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Shuttle's Final Mission; Interview with Ohio Senator Rob Portman; Unemployment Rate Climbs; News of the World Ex-Editor Released; Boehner and Bachmann First Out of the Gate; Independent Group Raising Money for Perry White House Bid; 135 Launches in 135 Seconds
Aired July 08, 2011 - 16:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BROOKE BALDWIN, CNN ANCHOR: I'm Brooke Baldwin here along the space coast in Florida.
And right about now, the space shuttle Atlantis is 200 miles in orbit. I watched the final blastoff with about a million other spectators. I will tell you what it was like to watch history unfold.
E.D. HILL, CNN ANCHOR: Brooke, the numbers are out and the news isn't good -- 14 million Americans are now out of work. That's the worst number in eight months. Now damage control from the president.
I'm E.D. Hill. The news starts now.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Two, one, zero, and liftoff.
HILL (voice-over): A picture-perfect send-off for the end of an era.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The space shuttle spreads its wings one final time.
HILL: NASA sends a shuttle into space for the final time.
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We still have a big hole to fill.
HILL: A very big hold. The unemployment rate hits a whopping 9.2 percent.
OBAMA: I'm ready to roll up my sleeves over the next several weeks and next several months.
HILL: But will that be enough time to turn things around?
The U.K. phone hacking scandal hits new lows and reaches high places.
DAVID CAMERON, BRITISH PRIME MINISTER: The decision to hire him was mine and mine alone, and I take full responsibility for it.
HILL: This man ties to the British prime minister and to the tabloid behind the corruption.
The royal newlyweds are ready for their first American trip. And the hordes of Hollywood paparazzi are ready for them.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HILL: Welcome. I'm E.D. Hill, filling in for Brooke Baldwin. We will be joined by Brooke in just a little bit.
But we start at this hour with the White House. Another high- level meeting set for Sunday. That is 25 days before the U.S. Treasury runs out of funds to pay all the bills, unless Congress steps in and approves more borrowing.
That is what the meeting on Sunday is about. So stand by for that story.
But, first, another anemic jobs report. Last month, the economy created just 18,000 new jobs, the rate of unemployment up to 9.2 percent. Now, let's all take a look at this graphic. The blue-shaded bar shows that job gains started last October. And we had pretty steady jobs growth February, March, April. Then the bottom drops out, May and June.
Here's the president speaking today from the White House.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
OBAMA: We've added more than 2 million new private sector jobs over the past 16 months. But the recession cost us more than 8 million. And that means that we still have a big hole to fill.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HILL: Yes, eight minus two, that's about six.
Jessica Yellin, chief White House correspondent, standing by for us in Washington.
The White House -- I was surprised. I heard that the president was going to speak. And I assumed that they knew that the number was going to come out a little bit better and they were kind of do that victory dance. And instead, it came out and it was bad. The president didn't mince words on this, did he?
JESSICA YELLIN, CNN CHIEF WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: No.
And, look, they can't defend these jobs numbers. And I think that they knew it wasn't going to be pretty. The numbers are a dark cloud hanging over the White House. But in their view, talking to my sources, they're hanging over all of Washington.
And the White House is reminding everyone that they were handed a disastrous economy, that from their point of view they took enormous steps to try to shore up the economy, and they are now publicly blaming Congress for not letting the White House, letting all of elected Washington do more to use what they consider the remaining tools to get jobs growing, more investment in infrastructure, speed up the patent process, extend the payroll tax holiday, which is also on the table as part of the debt talks.
So these jobs numbers are bad for everyone.
HILL: Yes, you know, I get the sense -- and you, of course, know this more. But I get the sense that on both sides, there's this calculated, you know, move to just hold off, to dig in, and to try blame the other side and hope that voters believe you more than them that it's their fault.
YELLIN: That is the big unknown right now.
The typical Washington assumption -- and because Washington usually plays out this way -- is that this kind of jobs number is going to harden positions. Republicans oppose raising taxes. Democrats refuse to touch entitlements. And more signs of a sputtering economy, like these jobs numbers, will only in theory make more -- both sides more dug in and therefore make a debt deal less likely.
The hope among negotiators is that somehow the jobs numbers will actually have the reverse effect, will put more pressure on all sides to get a deal done because they know that voters are so fed up, that they're blaming everyone in Washington for all this gridlock, that all parties feel enormous pressure to reverse the direction of the economy and the stalled debt talks, so that there's arguably political motivation to have a big accomplishment.
That's pretty optimistic, but that is what negotiators are hoping is the outcome.
HILL: Yes, quit playing in the sandbox and get back in the classroom and do some work.
We mentioned the debt talks scheduled for Sunday. Let's listen to House Speaker John Boehner speaking today and being very candid about the crucial challenge.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. JOHN BOEHNER (R-OH), SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE: At the end of the day, we have got to have a bill that we can pass through the House and the Senate. This is a Rubik's Cube that we haven't quite worked out yet.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HILL: He's actually saying that after these talks, he would know if we had a 50-50 chance. What about the sources that you have at the White House? What do they think the chances are?
YELLIN: Publicly, they say they're optimistic. Privately, they say they're hopeful, but who knows. You know, so far staffs are meeting. The staff level negotiations are taking place. There's not a deal yet as you and I speak. But one wasn't expected at this point. The idea is that by Sunday, we will know if a deal is not possible. We will know if there's a breakdown. If a deal is possible, this thing will drag on well into next week, perhaps beyond that. So, we will have some sense of whether there will be total breakdown quickly.
And then if there isn't, we will see this trickle on for a little longer, E.D.
HILL: Well, the more weekends we make them work, perhaps the more incentive they have to get something done.
YELLIN: Excellent point.
(LAUGHTER)
HILL: Jessica Yellin, thank you very much.
YELLIN: Thanks.
(NEWS BREAK)
HILL: The clouds cleared, now history is in the making: shuttle Atlantis blasting off for the final time today, marking the end of an era.
And our Brooke Baldwin was there to watch it happen. We will check in with Brooke coming up.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HILL: Atlantis has reached orbit for the final time. After a minor hiccup, the shuttle launched off for the 135th and final space shuttle missing a few hours ago.
And here's what the end of an era looks like.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: T-minus 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5 -- all three engines up and burning -- 2, 1, zero, and liftoff!
The final liftoff of Atlantis on the shoulders of the space shuttle. America will continue the dream.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HILL: The four astronauts are due to arrive at the International Space Station Sunday to deliver supplies. They're expected back home July 20.
Millions watched the blastoff on the space coast on TV, even in New York's Times Square.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HILL: The last shuttle mission is symbolic right down to the mission patch. Now, take a look at this patch. You can check out the artwork and you can see that there's a gold arch that surrounds the image of Atlantis. Of course, that's omega, the last letter in the Greek alphabet, designed into the patch to recognize this conclusion of NASA's 30-year shuttle program.
Well, Brooke Baldwin was lucky enough to be at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida for today's historic launch.
And it's been a pretty emotional day, as you were mentioning, for a lot of the shuttle fans, right?
BALDWIN: It has been emotional. They say there was something like a million people down here, according to the Space Coast tourism bureau.
And I was with a couple thousand of them early this morning around that magic moment, 11:26 a.m., when we saw here at launchpad 39-A, we saw space shuttle Atlantis take off.
And one woman I want to share with you, her name is Linda Johnston, and it was so important for her to be here from Palestine, Texas. She traveled all the way. They drove. They were prepared to stay a couple of days as it was sort of up in the air as to whether or not Atlantis would take off. She was here, alongside her grandchildren, her own children, three generations. And she says seeing this poignant picture, it's all about patriotism.
Listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LINDA JOHNSTON, SPACE CENTER VISITOR: Well, this is something I have always wanted to do. I have always been interested in the space program. And I think it's kind of a real shame that it's not going to be around anymore.
But I understand why. It's just amazing to me the number of people that are here today all -- from all over the world. They were -- I heard every dialect in the world.
(LAUGHTER)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BALDWIN: Two things I want to point out.
Where I was earlier this morning, the Kennedy Space Center visitor complex, you can go in two years to actually see, not quite touch, but see the Atlantis. It will be put on display thanks to NASA and a $100 million complex in which the actual space shuttle will be housed. Remember, they're retiring four of them, New York, D.C., L.A., and right here at the Kennedy Space Center.
Another interesting fact, because I'm kind of into facts here -- I think space is fascinating -- you know that the launch was today, July 8. It's a 12-day mission carrying the MPLM up to the International Space Station. They will be back down July 20, E.D. Hill.
And that date is significant and perhaps part of this pressure to get this thing up. July 20, 1969, 42 years ago, that was the lunar landing that so many people remember. And so they wanted these -- this crew of four to come down and be down the same day that Buzz Aldrin and the rest of those guys were able to touch down on the moon 42 years ago. Such significance here. Historic day here in Florida -- E.D.
HILL: Brooke Baldwin, thank you very much. We'll check back with you a little bit later in the hour, though.
Now, the U.K. hacking scandal that brought down a tabloid is reaching up to 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.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HILL: That is David Cameron, and that is his former press secretary, arrested earlier today, and then released just last hour. We'll tell you why coming up.
And the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, ready for that close-up in America. They took off the cowboy hats, they got their regular duds back on and the paparazzi are waiting for them in L.A.
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, but he was just released last hour. It's part of a story bringing down one of Britain's most popular tabloid papers, the "News of the World." In its attempt to expose scandals, it began connected to one.
It started with the alleged hacking of voicemails with the rich and famous, but what ultimately brought it down were the accusations of the voicemails of the murder victim and the family of dead terror victims and British troops.
Dan Rivers has the latest.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) DAN RIVERS, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It was an ignominious way to end 168 years of journalistic history, protesters venting their anger at the antics of the British tabloid, the "News of the World," as staff prepared the paper's final edition.
It started with royal reporter Clive Goodman who jailed in 2007 for hacking into Prince William's phone. Now it's believed the paper was awash with illegal eavesdropping and bribing policemen.
(on camera): The practices of the "News of the World" in the building behind me here have been widely condemned by all political parties. But the focus of the story has now shifted on to the Prime Minister, David Cameron, and his decision to hire a former editor of " News of the World," Andy Coulson, as his communications guru. A decision that has come back to haunt him with a vengeance.
CAMERON: I'm not hiding from the decision I made. I made the decision. There had been a police investigation, someone had been sent to prison, this editor resigned. He said he didn't know what was happening on his watch, but he resigned when he found out, and I thought it was right to give that individual a second chance.
RIVERS (voice-over): Almost at the same time the prime minister was speaking, Andy Coulson himself was in a police station answering questions about whether he sanctioned illegal phone hacking during his tenure at the paper, a scandal that forced him to stand down, first, as a journalist and then as a government press adviser, even though he's denied knowing anything about hacking.
Britain's Opposition says repairing the damage of Coulson's appointment means the government has a lot to do, like --
ED MILIBAND, LABOUR PARTY LEADER: Apologizing for bringing him into the center of the government machine. And coming clean about what conversations he had with Andy Coulson, before and after he was appointed, about phone hacking.
RIVERS: But it's not just the P.M.'s relationship with Coulson, it's his alliance with Coulson's former boss, Rebecca Brooks. Both are close to Cameron, but Rebecca Brooks hasn't been arrested yet, maintaining she knew nothing about phone hacking. David Cameron has said her offer to resign last Thursday should have been accepted, but she's still in post.
That's because her boss, Rupert Murdoch, remains loyal to her. A week ago, it would have been unthinkable that a British prime minister would suggest one of Murdoch's favorite lieutenants should stand down, such was his influence and power. But as the saying goes, a week is a long time in politics, and these past seven days have seen some tectonic shifts impress power, with many wondering if Murdoch's influence over British politics is now on the wane.
Dan Rivers, CNN, London.
(END VIDEOTAPE) HILL: As I mentioned, we learned last hour that Andy Coulson, the person who had been arrested, had been released, but is due to return to a London police station in October pending further inquiry.
Coming up, Brooke's special report on how to catch a suspected serial killer.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BALDWIN: But I have to ask you, I mean, there you are in a cell across from this alleged serial killer. You're eating breakfast with him. I mean, what was day to day being with this man like?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HILL: What was it like? Find out the answer to that question after the break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HILL: So how do you get a suspected serial killer already behind bars for a lesser crime confess to committing murder? Authorities hatched an elaborate plan, find another criminal who had everything to lose and put him in a cell with a killer to get a confession.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BALDWIN (voice-over): Convicted drug dealer Jimmy Keene was 10 months into his sentence when federal prosecutor Larry Beaumont brought him in to talk.
JIMMY KEENE: It scared me. I thought it was some trick.
BALDWIN: Keene watched nervously as Beaumont pushed a folder across the table.
KEENE: And I open it up and the first thing I seen was a picture of a mutilated dead girl and I flipped it to another page there was a different mutilated dead girl.
BALDWIN: And there was a portrait of Trisha Reitler (ph).
KEENE: At that moment, I looked up at Beaumont, and he says, Jimmy, we need you to help us with his case.
BALDWIN: Beaumont wanted Keene to go undercover, to transfer from his low-security lockup to a dangerous prison and to befriend alleged serial killer Larry Hall.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HILL: Well, here's Brooke Baldwin's conversation with Jimmy Keene about what it was like to go undercover in prison.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) BALDWIN (on camera): So you're supposed to go into this prison, this maximum security prison, you're supposed to get some information from this man by the name of Larry Hall. He's the alleged serial killer, he's in prison on a federal kidnapping charge. And what specifically, what information are you supposed to get from him?
KEENE: The main thing was to try to find the bodies. The next thing was to get specific confessions from him as to how he did it, why he did it, what prompted him, what girls and so forth.
BALDWIN: And again, it's alleged. He's only in prison for this kidnapping charge, but there's a belief by many in law enforcement that he could be connected to many young girls' deaths in Indiana and elsewhere.
So here you go, you go into this maximum security prison, you're undercover. What was your worst fear, Jimmy? You were risking your life to do this.
KEENE: Well, sure. Obviously, I think your worst fear is that anybody, other inmates-wise would find out that you were working with the government and if they did, they may feel it was something in regards to them.
Although most general criminals, in general, they look at somebody like Larry Hall as a real bad seed and they actually commend you for doing something like that. And I know we had spoke about Hall allegedly doing these crime, but just as of recently, he's confessed to 39 murders, all based on everything that I had found out from him. And that's just really in the recent here, in the last month.
BALDWIN: That's amazing that your story and getting it out there has led to looking into these cold cases.
But I have to ask you, I mean, there you are in a cell across from this alleged serial killer. You're eating breakfast with him. I mean, what was day to day being with this man like?
KEENE: It was no fun, I can tell you that much. He was a very strange, bizarre character. To have to be around him day by day really was repulsive to me. But I was in a catch-22 where I didn't have a lot of options.
But yes, he was definitely a strange character. There's no question about it.
BALDWIN: Strange.
I don't want to give away what happens because I want people watching our documentary, Jimmy, but your story is turn into this Hollywood movie. Your book has reopened cold cases. What do you think of these recent developments in Hall's case?
KEENE: I think it's fantastic. When you look at the type of criminal that I was, I mean, we were all a "Good Fellows" bunch of guys. Like I said, a Studio 54 flavor. Everybody was out having a good time and nobody was really harming anyone.
But when you take a guy like a Larry Hall, this is like the lowest form of person really on the planet. I mean, somebody that would go and kidnap young girls and rape and torture and mutilate these girls is -- I mean, that's just a terrible person in life in general.
BALDWIN: But to think that you could perhaps bring closure to some of these parents, how does that make you feel?
KEENE: Well, it makes me feel really good. It actually makes me feel that we've opened up a lot of these cases now. We have a lot of new information coming in. Hall is now telling new information based on what he told me.
It makes me feel really accomplished and it does make me feel redeemed for what I had done in myself.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HILL: If you want to see how all this turns out, watch "TO CATCH A SERIAL KILLER" Saturday night 8:00 Eastern right here on CNN.
Today's dismal jobs number even worse than expected. Now many wonder if President Obama can turn things around. My next guest says not so sure. Republican Senator Rob Portman is standing by now, and he joins us next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HILL: Welcome back. I'm E.D. Hill, for Brooke Baldwin.
Joining us now from Cincinnati, Ohio, United States Senator Rob Portman, Ohio Republican.
And as you are well aware, Senator, the jobless rate just ticked up to 9.2 percent. But here's something we're wondering about. I want to take a look at this graphic. It shows that job gains began last October. There's pretty good job growth February, March, April and then the last two months, it just dropped. It just dropped away.
What's the explanation do you think for that?
SEN. ROB PORTMAN (R), OHIO: Well, the president today, E.D., talked about uncertainty. And I agree with him on that. He focused on the uncertainty as to what's happening with the debt limit. There may be some of that.
There's also a lot of other uncertainty out there. There's uncertainty about the overall record deficit and debt. What's that going to mean in terms of higher taxes, whether the country perhaps going into another recession due to financial crisis. There's a lot of uncertainty as you know about energy prices.
All economists say that's had a negative impact in the last two months, and no national energy plan to enable us to get away from our dangerous dependency on foreign oil. Higher regulations, the prospect of higher taxes, higher health care costs.
So, there are a number of things going on in the economy that create unpredictability and uncertainty that have led to less private investment and fewer jobs.
HILL: You know, I spoke last hour to Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders and he said what is needed -- and you talk about the energy costs -- he said we need to spend more money right now. We need to spend money on infrastructure, on fixing roads, railways, dams, and we need to spend money on alternative energy sources.
So, is spending money going to help us create more jobs? Government spending.
PORTMAN: I think we've learned in the last couple of years that we cannot spend our way out of prosperity. It didn't work. We tried that.
And, by the way, infrastructure projects are good. We need to them. It takes a while, as you know, because we don't have, as the president has acknowledged, the shovel-ready projects.
So, we need to try something else.
By spending more and taking us even further into debt, again, with historic deficits this year and a debt approaching $14.5 trillion, that will make the situation worse and not better.
There are a number of pro-growth things that we can and should do. The president talked today about passing these export opening agreements, these so-called trade agreements with Korea and Colombia and Panama. And, of course, we should pass those. That's about 250,000 job as soon as we pass them.
We should also move forward quickly with tax reform. That's something that I think economists across the board would agree is needed to spur economic growth, because our current code doesn't make any sense. It hurts jobs and it hurts growth.
HILL: Now, what kind of tax reform?
PORTMAN: So, there are things that we can and should do.
HILL: Excuse. Senator Sanders also said that he thinks that the wealthiest 1 percent need to pay more taxes. So when you talk about tax reform, what do you mean?
PORTMAN: Well, what we need to do is actually have a lower rate, but get rid of a lot of the deductions and credits, exclusions, preferences. The president calls them loopholes. Others call them tax expenditures, kind of spending in the codes (ph) about $1 trillion a year. And be able to lower the rate to make us more competitive.
Right now, we have a problem both with the individual income tax system, which is way too complicated. Again, it does encourage investment and job, but also our corporate rate, which is now higher than any other country among our developed country trading partners.
HILL: However, let me stop you there. The corporate rate, because I understand, you know, we've got a lot of loopholes. So, when you're talking about closing loopholes, and perhaps and bringing down the corporate rate, those would go hand in hand, right?
PORTMAN: Yes. So, in essence, what you do is you simplify the code as happened in 1986. Get rid of a lot of the underbrush in the code and be able to lower the rate, which will encourage economic growth. These are common sense things which we should be able to find common ground on. And even in the context of the debt ceiling, by the way.
Because the discussion is not just about reducing spending, which is very important, but it's also about how to generate economic growth through tax reform. Hope that stays on the table and I hope that we'll see over the next few days even the president make a commitment to that.
HILL: You know, we are head into the presidential election. And I was intrigued by a comment made by President Obama's campaign manager. And he said -- referring to this unemployment number -- he said the average American does not view the economy through the prism of GDP, gross domestic product, or unemployment rates, or even monthly job numbers. Their decision will be based on two things: how do I feel about things right now? And, ultimately, do I think who has the best vision for the country?
Do you think that people will go into the voting booth and not really care that much about the GDP and the unemployment number?
PORTMAN: I think they'll care a lot about how they feel about the economy. And it has to do with, again, with this uncertainty I talked about earlier. And the folks I talk to here in Ohio, I just landed from D.C., you know, back home. And I'll be talking to people this weekend. I'll be at the NASCAR race and talking to folks about it.
And they are concerned about their jobs. When they see these unemployment numbers go up, even if they're not directly affected, one of their friends is, one of their family members is. So, it clearly affects the way they think.
And what people are looking for is some real hope. It comes from sound policies that make sense in terms of increasing private investment, improving our free market economy. I mean, this is what's made this economy the envy of the world. And we're getting away from that.
So I think we need to get back to some basics. And again, there should be consensus on some of these issues.
HILL: OK.
PORTMAN: Fewer regulations, tax reform, and energy policy that lets us use our own resources here to get away from our dependence on foreign oil. There are things that we can do. And, of course, dealing with the debt and deficit issue and this debt limit issue takes away some of that uncertainty.
So, I hope over the next few days, we'll hear some of that from the president and the negotiators as they talk about this debt limit talks.
HILL: That's right, they're getting together on Sunday to talk more.
Senator Rob Portman, thank you very much for joining pups.
PORTMAN: Thanks, E.D. Thanks for having me on
HILL: Enjoy the races.
The royal newlyweds are just two hours away from arriving on their first trip to America. The destination: L.A.
Coming up next -- we'll check in with CNN's Max Foster. He is there, waiting along with a lot of other eager media.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HILL: Welcome back.
The controversial exaction of a Mexican national went as planned in Texas. The royal newlyweds are just hours away from arriving in L.A. And we'll take you behind the scenes of today's final shuttle launch.
Time to play "Reporter Roulette."
And let's start with Jill Dougherty in Washington. So, Jill, why was this execution especially controversial?
JILL DOUGHERTY, CNN FOREIGN AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: It's controversial because number one, this was a man who was a Mexican citizen, executed in the United States, and not given a right that he is guaranteed under a treaty that was signed by the U.S. president, which gives citizens of any country from another country, if they're here in the United States, the right to talk to their consul, the person from the embassy who can advise them on legal procedures and help them through the process. So, that's why it's controversial.
And it's really raising hackles. You know, a lot of people criticizing it.
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton described as very concerned and very disappointed in that ruling, in that decision.
HILL: The president had tried to get the Supreme Court to step in. What happened?
DOUGHERTY: Well, the Supreme Court, for some technical reasons, basically said that look, Congress has not passed any type of law that can allow us to rule any other way. Congress, if you go back and pass a law that gives the federal courts the right to deal with this, and the responsibility to deal with appeals like this, then that solves the issue.
The Congress didn't act. And now, the push is on by a number of people to get that type of law passed.
HILL: So, that would be a states' rights fight there, wouldn't it?
DOUGHERTY: Yes, it is. That's -- it really is. It's a huge states rights issue. It's an international issue and, you know, the argument that they're making really is -- if you don't give those rights to citizens from other countries in the United States, then when Americans go abroad, they might not get the same rights guaranteed by other countries who are signatories to that treaty. That's really the core argument.
HILL: All right. Jill Dougherty, thank you very much.
Next up on "Reporter Roulette" -- Max Foster in L.A., waiting for the arrival of Britain's royal newlyweds, William and Catherine, the duke and duchess of Cambridge.
They have got a pretty busy three days ahead, don't they?
MAX FOSTER, CNN ROYAL CORRESPONDENT: They really have, E.D. They're due here just this afternoon at the Beverly Hilton, where they're going to attend an event which is promoting U.K. new media businesses to the Americans.
Later on, they'll be at the reception of the consul general's residence, where they'll be staying over the weekend. And you'll see them hobnobbing with some fairly famous names. We don't have the guest list yet.
Then tomorrow, a polo match. The prince will be playing. The duchess will be presenting the trophy.
In the evening, a red carpet event. You'll see the duchess in full evening wear and jewelry as well. They're also going to squeeze in a visit to Skid Row and young homeless people, and a veterans job fair.
So, a very busy weekend in California. The question is: will we see the same scenes as we saw in Canada during the last nine days with their Canadian tour. Incredible scenes today as you saw them amongst hundreds of thousands of people in Calgary for the stampedes. They toured the route and they watched the stampede parade.
So, a very successful tour in Canada, E.D. Will it be reflected here? We'll find out soon.
HILL: Now, what about this whole thing regarding the paparazzi. The paparazzi, of course, want to take pictures of the royal couple. And the police are warning them. Why? FOSTER: Yes, that's right. The police are basically have gone to all of the venues where the duke and duchess dare due to be and basically said to the paparazzi, if you step on any private land in these areas, you're going to be arrested immediately. For example, around the consul general's residence where they're going to be saying, they've spoken to local residents and who have been given the ability to arrest anyone on the gardens there.
So, what they're trying to do is allow as much media coverage as possible without it turning into a frenzy. They're worried about the paparazzi getting too aggressive, E.D.
HILL: All right. Max Foster, thank you very much. Enjoy it.
Next up on "Reporter Roulette" -- it is a day for NASA's history books as the last space shuttle took flight on a final mission. Chad Myers and Brooke Baldwin are both at Kennedy Space Center.
I know the weather was pretty iffy. Brooke, I've got to ask you, as we were all watching it in the newsroom at 31 seconds to go, the clock stopped. What happened there?
BALDWIN: You know what? That's an excellent question, but because I was at the Visitor Complex, I didn't see the countdown. I just heard the big three, two, one.
But once I came back here and was talking to all these crews. They said, my gosh, you should have been here at the 31-second mark. Everyone just sort of -- then I guess time stopped for two minutes.
And then that was some issue they had. Obviously everything was fine and then they sent Atlantis up, up and away.
HILL: Pretty good, but the weather was iffy and then all of a sudden it cleared.
BALDWIN: All of a sudden it cleared, in fact, Chad Myers who I think is also standing by. Chad and I were at the same location this morning at the Visitor Complex.
You know, Chad all serious, scientist, meteorologist guy, we were all bugging him. People knew who he was in the crowd. They kept coming up to Chad. Chad, is it a go? Is it a go?
He gave me some sort of, you know, atmosphere, humidity, some sort of explanation. And he was sort of leaning towards no, you know? Somehow they found just this little pocket in the sky and right, Chad? I mean, you remember.
HILL: You're the hero of the day.
CHAD MYERS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: The skies were cloudy all morning long. We literally because knew we only had a 30 percent chance of it going and a 70 percent chance of it not going.
We, literally, guys, we had a 35-minute window where it was green. The rest of the day it was red and it's still red. It looks great there. That's where the shuttle went off, but you turn around over here, and those are cumulus clouds that are going straight up.
We're hearing thunder and lightning over here. Clearly, we would never be able to fly the shuttle right now. But for that tiny little second, just for literally 20 minutes, we were good. We were green and it was ready to go.
And that was the 20 minutes we needed and it was centered right over 11:30 and they shot it off and boy, it looks great. It was a fantastic shot from here, a lot of bleary eyes.
This place opened at 2:00 a.m. It won't close until 8:00 tonight, but at 2:00 a.m., we were seeing little 5-year-olds getting walked down here. And they're all probably in the car asleep on the way back to Orlando or to their hotel because this has been a very long day.
BALDWIN: People were bleary eyed because the place opened at 2:00 in the morning. I met guys who came all the way over from the U.K., but they were already emotional and I played some sound earlier from Linda Johnston. But I tell you what, I met her, guys, right after the launch.
You know, we were all -- I wanted to experience it with everyone else so we sort of jumped in the crowd for that final three, two, one. I want to play a little bit more sound from her.
She really lost it, talking about just that magical moment that so many people got to share together there at the Visitor Complex. Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LINDA JOHNSTON, SPACE CENTER VISITOR: I always wanted to do this and I got to do it, thanks to my son and grandchildren. And I just really patriotic person and that just represents what our country has been about.
And I think it's a real shame that they're doing away with the program, but I know they felt they needed to and I don't know what else to say. I'm just so happy to be here.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BALDWIN: So happy to be there. I was so happy to be there. Chad Myers, I was happy to share that magnificent moment with you and my producer and a couple of the camera guys and our booker, Janelle. It's a moment, you know, you just kind of remember back years from now where you were and who you were with.
HILL: Brooke, you said that you had one of those --
MYERS: I had tears in my eyes.
HILL: Did you get to get any autographs while you were there? BALDWIN: I'm sorry, I missed the first part. Did I get autographs from whom, from astronauts?
HILL: You were saying that you've gone to space camp when you were a kid and you had the cool suits and stuff like that. Did you get to keep that? Did you bring it down there to maybe get autographs on this final launch?
BALDWIN: Nerd alert. I thought about it. I do have a flight suit. Maybe it has my name on it and a few patches. Maybe not. It might be sitting maybe back in CNN.
So no, I did not bring it. I didn't want to embarrass my crew totally so I left it at home. I kind of regretting it, but I do have a flight suit.
HILL: Chad, you wouldn't have cared?
MYERS: No, but NASA did because on our little media signature to get our credentials, it says you can't do that. You can't ask for any autographs and no bringing anything else into the area.
So it was a great day and Brooke, I really enjoyed being with you here as well. I'm glad the weather finally cooperated. Didn't look like it. The day before yesterday was ugly.
Yesterday was ugly, today finally cleared up and we finally got this thing launched off and now we have four great astronauts in the sky.
HILL: You know, here in Atlanta, you can just feel the excitement that you all felt being there for this special day, this historic moment. Thank you, both, Chad Myers and Brooke Baldwin for helping us feel like we were there as well. Thanks a lot. And that is today's "Reporter Roulette."
So could another big name be jumping into the presidential race? Here's a hint. He's a governor and a popular one. Paul Steinhauser is standing by with who it is next in the Political Ticker.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HILL: Welcome back.
Time now for a CNN Politics update. Paul Steinhauser joins us with the latest news from the Political Ticker -- Paul.
PAUL STEINHAUSER, CNN DEPUTY POLITICAL DIRECTOR: Well, E.D., you've been talking about the last two hours, the biggest political story of the day, no doubt, hands down has been the unemployment report.
There was an avalanche, an avalanche of responses immediately after the report came out this morning at 8:30 Eastern from Republicans in Congress, Republicans running for president. My Blackberry was bouncing around. I'm sure yours was, too. But I want to give a word, I guess, to what I call the first responders, at least in my e-mail box, the first responders from the House side. John Boehner, the House speaker. He was the first congressional Republican who had a response out.
In my e-mail, just four minutes after the report came out from the Labor Department. Among the presidential candidates, those Republicans running for the GOP nomination, the honors goes to Michele Bachmann, the congresswoman from Minnesota who, of course, is running for the nomination.
So to them, congratulations, you were the first responders and, of course, all the Republican responses, E.D., as we know, were pretty negative and pretty tough on the president and his policies, no doubt, right?
HILL: Well, the president was pretty tough on himself as well there. How about this speculation about Texas Governor Rick Perry running for president? I mean, we've heard that for so long, but any new developments?
STEINHAUSER: Yes, new development, not from Rick Perry and his camp. They still say maybe August, stay tuned on that one. But this is from an outside group, an independent group based in California. They're called "Americans for Rick Perry."
And they say -- I spoke to one of their top guys they say they've raised $400,000 in the last three weeks. They're an independent group.
They're set up as a 527, that's some legal terms there. And they're raising the money and they say they're going to spend it on direct mail and on social networking in Iowa right around the time of those Iowa caucuses. It aims about five weeks from now, E.D.
HILL: Not bad. That's a pretty good amount of money for them to raise, especially if the governor wasn't expecting it.
STEINHAUSER: He can't use it. It's just maybe just to influence him and talk to Iowa voters, of course, but stay tuned on that one.
HILL: Yes, dangle that kind of cash out there, it might get his attention. All right, Paul Steinhauser, thank you very much.
They've traveled a collective half a billion miles and carried more than 300 astronauts into space. Now, today, the beginning of an end of era for the space shuttle program, we take a historic look back. Up next.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
NASA ANNOUNCER: All three engines up and burning, two, one, zero and lift off. The final lift off of Atlantis on the shoulders of the space shuttle America will continue to dream.
(END VIDEO CLIP) (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HILL: Today's launch of Atlantis marks the 135th and final space shuttle mission. Through the decades, shuttles have ferried some 355 astronauts past the bonds of earth.
Shuttles have logged half a billion miles in space. Often turning their heroic feats into physically a day at the office for the astronauts, but let's take a look at some of the most remarkable moments.
(VIDEO CLIP, 135 LAUNCHES IN 135 MINUTES)
HILL: Wow. Thanks for letting me join you for a couple of days here in Atlanta. Brooke Baldwin is back on Monday.
Now to "THE SITUATION ROOM" and CNN's Candy Crowley.
