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Thrill of NASCAR Racing; In the Hot Seat with Leffler; 65 and Older Enjoy the Best of Life; Bachmann Zeroes in on Iowa; Former IMF Chief Released; Kvitova Wins Wimbledon; Anthony Case Trial Tomorrow; British Royals Visit Montreal
Aired July 02, 2011 - 16:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Hello, again, you're in the CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Fredricka Whitfield.
Here's what's happening at this hour. In Florida, a sensational murder trial is nearing an end. Closing arguments in the Casey Anthony trial are expected to begin tomorrow. Anthony is accused of killing her young daughter three years ago, she is charged with first degree murder, child abuse and misleading police. You can see the closing arguments in their entirety tomorrow on our sister network, HLN.
A 71-year-old Seattle grandfather has been arrested for a child murder more than five decades ago. Police say Jack Daniel McCullough was living under an assumed name in a retirement community. He's accused of kidnapping and killing a seven-year-old girl in 1957 outside Chicago. Here's a photo on the cover of today's "Chicago Sun Times." McCullough was a suspect early in the investigation but police say the case went cold after he changed his name and joined the military.
Minnesota's government is now shut down, except for essential services. That means all state parks, the zoo and even rest areas are closed, forcing a lot of people to change their holiday plans. At issue, a battle over a budget deficit and whether taxes can be raised to offset it. It's a battle that pits a new Democratic governor against a new Republican majority in the legislature.
And there's a new women's champ at Wimbledon, Petra Kvitova sealed the deal with an ace upsetting Maria Sharapova in straight sets. On the men's side, defending champion Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic will play for the big prize tomorrow.
Former IMF director Dominique Strauss-Kahn is out of house arrest and this is new video of him walking out of his apartment building this afternoon with his wife. His attorney say prosecutors did the right thing by acknowledging his sexual assault accuser told "substantial lies" about her own background and the facts of this case. Earlier I spoke to our legal guys Richard Herman and Avery Friedman about the Strauss-Kahn case. And they were fired up.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
AVERY FRIEDMAN, CIVIL RIGHTS ATTORNEY: I think this is the most electrifying legal development of the year, and I'm not going to be critical by the way of prosecution. They had forensics. They really didn't have a choice. This guy was gone. And the fact is that the opportunity for prosecution to develop the case, to get it to the grand jury was a relatively short window, but the - to its credit, Cyrus Vance went public yesterday and said, look, there are such severe credibility issues that if we're going to do justice, at least in terms of meeting its burden beyond a reasonable doubt, the case has to end, it just must end. And Cyrus Vance did the right thing. Absolutely.
WHITFIELD: What's going on here then, you know, Richard? Yes, Avery underscored there is forensic evidence substantiating that something, there was some sort of contact between these two, at least that's the allegation and, you know, investigators want to stand by that, but they have a problem with the story of the alleged victim. How is it that perhaps - I guess the story really needs to supercede that forensic evidence or at least match it and that's the problem here, it just doesn't match?
RICHARD HERMAN, CRIMINAL DEFENSE LAWYER: Fred, the great Yogi Berra coined the phrase "it's not over until it's over." This case is over. This week it will be dismissed. There is no way they can prosecute him for this and there's no way a New York jury would convict based on these facts.
WHITFIELD: There is no way even if there's forensic evidence. There's no way they can move forward.
HERMAN: Impossible. The defense says it was consensual, number one. Number two, this alleged victim has now proven to be a liar on many issues, including, claiming she was gang raped, raped back in her own country. That was a lie. You cannot have a rape victim on the stand with her credibility on the line who previously claimed to have been raped and was not. That's for starters, 24 hours after the arrest, there's a jailhouse telephone conversation with her and her boyfriend who's in prison in Arizona.
And during the conversation, she is telling him, "Don't worry, this guy has a lot of money and I know what I'm doing."
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: All right. Avery and Richard, there, always strong on all the cases that we cover. The media frenzy surrounding the Dominique Strauss-Kahn story has been unbelievable. One photographer actually got into a scuffle outside of the Strauss-Kahn townhouse in New York yesterday. Police have since set up barriers across the street to keep the media back but apparently one photographer didn't stay behind. He got around the barrier and then was confronted by an officer who then made him leave.
So from one legal case to another, this time tomorrow, we could be hearing from lawyers on both sides of the Casey Anthony murder trial. What will they likely to say? What do they need to say? Here again, what our legal guys have to say about that, in a moment.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) WHITFIELD: Some news overseas now. At least 15 people are dead, some of them children after a monsoon triggered a massive mudslide in southeastern Bangladesh yesterday. It's an area where mudslides have killed hundreds of people in the last few years.
The American captain of this small ship was arrested in Greece today, on board were dozens of activists trying to reach Gaza in a direct challenge to Israel's blockade of the Palestinian's territories. Some other boats that intended to do the same have been ordered to stay in Greece.
And the Tour De France has begun. A Belgian rider Phillippe Gilbert won today's first stage. It's the 98th running of the grueling three- week race.
Back in this country, one of the most closely watched murder cases in recent years is about to enter a critical new phase. Closing arguments are set for tomorrow in the Casey Anthony trial. After that the fate of the young woman accused of killing her two -year-old girl will be in the hands of the jury. Our legal guys are back now with some thoughts on what we might expect.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
HERMAN: The prosecution will begin to lay out what they proved during the trial. And that's what they can do in a summation. And they will do it methodically as they presented their case. They will take the timeline, as to what they proved, they will absolutely stress the fact that for those 30, 31 days, she was going crazy, partying and hanging out while her daughter was either missing or dead, didn't tell anybody, and then when she began the talk, a river of lies just kept coming out of her mouth, lie, lie, lie.
Why did she lie? Because she's guilty. And then they will go into the forensics in the case. They will show the death band in her car, the smell of death in her car. They will show the chloroform samplings in her car and you know, it's a very powerful circumstantial case, but the defense will have their day and you know, if he can get a summation in without getting 500 objections from the prosecution and being scolded by the judge, I will be amazed because that's what I believe is going to happen.
WHITFIELD: Avery.
FRIEDMAN: That's right. That's right. It's going to be tough for the defense.
WHITFIELD: You are in complete agreement there.
FRIEDMAN: That's what's going to happen. I mean a judge has instructed the lawyers that during their closing arguments, that they must stick to evidence, so if you think about what Jose Baez presented in his opening statement, we're not going to see much of anything.
(END VIDEOTAPE) WHITFIELD: All right, as we told you, closing arguments for the Casey Anthony trial, expected to begin tomorrow morning and when it does get started, you can watch the entire thing on our sister station HLN.
All right. It's become an annual tradition coming up in 60 seconds a trip to the "Essence" Festival in New Orleans and your holiday weekend forecast.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: Music, food and dialogue. The 18th annual "Essence" Music Festival is underway in New Orleans right now. Musicians, vocalists, Usher, Jennifer Hudson and Boyz 2 Men are just few of the musical acts performing over this long weekend. But the festival also includes three days of empowerment seminars that are crowd pleasers each year.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's my first time here. I think for me, this black empowerment, African-Americans come together for a good time but also to hear about worthy causes. On the way in here, we stopped and listed to a panel, with Dr. Cornell West, and also Tavis Smiley was there as well and they were talking a lot about what we need to do to lift our community up.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's a nice event, a multi-cultural event, to just learn about all the different things that the African population as well as other populations have to offer. It's really been a great experience. It's a lot of fun, but there's also a lot more to offer.
WHITFIELD: All right. Thousands of people turning out there in New Orleans for the Essence Music Festival. Let's check with our Karen Maginnis. I have a feeling, New Orleans, July, hot and sweaty. Yes.
KAREN MAGINNIS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Definitely, I just checked the temperature in New Orleans, it's 98 degrees there. Yes, a shower might actually be quite helpful. Well, we are seeing a few showers scattered around New Orleans, right around Mobile that has 60-mile hour winds and some hail reported there. But for New Orleans, if you're going to the "Essence" festival, Tank played last night on the roster.
WHITFIELD: Fantastic.
MAGINNIS: Yes. It looks like a 20 percent to 30 percent chance of showers over the next couple of days. So that's what we're looking at. As far as the heat goes, well, yes, it's on across Texas, sizzling hot temperatures here, not necessarily record setting, but it's been so exceptionally dry. Just came from Austin and they are bone dry. So for the past 35 years fireworks. This year, no fire works, and the number one priority fire is right around Los Alamos where the temperatures have been in the 90s.
Now, it's still breezy there today but we're not seeing those really high winds like we have seen over the past month or so. But the largest amount of area that has seen fire activity has been Texas, 3.2 million acres there burned this year.
All right. We got two pieces of video for you, one this is our i- report, this is coming out of Marshall, Minnesota. Yes, strong storms, we got a frontal system that's moving across the Great Lakes region. Our i-reporter sent this in. Lots of damage, trees down, power lines down and Fred, I showed this last hour. I wanted to show you down in Gulf shore and this is along the Gulf Coast. The firefighter, you think he's going to put out a fire, well, he did, but now he's just going to cool off the alligator that managed to survive in a mud hole, amidst a 1,000 acre fire there. They put out the fire, and they put out the gator, but the gator wasn't on fire, the gator was just hot.
WHITFIELD: Really cooling off with the water and he was cooling off in the mud.
MAGINNIS: But, you know, this is why they survive.
WHITFIELD: Yes, that's right. They have been around a long time.
All right. Thanks so much. All right. You know, in Daytona, it is hot and steamy. It is also a big NASCAR weekend, you know. But that heat, that doesn't, you know, turn anybody off there. So we're going to head out also to the Charlotte Motor Speedway. That's where I met up with these guys right here face to face. Joey Logano, Jason Leffler, talking about racing and their longevity in this sport.
And next it's expected to be the highest grossing movie of this summer. Talk about hot. Film critic Grae Drake takes on "Transformers" in 60 seconds.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: All right. Let's talk movies now. "Transformers Dark of the Moon," the third sequel is back in theaters this weekend and Tom Hanks and Julia Roberts also back in the theaters teaming up on the big screen. And Larry Crown, film critic Grae Drake from pandango (ph) and movies.com joining us now from Los Angeles.
Grae, being very patriotic, happy fourth.
GRAE DRAKE, MOVIES.COM: Yes. Happy fourth.
WHITFIELD: OK. Let's talk about this "Transformers III," much anticipated, already there's a whole lot of talk about records being broken. Let's take a quick peek first.
DRAKE: Right.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Just for now, I'm going to ask, where were you when they took over the planet?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's over. I'm sorry, but it's over.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Optimus!
Incoming!
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You may lose your faith in us, but never in yourselves.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: OK. I was about to have a heart attack just watching that. That's a whole lot of energy coming our way there. Shia LaBeouf (INAUDIBLE).
DRAKE: Oh, my gosh.
WHITFIELD: Oh my goodness. So was this your cup of tea? Did you like this?
DRAKE: Well, here's the thing. This movie helped me understand Rihanna's relationship with Chris Brown, because I loved it on some level, but it beat the crap out of me. Like it is a serious pummeling about the eyes and ears. I wanted to call and report Michael Bay for assault afterwards. Insane movie.
WHITFIELD: A lot going on there.
DRAKE: But it's a lot of robots fighting each other, just like the other movies. The good news is with this one, it corrects the mistakes of the second film, which meant that this movie, I could see the robots fighting and the plot made like even the smallest amount of sense, which was good. There was a peculiar thing about it, though, in the even opportunities where they just had people talking in offices and very low key moments - it seems like all the actors stage direction was to pretend like they have been snorting a lot of cocaine. It was just bizarre.
WHITFIELD: Oh my goodness.
DRAKE: The whole thing was bonkers.
WHITFIELD: Wild thoughts on this one.
DRAKE: It is insane, it's kind of better as an art installation than an actual movie. But a great way to escape the heat if you like watching robots punch each other in the circuit breaker, really fun and beautiful in 3-D.
WHITFIELD: Oh my goodness.
DRAKE: Really good to see it that way.
WHITFIELD: (INAUDIBLE) in a very big way. So what's your grade on this one?
DRAKE: This one really hovered on the brink for me. And so it was B- plus, A-minus, I ended up giving it a B-plus because I was so jacked up after seeing it that I had to like go do some yoga and calm myself down.
WHITFIELD: Yes. You got to find yourself to calm down. I'm telling you this is making me feel like I'm having a heart attack already and that is just the trailer.
DRAKE: Oh good lord. You have two and a half hours.
WHITFIELD: Oh my goodness. Yoga moment. Hmmm..
OK. So now let's talk about Tom Hanks, Julia Roberts teaming up one more time. One more time, I don't think I've seen them together actually before. This romantic comedy. Let's take a quick peek at "Larry Crowne."
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I was down sized. I'm here to make sure that never happens again.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Are you ready to go to work?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Economics i. Master my course and you will take over the world.
(LAUGHTER)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: How fast does it go? It's got power.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Want to join my gang?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You're in a gang.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What kind of thugs have you gotten involved in?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Just my college but buddies.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Excuse me. This class is cancelled. The state requires a minimum of 10 students per class, so, thanks.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Is this (INAUDIBLE)?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: Guess what? I stand corrected. They have worked together before. "Charlie Wilson's War." OK. So, this is a little reunion for them getting back together. Did you like this one?
DRAKE: You know, this movie is like a puppy that just had an accident on your white rug. It is adorable, but you're mad at the fact that it's so unsophisticated and dumb. This movie, it could have been great, but Tom Hanks has done everything he can to save this movie. He joins a scooter gang, he puts on a (INAUDIBLE) scarf and in that cliff you saw Sulu, George Takei just being totally off the wall crazy. My biggest problem with the movie was actually Julia Roberts' character, who is such a miserable bummer of a drunk that I'd never believe for a second that Tom Hanks' character would fall in love with her.
Good performers in this movie but I just didn't buy it. I think there are a lot of people out there that won't either.
WHITFIELD: So she's a teacher and he's, you know, the guy who decided to go back to school, back to college and it's the quintessential, you know, student and teacher get together but the difference about this is they're both adults.
DRAKE: All she does is wah, wah, my students don't like me. (INAUDIBLE) too much internet porn.
WHITFIELD: OK. Something tells me not a good grade coming from you.
DRAKE: I say, C. It was average. Some people are going to be charmed, but most of us we're too cynical for this today.
WHITFIELD: With big stars like that. OK. Well, great Drake, you tell it, you call them like you see them.
DRAKE: (INAUDIBLE) God bless America.
WHITFIELD: OK. Happy fourth. Have a good one.
DRAKE: You too. Thanks a lot.
WHITFIELD: Thanks too. All right.
She kills me.
OK. So in this week's travel insider, CNN meteorologist Chad Myers this time taking us to his favorite science museum.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST (on camera): I'm Chad Myers and I'm about to show you one of the coolest places around Atlanta, Georgia that you probably never heard of. The Telus Science Museum.
Behind me, the periodic table of elements. I know you heard about it and you forgot about it. But here you get to look and you get to see what every one of these little elements does. Indium. I've heard about it. What is it? And why is there a sprinkler head back there. It's that metal that's in your sprinkler head that melts in a fire and turns the water on. Because it has such a low melting point. Also very cool gems here from (INAUDIBLE) and quartz and geods from all over the world and especially in Georgia.
Something else I love about this museum. There are very few places that you ever see this sign. Please touch. Where's the do not in there? No, they want you to touch right there. Look at that. That is a huge piece of petrified wood. You can even see the outside. That's really a neat looking piece right there. I mean back over here, another piece of petrified wood. All about the earth in this side. This is the mineral and gem side. There are other places too in here, some dinosaurs as well. But if you come over here, you can hit this. It says right here - hit here, you make your own earthquake and a couple of aftershocks too, right there, kind of cool.
Then you take a look at the world, from the top of the world where you look down from the top of the world, where you look down at Google earth and some clouds. And then you take a look from the inside, the crust, then the lithosphere, places I've never even heard of. The lower mantle, the outer core, then the inner core. And no trip to a science museum would be complete for a meteorologist without coming over here and getting to touch a 112-pound meteor.
(voice-over): Chad Myers, CNN, Cartersville, Georgia.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: On to weddings now, yet another royal wedding or at least couple. The British royals are getting some hands on experience during their tour of Canada, and they have just arrived there at a new stop. We'll take you live there in a moment. Then we'll talk about this -
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: Tears of joy, a bride's tears in Monaco, just a few hours ago, Prince Albert's royal wedding next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: A look at our top stories right now. It's the first full day that he is allowed to come and go as he pleases. Former IMF chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn, suddenly released from house arrest on his own recognizance yesterday. The surprised development in the case involves the credibility of the woman who claims that he sexually attacked her back in May.
Americans planning to travel to the Mexican border city of Nuevo Laredo are being urged to cancel those plans this weekend. Texas authorities warned they have information that a Mexican drug cartel plans to target U.S. citizens in Nuevo Laredo for robber, extortion or carjacking.
And there is a new women's champ at Wimbledon, Petra Kvitova, sealed the deal with an ace upsetting Maria Sharapova in straight sets. On the men's side, defending champ, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic will play for the big prize tomorrow.
Prince William and Princess Katherine are on their first official tour of Canada and they just arrived at their next stop, Montreal. Our Max Foster is there. So Max, what will the Duke and Duchess be doing today?
MAX FOSTER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: ... airports, some live pictures for you, you can see Katherine there speaking to various dignitaries from Quebec as she just got off the plane at the airport and they're ready to set off to a children's hospital. You can hear behind me. Actually her second stop which is a culinary institute and we've got pro-monarchy fans, basically, of Katherine and William. We've also got some anti-monarchy campaigners. And you got booing and shouting, they're competing with each other. This is the story of Quebec really. We got a situation where most people here actually don't want the royal family. But a lot of people like William and Katherine as well. You can hear the chanting over there.
I'll just talk about the first stop for William and Katherine. They're going to go to a children's hospital and it's going to be a very emotional event for them, I think, there's some very, very sick children there, women with troubled pregnancies and also they're going to go to an intensive care unit for premature babies and we know that William and Katherine has talked about starting a family so that certainly is going to be at the back of their minds. So a very poignant visit. Here, at the culinary school, they're going to learn how to cook. William knows how to cook already. But he's going to learn French Canadian cooking as he arrives here. So a bit of fun for them here.
WHITFIELD: That is a lot of fun. And then what will their next stop be? They have quite the itinerary in fact.
FOSTER: Oh, they really do. They're doing two cities in one day today and it gets more and more intensive, crossing the whole of Canada, which is a huge country, of course, geographically speaking.
And they're going to go over to Prince Edward Island where Prince William is going to take part in a helicopter demo with Search and Rescue teams. They're also going to get in dragon boats. Catherine in one and William in the other and they're going to race each other. Both very, very competitive people. So that's going to be interesting.
Then they're going to go out to the Northwest Territories and they're both going to play street hockey. And I think Catherine has been quite clever here, because she used to be a very accomplished rower. She's a very good hockey player at school. And these are the two sports they're going to be competing with each other. And she's going to win those, I'm sure.
The chanting over there is going to quite dramatic so that's crazy. Anyway, they're going to travel around, they're going to end up at the Calgary Stampede at the end of that tour and they're going to dress up in cowboy gear. Everyone's obsessed with what Catherine is wearing every day, so that's going to be a particularly interesting day how she's going to get that ride, you know, talking about (INAUDIBLE).
WHITFIELD: I'm sure she'll have quite the get-up and some nice, clever boots to go horse back riding.
All right. Thanks so much, Max Foster. Appreciate that.
So from Canada, the couple will be heading to the West Coast of the U.S., California for a working visit to L.A. They will kick off the royal agenda next Friday with an exciting event for U.K. Trade. Then a reception at the British Consul General's house, Saturday, Prince William plays in a charity polo match and then later on a black tie, red carpet dinner with British actors and Hollywood execs. And then on Sunday, they will be visiting a school on Skid Row. And a job fair for military vets. And from there, back to the airport for the royal couple.
All right. Speaking of royal, how about this? Royal wedding in Monaco, with this ring, a 33-year-old Olympic swimmer from South Africa, becomes Princess Charlene, the wife of Monaco's ruler Prince Albert. Their marriage was made officially yesterday with a civil ceremony and then today a religious ceremony taking place in front of 3,500 close friends.
CNN's Richard Quest talked to a journalist/royal watcher who says the new princess should take quite easily to the palace life.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JULIET HERD, MANAGING DIRECTOR, HELLO! MAGAZINE: I think she's transformed over a number of years. I mean, you have to remembers, she's been with Albert now for nearly five years. She's also used to be in the spotlight as an athlete. So that sort of side is not new. She's mixed with all sorts of high-ranking dignitaries over the years in that capacity. I mean, she's famous in South Africa in her own right.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: Prince Albert and now Princess Charlene announced their engagement last summer.
OK. So who doesn't dream about being a racecar driver? Well, I headed out to the Charlotte Motor Speedway with a couple of NASCAR's best who showed me the ropes.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD (on camera): OK. I'm hooked. I want to be a race car driver.
JASON LEFFLER, NASCAR RACE CAR DRIVER: That was just a warm-up.
WHITFIELD: That's awesome.
LEFFLER: That was just a warm-up.
WHITFIELD: That is so awesome. Wow. I thought maybe I was going to close my eyes, but then I didn't want to miss anything.
LEFFLER: No. Yes.
WHITFIELD: That's so wonderful.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: "Face to Face" with NASCAR's Jason Leffler and Joey Logano next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: It's July Fourth Weekend and that means NASCAR drivers are burning up the track. The Daytona Coke Zero 400 is tonight. And fighting to cross the finish line first, 20-year-old Joey Logano and 35-year-old Jason Leffler.
But guess what? Logano already scored a huge win already this weekend last night finishing first at the Nationwide Series Race at Daytona, right ahead of Leffler, who came in second. Congrats to them.
I sat down "Face to Face" with Logano to talk about his passion for race car driving.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD (on camera): So take me back where this passion came from. You're - you and your family are living in Connecticut and somewhere this spark of go-cart racing and dreams of something bigger come along. How does that - what was the evolution of that?
JOEY LOGANO, NASCAR RACE CAR DRIVER: It's crazy, you know, I mean, my family wasn't into racing, you know, they - my father played baseball and basketball through high school and, you know, those are the things I tried first, but I think the fact that I wasn't good at any of them, I found something that I was pretty good at, I think that was the fact that I mean I enjoy winning. I mean, no matter what it is, if it's not racing, it's, you know, playing a board game, whatever it is, I want to win.
So I think it's something I found that I was good at and I was able to win at and I just liked it. You know, I was the kid with the race car bed and all the little match boxcars and all of that, that was - that was this kid here, and, you know, all the racing gear, all the NASCAR stuff and I was just, you know, fortunate that I was able to follow my dream.
And, I mean, I never, ever thought I would be racing, you know, in the Spring Cup Series against, you know, like you said Jeff Gordon and Tony Stewart, all these guys that that I watched on TV. You know, Mark Martin, I watched him on TV. I had his - I had his gear. You know, I wore a Mark Martin stuff around.
And here I am racing door to door and I remember the first time that happened and I was like it's crazy and start right next to the guy.
WHITFIELD: Wow.
LOGANO: It's nuts.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: Jason Leffler knows exactly what Logano means, but this NASCAR driver doesn't just ride with professionals. Leffler was nice enough to take me on my first spin around the Charlotte Motor Speedway. It's an experience, but I'm still talking about, probably too much.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD (on camera): How fast are we going?
LEFFLER: As fast as that thing will go. I don't know, 160, 170, whatever. We'll get in there and -
WHITFIELD: OK. You know, I'm a complete novice.
LEFFLER: Yes.
WHITFIELD: I have not gone past 90 before, so -
LEFFLER: Oh, you're in for a treat.
WHITFIELD: Is my stomach going to be able to handle it?
LEFFLER: Yes, I think so.
WHITFIELD: OK. So we're at the Charlotte Motor Speedway. I can't get any better than this. Or would this be perhaps your favorite track?
LEFFLER: It is one of my favorite tracks.
WHITFIELD: OK. I'm ready to roll. You?
LEFFLER: Let's do it. Yes. Oh, yes.
WHITFIELD: All right. Let's go.
LEFFLER: Awesome.
WHITFIELD: All right. What's it like to go speeding around this Charlotte Motor Speedway, I'm about to find out, with Jason Leffler, right there. You see I'm not going to actually be driving, but a passenger.
(INAUDIBLE). I'm in good hands.
LEFFLER: Just like the Dukes of Hazards.
It's just like your standard car. You've got your "H" pattern, you know, manual transmission. You got your gas, brake, clutch. The only thing different is the - obviously the steering wheel comes on and off.
WHITFIELD: Yes. And you know what I have noticed with the steering, you're generally very close.
LEFFLER: Yes.
WHITFIELD: Whereas generally when you're driving a regular car, you get to extend your arms.
LEFFLER: Yes.
WHITFIELD: Is it comfortable.
LEFFLER: Yes, it is. Because of the duration of the race, you know, your arms will get tired if they're way out here, so -
WHITFIELD: Oh, OK.
LEFFLER: -- this one is not quite set up for me. If it's like my own race car, I'd hev it pretty close.
WHITFIELD: So it's really about endurance.
LEFFLER: Yes.
WHITFIELD: Being able to -
LEFFLER: Yes, yes.
WHITFIELD: -- have the wheel so tight.
LEFFLER: Yes. It's physically demanding in racing, people don't realize that, the heat, you know, there's a lot, you know, wrestling these heavy cars around for 300 to 500 miles is - is not easy.
WHITFIELD: So, does this ever get to be kind of old hat or you like - do you get that rush every time?
LEFFLER: Yes. You get the rush every time, I mean, it's what you live for and, you know, it's the only thing I have ever done is drive race cars and it's exciting. You know, it doesn't get any better than that. You know, people ask what it's like to be a race car driver, I said it beats working for a living, that's for sure.
WHITFIELD: Whose idea was this? I'm actually really excited. And I know I'm in great hands with Jason here, so if I'm going to have a first-time race car experience, this is the way to go.
We're in a Richard Petty NASCAR Experience Vehicle, so here we go, let her rip. Ready to roll?
LEFFLER: Ready.
WHITFIELD: All right. Woo-hoo! Yes. Ready.
OK. I'm hooked. I want to be a race car driver.
LEFFLER: That was just a warm-up.
WHITFIELD: That's awesome.
LEFFLER: That was just a warm-up.
WHITFIELD: That is so awesome. Wow. I thought maybe I was going to close my eyes, but then I didn't want to miss anything.
LEFFLER: No. Yes.
WHITFIELD: That's so wonderful.
I was thinking to myself, OK, well, here we are the only ones on the track, but the proximity to all the other cars, that's the real danger, that's the real risk involved -
LEFFLER: Oh, yes.
WHITFIELD: -- and the excitement too, right?
LEFFLER: Yes. And that's where the skill is. You know, you got a lot of variables when you have other cars on the racetrack, obviously they're probably in the lane you want to be in. You're getting dirty air, which we call dirty air, you're getting their wake, you know, off of their car, which is making your car handle different, and it's just all how you work traffic and set your car up for traffic and -
WHITFIELD: Oh, my goodness.
LEFFLER: It's not as easy as you're pulling up behind somebody and driving by when you're fast.
WHITFIELD: It really isn't. It seems like one of the hardest parts is really not to touch another vehicle.
LEFFLER: Yes. I mean, it's tough, especially when you get 42 other cars out there. And, you know, there's 42 other competitive race car drivers so everybody's fighting for the same piece of real estate out there.
WHITFIELD: Right.
LEFFLER: Yes. That's where you see the wrecks happen.
WHITFIELD: Or better yet, you don't want to be trading paint.
LEFFLER: No, you really don't. You know, you've got to do what you have to do when it comes down to the end of the race. But you definitely don't want to be - the ideal thing is not to be running into each other.
WHITFIELD: Yes, yes. Have you counted the wrecks that you have had?
LEFFLER: I couldn't count the wrecks. I couldn't.
WHITFIELD: No. So there's been that numerous?
LEFFLER: That many times. I can't tell you how many times I've been upside down, not in a stock car but other forms of racing, the dirt track race I did before, I really couldn't tell you how many times I've flipped.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: OK. I'm still reliving that almost every day.
We're "Face to Face" so with Jason Leffler and Joey Logano tomorrow. They'll be revealing their keys to greatness, how did they get there.
All right. Republican presidential candidate Michele Bachmann kicks off her bus tour. She says deciding where to begin was an easy choice.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. MICHELE BACHMANN (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I was first in the nation, and it's very important to be here and have a presence here, because the values and the opinions that people have in Iowa count, they count for the nation.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: That story next.
Plus, if you're looking for tips on living healthier and longer, who better to learn from than the 65-plus crowd. Dr. Bill Lloyd explains next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: All right. So when it comes to the good life, getting the best out of emotional and physical health, along with the work environment, no one does it better than those 65 years and older, apparently.
Healthy Living expert Dr. Bill Lloyd joins us now from Sacramento. So, Dr. Bill, tell us more about this so-called well-being index and how it's all calculated.
DR. BILL LLOYD, HEALTHY LIVING EXPERT: Well, Fredricka, it's a very large survey that's been collected since the year 2008. One thousand Americans every day are added to this survey then asked very specific questions.
Let's break it down. It comes into six major categories. The first involves specific questions about life evaluation, essentially how are you doing now and how do you think you're going to be doing five years from now. Surprise, older people score very high in this category.
Then they ask about emotional health, and this can be the range from, again, how is life going, to what kinds of problems are you having or are you depressed? When it comes to physical - physical health, they talk about medical problems and how they interfere with your daily life, and what are you doing about it? How about the number of sick days you may have had in the past month as well.
Then about a variety of different of healthy behaviors, you know these, drinking, smoking, how much sleep do you get, how much exercise do you do everyday. And then you mentioned the work environment, what kind of stress do you have at work, what is your boss like, what are your colleagues like and what kind of satisfaction do you have with your job.
And finally, a very important category, is access to life's necessity. And there are 13 different thing that they check for, things like access to fresh water, a dentist and things like fresh fruit and produce.
WHITFIELD: OK. So what does it mean if your well-being score is low?
LLOYD: Well, the scores come from the answers to all these questions that they ask. And the researches behind the well-being index say that a low score correlates with individuals who have high demands on the health care system and will require more resources.
This is important because, Fredricka, as Americans get older and we are, as we're getting older, there'll be more and more need for these kinds of healthy resources. So younger people can adjust their life now and - and monitor that with the well-being index are less likely to have problems down the road and more likely to enjoy the golden years.
WHITFIELD: OK. So seniors that scored the highest in overall well- being index, apparently they didn't lead in all the categories, so tell us a little bit more about where they did score high and where's the room for improvement.
LLOYD: Sure. Going back to those six categories, two of them seniors scored pretty low, of course, physical health and you would expect that because your health deteriorates as you get older. You have more problems. Life gets more complicated. But once again, seniors are very resilient and many of them get themselves into a good health care system and with good doctors and a supportive family, they can endure.
And that final category about access to life's necessities, again, some seniors, many seniors living alone or living on the economic fringe don't have access to all that they need to have a successful life. But nonetheless, the well-being index is a composite score and when you add all six factors together, the seniors still outscored and then young adult scores right behind them. It's the middle aged folks that have the biggest problems.
WHITFIELD: All right. Dr. Bill Lloyd, thanks so much. It's always good to see you. Appreciate it. Happy holiday weekend, too.
LLOYD: We'll talk again soon.
WHITFIELD: All right. Thanks so much.
All right. Let's talk politics now. Michele Bachmann is spending the first official week of her presidential campaign in a critical early voting state. The Minnesota Republican and Tea Party favorite is in Iowa for the entire Fourth of July weekend.
Our own Shannon Travis was the only reporter who actually got the opportunity to chat with her, as she visited a diner this morning in Iowa City.
SHANNON TRAVIS, CNN POLITICAL PRODUCER: Hey, Fred. We're here at the Bluebird Diner in Iowa City, Iowa, where congresswoman and Republican presidential candidate Michele Bachmann left just a few hours ago. She came here to speak with supporters, to answer questions. She is kicking off her Iowa State Bus Tour, she kicked it off here at this diner, at this event at this diner. She's got two other events later on this evening, including pairing up with some Iowa Tea Party activists later this evening and attending a baseball game.
Earlier at the diner when she was here, I was the only reporter allowed to engage in a little bit of a Q&A with her. Take a listen at one of the questions I asked.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRAVIS (on camera): Is Iowa a critical win for you at this caucus?
BACHMANN: I think it was very important so we want to do very well off here and so we're going to be working towards the caucuses.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
TRAVIS: There you have it, Fred, Congresswoman Bachmann saying that Iowa is critically important to her campaign. In that Q&A that I had with her, I also said, you know, Congresswoman, the person who emerges as the winner of the Iowa caucuses doesn't always go on to become the Republican presidential nominee. And said that - she basically just said that it's important to have - for any campaign to have a presence in Iowa and she called it the breadbasket of the world - Fred.
WHITFIELD: All right. Shannon, thanks so much. Appreciate that.
And for the latest in political news, you know exactly where to go, CNNPolitics.com.
All right. Up next, Maria Shriver filing for a divorce, a quick look at some of the other top stories of the day next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: All right. Just minutes away for more NEWSROOM, but this time with Don Lemon. Very patriotic. Happy Fourth.
DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: I saw it during a - in the debate in Manchester, New Hampshire. Robert Gibbs, the former White House Press Secretary. He said, you look like a flag. Can I have that outfit?
WHITFIELD: Well, it's all about -
LEMON: It's all about -
WHITFIELD: -- all American.
LEMON: It's all about what's out there. Yes. And we're going to be talking about that, too, can it make you a Republican. We'll talk about that, that's what they say, the Fourth of July.
Fred, we have a lot to talk about. We're going to be following up on a story that we did last week, and you talked about it as well. A woman in Rochester, New York who was arrested after videotaping a police stop from her front lawn. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And they're arresting me. I don't understand what's going on. I did nothing. I did nothing.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What in the world (ph)!
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: You remember that?
WHITFIELD: I do.
LEMON: She was arrested for obstruction.
WHITFIELD: Yes.
LEMON: Well, the case was dropped. We're going to talk to her. And someone else who's involve in this story as well who knows all about it, someone who lives in the community and also works for one of the local news organizations -
WHITFIELD: They'll be weighing in on that.
LEMON: Yes. And then a little bit later on, fellow soldiers, honor one of their own, lost at combat in Afghanistan.
But if you look at this, this man was serving as an openly gay soldier, Fred, his parents are honoring his memory by fighting for same-sex marriage in Minnesota. I'm going to talk to them and a lawmaker in the state who wants to outlaw gay marriage. And every one who was in his unit was very supportive of him. And of course he was killed in combat. His family is fighting for.
We want to hear from the lawmaker, you know, when this happens, everyone there accepts it -
WHITFIELD: Yes.
LEMON: -- for the most part, why are you fighting against it? So, we shall see.
WHITFIELD: Very contentious.
LEMON: Very contentious.
WHITFIELD: Yes. Big holiday weekend.
LEMON: Yes. Big holiday weekend.
Also, just got back from New Orleans. But they ask, what's you're usually there (ph).
WHITFIELD: How did it go?
LEMON: Everyone's like where's Fredricka? WHITFIELD: Not this time, sorry.
LEMON: Where's Fredricka? Where's Fredricka?
WHITFIELD: Sorry.
LEMON: It's not the - it's not the same without you.
WHITFIELD: Oh, yes, right.
LEMON: Yes.
WHITFIELD: I'm sure that's what you were thinking.
LEMON: Usher (ph) -
WHITFIELD: Did you have a little bit of beniers?
LEMON: -- Fantasia, a little benier. A little Andygator Beer, a little Hurricane.
WHITFIELD: Interesting - oh, yes.
LEMON: All the (INAUDIBLE) -
WHITFIELD: You're thinking about me. A-ha. I'll buy that.
LEMON: I had some barbecue shrimp. It was good.
WHITFIELD: Oh, yummy. Oh, don't go on. You know, I'm a foodie.
LEMON: Everywhere I went, they're like -
WHITFIELD: You know, I love the food.
LEMON: I thought they wanted to tap my autograph and take pictures. They were like, are you from CNN? I go, yes, and they say where's Fredricka?
WHITFIELD: OK. (INAUDIBLE). Thanks, Don. We'll see you again -
LEMON: All right, Fred.
WHITFIELD: -- at the top of the hour.
LEMON: All right. Thank you, ma'am.
WHITFIELD: Glad you're back. Did you bring any benier back?
LEMON: No.
WHITFIELD: Darn. OK. All right. Thanks.
All right. Look at our top stories right now.
Attorneys for Arizona shooting suspect Jared Loughner will keep fighting his forced medication, they've appealed a federal judge's decision Wednesday and in that ruling the judge deferred to prison doctors medical judgment that Loughner needs medication to control his schizophrenia.
And most of wildfire ravaged Texas under a burn ban ahead of the Fourth of July Holiday. The states Forest Service reports a record setting 235 counties under burn bans, only 19 counties are not. Local governments are clamping down on illegal fireworks and they're even discouraging people from grilling.
And Maria Shriver is ending her 25-year marriage. The decision came more than a month after Arnold Schwarzenegger revealed that he had an affair and a son with their long-time housekeeper.
That will do it for me for this afternoon. I'm Fredricka Whitfield. Don Lemon is back in about two minutes, more in the NEWSROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
