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John Edwards May be Indicted; Casey Anthony Trial; Heartbreak and Hope in Joplin, Missouri; Kucinich Running for Office

Aired May 25, 2011 - 14:00   ET

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

RANDI KAYE, CNN ANCHOR: The sixth prosecution witness left the stand just moments ago in day two of testimony in Casey Anthony's murder trial. The 25-year-old Florida mom is accused of killing her 2-year- old daughter Caylee nearly three years ago.

So let's get right to what is happening in court today. We are going to actually get to our legal analyst Sunny Hostin in just a second.

First, I understand that we would like to touch on the case of John Edwards. That, as you know, is a story that could be a Hollywood blockbuster or a mega-bestseller. But there is nothing fictional about John Edwards' amazing rise and just as amazing fall.

A source tells us that the former Senator from North Carolina and former presidential candidate may be indicted over payments made to his mistress, who is the mother of their daughter. An indictment could be avoided if Edwards agrees to a plea deal. The Justice Department apparently wants him to plead guilty to a felony, but a family source says he is resisting because he would lose his law license and because he's terrified of going to jail.

The focus of the case is Edwards' bid for the 2008 Democratic presidential nomination and payments his campaign and supporters made to his mistress, Rielle Hunter, seen right there, allegedly to up the affair. Former Edwards aide Andrew Young wrote in his tell-all book "The Politician" that the heiress Rachel "Bunny" Mellon gave Edwards $700,000 that was used to keep the affair secret. Edwards has denied receiving any money to pay for Hunter's silence.

Joining us now, CNN senior legal analyst Jeffrey Toobin.

Jeffrey, it looks like an indictment would come unless he agrees to a plea. I mean, is this typical, do you know, to give the target of an investigation a chance to plea?

JEFFREY TOOBIN, CNN SR. LEGAL ANALYST: Absolutely. This is often how the Justice Department works.

A deadline is imposed and the proposition is made to the subject, you either plead guilty to some charge we agree on or you are going to be indicted. This is standard operating procedure.

KAYE: So his attorneys obviously would like this to end without an indictment. I mean, how do you see this playing out?

TOOBIN: Well, you know, I think it's very important to reserve judgment, because a lot of the facts are not really known here. I mean, if it is true that somehow the campaign committee or the political action committee, the official John Edwards for president organization, paid Rielle Hunter to go away, or to be quiet, that, I think, is a straightforward crime. But if the prosecution is entirely based on the $700,000 that never apparently passed through any federal organizing committee, any political campaign, I think that will be a harder case for the Justice Department to make, because there is no direct connection to the federal election laws, at least as they have been interpreted historically. So there is just a lot to know here --

KAYE: Right.

TOOBIN: -- that we don't know based on the facts that are out there.

KAYE: Yes. I think that $700,000 payment ended up in a box of chocolates, and then made its way I think through the hands of a decorator, somehow, to his aide, to her. So it is fascinating to see how it all went.

TOOBIN: Well, it's a great novel, but it's not clear that there is a crime there.

KAYE: Right. Right.

I wonder if he does make a plea deal here, I mean, would that still possibly involve jail time?

TOOBIN: Well, again, that's something that the lawyers always negotiate up front. I mean, that's something that a defendant is very concerned about, so that would certainly be part of the plea deal, that jail time would or would not be included.

Here, you also have the additional factor of John Edwards being a lawyer, and that's also part of a plea deal, when you have a lawyer as a suspect, frankly, as often happens. When I was a prosecutor, I prosecuted a lot of lawyers. A lot of lawyers commit a lot of crimes, and the issue of whether they can keep their law license is usually something that is dealt with in the plea bargain stage, and so you can be sure that's very much on the table in these negotiations.

KAYE: We mentioned that Edwards has said that he never paid any money to cover anything up. And I know we don't know all of the facts, as you said. But how hard is it to prove political contributions were used illegally, especially when this woman, this heiress who gave this $700,000, said that she didn't even know where it was going?

TOOBIN: Right. Well, again, there are sort of two big questions here.

One is, did the money go through Edwards' campaign committee? And if it went through Edwards' campaign committee, it's fairly easy to trace the money trail, because all those contributions are recorded and all the expenditures are recorded. But if it was simply Bunny Mellon giving money to someone, and that someone then passed the money to Rielle Hunter, that becomes legally a lot harder to prove, that a campaign contribution was misused, because you don't really have a campaign contribution in the traditional sense.

Now, it may be that the Justice Department decides to argue that Bunny Mellon, in effect, was making a campaign contribution, and thus it should be treated that way. But that would be legally a lot more challenging for the Justice Department to prove.

KAYE: And then there are those, what, 50 voicemail messages that his aide handed over to the Justice Department? I would be curious what is on those, for sure.

TOOBIN: Well, you know, the sleaziness around this whole story obviously is not helpful to John Edwards, the fact that his aide, Mr. Young, for a while claimed falsely to be a father of this child. I mean, the atmospherics are all factors that are not going to make a jury sympathetic to John Edwards.

KAYE: Right.

TOOBIN: But they still need a crime to prove, and, you know, we need to reserve judgment on whether they can do that.

KAYE: All right. Always a pleasure to have you on, Jeffrey. Thank you.

And now let's get back to the murder trial of Casey Anthony. The 25-year-old Florida mom is accused of killing her 2-year-old daughter Caylee. That was nearly three years ago. So let's get right to what is happening in court today.

I'm joined by legal analyst Sunny Hostin of our sister network, "In Session," on truTV.

And Sunny, jurors heard from Brian Burner, of the Anthonys. He says that Casey asked him to borrow a shovel. Does that make him a strong witness for the prosecution?

SUNNY HOSTIN, "IN SESSION," TRUTV: It really didn't make him a strong witness, in my view, actually, Randi. I mean, he did testify that she borrowed a shovel. He also testified that she returned it about an hour later.

There is no indication that there was dirt on the shovel. There is no indication -- at least he didn't testify that the shovel looked any differently. And so the defense did a pretty good job, I think, with neutralizing his testimony.

What has been interesting though today, and this morning, is that the prosecution is outlining those 31 days when Caylee Anthony was missing, and they are really bringing witness after witness after witness that observed Casey Anthony after her child, allegedly, by the defense, drowned in a pool, by the prosecution, was murdered by her mother. And each and every witness has pretty much the same story, that Casey Anthony was a good mother. It appeared that she loved her daughter, and it also appeared that she behaved very normally.

She seemed happy. She acted as if nothing was out of order. So, that is a very different case than what we saw yesterday when we saw George Anthony testify, denying allegations of the fact that he sexually abused his daughter. And, of course, the prosecution's opening statements and the defense's opening statements.

KAYE: And what about this story of the roommates of Casey Anthony's ex-boyfriend? They also testified. She was living with them, as we know, during the time that her daughter was missing.

What did we learn from them? Was that more also about her normal behavior, if you want to call it that, after her daughter had disappeared?

HOSTIN: Absolutely. It was just a lot about her demeanor.

Did she appear to be upset? No. Did she ask for help finding her daughter? No. Did you think that her daughter was missing? No, we knew nothing about it.

Sort of that testimony was coming in. But many of the witnesses, Randi, testified that she loved her daughter, that she was a loving mother, that Caylee Anthony never appeared malnourished or unhappy. And so it's been a very interesting day in court today, both from the prosecution's perspective, but also from the defense.

KAYE: What do you think the prosecution's strategy is in this case? And what might be some of their challenges as well?

HOSTIN: Well, I think that their biggest challenge, Randi, is that this is a circumstantial case. There are no witnesses that are going to testify that they saw Caylee Anthony -- Casey Anthony rather murder her 2-year-old daughter, Caylee. No one will testify to that.

There isn't a cause of death either, because as many people know, her remains were found many, many months after her death. And so that is a big challenge for any prosecutor, and especially for this case that has received so much media attention. They are trying to put their case together and explain again the 31 days during which Caylee was missing and her mother never reported her missing, but it's going to be a challenge for the prosecution.

KAYE: I know that when you and I spoke yesterday, you said you definitely expect Casey Anthony to take the stand, but what about her brother? I mean, he is on the witness list. Will he take the stand? And what will he say?

HOSTIN: Well, he is on the witness list. We have every indication that he will be called either by the prosecution or the defense.

I believe he's going to have to deny Casey Anthony's allegations that he, too, sexually abused her as a child. And so we will hear a lot from Lee Anthony, I believe. And there are also some prior statements that he made. So I believe we will hear from Lee Anthony, certainly during the course of this trial.

KAYE: All right. Sunny Hostin, thank you so much. Appreciate your time.

And as you know, this case is just gripping, the testimony gripping. So we want to remind you that you can watch special coverage of Casey Anthony's trial all day on our sister network, HLN. You can also count on Nancy Grace to bring you up to speed on all of today's developments. That's at 8:00 tonight -- that's 8:00 Eastern -- also on HLN.

And if you are not near a television set, you can watch the live coverage on CNN.com or on our CNN apps for your iPhone, your iPad and your Android. So, wherever you are, we've got you covered.

We're also keeping a close eye on a couple of other high-profile cases taking place right now.

In Tucson, a judge is deciding this hour if Jared Lee Loughner is mentally competent to stand trial. Loughner was ordered to undergo a mental evaluation to help the judge make his ruling today. He has pleaded not guilty to charges he allegedly shot Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords and killed six people in a mass shooting in January.

In the meantime, Congresswoman Giffords is recovering from surgery that closed off a hole doctors had cut in her skull to allow her brain swell. Doctors described her recovery as nearly miraculous.

Later today, Elizabeth Smart's kidnapper will be sentenced, and Smart is expected to take the stand during the sentencing hearing. Brian David Mitchell, a homeless street preacher, was found guilty in December for abducting, raping, and holding then-14-year-old Smart captive for nine months.

Smart testified during Mitchell's trial that she woke up with Mitchell holding a blade to her neck in 2002. Smart told the jury Mitchell shackled her between two trees, raping her nearly everyday. Mitchell faces a maximum sentence of life in prison.

Again, today, the National Weather Service says there is a high risk of violent storms and tornadoes, and already risk is being realized. We'll show you what's happening on the ground, where it's all going down, when we come back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(NEWSBREAK)

KAYE: Well, we know of at least 10 people killed in Oklahoma, six more in Arkansas and Kansas, and that brings the human toll of this horrible tornado season to about 500, the most in almost 60 years. Oklahoma's governor just declared a state of emergency in 68 of the state's 77 counties. Among the dead is a 15-month-old boy whose 3-year-old brother is also missing. Their badly injured mother is pregnant.

We are also watching the tortuous process of trying to find the hundreds of residents of Joplin, Missouri, who haven't been accounted for. One hundred twenty-five people known to have lost their lives in the single deadliest tornado to hit the U.S. in decades there.

CNN meteorologist Jacqui Jeras is there.

And Jacqui, how are folks holding up in Joplin?

JACQUI JERAS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Well, a lot of them, I think, Randi, are still in a state of shock. This reality hasn't really sunk in for them just yet. Others of them seem to be strong, and once you start talking to them, they kind of fall apart.

It's really tough, and I don't think there is a single person of this really close-knit community that hasn't been impacted in some way, somebody they know, a friend, a family member. You know, about 50,000 people live within the city limits here.

We are also continuing to hear story after story of survival and how people made it through this tremendous storm. And we just talked to the parents of a high school senior -- her name is Ashley Hoke (ph) -- who was in this vehicle right here during the tornado. Look at the condition here of this car.

This is a convertible, so there was no roof here. In the tornado, she was driving back from her high school graduation. She was at an intersection, and I don't know if you can see the vehicle up there -- it's about a block and a half up the road. The tornado picked her up and her best friend in this vehicle, flipped it over, and landed, wheels up here.

Now, her parents, John and Sharon Hoke, they were following in separate vehicles behind her. This is what they have to say about how she survived and what her injuries have been.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SHARON HOKE, MOTHER OF INJURED DRIVER: She had to have surgery. She has a broken shoulder, broken and bruised ribs, and she had to have surgery on her back because she had debris -- if you look in the car, you can see all of the things that hit them.

She had wood, rocks, glass, sticks embedded so deep into her back, close to her spine, close to her lungs, that they had to go in surgically and get all that out. And just the risk of infection -- you know, they couldn't leave it in there, so they had it get it all out.

And she's doing fine. She walked out here yesterday and saw her car, and she doesn't know how she is still walking today when you look at that. She's like, "How am I still here?"

(END VIDEO CLIP)

JERAS: It's an amazing story of survival. And right next to her was her best friend, who was injured. She broke both of her hands.

And Sharon Hoke tells us that the girls held hands and ran across the street right there to St. John's Medical Center in order to get help. Her mother believes that an angel was watching over her daughter, and she was wearing a cross around her neck that she held on to, and that was given to her by her deceased grandmother.

So, more incredible stories of survival. They continue to come in.

Not all of them have positive though, Randi. You know that death toll, up there to 124 right now.

And they have changed things a little bit in the community here today. All of the neighborhoods that we have back behind us have been cleared out. They are not letting people back into their homes.

And you can see all the grass back here. Well, that used to be just debris, and they are cleaning up and trying to get these piles together so that they can get all this stuff out of there. In addition to that, they don't want people around anymore so that the rescue crews and emergency workers can get in and try and find any hopeful, possible remaining survivors.

KAYE: Wow, Jacqui. I still just can't get over the tale of those two girls and how far that car traveled. And the fact that they survived that is truly remarkable.

Jacqui Jeras, thank you.

JERAS: Sure.

KAYE: And to find out more on how you can help those devastated by the tornadoes, go to CNN.com/impact. Right there you will find all of the organizations and all the ways that you can help those in need. Once again, that is CNN.com/impact.

Coming up, it is not your typical restaurant. It's not in business, actually, to make a profit, but to help feed the poor.

Today's "Building Up America," just ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(NEWSBREAK)

KAYE: Well, this is a story sure to make you feel really good inside. A restaurant owner in Charlotte, North Carolina, isn't concerned about a large profit margin. That's because the money he makes goes toward helping those in need.

Tom Foreman shows us how he is building up his community one meal at a time. (BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

TOM FOREMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): In busy downtown Charlotte, by lunchtime folks have built up an appetite. So at the King's Kitchen restaurant, that's when the real building begins.

CHEF JIM NOBLE, KING'S KITCHEN: OK. Pineapple cracker (ph) pie.

FOREMAN: Because chef Jim Noble's goal every day is to help the diners help their community.

NOBLE: And I think that everybody wants to help. They just don't know how.

FOREMAN: Noble is one of the state's most renowned chefs, and deeply religious, so he opened the King's Kitchen a year and a half ago as a nonprofit restaurant. The money made here goes to programs that feed the poor throughout the community. Last year, $50,000.

Mindful of recessionary pitfalls that could derail this effort, the chef started by raising enough donations to open without any loans.

NOBLE: This is not the best time in the world to be in debt in a restaurant, so we wanted to do this debt-free.

Number (ph) five. And what does that say?

FOREMAN: The restaurant also offers job training for jobless people, folks such as Phillip Lewis, who joined the program less than two months ago when he heard about it at church.

PHILLIP LEWIS, KING'S KITCHEN: I have gotten more than I've asked for her -- faith, finances. Everything I needed this place has given me. It's a life-changing place, no matter where you are in your life. And it brings something positive to it that wasn't there before.

FOREMAN: Sure, this nonprofit competes with Chef Noble's for- profit places, but he has faith there is room for all.

NOBLE: Sometimes in life you have to make a distinction between success and significance.

FOREMAN: And for him, the significance lies in knowing every plate that goes out of the kitchen here means poor people are being fed all over town.

Tom Foreman, CNN, Charlotte, North Carolina.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KAYE: And we are keeping a close eye on the weather. More tornadoes in the Midwest this hour. We'll get the latest on this dangerous situation from our Chad Myers, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAYE: Well, it has already been a pretty dangerous afternoon out there in terms of weather, Chad. What are you watching?

CHAD MYERS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: We are watching now the heat of the day about to make the storms stronger. So, you can count --

KAYE: This is the time?

MYERS: This is the time.

KAYE: OK.

MYERS: This is now the warmest part of the day in the East, another couple hours in the West. And then, after that, after sunset, the storms calm down a little bit, because the hotter the air is, the faster it wants to rise.

Rising air makes the cumulus clouds. Cumulous can make thunderstorms and so on.

But look at all the watch boxes. I just want to go to the last frame from Ohio to Indiana to Illinois, and now we're getting new boxes. Here's one in Missouri, and then right through St. Louis, and then even down to Memphis.

So the box is now getting busy. The whole map, getting covered almost in tornado watches, not severe thunderstorm watches. There's a difference there. A severe thunderstorm watch means that we don't expect tornadoes; we do expect storms with hail and wind. So, the weather service thinking that almost every storm in any one of the boxes' areas - let me just kind of make another I. It could probably be all the way here and then back down to something like that. That would be the area that could have tornadoes today. And then eventually tonight, and then even a little farther to the a southeast tomorrow.

But every storm that has been coming out of the rotation here -- you can see the low. Look at the low. It is looking like a hurricane over parts of eastern Kansas. That is the main energy for this. And it will shoot the little pieces of energy out, and we will see tornadoes everywhere on this map later today.

I'm watching this. This is from our KNBC. We had it on earlier. We had the low hanging clouds in St. Louis. They are getting gas and about to fly to Sedalia, Missouri, because we know there is significant damage to that town in Sedalia, so --

KAYE: That is where the tornado was earlier, right?

MYERS: They're going to get up in the air and they're going to show that to us in just a few minutes here. From Columbia down to Jefferson City to all the way down to Springfield - every place you see little pink boxes there could be a tornado on the ground. I don't have any confirmation right now that there's anything on the ground, but we have chasers everywhere. This is Casey Scanner storm chasing. Don't even know who it is. But IMAP stream, we can go on the air. Go online and you can actually see streaming video of men and women out there chasing. It's something different. We have never got to see it in the past. You know, we'd always have to wait for the video to come in -

KAYE: Right.

MYERS: Now we can see them driving and see what they're actually seeing.

KAYE: Streaming tornadoes. Just what we need. All right, Chad. Thanks

MYERS: You're welcome.

KAYE: In today's "Impact Your World," a look at how one Hollywood star is using her star power to help children in need.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ELIZA DUSHKU, ACTRESS: I'm Eliza Dushku, and we can make an impact on child soldier trauma recovery with (INAUDIBLE). I got involved with my mother, and we had gone to Uganda together to meet and hear the stories of former child soldiers through sharing stories. there is that chance of recovery and our center hopes to use film and art therapy to help these children rehabilitate and reintegrate into their communities.

Join the movement. Impact your world, CNN.com/impact.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAYE: It is about half past the hour, and here is a look at the headlines and some news that you may have missed. Tornadoes have broken out today in Kansas and Missouri. We hope to get pictures soon from the Missouri town of Sedalia, where serious damage is reported.

In Canadian County, Oklahoma, emergency workers are searching for a 3-year-old boy who has been missing since a tornado hit that area last night. A string of storms that tore through Arkansas, Kansas and Oklahoma killed at least 16 people, making this the deadliest tornado season since 1953.

The death toll from Sunday's tornado in Joplin, Missouri, is now up to 125. The city was under a brief tornado warning last night. The severe weather delays search efforts, but rescue teams were able to pul two more people from the rubble alive this morning.

Former presidential candidate John Edwards may face criminal charges for allegedly using campaign donations to cover up an affair with Rielle Hunter. Sources close to the investigation say that the Justice Department has authorized prosecutors to charge Edwards. This follows a two-year federal grand jury investigation into Edwards and claims that he or his supporters paid Hunter hundreds of thousands of dollars in campaign contributions to keep their affair and love child secret. An indictment could be avoided if prosecutors and Edwards' lawyers come to a plea deal.

Elizabeth Smart's kidnapper will be sentenced later today. Smart is expected to take the stand during sentencing hearing. Brian David Mitchell, a homeless street preacher, you may recall was found guilty in December for abducting and raping and holding then 14-year-old Elizabeth Smart captive for nine months back in 2002. Mitchell faces a maximum sentence of life in prison.

Good-byes are often the hardest thing, and Oprah Winfrey will bid daytime the elevation adieu as she ends her talk show run. After 25 years, the talk show queen will sign off today in her final daytime show. The final Oprah Winfrey show audience included her boyfriend, Stedman Graham, filmmaker Tyler Perry and her fourth-grade teacher. Winfrey says she has no regrets saying that her departure is "all sweet and no bitter."

We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAYE: President Obama minced no words today on Libya, warning Moammar Gadhafi there is no let-up in the effort to force him from power. Michael Holmes is here to talk a little bit about this. Obama speaking to the British Parliament, and during this news conference with the British prime minister, he had some pretty tough talk for Gadhafi.

MICHAEL HOLMES, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: He did. Well, he said a couple of things and the quote really was "we will not relent until the people of Libya are protected and the shadow of tyranny is lifted." And you can see him there going into Westminster to speak to the joint houses of Parliament there.

Yes, he was with the prime minister David Cameron. Both of them putting up a united front when it comes to Libya, saying it was going to be relentless punishing Gadhafi's forces until they well get out, basically.

The other thing that is interesting is that he ruled out any deadline for ending the military assault there saying that it is going to be done, and I think he said in a timely fashion.

KAYE: I like that he said that at least in the press conference that ultimately, Gadhafi will go.

HOLMES: Yes. Well they cannot stop now, can they?

KAYE: No! Of course not.

HOLMES: And it is pretty obvious, they are going to keep going.

KAYE: But meanwhile, the air strikes seem to be heating up as well on the compound. HOLMES: Yes. We had 18 deaths yesterday - had a bunch of -- our producer there in Tripoli, Jamana (ph) who is a good friend of mine. We have worked together a lot in Baghdad. She was saying that it is rattling the hotels so much that it was right close to the hotel. It was the same target they hit the previous night, which NATO is saying that it was a sort of vehicle area, and that they were trying to debilitate his mobility by hitting it.

KAYE: I can't tell if they are increasing it or intensifying it, because they think that there is progress or they think isn't progress?

HOLMES: I think they are just going to put the pressure on. I mean, this is what you see the helicopters do we talked about yesterday. They're going to have more ability to get in and hit these mobile artillery pieces. Gadhafi forces, we're told, are driving around in civilian autos now, making them also harder to pick from the air. Those choppers are going to have a better shot of getting those guys in the streets.

KAYE: Let's talk China. Another secret visit to China by Kim Jong-il?

HOLMES: Yes, the reclusive North Korean leader. Dear Leader, as he's known there. Yes, third visit in a year or so. He - China really - his only friend. He does not have many other places to go and pop in and have a visit, actually, when you think about it.

The other thing, too, about him, he is scared of flying. So any time he goes anywhere, he goes by special train. He went by train to China.

Yes, it's a secret trip, but it's not really. And traditionally China and North Korea don't even talk about these things until after he is gone.

KAYE: Why is he there?

HOLMES: Well, there's a couple of schools of thought. That he's trying to bolster China's support for his son to take over and continue the dynasty if you like, when and if he dies. I think that he is 69 now. China is worried, too that his death, if it happens in an untimely fashion in terms of the secession that it could trigger instability there.

Also, they don't want to see any unstable -- North Korea, of course. There is also talk that he is there to look for food aid. Of course, the food situation in North Korea is terrible -

KAYE: They're really in need.

HOLMES: Yes, desperately. So, he's looking for a bit of that. And looking at solar energy and well --Well, it is mismanagement more than anything. Weather plays a role in it, but they have mismanaged the crops and the food and the technology for decades now. And famine is not unusual in North Korea. Tens of thousands, millions have died. KAYE: Speaking of problems, I want to talk about this rare admission of China, oops, we may have messed up here --

HOLMES: With three gorges.

KAYE: Yes, the dam.

HOLMES: And this sort of their signature infrastructure project, if you like. This massive dam of the river from three gorges literally. They are now admitting that there are problems with it. That they think there is cracks in nearby land, right down to they have not been able to resettle the million or so people who are displaced by this. There is potential for geological disasters, ecological deterioration, and so on and so on.

And down tso they have had a drought as well. So, downstream, and they are having to let more water out of these three gorges, because downstream, the Yangzi is not flowing well. Been all kinds of problems there for farmers. Farmers then tapping into other water resources that they shouldn't, which is putting at risk even the finless dolphin -

KAYE: Oh, no.

HOLMES: -- yes, which is one of the rarest critters in the world.

KAYE: And just looking at the numbers, the official figures. It cost $23 billion but now experts saying it may have actually cost double that amount, and it is not right!

HOLMES: Well, remember, a lot of people when it was built said don't do this because of the ecological fallout that would come down the line. Even the Chinese environmentalists were saying that, and it looks like some of the predictions are coming home to roost in terms of the damage that it has done to everything ecological. When you dam up an area like that, it will be have fallout literally downstream in terms of wetlands and the access of the irrigation water for farmers and stuff like that.

So, yes, it is unusual, but that is the news worthy part that China is admitting this. You would not expect it. It was their pride and joy.

KAYE: Well, you keep us up to date on that. Let us know when they get it fixed.

HOLMES: OK. (INAUDBLE)

KAYE: Just plug that. Thanks, Michael.

Well, this is now the deadliest tornado season in 58 years. The human toll of the last few days seems immeasurable. The property damage untold. We break down who is most vulnerable and the cost of it all in 80 seconds.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAYE: In less than a week, a deadly wave of devastating tornadoes one after another has ripped apart communities across the nation's heartland. We've been watching the carnage and destruction first from Joplin, Missouri, and Minneapolis, Minnesota, and now, Arkansas, Kansas and Oklahoma.

Figures from the National Weather Service show this season is proving to be the deadliest tornado season since 1953. More than 500 lives lost this year, and countless homes and businesses blown away.

In today's "Big Breakdown," we take a moment to analyze history, so to speak, to understand who is most vulnerable, and the toll. So, take a look at this. According to NOAA, these are the top 10 states most prone to tornadoes. Is your state in there?

In sheer numbers and intensity, these are the top 10. Oklahoma tops the list, nearly 3,300 tornadoes that have killed 452 people, including the 10 who were killed in yesterday's tornado. Keep in mind, though, these numbers only go back to 1950 when officials began keeping records.

Mississippi, Indiana, Louisiana, and Iowa round up the top five.

Missouri, now the site of the deadliest single tornadoes since 1950 ranks number 10 with nearly 2,000 tornadoes And the human toll, well, 271 people, and nearly half of those lives lost were in Joplin, Missouri, this weekend.

Well, families across the Midwest salvage what they can, and the property damage from the latest outbreak of tornadoes is untold.

But based on history, the most financially destructive tornado on record slammed Topeka, Kansas, that was in 1966, leaving a 22-mile long path of destruction, 22 miles! The cost: $2.2 billion.

That's followed by the 1970 tornado that hit Lubbock, Texas, costing $1.6 billion.

And you can see here, the third costliest tornado hit Oklahoma City 12 years ago in 1999. That twister followed a similar path as yesterday's tornado, and devastating rural and urban areas near between Chickasha and Oklahoma City. Let's just hope history does not repeat itself.

Time now for a CNN political update. CNN's senior political editor, Mark Preston, joining me from Washington.

Mark, Dennis Kucinich saying he is running for office, but where is the question.

MARK PRESTON, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL EDITOR: Yes, really, that's the $64,000 question right now, Randi.

Dennis Kucinich, he's the long-time congressman from Ohio, specifically, his district is in the Cleveland area. Well, Dennis Kucinich is going to lose his House seat next week -- rather next year by way of redistricting. So, he looks like his congressional seat chopping.

In fact, he's looking out at Washington state as a potential place for himself to run. He was out there meeting with the activists recently. He was, in fact, was on CNN just a few hours ago when he said he was getting invitations to perhaps make a run out there.

And here is the problem for Dennis Kucinich, if he does decides to leave Ohio and he does decides to run in Washington state, it's very unlikely he's going to get the support of national Democrats nor will he get the support of many Washington state Democrats who don't want him coming into the state as a carpet bagger.

So, Dennis Kucinich who ran for president as our viewers recall back in 2008 from Ohio might be trying to run from Congress in Washington state -- Randi.

KAYE: Wow, that is -- that sure does make it interesting. All right, Mark, thank you.

PRESTON: Thanks, Randi.

Your next political update from "The Best Political Team on Television" is just one hour away.

Now, here's a question for you: should a 14-year-old be allowed to have what some are calling cosmetic weight loss surgery? Our Stream Team will discuss this topic right after the break. So, don't go anywhere.

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KAYE: Take a look at your television screen right now. These are the first pictures of damage coming into us of Sedalia, Missouri, where a tornado had been on the ground earlier.

Chad Myers, tell us what you're seeing here?

MYERS: Yes, we knew that KMBC, the affiliate out of Kansas City, was getting gas and then going to find there. That was about 10 minutes ago, we told you that. And now, they have found damage to the south of the left of the screen. He will fan that way.

There is significant damage to a mobile home park. This is right along the highway. A little bit southeast of what we would call downtown Sedalia, about 20,000 residents there, and still, as they have just arrived on scene, he is finding more and more damage as we fly. He will find more and I'm sure we'll get to the latest pictures, but you can see the damage there, you can see the debris from that home, that home almost completely destroyed. There are tractor trailers on the side.

Here's now is a stick built home residential area now, roof completely gone. We talked about an F-2, right? I said

KAYE: Yes, about 120 I think you said.

MYERS: Yes, 120, probably 115 to 120, the roofs are gone. But you can still -- this is a completely survivable tornado if you are inside of that house. The roof is gone, but those inside rooms are still there.

And if you are crawling out of there, clearly the house would be destroyed, but your life would be saved. And that's what we didn't have in Joplin. There was nothing left to the houses. And that's why some of those tornado destruction of those house basically are not survivable at all.

But there you go, that's what Sedalia, Missouri, looks like right now from that tornado that moved through.

KAYE: All right. Thank you, Chad. And we'll continue to watch these pictures and bring them to you as soon we get more of them in.

Allergan Incorporated had revenue of $40 million selling vanity products such as breast implants, Botox and eyelash lengtheners. Allergan is also in the weight loss business it turns out. They sell lap-bands, which is a silicone right fitted around the stomach to reduce food intake.

Well, in February, the Food and Drug Administration approved Allergan's request to reduce the amount of weight requirements for adults to be eligible for the lap-band. This added millions of Americans as potential customers.

And according to a company spokeswoman, Allergan is conducting clinical trials now on teenaged patients and is now asking the FDA to approve lap-band surgeries for adolescents as young as 14 years old.

So the question for today's "Stream Team" is: are 14-year-olds too young for lap-band surgery?

Dr. Kai Nishi is a surgeon at the Khalili Center for Bariatric Care. Dr. Melina Jampolis is a physician and nutrition specialist.

Dr. Nishi, is 14 too young for the lap-band surgery?

DR. KAI NISHI, SURGEON: You know, it may be young for some individuals, but when you study a patient and do all of the appropriate tests, if they have reached physiological maturity, that may indicate that they are old enough to undergo the operation.

KAYE: And I'd like you to weigh in here, Doctor Jampolis. What kind of message this would be sent if the FDA were to approve this for children who are 14?

DR. MELINA JAMPOLIS, NUTRITION SPECIALIST: I think it sends absolutely the wrong message. And before resorting to weight loss surgery, we should exhaust the diet and fitness component of it. And instead of spending the $20,000 that the insurance companies would spend on the surgery, they should make sure that every school in this country has a physical activity program instead. And I think we'd have a lot more profound of an impact and send a lot better message.

KAYE: Dr. Nishi, I want to ask you. You know, how involved is this surgery, just briefly, and is this something that these kids would have to then be re-operated on? I mean, what is the rate for that? And are they ready to handle this?

NISHI: Well, you know, it is a major operation -- although, it is an extremely safe operation with a long track record. As far as reoperation rate, it's somewhere around 20 percent lifetime risk of re-operation. So, that you need to keep that in mind.

I would want to echo what she just said about spending resources on preventing obesity among the adolescent population. I would agree 100 percent. I'm here to say that surgery is an option for some adolescents, but I would agree 100 percent that, you know, most of the resources need to be spent on preventing obesity among the adolescent population.

And that's what we do in our practice. We actually go out to the adolescent schools in the community, and try to teach healthy eating and exercise, and we do not talk about surgery at all, because that's really not the direction we want them to head to.

KAYE: Dr. Jampolis, do you think that somebody, you know, that young really is mature enough to understand what they are about to go through, if their parents OK it?

JAMPOLIS: No, I really don't. And I think the point about, you know, them being prepared mentally -- what happens with some of these weight loss surgeries is that when people can't eat, they go to different addictions. So, I think it's really important to do a comprehensive assessment of the child and the situation, and that this sort of quick fix which some people may perceive surgery to be in lieu of diet and exercise really should not be approved at this time.

It should be something that the parents can approve in severe cases where a child is morbidly obese and has already diseases, and there is a strong genetic component. But otherwise, I just think that this is the wrong direction to go in.

KAYE: And in 10 seconds, Dr. Nishi, what about gastric bypass, would that be possibly just as good an option?

NISHI: Yes, because I think it's impossible to say that one operation fits everybody in a given category. So I don't think you can say that a lap-band is perfect for all adolescents, nor can you say gastric bypass is perfect for all adolescence. You know, different operations for different patients.

KAYE: All right. Doctors, appreciate your weighing in, such an important topic. I'm sure it's going to be getting a lot of attention from parents and 14-year-olds who might be interested in it. Thank you both for your time today.

NISHI: Thank you very much.

KAYE: And CNN NEWSROOM continues with Brooke Baldwin right after this short break.

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