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New Developments in Amanda Knox Case; How Safe Are America's Airports?; Showdown in Pennsylvania; Royal Newlyweds in Canada; Palin Fan: Thank You CNN!; "Whitey" Bulger Arrives at Jail; Get the "Shell Out of the Way!"; Casey Anthony Won't Testify
Aired June 30, 2011 - 16:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
BROOKE BALDWIN, CNN ANCHOR: Now, top of the hour. Take a look at this.
Valid boarding pass? No. Proper passport? Not at all. Name on the name manifest? No. So, how did a Nigerian man manage to get on the plane? Investigators right now trying to figure out how that happened.
I'm Brooke Baldwin. The news is now.
(voice-over): Terrifying seconds. A hand appears from the crowd, grabbing and startling a world leader. We now know who is behind the Nicolas Sarkozy security breach.
Plus, eight presidents, four decades. On Robert Gates' final day serving the White House --
ROBERT GATES, U.S. SECRETARY OF DEFENSE: I'm deeply honored and moved.
BALDWIN: -- President Obama delivers a huge surprise.
And an American soldier records a message to his family two weeks before he is killed in action.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I love you all. I will be home soon.
BALDWIN: You will hear his heartbreaking final words.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I have ran out of tears right now. But it was my one and only son.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BALDWIN: Top of the hour here in the CNN NEWSROOM. Welcome back. I'm Brooke Baldwin.
A bombshell development in the trial of Amanda Knox, the American student convicted of murdering her roommate in Perugia, Italy. Forensic scientists who have been hired by the Italian court have just reported their findings. And they say the DNA evidence used to send Knox to prison for 26 years is unsound, not reliable.
Edda Mellas is Amanda Knox's mother. She is kind of enough to phone in here all the way from Rome, Italy.
Ms. Mellas, I cannot even imagine what your life has been like the last couple of years. But I want to get straight to your daughter. I know she got the news about this DNA in prison on the television. And you spoke with a priest who was standing right next to her. How did he say she reacted?
EDDA MELLAS, MOTHER OF AMANDA KNOX: Well, you know, Don Salo (ph), the priest there, is lovely. And he has just been an amazing support for Amanda. And he really cares for her.
And so I think, when I talked to him on the phone, he was just beaming. And he talked about, you know, lots of -- every -- a lot of people were around there, I guess. There was jumping and hugging. And there's many people there that support her. And he said he could see the light back in her eyes, and she looked like she could finally breathe after three-and-a-half years.
So it sounds like -- and she wanted him to try to get ahold of us to let us know that she knew the news and wanted to make sure we knew the news and that she was really happy.
BALDWIN: If you could speak with her right now, what would you tell her?
MELLAS: Oh, I would tell her first of all, I told you so. She has been so nervous. And I kept telling her, this is going to be good. We know it has to be good.
And she is understandably not taking anything for granted. During the first trial, we took for granted that, because she was innocent, that would turn out, and it didn't go that way. And so we're -- she is very careful about not getting her hopes up.
And I tell her, see, just it's one more step in the right direction.
BALDWIN: Edda, to have this independent -- these experts say that the DNA evidence is unreliable and potentially even contaminated, are you at all able to visualize packing up and heading home?
MELLAS: Yes. And I do that regularly anyway just to -- when I'm feeling down, I have to sit and do that. I have to sit and think about walking her out and getting her on a plane and taking her home. But this definitely makes it easier.
BALDWIN: If she -- you know, if -- you may be saying I told you so. But if it still doesn't go in your favor, if she has to stay in Perugia in prison, do you stay there as long as she is behind bars?
MELLAS: Absolutely. There is always one of us here.
And I have always spent the summers here because it's when I'm out of school. And there is -- yes, there will always be and will continue to be until she walks out of jail somebody here for her.
BALDWIN: Yes.
MELLAS: And we're thrilled. But, you know, the fact that she is still in jail is huge. And so we're not -- we're happy, but we won't celebrate until she walks out of that prison.
BALDWIN: Edda, I know you're calling in from Rome. But when you were on the streets, I don't know where in Italy, Rome, Perugia, wherever -- the story is so, so huge internationally -- do people recognize you? And what is their reaction to you and Amanda's story?
MELLAS: It's amazing, the support I get. Even here in town in Perugia, whenever I'm walking around, yes, people recognize me. And they, you know -- little old Italian men will come up and grab my arm and tell me in Italian to have courage and to have strength. And that's kind of a universal thing they say.
On my way here from Seattle, I was walking through the airport terminal and getting -- going through the X-ray machine or whatever that is, and the guy waved me through and then he leaned over and said, how is our girl doing? Tell her to hang in there and that she is the bravest person I know.
And so I get that a lot.
BALDWIN: Your daughter was -- what, was she 20 when she was locked up? How much -- she has had to have changed being in jail for three- and-a-half years. How has she changed?
MELLAS: Yes. Well, definitely. She was a naive, idealistic, easy- going 20-year-old when they locked her up. And she is now -- she will be 24 next week. And she's definitely grown up.
She has had to learn how to survive and take -- take care of herself. She has become much more closed in that environment. In order to kind of survive, she has taken -- gone into her own little shell kind of place. So, yes, we have all changed. And, yes, we have all changed.
BALDWIN: Yes. What about in terms of a timeline? When should we expect a ruling, Edda?
MELLAS: Well, before the -- kind of the bombshell breaking news, the timeline was that, at the end of July, they will discuss this new evidence. And then they will take a break through August.
And then on the 5th of September, they will start closing arguments. And then there is another little break in there, because I think the judge had a conflict. And then, at the end of September, they're expecting rebuttals and a decision.
BALDWIN: Edda Mellas calling in from Rome, we're thinking of you. We're all following this story there out of Perugia. Would love to have you back on if and when there is a next turn of news.
Edda, thank you so much.
MELLAS: Oh, no problem. Any time. Thank you.
BALDWIN: Thanks.
If it's interesting, if it's happening right now, you're about to see it rapid fire. Let's go.
Alleged mob boss James "Whitey" Bulger goes before two judges in Boston. In hearing number one, Bulger fought the prosecutors' move to throw out racketeering charges so they can focus solely on a case that alleges Bulger murdered those 19 people. Bulger lost that. In hearing number two today, Bulger is asking the taxpayers to foot the bill for his attorney. He says he is to broke to hire one because the feds confiscated all his cash, $800,000 hidden away in that wall in that Santa Monica apartment when they arrested him last week.
Arlene, the first named system of the Atlantic hurricane season, barrelled into Mexico's eastern coast this morning with sustained winds of some 65 miles an hour. The U.S. National Weather Service warned that the storm -- and I'm quoting -- "could cause life- threatening flash floods and mudslides in the eastern section of northern Mexico." But there are no reports of casualties or serious damage as of yet.
Some tense moments there -- this is French President Nicolas Sarkozy shaking hands. As he was shaking some of those hands during the stop in southwest France, someone grabbed his shoulder, tried to pull him -- there it is again -- against this barricade. His security team quickly freed him. But four bodyguards did manage to tackle the man to the ground. The suspect is described as a 32-year-old local man who works at a music school. Police are questioning him.
And to Canada, where heavy rain caused a mountain of mud and debris to sweep across parts of the Trans-Canada Highway near Vancouver. One driver was on the road at the time, his car swept off this highway. It rolled twice and landed upside-down. But despite all of that, she walked away only with minor injuries. Crews have removed the debris and reopened the road.
Atlanta, 257 handguns, 60 rifles, 46 shotguns, and 10 sawed-off shotguns all seized in an undercover sting nicknamed ATL Blaze, dozens arrested on charges ranging from drug trafficking, firearms and theft here -- estimated cost of the operation, $400,000.
Now let me take you to this convenience store. This is Louisiana. And this is just unbelievable. Watch this with me, surveillance video catching a man -- there he is -- robbing a gas station. But guess who he gets to help? You see that little one? Let's watch it again. His 5-year-old son -- son.
Father acts like he is going to buy a few things and forces his way behind the counter, pushes the clerk aside. There she goes. And that's when police say he grabbed 90 bucks straight out of the register. Police later arrested the guy.
And live pictures here in Boston -- we're about to see -- ah -- we're about to see James "Whitey" Bulger coming out of one of these SUVs after his court appearance today in Boston. We just mentioned those two hearings as we're honing in, live pictures from our affiliate WCVB, Boston Logan Airport, presumably being taken.
And that is he, I would guess, in his orange jail garb.
Tell me again, Angie.
He is being transferred back to -- back to the detention facility by the U.S. Coast Guard. And there he is, shackled, looks like ankles and wrists, back to the detention facility. Again, he is facing charges that he participated in 19 murders. Remember, he was on the lam for 16 years.
Report, what, came out just a couple of days ago that while he was on the lam, according to some of these court documents, he traveled, went to Vegas to play the slots, went back and forth to Boston a couple of times, even went down to Tijuana, Mexico, to buy some medication for some sort of heart condition he had. He was finally caught last week because of that PSA the FBI put out telling folks to look out for his girlfriend, 20 years younger than he, Catherine Greig.
And because of that PSA, they found him living in a condo not a block from the Pacific Ocean there on Santa Monica. He had been spotted walking along the Third Street Promenade. And now they finally caught him. The question is, will he be talking to feds, and what will he tell them? But, again, live picture, WCVB -- we just saw Whitey Bulger after another court appearance in Boston.
On Robert Gates' last day as sort of secretary, President Obama gives him a big surprise. That's coming up.
Also, this:
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I have ran out of tears right now. But it was my one and only son. And I loved him so much.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BALDWIN: Oh, this is a tough one. Coming up next: A soldier sends a personal video to his family two weeks before he died in Afghanistan. It is very, very rare we even see this side of war. And you're going to hear the Marine's final words to the people he loved the most. Please, don't miss this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BALDWIN: Big, big send-off today in Washington for a guy rightly known as a legend in government.
Robert Gates is leaving public service, having served eight different presidents and having carried over as defense secretary from the Bush administration to the Obama administration, but a big surprise for Robert Gates this morning there at the Pentagon in his final day on the job from President Obama.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Bob, this is not in the program, but I would ask you to please stand.
As president, the highest honor that I can bestow on a civilian is the Presidential Medal of Freedom. It speaks to the values we cherish as a people and the ideals we strive for as a nation. And today it is my great privilege to present the Presidential Medal of Freedom to America's 22nd secretary of defense, Robert M. Gates.
(APPLAUSE)
ROBERT GATES, U.S. SECRETARY OF DEFENSE: I'm deeply honored and moved by your presentation of this award. It is a big surprise. But we should have known a couple of months ago; you're getting pretty good at this covert ops stuff.
(LAUGHTER)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BALDWIN: Gates' replacement is this guy. This is former Congressman, former Clinton Chief of Staff, and most recently head of the CIA Leon Panetta. Panetta was confirmed last week by a rare unanimous Senate confirmation.
And I should also mention, General David Petraeus was confirmed just today to take over the top spot at the CIA.
Now, recently, Robert Gates choked up telling troops they would be in his thoughts and prayers for the rest of his life. And he's a man who knows all too well what servicemen and servicewomen and their families go through.
And today, we're getting a glimpse. You're about to see the heartbreaking message of one marine and this message he has for his family. It's a very personal video he sent home two weeks before he was killed in action.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
FELIX FARIAS, FALLEN MARINE'S FATHER: When she told me there were two marines waiting at home, I knew right away what had happened.
REPORTER (voice-over): Twelve hours later, countless cars sit outside the Farias' home instead.
F. FARIAS: Thank you for coming, sweetie.
REPORTER: As friends and family comforted them in their time of grief.
F. FARIAS: I was just numb, petrified.
JOHN FARIAS, U.S. MARINE: I kind of took a look back at my life one day --
REPORTER: Inside this video of 20-year-old John Farias played nonstop.
The marine from New Braunfels was killed in Afghanistan.
J. FARIAS: My short 21-year life --
REPORTER: He sent this touching video two weeks before he died.
J. FARIAS: Kind of forced to grow up here.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: To hear his voice and see him is just the best thing.
J. FARIAS: To take your responsibility to the fullest, you know? One of our friends might die.
REPORTER: He did not keep from his parents the dangers of his job.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They were under heavy fire. They had firefights for four to six hours a day.
REPORTER: But he still had hopes of a home coming in October.
J. FARIAS: I can't wait to see you all.
F. FARIAS: I have run out of tears right now. But it was my one and only son, and I loved him so much.
J. FARIAS: I love you all. You all take care. Take care of each other. I'll be home soon.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BALDWIN: Ft. Lauderdale's Tarpon Bend neighborhood, home of sun and water and money and mansions, but murder? Neighbors are nervous now after a bizarre discovery in one of Tarpon Bend's ritzy homes.
First, here's a little background. You have 70-year-old self-made multimillionaire Ronald Vinci sold his California car dealerships, moved to South Florida to be closer to his son and grandson. In fact, he just bought this $3 million mansion right there on the water.
But less than two weeks after Vinci moved in, the 7,000-square-foot house is now surrounded by crime scene tape. Inside the discovery of Vinci's body, reportedly wrapped in duct tape, has shattered this quiet and posh neighborhood.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Nothing ever happens around here. I was just telling someone that.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I don't know what happened. But heard there was an argument beforehand, and then, unfortunately, they found a dead body I guess in duct tape or something strange. (END VIDEO CLIP)
BALDWIN: Police aren't releasing very much information as to what happened to Ronald Vinci. The medical examiner's report on the cause of death is expected soon.
Once again, the TSA has some explaining to do. According to law enforcement, a 24-year-old Nigerian man was able to board a Virgin America flight at New York's JFK Airport back on Friday even though he didn't have a valid passport, his boarding pass was expired, not to mention that pass wasn't even in his name. A crew says they didn't realize he wasn't supposed to be on this particular plane until the flight had already taken off.
The Nigerian national was eventually arrested, but not until five days later when he tried to get on a Delta flight at LAX bound for Atlanta. Again, with a bogus boarding pass.
So what happened after the Virgin Airlines crew discovered him five days earlier? Here is what the airline told CNN's Jeanne Meserve.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JEANNE MESERVE, CNN HOMELAND SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Virgin America just gave us a statement. They do acknowledge that there was a mistake on their part, that the boarding pass is supposed to be scanned when someone goes on a plane. And they say someone apparently missed an alert when this passenger went on the plane. However, they say the flight crew was proactive, reach ahead to law enforcement in L.A. and had them meet the plane and investigate what was going on here.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BALDWIN: The TSA says it can't say much right now because the FBI is currently investigating. But we did get this statement. "TSA's review of this matter indicates that the passenger went through screening. It is important to know that this passenger was subject to the same physical screening as the checkpoint as other passengers."
For now, the man is charged with being a stowaway, and law enforcement says there is no indication of terrorism thus far. He is due to appear in a federal court tomorrow.
President Obama and Mitt Romney go head-to-head in a key battleground state. And the Republican may be taking a very similar page from the president's campaign playbook. That is next.
But, first, Uncle Sam has launched a new website today that allows you to compare the cost of colleges and tuition hikes -- nice. And it even ranks the most expensive public colleges in the U.S.
So, here are the ones that are not cheap. Coming in at number three: University of Vermont. Number two: University of Pittsburgh. And number one with the highest tuition costs in the country as far as a public institution, you have Penn State. So, we gave you the most expensive. You want to know the most affordable? We've got those for you right after the break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BALDWIN: All right. You thought about this. You want to save a little money on college tuition -- here you go. A new government Web site launched today is hoping to save you money when shopping for colleges. And the site comes complete with the list of the nation's lowest tuitions.
So, coming in at number three: University of Puerto Rico-Rio Piedras campus in Puerto Rico. Number two: Arizona's Dine College. And number one: the least expensive tuition here, Haskell Indian Nations University. That is in Lawrence, Kansas.
So, let me take you to the city of brotherly love here, looking for a -- looking a little bit more like a case of sibling rivalry today. Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney taking aim at President Obama.
CNN's Jim Acosta joins me now with the latest news from Washington off the CNN Political Ticker.
Mr. Acosta, what do you have?
JIM ACOSTA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Brooke.
Well, you know, what we have is basically the perils of political stagecraft. Be careful when you go into a factory as president of the United States for a political event, because that factory may not stay open forever.
Note the case up in Allentown, Pennsylvania. Mitt Romney just held an event there a few moments ago. We just brought this video in the last half hour, Brooke.
Basically, this is a factory that President Obama toured back in December of 2009. He visited the factory to talk about his stimulus plan. He was talking about the fact at that time that he thought his stimulus plan was working.
Well, guess what? Back in January, Brooke, that factory closed. And Mitt Romney was there just about 20 minutes ago basically saying -- and this is almost an exact quote -- hey, Mr. President, this factory has been around for 100 years. It survived the Great Depression, but it did not survive the Obama economy.
So, you know, the Romney campaign is really going after the president on the economy. It is something we have noticed in the last several weeks from the Romney campaign. He has basically ignored the Republican field. He's not really going after the other contenders in the field. He has been going after the president pretty consistently.
And as a strategy, Brooke, it appears to be working. If you look at the latest polls, Mitt Romney is basically out in front of the other GOP contenders by a pretty healthy margin in a hypothetical matchup with the president right now.
BALDWIN: Jim Acosta, thank you very much. It was the president's 13th trip -- 13th to Pennsylvania since his inauguration, third trip since announcing reelection.
ACOSTA: That's right. He is going there this evening for a fundraiser. That's right.
BALDWIN: Jim Acosta, thank you very much.
ACOSTA: You bet.
BALDWIN: And just a short time ago, the royal couple arrived in Canada, their first stop on the North American tour. Find out what they're up to tonight.
Plus, Congress is cancelling its vacation. But if the deficit deal doesn't get done soon, one group is warning this is bad news for the American economy. What you need to hear -- that is ahead.
Also, take a look at the receipt with me. You see the number in the bottom right-hand corner? Ninety-nine million and some change in a checking account. Wait until you hear who apparently it belongs to. That's next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BALDWIN: The royal newlyweds arrive in Canada, and someone has $100 million in a checking account -- time to play "Reporter Roulette."
I want to begin in Ottawa, Canada, with Max Foster in Canada, where William and Catherine, the duke and duchess of Cambridge, are on day one of their nine-day tour.
And, Max, the last time you and I spoke, we saw some live pictures during that official welcoming ceremony with the prime minister. Tell me what's next for the royal couple.
MAX FOSTER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, they stay at Rideau Hall now. That's where they're going to be staying. That's the official royal residence as it were in Canada, and they're going to meet some young people.
It's all about promoting this as the next generation of royals and meeting lots of young people reflects that, but of pomp and pageantry earlier on in that official welcoming ceremony. And then Prince William gave a few remarks and very cleverly did a few words in French which I'm told was very impressively done.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PRINCE WILLIAM, DUKE OF CAMBRIDGE: Catherine and I are so delighted to be here in Canada.
(CHEERS) PRINCE WILLIAM: Instilled in us by our parents and grandparents who love this country, we've been looking forward to this moment for a very long time. And before we were married, we had a longing to come here together. The geography of Canada is unsurpassed and is famous for being matched only by the hospitality of its peoples. We're so very excited about having this opportunity to experience both and learn much more about this amazing country.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FOSTER: So, a very well-received speech there from the duke of Cambridge. I just want to show you, Brooke, some pictures of Catherine in the crowd, because this is what people are really talking about.
BALDWIN: Yes, please.
FOSTER: She was completely relaxed, completely poised. And she was talking to the crowds, getting down on their level and entirely comfortable, looking fabulous in her dress. Her dress which was by a Canadian living in London -- pretty clever, I think. And she did it brilliantly. And everyone is calling ate home run for the royals.
BALDWIN: And they're doing a lot of, you know, talking to some of the people there along the streets and perhaps making their schedulers a little nervous, you know, meandering a little too long, I suppose. And again, they're there for nine -- right, they're making them nervous?
FOSTER: Yes. You can see just to her left there, you saw her private secretary trying to usher her on. She is so good with the crowds. They just want to keep her there. But he is panicking about the schedule, which is very tight. And they're here for eight days traveling the whole country.
BALDWIN: I think it's lovely of them to stop and say hello, Max Foster. Thank you very much. I'll sure will be checking in with you throughout the next nine or so days about this big royal trip.
Next on "Reporter Roulette," Alison Kosik live for me at the New York Stock Exchange.
And, Alison, we know Congress is officially cancelling their July 4th vacation week to deal with the deficit talks. But one group has a big warning about our nation's economic outlook. Who is that?
ALISON KOSIK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, big of them to put of their vacations, right? Well, you know, we've only got a $14 trillion debt ceiling looming here.
And the group that we're talking about is Standard & Poor's. And this is kind of timely on a day where the lawmakers say they are going to give up their vacations the work on this issue. S&P came out. It's one of the top three ratings agencies, and said that if Congress doesn't raise the debt ceiling, it's going to drop its rating on the U.S. from AAA to a D. Now, we can all understand the letters. We all went to school. We know that A is best and D is not so good. In fact, it's the worst. That if the U.S. can't pay its bills in full and on time, that this ratings agency is going to drop the U.S. credit rating to a D.
And, you know, that would really shake the confidence that other countries have in the U.S., Brooke. It could also likely send stocks spiraling lower. So, yes, there would go our 401(k)s as well.
So, sure, if you ask me, stay in D.C. and work on this, right, Brooke?
BALDWIN: Well, as you mentioned, the debt ceiling, what is it, $13.3 trillion. But let's talk, you know, you know, about a number a little bit smaller than that, but still a pretty large chunk of change. What is it, $99 million and some change? Talk about this receipt. I can't imagine seeing this as my balance.
KOSIK: Yes, so back last week, someone walked by an ATM, or got some money out of an ATM and noticed there was a receipt in the ATM machine showing there was a bank balance that someone left of $100 million. Can you imagine?
BALDWIN: Hello!
KOSIK: There is the receipt. This happened in East Hampton. You know about East Hampton here in New York, right? All the rich and famous go out there.
But this receipt shows he took out $400 around 10:00 in the evening last week. And someone wound up just giving this receipt to dealbreaker.com. And, look, it even shows he had to pay the $2.75 ATM fee. God, even the wealthy can't get away from that, Brooke.
BALDWIN: Those pesky fees. But I'm thinking gosh, you know, if that's your balance, what's $400? Why not $4,000? Why not $400,000? I mean, that's nothing.
KOSIK: You know what the issue that I have here is this $100 million that this person has is sitting in a savings account of all things. I mean, you'd think someone who has that much money is going to be a little more savvy with their money and put it maybe in a better interest earnings somehow account. Think about it. Savings accounts these days, you get maybe 1 percent on your money?
BALDWIN: I have a feeling after this story has made its rounds, someone is coming and finding this man or woman and saying hey, now -- you need to making some money off that.
KOSIK: Put your money somewhere else.
BALDWIN: Yes. Alison Kosik, thank you very much.
And, finally, here on "Reporter Roulette," a new drug promises to lengthen the life of men suffering from prostate cancer, but it's going to add billions to the nation's bills. Senior medical correspondent Elizabeth Cohen is here. This is near and dear to my heart. I lost my grandfather actually over prostate cancer.
But when we talk about money and we talk about footing the bill for the drug, how much are we talking in terms of cost?
ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN SENIOR MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: This is an expensive drug. So, Medicare has just said we will pay for this drug. It costs $96,000 for a course of treatment.
BALDWIN: Wow.
COHEN: And it adds four extra months of life. So, in other words, with this drug, you get four more months than you would get without it on average. And if you are that man taking that drug, you say, well, of course, it's worth it. That's four more months with the people I love.
BALDWIN: Right. Of course. But when you think about I guess, of course, you do as a family member. But then you think, OK, if you're the taxpayer and this isn't your family member, this is a lot of money. So, that then leads to the debate.
COHEN: Right. You know what, Brooke? This is -- both of us are uncomfortable. I can see it in your face. I feel it in mine.
It is tough to have these conversations and say is extra four months of life worth the taxpayers paying $96,000? And, you know, this administration is really not -- they don't want to get into that death panel discussion again.
BALDWIN: Right.
COHEN: And some people say that's why they approved this drug and others like it, is because they don't want anyone accusing them of sending grandpa, you know, to his death over money. But the reality is that these drugs cost money and they don't necessarily get you a whole lot more life.
BALDWIN: Four months. I see both sides.
COHEN: That's right.
BALDWIN: Elizabeth Cohen, thank you very much.
And that's your "Reporter Roulette" here for this Thursday.
COHEN: We know Sarah Palin, you know who she is. She works also for FOX News.
So, what's the deal with this?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Thank you, CNN! (END VIDEO CLIP)
BALDWIN: Wait until you hear this story behind this. And Sarah Palin body double as Joe Johns is calling her. He was right there. "Political Pop" is next.
But, first, this --
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BALDWIN: We have actually covered the Colbert case at the Federal Election Commission before, and we already know what the decision was, that Colbert gets his PAC with some strings attached -- with some strings attached.
But let's talk a bit about what was going on behind the scenes of today's ruling. And for that we go to Joe Johns with the "Political Pop." Joe, what's --
(CROSSTALK)
JOE JOHNS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey, Brooke. You know, I honestly do not remember another situation quite like this. The whole case is generated by a comedy show. It's comedy subject matter. The Federal Election Commission knows it's comedy. But the FEC had to play it straight and treat Colbert like anybody else, because it's their job.
Meanwhile, Colbert is doing things like asking his lawyer on the air if the FEC could give him the death penalty. Ridiculous, right? Even an hour before the FEC met, Colbert tweeted, asking his followers to join him with friends at the FEC, especially if those friends are tiny green men printed on bills, right, you know, meaning money.
BALDWIN: Right.
JOHNS: The point of all of this is to make fun of the recent court decision that allows unlimited campaign donations from corporations. And, you know, the question now is: what next? How long does he play the joke out?
BALDWIN: Well, what next, and does it make any difference if the FEC ruled for Colbert?
JOHNS: OK, without getting down in the weeds of the decision, there are people out there claiming it's going to blow a hole in the campaign finance system. But you really have to ask whether it was a Supreme Court decision that did that in the first place, right?
BALDWIN: Right. So, that's that.
Then there is the story that, you know, some people are talking about. It's one of our competitors, right, MSNBC, their talk show today. And there was a pundit, a senior political guy getting placed on leave because of something he said about the president with the word that starts with a D. JOHNS: Yes. Mark Halperin, MSNBC's senior political analyst and, of course, editor of CNN's sister publication, "TIME" magazine, called the president a four-letter word. Then he got suspended indefinitely by MSNBC.
But what you may not know is that the host, Joe Scarborough, kind of joked that Halperin could say something outrageous, but when he did, Scarborough tried to get the network to bleep it out, and it was, you know, just too late. Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOE SCARBOROUGH, MSNBC ANCHOR: And then they quietly work the deal behind the scenes.
MARK HALPERIN, MSNBC ANALYST: Are we on the seven-second delay today?
SCARBOROUGH: No.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Oh, lordy.
HALPERIN: I wanted to characterize how I thought the president behaved.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Well, we have it. We can use it, right, Alex?
SCARBOROUGH: Yes, sure. Come on.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes, go for it. Yes, let's see what happens.
SCARBOROUGH: Right behind you -- you fall down, I'll catch you.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And the precedent has been set. So, we're good.
HALPERIN: I thought he was kind of a (EXPLETIVE DELETED) yesterday.
SCARBOROUGH: Oh, my God, delay that.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
JOHNS: Yes.
BALDWIN: Oops.
JOHNS: Now, just because somebody tells you to say something outrageous on TV doesn't mean you have to do it, right?
BALDWIN: Yes.
JOHNS: Halperin did apologize. You know, he was talking about the remarks yesterday blasting for Republicans not agreeing to tax increases.
BALDWIN: And the button wasn't pushed and there you go, live on national television.
JOHNS: Not good. Just don't take that risk.
BALDWIN: Don't do it.
Finally, sir, the last time you and I spoke you were in Pella, Iowa, covering the movie "Undefeated," the Sarah Palin documentary. And so, while you were there, you saw her doppelganger? Is that what I heard?
JOHNS: Yes, it was kind of unbelievable. No news here, just sort of a shot of the week sort of thing.
We're here in Pella, Iowa. Caught up with Sarah Palin, followed her around for a while, and ran into this woman who looked just like Palin. Now her name is Lisa Earhart (ph).
Judge for yourself. You know, we have some pictures of her there with the glasses on. That's pretty close, right?
BALDWIN: Pretty similar.
JOHNS: And as you can see, Sarah Palin stopped, let her get a picture or whatever. She says, she is a Sarah Palin fan and just wanted to get that 20 seconds. And we decided we would shoot it and add it to her 15 minutes of fame.
BALDWIN: So, what did Palin say to her? Do we know?
JOHNS: You know, I couldn't really hear. We were pretty really close, but I couldn't really hear what it was. Palin was just on her way out to get into the, you know, four-wheel drive and ride away into the sunset.
And she just stopped for that one second to get that picture there. And the thing about this Lisa Earhart was that you're scanning the room looking for Sarah Palin, and your eyes keep coming back to her.
BALDWIN: That's what you said during our morning call. You said you kept looking at this woman. You kept wondering if, you know, that was she.
JOHNS: Is that her?
BALDWIN: Nope, not at all. I got to say though, she looks pretty palinesque, but I think Tinafey still wins the prize.
JOHNS: Yes, you got it.
BALDWIN: Joe Johns, thank you very much.
And flights at one of the country's busiest airports suddenly grounded because of a major disturbance, and it involves sex. Coming up here, how the pilots reacted to this.
Plus, Wolf Blitzer is standing by. He just scored a pretty big interview. A preview of that is next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) BALDWIN: All right. Well, we showed you "Whitey" Bulger, who is facing allegations he murdered 19 different people. We showed you here he was leaving Boston's Logan Airport after a couple of hearings today.
And now here he is going to the -- going back to the Plymouth County House of Corrections. Again, facing all the allegations he murdered 19 people before going on a lam for 16 years before finally being arrested, busted, living with his girlfriend 20 years younger at this condo just about a block from the ocean in Santa Monica, California. There he is. His detention center orange duds, handcuffed at his ankles and wrists. Off he goes.
Now to this. It is not exactly unusual for people to get lovey-dovey at JFK Airport, but it doesn't usually happen on the tarmac.
That is why you got to see in here how more than 150 amorous turtles disrupted some flights. I want you to listen how air controllers and pilots handled this situation.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED AIR TRAFFIC CONTROLLER: American 1009, there is a report of a turtle on the runway, do you want to have it removed first?
UNIDENTIFIED PILOT: Sure.
UNIDENTIFIED AIR TRAFFIC CONTROLLER: American 1009, cancel takeoff clearance, hold position.
UNIDENTIFIED PILOT: Holding the position. American 1009, I was wondering where those things were.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BALDWIN: The migration of the diamondback terrapins is an annual affair at JFK. If you have traveled through there, it's surrounded by wetlands and a bay. The sandy bay is a popular egg laying and nesting area.
Having tamed the tarmac, the turtles are making their mark in the digital landscape, if you're on Twitter and apparently someone is, but a lot of time on their heads. You can follow them @JFKturtles. They apparently have more than 7,300 followers. Turtles.
"THE SITUATION ROOM" now here a couple of minutes, Wolf Blitzer special edition live from Chicago. And Wolf joins me now for a preview. There is the beautiful river behind you.
Wolf Blitzer, I know you were there. You had this amazing interview with President Bill Clinton. He is there as part of this two-day meeting for the Clinton Global Initiative. How did it go?
WOLF BLITZER, THE SITUATION ROOM: It went really well. The former president very outspoken on a whole bunch of issues on the economy, the debt ceiling, on politics, who potentially could be the greatest challenge to the president, President Obama.
He also -- we went into some of the other issues that I like to talk to him about. One thing specifically is health, how he is doing given the heart scare that he had a few years ago. Remember last year, he told me about the new diet. He lost 24 pounds getting ready for his daughter Chelsea's wedding. So we get a little update from him on that.
Also, he got really emotional speaking about his wife, the secretary of state. So I think this is an interview our viewers will like. We're going to run it in "THE SITUATION ROOM" today. It's a special edition. We're broadcasting like from the Clinton Global Initiative America Conference that is ongoing here in Chicago. Brooke --
BALDWIN: Wolf, I'm told we have a little preview, a little snippet of that interview. Let's listen to it, shall we?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BLITZER: How worry ready you right now about President Obama getting re-elected?
BILL CLINTON, FORMER U.S. PRESIDENT: Well, on today's facts, I'll be surprised if he is not re-elected. I think people understand this recession was more severe than the one I had.
And if you just look at what is going on in Michigan, a terrible year for the Democrats in Michigan in 2010, but the United States on the day Barack Obama became president had 2 percent of the world's market for these high percentage, high-powered batteries to make hybrid and all electric vehicles.
Today they have -- we have 20 percent of the world market because of incentives that he put in and pushed and aggressively so. We have over 30 new battery factories, 18 of them in Michigan, built or under construction.
I can give you other examples like that where we're trying to build a competitive economy, where they're going forward. I think he's got a good story to tell.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BALDWIN: Talk about the economy and a lot of people's ears perk, Wolf Blitzer. We'll be looking for more of that interview in "THE SITUATION ROOM," special from Chicago. Thank you.
What a day in the Casey Anthony murder trial. The defense has just rested its case, but not before Casey Anthony stood up to speak. You're going to hear the alleged killer in her own words. Sunny Hostin is on the case. That's next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BALDWIN: The defense has rested in the Casey Anthony murder trial. Sunny Hostin is on the case. Sunny, you have been saying day after day after day, Casey Anthony has to testify and we've now learned she's not.
SUNNY HOSTIN, LEGAL CONTRIBUTOR, "IN SESSION" ON TRUTV: It's not going to happen. And I was very surprised, especially in light of the opening statements where we heard Jose Baez saying that Casey Anthony had been sexual abused by her father since she was eight years old and Caylee Anthony died by accidental drowning.
The only person, Brooke, privy to those facts is Casey Anthony, but we will not hear from her. It is her constitutional right not to testify. Take a listen to the judge inquiring of her as to whether or not she would be taking the stand.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JUDGE BELVIN PERRY: It is your decision not to testify based upon consultation with your counsel?
CASEY ANTHONY: Yes, sir.
PERRY: You understand that your decision to testify or not testify is solely your decision and your decision alone?
ANTHONY: Yes, sir.
PERRY: And it is your decision not to testify?
ANTHONY: Yes, sir.
PERRY: Have you had ample time to discuss this matter with your attorneys that is the pros and cons of testifying or not testifying?
ANTHONY: Yes, sir.
PERRY: And has anyone used any force or pressure in making you arrive at that decision?
ANTHONY: No, sir.
PERRY: OK, and that decision is your decision freely and voluntarily?
ANTHONY: Yes, sir.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BALDWIN: So her choice, Sunny, not to testify, her reticence, what would the jury read into that?
HOSTIN: Well, they shouldn't read anything into it because the judge will instruct them that a defendant has the right not to testify, and that they shouldn't read anything into it.
But Brooke, there have been studies about this and oftentimes jurors in the face of an opening statement like this do expect the defendant to testify, and sometimes do read into it. So it's too soon to tell.
Hopefully, we'll get the chance to hear from this jury about how they feel as to the decision that she made not to testify.
BALDWIN: Yes, I can't wait to get some of the jurors on this show once this whole thing is wrapped up.
HOSTIN: Yes.
BALDWIN: But that's for later. Let's talk about what else happened today. The defense rested this afternoon. The jury left the room there was one more argument over whether the jury should be allowed to open that can that we have talked about and actually sniff the dead body smell. What is the resolution to that?
HOSTIN: That's right. This is the can that contains the carpet samples that allegedly a lot of these witnesses said smelled like death, death emanating from the trunk of Casey Anthony's car.
Well, the judge cited a lot of cases, Brooke, and said no, I'm not going to let these jurors become essentially witnesses in this case. I don't want one juror to have more sway over another juror if in fact that juror has smelled the smell of death, which is really a smell unlike any other.
So he said they will not be allowed to take those can backs into the jury room and even if they ask to sniff it, they will not be able to.
BALDWIN: So while I was on the air last hour I actually had a couple of people tweet me about this heckler in the courtroom. And you have talked about this judge, Sunny Hostin. You talked about how this guy is not messing around. What was this young man doing, and what was the judge's response?
HOSTIN: Yes, well, you don't mess around with Judge Perry, any judge for that matter, but especially this one. This young man apparently was a spectator and flipped the bird apparently to Jeff Ashton, the prosecutor, who is known as being a very aggressive sort of pit bull prosecutor.
The judge immediately brought him up. He was found in contempt and sentenced to six days in jail, and also you're seeing him remanded to the county jail.
And he has also been fined as well so serious business for this young man. Interestingly enough, it is trending nationally, trending on Twitter. It's already on Youtube as is TGI Friday's, which is apparently where he used to work.
He doesn't work there anymore since he is going to be in county jail for about six days.
BALDWIN: What did the judge say to him, Sunny?
HOSTIN: The judge had some choice words for him, and basically took him to task for courtroom behavior. You certainly don't do that anywhere, I think. I think it's crass and rude.
BALDWIN: Yes. HOSTIN: But you certainly don't do it to a prosecutor in a courtroom that is being covered internationally around the world.
BALDWIN: OK, quickly, here, 10 seconds.
HOSTIN: Six days. Six days in jail.
BALDWIN: Yes, that's a no-no. Quickly, closing arguments. When will that begin?
HOSTIN: I think they could be -- they could begin either late tomorrow or most certainly by Saturday. It's going to be up to the jury to determine whether or not they want to deliberate over this holiday weekend. But I will tell you this. I'll be working, Brooke. I'll be following this case this weekend, July 4th weekend.
BALDWIN: All right. I'll be working Monday myself. Sunny Hostin, thank you very, very much and that is it for me. Now to Wolf Blitzer, special live show, a live "SITUATION ROOM" from Chicago. Wolf --
