Spain. The 5.1 quake was centered in a region near the Mediterranean Coast.

A former U.S. autoworker has been convicted in Germany of crimes dating back to World War II. John Demjanjuk was sentenced to five years in prison for involvement in a Nazi concentration camp. The Ukrainian native says he was forced into Nazi service against his will.

And former NFL star quarterback Brett Favre huddled with Alabama tornado victims in the devastated town of Hackelburg. Eighteen people died there in an April 27th twister.

Now more on that raid that killed Osama Bin Laden. Both military and intelligence experts say the mission was virtually flawless with one major exception, a highly valued helicopter that was left behind, or part of it at least and may leave a lasting legacy for years to come, but not in a good way. CNN's Brian Todd has more for you.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BRIANN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): In their haste to get out with the body of Osama Bin Laden, Navy SEALs detonate their disabled helicopter, but one crucial part is left behind largely intact.

The tail rotor assembly, left outside the compound's wall where it crashed. Pakistanis were seen hauling it away. Now serious concerns that America's chief technological rival will learn some key secrets from the wreckage.

PETER HOEKSTRA (R), FORMER RKG MEMBER, HOUSE INTELLIGENCE COMMITTEE: We ought to just assume that the Chinese are going to get this technology. They're going to get it all.

TODD: Former Congressman Pete Hoekstra who was the ranking Republican on the House Intelligence Committee is certain the Pakistanis will share the technology from that tail section with their close ally, the Chinese.

HOEKSTRA: They'll reverse engineer it. They'll have the latest technology at minimal cost.

TODD: Contacted by CNN, a senior Pakistani intelligence official denied a report that China approached Pakistan for access to the wreckage and said Pakistan would not make it available to the Chinese.

Aviation expert say they've never seen this kind of stealth helicopter in operation before. They believe it is a modified Black Hawk with a key component covering the rotor blades.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This disk is key to making it a stealth aircraft, right?

DAN GOURE, LEXINGTON INSTITUTE: This disk is unique to this helicopter. What you see here is a device that has two purpose, one, to reduce the noise from the rotor blades, but secondly also to reduce the possibility of it reflecting radar waves back to a missile attack that might be able to go after the helicopter.

TODD (on camera): Experts say the sound suppression technology makes distinguishable differences. We'll show you examples. First what a standard Black Hawk helicopter sounds like. This has a rhythmic, whoosh, whoosh sound.

Now we'll show you what a stealth helicopter sounds like from an earlier test program. Experts say this sounds a lot more vague. You may not be able to tell whether this is another vehicle entirely or a helicopter. You may not be able to tell whether the helicopter is moving toward you or moving away.

(voice-over): Experts say the small wings, called stabilizers, are also unique to this chopper. They're usually at a hard right angle, but these are angled off, analysts say, to avoid radar detection.

The Chinese have a huge interest in this technology. They're developing a stealth fighter jet called the J-20, which they've already test flown. Contacted by CNN, a Chinese official in Washington said he had no information on whether his government has tried to get access to the tail section of that helicopter.

U.S. officials are not commenting on reports that they've asked the Pakistanis to give the wreckage back.

Brian Todd, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: Google versus Facebook. The latest salvo, a reported smear campaign. Hmm. Another part of Facebook maybe? We'll have more details next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: Right now, the heads of the five big oil companies are on Capitol Hill to explain why they need tax breaks when they rake in billions of dollars in profits. Senate Democrats say with numbers like that in one quarter, the companies don't need the government's help. Here's what at least one Republican thinks about the hearing in general.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. ORRIN HATCH (R), UTAH: I have a chart depicting what I expect this hearing to turn into. There you go. That's a really nice picture. I think that's pretty good.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Who's the horse and who's the dog?

(LAUGHTER)

HATCH: I think we both know.

(LAUGHTER)

HATCH: I know who the horse's ass is, I'll put that it way.

(LAUGHTER)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: Dana Bash joins us from Capitol Hill. That was a little awkward.

DANA BASH, CNN SENIOR CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: And it kept going. The Democratic senator from New York, Chuck Schumer came back later saying if you believe oil companies need subsidies, you will believe that a unicorn is going to come into this room.

But aside from all of that, this obviously is a very serious topic and there have been some sharp exchanges on the whole question of whether or not these oil companies do deserve tax breaks from American taxpayers who are paying so much at the pump and at a time of record deficits.

What the CEOs of these companies are doing are really, really pushing back hard, Carol. Saying they are taxed more than other companies, than other industries that are making these big profits. And they are saying that the Congress, the Democrats in particular, are singling out five companies and it's really unfair and anti- competitive and will force them to send jobs overseas.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REX TILLERSON, CEO & CHAIRMAN, EXXONMOBIL: We owe it to our customers and to your constituents to address the topic of energy prices and taxes in an open, honest, and factual way. Unfortunately, the tax changes under consideration that target the five U.S. companies represented here today fail to honor those goals. It is not simply the that they are misinformed and discriminatory. They are counterproductive. By undermining U.S. competitiveness, they would discourage future investments in energy projects in the United States and therefore undercut job creation and economic growth.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BASH: Now, that was the head of ExxonMobil, but what he's up against are figures that are really hard to believe. Which is Exxon, for example, Carol, is the top Fortune 500 company when it comes to profits. At least last year, they made $30.5 billion. Chevron, another of the big five representative at this hearing, made $19 billion last year.

And that is why these Democrats are pushing this legislation that they're talking about today, which says we're going to get rid of the subsidies specifically for the big five, these big five oil companies, and take the $21 billion or so over ten years and put it towards deficit reduction. But the back-and-forth over whether or not this is unfair -- or unfair to really target these five companies and the effect it will have or not have on gas prices really is continuing to heat up.

COSTELLO: Well, it won't have any effect on gas prices whatsoever, right?

BASH: Exactly. And that is something that Democrats have admitted to us over the past couple of days, and it has come up in this hearing. One of the executives said, point-blank, raising our taxes will not reduce the price of gasoline. Other executives said that they believe that it actually could increase it.

Now, I should tell you just as an aside just to kind of give reality check there was a nonpartisan report that came out in Congress yesterday that said the Democrats' legislation would not, in fact, raise people's prices at the pump. Carol?

COSTELLO: Interesting. Okay. So the hearing goes on, and you have a very interesting morning ahead. Dana Bash live on Capitol Hill, thank you.

BASH: It could be called the war of the Internet titans. Facebook reportedly hired a PR firm to plant negative stories about Google. Alison Kosik is live at the New York Stock Exchange with details. So, this really happened?

ALISON KOSIK, CNN BUSNESS CORRESPONDENT: It really happened, Carol. And the PR company that was involved in this is coming clean. Burson-Marsteller is one of the top five PR companies in the country, says fFcebook was the culprit.

Now, here's what happened. Facebook hired the PR company to spread stories about a Google Gmail feature called Social Circle. And the PR company claims Google was invading people's privacy and that Social Circle was trying to build up a catalog of users' personal information.

But "USA Today" didn't think too much of Burson's story pitch. This PR company was trying to get reporters to go ahead and write stories to this effect. So, instead what the paper did was publicize the e-mails showing the smear campaign. So, with the cat out of the bag, Burson is now defending itself saying, quote, "The client was merely asking to bring publicly available information to light and such information could then be independently and easily replicated by any media. Any information brought to media attention raised fair questions, was in the public domain..."

But I want to give a little perspective, Carol. I talked with one veteran in the PR biz. He says this kind of thing happens all the time in the industry, more than you realize. It's just that the cat just doesn't come out of the bag as much. It may not be the most kosher thing or ethical thing, but it definitely does happen. By the way, the PR company says it really should have turned down the assignment in the first place, Carol.

COSTELLO: Corporate warfare. This has nothing to do about privacy, right? I mean, what's the fight between Facebook and Google all about?

KOSIK: Yes. You're right about that. It has very little to do about privacy. It's all about social networking, advertising and competition. You know, think about it. Facebook is king when it comes to social networking, and Google is trying to get in on the party. But Google is reportedly doing so by taking some information from Facebook and posting it on its own Social Circle site. It's just like when Google News posts links to articles from other companies.

But the problem here Facebook says it can't do that. What Facebook does is it gathers information on its users, allowing it to sell targeted advertising, which is definitely more lucrative. And that makes it a huge rival to Google.

But I'll tell you what, Carol, in the end, it all comes down to a big fight for advertising dollars, aka, money. Always comes down to money, doesn't it?

COSTELLO: Oh, yes. In every facet of life. Yes. Alison Kosik live at the New York Stock Exchange.

The swollen crests of the Mississippi River rolling south toward Louisiana. Major disaster declared in 14 Mississippi counties now. Louisiana is bracing itself. It may open a floodway that has not been used since 1973. That move could wash out three million acres of land.

In eastern Arkansas, parts of Interstate 40 are back open. Flooding had forced officials to close the road in both directions. Arkansas state officials think the flooding could end up costing half a billion dollars in crop losses.

If you're still mad that you did not get voted most likely to succeed back in high school, don't worry about it. Lots of kids who get that honor look back and think it was a curse. Really. We'll talk about that coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: There is a lot to worry about in your senior of high school. SATs, graduation, college. And now, pile on the curse of the most likely to succeed. It turns out a lot of overachievers who win that title feel burdened by it. We read this in the "Wall Street Journal," and we just had to talk about it.

Wendy Walsh is a psychologist Skyping with us from Los Angeles. Wendy, this is all based on a memorylane.com poll that says one in three winners later think of this as a curse. What's going on here?

WENDY WALSH, PSYCHOLOGIST: Well, I really think it depends who the person is before they got the accolade. In other words, some people thrive on praise. They thrive on being told you're most likely to succeed. It's almost as if they say inside their head, "Yes, you like that? Wait till you se my next trick!"

But there are those who may have had highly critical parenting who are really, really -- have lower self-esteem and really sensitive to criticism. So, you tell them they're most likely to succeed, and they'll go, "Wait, I don't deserve that. That's not me. That's a pressure. Oh, no!" So, it just depends who hears it.

COSTELLO: So, I was voted most likely -- I mean, I wasn't voted most likely to do anything, really. I mean, didn't, like, fit into that category. So, am I lucky?

WALSH: Well, in some ways, I think a lot of studies done, for instance, on popularity and the social structures of teens and adolescents shows it's better to not be the most popular one just like it's better not to be the social outcast. It's better to be somewhere in the middle.

And I would think this is true with this as well. That you don't want to have your expectations set up so high that you have to prove something to everybody. Let's just be in the middle and be ignored and go succeed on our own. How about that?

COSTELLO: That's exactly what I was! That's terrific. I'm so glad to hear that!

It kind of makes you wonder, though, should high schools just stop doing this, naming people most likely to whatever?

WALSH: You know, we love to give people names and identities. The big jock, the prom queen, you know, the academic genius. I just think it's a natural thing that we do in our culture is we give people tags. I think the important thing is not to not hang onto that moniker, to think that's the only thing you are as an individual.

COSTELLO: That's right. Wendy Walsh, good advice. We enjoyed it. Thank you.

WALSH: Nice to se you, Carol. COSTELLO: President Obama will hold a budget summit with GOP lawmakers a little later today. Next, we'll hear from one Republican who is not so happy about that. He thinks the summit is more like a stall tactic.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: Miami Heat moving on to the NBA playoffs after finishing off Boston in five games. Lebron James scored against Paul Pierce in crunch time. Take a look at that. James he had the Heat's last ten points as Miami closed the game on a 16-0 run. The Heat will play the winner of the Chicago/Atlanta series.

The Oklahoma City Thunder's Russell Westbrook steals the ball against Memphis and then look what he does. He goes into the slam. The Thunder beat the Grizzlies by 27 points to take a 3-2 series lead in the Western Conference playoffs. I love that!

The Kansas City Royals' rookie Eric Hosmer has his own cheering section on this first roadtrip and boy, (INAUDIBLE) show. 15 family members and friends saw that at Yankee Stadium. He hit a home run. Hosmer also got the winning RBI as the Kansas City Royals beat the Yankees.

Take a look at this. Chicago White Sox first baseman Paul Konerko runs in to grab the ball there, and backhands it to pitcher Matt Thornton, who grabs the ball barehanded. And as you saw, he beat the runner to first base. That's how the game ended. Sox beat the Angels.

Top of the ninth, Tigers/Twins. Detroit's Brandon Inge - ooh! He hits it to deep right center. Denard Span, well, he just can't get to it. Isn' t that too bad? Ramon Santiago scores all the way from first base. Tigers win. It's their eighth win in the last nine games.

Manchester City soccer star Mario Balotelli signed an autograph for a young fan and then asked why he wasn't in school. The kid said a bully was picking on him. So, Balotelli drove him to his school, got the two boys to talk things out, and all shook hands.

And Ryan Ketchner is aiming to become the Major League's first deaf pitcher. He's in AAA this year. His catcher says Ketchner is a terrific lip reader, and Ketchner says his deafness helps him focus on the game. Ketchner's role model? Former Major Leaguer Curtis Pride, who was also deaf.

President Obama will hold a budget summit with GOP lawmakers a little later today, but one Republican senator is not happy about it. He calls it a stall tactic.

I talked earlier to Alabama senator Jeff Sessions.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: Senator, are you going into the meeting with an open mind?

SEN. JEFF SESSIONS (R-AL), RANKING MEMBER OF BUDGET COMMITTEE: Well, sure, I'm open-minded. And I just have to say what I'm troubled by is the things we have seen in concrete form from the president, his budget and even his speech, do not come close as Erskine Bowles said to doing what's necessary to avoid the fiscal challenges and nightmare we face.

So we have got to see something from him that's realistic. And we haven't seen it to date. Senator Conrad, our budget chairman, has indicated that his budget is unacceptable. And it is. So the Democrats need to come forward with some concrete proposals.

COSTELLO: Well, Senator, the president has floated this idea of automatic budget cuts and tax hikes if Congress doesn't hit, like, pre-set targets for reducing deficits? Are you --

SESSIONS: He floated that -- yes.

COSTELLO: Are you up for that?

SESSIONS: He floated that yesterday based on the best I have heard. It hasn't been communicating to me directly. If he'd like to pursue that and give us some real concrete figures about it, I think it could be something we could seriously work on.

COSTELLO: Oh, that's good to hear. So --

SESSIONS: Yes, sure.

COSTELLO: Maybe you will talk about that in the big summit.

You know what I'm going to ask you next because it keeps coming up. The majority of Americans, including the majority of Republicans, are for it. Are tax hikes on wealthy Americans on the table?

SESSIONS: Look, we have not shown any inclination to reduce spending. The American people have seen the tax proposals. And I have seen the tax proposals. They really cover everybody. It's going to impact the economy.

So, before we talk about raising taxes, we need to be sure that we have a commitment to end wasteful Washington spending and contain the 24 percent growth in nondefense, discretionary spending that has occurred in the last two years.

This is unsustainable. We are borrowing money --

COSTELLO: Senator, are you saying that if there are cuts in spending, to your satisfaction, that you would consider raising taxes on wealthy Americans?

SESSIONS: Well, let me just say it this way -- we have got to get this country on a sound financial footing. It is not happening now. We are not seeing leadership from the White House to get us there.

Once we see a commitment that fundamentally reduces the size and surging growth of our government, other things may be considered.

COSTELLO: Like a tax hike on the wealthy Americans?

SESSIONS: Well, let's see what they actually are proposing. And we'll see how it plays out.

But the idea that we are going to solve our problem by tax increase after tax increase is dead. The American people do not want that. And we're not going to see it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: He didn't break, did he?

Checking stories across the country now. Critics of America's so- called toughest sheriff want him to resign over allegations he has misspent millions of dollars on deputy salaries. But a spokesperson for the Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio say he will not quit and the $100 million in question is a payroll discrepancy issue.

Indianapolis attorney Mark Zuckerberg -- yep, that's his name, he'll soon be back on Facebook after the social media Web site pulled his account, citing false identity. He actually does have the same name as Facebook's CEO.

In Connecticut, James Tate's prom proposal is making headlines. He's been banned from the dance because of the way he asked his date, like this, with cardboard and duct tape. It was deemed against school rules. But a Facebook page championing his cause is up to 37,000 hits in just hours. No word yet on if the tactic will work from the school system.

Evangelist Billy Graham is being treated for pneumonia at a North Carolina hospital. He checked himself in early yesterday after feeling sweaty and he was having difficulty breathing. Doctors say they're giving Graham antibiotics, and the 92-year-old is clinically stable. No word on when he might be released. We expect an update on his condition sometime today.

Next on the CNN NEWSROOM with Suzanne Malveaux, at this hour, Florida representative Tom Rooney is looking at the pictures of Osama bin Laden taken after he was shot and killed by U.S. Navy SEALs. He will be live to tell us what he thought about the pictures and if they should be released to the public so you can see them.

Plus, he's now an official Republican candidate for president. Newt Gingrich officially announces he's in the race. We're taking a look at some of the biggest questions surrounding his past that directly contradict the GOP's family values message and what Newt Gingrich can do to overcome them. That at more next on the CNN NEWSROOM with Suzanne Malveaux.

Coming up next, though, critics have slammed the rapper Common for some violent lyrics. Now, those same critics are taking on the White House for inviting him to perform there last night. So did he? Our "Political Ticker" is next. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: Conservatives are slamming the White House's decision to invite the rapper Common to join in last night's poetry event. Critics point to violent lyrics in a couple of his songs, but check out this line from "Retrospect For Life" where Common criticizes abortion.

Here are the lyrics. "Must've really thought I was God to take the life of my son. From now on, I'm using self-control instead of birth control because $315 ain't worth your soul."

A complicated guy. CNN's Jim Acosta joins us from Washington. Jim, what was last night's performance like?

JIM ACOSTA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Carol, as you just mentioned just a few moments ago, I mean, this is a rapper who is a bit more complicated than the charges that have been levels against him in the past couple days. Take his performance last night at the White House. It was considerably more G-rated.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KARL ROVE, FORMER ADVISOR TO GEORGE W. BUSH: Some of his lyrics, they are raunchy, they are rough, they are raw. Yes, let's invite a misogynist to the White House.

(LAUGTHER)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ACOSTA: Okay. Well, and then Comedy Central had some fun with the -- with some of the conservative attacks against Common last night. "The Daily Show" pointing out that even though folks like Karl Rove have come out against Common, that conservatives have also been, you know, on camera and celebrated other recording artists out there, Carol, who have also said some controversial things in the past.

So, you can't really throw stones at glass houses when it comes to poetry and rapping and music, especially when it comes to entertainers at the White House. They come from all stripes, Carol.

COSTELLO: They do. But he did read the poetry last night. He's not really prominently featured on WhiteHouse.gov as other --

ACOSTA: No, that's true. That's right.

COSTELLO: But the president does thank him at the end. So, we found that interesting, too. Jim Acosta -

ACOSTA: Yes.

COSTELLO: Oh, go ahead, Jim.

ACOSTA: No, I was just going to mention that Jay Carney was asked about this at the White House briefing yesterday, and describes Common as a socially conscious guy who has done other things. You know, he's been in a movie with Queen Latifah, so he's a little bit more than the caricatures that have been presented about him in the last couple of days. But the conversation will go on, as you know.

COSTELLO: Yes, there's controversy in everything, isn't there?

Jim Acosta, live in Washington.

Thank you.

Now it's time to throw it to Suzanne Malveaux.

I'll be back a little later to talk about this hearing that's going on right now on Capitol Hill, where the CEOs are getting grilled. And we'll ask our viewers --

(CROSSTALK)

SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN ANCHOR: Why don't they see what kind of lyrics come out of those hearings, huh? Rated G, or maybe not so rated G. We'll see

COSTELLO: Maybe not.

MALVEAUX: All right. Thanks, Carol.