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Alleged Al Qaeda Plot in Kentucky; Which Republican Will Challenge President Obama?; New Study Links Cell Phone Use To Cancer; Ohio State's Football Coach Resigns Amid Corruption Allegation; Blog War Erupts Over Lewd Photo Sent From Congressman Anthony Weiner's Twitter Account; New 'Vanity Fair' Article Alleges Foreign-Based Drug Trials Don't Disclose All Relevant Findings

Aired May 31, 2011 - 15:00   ET

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

BROOKE BALDWIN, CNN ANCHOR: Want to begin -- hello, everyone.

Want to begin this hour with a developing story here. We have some new dramatic details of this plot by alleged al Qaeda members in Kentucky. The accused are now from Iraq. They have been living in Bowling Green, Kentucky, since 2009.

Let me get our justice producer on the phone here, Terry Frieden.

And Terry, I have read this -- these documents here from the Justice Department, of course, as I know you have. And it is a fascinating read. One of the things that really strikes me is that we are talking about two guys, very young guys, 23 and 30 years of age respectively. Speak, if you can, to their youth, A. And, B., what is exactly that they are accused of doing?

TERRY FRIEDEN, CNN SENIOR JUSTICE PRODUCER: Well, in the case of Waad Ramadan Alwan, he is now 30 years old, but he has been at this business of terrorism for more than 10 years, since he was a teenager.

And in his case, he was involved directly in the manufacture and the placement of IEDs designed specifically to kill U.S. troops on roadsides. And he bragged recently that he had in fact handled more than 100 IEDs himself during the period 2003 to 2006.

And then he was arrested by Iraqi authorities. He was finally released and in 2009, he came to the U.S. and has lived in Kentucky.

BALDWIN: Yes. It is interesting you used the word brag one, because thing that really stuck out for me, the same Alwan, 30 years of age, also in talking about the types of IEDs he says he was using against U.S. troops in Iraq saying, oh, yes, mentioning his attacks had bleeped-up Hummers and Bradley Fighting Vehicles.

Terry, how did these guys get caught?

FRIEDEN: Well, it appears that Alwan had been on their radar and back in September of last year, they really began to focus on him when he moved to Bowling Green.

And Hammadi, the other fellow with home he worked, then came under scrutiny. And the two of them were watched very carefully. And, in fact, this elaborate FBI sting operation was set up. And, as you can see from the documents, there was a number of cases in which the FBI and other undercover agents actually sort of defused the various weapons, made them inoperable.

BALDWIN: Yes. And when we're talking weapons here, when you read the documents, I mean, these guys apparently went as far as allegedly providing rocket-propelled grenade launchers and Stinger missiles and how to construct IED -- IEDs to recipients who they thought would be the mujahideen in Iraq.

What happens? Terry, final question, what happens with their case now?

FRIEDEN: Well, they are going to remain in custody. There will be more hearings. Highly unlikely that they would be given bail under any circumstance. And whether they will eventually cut a plea deal or go to trial is anybody's guess.

But they are in custody forever. I mean, the truth is that these guys face life in prison. And probably that will in the end mean, if they are convicted, probably 30 years or more.

BALDWIN: Wow. It just struck us here, news just coming down this afternoon, these two Iraqi civilians living in Bowling Green, Kentucky.

Terry Frieden on the phone with me, our Justice Department producer, Terry, thanks so much.

Women protesters stripped naked, photographed, beaten, shocked with electricity and forced to endure these so-called virginity checks. I'm talking about Egypt during the height of the civil uprising that flipped the country upside-down this spring.

Folks, those are just a few of the items Amnesty International said police officers and troops did to these women arrested for demonstrating after Hosni Mubarak stepped down as Egypt's president.

Now, charges are one thing, but CNN has confirmed from an Egyptian general that some of those things did in fact happen.

And I have invited Egyptian journalist and columnist Mona Eltahawy to help us understand what is happening here, why the military is defending itself on charges that these troops did these horrific things.

Mona, do me a favor. Hang in with me for just a second, because I do want to play a portion of a report straight from my colleague Ivan Watson. You're going to hear what Egyptian troops are charged with doing from their alleged victims and then we will talk about it afterward. Watch this with me.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

IVAN WATSON, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): In Tahrir Square, the center of Egypt's revolution, Remy Essam raised his voice in protest during 18 historic days and nights which brought down a despot and left many Egyptians full of hope.

REMY ESSAM, MUSICIAN: And you now can sing anything we want without being afraid.

WATSON: But look what happened to Essam barely a month later: beaten, battered and scarred after Egyptian soldiers detained him.

ESSAM (through translator): The tortured took four hours. They removed my clothes, they used sticks, metal rods, wires ropes, hoses, whips, there was also electrocution. There was an officer who would purposely jump in there air and land on my face with his legs.

WATSON: Essam was one of scores of male protesters detained during this crackdown by security forces in Tahrir Square on March 9. Troops also arrested at least 17 women who were kept for days at a military detainment center.

Amnesty International says these -- quote -- "women protesters were beaten, given electric shocks, subjected to strip-searches while being photographed by male soldiers, then forced to submit to virginity tests".

One of these women was this 20-year-old hairdresser named Salwa Hosseini.

SALWA HOSSEINI, VICTIM (through translator): They made us sign statements declaring whether or not we are virgins.

WATSON: She says she submitted to the test under threats of electrocution.

HOSSEINI (through translator): During the test, no one was standing except for a woman and a male doctor. Six soldiers were standing behind us and watching the backside of the bed. I think they were there to be witnesses.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BALDWIN: I encourage you to go to CNN.com to watch Ivan's entire report.

Mona Eltahawy, journalist and columnist, Mona, do me a favor. I want you take off your journalist hat for just a moment. I want to speak to you as an Egyptian, as a female. What is your visceral reaction to these charges?

MONA ELTAHAWY, JOURNALIST & COMMENTATOR: I'm absolutely disgusted, Brooke.

I'm first of all relieved that some general in the army has finally admitted to it, but ironically and horrifically, the way that he has justified this, this general who has gone -- who is off the record confirmed to your journalists that these so-called virginity tests happened, justified them by saying, shockingly, these were not women like your daughters or mine.

So he is insinuating that these were -- quote, unquote -- "bad women" and therefore, deserved these sexual assaults which they call virginity testing.

So, I'm absolutely horrified, but it is another reminder that, although more than 800 Egyptians died and thousands were injured during our revolution to get rid of Hosni Mubarak, we have replaced one Hosni Mubarak with a Supreme Council of Hosni Mubaraks that goes by the name of the Supreme Military Council.

BALDWIN: I -- we will get to that in a moment here because it is an excellent point you make, but I just want to make sure there is no loss in translation here. We are talking about virginity check.

Ivan mentioned in the piece this is physically checking these women, correct?

ELTAHAWY: Yes. It is.

And this is part of -- you know, by way of explaining why these so-called virginity tests happened, Egypt is a conservative country. And like many other conservative areas of the world, like Latin America, like Turkey, like other places, a great deal of value is placed on a woman's virginity.

And so in Egypt, for example, it is shockingly familiar to so many people to hear that in the more -- in the much more conservative rural areas, a traditional midwife will perform this so-called virginity test to ensure that the bride-to-be is a virgin.

(CROSSTALK)

BALDWIN: It signifies honor, right -- honor, dignity.

ELTAHAWY: Yes, it signifies honor, that our daughter is a good girl, she remained a virgin until she got married.

But, of course, here, the ultimate unfairness of course is that no one goes around checking or boys for their virginity, so this is a burden that is solely placed directly on women's shoulders.

BALDWIN: The general, he did speak directly to us here at CNN. He said the virginity checks were done that the women wouldn't later claim that they had been raped by Egyptian authorities.

I want to read what he said -- quote -- "None of them were virgins."

So, what did these troops -- what did they think were accomplishing by doing this, allegedly? Or, actually, no, not allegedly, because they said they were doing it.

(CROSSTALK)

ELTAHAWY: Exactly. What they're doing is a direct continuation of what the Mubarak regime was doing. This is the state sexually assaulting women in a conservative society to shame those women and tell those women, you belong at home, not on the streets demonstrating against us.

In 2005, Mubarak's regime, his security forces sexually assaulted women journalists and activists to send that message. And after Mubarak was forced to step down, the Supreme Military Council did the same in the form of army soldiers.

So this is a continuation of the state. When the state violates women sexually, it essentially says women are fair game. It says that these women are bad women and they are fair game. And it's essentially shaming Egyptian women because it wants to play on this high value placed on women's virginity.

So it wants people to say, these were bad women. But these are revolutionaries. These are activists. So, I think that they have gambled on the wrong side. And I think there will be a great deal of outrage in Egypt against this further violation that goes in line with military trials civilians, torture, and a whole host of horrors that the military is committing against Egyptians.

BALDWIN: And just to end on a point you made earlier -- and I just want to reiterate it -- it is the Military Council in charge here. They're in charge of this democratic transition to a new Egypt. Excellent point.

Mona Eltahawy, thank you very, very much.

Back here in the United States, which Republican will challenge President Obama? Chris Christie keeps saying he will absolutely, positively not run for president. But tonight, a group of influential Iowa Republicans are paying a visit to the governor's mansion. What could they say to Christie to, I don't know, try to change his mind?

That is next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: OK. Stop me if you have heard this one. An insurance executive, a real estate mogul, two casino guys and some other movers and shakers hop on a plane to New Jersey to try to find a candidate for president.

You haven't heard that one yet? Well, guess what? You have heard of this guy. Of course you have, the boss, New Jersey Governor Chris Christie. And today a prominent group from, of all places, Iowa, Republicans all, are meeting with Chris Christie to try to lure him into the race for president.

Well, at least, is that perhaps the word out of the New Jersey? And they have come to him, not the other way around, which, by the way, is usually how it works.

I want to go to Jessica Yellin, national political correspondent. And, Jessica Yellin, you have talked to him before, so there is one teeny-tiny problem with all of this here.

JESSICA YELLIN, CNN NATIONAL POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, one little problem. Governor Christie says that he is not running. He has said it more than once. Take a look.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GOV. CHRIS CHRISTIE (R), NEW JERSEY: I am governor of New Jersey. I am not running for national office.

I am not stupid. I see the opportunity. I see it. That's not the reason to run.

What do you want me to say? Like, I will jump off of a building if they nominate me? So, this -- I can't say this any other way. I am not a candidate for president.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

YELLIN: And I spoke to him just about three weeks ago and he said, everybody, hold on to your hat. Don't worry. Don't freak out. I'm not running for president.

Beyond that, Brooke, he has made absolutely no moves behind the scenes to set up even a shadow campaign, so really does not look like it is happening.

BALDWIN: OK.

So, that said, we know, Jessica, that Chris Christie has a real strong appeal to the fiscal conservatives, but what about only just conservatives of the type who tend to vote in the Iowa caucuses? How does the New Jersey governor score with them?

YELLIN: Look, Chris Christie would have a challenge running at this point anyway, because it is somewhat late in the game. And I have talked to some conservatives in Iowa today.

And he holds an appeal, but he also has challenges not just on social issues in Iowa. He is pro-life. He opposes gay marriage, but, beyond that, he has got nuanced issues, Brooke. He is not doctrinaire. So, for example, he believes global warming is at least partially manmade. That is not where most conservative Republicans stand.

He did not join some other Republican governors in a lawsuit against the Democrats' health care law. That is not where most of the Republican Party stands. He believes immigration reform should include some kind of pathway to citizenship.

So he's not a strict conservative Republican. That's party why his supporters like him so much. He has said, Republican Party, we need good ideas from both sides to fix America. He has said -- quote -- "If you want partisan politics as usual, I'm not your guy." That is not what always does best in a primary, not in this kind of political environment.

BALDWIN: But, again, to underscore, he says he's not running, despite all his new house guests from Iowa tonight at his house.

Moving along, let's talk about the Palin factor, day three of the Palin bus tour. And let's take a look at the bus, shall we? Take a look at this. You see American flag on the front, "we the people" painted across the side. There's Liberty Bell, "one nation," but Sarah Palin wants us all to know, folks, this is not a campaign bus and this is actually some sort of, I don't know, family vacation?

Jessica Yellin, what do you make of this?

YELLIN: What I make of the coverage of this Palin bus tour, not the tour, but the coverage of it, is a media low point.

BALDWIN: Yes.

YELLIN: Chasing around someone who so far is not running for president and who has been playing the kind of tease-the-media games that only movie stars and reality stars play is kind of a media low point.

But, but she has a huge following among some Tea Party activists, who feel alienated from the system. And I talked to one top Republican strategist today who said that, actually, this coverage of Palin right now is helpful to the current crop of presidential candidates on the right, because the Tea Party feels that, with Palin out there, someone is speaking for the Tea Party.

And if Palin and Representative Michele Bachmann, who it's expected will get in the race, if the two -- those two women weren't out there, then the Tea Party might be raising noise and getting insistent that this field of candidates does not speak for them.

So, at least this attention to Palin is making some activists happy, but I will tell you I know for a fact it is leaving some candidates who are running for president wondering why she is getting all that coverage, and we are not giving that much attention to some other candidates who are actually running for president, Brooke.

BALDWIN: Where's my love?

Point duly noted, Ms. Yellin.

YELLIN: Yes.

BALDWIN: Thank you very much, live for me from Washington.

Cell phones could cause cancer, that is the word coming down today from the World Health Organization, but here is the thing. They have already said there's no direct evidence. And we're going to tell you what changed the experts' minds. That is coming up. Also, the man accused of killing 8,000 men and boys and spent more than a decade on the run arrives at The Hague to face international justice. That is next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: Ratko Mladic, the Bosnian Serb general who evaded capture for some 16 years on genocide charges, is right now in the place where he will probably stand trial.

Take a look with me. This is the trip Mladic took today, a police convoy through the streets of Belgrade, short ride there to the airport. Then fast-forward a couple of hours later, here in Rotterdam in the Netherlands. Mladic is on board. Just outside Rotterdam, you have The Hague, where the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia has a defendant's seat waiting for him. Ratko Mladic is extradited.

And I want to go to The Hague to CNN senior international correspondent Nic Robertson.

And, Nic, we heard Britain's minister for Europe calling this an important day for people who suffered in the Balkans back some 16 years ago. Is he correct?

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: It's almost an understatement, Brooke.

And this is a man responsible allegedly for the massacre of 8,000 men boys in the town of Srebrenica in July -- in July 1995. I can hear his helicopter in the air coming in. You have just tracked his movements here from Belgrade -- from Belgrade to Rotterdam.

Helicopter you see flying in, in the picture there --

BALDWIN: Yes.

ROBERTSON: -- one of two helicopters coming in the from the airport believed to be carrying Ratko Mladic, when it goes down there, that will be the place, Ratko Mladic, his detention facility, the place he can expect to be spending many, many years.

This is a man who we are told is unwell. He has heart problems. He has had a stroke. But he is also the man responsible, allegedly, for the massacre of those 8,000 men and boys in the town of Srebrenica in '95, also allegedly responsible for the deaths of 10,000 civilians in the brutal siege of Sarajevo, where the forces under his command rained artillery shells, mortar shells and sniper fire down on a civilian population at random and at will.

This man, if he is on board that helicopter or the one we believe may be behind it, will be now, after 16 years on the run, getting ready knowing, as he descends out of the sky, as the sun sets here in The Hague, close to the coast of the North Sea, in The Hague, as he descends into that prison facility behind me, that is where he can expect to spend very likely the foreseeable best part of the rest of his life.

His doctors say he is not well. Everyone else -- his defense lawyer says he is not well enough to stand trial. All other doctors that have seen him say that he is quite capable of standing trial. The chief prosecutor in Serbia, who I met and interviewed yesterday, told me Ratko Mladic is a man very capable of standing trial. He has been lively and even joking in court, a man quite capable of understanding what is going to go on around him.

There appears to be a helicopter hovering above us. The other next helicopter we understand that will arrive here will be the one bringing in Ratko Mladic. And this gives you some idea, Brooke, of just how seriously even the Dutch authorities here take Ratko Mladic's detention that they would give two helicopters to bring him in here to this detention facility, not one, but two.

BALDWIN: Why is that?

ROBERTSON: This man has been on the run for 16 years, the most wanted war criminal. He has been on the run for 16 years, indicted in July 1995 for all those alleged war crimes he committed.

More than a quarter of a million people died in Bosnia during the Bosnian War. He was in charge of the Bosnian Serb forces. He was responsible, in charge of the army there for the overrunning of the town of Srebrenica.

He was seen on videotape telling the men and the boys of that town that they would be taken care, that they would be put on buses and taken away. What actually happened, they were taken away and gunned down by Bosnian Serb troops. And he is the man who is believed to be responsible for that. Genocide, that is one of the charges against him. That is why he is being brought here, Brooke.

BALDWIN: Nic, I just want to let you know, because I'm assuming you cannot see -- obviously, you cannot see our air -- I want you to know that we have been watching that first helicopter. It landed behind one tree. You mentioned the second helicopter, presumably the one carrying Ratko Mladic.

We are waiting for it to land. We are looking right now presumably at live pictures there right around The Hague as it carries -- as it carries Mladic to that prison you just described.

Nic Robertson, live for me in The Hague, Nic, thank you so much.

We will follow up on this story obviously as soon as we get some sort of visual on Mladic there.

Back home, major news involving the 9/11 suspects, including Khalid Sheikh Mohammed. We are now told new charges will have to be filed against them. That is ahead.

Plus, it's a question many Americans ask: Can cell phones cause cancer? Before today, the World Health Organization said, no, there is no direct evidence. But they are now changing their tune. And if you use one of these -- and, let's be honest, who doesn't these days? -- stick around. This is news you have to hear.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: All right. Before we get to Elizabeth Cohen, let me get to some stories unfolding right now, including a new record low for home prices right now. They are seen at levels really we haven't seen since 2002. And analysts say things are not going to get better any time soon.

The biggest impact on prices, all those foreclosures, repossessed homes in poor conditions selling at a big discount. And that drives down overall house values.

We are just getting word that charges are being refiled against self-described 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and four alleged co-conspirators. U.S. military prosecutors are taking this action so that these defendants can be prosecuted before a military tribunal down at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

The move comes after the Obama administration dropped plans to prosecute these suspects in federal court in New York.

And now to something I know I need to listen to. Cell phone radiation can possibly cause cancer, that word coming from the World Health Organization today. Until now, the agency had assured consumers that no adverse health effects had been established.

Senior medical correspondent Elizabeth Cohen has been following this one for me.

What did they say?

ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN SENIOR MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Possible human carcinogen, that is what they said.

Cell phones are a possible human carcinogen. Now, when that comes from the World Health Organization, you want to listen. They are a big group, an important group.

And I want to tell you what else falls into that category.

BALDWIN: To equate to my fear factor.

(LAUGHTER)

COHEN: We will talk about fear after, but also in the same category are lead, engine exhaust, and chloroform. So that will give you the feeling of context.

BALDWIN: So putting it up to my ear is the same as chloroform or exhaust?

COHEN: Well, I wouldn't put it that way, but they are saying that it is not a problem, but they looked at gliomas, which is a type of brain tumor. So what you said is the big message what I want to say here today, there is really usually no reason to be holding a cell phone to your head. May I use the cell phone to demonstrate.

BALDWIN: I brought this for you to school me.

COHEN: When you hold it to your head, where is the radiation going?

BALDWIN: To your brain.

COHEN: And when you hold it at a distance, that radiation dissipates quickly and out into the air. That is why I'm walking around. You once said that everyone on CNN medical is on a headset, and we are, because we know this. Hold it at a distance and use one of these, and so, you plug it in here, and do this and you are getting way, way, way less radiation than if you hold it to your head and use a Bluetooth earpiece or speakerphone.

BALDWIN: So making an admission, I put it to my head.

COHEN: I have seen you.

BALDWIN: And today, I will stop and use my headset, but I feel like I am tuning out so many people, but my brain is kind of important.

COHEN: Well, you should feel empowered there is something to do here, because sometimes you say, Elizabeth, what can we do, and I say, Brooke, not much. But in this case, there is something to do.

BALDWIN: OK. Today, starting today, that is my commitment live on the show. What about cell phone companies?

COHEN: Well, there is a possibility that the FCC will say, look at what the world health organization has to say and can you figure out a way to make your cell phone emit less radiation. We will see if that happens.

We have a reaction from the cell phone industry, and let me read that to you. Today they say that this classification of the world health organization classification as a carcinogen does not mean that cell phone causes cancer, which is true. The World Health Organization finding is based on limited evidence. They say that all of the evidence is not in yet, and that I have not done the 30-year studies to see what this can cause, because the cell phone have not been used for 30 years.

BALDWIN: But why do we want to wait 30 years if we can take the precautions now?

COHEN: Yes, easy precautions.

BALDWIN: All right. Give me back the cell phone and the headset. Thank you, Elizabeth Cohen.

COHEN: OK, thanks.

BALDWIN: And new evidence in the hacking of congressman Anthony Weiner's account. He has now hired a lawyer, and Weiner is speaking exclusively to CNN. That is next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: Now, to the controversy involving Congressman Anthony Weiner. The New York democrat says he was hacked and that is how a young woman in Seattle got a lewd picture from his twitter account. Dana bash has this exclusive interview here on CNN. Dana Bash has this exclusive interview here on CNN.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DANA BASH, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: It came from Congressman's Anthony Weiner's twitter account this weekend, a photograph of a man's bulging underwear. The lewd picture was immediately deleted from Weiner's account was sent to this 21-year-old Seattle college student, but also available to the public to view on twitter. Outside of his New York home Monday, Weiner, an outspoken liberal democrat insisted to CNN it was the work of a computer.

REP. ANTHONY WEINER, (D) NEW YORK: I was hacked. It happens to people. You move on.

BASH: It is not clear who sent it. Weiner tried to brush it off as a prank and distraction.

WEINER: This is a prank and not terribly creative one and distraction, and not a very creative one. You have the Republicans who are playing games with the debt limit and Supreme Court justice who is refusing to recuse himself despite conflicts of interest and health care act under siege. This is a distraction.

BASH: Jeanette Cordova is the Seattle college student that the tweet was addressed to. The 21-year-old issued a lengthy statement saying that Weiner did follow her on twitter, but insisting she never met him. "There have never been any inappropriate exchanges between Anthony Weiner and myself, including the tweet in question, which had been apparently deleted before it reached me" said Cordova.

She blamed anonymous person for harassing her, quote, "many times after the congressman followed her on twitter a month ago." After sending the tweet she said, "I wonder what my boyfriend and Rep Weiner is up to." As to the twitter account Weiner said was hacked, he is still using it. He tried to downplay the swirling story with tweets like this, "More Weiner jokes for my guests, hash-tag, hacked," trademark Weiner humor.

WEINER: I've used "Vote for Weiner. He will be frank."

(LAUGHTER)

"Vote for Weiner. He is on a roll." Vote for Weiner. He will relish your vote."

(LAUGHTER)

BASH: But questions surrounding the lewd photo quickly became the subject of a serious internet war between liberal blogs suggesting it is a right wing conspiracy and conservative blogs questioning Weiner's hacking claim.

Andrew Breitbart, a conservative blogger whose biggovernment.com first reported the story, suggested to CNN there should be a, quote, "forensic analysis to determine the veracity of Congressman Weiner's hacking allegation, which certainly bears serious implications."

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BALDWIN: And we are told that Congressman Weiner has hired an attorney to look into the allegations. If you don't know what following someone on twitter means, it does not mean they are literally following you, but it means they are reading the tweets you send out.

Are you drug naive? Well, if you are not on anything, you are a rare American. And you may also be attractive to pharmaceutical companies in the meantime. Drug trials are going overseas. Dr. Sanjay Gupta investigates as we go in depth, "Medication Nation." You don't want to miss this, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: This may be all too familiar for you. Your loved one has some kind of frightening disease and scientists are out there working feverishly on the treat, but the process can be slow to get that drug approved for humans. So what is the solution? CNN chief medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta sat down with the chief editors of "Deadly Medicine" in "Vanity Fair" to look at America's pharmaceutical company.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: So a person has an idea for a drug and they think it has gone through the initial testing and they want to start human trials, which involves getting as many people into the trials.

One thing that is fascinating about the article is that you talk about how many of the trials in fact don't take place in the United States. They take place in places like China and India but also several other countries. First of all, why is that? Why aren't more trials happening here in the United States?

DONALD BARTLETT, AUTHOR, "DEADLY MEDICINE" VANITY FAIR ARTICLE: Well, part of it, one explanation is cost. It is cheaper to run a trial in Kazakhstan than in the United States. And in addition, you have a problem of that you alluded to it earlier that many if not most Americans are taking a drug or have taken a drug, and that can skew the results. So the pharmaceutical companies are always looking for people they call "drug naive," which means they are not on drugs, and maybe have never had a drug.

GUPTA: And James, presumably we are all human beings. Is that a problem that some of the trials are taking place overseas? JAMES B. STEELE, AUTHOR, "DEADLY MEDICINE" VANITY FAIR ARTICLE: Well, this is a very good question. And there's a lot of debate and certainly in the medical profession, and medical research on just that issue. One of the more interesting studies that we ran across was at Duke a couple of years back where they raised the whole issue of the efficacy of the foreign trials and the economics of them and the ethics.

They also raised the question, people in impoverished areas may metabolize drugs at a different rate and pace than people in developed countries, because some of the diseases they deal with, such as malaria, are basically unknown, nonexistent anymore in developed countries like the U.S. So, these are unknowns. But a lot of people have raised this question. They are concerned about it.

And what is overwhelming is just the amount that has happened. I think that the thing that stunned us the most about our research on this was how rapidly this expansion of these foreign trials has occurred. I mean 10, 15 years ago they were almost a very small number. And now some of these companies, the vast bulk of the trials are being conducted somewhere abroad. That just happened overnight almost with many of them.

GUPTA: When a company -- many of these trials are funded by the company that's making the drugs, and that is an important point. One thing I have been curious about, and I don't know what you found in your investigation. But let's say that a lot of the trials are done, maybe more than 100 trials are done on a particular drug, are all of the results of those trials disclosed, negative and positive? What is the requirement there from the FDA on these companies?

BARTLETT: This is a really important point because all of the results are not disclosed.

GUPTA: So if there are negative results they don't necessarily have to disclose those?

BARTLETT: Absolutely. It wouldn't be impossible to have really serious negative results overseas and the results not to be disclosed.

GUPTA: That is frightening, in part, because you have some expectation that the companies are clearly have an incentive to only disclose the positive results of these studies. I mean, is that by design or are these companies circumventing a system where they should be disclosing it?

BARTLETT: Well, you put your finger on a critical issue. This is what is so important. It is the way that trials, the overall system is designed, and the way that the individual trials are designed just leave a lot to be desired.

STEELE: One thing that has happened in the last few years is the development of what we called in the story, the clinical trials industry. Years ago, so many clinical trials were overseen by medical schools in this country or universities or nonprofit entities of one sort or another. In the last couple of decades, this clinical trials industry, private companies that are doing this basically for profit and not just in the country, but increasingly abroad and the people there recruiting to carry out these trials have an incentive to try to come up with the right kinds of results to show that this particular drug can win FDA approval. So the regulation by FDA in this area has never been great, but it is plainly abysmal when it comes to the trials abroad.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BALDWIN: Sanjay Gupta, thank you for that. I want you to know that we reached out to the FDA and got no response. As you can imagine, the Association of Clinical Research Professionals took issue with the "Vanity Fair" piece. They say "all the testing done by their members anywhere in the world does indeed meet the gold standard."

And also, tomorrow, we will look at the how one pill leads to another. You have Ambien and Klonopin and Vicodin. Wait until you hear what one patient will share with us tomorrow.

And now something that people are talking about today, college athletes who bring in all kinds of money to the universities across the country, but they are not making money for themselves, or at least they are not supposed to. Today, the scandal involving Ohio State is trending, and it involves tattoos to cars to cash. That is next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: If the world of college football could paint a picture of rectitude, it may look like this, Jim Tressel, Ohio State Buckeyes, button-down, V-neck sweater. The word the sports writers use for him is "senatorial" and the other is "winner," 106 wins, 22 losses in nine seasons, three trips to the national championship game.

But those games are over. Jim Tressel has resigned in disgrace. This quote is from "Sports Illustrated." "His integrity was one of the great myths of college football." Joining me now out of Columbus, Ohio, Jerod Smalley, a sports director of WCMH-TV there.

Jerod, what are the allegations against Jim Tressel and OSU football?

JEROD SMALLEY, WCHM SPORTS DIRECTOR: Brooke, good to see you. This is a wide investigation. You mentioned the article that came out last night. The article mentioned some 28 current and former players who could have been involved in a tattoos or memorabilia for sale scheme where players were getting tattoos at discounted or even free rates sometimes in exchange for their personal memorabilia. This goes back in some cases maybe nine years. This is a massive investigation. In terms of the NCAA scale of things, this is major in scope.

BALDWIN: I think I was reading in the article, this is a cardinal, cardinal sin. And you mentioned possibly 28 players. But this thing could go back to the '90s because before he was at OSU, he was with the Penguins, Youngstown State. He had issues at Ohio State through the beginning. Through all of the years, Jerod, how did he maintain this model of moral probity?

SMALLEY: It's an interesting question. What has been fascinating, as I've grown to know the man, there's a significant perception of him that match what is you're describing there, the buttoned-up, first-class, always gracious with his time, especially to charities and the like, but there certainly was something there in terms of NCAA issues, not only at Ohio state but at Youngstown that he had to fight during his career.

He's facing his own NCAA investigation concerning cars. There's a number of things going on throughout his career that point to that. Still, look at the record, 83 percent wins, the second best in big 10 football history. It's a remarkable achievement.

BALDWIN: It's huge. No doubt about that. But I want you to listen with me. This is Gene Smith addressing buckeye fans versus the internet.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GENE SMITH: As you all know, we are under NCAA investigation. We will not discuss any of the matters around that case, any further accusations that may emerge.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: Jerod, that doesn't sound good. Quickly, what is Ohio State looking at, trouble?

SMALLEY: We've been working on that throughout the day. Ohio State is under NCAA investigation currently, and Jim Tressel is here with the NCAA. It comes up August 12th. He told the team he met with the players after he resigned and said the two most important dates are August 12th and November 26th.

The date of the Ohio State and Michigan which has been foremost with him, that's what is coming up. They face that hearing, a six- to eight-week gap where they learn the penalties. It could be massive. Maybe an example of what could occur, there is a label called lack of institutional control which the NCAA likes to throw on cases where there is extreme lack of control by the university in terms of controlling its student athletes and staff. We'll see if Ohio state infractions fall in line with that. There's still a lot of investigating that needs to be done.

BALDWIN: Jerod, good to see you, friend, WCMH out of Columbus, Ohio. Thanks.

SMALLEY: Thank you much. See you soon.

BALDWIN: And new information here about two Kentucky men, Iraqi civilians living in Kentucky helping Al Qaeda terrorists, including alleged plots against American troops. That's ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) BALDWIN: Miami Beach Memorial Day weekend -- you think fun and sun and parties. But I want to show you what played out in the early morning hours just yesterday. Police the driver you see here almost rams some officers over, takes off, allegedly fires a gun as this guy speeds away. They, of course, go after him.

Keep your eyes there on the screen because the guy there has come to a screeching halt. Watch and listen. Here's what happens when officers crowded around that car.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

(GUNFIRE)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: You hear that? That is a barrage of gunfire. Police fired into the car. They killed the driver. The police chief says the man was pronounced dead at the scene. No gun was found. Hundreds of officers had to move in to get the situation under control, a lot of those people running because they are hearing the gunshots. Wouldn't you be terrified? Police say four bystanders were hit. They could have been hit by stray shots fired by police officers. Three police officers were slightly injured. This happened during Miami's annual urban beach week. The mayor said "This incident really mars us."

And now as we roll to the top of the hour, watch this.

Another powerful banker accused of sexually assaulting a hotel maid in New York City, and we're now learning what happened in the moment before this alleged attack. I'm Brooke Baldwin. The news is now.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BALDWIN: The video is haunting. A teacher trying to calm her kindergartners as bullets fly just outside the classroom window. Today the teacher describes what was going through her mind.

A shocking admission, Egypt government arrests female protesters and then tested their most private parts. What did they think that they had to defend themselves from?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I noticed Caylee's backpack in the trunk of the car.

BALDWIN: Plus, Casey Anthony's mother takes to the stand and the prosecution is using the testimony to make their case.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I sprayed Febreeze all through the car.

BALDWIN: And beware al you beach goers. Hundreds getting stung by swarms of jelly fish. I will tell you what is behind this invasion.

(END VIDEOTAPE)