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President to Meet with Senate Leaders; Minot Evacuees Can't Go Back Home Yet; Indonesian Workers Banned From Saudi Jobs; TSA Forces 95-Year-Old to Remove Adult Diaper; Bachmann to Declare Bid Monday
Aired June 26, 2011 - 17:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: President Obama is about to get directly involved in the tense deficit reduction talks in hopes of bridging a huge divide between Republicans and Democrats. Tomorrow, he and Vice President Biden will meet separately with Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell. Bipartisan talks to reduce the deficit broke down last week after Republicans refused to consider tax hikes in any plan.
Here's what the president had to say about the impasse in his weekly address.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: Of course, there's been a real debate about where to invest and where to cut. And I'm committed to working with members of both parties to cut our deficits and debt.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: The talks are also dealing with the U.S. debt ceiling and a looming deadline. The U.S. Treasury Department says Congress has until August 2nd to raise the ceiling or the U.S. will start defaulting on its loans. The Democrats and Republicans are not seeing eye to eye on how to avoid this issue in the future by reducing the deficit.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
REP. NANCY PELOSI (D), HOUSE MINORITY LEADER: You cannot achieve what you set out to do if you say it's just about cutting. It has to be about increasing the revenue stream as well, and there are many things you can do in terms of, again, special interest tax loopholes so that the tax code is rampant - is just full of.
SEN. JON KYL (R), ARIZONA: You don't want to pile taxes on at a time when companies don't have the ability to invest and hire people. That's the primary reason we are opposed to raising taxes right now.
SEN. MITCH MCCONNELL (R), MINORITY LEADER: Throwing more tax revenue into the mix is simply not going to produce a desirable result, but it wouldn't pass. I mean, putting aside the fact that Republicans don't like to raise taxes, Democrats don't like to either.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: Senator McConnell also says he hopes President Obama will take tax hikes and stimulus spending off the table when the two meet tomorrow.
Well, the water is as high as it's going to get in Minot, North Dakota. And now everyone is just waiting for the floodwaters to recede so that they can see if there's going to be anything to salvage of their homes.
That includes Alison and Brandyn Henerickson. They're joining us right now from Minot. So, all right, give me an idea, when did you leave? At what point did you get notice it was time to pack things up and leave?
BRANDYN HENERICKSON, EVACUATED HOME IN MINOT: Father's Day. We got kind of notification on Father's Day that there's going to be some increase. CFS coming through here and had to start packing up and preparing for the worst.
WHITFIELD: What did you pack up? What were you able to take out?
B. HENERICKSON: We were able to take out pretty much our whole home.
ALISON HENERICKSON, EVACUATED HOME IN MINOT: We cleaned it out, everything out of the basement. Got almost all of our furniture out. Kids' clothing, kids' bedding, pretty much everything out of the house. Just left a few things that kind of put some things up high that we thought maybe would be safe from the water -
WHITFIELD: OK. And I think a moment ago -
A. HENERICKSON: -- but got almost everything out.
B. HENERICKSON: Yes.
WHITFIELD: OK. I think a moment ago we were looking at your home where it appeared water was maybe at the windows or so, kind of midway. Your kids are safe. You all are safe. Where are you staying? Friends, family?
A. HENERICKSON: We're staying at my mom and dad's house up on South Hill right now.
WHITFIELD: Yes.
B. HENERICKSON: The family (INAUDIBLE).
WHITFIELD: And it seems as though this is a very tight-knit community. There are a lot of extended families in that vicinity. It seems as though that is kind of the best recourse that people have. We heard from our reporter Jim Spellman earlier that very few people are actually staying in shelters.
B. HENERICKSON: Yes, very few. I think there's a couple of hundred people there in shelters. It's kind of amazing. We - we evacuated almost a third of our city and everybody's been able to find friends and family to take them in. So it's a pretty - a pretty phenomenal community here.
WHITFIELD: So what are you hearing about, you know, when the waters might recede enough for you to actually go to your home? Are you anxious to go to your home to see what kind of damage is done?
A. HENERICKSON: Yes, very anxious.
B. HENERICKSON: Really anxious to go home (ph).
A. HENERICKSON: Especially after today.
B. HENERICKSON: Yes. We - just as we stood here over the last hour, it's receded a couple of feet. It needs to recede a lot more for us to be able to get to our home. But they're expecting, you know, a week or two weeks here before it recedes and gets back into - back into its channels, so -
WHITFIELD: So Brandyn and Alison, you all seem awfully jovial and kind of relaxed about it all. I know this is, you know, a very difficult situation for everyone. But you two really do seem to be taking it in stride. Do I have that read right?
B. HENERICKSON: At times. Yes. At times we take it in stride. I guess we have to laugh a little and have to enjoy, you know, what we have out of our home and, you know, our kids - our kids are safe. We're safe. It can be a lot worse. So just got to maintain a positive attitude and, you know, we'll rebuild it and we'll be back in our home, so -
WHITFIELD: All right. Did you all have flood insurance?
B. HENERICKSON: No, we didn't. Yes, we had it for a few years but then we - I decided to cancel it a couple of months ago. I just - we never really have been in a position where we thought we would need it and -
WHITFIELD: Oh, my goodness.
B. HENERICKSON: -- so unfortunately one of those things that got taken. We let it lapse, I guess, in March.
WHITFIELD: Oh, my goodness.
B. HENERICKSON: So one of those poor decisions that we made. But, you know, can't do anything about it now.
WHITFIELD: Yes. You know, it doesn't seem like you're kicking yourself about that. Not angry. Yes, disappointed. But not very angry?
A. HENERICKSON: Disappointed.
B. HENERICKSON: Yes.
A. HENERICKSON: Not angry. Just disappointed, but -
B. HENERICKSON: And you just never know what it would have covered anyway, so -
WHITFIELD: Yes.
B. HENERICKSON: -- we'll just, we'll get through it. Just what we do.
WHITFIELD: All right. All the best, Alison and Brandyn Henerickson. We wish you the best, you and your neighbors. Thanks so much.
B. HENERICKSON: Thank you.
A. HENERICKSON: Thank you.
WHITFIELD: All right. Thanks.
All right. Today also marks a Gay Pride weekend in New York City and many other cities. In fact, today pretty sizable parade taking place there in the Big Apple. It came just two days after Governor Andrew Cuomo signed legislation legalizing same-sex marriages in New York starting July 24th.
Well, Governor Cuomo was cheered as he march in today's parade as well. He says New York's same-sex marriage law should be a model for the rest of the country.
And thousands of people turned out in Birmingham last night to protest Alabama's new immigration law. Organizers said they were pleased by the size and diversity of the crowd. The Alabama Statute is considered the toughest immigration law in the country.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We believe that there should be a national uniform immigration reform that affects all states.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The laws they're trying to pass in Alabama are just not right. And we need to show solidarity with our brothers. We shouldn't be splitting up families. It's just not the right law. It's setting Alabama back, not forward.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: Critics say the law could criminalize basic activity such as providing food, transportation or housing assistance to the needy if they are in the country illegally.
Authorities now say at least six people died when an 18-wheeler smashed into an Amtrak Train in Nevada. That number could rise. Some people listed as passengers still have not been located. Listen to people from the train trying to get fellow passengers to safety.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: She's out there. Tell her to hang and jump! Tell her to hang and jump!
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There's somebody over there. Why don't she -
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: Some pretty frightening, harrowing moment there. Amtrak's California Zephyr was on its way from Chicago to the San Francisco area Friday when it was hit by a tractor-trailer at a crossing near Reno.
A manhunt is underway for a triple murder suspect in Oklahoma. Authorities say he overpowered deputies earlier today and then escaped from a jail. Shaun Bosse was behind bars charged with the killings of a woman and her two children. Bosse allegedly stole one of the deputy's cars and used it to get away.
A new flap over those TSA pat downs. This time a 95-year-old woman, who was in a wheelchair, is asked to remove her adult diaper. Her daughter is very upset and she's going to be joining us this half hour to talk about it.
And a competition where ugly is the new pretty. Yes, this is for real, and it's in our "Chatroom."
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: All right. We're talking now about the health of a South American president. Venezuela's government denies published reports that President Hugo Chavez is in critical condition. A Spanish language newspaper in the U.S. cites intelligent sources as saying Chavez has prostate cancer. A Venezuelan official says the president is just recovering from surgery in Cuba.
The government of Indonesia has taken an unusual step they say to protect people who go abroad to work, particularly women. Starting later this year, Indonesian workers will no longer be allowed to travel to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to work as maids or construction workers. Now, that's the headline.
But the story behind it is troubling and rather tragic as well. Here's how many people in Indonesia are reacting to this worker ban. Take a look at the pictures there. They're angry at the president, saying that that government is failing to protect Indonesians who work in other countries.
Ralitsa Vassileva here with CNN International to give us a better understanding of how this came to be and why the Indonesian government feels this is the best way to protect its workers. What happened? What was the real impetus?
RALITSA VASSILEVA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The real impetus was the beheading by sword of an Indonesian maid, who was convicted of murdering her employer's wife and she confessed to doing this. However, she said she was repeatedly abused. She was prevented from returning home.
And the Indonesian government was in the process of seeking her clemency. There were hopes that that could be done. But Saudi Arabia decided to carry out the sentence, the beheading, without notifying the Indonesian government and that set up a national outcry. We see those protests there, the people saying the Indonesian government has not done enough to address this.
It's a huge problem. This is not the only time -
WHITFIELD: Because over time there have been a lot of complaints about people, particularly domestic workers who have said they've been abused, maybe they weren't paid properly in Saudi Arabia when coming from Southeast Asia. And making the journey and then never getting a chance to go visit family or get those promised breaks.
VASSILEVA: Yes, absolutely. Some of them don't see their children, don't see their families for years. But they still keep going back because they need those jobs.
WHITFIELD: The employment.
VASSILEVA: There's high unemployment. And just the whole nation this time was - was really shocked. They've been out at protests. Even last year there was a protest after the Saudi woman was acquitted, after she was convicted of torturing another maid. But this protest really hit a raw nerve. As a result of which, the president announced this moratorium that until they decide on fair working conditions, they wouldn't be sending any more workers beginning August 1st.
But I wanted to give you a little bit of the reaction of the family of this 54-year-old maid who was - even the family didn't know, didn't expect it. They were shocked. They're still grappling with her death.
WHITFIELD: Oh, my goodness.
VASSILEVA: Here.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): Am I angry? Yes. Disappointed? Yes. Sad? Yes. Why? Because her time was too short. My mother was in jail in January, 2010. Her second trial was in May. We were waiting for the decision and all of a sudden the execution happened. She wasn't defended very well. Not at all.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VASSILEVA: So the Saudi government has apologized for not notifying the Indonesian government before they carried out the sentence. They say this will never happen again. But, again, the two countries will be signing a memorandum, an agreement for fair treatment, including minimum wage. They don't even have an agreement for minimum wage.
WHITFIELD: So possibly that moratorium that the Indonesian president has imposed might be lifted contingent upon that agreement?
VASSILEVA: Exactly. And this - they've been in the process of working on that agreement. However, there are maids lining up, big lines, you know -
WHITFIELD: Who want to work.
VASSILEVA: -- to go to Saudi Arabia before the moratorium kicks in because they need those jobs and they say no matter what, you know, we are going. Because we need those jobs.
WHITFIELD: Wow. Incredible.
Ralitsa Vassileva, thanks so much for bringing that story to us. Appreciate it.
A woman saves young girls and women from sex trafficker. And she, by the way, is a CNN Hero.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: All this week, CNN has been shining a spotlight on modern day slavery. In Nepal, one woman has fought to save sex trafficking victims for nearly two decades helping rescue and rehabilitate more than 12,000 women and girls. Well, that earned her the title of 2010 CNN Hero of the Year.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ANURADHA KOIRALA, 2010 CNN HERO OF THE YEAR: In the west, America, Europe, if someone comes and says I want to make your child a prostitute, they would give them a slap or shoot them." But here, families, they are tricked all the time.
Girls are brought from the villages by people who can lure them and tell them that they're getting a nice job.
The border between India and Nepal is the conduit point of trafficking. Once they're here, there is no way to escape.
I am Anuradha Koirala, and it is my strong hope to stop every Nepali girl from being trafficked.
When you go to the border exit points, we are intercepting four girls to five girls per day.
After the rescue, the girl is taken to Maiti, Nepal.
We started this to accommodate rape survivors and trafficking survivors. We take everybody.
The girls who come back from brothels, they are totally psychologically broken.
We give them whatever work they want to do, whatever training they want to do. One day, we will really stop it. The trafficking will end. These are all convicted. There is always a small scar that, yes, one day, I was trafficked. But today, I'm something new in my life. They are my strength.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: Actress Demi Moore recently went to Nepal to work with Koirala. CNN's cameras were there. Tune in tonight at 8:00 P.M., Eastern to see "Nepal: Stolen Children, A CNN Freedom Project Documentary."
And, of course, we always want to hear from you. Tell us about the heroes in your community. Send your nominations to CNN.com/Heroes.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: All right. We're leaving the NEWSROOM just for a minute. We're entering the "Chatroom." Alexandra Steele with me now. This is on the lighter side of things.
ALEXANDRA STEELE, AMS METEOROLOGIST: We're on the couch.
WHITFIELD: Things that are, you know, of radar, we believe they should be on radar.
STEELE: That's right.
WHITFIELD: And who doesn't love a pooch?
STEELE: That's right. Whether an ugly one?
WHITFIELD: Especially if cute or not.
STEELE: I like that. Ugly is the new pretty.
WHITFIELD: I - I do like that, too. I kind of feel bad for the dog that people are calling it ugly, or these dogs ugly.
STEELE: Not that one.
WHITFIELD: And they have their own special look. But there was a contest going on about all this.
STEELE: That's right. In California and the $1,000 winner was this abandoned dog. He was abandoned. The owner found him behind the building. Actually thought it was a rat at the outset. And it ends up winning this ugly dog contest.
Well, last year a one-eyed Chihuahua won.
WHITFIELD: Poor thing.
STEELE: So the bar was low, but -
WHITFIELD: And, you know, appropriately, the dog's name was Yoda. STEELE: Oh, look at that.
WHITFIELD: It does kind of have that Yoda thing. I don't know what's going on with that leg going up there. That worries me on that shot.
STEELE: Right.
WHITFIELD: Let's keep it clean right now. So you win - you win $1,000 if your dog wins the ugly pooch contest. And as we understand it, this type of breed of Chihuahua, this, you know, nearly hairless or -
STEELE: Right.
WHITFIELD: -- something, apparently they retail somewhere between like $600 and $1,000.
STEELE: Six hundred and $1,000. It's expensive.
WHITFIELD: So you win the prize and you kind of, you know, get a return on what you invested, except the owner of that one found that, like he said.
STEELE: I guess grooming is probably at a minimum with that thing.
WHITFIELD: I guess, yes.
STEELE: Just take it into the shower and shave -
WHITFIELD: And grooming helps all of us, doesn't it?
STEELE: But the cute little pooch won.
WHITFIELD: All right. There you go.
STEELE: So the next, this is an interesting one. In the vein of Michael Jackson and his two-year anniversary death -
WHITFIELD: Yes. Everyone -- I've seen this a lot. Everyone tries to imitate kind of the "Thriller" video. And in this case it was a very sizable high school.
STEELE: Yes. In Chile. What they were doing is protesting. What they're looking like is the zombie metaphor for the education system saying the education system is dead here in Chile. And this is a zombie metaphor. And it was kind of interesting. Behind each zombie, they say, is a family and a deeper meaning of really what this means for each family independently and the country as a whole.
WHITFIELD: Yes. This took a long time to getting this flash mob together. Look. It's huge.
STEELE: Students that age, you know, if they can do it, they can do everything galvanized and just, you know, really make some noise and it's kind of neat.
WHITFIELD: Oh, my goodness. And then, you know, recently on auction the "Thriller" jacket.
STEELE: We talked about that -
WHITFIELD: Yes.
STEELE: -- a couple of "Chatrooms" ago.
WHITFIELD: Yes. Well, $1.3 million? $1.3 million - $1.8 million. Really not for (in.
STEELE: And - and the expectation was much less than that. And the expectation for the white glove before that paled in comparison to the actual money that was spent for it. Remember, we talked about it being a good investment.
WHITFIELD: That's right. You never know.
All right. Let's talk about - well, speaking of investment, you invest in our youth. And, you know, when they get that piece of paper whether it's high school or college, they're able to kind of do all things. But what happens if there's a misspelling or two on that certificate?
STEELE: That's right. North Plymouth High School in Massachusetts, unbelievable. In the first few installments of the diplomas that were given, the word "for" and the word "and" were misspelled.
WHITFIELD: Oh, no.
STEELE: And Jostens, the company who did the printing, took the -
WHITFIELD: Took the -
STEELE: Yes. They kind of took the onus and burden upon them and said, you know, we're sorry about it.
WHITFIELD: Oh, my gosh. The 263 diplomas handed out at graduation, all of them had to be turned right back in to get a little fix, a little makeover.
STEELE: Well, (INAUDIBLE), I think when I was looking at to see what the words were that were spelled wrong, it wasn't a bigger word. Like a "for" and "and," you know, it wasn't really a misspelling, per se.
WHITFIELD: It's a little misplacement. I was like "fro" and (INAUDIBLE).
STEELE: A little typo.
WHITFIELD: Whoop-sy (ph).
STEELE: Yes. (INAUDIBLE).
WHITFIELD: They're going to get the diplomas and they will return to being very happy graduates. I'm sure the misspellings did not dampen the occasion. STEELE: No.
WHITFIELD: They were so - yes. Exactly. A lot of fun.
All right. Thanks so much, Alexandra.
STEELE: Yes. Thank you for including me.
WHITFIELD: It's always fun to be at a sofa in a little "Chatroom."
So back to the NEWSROOM now, up next, some say it's rather outrageous. A 95-year-old woman who is wheelchair bound asked to remove her adult diaper for a TSA search. Her daughter is very upset, and she joins us to tell us their side of the story.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: All right. Checking our top stories.
Sponsors say about two million spectators turned out for today's Gay Pride Parade in New York City. Just two days ago, Governor Andrew Cuomo signed legislation legalizing same-sex marriages in New York starting July 24th. Cuomo was cheered at today's parade. He says New York's same-sex marriage law should be a model for the rest of the country.
Fire crews in Arizona are making a lot of headway with the fire burning along the border with Mexico. Right now, the monument fire is about 75 percent contained. It has burned about 30,000 acres in two weeks.
And floodwaters are starting to recede in Minot, North Dakota. But it could be a week or more before about 12,000 people are actually allowed to go back to their homes. Minot fire officials estimate between 3,000 and 4,000 homes are under water.
Let's check in with our Alexandra Steele. And pretty incredible. Well, the water has crested, but it's going to be a long time before it goes down.
STEELE: Oh, it's going to be more than a week before people can get back into their homes.
WHITFIELD: Oh, boy.
STEELE: So here's a little perspective. OK. So it has crested. We talked about that very early this morning. But it's still going to fluctuate a little bit. And certainly, although it has crested, the damage is far from over.
But just to give you a perspective, as quickly as it came up, it may have seemed slow as we were kind of clocking it and monitoring it. But as quickly as that was, exponentially a lot slower to recede. So by next Sunday it will still be a foot above the record, meaning a foot above the record from 1881. So this has really been the most exceptional of flooding. It needs to drop then another 10 feet to exit flood stage. So even through the July 4th holiday in this area they're still going to be dealing with water that's above flood stage.
All right. So give you a little perspective on where we stand in terms of the rain. The rain yesterday, they had some big-time downpours that did exacerbate the problem. Especially for those fire officials trying to kind of navigate the water. Here's Minot now. Most of the rain now, you can see a couple of rainshowers. But the heaviest rain south and east and will continue to be that way.
Big picture, we do have a few severe thunderstorm watches and warnings out there tonight. One area here kind of south of Minot, through the Dakotas, again, some strong winds. An isolated tornado not out of the question. But the biggest of your threats really will be tomorrow and also on Tuesday. And we'll talk a little bit about that.
Here in the Southeast, a few scattered showers and thunderstorms as well. Some hail tonight and even some strong, gusty winds. We'll talk more about the weather coming up in just a few moments.
But, first, back to you, Fredricka.
WHITFIELD: All right. Look forward to that. Thanks so much, Alexandra.
All right. A TSA pat-down in Florida is lighting up the chat rooms online. A Florida woman says her 95-year-old mother who is in a wheelchair was asked to remove an adult diaper in order to complete a full pat-down screening. It happened at a regional airport that serves Ft. Walton Beach in Destin, Florida.
Jean Weber is the elderly woman's daughter. And she's joining us right now on the phone from Destin, Florida.
So, Ms. Weber, you know, you all are going through the security check. And at what point does the TSA attendant there launch into these instructions?
JEAN WEBER, HER ELDELY MOM REACHED BY TSA (via telephone): Well, they had taken my mother into a glassed-in area and did the pat-down. And they said they felt something suspicious on her leg. And they couldn't determine what it was. So, they took her into a closed room that was private. And I was left outside.
They came out and told me that it had something to do with her depends. That it was wet and it was firm and they couldn't check it thoroughly. She would have to remove it. And I was -- I said, I don't have an extra one with me. Normally, this isn't a problem. And she said that she could not complete the security check without the depends off.
And I had to leave the security area and take her to a public restroom there at the airport and take it of of her. And then --
WHITFIELD: So, along the way, were you able to, you know, dispute or share with them, here's the situation, this is my mom's condition. And did you express, you know, your opinion about whether this was appropriate or not?
WEBER: Yes, I did, because my mother is very ill. She has a form of leukemia. And she's 95, very weak. She'd had a blood transfusion the week before just to, you know, bolster up her strength for this travel.
And I explained to them she was going back to Michigan probably to die. And this is the last time we'll be here. She's very ill. Could we just, you know, get on with this?
And that was not their procedures.
WHITFIELD: So, now, your mom, how is she doing and how did she do through all of this? Was she feeling very humiliated as I imagine you were?
WEBER: My mother is a trouper. She's with -- she was a nurse for 65 years. And she has -- was very calm. She can't hear well. They were -- if they were explaining things to her, I do not know if they were able to make her understand or not.
But that, you know, I was not present. So, I don't know. But she was calm through it all and, you know, she was upset about not being able to have any underwear on. And I said, I don't know what else to do, mom. I really don't. And --
WHITFIELD: Ms. Weber, this is what the TSA has said to our inquiries about how this was handled. This was what they said, quoting now. "While every person and item must be screened before entering the secure boarding area, TSA works with passengers to resolved security alarms in a respectful and sensitive manner. We have reviewed the circumstances involving this screening and determined that our officers acted professionally and according to proper procedure."
What's your response to their statement?
WEBER: My response is, if this is your procedures, which I do understand following procedures, I also feel maybe the procedures need to be changed.
I was crying, and that triggered another procedure. They felt like I was a security risk because I had unusual behavior. And they took my purse from me and took everything out of it and swabbed it for testing and then patted me down all over and swabbed me for testing for whatever -- whatever their machine tests for. I don't know -- whether it be explosives or drugs or whatever.
WHITFIELD: And then you finally made it to your destination, but I imagine that just that journey, just that encounter certainly got in the way of any pleasant travel.
WEBER: I didn't go with my mother. I was unable to accompany her to the plane. Her plane was due to leave in two minutes. And I said, "Please get my mother to the plane." And they took her away. I was still not cleared at that point.
WHITFIELD: OK. Your mom, how is she doing right now?
WEBER: She is fine. She's fine. She's with my cousin, her niece and her husband. They are treating her like royalty because they love her so much. And we all do.
And she's going to be going into assisted living up there in Michigan. And I hope to be able to get free to go visit her very soon.
WHITFIELD: Jean Weber, thanks so much. We wish you and your mom and the rest of the family all the best.
WEBER: Thank you so much.
WHITFIELD: This week, one state will host the president, a presidential hopeful, and a big movie premiere. Find out where that is, after this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: All right. This week, Iowa is playing host to several major political events. Here's CNN's deputy political director Paul Steinhauser.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
PAUL STEINHAUSER, CNN DEPUTY POLITICAL DIRECTOR: Hey, Fred.
Michele Bachmann makes it official tomorrow. The congresswoman from Minnesota formally announces her candidacy for president in neighboring Iowa. That's the state that kicks off the presidential caucus and primary calendar.
Bachmann, who's a favorite of many Tea Party supporters, is launching her White House bid in Waterloo, Iowa, that's the town where she was born. But the announcement is no surprise. She spilled the beans nearly two weeks ago at our presidential debate in New Hampshire.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. MICHELE BACHMANN (R), MINNESOTA: I just want to make an announcement here for you, John, on CNN tonight. I filed today my paperwork to seek the office of the presidency of the United States today. And I'll very soon be making my formal announcement.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
STEINHAUSER: The next day, a very positive movie about Sarah Palin premieres in Iowa. The film was made by a conservative filmmaker highlights Palin's years as Alaska governor and her entrance on to the national political spotlight as John McCain's running mate in 2008.
Palin, of course, she's considering a run for the White House.
And guess who's on Iowa on that very same day? Yes. President Barack Obama. He's got an economic event in a state that gave him his first victory in 2008 on his path to the presidency.
Iowa was then and will be again a crucial battleground state.
Behind the scenes, all of the presidential candidates concentrate on raising campaign cash with the end of the second quarter fundraising coming to a close at the end of the week. By Friday, we could learn how much money some of the campaigns have in their war chest -- Fred.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: All right. Thanks so much, Paul.
And for the latest political news you know exactly where to go, CNNPolitics.com.
Hired, then laid off on the same day. The incredible story of some Cleveland police recruits.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: All right. Budgets are tight. But what happened in Cleveland, Ohio, this week gives new means to the phrase "short timer."
A group of police cadets graduated, got hired, and then laid off all in the same day.
Cristin Severance reports for CNN affiliate the Ohio News Network.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CRISTIN SEVERANCE, OHIO NEWS NETWORK (voice-over): It's the day these Cleveland police cadets have worked six long months for a moment many of dreamed about for years. The blood, sweat and tears of training, all worth it.
ANGELINA GASTON, NEW OFFICER: This is like the biggest thing I've accomplished as an adult.
SEVERANCE: Angelina Gaston is the first person in her family to become a police officer.
But the elation of graduation is marred with something else.
GASTON: It's kind of like bittersweet.
SEVERANCE: As soon as the 128th police academy cadets become police officers, they become something else -- unemployed.
The entire class of 40 cadets is getting laid off. They're part of the 123 Cleveland police officers getting cut to balance the city's budget after state budget cuts.
PETE ELLIOT, U.S. MARSHAL'S OFFICE: We are proud and impressed, very, very impressed, that you stuck this through, knowing that you would be commissioned as officers and then immediately laid off. SEVERANCE: An hour after they graduate and get their diploma, they're back at the academy to turn their guns and get let go.
Mayor Frank Jackson hopes to hire some officers back through attrition and retirement. He hopes those who leave to take other jobs will one day return.
FRANK JACKSON, CLEVELAND MAYOR: People who want to be Cleveland police officers are people who are committed, and who have a dream. So, that's why they come back.
GASTON: I love my city. I love my people. I want to really be here, but if the training takes me somewhere else, I may take it.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: And there is some hope, job hope for these new cadets. Atlanta and Seattle are reaching out, showing interest in hiring some of these new officers.
All right. NASCAR drivers Joey Logano and Jason Leffler are on top of their sport, dominating racetracks across the U.S. I asked them face to face to reveal their keys to greatness.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: If there were three things that you think are the keys to your greatness, what would they be? Or three things you know you needed to have or things you continue to hold on to, those three keys to your greatness?
JASON LEFFLER, NASCAR DRIVER: Passion, number one. I think you have to have a passion for it.
Opportunity -- whether that means, you know, the opportunity your parents provided for you, the opportunities you got down the road.
Third one, you can't be fearful. You've got to be brave.
JOEY LOGANO, NASCAR DRIVER: I guess the will to win. You know, keeps you focused, which I think number two is being focused. Being focused again. I mean, I think it's that much into that. You know, I think just really, really wanting to do this.
And doing all that, you know, and finding a way to have fun. You know, enjoy the moment that you're in because not many people can sit in these shoes or sit in this seat today that I am. And so, find a way to have fun with it and enjoy it, because you never know when it's going to end.
WHITFIELD: Joey Logano, thanks so much. Good to see you.
LOGANO: Thank you. Appreciate it.
WHITFIELD: Jason Leffler, thank you so much.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: All right. More face to face with Logano and Leffler next weekend.
All right. A new device measures and tracks your blood pressure from your iPhone. Our tech expert will show us how it works.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: All this. This breaking story we're following for you right now out of Pennsylvania.
State police confirming that they are looking into an accident involving a school bus with possibly 20 children onboard -- a rollover accident involving another vehicle. This taking place in Chambersburg, Pennsylvania, on Highway I-81. And apparently that highway has been closed while they investigate this. It's unclear what kind of injuries might be involved, if any.
But they are looking into this rollover accident involving this school bus which took place a little bit ago, just earlier this afternoon involving also another vehicle. We'll bring you more information as we get it.
All right. Let's check in with our Don Lemon.
We know you're going to be following up on that in the NEWSROOM.
DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: Oh, yes. Any time you hear that, especially as a mom, you have to send your kids on a school bus, and, man, wow.
WHITFIELD: On the weekend, it kind of infers the return of a trip, possibly, or departing for a trip.
LEMON: Some sort of field trip. Yes. Fingers crossed, we hope that most people are OK on that bus. We're going to follow that, Fred.
I'm also going to -- talking about another developing story, this one out of Oklahoma, it's in McClain County. There's a manhunt underway. Fred has been talking about it, for an inmate who escaped just this morning. His name is Shaun Bosse. He was awaiting trial in a deaths of a woman and her two small children.
Now, residents are being urged to stay inside and locked their doors, Fred.
And we just got some new video as police converged on a store, but Bosse was not there. So, we'll be showing you that.
Also, this one is going to interest you. I'll be talking to this woman.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ELAINE RIDDICK: They slandered, they ridiculed and harassed me. They cut me open like I was a hog. (END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: You know what she's talking about?
WHITFIELD: No.
LEMON: Her name is Elaine Riddick. She's going to join me in studio. She's going to talk about how she was sterilized against her will. And as you heard, it's a very emotional story. I want to hear what she has to say live. She's going to join me.
WHITFIELD: Absolutely.
LEMON: And, Fred, I don't know if you caught this -- my interview -- we can call him the intrepid Joe Jackson.
WHITFIELD: I did. I loved that -- no, I did catch some of it. So elaborate.
LEMON: You're like -- well, he talked about his relationship with his son and the lingering questions about Michael Jackson's death. Listen and we'll talk more.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: I know you said that you believe that -- I guess some people conspired to kill him. Is that correct?
JOE JACKSON, MICHAEL JACKSON'S FATHER: Michael told his mother and he told his manager, Dieter Wiesner, who is writing a book now, the truth about Michael Jackson. He told them they were going to kill him for his publishing. He told his mother --
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: So, he talks more about that. He also -- I asked him about abuse claims by the Jacksons, even Michael himself saying than he pushed him a little too hard. He said, listen, you didn't spare the rod then. And if you do it now -- if you do not spare the rod now, it's called child abuse. And he said, you know, this wasn't child abuse. And then he goes into that, where they are with the executors in the will. All of that.
And this new product, he has a couple products including a cologne and amusement park that he is promoting.
WHITFIELD: Did he respond at all to La Toya Jackson's book and what she -- he's staying away from that?
LEMON: No, he didn't. I didn't really go into it with him because, you know, the La Toya Jackson thing had been, you know -- Piers had done a great job on that, and I think that had been explored. But we didn't talk about -- I wanted to find out about him, how he was two years later.
And do you remember our live conversation on the red carpet three days after Michael's death? It was at the red carpet, the BET Awards.
And so, some people thought it was contentious and they said, you know, it was disrespectful for him to be selling a DVD on -- you know, two days, three days after his son died. And he responded to that as well. And we're going to show that in the interview.
WHITFIELD: We look forward to all that. All right. Thanks so much. Don lemon, always good to see you.
LEMON: Thank you, Fred.
WHITFIELD: We'll see you again at the top of the hour.
LEMON: All right.
WHITFIELD: Appreciate that.
All right. Well, I know you have an iPhone.
LEMON: I have two, actually.
WHITFIELD: Oh, gosh, yes. OK, we can't just have one. We've got to have many.
Well, these are some apps that you just might want to put on because I know you are also, you know, into fitness.
LEMON: Sort of.
WHITFIELD: And these apps -- sort of. He's being so shy right now. Flex those muscles.
LEMON: All right.
WHITFIELD: Well, our gaming and gadgets guy, Marc Saltzman tells us about some interesting iPhone apps that pertain to fitness and diet and your overall health.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MARC SALTZMAN, SYNDICATED TECHONOLOGY WRITER: This is a French technology company best known for a Wi-Fi bathroom scale that came out two years ago. So, now, they got $129 gadget that plugs into an iPhone, iPod Touch or, in this case, here an iPad, that automatically downloads a free Withings app, and it's for hypertension monitoring. It is, for all intents and purposes, a blood pressure monitor.
You simply un-Velcro that cuff, put it on your left or right arm, and it gives you, you know, thorough instruction. You close it up. And you simply plug in the -- if you can see that, that typical 30-pin connector. Press start. And it gives you your blood pressure and your heart rate.
WHITFIELD: Wow.
SALTZMAN: And you can chart this. Yes. You can email to a physician. It will show in graph format. You can synchronize it with Google Health and other, you know, online tools.
So, it's a pretty a neat device.
WHITFIELD: Very neat.
OK. And perhaps you want to lose weight. What do you have there to assist?
SALTZMAN: Sure. The second app is called Lose It. And it's a free app. As the name suggests, I hope you can see that. Then, as the name suggests, you set a goal, like, hey, I want to lose five pounds over six weeks. And what it does is it will give you a calculation, what your calorie intake should be on a daily basis.
And what you do is every time you eat something, and it's divided into meals and snacks, you simply type in what you had. And it's got a database of thousands of products, both brand names, as well as you can say, a small apple or a medium size, you know, piece of cake, what the icing was, and it will give you all those readings and it will set that goal for you.
Plus, you exercise it subtracts some of the calories, so you're allowed to have more that day. And so, it does set these goals. It's called Lose It. And it's a great and free way to monitor what you're eating and to help you reach those goals.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: All right. Thank you, Mark Saltzman.
All right. Let's check the weather picture, beginning of the work week.
Alexandra Steele at the map.
STEELE: All right. I like that, a calorie count.
WHITFIELD: Isn't that neat? No excuses.
STEELE: Darn it.
WHITFIELD: You don't have to count any calories.
(CROSSTALK)
STEELE: All right. Thank you, Fredricka.
All right. Big picture out there. We are seeing a few storms bubbling up, of course, here in the Northern Plains, where we're seeing it, around Minot continues to see some rain, just south and east of there. Big time storms yesterday kind of exacerbating the troubles, especially pooling the areas where fire officials are trying to get kind of get to where the flooding is. So, not a good scenario there.
Here you can see in the Southeast, Memphis, Atlanta, Birmingham, we do have some severe thunderstorm watches posted until about 9:00 tonight, kind of that atmosphere bubbling up. Typically, these high clouds developing in the sky, and, of course, thunderstorms erupting out of that today.
Tomorrow and Tuesday, a bigger threat for severe weather. Overall picture today, the steam is on in the South that will continue. We'll talk more about where we will see that severe weather tomorrow coming up in a bit -- Fredricka.
WHITFIELD: All right. Thanks so much, Alexandra. Appreciate that.
I'm Fredricka Whitfield, much more of THE NEWSROOM straight ahead with my buddy, Don Lemon. Have a great week.
