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Dominique Strauss-Kahn Case in Shambles; Casey Anthony Trial Resumes; Processing Fallen Troops' Remains; Hugo Chavez's Health; Alcohol at Fast Food Restaurants
Aired July 01, 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: He's still out of a job and under a cloud, but Dominique Strauss-Kahn is almost a free man today, freed on his own recognizance after a bombshell from New York prosecutors. In a 10-minute hearing, they told the court they have serious questions about the credibility of the hotel maid who says Strauss-Kahn sexually assaulted her a month and a half ago.
They think she lied about some of the particulars this case and others, including her asylum application from her native Guinea. There's DNA evidence that sex took place between the maid and the former head of the International Monetary Fund, but Strauss-Kahn says it was consensual. The maid's lawyer says it most certainly was not.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KENNETH THOMPSON, LAWYER FOR ALLEGED VICTIM: He then grabbed her vagina with so much force, that he hurt her. He grabbed her vagina with so much force, that he bruised her vagina. When she went to the hospital later that day, the nurses who examined her saw the bruises on her vagina that were caused by Dominique Strauss' hand, and they took pictures of the bruises on her vagina, and the district attorney has those pictures.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KAYE: Weeks ago, when Strauss-Kahn was first allowed to leave jail, he was made to put up $1 million cash and post a $5 million bond. He had to give up his passport and live under house arrest, with armed guards and an ankle bracelet, somewhere in Manhattan, and he had to pay for it all himself.
Well, today, all of those terms have been lifted except for the foreign travel ban. The government's holding on to Strauss-Kahn's passport.
I want to bring in now Paul Cowan. He's a veteran of the Brooklyn DA's office, and now a highly-sought-after defense attorney and litigator.
Paul, I don't know where to begin with this case, but it doesn't look like it's over yet, does it?
PAUL CALLAN, CRIMINAL DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Well, it's not over yet, but, boy, it looks like we're getting close. I mean, when a prosecutor comes in on basically a he said/she said rape case and says, I've got problems with my own witness' credibility, and you have to release the defendant from jail, that's a momentous occasion. And it looks really bad for the prosecution. It looks really bad for the future of this case and its viability in terms of a prosecutable case.
KAYE: What about the physical evidence? And also, what about the DNA evidence that supposedly the prosecutors had? Does that count for nothing now?
CALLAN: Well, it's interesting. That's a great question.
And, you know, we heard her personal attorney, Ken Thompson, make a very passionate plea to District Attorney Cyrus Vance to press forward with the case, saying there's substantial evidence supporting the client's claims. I think you're going to hear the defense, though, say this is a case of consensual sex, and how do we know that the bruising of her genitalia was caused during the encounter with Strauss-Kahn? Her ripped stockings, they might have been ripped when she came to work.
Of course, there would be semen and DNA in the room. Strauss- Kahn admits he had sex with her.
So, each of the points that were raised by the defense attorney can be dealt with by the defense. I think it doesn't necessarily mean that the case is a strong case. It's got a lot of problems, this case, and I would be surprised, frankly, if the defense, you know, is unsuccessful in convincing the prosecution to walk away.
KAYE: I want to hear briefly now from the DA, Cyrus Vance, and from Strauss-Kahn's lawyer, Ben Brafman. And then I have some more questions for you.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CY VANCE, MANHATTAN DISTRICT ATTORNEY: As prosecutors, our duty is to do what is right in every case without fear or favor, wherever that leads. The disclosures we made that led to today's proceedings reflect that principle. In this case, as with every case, our office's commitment is to the truth and the facts, and that will govern how we proceed.
Thank you very much.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BENJAMIN BRAFMAN, STRAUSS-KAHN'S ATTORNEY: -- in the last six weeks, we asked you and we asked the world not to rush to judgment in this case. And now I think you can understand why. We believed from the beginning that this case was not what it appeared to be, and we are absolutely convinced that while today is a first giant step in the right direction, the next step will lead to a complete dismissal of the charges.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KAYE: So, Paul, you heard it there. I mean, did prosecutors mess up, or is this just some bad luck for them and some really good luck for Dominique Strauss-Kahn?
CALLAN: Well, it's sort of a perfect storm for the prosecutors. Normally, in a case like this, where you have a hotel maid saying one thing and you have a rich and powerful elected official saying something else, you would carefully investigate the case to decide who you're going to believe.
In this case, because Strauss-Kahn was about to board a plane and fly back to Europe, and wind up eventually in France, a country that does not extradite to the United States, prosecutors really were forced to make a decision quickly. Some might say they jumped the gun and they made an arrest immediately.
They then went into court and asked for extraordinarily high bail, $6 million, and a home confinement situation that supposedly cost Strauss-Kahn $250,000 a day. So, prosecutors were in deep, but committed to the case before they really had a chances to vet the complaining witness very carefully, and now, of course, they're confronted with some very unpleasant facts.
Apparently, she had conversations with a drug dealer about whether she should go after Strauss-Kahn. There are claims that she had $100,000 in drug money in a bank account, and that she made a false complaint of rape in the past. All of these things are very, very damaging to the prosecutor's case.
Now, could they be overcome? Could the prosecutor still win the case? It's always possible. Anything's possible. But when you see holes like this in a case, in a case where really it's two people in a room, and who do you believe, prosecutors have a real problem here.
KAYE: It certainly sounds that way.
Paul Callan, appreciate your insight on this case. Thank you so much.
The Minnesota government was forced to shut down today, the second time in six years, after lawmakers failed to reach a budget agreement before their midnight deadline. And residents, well, they're already feeling the impact on this Fourth of July weekend.
The Minnesota Department of Transportation has shut down more than 80 highway rest stops, and state parks and the zoo are also set to be closed. Republicans are accusing Governor Mark Dayton of throwing in the towel too early. Dayton, a member of the Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party, says he wants to raise taxes on the wealthiest Minnesotans, as well as cut spending.
It is today's "Sound Effect."
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) GOV. MARK DAYTON (D), MINNESOTA: They've known for two months, I've said consistently, I will not agree to anything until I agree to everything. We've made a lot of progress in the last couple of days because there was a real deadline. And some of the areas that we worked hard on, we made very real progress.
But this one basic difference remains. They don't want to raise revenues on anybody, and I believe the wealthiest Minnesotans can afford to pay more in taxes.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KAYE: In other news, an accused airplane stowaway was due in federal court in Los Angeles today. The Nigerian-American man was arrested Wednesday at Los Angeles International Airport. He allegedly tried to board a flight out of Los Angeles after passing through security with an expired ticket. He's accused of using outdated boarding passes in other people's names to take several flights.
The U.S. Defense Department has a new boss. There he is, Leon Panetta, sworn in today as the nation's 23rd defense secretary. He replaces Robert Gates, who retired yesterday.
Panetta previously served as CIA director. He won confirmation by the Senate last week in a rare 100-0 vote. Panetta's replacement at the CIA will be General David Petraeus, the current commander of U.S. forces in Afghanistan.
The federal government will pick up the legal tab for reputed mobster James "Whitey" Bulger. Bulger was escorted off a helicopter at Logan International Airport in Boston yesterday, then ushered to a van for his court appearance.
There, a judge granted prosecutors' request to allow them to focus only on the 19 murder charges against Bulger. At a separate hearing, the court ruled that Bulger is eligible for a public defender. He was arrested in California last week after 16 years on the run. His arraignment, set for July 6th.
We want to show you some live pictures now of the Casey Anthony murder trial in Orlando. It started back up today, just about an hour ago, after it came to a grinding halt this morning. What it has to do with little Caylee's skull and computer searches for chloroform, what that stalling has to do. The latest from Orlando in just a couple of minutes.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAYE: The Casey Anthony murder trial just getting back on track, but just this morning the trial was in recess indefinitely, the judge said. Luckily, indefinitely turned out to be just a few hours.
These are live pictures inside the courtroom right now in Orlando. The trial started back up about an hour ago.
So what was all the fuss about earlier today? Well, it boils down to Caylee's skull and those computer searches at the family's home for chloroform.
Earlier today, we were all preparing to hear the prosecution call some of the experts to tackle those issues, but the defense claim they didn't know what the prosecution's experts would say. Anthony's defense team even called it an ambush. So the judge called an indefinite recess to essentially give the defense team some time to talk to the state's experts.
I want to go straight to Richard Herman now, who's a criminal defense attorney, joining us from Las Vegas.
Richard, let's talk about what happened this morning. I mean, it was like watching Judge Perry trying to settle an argument in the schoolyard. You know? I mean, just listen to what he told the defense here.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JUDGE BELVIN PERRY, ORANGE COUNTY CIRCUIT COURT: There are real problems and there are imaginary problems. And I hope this is a real problem and not an imaginary problem.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KAYE: A stern warning there from the judge. What's going on, just briefly here?
RICHARD HERMAN, CRIMINAL DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Well, briefly, what Baez commented on was that he did not know from the expert reports what these experts were actually going to testify to because they were now coming in rebuttal. And whatever they were going to say was not contained in the reports.
That's the rule. Any expert must testify to what's in their report. So the judge says, OK, timeout. Do your depositions of all the experts this morning. Come back in, and we're going to start this trial.
Listen, Randi, can you imagine the tension and pressure in that courtroom as we're winding down? It's felt by everybody, and even the judge is feeling it.
KAYE: Oh, yes.
HERMAN: So, he's a bit anxious, yes.
KAYE: So, let's step back and look at the big picture here. I mean, this is it. As you said, we're in the final stretch. The prosecution right now, by the way, is talking to Cindy Anthony's former employer to prove that she was at work and not at home doing the searches for chloroform.
I assume that's important to prove, because would that show that, well, if Casey's mom wasn't doing them, then there's more likelihood that Casey was doing them? HERMAN: Yes, that's an essential component to their premeditation, that Casey was the one who actually searched chloroform in advance and then prepared to kill her daughter. So that's where that's going from.
They have to be careful, because Cindy was a star prosecution witness early on in this trial, so it's a dicey road to now impeach her credibility by this. You know, the jury's going to know it's her daughter, and I guess she's just trying to do whatever she can to help her daughter.
It's not going to be enough, Randi. The prosecution put on a very powerful circumstantial case.
KAYE: Yes.
HERMAN: You know, they brought up -- they brought up Casey's insane behavior those 30 days after the child went missing. People just can't even accept that. They can't understand that.
And if it really was an accident, how you do not come forward and tell the police? You'd rather face the death penalty than tell the police it was an accidental drowning and probably wouldn't even be prosecuted? I mean, there's a death hair band in her car, there's smell of chloroform in her car, there's death composition in her car. It's a pretty powerful circumstantial case.
KAYE: But the defense, though, instead of just poking holes in the prosecution's case, they went about coming up with their own theory, that this was an accident, that Caylee drowned in the pool, and that Casey's father covered it up.
Was there one shred of evidence that they put forward to actually prove that theory?
HERMAN: I'll tell you, you know, Baez is such an amateur attorney, that he's going to learn the hard way that when you stand up in an opening and you promise things to a jury, and you fail to deliver, that jury does not like you. You are not credible to that jury, and they don't believe you, and they take it out on your client. A big problem for the defense.
What he did prove was, though, that Caylee was able to climb those stairs into the pool, she liked the pool. And that's it. They didn't prove any child abuse. They didn't prove George was involved in anything.
So, you know, Baez fell flat on everything that he claimed he was going to outline in his opening. And we'll see how severe this jury takes it out on Casey for that.
KAYE: Yes, when this finally does go to the jury, which hopefully will be very shortly here.
All right. Richard Herman, thank you so much.
HERMAN: Yes.
KAYE: Have a great weekend.
Well, imagine this scenario -- you are a girl barely out of high school, and your job is recovering and processing the bodies of Americans killed in combat in Iraq. That was the daily routine for a former Marine who has now written a book about her experience, and she will join us right after this break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAYE: In war, it's a job no one really wants to do, but one that must be done. It's the job of recovering and processing the bodies of troops killed in combat.
That was the job of Jess Goodell as a young Marine in Iraq in 2004. She's written about her experience in her book, "Shaded Black: Death and After in Iraq."
Jess Goodell is now out of the Marines and preparing to start graduate school at the University of Buffalo this fall. She joins us from Jamestown, New York.
Also, Jess, before we get to this interview, I just want to caution our viewers that our conversation that you and I are about to have could be just a bit graphic in nature. But we're glad to have you on the show and talk about this.
I want to ask you first, how did you come up with the title of your book, "Shaded black"? It has some meaning there.
JESS GOODELL, FMR. U.S. MARINE: There are a couple of reasons. I guess the first reason is a very literal reason.
One of the diagrams that we had when we would process the remains was an outline of a human body. And because of the nature of the way that people were dying in Iraq, often the remains did not come in as a whole body. And so there may be pieces missing such as a hand or a leg. And on the diagram, we were instructed to shade in black the areas that were missing.
Another reason that it was called "Shaded Black" was because once people go to war and they come back to civilian life, various areas of their lives are shaded black.
KAYE: So, help me understand how this works. I mean, was your typical day you would be called out, what, after an IED, and you'd have to process a scene? Or did these come to you on the base? How did this work?
GOODELL: Both scenarios were the case. Often, our platoon was in our bunker, and another platoon might bring in the Marines of their own fallen soldiers into our bunker for us to process.
Other times, it was the case where we would get a call into our bunker saying that there were Marines down. And we would get into a convoy and drive out to the scene, collect their remains, and then bring the remains back to our bunker to process them.
KAYE: And I would imagine, as terrible as some of those scenes must have been, that you probably had to actually sort some of these remains and see what belonged to who, correct?
GOODELL: Yes. When we would get remains, sometimes there would be several Marines that had died at one time as a result of an explosion. And so once we had the remains at our bunker, we would do our best to sort the Marines and put each Marine in their respective body.
KAYE: Why was this so important, do you think, for the families?
GOODELL: I think it was important to the families to have every bit of their loved one that they could get back. You know, that's really important to the families so that they can have closure and so that they still feel like they're connected to their loved one, by having all of their loved one with them.
KAYE: I'm sure you saw just some terrible things there in the field. I know that you've mentioned that you've experienced PTSD. Is that still the case for you? How are you doing after having a job like this?
GOODELL: It's very difficult to come back to civilian life after participating in that job in particular. When I finally was able to make my way into a VA and see a counselor, I was diagnosed with Post- Traumatic Stress Disorder, Generalized Anxiety Disorder, major depression, and substance abuse. So it's been very difficult. I feel, though, that now I am on a healing path now.
KAYE: Well, Jess, we certainly appreciate you coming on. Your book is really something that everybody should read, "Shaded Black." And we congratulate you on being so brave and serving your country in such a difficult way.
So, thank you so much.
GOODELL: Thank you very having me.
KAYE: All right.
(NEWSBREAK)
KAYE: As school gets out for the summer, the number of young people with jobs is historically low. CNN Hero Diane Latiker knows this lack of work means trouble in her rough Chicago neighborhood, so she's doing something about it. In the last eight years, she's helped more than 1,500 kids by opening her door and inviting them in.
Take a look at this week's CNN Hero.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DIANE LATIKER, CNN HERO: Guns, guns and more guns. These are our young people. These stones represent them. We're losing a generation to violence.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Everybody is scared to come out or they'll be shot at.
LATIKER: When they start shooting, you've got to grab the kids and run in the house.
People go in the house and close their doors. They don't even talk about it. But there are some people who are not scared to go outside, and I'm one of them.
My name is Diane Latiker. We opened a community center called Kids off the Block. We're known as KOB.
There are kids that are in gangs, they're homeless. Some of them are drug dealers. So they've got a lot of issues going on.
Who signed up for youth raid (ph) of Chicago?
I tell kids this is a peace place. This is a safe place.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I was really wanting to be a veterinarian.
LATIKER: We have leadership workshops, music preparation, music. It's a range of things that goes on in here.
We started out with 10 young people. And the next thing I knew, I had 15, then I had 25. At one point, I had 75 young people in three rooms of my house. And that's how Kids off the Block started, in my living room.
We open the doors for the new KOB center in July. Last two weeks, 301 young people. If they knock on the door, they can come in.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I was 12 when I got in there. Robbing people, stealing. Diane, she just changed my life. I love her for that.
LATIKER: I'm no different from nobody else. I just opened up my door. Why can't you all come outside and see what's going on in our neighborhoods?
There are people who care, and I'm one of them.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KAYE: Last year, Diane's center helped more than 300 kids stay off the streets and out of trouble.
And remember, every one of this year's CNN Heroes are chosen from people that you tell us about. So nominate someone that you know who is making a big difference in your community. All you have to do is go to CNNHeroes.com to do so.
Stick around for a Fourth of July weather forecast and the details on this wild hailstorm that hit Chicago last night. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAYE: It is almost the Fourth of July.
Severe weather expert Chad Myers joins us now for a look at the Fourth's weather forecast. But, first, what, hail in Chicago?
CHAD MYERS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Chicago had Fourth of July last night.
KAYE: Yes, they sure did.
MYERS: Thunder, lightning, hail, even hitting what used to be called the Sears Tower.
Here's the video of what the hail looked like coming down at the time, pounding cars. Now, it takes hail the size of a nickel to put a dent in your car, and if you do see some small dents in the car today, as you look at it in the sunshine, leave it in the sunshine and a lot of the little dings will come out.
Being an expert from living back in Oklahoma, I can tell you that it actually works. It works better in dark cars. Dark cars get hotter in the sunshine.
But look at the size. That's nearly a golf ball, if not better than that. And that was coming down all across Chicagoland.
And, in fact, there's some still weather east of Chicago now, from about -- that's about South Haven through Grand Haven, all the way down to the northern sections of Indiana. That will be the same weather that will be for most of the night tonight, and we're not going to see any changes.
So, let's get into tomorrow. Everybody wants to be outside, do something, so maybe some picnicking. It's kind of odd that Fourth of July falls on a Monday, but it kind of gives everyone a long weekend.
Look at this, Phoenix, 115 degrees tomorrow, and it will be hot all over the Valley of the Sun.
It will be hot in Chicago as well, all the way through St. Louis, but a cold front will come down and push some of that cool air into your forecast by, I would call it Monday midday. So, here we go, for Independence Day, we'll get to a bunch of cities here, Seattle will be sunny and 70. Beautiful day there.
And as we go into the rest of the middle part of the country, you're going to see -- you're going to see the temperatures stay hot across parts of Salt Lake City, going to stay hot in Kansas City, going to stay hot in Dallas -- and this graphic refuses to move. So, hey, that's OK.
Let's get to "Off the Radar" because you've probably been going around finding out what's trending today. What's trending? This calendar, July. Do you know July of this year, 2011, has five Fridays, five Saturdays, and five Sundays?
Well, it's going around on the Internet that that's the first time it's happened in 823 years. Wrong. Myth busters right here. Wrong.
It happens about every seven years. So, don't believe it. It's called the Money Bag month, because you get paid three times, if you get paid on Fridays.
But don't believe it only happens every 800 years -- Randi.
KAYE: OK. I won't believe it. I'm not believing it.
MYERS: Good.
KAYE: Thank you, Myth buster.
MYERS: All right.
KAYE: Thanks, Chad.
MYERS: You got it.
KAYE: Eagles quarterback Michael Vick takes a big step toward rectifying his public image today. We'll tell you how, right after this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAYE: Thirty-five minutes past the hour -- let's check out some of the headlines and other news you may have missed.
Stunning developments in the sexual assault case against Dominique Strauss-Kahn -- a judge has released the former International Monetary Fund director on his own recognizance and freed him from house arrest in New York based on serious credibility issues with his accuser that threatened the entire case. The court did not dismiss the indictment or any of the charges and authorities will continue to withhold his passport for the time being.
The Minnesota government virtually shut down today after lawmakers failed to reach a budget agreement before their midnight deadline. And people are already feeling the impact on this Fourth of July weekend. The Minnesota Department of Transportation has shut down more than 80 highway rest stops. And state parks and the zoo -- well, they're also closing. Republicans are accusing Governor Mark Dayton of throwing in the towel too early.
Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Michael Vick is once again sponsored by Nike. A Nike representative confirming the that the company has re-signed the controversial quarterback to an endorsement deal. Nike says it does not condone Vick's past mistakes, but supports the positive changes he's made to better himself of the field. Nike severed ties with Vick in 2007 over his involvement in a dog-fighting ring.
(VIDEO CLIP PLAYS)
KAYE: Celebrating 90 years of communism in the world's most populous country -- sights and sounds and warning from China's president. That's next in "Globe Trekking."
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAYE: President Hugo Chavez of Venezuela has been in Cuba for weeks with speculations swirling over his health. He broke the news on state television last night, stunning the nation with the announcement that he's been battling cancer.
We'll talk about it now with John Vause.
Good to see you.
JOHN VAUSE, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Nice to be here.
KAYE: I'm glad you're here.
So, this is a big surprise announcement.
VAUSE: Yes.
KAYE: It's been very secretive as to why he hasn't really been around.
VAUSE: It was a mysterious trip to Cuba. No one was really sure. They knew he wasn't well. There'd been a lot of speculation in the region that he'd gone there for actual cancer treatment.
Now, of course, the mystery was solved last night by this brief appearance. He was on air for about maybe 10 minutes or so.
Keep in mind -- this is the guy that does eight-hour long fiery speeches.
KAYE: Yes.
VAUSE: This is not the regular Hugo Chavez. He looked a little thinner. At times, his voice cracked. And what we did not find out from this address, we did not find out his prognosis, we did not find out how long he will be in Havana receiving treatment for. We didn't find out what kind of cancer it is.
There's a lot of speculation that it might be prostate cancer. And at 56 years of age, his prognosis might be really good.
There are other bigger issues here, though, because under Venezuela's constitution, the president is allowed to have a 90-day absence and the vice president is meant to steps in. After that if he dies or steps down, the vice president is meant to take over.
Now, all the socialist ministers have rallied around, you know, they circled the wagons around Chavez and said, "We'll support him." But the opposition really want to push ahead with the elections they're planning because what they want now is they seriously want to beat Chavez in a democratic process, because that gives them legitimacy, because there's a lot of problems back home as well -- you know, runaway inflation which was a problem before he got sick.
KAYE: Right.
VAUSE: There's been electricity blackouts. There was a riot in a prison where 26 people died.
So, the opposition now really sees this as a chance where they can legitimately beat Hugo Chavez. But because of his health, it's all kind of up in the air.
KAYE: Yes. Until he actually came out yesterday saying he had a cancerous growth removed, there was some speculation from what I recall that maybe he had just left the country to sort of get away from all the problems and create a distraction.
VAUSE: Well, the other speculation, too, was that he was dead. So, at least he put that to rest.
KAYE: That is true. Let's talk about China.
VAUSE: Love China.
KAYE: Shall we? I know you spent many years there.
The communist party turning 90.
VAUSE: Yes, it was 90 years ago in a Shanghai schoolroom where they all met and they had their first communist party meeting. Interesting thing, Mao Tse-tung who became the big chairman, had a small role in that meeting.
And in that -- if you go to where the classroom is now, it's in a museum, it's in a very upscale trendy part of Shanghai and the French concession designed by an American, tourist trap area, very expensive part of Shanghai.
But what is interesting and what a lot of people don't really understand about the communist party in China is that the party trumps everything. The army pledges its loyalty to the communist party. They don't pledge loyalty to the country.
KAYE: And they're celebrating with an epic film. They're encouraging -- it's opening like in 6,000 theaters, encouraging everybody to go see it. It's a big hit.
VAUSE: Yes. This is actually coming from Chiangxing (ph), the central municipality of about 30 million people. But the local party secretary there is quite a ambitious and they've started all of these nationalistic, you know, revivals, if you like. And they're actually even sending cadres back out to the farm for a month which is very sort of Mao-like, during the '70s you had to go work on a farm for a time. This is all about essentially trying to recapture the spirit of nationalism because there's a huge problem in China. There's a huge problem with corruption, and Hu Jintao alluded to that in a 90-minute- long speech.
He said corruption is one thing that can cost us power. It's costing us support. It's costing us the trust of the people.
There was a study done by the Central Bank that said over the last 15 years or so, corrupt local state employees have stolen about $120 billion. That's a lot of money.
The other problem you have, too, is that the communist party controls everything. The head of the Bank of China, the head of Air China, the head of China telecom, which is basically American Airlines, AT&T, you know, they're all members of the communist party. You can't get anywhere unless you're a member of the communist party, and there's no mechanism for investigation if someone is corrupt.
KAYE: Another celebration, we have 20 seconds or so.
VAUSE: OK.
KAYE: The other is happening in Canada, big celebration for Canada.
VAUSE: O Canada, O Canada, William and Kate are there. And, you know, it was a big day. There was a flyover, a 21-gun salute. I think we have some pictures, because what I thought was interesting and what a lot of the press are talking about, is what Kate was wearing, the maple leaf thing on her head, which is a hat.
KAYE: Maple leafy.
VAUSE: It's a maple leaf thing.
But the dress is apparently the same dress she wore for her engagement photo, and the brooch she's wearing, she borrowed from Queen Elizabeth. This is all about Kate being very frugal in these very difficult times.
KAYE: I love that she would wear something twice. Oh, my.
VAUSE: Yes. Unlike Diana, who never wore anything twice.
KAYE: No, no. Diana liked the big name brands.
VAUSE: But I think it's great, because you now, she's saying, you know, I'm not going to be a clotheshorse, I am not going to only wear things once. And she isn't going to be beholden to all of these fashion houses.
KAYE: I can hear the Internet orders being taken for the hat with the maple whatever on it.
VAUSE: The maple thing. KAYE: All right. John Vause, thank you so much. Good to see you.
VAUSE: Planning on going to the beach this summer? So, what do you think? How many U.S. beach closings and advisories were there in 2010? Less than 10,000 -- 10,000 to 20,000, 20,000 to 30,000, more than 40,000? We'll have the answer for you in two minutes.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAYE: Heading to the coast for the Fourth of July weekend? We've got some good news and bad news.
The good news? We can tell where to go. Florida International University's Laboratory for Coastal Research has released its list of the top 10 beaches in the country
According to the report, the top beach is Siesta Beach in Sarasota. Followed by Coronado Beach in San Diego. It's not all West Coast beaches, New York, Massachusetts, and North Carolina all made the list.
But, all right, now -- it's time for the bad news. According to a new report from the Natural Resources Defense Council -- well, there were 24,091 days of beach closings and advisories in 2010. That is a 29 percent increase from 2009 of 5,409 days, and the second highest level since the NRDC began tracking these events 21 years ago.
One of the main causes was the oil washing up on the beaches due to the Gulf of Mexico oil spill. But according to the report, more than two-thirds of the days were issued because of high bacterial levels were.
So, how did it all break down? Well, take a look. Fifty-two percent of closings were attributed to unknown sources of pollution. Thirty-six percent to polluted runoff and storm water. Nineteen percent to miscellaneous pollution sources, such as boat discharge.
Of those, 1,831 days were attributed to wildlife sources, and about a third were due to the Gulf of Mexico oil spill, and 8 percent were attributed to sewage spills and overflows. Yuck!
So, why is this important? Well, illnesses associated with polluted beach water include conditions such as stomach flu, skin rashes, pinkeye, respiratory infections, meningitis and hepatitis, and children are especially vulnerable.
And the issue goes beyond safety. According to the report, our coast provides more than just local recreation -- approximately 85 percent of all U.S. tourism revenue is received in the coast states.
So, you can visit my Facebook page, if this hasn't alarmed you enough, for a link where you can check out the status of your beach. Once again on the Facebook page that's RandiKayeCNN.
So, should fast food restaurants in the U.S. sell alcohol? The Stream Team is going to tackle that topic right after the break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAYE: A practice common in several countries in Europe. It's gaining steam right here in the United States -- the practice of selling alcohol in fast food restaurants.
In a bid to boost business, two Sonic restaurants in south Florida will start selling beer and wine at the end of the summer. The move follows selected Burger King locations that are selling booze; as well as some Seattle-area Starbucks where wine is sold.
Proponents of the move say that it's a way to compete with casual dining restaurants and can help boost typically slow evening business.
So, here's the question: should fast food restaurants in the U.S. sell alcohol? Oh, yes. It's a big question.
Lisa Bloom is an attorney and the author of "Think: Straight Talk for Women to Stay Smart in a Dumbed-Down World."
Jennifer Koppelman Hutt is a Sirius XM radio host.
They are part of our Stream Team today.
Jennifer, I want to ask you first. Do you think this is a good idea? Should fast food restaurants be selling beer and wine and alcohol?
JENNIFER KOPPELMAN HUTT, SIRIUS XM RADIO HOST: Absolutely not. I think it's absurd. So, now, we're going to make it super easy to be fat and drunk? Come on!
(LAUGHTER)
KAYE: OK. I think she said it there.
Lisa, what do you think?
LISA BLOOM, ATTORNEY: Look, alcohol is a legal product. It's sold in many casual dining facilities, as you say, Randi.
To me, there's a little bit of class snobbery in this, right? Like you can go somewhere and pay a little bit more money at a sit- down restaurant and you can order beer and wine, but you can't do it at a fast food place? I mean, just don't get this.
HUTT: This has nothing to do with a class of anything. If you're -- it's not like a Fridays, it's a high-end restaurant, good in fun, but this is not a class issue. This is about alcohol being made so easy to get, like, it's not easy enough to get.
We have enough issues. We don't need more drunk people driving. We don't need -- I know, some of them are going to do it inside the restaurants only and not at the drive-through, but you're still going to be drunk when you leave the restaurant, which has quick service, quick food and you're back in your car and you're driving.
Parents take their kids -- and I'm a parent -- you take your kid to a fast food restaurant which I don't do all that often, but shouldn't be that I can also then get a beer with my kids? I don't need to party while feeding my kids dinner.
KAYE: Lisa, are you worried about the kids and the young people? Do you think it sends the wrong message?
BLOOM: No. No. You know what? Kids are at home where people are drinking alcohol. Kids are at cafes and restaurants where people are drinking alcohol.
I mean, I think this point is a prohibition argument, right, that alcohol is bad. We should get rid of alcohol.
You know, we tried that. We rejected prohibition. It just didn't work --
(CROSSTALK)
BLOOM: -- and going to some places and not other places, all the laws about being drunk in public, about having to being over 21.
(CROSSTALK)
BLOOM: It's not about prohibition. It's the fact that it's at a fast food restaurant.
KAYE: Jennifer?
HUTT: Lisa, Lisa, this isn't about prohibition. This is about picking and choosing environments where they should be alcohol and there should not be alcohol. Should we have alcohol at the teachers' lounge at school?
I don't think so, when there's tons of kids there doesn't have to also be tons of partying with substances. It's just not necessary. And frankly, if at home, if you're getting drunk all the time with your kids while you're supposed to be watching them -- that's not a great idea either.
(CROSSTALK)
KAYE: Hold on. Lisa -- Lisa, would you -- let me jump in. Lisa, would you have a problem with a fast food location maybe if they were serving alcohol and maybe they were near a college? Would you have a problem with that?
BLOOM: No, do you know what, there are a lot of bars around colleges. I mean, come on.
Here's my solution. Don't take kids to fast food restaurants. It's not good for them anyway.
I personally don't drink, but I don't tell people what to do with their lives. If they want to go -- I don't think we can just assume that anytime somebody has a beer, they're drunk and they're a public menace. That's an argument that went out with prohibition.
HUTT: Agreed, not every single time. But I think encouraging alcohol consumption in fast food restaurants which already as you just agreed with me it's not great food for our kids or for any of us, it's just not going to make any situation better! I don't see the positive side of that really.
KAYE: Jennifer, what about -- but what about the fact, Jennifer, I mean, they are serving alcohol, but they're not serving, you know, tequila shots, they're talking about maybe grab a beer with your burger or a glass of wine with your burger? Does that make it any more tolerable?
HUTT: No, you're still getting drunk if you're drinking. What you're doing is you'll have one glass of wine, two glasses of wine, three glasses of wine, you're drunk!
KAYE: All right. Lisa, I'll give you the final word here.
BLOOM: You know, I think we need to give people the benefit of the doubt. And if alcohol is a legal product, which it is, let people drink. Fully enforce the laws about public drunkenness -- you have to be over 21. You can't serve people when they're drunk.
But, you know, have a great Fourth of July weekend, and if you want to have a beer, I'm not going to try to stop you.
HUTT: Yes. Just don't have it at Burger King!
KAYE: Jennifer, I said Lisa had the last word there. You're not playing nicely.
All right, thank you both. Have a great weekend, and I question guess don't go and get a fast food. You're never know what you're going to find there.
All right. Still, ahead, breaking, entering, apologizing? Who said there's no honor among thieves?
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAYE: Time now for my "XYZ."
And when we think of a burglar sneaky, heartless and scheming are probably a few words that come to mind. But you're about to meet a very polite burglar.
"The New York Daily News" reporting today on one of the most bizarre burglaries I've ever heard of. Here's a story. A guy broke into a woman's home in New Jersey Monday when the woman, Maria Cardona, calmly asked him what he was doing in her house. And get this -- the burglar told her he was looking for a guy named Greg. Well, Maria told him there wasn't anyone named Greg that lived in the house. And that's when the bad guy said, he'd broken into the wrong house. Yes, can you awkward? He was one house away from the home that he really wanted to rob. But how's this for class?
Instead of stealing something from Maria, or maybe even roughing her up, he actually apologized. That's right. The burglar said he was sorry. He even offered to fix the screen door while breaking into her house. Maria refused and asked the guy to leave, which he did peacefully.
Now, imagine if all the bad guys were so considerate, the world would be a very different place.
CNN NEWSROOM continues right now with Brooke Baldwin.
Hi, Brooke.
BROOKE BALDWIN, CNN ANCHOR: I agree with you, Randi. I agree.
KAYE: That would be nice.
BALDWIN: Who would have thunk? Thank you so much. Have a wonderful Fourth of July weekend. We'll catch you next week.
