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Taliban Takes Credit for Hospital Attack in Kabul; Herman Cain to Join Gop Field Running for Presidential Candidacy; New Accusations of Steroid Use Leveled at Lance Armstrong; Oprah Winfrey's Show Going Off the Air; Political Analysts Look at Newt Gingrich First Week as Republican Primary Presidential Candidate; Radio Preacher Predicts the End of the World to Occur Today

Aired May 21, 2011 - 10:00   ET

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

T.J. HOLMES, CNN HOST: Hello, there, everybody. From the CNN center in Atlanta, Georgia, this is your CNN Saturday morning. I'm T.J. Holmes here in Atlanta where I'm so glad you could spend part of your weekend here with us.

But let me tell you what is happening in Kabul, Afghanistan. The Taliban is claiming responsibility for a suicide bomb attack at an Afghan military hospital.

Also, it's 9:00 a.m. in Oklahoma where a manhunt is under way for suspects who shot an off-duty sheriff deputy.

Also coming up around noontime, just about two hours from now, here in Atlanta, another Republican is jumping into the race for president. Who is it? Exactly who is Herman Cain, anyway?

A suicide bomber and possibly even two striking an Afghan military hospital. Six people dead. The Taliban, though, claiming responsibility for attack and also saying that the death toll is a whole lot higher. Mohammed Jamjoom is in Kabul for us. Listen to what he told me last hour.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MOHAMMED JAMJOOM, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: At this point, we're told that they don't believe any Americans were in that hospital. If Americans would have been in there, we're told, it might have been just for a training capacity. But, as far as the patients, the doctors in there were told that we should expect that they were Afghans, that these would be either people with the military, people who were wounded because of operations here, security forces that might have been wounded because of the war on terror here, but predominantly Afghans.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOLMES: Now, today's attack coincides with a warning memo from General David Petraeus. The commander of coalition forces in Afghanistan. They should expect an uptick in high-profile attacks in Afghanistan this summer. That memo is available on the ISAF website. Petraeus, you may remember, president Obama nominated him to be the next director of the CIA.

Another developing story that we are following this morning, a manhunt that's underway in Oklahoma City. These are just some of the scenes from overnight. Police looking for two suspects in connection with the shooting of a sheriff deputy. His name is Major John Waldenville. He was expected to go into surgery just about an hour ago. He's a 25- year vet. He was picking up extra work as a security guard when he was shot in the head. I talked with the Oklahoma City sheriff about the evidence they have so far in this investigation.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SHERIFF JOHN WHETSEL, OKLAHOMA CITY: Some of the event itself has been captured on video and we believe we're going to have at least enough to make a good identification of one of the suspects or at least one of the suspects. But we, we have men and women on the ground as we speak to make sure that we apprehend both of the suspects who were involved in this brutal shooting.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOLMES: Major Waldenville is in critical, but stable condition. We will keep you updated on that story throughout the day here.

Also, a major drug bust in Mexico. The big deal is not necessarily the drugs, though. It's the guy they happen to get. Not that one. The one you'll see in the red shirt. His name is Alberto Balderis. He is a big deal in the Gulf cartel. They're one of the biggest in Mexico. Controlling smuggling routes into the United States. He was captured just across the border from McAllen, Texas. Where did they catch him? His own birthday party.

Dominique Strauss-Kahn out of jail staying in a Manhattan apartment for now. This is a look at his new home there. This is just a temporary one. Yesterday he was released from his jail cell. Posted bail. Cost him a pretty penny, too, $1 million cash. He can only leave his apartment right now for medical reasons, but when he gets the new, more permanent place, he can go out for other reasons, but he'll have to give authorities at least six hours notice. The former IMF chief pleaded not guilty to charges that he sexually assaulted a hotel maid.

While most of us were sleeping, they were working pretty hard up at the space station. The astronauts of the space shuttle Endeavour checking out the outer hole of that shuttle, you hear that music playing, as well. Surveying a gash about two inches big took a little space walk to check out their shuttle.

The mission commander Mark Kelly got to talk to, of all people, Pope Benedict XVI. He actually made a call to them. You see them collected there. The whole crew and some from the space station collected there talking to his holiness. They discussed some advancements in science and technology but the Pope also asked about Gabrielle Giffords, Commander Kelly's wife.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) POPE BENEDICT XVI: I think it must be obvious to you how sad it is and I know Mark Kelly's wife was a victim of serious attack and hope she continues to improve.

MARK KELLY, MISSION COMMANDER: Thank you for mentioning my wife. We fly over most of the world and you don't see borderers, but at the same time we realize people fight with each other and there is a lot of violence in this world and really an unfortunate thing.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOLMES: All right, let's turn now to the 2012 GOP field. It is growing by one today. Let me bring in our guy, John Travis. Good to have you in Atlanta, my man.

SHANNON TRAVIS, CNN POLITICAL PRODUCER: I always like coming down here.

HOLMES: Good to see you. You only show up when something big is happening.

(LAUGHTER)

We could literally look out our window and look down at Centennial Olympic Park and we'll see what at noon?

TRAVIS: We'll see Herman Cain become the fourth Republican to enter this race. This race is really taking shape right now. Let me tell you about him and why people other than Herman Cain should have supporters that care about him. He is the former CEO of godfather pizza. He's a big executive in the restaurant industry. He is a talk show host, a conservative fire breather. He has very little love for president Obama, as you can imagine. A lot of Republicans don't.

But here's why people should care about what he's doing today and what we expect for him to formally declare his candidacy. The pros about Herman Cain is he's a huge Tea Party favorite. The Tea Party has had a lot of movement. He has solid business credentials and people concern about the economy and the way it is going, that could be a plus.

The negatives, he has never won elective office before. People are ready to hire the commander in chief and someone who has never had a political office before.

The other thing that hurts him is his low name I.D. And he's a little, let's just say not so clear on some issues. He will readily admit, I don't know much about certain areas of foreign policy, but I'll hire some of the best out there.

HOLMES: He gets your attention. He's a fiery speaker, if you will. What are we expecting to see over here at Centennial Olympic Park? Are we expecting big crowds or can he pull a big crowd even in his native, Atlanta, if you will.

TRAVIS: The campaign says we're expecting thousands. I'll go and see if I see thousands.

HOLMES: They're collecting already. I know it's early. I'm just teasing. He's got two hours.

TRAVIS: You have two hours for people to stream in there. We're expecting for him to come out and not only declare, but to give his fiery anti-Obama, anti-Democrat, anti-government speeches that excites the Republican base, excite the conservative crowds. Again, he's a huge Tea Party favorite, so, he's preaching their message of limited government and adhere to the constitution and small taxes and what have you. We're expecting for people to be fired up. Will there be fiery crowds, we'll see.

HOLMES: We'll see here in a couple hours. Who else is getting in? Hey, when are these people going to finally declare?

TRAVIS: The race is definitely taking shape on Monday we expect for former Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty. He's in exploratory mode right now testing the waters. We expect for him to formally get into the race on Monday. We have Newt Gingrich and Ron Paul and former Mexico governor Gary Johnson in the race. So the race is definitely, the field is definitely gelling right now.

HOLMES: Glad to see you one more time being dooms day and all. It's good to see you, brother.

(LAUGHTER)

TRAVIS: I decided to spend it here.

HOLMES: You'll see him throughout the day here on CNN.

Something else you'll seen more than likely. All the billboards out. You know the family radio network is predicting that the world will end today. But, so far so good. No apocalypse, no doomsday, no rapture, no nothing.

We're all still here, despite the prediction from Harold Camping, the leader of the California-based radio network. They have put their money where their mouths are. They have spent millions of dollars. See some of these billboards? People have been traveling around the country for this. He says that the timeline is in the bible. He came up with some mathematical computation here that put today as the day.

There are some who are doubting him, of course. Including the senior pastor at the 13,000 member strong First Baptist Church of Dallas who talked to him just a little while ago. Pastor Robert Jeffries, listen to him.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PASTOR ROBERT JEFFRIES, FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH OF DALLAS: Jesus said, no man knows the hour or the day when he's coming back, not even the son of god knows, only god the father knows. And I tell people, if god hasn't even told his own son when the second coming is going to occur, I doubt he told Harold Camping. How does Harold Camping know? (END VIDEO CLIP)

HOLMES: The rapture, that is really a mainstream idea. A lot of people do believe that, yes, Jesus will come back to the earth. A lot of Christians believe this. They just don't know when it will happen. They should always be prepared.

A lot of people have taken this idea now and having a little fun with it because someone has given them a specific date for it. This is not the first time he has done this.

Who is this guy behind this dooms day prophecy? Herald Camping is the name, the leader of the Family Radio Worldwide. It's a Christian broadcasting network that reaches about 150 stations across the globe. He started the business more than 50 years ago and considers himself a Biblical scholar. That's how he came up with today's date. He came up with today. We've heard from him before. However, listen to him from back in 1993 with our Larry king.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HAROLD CAMPING, FAMILY RADIO NETWORK: When we lay out all the history of the world, beginning with Genesis Chapter 1, "In the beginning, god created the heavens and the earth," god shows how that beginning it was. That's already --

LARRY KING, FORMER CNN HOST: How do you get 1994?

TRAVIS: All right, we lay out the whole time plan as all the milestones and we see that it's not a random pattern. It is a very, very precise pattern and the past focus on 1994.

KING: Do you know when in 1994?

TRAVIS: I believe it will be some time in the month of September.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOLMES: September, 1994. Still waiting on that one. May 21st, 2011. Maybe we will have to wait on this one, as well.

Now, a lot of people, like I mentioned, this is the main stream idea, Jesus coming back to earth. But we have been having some fun with this may 21st day. A lot of people have. It's taken on a life of its own online.

Now, if you think today is the last day, but what if it was? What would you do with your last hours on earth? Your responses have been entertaining this morning. This from the blog. "I would skydive naked from an airplane." A lot of people just want to be naked for some reason. Jeff, another one, whole pepperoni pizza finished off with ice cream. This one says, I plan on spending my last moments watching T.J. Holmes read my comment on CNN. Well, you know how to get on TV, don't you, Conway. That is a good one.

Keep them coming. The response has been overwhelming and fun. We appreciate you chiming in.

Now, given the tornadoes, the flooding, some of the stuff we've seen over the past several weeks and months in this country, you'd think it was the end of days. People are still worried about the flooding in parts of the Mississippi River valley. They're keeping their eyes on the levees, but also now on the skies because we've got some rain that could complicate things even further. We are in the flood zone in three minutes. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HOLMES: It's a quarter past the hour here on this CNN Saturday morning. Insult to injury maybe in Lower Mississippi River Valley. Heavy rains now expected today could get up to five inches of rain there. Jeanne Meserve is there for us in Mississippi. Jeanne, no doubt, last thing they need.

JEANNE MESERVE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's absolutely right. Right now sunshine. It's just gorgeous, but they are expecting more rain here and they had hope that this river got just about as high as it was going to get. It hit more than 61 feet here well above flood stage. Well above any previous records.

This city of Natchez has been relatively unaffected. They have built some levees and little flooding of the streets. Most of this city is up on a bluff. It is protected from the rising waters. Not so the rest of the valley, of course.

Yesterday we had a chance to take an over flight and see what things look like from the air or what you saw was water, water everywhere. A lot of submerged farmland, forests, obviously, homes and businesses also seriously affected.

Here in Natchez one of the places affected is the coast guard station. Yesterday the coast guard commented to see what the situation was on the Mississippi. He paid a visit and some men had to walk through the water in their waders to come over and greet him and say hello. We asked him if he was surprised about anything he had seen down here. Here's a bit of what he had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ADM. ROBERT PAPP, U.S. COAST GUARD COMMANDANT: We, obviously, put these buildings and piers and other things in based on 100-year flood plans and here we are and they're all underwater. That is a little bit of a surprise.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MESERVE: And there's a street around the corner here under 11 feet of water. The casino on that boat has had to shut down, but they had an occasional visitor over the last couple days. A six-foot alligator has crawled up and sitting on the deck. Not there this morning, though. T.J., back to you.

HOLMES: You might wish he was there, at least you knew he was there. Jeanne, we'll talk to you soon.

(WEATHER BREAK)

HOLMES: We're at 20 minutes past the hour now. A lot of people never thought this was going to happen. Oprah, her syndicated show is coming to an end. We're going to find out what's next for Oprah Winfrey and also what is ahead for the city she's made the center of the talk show universe. That's coming up after the break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HOLMES: No doubt, Oprah has had a big impact. And in Chicago, they got to watch her up close and personal. Joining me now to talk about it is the "Chicago Tribune" reporter and columnist Steve Johnson. Steve, what are you going to do now in Chicago? No Oprah.

STEVE JOHNSON, REPORTER, "CHICAGO TRIBUNE": It's going to leave quite an absence, I think. You know, we'll be left after she's gone with no offense, newscasters and athletes as our biggest celebrities.

HOLMES: What did she actually -- people watching her have been watching her from all over this country. What has she actually meant for the city of Chicago?

JOHNSON: There's been a lot of local pride in it. It's been quite a ride. She came here hired from Baltimore. She was just another morning news host. And she will leave the city, with a $2.5 billion estimated fortune, with her own cable network and with first-name status around the world. So, it's been a pretty remarkable thing to see it from such a close vantage point.

HOLMES: Now, how is she actually going out? I know the shows were taped and they'll air next week, I guess what should people expect next week?

JOHNSON: Well, you know, Tuesday night at the United Center, which is where the Bulls play, she did this just insane celebrity bash sendoff thing that will result in the Monday and Tuesday shows next week. More celebrities than have ever been gathered together in Chicago at one time. Probably as many as we've seen in one place this side of one of the big award shows.

And then, but then the big mystery is what she's going to do with her final show on Wednesday. Her staff hasn't said anything, she hasn't said anything. The only thing we found out is that Oprah, herself, is producing this show. I expect it more of an intimate, quiet farewell, but we'll see.

HOLMES: People might not remember, she has been around so long, people might not remember how she got started. She came to town another morning host, but what was it about Oprah that got Oprah to being Oprah?

JOHNSON: Yes, you know, it's funny. You talk to the people who hired her and they say, oh, we knew right away. We knew this was special. This was the most amazing time. HOLMES: They say that now.

JOHNSON: Yes, that was a genius, right? But they did talk about and test things they did, her ability to draw white and black audiences alike to her. Remember, this was a time of racial division in Chicago with Harold Washington just elected as mayor.

But what she's been able to do, I think, even above that, is to kind of be the avatar for the audience. Step in and represent their interests and ask really personal questions of her guests. Also sharing really personal information about herself which has made her, I think, approachable. And it allowed her to do this astonishing thing, which is to stay approachable, despite becoming massively rich and massively famous.

HOLMES: What can she do now? She is -- I guess she never really leaves the spotlight, but she's leaving that day-to-day attention she gets from the show. What exactly is she going to do now?

JOHNSON: She has a struggling new cable network to run. It's a tough time to start up a cable network. I think you have to give her credit for, you know, having the guts to try that. It sounds like she wants to be a lot more on hands there.

You know, I wouldn't rule out a comeback to television in some grand way further down the road. I think she'll miss the spotlight. I think she has always recognized the show as her kind of powerbase, and I think to a large degree, it's a base of who she is as a person. So I think she'll miss that, and I do wonder how long she'll enjoy the kind of executive life.

HOLMES: End of an era there for Chicago and this country. but a maybe a new era beginning. Steve Johnson, good to see you this morning.

JOHNSON: Thank you, T.J.

HOLMES: No problem, thanks so much.

At 25 past the hour. So far so good. We're still here. If you believe, some people today is doomsday. You have heard by now. So, what exactly the end of day supposed to look like? We've got some details, next at 25 past the hour.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HOLMES: We're coming up on the bottom of the hour now. The clock ticking for those of you who believe today is the day, doomsday. Family Radio Worldwide has spent tens of millions of dollars spreading the message that rapture is coming today. One of our iReporters headed out to the streets of Cincinnati to see how people are preparing for the end.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I don't think that's true at all. The world is not going to end. Everyone just needs to stop panicking. UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I don't believe that's true because I also heard it was supposed to end in 2012.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think if they reviewed everything and wrote journals for the existing time we have remaining, maybe they could find a comfort.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don't know what they're talking about. I'm a biblical Christian and Jesus said, you know, no man knows the day and the hour of the second coming and the rapture of the Christian church.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don't know about Saturday, but I'll believe it's coming to an end.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: My only question for you, if it's coming to an end on Saturday, who is this video for?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOLMES: What would you do? Again, a lot of people out there sort of believe it's coming, they just don't necessarily believe it's today. We've been asking you to weigh in. What if today was the day? What would you do with your final hours?

A lot of responses from you guys. Some of them have been serious to talk about spending time with friends and family. A lot of you just want to run around drunk and naked.

Here's what some of you posted. This one from the blog. Mike saying "I would pull out my oldest bottle of scotch, light a cigar and sit on the deck with my wife and wait for our time." Tracy said "I would get out my trustee zombie survival guide and then heat up some jalapeno paupers." Also this from David on our Facebook page, saying "I will tell people how I really feel about them." You should do that anyway, David, give that is a try.

Alex has a whole day planned out. "I'll get a new girlfriend. Go on a date with her. Play on the Xbox and make one last comment on Facebook. Alex, please, don't be posting you'd get a new girlfriend. I hope you don't have a current girlfriend.

Somebody dumped a bag of glitter on Newt Gingrich this week. Did you see it? I'm sure if I got our politics team in the same room, they'd throw something at each other. There they are. Lenny and Maria joining me after the break. It's always good to see them. We're coming right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HOLMES: We are at the bottom of the hour on this CNN Saturday morning. Welcome back, everybody. Glad you can spend part of your day here with us. Let's give you a look at the stories making headlines right now.

For the first time since his arrest on attempted rape charges, the former managing director of the IMF Dominique Strauss-Kahn waking up in a New York city apartment rather than a Riker's Island jail cell. The 62-year-old was released on a million dollars cash bail yesterday. He has denied all charges against him. He is accused of sexually assaulting a hotel maid.

Also, a breaking story still developing out of Oklahoma. An off-duty sheriff's deputy is in critical condition after being shot over night. He is a 25-year veteran of the force who was working off duty at the time of the shooting. A manhunt is now on for two suspects, one in the connection with the shooting that happened around midnight local time.

Also at least six people dead, more than 20 wounded after a suicide bomber, possibly another detonated a device inside a military hospital in Afghanistan. The Taliban claiming responsibility for this attack and claiming the death toll is much higher.

Well, as we told you a little earlier, another Republican is about to announce he is in the race for president. In less than two hours Herman Cain will join Ron Paul and Newt Gingrich as the official candidates for the Republican nomination. So far Gingrich the biggest name on the ballot, but his campaign is off to a rocky start after he was forced to back of his criticism of house budget chairman Paul Ryan's proposal to privatize Medicare.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Feel the rainbow, Newt.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOLMES: See this. You see this. This happened to him, as well. Gingrich, a supporter of same-sex marriage dumped glitter on him at a book signing. Joining me live to talk a little bit about the week we have seen, two of our favorite political players. Our favorite, not two of our favorites, these are our favorites, Democratic strategist Maria Cardona in Washington and Republican strategist Lenny McAllister in Washington. Good to see you guys, as always. We'll start like we always do. You tell me, Lenny, what was the your political headline of the week?

LENNY MCALLISTER, REPUBLICAN STRATEGIST: False start.

HOLMES: False start. Maria?

MARIA CARDONA, DEMOCRATIC STRATEGIST: That it might be the end of days because Democrats are feeling sorry for Gingrich.

(LAUGHTER)

HOLMES: Feeling sorry for him. Let's pick up on that point. Maria, some are actually saying he's done. Literally days after he got in the race, some are saying it's over. Can we go that far?

CARDONA: You know, it's hard to say because, clearly, a day is a lifetime in politics. But after the week that he's had, he doesn't need Democrats beating up on him. He doesn't even need his own GOP rivals beating up on him. Newt is his own worst nightmare, and he clearly doesn't clearly understand what it takes, the kind of discipline it takes to run a successful presidential campaign.

And it actually has been painful to see him walk back the criticism that he laid against Paul Ryan and I don't know if he makes it from here on out in terms of being taken seriously.

MCALLISTER: Lenny, he has fellow Republicans coming after him hard saying he just cut Paul Ryan off at the knees. Do you see a way he digs himself out of a hole?

MCALLISTER: I don't think he dug himself out of the hole quite yet. He doesn't look like the reformer. One of the things he was strong with in the 1990s was that he was a reformer. Now he's coming out against some sort of reform and just scaling back and railing against it.

You take those extreme comments at the right and couple them with the Kenyan extremist comments that he said about president Obama not too long ago. He doesn't look like somebody that can address and relate to the main stream.

When you have that in play, how are you going to win a general election? If you can't win a general election against an incumbent president trying to raise a million dollars for his election campaign, why even run in a primary? That's what some of these Republicans are already saying about the Gingrich campaign?

HOLMES: Maria, would you say at least, we were talking about when the Republicans will officially get in and now it seems like it's coming fast and furious for us. We still have maybe a decision soon from Mitch Daniels and we're talking about Michele Bachmann, maybe a decision soon. Pawlenty is in and McCain jumping in now and a couple other officials. Is it starting to get good now, Maria?

CARDONA: Well, whenever you have the kind of week that Newt Gingrich had, it is always good for Democrats, T.J. But I have to tell you, it has been interesting because the GOP leaders, the Republican leadership really is very anxious for others to get in because they understand that if the field really looks like what it looks like today, Obama is going to sail into reelection.

So, I think that Pawlenty needs to really look at this and Huntsman needs to look at this and Mitch Daniels needs to look at this and even with them in, I don't know that the field is going to be strong enough to go up against this president right now.

HOLMES: And on this president, I'll let you answer this next one because I have to move to something certainly that was big news of the week and that was the president making his speech on the Middle East. Got a lot of backlash from that, Lenny. I'll let our viewers listen quickly to the president and I'll ask you about it on the other side.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, (D) PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Calls for change may give way in some cases to fierce contests for power. The question before us is what role America will play as this story unfolds.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOLMES: Well, Lenny, some are questioning the role America is going to play, certainly when it comes to Israel. It certainly angered a lot of people, including Benjamin Netanyahu when he said they should move back to the 1967 lines. That should be the starting point for negotiations. Did the president, in your estimation, make a mistake in this speech or did he do what he had to do?

MCALLISTER: There are a lot of people who thinks he made a mistake with this, criticism from Jewish-American groups and criticism around the world. We understand that he is trying to negotiate and be fair towards a Palestinian state. But when you're looking at negotiating from a standpoint with folks that don't even recognize the existence of Israel, it's a nonstarter.

So there are critics of president Obama that will say, listen, this is the epitome of him not understanding the delicacies over in the Middle East. I think what he will probably be doing over the next week is probably walking back from those comments and saying, listen, I am just trying to put a negotiation point out there. We need to be peaceful and make sure both sides are treated fairly and I think he'll walk away from these comments as we get back into the workweek.

HOLMES: I have to ask one last thing here, guys. We have about 20 seconds each. I'm running out of time. What we saw happen this week with Arnold Schwarzenegger and his family situation and a lot of people, some call it a Hollywood scandal, others call it a political scandal, either way. But with things like that, with the John Edwards' scandal where these politicians have kept major secrets as they are running for office, do you think stories like that and this latest one, Maria, will have any impact on how people pick their candidates, on how people vote for their candidates and really some of the scrutiny that these candidates will have to go through before they even get their name on a ballot. Maria?

CARDONA: I do think so, T.J., because, frankly, the American people are disgusted. We've seen this happening from both parties and I think that it's something that Americans are really going to look at their leaders and say, look, you all are role models. Yes, you're not perfect, but you have to understand that you are a leadership, you're in the leadership position and this is not acceptable.

And I think that in today's social media atmosphere, the kind of, this kind of issue really leads and it is with us 24/7. So, candidates are not going to be able to get away with things like they may have 10 or 12 years ago.

HOLMES: Lenny, wrap this up for me.

MCALLISTER: If you can be transparent and not secretive, people are more willing to forgive. Transparency over secrecy as we are moving forward with politics.

HOLMES: Lenny, Maria, I appreciate you guys spending this doomsday with me. I can't think of any better way to spend it.

CARDONA: Hope to see you, again, T.J.

(LAUGHTER)

HOLMES: Hope to see you, again. See you guys later. Thanks so much.

It's 40 past the hour now. Help for families with lots of love to give but not a lot of money. Our CNN hero is helping make their adoption dreams come true. I can't wait for you to meet her, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HOLMES: Well, we're at 43 minutes past the hour now. The high cost of adoption, sometimes $50,000 up front. But this week's CNN hero is solving that problem for some want to be parents, making it easier to build a loving family without breaking the bank.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BECKY FAWCETT, CNN HERO: I don't care how you become a mother, it's a miracle. One of them making the other one laugh is just the greatest noise ever. I waited a long time for that kind of noise.

Jake and Brooke are both adopted. To adopt our two children, it was over $100,000 in after-tax money paid in full, paid up front. Adoption in this country can cost between $30,000 and $50,000 depending on the situation. There are plenty of loving homes out there and the only obstacle is this cost of adoption.

My name is Becky Fawcett, and I started an organization that helps people complete the costs of their adoptions by awarding financial grants.

It's always the same, as a little girl, I dream of being a mother. Our applicants are hard-working, educated Americans.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: She is the light of my life. She is everything to me.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The expenses were insurmountable and scary.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The money that I received from helpusadopt.org took a lot of weight off my shoulders.

FAWCETT: We helped to build 43 families since 2007. We're helping people bring their children home and we're helping all types of families. We believe in family, period. We believe in loving a child, period.

My journey to adoption is the best thing that ever happened to me. Those seeking adoption, there is a happy moment at the end of your story. It takes us all a long time to get there. But it's worth the wait.

(END VIDEO CLIP) HOLMES: Well, listen to this, since 2007 Becky Fawcett's organization has awarded more than $300,000 in grant money. And, again, every one of this year's CNN heroes is chosen from people you tell us about. To nominate somebody you know who's making a difference in your community, go to CNNheroes.com.

Weather-wise, it's been pretty rough. It seems like it's been rough since last winter, but things not bad enough so far. The government is now predicting a very busy hurricane season. You will hear about it when I come back.

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HOLMES: It's 12 minutes to the top of the hour.

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HOLMES: Summer travel season just about here. A lot of people may be trying to book a cruise, but you need to make sure you know about the incidentals.

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HOLMES: There may be no better time than right now to get a good deal on a cruise for the summer. Alison Kosik takes a look at this week's "On the Go."

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ALISON KOSIK, CNNMONEY.COM: 2011 started out for the cruise industry.

CAROLYN SPENCER BROWN, EDITOR-IN-CHIEF, CRUISECRITIC.COM: People were going to cruise. The cruise lines were ramping up the prices and January proved to that to be true.

KOSIK: But then bookings stalled.

BROWN: All the turmoil in the Mediterranean scares off Americans and they stopped booking. And what that means is that there are some deals out there.

KOSIK: But don't go by price alone.

BROWN: Make sure you are on a ship that fits your personality. If you pick the wrong cruise for you and you saved 50 bucks, you not only wasted your vacation, but you wasted your money, too.

KOSIK: And budget for the extras.

BROWN: There are lots of things you can spend money on, spas, casinos, shore adventures all sorts of things that are not considered part of the cruise price, even diet coke.

KOSIK: These incidentals could add another 50 percent to your base fare.

BROWN: Plan and budget beforehand. And then the last part of it is, just have fun.

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HOLMES: Just a few minutes to the top of the hour. Let's bring in our friend at HLN sports, Joe Carter. Good to have you, as always. And here we go, again, somebody else stepping up and saying Lance Armstrong is not what we think he is.

JOE CARTER, HLN SPORTS: If you have not been following this story, a lot of moving parts to it. Floyd Landis came forward and said Armstrong and people said, you admitted to doing drugs, you're not very credible. Now three more teammates are coming out. "60 Minutes" reporting that one teammate is George Hincapie and he not only talked about using performance enhancing drugs with Lance Armstrong but also supplied each other with performance enhancing drugs.

This is very damaging for Lance Armstrong because this is a guy, George Hincapie, who is inside Lance Armstrong's inner circle. He is among a number of former teammates and employees who have appeared before a federal grand jury in Los Angeles investigating doping in cycling. An investigation has been going on for a while and will continue to go on for a while.

Armstrong has strongly denied all the cheating allegations over the years saying he has taken numerous tests, over 500 tests and all those tests over the years have come back clean. Now, the newest part of this story is what happened late Friday when he said he never spoke with "60 Minutes" and has no idea where they got their information, and because of the federal investigation, he cannot make any comments specifically when reporters ask him about it.

HOLMES: And Hincapie was part of the inner circle. Is there any reason to think they had any falling out or he wouldn't want to get back at Lance Armstrong for any reason?

CARTER: No. Armstrong was quoted as saying he looked at George Hincapie like a brother, in fact.

HOLMES: It continues to stack up. Maybe the federal investigation will come out.

CARTER: Tyler Hamilton, his former teammate, will be on "60 Minutes" this Sunday talking about, obviously, promoting his book and talking about how he not only did performance enhancing drugs himself, but he did it to win his first title.

HOLMES: I want to turn quickly and let our viewers have an update on something we discovered here, the young NFL player that was found dead not too long ago. What was the cause?

CARTER: It is one of the situations because it is unfortunate and it is a 28-year-old player and he had a lot ahead of him. He had a concussion, five months ago, taken out of the game. And from there he was prescribed painkillers. His parents released a statement -- I guess we're wrapping. They're telling me to wrap.

HOLMES: Please finish.

CARTER: Bottom line is medical investigation say it was a toxic combination of pain killers and alcohol, which in any case proves to be deadly when you're talking about an athlete, an actor. If you get prescribed medications, don't be your own doctor. When they say take two, take two.

HOLMES: It's unfortunate that a 28-year-old man who had a lot ahead of him.

CARTER: Derrick Boogaard is who we were talking about.

HOLMES: Thank you, as always.

Quick break here and we're going to restart this thing at the top of the hour. Quick break.

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