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Final Shuttle Launch; Unemployment Rate Rises; Media Hacking Scandal Escalates; Senator Bernie Sanders Discusses the Economy; Nolan Ryan Addresses Fan Accident; Duke and Duchess of Cambridge Visit America; Last "Harry Potter" Film to be Released

Aired July 08, 2011 - 15:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

E.D. HILL, CNN ANCHOR: Hello, everybody. I'm E.D. Hill, in today for Brooke Baldwin, who is at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

Very busy day in news, but, first, let's get straight to Brooke over at the Kennedy Space Center.

So, you got to see it finally, the launch?

BROOKE BALDWIN, CNN ANCHOR: I finally got to see it. It was a pinch-me moment for me. And I kind of looked over to my colleagues and said, guys, this is a moment going down in history. We're going to remember it being together.

And right about now, the STS-135, or space shuttle Atlantis, is climbing. It's about 200 miles up in orbit chasing the International Space Station before it docks there early Sunday morning.

If you were under a rock, I don't know, if you weren't watching television this morning, we're going to replay that major moment, the moment of history, the launch. It happened just about three miles over my shoulder from launchpad 39-A. It was a go, amazingly. Quite a suspenseful morning, though. We will have that.

Also, you're going to meet a woman. As I was in the midst of thousands of spectators this morning watching this historic moment unfold, she was wiping away tears, talking to me about the patriotism and the poignance of this last 135th and final shuttle launch.

And, also, you will have to see, E.D., some pint-sized astronauts looking ahead to what -- who knows what will be their next dream, how they will next get into space -- back to you.

HILL: You were one of those pint-sized astronauts a couple of years back, many years back now, I guess.

BALDWIN: Yes.

HILL: So this is exciting for you.

BALDWIN: Twenty years ago.

HILL: All right, Brooke.

BALDWIN: It was amazing. It was amazing.

HILL: We will rejoin you in just a couple of minutes. Thank you.

Well, the other news today not so great. Job gains slowed to a crawl last month, and the rate of unemployment climbed for the third month in a row. Now, the jobless rate is now at 9.2 percent, up a tenth of one percent. The private sector produced a mere 50,000 new jobs and nearly 40,000 government jobs went away. That's a gain of just 18,000.

At the White House today, President Obama conceded this indeed is a setback.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We still have a long way to go and a lot of work to do to give people the security and opportunity that they deserve.

REP. JOHN BOEHNER (R-OH), SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE: After hearing this morning's jobs report, I'm sure the American people are still asking the question, where are the jobs?

The stimulus spending binge, excessive government regulations and our overwhelming debt continue to hold back job creators around our country.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HILL: Well, as you can tell, the tit for tat, it's your fault, no, it's yours, continues. We will talk politics later, though.

First, let's turn to Alison Kosik at the New York Stock Exchange.

A year ago, the economy was losing jobs, and as you can see from the graphic, that turned around for a little bit, and I think we have got that graphic for you right there. It turned around a bit. And we had some job growth for a few months at the beginning of this year, and then May, June, the bottom fell out.

So what was it that caused the increase at the top of the year and then this dip now?

ALISON KOSIK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: E.D., you talk to some analysts and they say, you know what, we had some really big shocks to the economy, to an economy that's already in trouble.

First, we had that ripple effect from the earthquake and tsunami in Japan. That really hit manufacturers and hit automakers really hard. It stopped production for many companies in their tracks. So that's one effect and one reason why we're seeing such low numbers.

Another reason, these higher oil prices we have been dealing with. They jacked up gas prices, so consumers, they pulled back on spending on other discretionary items. Now, that doesn't help to give companies any extra confidence to hire when they see that nobody is, let's say, walking into their store to buy things. Also, these high oil prices cut into companies' profit margins because for them it costs more to produce these products and distribute these products.

And these companies, you know, just overall, they aren't hiring, because in the economy itself, there is just a lot of uncertainty. If the economy would be on solid footing, then they will hire. But we're just not there.

And, of course, amplifying this whole situation is what's happening on Capitol Hill. Congress has yet to reach an agreement on the debt ceiling. You're not going to see companies taking a gamble at this point because what if the U.S. defaults on its debt? No one knows what the repercussions would be. And you know what? Companies are saying, hey, I'm not going to do any hiring until I see something happen in Washington -- E.D.

HILL: Let me ask you, because you're the expert here, a bit more about this hiring, because I look at these numbers and I kind of get them. However, what's the difference between the government jobs?

Because we showed a loss of 40,000 government jobs, and then we have got the increase in the private sector. What kind of government jobs are these? Are these the ones like the census takers that all went away, or are these temporary ones anyway?

KOSIK: No, these are actually state positions, for instance, like teachers.

We're seeing -- and you know this -- we're seeing budget cuts across the country, and that's why we're seeing such huge numbers of government jobs going away, 39,000 government jobs gone in June, 48,000 government jobs gone in May. So, the government sector is getting hit really hard.

What used to be a sure thing for many people to go into, the government jobs, it just isn't because of these huge budget cuts. And then we talk about the private sector. This is really where you want to see hiring done because it's the private sector that really powers the economy as far as jobs go. Private sector accounts for two-thirds of all the jobs in this economy, and you really don't see the private sector doing its part right now, because there is no confidence there in the economy.

Why should they go out and hire people if they don't know what's going to happen in the economy and then not to mention the uncertainty with the tax code and uncertainty with health care? These small businesses, this private sector is really reticent to hire at this point -- E.D.

HILL: Well, yes, that helps to understand it a bit. And it's the private sector where if you hire somebody, there is the chance they do well enough, they can go on to hire somebody else. When you hire a government worker, the government worker does their job. They're not going out and saying, I'm going to branch off and create my own government department on my own and hire some more people.

So it really does seem to be that private sector. And you said it's primarily small businesses, not the large corporations.

KOSIK: Right, exactly. And what's interesting is that next week we get -- it's earning season that kicks off Alcoa, one of the biggest companies we know of. It traditionally starts off the earnings season, and these earnings are expected to be stellar.

So you have got that disconnect of corporate America expected to do really well, have a really good showing, and yet we have millions of Americans who are out of work because we have got these companies who have got a lot of cash on the sidelines. They're not looking to invest it at this point because they don't know what's going to happen, and they're not going to hire because they don't know what's going to happen. So you do have this disconnect about what's going on kind of in the macroeconomy and then just in regular old America.

(CROSSTALK)

HILL: Yes. It all boils down to uncertainty, and until we get some real direction in Washington, and that's addressing both sides, until you get that direction, people just don't know what to do because you never know what is coming tomorrow.

All right, Alison, thank you so much.

KOSIK: I think so, yes. Sure.

HILL: All right.

Now, the other story we have been covering for a couple days, that U.K. hacking scandal that brought down a tabloid, well, now it is reaching Britain's prime minister.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DAVID CAMERON, BRITISH PRIME MINISTER: The decision to hire him was mine and mine alone, and I take full responsibility for it.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: This is the man he's talking about, David Cameron's former press secretary, arrested today. We will tell you why coming up.

And the duke and duchess of Cambridge ready for their close-up in America. And the paparazzi are ready for them.

We're back in a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HILL: A former press secretary to Britain's prime minister is arrested in a phone hacking scandal, and that's bringing down one of Britain's most popular tabloid papers, the "News of the World." In its attempt to expose scandals, it became connected to one. It started with the alleged hacking of voice-mails of the rich and famous, but what ultimately brought it down were accusations of hacking the voice-mails of a murder victim and the families of dead terror victims and British troops.

We bring in Howard Kurtz. He hosts CNN's "RELIABLE SOURCES" and is the media critic for The Daily Beast.

So, Howard, we mentioned the former press secretary of the prime minister was just arrested. Can you put that into context for us?

HOWARD KURTZ, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: Sure.

I mean, Andy Coulson, who was at the center of this scandal as the editor of "News of the World" and, of course, the paper owned by Rupert Murdoch, who can throw around a lot of political influence when it comes to British politics, his "Sun" tabloid endorsed David Cameron for prime minister -- that probably didn't hurt -- and then Cameron takes office, hires the former editor of "News of the World," which I now bet he wished he hadn't and now the guy arrested today, as you mentioned.

HILL: For us here in the States, it seems kind of weird, because "News of the World" is this tabloidy paper. It's as if the president would go and pick the editor of "Star" magazine and say, OK, now you're press secretary.

Things just operate differently in Britain, it seems.

KURTZ: Well, that's true. Tabloids play a much bigger role in the newspaper landscape than is true here in the United States, although "The New York Post," also owned by Murdoch, has a way of getting attention now and then.

But I think it also points up, you know, the tactics. It was the same "News of the World" last year that did that sting with the fake sheik, a reporter impersonating a Middle East potentate, and getting Fergie, Sarah Ferguson, to ask for money on video.

HILL: Right.

KURTZ: Everybody thought that was a great scoop. It was juicy. Everybody buzzed about it. But it involved the same kind of lying and fabrication that we see now is not so funny when it's applied to hacking into the voice-mails or phones of people, ordinary people.

And as you know, what really made this scandal take off and led to Murdoch's decision to close the paper on Sunday was the fact that families of terror victims, a missing girl who turned out to be murdered, their phones also being hacked into by the London tabloid.

HILL: Yes. And that just took it past the unacceptable level.

Now, what about this whole phone hacking, this kind of journalism that they practice there? Is that more acceptable in Great Britain that it is here in the States?

KURTZ: Well, certainly, Fleet Street has its own sort of moral code or immoral code in this case. And it gets winked at a lot more. You wonder since it is still technically illegal in Britain why the police didn't crack down.

Well, there are allegations that police were paid off not just by "News of the World" but perhaps by other newspapers as well. So it was a very cozy situation between the politicians, the law enforcement, which have investigated this before and did a lousy job, frankly, as everybody now acknowledges, and the media, in this case the "News of the World" tabloid, that allowed this to fester and a scandal that -- the one shock here, E.D., is that 200 people are losing their jobs because of Murdoch's decision to close this paper.

A lot of people think he's protecting his top executives, particularly a woman named Rebekah Brooks, who was the editor of "News of the World," now is the CEO of his company in London.

(CROSSTALK)

HILL: And he's trying to buy BSkyB.

KURTZ: Yes, and he wants to buy British Sky Broadcasting, a $12 billion deal.

(CROSSTALK)

HILL: I have got to you what just came in. Howard, Coulson has just been released. He has just been released by the police.

(CROSSTALK)

KURTZ: His legal problems are not over. And Rupert Murdoch's effort to buy the BSkyB is also greatly complicated by "News of the World," which is why he wants this problem to just go away, which is why he made that dramatic decision to shutter the paper.

HILL: All right. And, yes, that was one that sort of came out of the blue to most folks.

Howard Kurtz, host of "RELIABLE SOURCES," thank you very much for being with us.

The clouds cleared, the space shuttle began its final journey. The launch, as NASA described it, 4.5 million pounds of hardware and human. And our Brooke Baldwin was there to watch it happen live. We will check in with her coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Roger. Roll, Atlantis.

NASA ANNOUNCER: Houston now controlling the flight of Atlantis. The space shuttle spread its wings one final time for the start of a sentimental journey into history.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HILL: I know you were probably doing the same thing at home that we were here in Atlanta. That was a shot of control A in Atlanta.

And it was just so quiet in the newsroom as you just watched this, just waiting and realizing the history of the moment that we were experiencing there, Atlantis on the last space shuttle mission ever.

Today's 135th launch marks the end of an era. The NASA narrative, I found fascinating. They described the liftoff as 4.5 million pounds of humans and hardware bound for the International Space Station.

The four astronauts on board are due to arrive at the floating observatory on Sunday and then begin delivering supplies. And they are expected to return back on Earth July 20.

Well, NASA got a break in the weather just when it was needed. So listen to the crowd reaction.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Two, one, zero, and liftoff!

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Liftoff.

(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: USA!

(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HILL: It just gives you goose bumps, you know?

Brooke Baldwin is at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

And I know that was what was happening on your arms, too. Your -- that hairs just lift up as you're watching it. It just never ceases to be absolutely awe-inspiring.

BALDWIN: It is tremendously awe-inspiring. It's one thing to watch it on television. It's quite another to be standing here. And different just members of our CNN crew have been walking past one another and saying, did you cry? Did you get a little teary-eyed? And we're all like, yes, we did.

It was just incredible. There really are not words to describe this morning. It was 11:26 a.m. And in case you missed this magical moment, let's replay it for you. Take a look.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And liftoff!

The final liftoff of Atlantis on the shoulders of the space shuttle. America will continue the dream.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (INAUDIBLE) Houston.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Roger. Roll, Atlantis.

NASA ANNOUNCER: Houston now controlling the flight of Atlantis. The space shuttle spread its wings one final time for the start of a sentimental journey into history.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: Now, as we watch this beautiful space shuttle lift off, remember, this whole program started back in April of 1982, so this 30-year era coming to a close.

The next chapter, no one really knows the specifics yet, but one specific -- one man knows. Here's the statistic for you. Once this whole shuttle program is said and done, 7,000 people will lose their jobs.

And I spoke with one of those men. He -- his name is Todd McLaughlin. He is a husband. He's a father of two little boys. He's a U.S. Navy veteran, and his last day is the final day of this shuttle mission here up in space.

And, you know, he works in avionics. He works with the solid rocket boosters, the SRBs, on the space shuttles, and he talked about how he was hoping this day, this morning would be when the shuttle would lift off, because as much as he wanted to see the shuttle lift off with his actual family, this was really the final day that he could share this moment with his NASA family.

Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TODD MCLAUGHLIN, UNITED SPACE ALLIANCE AVIONICS TECHNICIAN: Everybody is part of the A-team. Just having them move out of the area is going to be hard.

BALDWIN: It's your family. It's your extended family.

MCLAUGHLIN: It is, exactly. Exactly.

In fact, we were just talking about, if the launch actually -- the weather doesn't work out for us and the launch extends into the weekend, we were just saying, well, we will get to be with our family to watch the launch, at least. And this being the last launch -- I love my family and everything, and I love having them with me. I love being with them to watch the launches, but that last launch, you really want to watch with your work family. I'm really hoping it goes off Friday, because being able to spend that last moment with the people that I work with is definitely something that I'm looking forward to.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: So Todd and his family, you know, their roots are deep here in the Cape Canaveral area. They don't want to leave. His fingers are crossed he can find some sort of avionics job similar to his history, so they won't have to leave.

He's very eager to learn what the next step will be. And you know who else is eager to learn what the next step will be, E.D.? A couple of precious little kids. I will tell you what. I watched this liftoff this morning at the Kennedy Center visitor complex, and all these different -- I kept turning my head and seeing all these little kids in their commander space suits.

(LAUGHTER)

BALDWIN: I want you to meet just one of them, 5.5 years old. Watch this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: Let me introduce them. They are David, Jay, both of whom are four, kindergartners, aspiring astronauts. And I have Cade here. Cade came all the way in from Colorado. Cade, high five for the commander suit, buddy. Oh! So why do you like space so much, bud?

UNIDENTIFIED CHILD: Because, like, I never been there before. And --

BALDWIN: Me neither, by the way.

UNIDENTIFIED CHILD: So when I grow up, I'm going to be an astronaut and I'm going to the moon.

BALDWIN: You are going to go to the moon?

UNIDENTIFIED CHILD: Mm-hmm.

BALDWIN: Maybe I can come with you? As a journalist, I can come with you on board?

UNIDENTIFIED CHILD: Yes.

BALDWIN: What is so exciting about being here all of the way from Colorado to see this launch? What are you so excited about?

UNIDENTIFIED CHILD: What I'm so excited about is that, like, I have never seen the launch before. I only saw it on the computer. But now is my first -- my last time to see it and --

BALDWIN: It is your last time. This is the last space shuttle. Are you a little sad about that? UNIDENTIFIED CHILD: Yes.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: So even, you know, a little kid from Colorado kind of gets it, E.D. He gets that this is the end of an era, and what do you do when you're a child and you dream of being an astronaut and you don't have a space shuttle to go up in? That's kind of the next big question.

Coming up next hour, I want to also share some sound from a woman who was just breathless, wiping away tears. This particular launch was so emotional for her and the three generations of family she brought here to Florida -- back in to you.

HILL: All right, Brooke, thanks so much. We will see you next hour.

Well, they were promised a revolution. So far, all they have gotten is a bunch of talk -- up next, tens of thousands of protesters pack Egypt's Tahrir Square. Their message: Give us reform now.

Plus a horrifying story out of Texas caught on camera. A fan trying to catch a ball falls 20 feet. That is coming up next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HILL: Get you a quick check of our top stories today.

Thirty-four-year-old Rodrick Dantzler allegedly killed seven people, including two children, yesterday in separate homes. Next, he led police on a car chase, then ran into a separate home and took hostages. After hours of standoff, Dantzler killed himself. Police are still looking for a motive.

Admiral Mike Mullen has taken heat from the Pakistani government after he said it sanctioned the assassination of a journalist. The reporter, Syed Saleem Shahzad, was killed in May after his reports about links between Pakistan's security agencies and Muslim extremists. Mullen said Thursday he has not seen anything to -- quote -- "disabuse" the report that he knew about Shahzad's death. Basically, that means he thinks they knew, but he doesn't have positive proof. Pakistan's information minister call Mullen's comments irresponsible.

Tens of thousands of protesters poured into Tazir Square -- Tahrir Square, I should say, in Cairo today, pressuring the interim government to speed up reforms. The demonstrators are angry about the slow pace since Hosni Mubarak was pushed out of power earlier this year. Some groups say they will protest in the square for 18 days, which was the length of the revolution.

And there was tragedy at a Texas Rangers game. Look at that video, that fan falling 20 feet to a concrete area behind the scoreboard at Rangers Ballpark. He was reaching for a ball thrown by Rangers outfielder Josh Hamilton. The man was raced to the hospital, but he died. Major League Baseball says it is shocked and saddened and its thoughts and prayers are with the man's son and his family. Another fan was injured last year after falling about 30 feet from the same ballpark trying to catch a foul ball.

President Obama and some Democrats say they are willing to cut Social Security if Republicans agree to increase taxes on the rich.

But my next guest says, hands off. Senator Bernie Sanders joins us next, and you do not want to miss it.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HILL: Well, back to today's disappointing jobs report. The nation's rate of unemployment climbed last month to 9.2 percent. We've now seen two straight months of meager jobs productions after bigger gains in February, March, and April. Just 18,000 new jobs though created in June.

Joining us now from Burlington, Vermont, is Senator Bernie Sanders, political independent, formerly a socialist. And we'll get to the talks on the debt in just a moment, but first let's talk about these jobs reports. And let's listen to Representative Jeb Hensarling. He's a Republican out of Texas. Here's what he said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. JEB HENSARLING, (R) TEXAS: The president always tells us he inherited a bad situation. I concede the point, but he has made it worse. And after two and a half years, it is time for him to take responsibility and to answer the question, where are the jobs?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HILL: John Boehner saying the same thing, where are the jobs? However, senator, thank you for joining us. We just had a poll that came out, and most people still blame the Bush administration for where we are right now. However, what he says does have, you know, a bit of concern for the current administration to admit that eventually it may have been somebody else's to start with, but now it's sort of stuck in your lap. What would you do?

SEN. BERNIE SANDERS (I), VERMONT: Well, first of all, I'll tell you what I would do. I would start investing in infrastructure and rebuilding our crumbling water systems, roads, and bridges and public transportation. And when you do that, you can create millions of good paying jobs that are not going to go to China.

I would transform our energy system so we're not spending $350 billion a year importing oil from Saudi Arabia and other countries, make our homes and offices and buildings more energy efficient and move aggressively to sustainable energy. That will create a whole lot of jobs.

And I'll tell you, most importantly, we have to change our trade policy. It is harder and harder to buy products manufactured in the United States of America. Over the last 10 years, we have lost 50,000 factories, millions of good-paying manufacturing jobs. We cannot continue to allow corporations to throw American workers out on the street to China and bring those products back here tariff-free. Unfettered free trade has failed for the American worker. It needs to be fundamentally revisited.

HILL: Let me ask you about your idea about spending money on infrastructure and roads, that sort of thing. I recall I was driving from New York to Texas two summers ago, and I kept on passing these signs, "Your federal tax stimulus dollars at work." And they were out there repaving highways, and the ones I happened to be on actually were not that bad, but they were repaving the highways.

The stimulus dollars, those type of projects, didn't seem to make a long-term difference. So how do you know that if you start using stimulus dollars again on projects like that it's actually going to, long term, change things?

SANDERS: Well, it wasn't designed to make a long-term impact. It was designed to create jobs when we needed them the most. The gentleman you had on a moment ago criticizing Obama forgot to tell you that when the president took office we were losing 700,000 jobs a month. So we're saying, hey, 18,000 is not very good. There's no question about that. It's a hell of a lot better than losing 700,000 jobs a month under the Bush administration.

What the stimulus package did do, in fact, is not only rebuild a lot of roads and bridges and in my state help with the water systems, with the railroads, but it created somewhere around 2.5 million jobs when we needed it the most.

HILL: Let me turn to the big problem that we're facing and they're going into this weekend where the president is going to be meeting again with House and Senate leaders. And there really is this entrenched group on either side, and some on the Republican side are saying any kind of tax revenue increases we're not going for. It is a deal breaker.

And I understand that you and another group on the other side are saying, look, any tax on Social Security, Medicare, and that is the deal breaker for us. Do you think there is common ground?

SANDERS: Look, E.D., every poll that I have seen, and what I see every day here in Vermont, is people understand that the middle class is disappearing, poverty is increasing, and the people on top are doing phenomenally well. So you have the top one percent now earning more income than the 50 percent. And you know what, their tax rates are lower than they've been for 50 years. The richer get richer, their taxes go down.

HILL: Yes, but that's the big picture argument. The problem right now is, like it or not, there are a lot of freshmen in the House especially that are there not to get along, not to compromise, but to do exactly what they were sent there to do for basically one term. And they know if they don't do it, they're not coming back. Their heels are dug in. So is there someplace -- SANDERS: But E.D., the point I'm trying to make to you is what the American people are saying, when you ask the American people, what is the most preferred way, what way would you most prefer to deal with deficit reduction? Do you know what they say in every poll that I've seen? Ask the wealthy to pay more in taxes, deal with these huge corporate loopholes.

Not the right wing people, the extremists in the House don't like it. I don't know what to tell them. That's their problem. But I am not going to sit here and see working families who are already suffering, unemployed people, children who in some cases don't have anything to eat, elderly people living on $14,000 a year, I'm not going to see them attacked while the richest people in this country don't contribute a nickel to deficit reduction.

We have the vast majority of people on that side. They're with us on that issue. The president has got to remain strong. And I think the word will get out to some of these right wing extremists that, you know what, you better start compromising. You better start asking some of your wealthy friends to pay a little bit more and do away with some of these company loopholes.

HILL: Well, we will find out this weekend. Supposedly Mr. Boehner says that by the end of this weekend we'll find out whether or not they think there can ever be any kind of compromise. Senator Sanders, thank you very much for your time today. I appreciate it.

SANDERS: Thank you.

HILL: All right, the royal newlyweds head to America. In just a couple hours they'll be here. The destination -- L.A. Coming up next, we'll check in with Max Foster. He's already there along with everybody else hoping for a glimpse of glamour.

But first, CNN's Dr. Sanjay Gupta reports on today's "Human Factor."

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN SENIOR MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Kit Parker always wanted to be a bioengineering professor at Harvard. He thought he was going to develop the next heart medicine. But in 2002 when he was offered his dream job, there was a catch. He was in the army reserves and he signed up with a unit that he knew was headed to battle. So Army Major Kit Parker told Harvard --

KIT PARKER, HARVARD UNIVERSITY/SEAS: Hold the job, I got to go fight. And then I took off for a year to go fight in Afghanistan.

GUPTA: He spent much of 2002 and 2003 near Kandahar hunting for the Taliban. He came back to Harvard, but in 2009 with a national guard unit he went back to Afghanistan.

PARKER: I spent a lot of time with rout clearance units looking for IEDs. And we got hit several times and vehicles in front of me blown up. My vehicle never got hit. I was very, very lucky. And when you run up there and pull open the door of that MRAP and see your injured buddies, you'll never forget that sight.

GUPTA: This time back home, he began to explore the science of brain injury.

PARKER: What happens when the brain gets hit by a blast wave and slams up against the inside of the skull?

GUPTA: With colleagues at New York University, Parker built new tools to study how a blast affects the brain. It could be years before this leads to new treatments, but Parker hopes that eventually it will have a broad impact.

PARKER: A concussions that your favorite football player suffers or the head injury you get when you're in a car accident and your head snaps forward, or shaken baby syndrome, these are all examples of non- penetrating head injuries that can cause a traumatic brain injury.

GUPTA: Today his Harvard lab is humming with young graduate students. More than half a dozen are veterans.

PARKER: We're very focused on this because these are our buddies. These are our guys. This could have been us. It might still be us. So it brings a certain level of urgency to what we're trying to do.

Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN reporting.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HILL: And we want to take you to some breaking news in Arlington, Texas. Nolan Ryan, the president of the Texans there, the Texans baseball team, is making a statement following the death of a fan. The Texas Rangers, I should say. He's making a statement following the death of a fan who fell about 20 feet to his death trying to catch a foul ball. Let's listen in.

You know what, we're having trouble getting the audio there. Nolan Ryan, a man who has been a baseball fan his entire life along with being one of the greatest pitchers ever, he is the president of the club there, the owner, CEO, president of the Texas rangers and the round rock express. So we're going to try to get that audio fixed and bring that statement to you.

Oh, got it up. Let's listen in.

NOLAN RYAN, GENERAL MANAGER, TEXAS RANGERS: We'll see what you all might have and what we can answer.

(INAUDIBLE)

RYAN: I talked to her by phone this morning.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Is there grief counseling available for the players and staff?

RYAN: Yes, we have a counselor on staff with our organization, and that person is going to be available for our players. And then we also have availability for the responders last night that responded to the accident. And I'm going to tell you we could not be -- feel any stronger about the job that they did, the Arlington police department, the fire department, our paramedics. They were on the scene immediately. They responded in the manner that our expectations are. And so we feel that from what they did that he with did everything we could possibly do.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Nolan, how are the players taking it? Have you had a chance to talk to them?

RYAN: I haven't talked to the players today. We spoke with them last night after the game. They're coming in late today, so I haven't seen the players this afternoon. So I really can't speak on that.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I know this is a tough question, but a year ago today there was another fan that fell and was seriously injured. Why didn't you raise the rails after that? (INAUDIBLE)

RYAN: Well, what we did last year when we had the accident last year, we came in and did a study of our rails. And they are -- exceed code. And because of that, we felt that it was -- the fact that we have an international code, building code, that everyone goes by and that we exceed that code, we felt what we had was adequate. It was a first incident.

HILL: We're listening right now to the president and owner of the Texas Rangers, Nolan Ryan, legendary pitcher. And he has -- and this is about the accident, the tragic accident where a fan at Rangers stadium fell out of the stands, fell about 20 feet, got to the hospital but later died. He was an 18-year veteran of the local fire department.

As Mr. Ryan mentioned, the local fire department in Arlington showed up as the first responders on the scene there. I don't know if he was part of that division or not. He was there with his son, and he was apparently reaching out to grab a ball that had been thrown by Josh Hamilton and just fell. Someone else was close by and tried to grab him and hold on but was unable to, and he continued down.

Again, out of respect for the family, Nolan Ryan has been asking media outlets not to show that video anymore. But that is what is happening now in Arlington.

We are going to take a quick break. Back with more here on CNN in a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HILL: The duke and duchess of Cambridge are about to head to Los Angeles. That's trending right now. Lots of people hope to snap a photo of the royal newlyweds, but one group won't be welcome -- paparazzi. L.A. police taking special precautions. They will be arrested any shutterbugs if trespass on private property near where the couple is staying.

William and Catherine will have a pretty busy three days. Max Foster is in L.A. with a preview. Max?

MAX FOSTER, CNN ROYAL CORRESPONDENT: E.D., if we take you to Calgary airport in Canada, you can see the duke and duchess there saying goodbye to various officials. This marks the end of their nine days to Canada. Very successful. They took in all sorts of different activities, went across that vast nations and had a huge welcome everywhere they went, even in Quebec City, which is anti-monarchy traditionally.

Let's take you to the final event they attended then, the Calgary stampede parade. That's where they were this morning, dressed up appropriately. And they walked the parade routes and they spoke to the crowds, adoring crowds yet again. And then they watched the parade go by.

The next stop, of course, E.D., is California. And they're going to be coming here. This is the Beverly Hilton in Los Angeles. Their first event will be here. Lots of excitement here, too, I would say.

HILL: Yes, they wear those cowboy hats pretty well.

You know what's so cool about her? I was reading that -- and she's a duchess. She's going to be queen of England. I read that unlike every royal you seem to hear about, she's traveling with one in her entourage, one person who is barely helping her fix her hair. It seems she is really down to earth.

FOSTER: Yes, well, the policy is very clear. They were facing a lot of questions about the entourage before they left, and they were very clear that they didn't want it to be seen to be a very large entourage.

She's actually taking two people with her, her hairdresser who did her hair during the wedding. She's also got an administrative assistant they described her as. I think she's helping with the dressing. Catherine chooses her own clothes but she helps organize it. She has had dozens of outfits throughout this visit and she's been changing constantly. So she has had a bit of help.

And then she's of course got the press team and the private secretary traveling with her as well. They've had some support locally as well when they arrive at places, but we're not sure how much that is. So yes, I think she does try to be down to earth. You saw that a lot during the tour, throwing themselves into conversations, not being very formal. It's informal royal traveling.

HILL: It's refreshing royalty, how about that? Max Foster, thanks so much for being with us.

If you're a big "Harry Potter" fan, you will be envious of this guy.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LARRY KING, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: It is amazing. I was blown away by the special effects. (END VIDEO CLIP)

HILL: Coming up next, Larry King talks about his favorite film of the year, and a special treat for all "Potter" fans out there.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HILL: For "Harry Potter" fan, it's the end of an era.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The boy who lived come to die.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HILL: The Harry potter movie series reaches its much anticipated conclusion with the release of the final movie, "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2."

This Sunday night, just days before the movie opened, CNN has a very rare treat for you. Our very own Larry King hosts a behind-the- scenes special. And last night on "IN THE ARENA" I had a chance to talk with Larry about that.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

HILL: The magic began in 1997. So were you swept up from the start with this?

KING: In '97, I took my two boys to their first -- I never read the potter book, but I interviewed Ms. Rawlings and was very impressed with her. I took my two boys, and at that time one was seven and one was six, and they didn't get into it. So I was encouraging them, and I didn't get into it. And so then I kind of put it away, followed it with interest over the years as I do when anything big is occurring.

Then I went to see the final picture before doing this special, and it is amazing. I was blown away by the special effects, by the way they put things together, the way they -- the makeup, the graphics. And you've got to see it in 3D. This movie is going to make a ton. It's a great wind-up to a series. If you're going to do a finale, if you're going to close something, they close it great. And the ending is wonderful.

HILL: I understand that people who get to watch your special are going to see things that have not been seen before. And one of the things that I heard is you talked to Daniel Radcliff, of course, Harry Potter, and you asked him what happened the last day. And he said that he wept.

Did you sense that was distraught or is it perhaps a bit of relief, because, you know, when young actors -- think back to Ron Howard, Henry Winkler, even Sally Field, when they get too heavily identified with one character, it sometimes makes it difficult to move past that. KING: I think it's a mixed feeling, E.D. That's a good question. It's a sadness over the end. And then you have to wonder about what happens now.

Except in his case, this is an unusual kid. I just saw him do "How to Succeed in Business without really trying." You ought to go see it. He is fantastic. He's a terrific little actor, singer, dancer.

But he also did "Equus" on stage in London. He's got a new film already in the can coming out next year, a murder kind of mystery, a ghostly kind of film. I think he'll be a director someday. I think he will -- he'll never put Harry Potter totally behind him, but he will go on. He's the kind of kid that will go on.

HILL: For all the ladies who love Harry Potter, you also asked him about marriage and children. What did he tell you?

KING: He wants a ton of kids. He's got a girlfriend -- didn't tell me who it was. I didn't care. I didn't pry. But he's going to get married apparently pretty soon. And he wants a brood of kids. He's thinking eight or 10. He's an only child. All my life when I met children who are an only child, where they're the only child, when they get married they want to have a lot of kids.

HILL: Married pretty soon -- did he drop any secrets?

KING: My guess would be 2012.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HILL: Yes, wasn't that surprising? It is a great special. Be sure you watch Sunday night as Larry King takes you behind the scenes of the making of the final "Harry Potter" film. Don't miss it, "HARRY POTTER, THE FINAL CHAPTER," a Larry King special, Sunday night 8:00 eastern right here on CNN.

Now, coming up at the top of the hour, today's dismal job number, even worse than expected. Can President Obama turn things around? The Republican candidates today ramping up the campaign rhetoric. We are back in a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HILL: Mark Preston joins us now with the very latest from the CNN Political Ticker. Mark?

MARK PRESTON, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL EDITOR: Hey, E.D. How are you?

You know, Michele Bachmann is taking what many people considered a slight and turning it into a compliment. It all started when Vin Webber, who's a very well-known Republican here in Washington and an adviser to Tim Pawlenty was quoted in a Capitol Hill newspaper of saying this, E.D. He said, "She's got hometown appeal. She's got ideological appeal. And I hate to say it, but she's got a little sex appeal, too."

So once that quote got published, Vin Webber came under a lot of criticism. In fact, the Tim Pawlenty campaign had to issue a statement where he apologized.

Well, today, Michele Bachmann addressed that comment head-on, and listen what she had to say. She said, "Listen, I'm 55 years old. I've given birth to five kids and raised 23 foster kids. So that sounds like good news to me." So I tell you what, E.D., you've got to give Michele Bachmann a little credit for turning that one around.

Speaking of Tim Pawlenty, a lot of people think that he is meek. Some say that he might be weak. Bottom line is he's a very soft spoken person. But he tried to take that head-on as well. He was speaking out in Iowa at a town hall, and radio Iowa picked up this quote from him addressing the whole issue of whether he is weak. He said "The loudest guy or woman in a bar usually isn't the toughest. I'm an old hockey player, and I've probably been in more fights than all of the candidates combined." So take notice, we might start seeing Tim Pawlenty, the former Minnesota governor, perhaps become a little bit more boisterous, perhaps a little more vocal on the presidential campaign trail. E.D.?

HILL: Watch out for the checks. All right, Mark, thank you very much. Another political update in about 45 minutes.