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FBI Arrests Fugitive Mob Boss 'Whitey' Bulger; Science Attacked in Anthony Trial; Planned Troop Withdrawal From Afghanistan

Aired June 23, 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: Well, they got him. After 16 years on the run, and a rap sheet that includes murder, conspiracy and drugs, just to name a few, legendary crime boss James "Whitey" Bulger is now in the hands of the FBI.

The 81-year-old was one of the most powerful mobsters in the nation with a spot on the FBI's Ten Most Wanted fugitives list. His reputation extends into Hollywood, where his alleged crimes inspired the 2006 Martin Scorsese film "The Departed." Bulger was once head of Boston's Winter Hill Gang and was an FBI informant before he went on the run in 1995 after an FBI agent tipped him off about an impending racketeering indictment.

Bulger makes his first court appearance today, facing 19 counts of murder, conspiracy to commit murder, and money laundering.

Kara Finnstrom joins us live now from downtown Los Angeles with more.

Kara, Whitey Bulger was arrested along with his longtime girlfriend, huge arrest, really, this is for the FBI. Now, I understand that they got their man with a ruse. They lured him into a trap.

KARA FINNSTROM, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right. They used a different strategy here.

You know, he's really become a legend to people up in that Boston area. He's known as "Whitey" because he has got this big shock of white hair. And for 16 years now he had alluded authorities until he was arrested last night in Santa Monica with his girlfriend. Both taken into custody without, we're told, any resistance.

And today, what FBI agents are telling us is that that girlfriend, 60-year-old Catherine Greig, was the key to it all. Until now, they say they had really been focusing their efforts on Bulger, but recently they put together a 30-second PSA that focused on some of Greig's unusual traits.

They say she was a dental hygienist who liked to have her teeth cleaned once a month. They say she also had numerous plastic surgeries, and that she loved animals, particularly dogs. They took this PSA and they aired it on a number of different TV shows that target women that are about her same age, hoping that someone might have come across her in a beauty salon or in a plastic surgeon's office, and might recognize her and then lead her -- lead them back to Bulger.

And authorities are telling us that that's exactly what happened. They haven't released much information about their tipster, but they did say that this arrest was a direct result of those PSAs that were airing in 14 different cities, including here in Los Angeles.

Two Boston men who have left the area and have moved across the country here to the area where he was caught spoke about how shocked they were to find out that this legend was caught in their new back yard.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Whitey's caught? You've got to be kidding me.

I mean, you've heard all the stories, things he's done, and corruption and all that. But a lot of people said oh, he's dead. Maybe they don't want to see him get caught, he might take down the whole FBI if he starts talking.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FINNSTROM: So the normal procedure in a case like this would be for Bulger to be arraigned here and then to be extradited back to Boston. And this morning, law enforcement in the Boston area held a press conference. They said that's exactly what they would like to see happen. They want to see him face justice there.

We'll learn more about that later this morning. We're also told he's not expected to get a bail set because he is such a high flight risk.

That procedure, his first appearance in court here, expected to take place around 2:00, possibly a little bitter earlier. And we'll, of course, keep you updated once he does make his appearance here.

Reporting live in Los Angeles, Kara Finnstrom.

Back to you, Randi.

KAYE: And Kara, do you know anything about his health? I mean, he's 81 years old. He's been on the run for so many years. What do we know about that?

FINNSTROM: You know, it's a good point. On the FBI's Web site they did say that he was known to take heart medication. He obviously had a very exciting life, to say the least.

He's 81 years old. They also listed that he is known to have a violent streak and known to carry a knife. So they were warning the public about him.

But we heard that he's 81. He's got a heart problem. Really, the reason they are going after him now is because they don't believe he's as much of a current threat, as they want him to see justice for what they say he's done in the past.

KAYE: All right.

Kara Finnstrom there in Los Angeles there for us.

Kara, thank you.

(WEATHER REPORT)

KAYE: Well, the U.S. is tapping into its strategic oil reserves because of the crisis in Libya. The Department of Energy announced today it will release 30 million barrels of oil into the world market over the next 30 days to help offset supply reductions.

Twenty-seven other countries which are also members of the International Energy Agency, will release 30 million additional barrels. The crisis in Libya has resulted in the loss of about 1.5 million barrels of oil per day.

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is defending President Obama's plan to withdraw 33,000 so-called surge troops from Afghanistan. She told the House Armed Services Committee that while the president's security team backed his decision, the military commander on the ground in Afghanistan remained concerned about troops levels.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HILLARY CLINTON, SECRETARY OF STATE: The decision that the president made was supported by the national security team, and I think it would be totally understandable that a military commander would want as many troops for as long as he could get them, but any military commander with the level of expertise and experience that General Petraeus has also knows that what he wants is just part of the overall decision matrix.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAYE: President Obama outlined his withdrawal plan in an address to the nation last night right here on CNN.

Casey Anthony's mom may take the stand today. These are live pictures inside the Orlando courtroom. We go live to Orlando next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAYE: Casey Anthony's mom may testify today, this time as a witness for the defense in her daughter's murder trial. But whether Casey Anthony is found innocent or guilty, will live or die, hinges on a lot of complicated science and little bits of evidence -- Caylee's hair and skull, Anthony's car. That was all under attack today.

This is a live picture from inside the courtroom right now. Anthony's defense attorneys are questioning the credibility of some of the prosecution's key experts and the accuracy of their science.

I want to go right to Richard Herman, who has a lot of experience as a criminal defense attorney himself.

Richard, great to have you on.

RICHARD HERMAN, CRIMINAL DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Hi, Randi.

KAYE: Hi, there. The defense called several forensic experts. One of them testified for the prosecution earlier in the trial. There was a lot of back-and-forth over testing, the science and the possibility of contamination.

In your opinion, how well do you think the defense is doing with breaking down the prosecution's evidence?

HERMAN: Well, I think that they are confusing the jury, which in this kind of case is a good thing, Randi. The more confusion, the better, because the judge is going to direct them at the end if they are confused, that means the government or the prosecution has not proven their case beyond a reasonable doubt. So he's trying to do that.

But one of the early witnesses he put on there, his defense witness, imploded on him at the end. He just doesn't know when to sit down, Randi. It's like a high school quarterback playing in the Super Bowl. He just does not -- he doesn't have the savvy, he doesn't have the skill or experience.

He's not planning his cross-examinations and his direct examinations properly. He's opening the door to get killed by these witnesses, and that's a big problem in any criminal defense case.

And I'll tell you, Randi, the prosecution's theory that she was a horrible mother and she wanted to live the good life, and Caylee was an anchor to her, none of that came in, in the direct case. But watch. Baez is so sloppy, it's probably going to come in now. He's going to open the door to it in the defense case, and then the prosecution will go to that in summation.

But so far, I think the forensics are creating confusion, and that was the intent. That's a good thing for the defense.

KAYE: Yes. Let me ask you this. The defense, attacking how the air samples from Casey Anthony's car trunk were tested.

If you remember, which I'm sure you do, the prosecution's experts said that those air samples contained odor of a decomposing body. The big thing the defense drilled down on was there was no formal testing protocols put in place.

So here's what he said and then I'll ask you about it.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARRY LOGAN, FORENSIC TOXICOLOGIST: Well, if you don't have a written procedure for doing the test, there's no way to ensure that the test is going to be done the same way every time.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAYE: Richard, just quickly, is that a big blow to the prosecution?

HERMAN: Well, it's a blow to Dr. Vass, who I believe is reversible error in this case. I mean, he was doing scientific experiments with no peer review, Randi, and thy put him on the stand to testify as an expert. And the judge allowed him in, which I believe was a big mistake.

So, you know, again, anything they can do to malign the prosecution forensic experts --

KAYE: Yes.

HERMAN: -- that goes as a plus, but there's only a few jurors who are receptive to it. I think juror four is taking notes on the defense case, but not to many others are taking notes on the defense case.

KAYE: Yes. Casey Anthony's mom, Cindy Anthony, could take the stand today. Smart move by the defense, or no?

HERMAN: It's a horrible move. I don't know what he thinks he's going to get out of here.

I believe what's going to happen is he's going to revert back to depositions she gave a couple years ago and try to bring out that, perhaps, she was the one that did a chloroform search on the House computer. I don't know where he's going with it.

Look, it's very dangerous. She clearly is not in favor of the defense here.

We heard the statements come out of her attorney last night. This is a dangerous person to put on the stand. Unless I knew exactly what she was going to say, I wouldn't put her on at this point, Randi.

KAYE: I want to ask you -- you mentioned one juror taking notes. I mean, from what I understand, a lot of these jurors aren't taking a whole lot of notes.

As a defense attorney, would that concern you?

HERMAN: Well, they were taking notes for the prosecution case.

KAYE: Right.

HERMAN: They're not taking notes for the defense. So, to me, that is not a plus, Randi. That's a bad sign for the defense.

KAYE: All right. Richard Herman, great to have you on. Thank you so much.

President Obama's plan to withdraw 33,000 surge troops from Afghanistan, too many, too fast? We'll talk with national security analyst Peter Bergen right after this break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAYE: As we mentioned, President Obama is due to speak to U.S. soldiers at Fort Drum, New York, at the bottom of the hour. We'll bring it to you live when it happens.

Joining us now from Washington with more on the president's plan to withdraw 33,000 surge troops from Afghanistan is our national security analyst Peter Bergen.

Peter, thanks for coming on the show.

What developments on the ground in Afghanistan do you think persuaded the president that he could now begin pulling out the surge troops, that this was the time?

PETER BERGEN, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: Well, part of the calculus was certainly the fact that the Taliban has suffered -- a lot of its middle managers have been killed by U.S. Special Forces activity. General Petraeus testified in March that something like 350 had been killed in a three-month period.

In addition, areas of Afghanistan that were once the Taliban heartland in north and south Helmand, around Kandahar City, you know, the Taliban has really been rolled back. And that's not according just to the U.S. military. That's also according to independent non- governmental organizations who have worked in Afghanistan for some period of time who don't necessarily tow a pro-NATO line.

And based -- I mean, from my own experience, Randi, certainly Helmand, when Anderson Cooper and I visited there even in September of 2009, areas that were, you know, really Taliban-controlled as a result of the Marine effort in Helmand were reverting to, you know, non- Taliban control. So that was a big part I think of the calculation.

KAYE: Yes. What about, though, the 68,000 troops or so that will remain in Afghanistan? I mean, can they handle the job of training Afghan troops and police and fight the Taliban?

BERGEN: Well, you know, according to White House officials that briefed myself and others yesterday, their view is that there are sort of three main activities that eventually -- or already are really damaging the Taliban. One, building up the Afghan army. Two, Special Forces operations against Taliban middle managers. Three, something called Afghan local police, which is really Pashtun tribal militias in the rural heartland of the Taliban that are being helped to come to -- to be able to work against the Taliban by U.S. Special Forces.

And those activities can be easily sustained, they say, with the 68,000 soldiers. And, you know, I think there's reason to think that that's true because, after all, you know, if you go back to the -- even the pre-Obama era, you were looking at, you know, around 30,000 American soldiers on the ground, and some of these activities were already being conducted just with 30,000. So I think 68,000 certainly is enough to do those activities. It's not enough to control every part of Afghanistan, but that isn't really the point.

KAYE: We talk a lot about the Taliban, but what is the strength and the presence today of al Qaeda in Afghanistan? I mean, is the group still a threat there?

BERGEN: According to White House officials, as of yesterday, the number is somewhere between 50 and 80 al Qaeda members in Afghanistan. That number has been very consistent.

Panetta has said this, the head of the CIA, said this publicly about a year ago. I think he used the number of 65. But I think to get -- you know, to be caught up only on the numbers, Randi, I think is sort of a red herring in the sense that al Qaeda has always been a small organization.

There were only 200 formal members of al Qaeda on 9/11. Look at the damage they did. It's not the size of al Qaeda, whether in Afghanistan or Pakistan. Obviously, there are more in Pakistan. It's more their ability to affect ideologically other groups.

And so whether it's the Pakistani Taliban that sent a suicide bomber to Times Square in May of last year, whether it's groups like Lashkar-e-Taiba, which sought out American and Jewish targets in Mumbai in 2008, al Qaeda, unfortunately, has spread its ideas just beyond groups that call themselves al Qaeda to other groups in South Asia that are headquartered often in the tribal regions of Pakistan.

KAYE: Just quickly, Peter, I want to shift to another pretty crucial topic, Egypt. What can you tell us about a report that young members of the Muslim Brotherhood, which you and I have talked quite a bit about, plan to start their own secular political party?

BERGEN: You know, I think that this is part of a trend within the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt where the younger members of the group are less ideological than the older members. A lot of older members, of course, have spent a great deal of time in prison and tend to be perhaps more militant and more wedded to sort of old ways of thinking.

And so the Muslim Brotherhood, of which, you know, is a pretty large group, the fact that they are planning to set up their own party that is more secular in orientation is not entirely surprising. And the Muslim Brotherhood in general has allied with another party in Egypt which is more secular in its orientation for the election that's coming up in September. So this is part of a trend, I think, that the Muslim Brotherhood is engaging in conventional politics, and that's a good thing.

KAYE: All right. Peter Bergen, appreciate your insight. Thank you.

Twenty-two minutes past the hour. Time to check our top stories for you. Following President Obama's timetable, France says it will begin withdrawing troops from Afghanistan. The French defense minister says all French troops could be out of Afghanistan by 2013. France now has nearly 4,000 troops there.

President Obama announced yesterday the withdrawal of 33,000 American troops by September, 2012.

First lady Michelle Obama continues her trip to South Africa with a visit today to Cape Town. In addition to a stop at a museum and the University of Cape Town, she was scheduled to meet with Archbishop Desmond Tutu. Mrs. Obama is scheduled to travel to neighboring Botswana later today, where a safari is set for her and her two daughters on Saturday.

And for all you "Harry Potter" fans, you'll be able to continue following the boy wizard's adventures now online. J.K. Rowling, author of the series of Potter books, today announced the launch of an interactive e-books series on the Web site pottermore.com.

So where is the very best place in the world to live and work? And, no, "Harry Potter" fans, Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry is not an option. Ali Velshi debates this and more next with the one and only Richard Quest.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

RICHARD QUEST, HOST, "QUEST MEANS BUSINESS": It's time for a little "Q&A," when Ali and I get together in the CNN NEWSROOM and around the world. We're talking business travel and innovation.

A good day to you, sir.

ALI VELSHI, CNN ANCHOR: And to you, Richard.

As always, nothing is off limits. So today we're not even limiting our minds. We're talking about the best placed in the world to live and to work.

You and I travel a lot, but if we could choose where it would be, which countries would we choose?

QUEST: It's going to be a difficult, tricky one, because it's a dream segment today. And whilst you at home will have your own opinions, we have a show to do.

And Ali, you go first. You've got 60 seconds on the clock.

(BELL RINGING)

VELSHI: Very good. All right.

I have searched high and low, and here is the answer, Richard. Get ready for this -- Norway.

The standard of living is high. Norway ranks number one on the U.N.'s human development index. Life expectancy is long, 81 years on average. People are well educated.

The cost of the education in Norway, as in many northern European countries, generally free, all the way through university. Jobs are not even hard to come by. Even in today's economy, Richard, Norway's unemployment rate was 2.5 percent last month.

Norwegians aren't just cross-country skiing and eating lutefisk, which is a fish, by the way. They are plugged in, Richard.

Norway ranks fourth worldwide when it comes to wireless broadband penetration, a question that tripped us up a few weeks ago. And that's a sign, by the way, that the country invests in infrastructure and planning. It's rich, as you know very well, in natural resources, lots of oil and natural gas.

Here's the problem with Norway, Richard. You know what it is. It gets cold -- 40 below in both Fahrenheit and Centigrade in the winter.

It's not cheap. Oslo is Europe's most expensive city. But the GDP per capita income, $58,000, Richard. Norway is the place to be.

(BUZZER)

VELSHI: Shall we move?

QUEST: I'll buy you a ticket to Norway in the middle of the winter.

And let's see. If you're still saying Norway, here's my 60 seconds on the best place in the world to live.

(BELL RINGING)

QUEST: The best place in the world to live is very simple. It's wherever I'm living at the moment, because, frankly, there's no place like home for livability, for culture, for history.

When I lived in the United States, that clearly was the best place in the world to live, to enjoy the warm hospitality of the American people, the food, and indeed the large giant sizes of portions.

The best place in the world now is clearly the United Kingdom of Great Britain -- the royal wedding, the monarchy, the theaters. Yes, it might be a little bit expensive for you with your wishy-washy dollar, but now the best place in the world is right here, home, sweet home.

Of course, if next year I should happen to move to Australia or Singapore, well, you know where I'm going with that. The best place in the world will be down under, because wherever I am, that is the best place in the world.

(BUZZER)

VELSHI: What a wholesome, healthy outlook for you, Richard. You will be a happy man for the rest of your life.

Time now to bring in "The Voice" to test us and see how much we really know.

Hello, Voice.

VOICE: Hello, gentlemen.

Mr. Quest, you are mighty full of yourself today. Let's see how you do on the quiz.

Let's jump right in.

According to the annual wealth report, which of these is the best city to live in based on quality of life, economic activity and political power? Is it, A, New York; B, London; C, Singapore or, D, Johannesburg?

(BELL RINGS)

VELSHI: I'm going to beat him at his own game. It's London. London.

(BUZZER RINGS)

VOICE: Incorrect. Richard?

QUEST: It actually becomes - it's a toss between New York and Singapore. I think it's New York.

(BELL RINGS)

VOICE: That is correct. Good job, Richard. New York tops the list, followed by London and Paris. Johannesburg finished last in the 40-city survey.

On to number two. According to "Global Finance Magazine," which of these countries has the highest price for a cup of coffee, including service? Is it, A, Paris; B, Moscow; C, Tokyo; or, D, Beijing?

(BELL RINGS)

VOICE: Richard?

QUEST: I'm going to go for Moscow.

(BELL RINGS)

VOICE: That is correct. Moscow ranks highest at more than $8 a cup, excluding the tip.

On to number three. Now to the other side of the coin. According to the Mercer Consulting Group, which city is the absolute worst place to live? Is it, A, Baghdad; B, Kandahar; C, Tripoli or, D, New York? (BELL RINGS)

VOICE: Richard?

VELSHI: I would -- I would say Kandahar.

(BUZZER SOUNDS)

VOICE: Incorrect.

QUEST: I mean, all right, I'm going to go for Baghdad.

VELSHI: That is correct. The answer is Baghdad. I have nothing left to say about that.

Richard, you win yet again. Well done, sir.

VELSHI: Two weeks in a row, Richard!

QUEST: No, no. Two weeks in a row with a clean sweep.

VELSHI: Yes, no, no, you're right.

QUEST: That will do it for this week.

VELSHI: I'll be back strong next week.

QUEST: We're back each Thursday on "QUEST MEANS BUSINESS," which is at 18:00 GMT.

VELSHI: And in the CNN NEWSROOM, 2:00 p.m. Eastern. Keep the topics coming on our blog, CNN.com/qmb and CNN.com/ali. Tell us each week what you want us to talk about.

See you next week, Richard.

QUEST: See you next week.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAYE: Welcome back. A court date in California today for one of the FBI's most wanted fugitives. Organized crime boss James "Whitey" Bulger was arrested yesterday in Santa Monica, California, along with his girlfriend, Katherine Elizabeth Grieg.

Bulger had been on the run since 1995. He was sought in connection with 19 murders, numerous other crimes as well. The former head of Boston's notorious Winter Hill Gang inspired the 2006 Martin Scorcese film "The Departed."

In a 5-4 ruling today, the Supreme Court said generic drug companies do not share the same level of responsibility as brand-name drugs when it comes to updating warning labels about new risks. Two women say they suffered severe medical complications from a generic drug and brought the case before the high court. Generic drugs currently account for more than 70 percent of prescriptions filled in the U.S.

All right. Take a look at this. Remember this video of a six- year-old getting a pat-down at the New Orleans airport? Now the TSA is changing its policies on searching children. Screeners must do all they can to avoid pat-downs to children 12 and under. Change was prompted over outrage of that video of that six-year-old which was released in April.

The U.S. is tapping into its strategic oil reserves because of the crisis in Libya. The Department of Energy announced today it will release 30 million barrels of oil into the world market over the next 30 days to help offset supply reductions. Twenty-seven other countries, which are also members of the International Energy Agency will release 30 million additional barrels as well. The crisis in Libya has resulted in the loss of about 1.5 million barrels of oil per day.

All right. Now watch this. In Pennsylvania, a man was at work just taking out the trash when surveillance video captured this. The driver of the car loses control as you saw there, slams right into the store clerk. What happens next is really unthinkable. Instead of checking to see if the man is OK, yes, they just flee the scene. The victim is OK but still recovering from the accident. Police are still on the hunt for the hit-and-run driver.

Syrian tanks and armored personnel carriers moved closer to the Turkish border, raising tensions and sending more frightened refugees fleeing for safety. Coming up next, we'll have more on this in "Globe Trekking."

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAYE: One day after President Obama announced his troop withdrawal plan for Afghanistan, a special Afghan court set up by president Hamid Karzai today threw out a quarter of the results from last year's parliamentary elections.

Got much more on this now from Michael Holmes. How are you?

MICHAEL HOLMES, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Good to see you, Randi. Not bad, not bad.

KAYE: What's this all about?

HOLMES: Yes, it's interesting. There hasn't been an election I think in Afghanistan since the Americans went in. They've been facing claims they have been riddled with fraud and even Karzai's own election, the presidential election in '09, everyone said that was pretty much rigged.

This is about the parliamentary elections, not the presidential elections. As you said, this court, it's a Karzai-appointed court, went in and overturned more than 60 of the seats, the results in the seats. The lawmakers though, they are saying that, who benefits from this? Karzai's people do, because they want to put in 60 of his people.

KAYE: Right. So he wasn't happy with the parliament.

HOLMES: No. He wasn't happy. It wasn't working for him in his way. So, yes, so the feeling among lawmakers, they have actually taken out a vote of no confidence against the attorney general who appointed the court on Karzai's orders.

So, it's another sort of sign of what everyone has been saying about the government there for some time, that it's inefficient, it doesn't work. In many ways it is corrupt. The guy that karzai beat in the presidential election, Dr. Abdullah Abdullah, he says that Karzai is just trying to manipulate things, keep the parliament at arm's length so he can get re-elected, which would mean changing the constitution.

KAYE: Does this have anything to do with Obama's troop withdrawal announcement or strange timing?

HOLMES: No, not really. It's just strange timing, I think, yes, yes.

KAYE: Okay. Also want to talk to you about Syria.

HOLMES: Yes, more movement there.

KAYE: More movement near the border.

HOLMES: Yes, yes. Syrian troops have gone into an area very close to where these refugees are, actually, in Turkey on the Turkish border. The town is not far from the border between Syria and Turkey.

Kind of raises more tensions also, not just for those on the Syrian side of the border who are quite worried about getting caught up in this, but also with Turkey who is now looking at Syrian army on their border. Already a bunch of people. You know, they had the refugee camps on the Turkish side. They had the other camps that are being set up on the Syrian side, too. The Syrians didn't want to cross over but didn't want to be in the hometowns. Well, they have now started moving across the borders. Been another 400, 500 today across because they are worried about this.

KAYE: What do you make of some talk by at least some analysts warning that we could see civil war in Syria?

HOLMES: It's hard to see that being in open. The opposition isn't that well-armed. There's not -- I can't see an open civil war looming there. I mean, but the army is just -- the only thing that could swing radically there is if the army turns more against the government.

And we're already seeing a lot of conscripts deserting, not wanting to fire on their own people, that sort of thing. And then accusations that the hardcore security forces are then firing on the army guys for not firing on the people. That would be the only thing that I could see that would precipitate some sort of massive turn in this. Otherwise, you know, it looks like the military has the upper hand.

KAYE: And is there any hope for the refugees at this point? I mean, they are in the camps, which are really under dire conditions.

HOLMES: They are. The conditions aren't great. The Turks are doing a great job with it, doing what they can with it. And the Red Crescent, the Muslim version of the Red Cross, is in there setting up and providing for them as much as they can.

The guys on the other side of the border are living much rougher than that. They just got bits of plastic strung between trees in orchards.

KAYE: That's terrible.

HOLMES: They are the people that don't want to go across yet because they don't want to be stuck in Turkey. Want to be close to home but they can't go home because the army is in there shooting at people. So, it's a complex situation still unfolding.

KAYE: And no sign of it getting any better.

HOLMES: No, not at the moment. We heard Assad with his speech promising vague things, but nothing is happening. He even said that he wants the army to go back to the barracks. Well, sorry, they're up on the Turkish border now.

(LAUGHTER)

KAYE: Oops.

HOLMES: Yes, that happened.

KAYE: All right, Michael. Thank you.

HOLMES: Good to see you.

KAYE: Good to see you.

You know those reliable brands you just can't live without. Well, get ready to live without them, at least some of them. Coming up, we'll tell you what brands may be gone by next year.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAYE: Here's a question for you. Do you like your Corn Pops for breakfast? What about appliances from Sears? Well, you better stock up. Those brands that you've grown to love may be gone by next year, or at least that's what 24/7 Wall Street is predicting. The financial news group compiles a list of disappearing brands every year based on drops in sales, rising costs, market shares and other financial records.

And based on that, get ready to say good-bye to these top ten disappearing brands. At the top of their list, Sony Pictures. It's a studio production arm that has nothing to do with Sony's main business of electronics and gaming. The company is losing major revenue. Sony will actually likely sell off the assets.

In the number two spot, A& W. All-American food restaurants. It pioneered drive-in fast food but it can't compete with giants like McDonald's, Burger King and Subway even.

Then, of course, there's Saab. All you have to do is look around the streets, look at the roadways. What kind of cars do you see? Saab is no longer a financially viable brand, according to this list.

American Apparel, the retailer may sell hip clothes, but it is on the verge of bankruptcy, as far as we understand it.

And here's a big one, Sears. Its parent company, Sears Holdings, is in major trouble. After Sears merged with Kmart, their operations have gone downhill. The company will likely just consolidate the two brands, keeping Kmart which means, yes, guess what? Sears is going to be gone.

Sony Ericsson is also up on the chopping block. The electronics phone company is falling behind Apple, Research in Motion and other smartphone companies. Now there's talk that Sony will take over the operation and maybe even rebrand.

And this one, yes, it's bittersweet, Kellogg's Corn Pops. The push to eat healthy was bad news for Corn Pops. More parents are looking at the ingredients list and saying uh-uh, no way, bye-bye.

And remember MySpace? One word: Facebook. MySpace is up for sale but will likely be gone.

And "Soap Opera Digest" is going the way of soap operas. The magazine is a product based on a dying industry and along with it, yes, "Digest."

Finally number ten, Nokia, another victim of the highly competitive handset world. By many accounts, Nokia is dead and ripe for a takeover. 24/7 Wall Street says all of those brands will be gone within 18 months. So, mark your calendar.

Well, he lost some pay and very likely his pride, but should a Southwest pilot lose his job after his offensive rant? That discussion in our Stream Team straight ahead.

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KAYE: You know what? We're going to take you live now to Orlando, Florida, inside the Casey Anthony murder trial. Cindy Anthony, Casey's mother, is on the stand. She just took the stand. She's being questioned about a desktop computer in the home. Let's listen in for just a bit here.

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CINDY ANTHONY, CASEY ANTHONY'S MOTHER: I started looking at chlorophyll, and I was concerned about my smallest Yorkie. We have two Yorkie puppies. and the smallest one was having some issues where she was extremely tired all the time, and both of the dogs would eat the bamboo leaves out in the back, so I started looking out sources from the backyard that could potentially cause her to be more sleepy than it would affect the larger dog. And I started to look up chloroform -- I mean, chlorophyll -- and then that prompted me to look up chloroform.

UNIDETIFIED MALE: Now, I -- I don't understand how you could get those two mixed up.

ANTHONY: Not getting them mixed up. If you look into chlorophyll, there's some bacteria associated with chlorophyll production. And looking up that, it comes from different species of plants that have red and brown coloring. And that prompted me to look up chlorophyll because some species of algae and sea weeds and stuff produce naturally chloroform.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: OK. And how do you know that you ran these searches in March of 2008?

ANTHONY: Because I also ran a few other searches at the same time in March. There was a scare about using hand sanitizers around small children. There was an e-mail that went around my employee -- work. One of my nurses had sent me an e-mail knowing that, you know, Caylee was of age that she could be affected if we used hand sanitizer and she got her hands on it, and that scare came out in March.

And during the same time that -- time frame that I was looking up the issues about the dogs, I was looking up ingredients in the hand sanitizer, the alcohol. And then that prompted me to look up other things that we had in the house, like acetone, hydrogen peroxide, rubbing alcohol.

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KAYE: All right. Right now, we want to just leave that trial there. We'll keep it up for you live there from Orlando. We want to now also take you though to Fort Drum, New York, where the president has just started speaking with troops, many of whom have just returned from Afghanistan. Let's listen to this as well.

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BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: As the colonel just mentioned, in 2009 after having been in Afghanistan for seven years but having, I think, lost a sense of focus in terms of how we were going to accomplish our mission, I made the most difficult decision that I've made as president. And that is to deploy an additional 30,000 troops into Afghanistan so that we could turn back Taliban momentum. So that we could continue to go after al Qaeda aggressively, and so that we could make sure that we were training an Afghan security force that had the capacity to secure their own country.

The only reason I was able to make that decision was because I knew that we had the finest fighting force in the world, and that if I gave a command to our troops, they would be able to accomplish that mission. If we were focused and if we were clear in terms of what we're going to try to accomplish, I knew that we could get it done. And the Tenth Mountain Division, this storied -- this -- this group that has, you know, been there for America day in and day out throughout our history, was the first folks to go in after that order was given. And that's not surprising because you guys were also some of the first folks to go in right after 9/11.

Throughout my service, first as a senator and then as a presidential candidate and then as a president, I've always run into you guys. And for some reason it's always in some rough spots. First time I saw the Tenth Mountain Division, you guys were in southern Iraq. When I went back to visit Afghanistan, you guys were the first ones there.

You know, I had the great honor of seeing some of you because a comrade of yours, Jared Monty, was the first person who I was able to award the Medal of Honor, to who actually came back and wasn't receiving it posthumously. And so, you guys have always been there in the toughest fights. And the fact that you are continuing, even as we speak, that many of your comrades are there right now under some very tough circumstances is a testimony to your dedication and your patriotism.

Now, last night, I gave a speech in which I said that we have turned a corner where we can begin to bring back some of our troops. We're not doing it precipitously. We're going to do it in a -- in a steady way to make sure that the gains that all of you helped to bring about are going to be sustained. But because of your outstanding work, what we've been able to do is train an additional 100,000 Afghan soldiers so that they can start carrying on the fight. Because of what you've done, areas like Kandahar are more secure than they have been in years. Because of you, we're now taking the fight to the Taliban instead of the Taliban bringing the fight to us. And because of you, there are signs that the Taliban may be interested in figuring out a political settlement, which ultimately is going to be critical for consolidating that country.

It's also because of you that we had the platform to be able to go after bin Laden and al Qaeda. And we have decimated their ranks. Al Qaeda leadership, half of them have been killed, and most of them are now on the run and they can't operate as effectively as they could. And so, you know, as I look around this room, I suspect that some of you joined the military after 9/11 because you had seen fellow Americans suffer at the hands of bin Laden. And when we got them, when we got him, and as we keep on driving to get the rest of them, it's because of the work and the sacrifice that you guys have made.

Now, the Tenth Mountain and the First Brigade, you guys have sacrificed mightily. I know that you've got 11 fallen soldiers just out of -- out of this group right here. And I think about 270 all told since 9/11. We will never forget their sacrifice. And the reason that I know many of you continue to do the outstanding work that you do is not only love of country, but it's also love for each other and your commitment to making sure that those sacrifices were not in vain. So, the main message I have for all of you today is that the American people understand the sacrifices you're making. They understand the sacrifices that your families are making. Our job is not finished. If you looked at the schedule that I set forth, you know, we're only bringing out 10,000 by the end of this year. We're going to bring out all 33,000 that we surged by next summer. But there's still some fighting to be done. And then we're still going to have 68,000, and frankly, the Tenth Mountain Division is still going to be represented there until we have fully transferred to the Afghan military and security forces.

But I hope that all of you will both take pride in what you've done over the past years, but also understand that there's a -- there's a future there that is brighter, not only for the Afghan people, but for most importantly for American security. And -- and you guys are the tip of the spear. You guys are the ones that keep us safe each and every day.

So, for all the sacrifices that you made, I want to say thank you. For all the sacrifices that your families have made, I want to say thank you. I have no greater job. Nothing gives me more honor than serving as your commander in chief. And to all of you who are potentially going to be redeployed, just know that your commander in chief has your back.

So, thank you very much, everybody. God bless you. God bless the United States of America. Climb to glory. Thank you.

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