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Tax Dollars Wasted in Afghanistan; Politicians and Religious Events; Tabloid Techniques at Their Worst; Edwards Must Repay FEC; Little Guy with a Big Mission; Inside Tellus Science Museum; Social Media's Affect On Activism; Talk Back Question; Afghan Women Take Flight
Aired July 21, 2011 - 12:00 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, everyone. The top of the hour. I'm Fredricka Whitfield. Let's get you up to speed.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Nose gear touch down. Having fired the imagination of a generation, a ship like no other, its place in history secured, the space shuttle pulls into port for the last time.
WHITFIELD: Atlantis lands at Florida's Kennedy's Space Center just before dawn today bringing NASA's shuttle program to a close. Since 1981 135 shuttle missions have logged more than half a billion miles in space. History books will note Chris Ferguson commanded the final flight.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CHRIS FERGUSON, ATLANTIS COMMANDER: We're going to put Atlantis in a museum now, along with the other three orbiters, for generations that will come after us, to admire and appreciate. And hopefully, I want that picture of a young 6-year-old boy, looking up at a space shuttle in a museum, and say, you know, daddy, I want to do something like that when I grow up.
(END OF VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: Also here on earth, utility companies are on notice. Homeland Security officials say there is a chance terrorists could strike electrical, gas or water facilities. Officials say nothing suggests anything is imminent, but they tell CNN recent incidents give them concern. They did not elaborate further.
NATO and Afghan forces say they've seized almost a half million pounds of poppy seeds. An official says it's the largest haul in Afghanistan this year. Poppies can be used to make heroine. The crop helps the Taliban finance terrorism.
All right, now you don't have to feel so naked when you go through the airport body scanner. The government will install new software at 41 airports. Instead of a full body image that reveals everything, the new software shows a generic silhouette. Any suspicious object will be outlined in red. The city of Memphis says it has sent $3 million to the school board, part of what it owes for the last school year. But officials say the city doesn't have the $55 million on hand. The school board is demanding the city pay exactly that, $55 million, for the coming school year or schools won't open August 8th as scheduled. City leaders say they won't have the money until September when taxes are collected.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MAYO A.C. WHARTON, MEMPHIS, TENNESSEE: This is not about being bluffed into anything. It's about one thing. What's best for the children. That's all I care about.
(END OF VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: Almost half of this country's population will be sweltering in a dangerous heat wave today. Hot air and high humidity will make big cities along the I-95 corridor feel like a sauna. The National Weather Service says the heat wave may have contributed to 22 deaths.
NFL owners are meeting today to vote on a tentative labor deal with players. The reported 10-year deal if finalized would divvy up the league's $9 billion in annual revenue. Players were supposed to vote yesterday but never did suggesting there are still some details to work out.
NFL fans say enough already.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SHAWN SCHUSTER, FOOTBALL FAN: Ten percent unemployment in the country, right? Us poor folks are scrapping and scraping to get by. Come on, it's billionaires against millionaires, right? Can you not meet in the middle somewhere?
(END OF VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: All right. Hardly a "Hard Day's Night" at Kristi's Auction House. Forty-six never-before-seen Beatles photographs sold for more than $360,000 last night. Photographer Mike Mitchell got the shots during the Beatle's first American tour in 1964. He's been sitting on it every since. Mitchell was just 18 years old when he snapped these pictures. Now he is 65, and enjoying that jackpot.
All right. As the federal government scrambles to pay its bills, we now get a disturbing report warning that billions of our tax dollars may be going to extremists who are killing U.S. troops in Afghanistan.
CNN's Pentagon correspondent Chris Lawrence joins us live now.
So, Chris, this certainly would be an outrage. Give us the details. CHRIS LAWRENCE, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Yes, they aren't good, Fredricka. This federal audit shows that 10 years into this war in Afghanistan, the U.S. only has limited visibility over what happens to billions of dollars once we send that money to Afghanistan.
The inspector general found that that leads to making these -- all this money vulnerable to fraud, and even worse, the possibility of it being diverted to insurgents.
So how much money are we talking about? Well, the U.S. has spent about $70 billion in Afghanistan redevelopment and security projects, but the audit finds that as much as $10 million may be smuggled out of the country every single day.
How does that happen? Well, Afghan government officials don't have to account for the cash that they are carrying with them when they leave the country. And the audit shows that Afghan officials have no plans whatsoever to scan their cash through those electronic currency counters.
The U.S. would be able to keep a better check on this, but U.S. officials are denied access to the part of the airport where the VIPs come and go from, and now President Hamid Karzai has basically banned U.S. Treasury officials from working with the Afghan Central Bank.
Amid all this, President Obama and the Obama administration are asking for billions more dollars in Afghanistan reconstruction fund this coming year. But even some Democrats say -- or starting to wonder whether we're just throwing good money after bad.
We spoke with Senator Claire McCaskill, who's been keeping an eye on reconstruction funds and contracting over the years in both Iraq and Afghanistan.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. CLAIRE MCCASKILL (D), MISSOURI: Well, I know the troops are -- are doing everything they're being asked to do and in return we owe them a duty to make sure that American dollars are not in any way flowing to the enemy. If they are not willing to allow us to look over their shoulder as this money flows into the Afghanistan economy, then we ought to say to them maybe it's time we don't let that money flow.
(END OF VIDEO CLIP)
LAWRENCE: And Fred, there's an agency that sort of tracks some of the problems. They forwarded 21 leads to the Afghan government, the Afghan attorney general's office only followed up on four of them.
WHITFIELD: All right, Chris Lawrence, thanks so much. Appreciate that.
LAWRENCE: Yes.
WHITFIELD: And here's your chance to "Talk Back" on one of the big stories of the day.
Carol Costello is in Washington with today's question. Should politicians participate in religious events?
Carol, what are folks saying?
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's a hot question, Fredricka. The country, it's drowning in debt. Jobs are MIA and lawmakers, well, they're too paralyzed bipartisanship to help much, so why not pray?
At a stadium in Houston next month, Texas Governor Rick Perry plans to lead a day of prayer at an event dubbed "The Response."
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GOV. RICK PERRY (R), TEXAS: With the economy in trouble, communities in crisis and people adrift in a sea of immoral relativism, we need God's help. That's why I am calling on Americans to pray and fast like Jesus did. And as God called the Israelites to do in the "Book of Joel."
(END OF VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: Now the event is sponsored by the American Family Association, a conservative Christian organization, and that's got some folks in Texas mighty upset. They say a Texas governor should not be involved in a religious revival because it blurs the separation between church and state.
Thing is, that line is blurred plenty. Every year the president of the United States speaks at the National Prayer Breakfast in Washington, D.C. And guess what? He talks religion.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: It was through that experience working with pastors and lay people, trying to heal the wounds of hurting neighborhoods, that I came to know Jesus Christ for myself and embrace him as my lord and savior.
(END OF VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: Still, the event in Texas has become the proverbial political hot potato. Perry will likely be there next month but organizers tell us his role has yet to be determined.
So the "Talk Back" question today, should politicians participate in religious events? Facebook.com/carolCNN. Facebook.com/carolCNN. I'll read some your responses later this hour.
WHITFIELD: All right. Thanks so much, Carol. Appreciate that.
COSTELLO: Sure.
WHITFIELD: Here is a rundown of some of the stories that we're covering over the next hour.
First, families of 9/11 victims meet with the attorney general to talk about hacking allegations.
And what are pinging and blagging. Watch our report on tabloid tricks.
Then a wind surfer gets an unexpected trip from the Coast Guard.
And for a generation demanding change, is blogging and tweeting taking the place of boots on the ground? Our guests calls it slactivism.
And then later, remember that cute kid who played a mini Darth Vader in this Super Bowl ad? Take a look. Well, guess what? He is heading to Capitol Hill to try and stop Medicaid cuts. Dr. Sanjay Gupta talked to him and his family about it.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: All right. This just in. CNN confirming now that the Federal Election Commission is ordering 2008 Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards to give back $2.3 million in campaign matching funds.
The FEC says he was given too much. Edwards' lawyers have maintained that the Democrat does not owe the government anything, and of course the attorneys representing John Edwards can always appeal this 6-0 decision.
Our Joe Johns will be along with us to give us more details about this order from the FEC.
Meantime, media tycoon Rupert Murdoch has returned to New York after testifying at a British parliamentary hearing in the phone hacking scandal that has rocked his empire. British police are now expanding their investigation into illegal activity by tabloid journalist beyond Murdoch's news organization.
Authorities tell CNN that they are looking into the use of private investigators by other British papers.
Relatives of 9/11 victims plan to meet with Justice Department officials to discuss allegations that they were also targeted possibly. A British tabloid has reported that a newspaper owned by Murdoch tried to hack into the phone conversations and voicemails of victims of the 2001 terrorist attacks. The FBI is investigating that claim.
And it seems it's the tabloid media culture in Britain to use unscrupulous methods to get the stories.
Our Deborah Feyerick looks at some of the techniques.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) DEBORAH FEYERICK, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): For British tabloids like the recently deceased "News of the World," it appears everyone, everywhere was fair game. Actors, business tycoons, royals, prime ministers, politicians. All potential front page fodder caught up in a type of scandal driven journalism that bordered arguably on reporter blood sport, allegedly involving hacking, tracking and outright bribes.
BONNIE FULLER, EDITOR, HOLLYWOODLIFE.COM: They very much cross the line. And they didn't just do it once or twice. We're not talking about a single rogue reporter. Apparently it happened at least 4,000 times.
FEYERICK: Media executive Bonnie Fuller has been the driving force behind magazines like "Star," "US Weekly," and now the Web site, Hollywoodlife.
FULLER: You have a much stronger take-down culture in the British tabloids. They're much nastier than anything that you would find there, and they really do look to tear down people.
FEYERICK (on camera): The journalists were able to do this, it is not that complicated. It's not that hard.
JOHN ABELL, BUREAU CHIEF, WIRED.COM: No.
FEYERICK (voice-over): John Abell of wire.com walked us through the most common techniques. Like phone hacking, shockingly easy.
ABELL: Most people don't change their pin or their passwords, so once they're able to correlate a specific phone number with a specific carrier, all they have to do was dial into that voicemail box, enter the default pin.
FEYERICK: Another technique, something called pinging, using cell phones and cell towers like GPS to track someone's movements and locations.
ABELL: The carriers know pretty much exactly where you are within a few square meters based on the cell phone towers that your phone is connected to.
FEYERICK: That information is usually hacked or accessed through bribes. After all, bribing anyone with any access to famous people is allegedly a long-used tabloid technique, as is something the British call blagging, impersonating someone to gain access to confidential data.
ABELL: Their best tool is still the phone and guile, because people will say all kinds of thing and will give up all kinds of information. If your tone is correct, if your demeanor is proper, if you sound like you deserve the information you want.
FEYERICK: The reality? Once information exists in digital form on the Internet or phones, experts say it's game over. Anyone who knows what they're doing can figure out how to get it. Deborah Feyerick, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: All right. Just about every where you go across the country it is hot and steamy. Chad Myers with us now.
CHAD MYERS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: It is.
WHITFIELD: And no end in sight. This is one hot July.
MYERS: How about Council Bluff, Iowa, not far from where I grew up in Omaha, 123 is what it felt like yesterday.
WHITFIELD: Wow. That heat index is a killer.
(WEATHER REPORT)
WHITFIELD: I should call my family.
MYERS: All of a sudden --
WHITFIELD: I know they're dying right now.
MYERS: My goodness it just has to be oppressive down there.
WHITFIELD: And usually it feels like this in August in that area but this has been a very long drawn out sweaty summer.
MYERS: It has never felt like this before. Minneapolis had the highest relative humidity, the highest dew point ever on record.
WHITFIELD: Yes.
MYERS: So this is really ugly. This is --
WHITFIELD: Gosh.
MYERS: We've had a lot of flooding. There's a lot of water on the ground.
WHITFIELD: Yes.
MYERS: That flooding is evaporating now. That water from the flooding is in the air. It's humidity and now it's steamy.
WHITFIELD: People can't wait for fall.
(LAUGHTER)
MYERS: Come on football season.
WHITFIELD: Some relief. Yes.
MYERS: Yes.
WHITFIELD: Well, you like baseball season.
MYERS: I do.
WHITFIELD: Right. OK. Imagine what it's like to see a ball coming your way and you think it's going to be yours, but then, it doesn't. What you call it?
MYERS: Smashed. My son would. And he's about that old.
(LAUGHTER)
WHITFIELD: OK. Well, then he can relate to this little boy right here who was like wait a minute, that big guy over there grabbed the ball that was coming my way. And he was very upset about it, and apparently, well, the team, they felt for him, too. The Giants announcers sent up a baseball to him. There he goes.
MYERS: A bunch of them.
WHITFIELD: Finally turned that ground upside that.
MYERS: For the whole row.
WHITFIELD: Right. Well, at least he's happy, right?
MYERS: That's awesome. Yes. Good stuff.
WHITFIELD: I know. Everyone can relate to that. That's really sweet.
All right, Chad, thanks so much.
MYERS: You're welcome.
WHITFIELD: All right. Another kid who grabbed national attention, he is back and he's on a mission. Remember this commercial?
OK, well, Chad the football fan that he is, he saw this commercial along with you and everybody else, so this mini Darth Vader is taking on Washington now.
Chief medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta explains.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: You remember just moments ago I told you the Federal Election Commission is ordering that Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards pay back a rather sizeable sum.
Let's check with Joe Johns in Washington.
All right, Joe, how did they come to this decision?
JOE JOHNS, CNN SENIOR CORRESPONDENT: Well, Fred, as you know, this is even more trouble for a guy who once ran for president in 2008, was also vice presidential candidate with John Kerry.
John Edwards now is under indictment, under federal indictment in North Carolina on allegations that he misused campaign funds that were given to him and actually used it to cover up an affair with Rielle Hunter.
Well, now the Federal Election Commission saying that he has to repay something like $2.3 million, which it was federal matching funds that went into his campaign in 2008. FEC is saying today he has to repay that money essentially because they sort of overstated the amount of money they brought in, understated the amount of money they put out.
And we haven't not been able to speak yet to attorneys for John Edwards who've obviously been heavily involved in all the trouble he's had for so many months now. However, we do know that they've said previously that he hasn't done anything wrong in relation to the indictment in North Carolina.
We suspect -- and there is some other reporting out there suggesting, his attorneys are saying, he doesn't owe this money. So it looks like an accounting function by the Federal Election Commission.
And we also know that were John Edwards actually to go through trial and be convicted, then the FEC would have a whole new can of worms, if you will, to deal with in relation to money he received in the 2008 campaign.
So that's what we know. $2.3 million. The FEC says he has to repay it. This is not a completely final decision, because we're told he can appeal it, and it's highly likely that he will appeal it, as a matter of fact -- Fredricka.
WHITFIELD: All right. Joe Johns, thanks so much in Washington. Appreciate that.
All right. Cuts to Medicaid and other health care programs are some of the hottest issues in the Washington budget talks. Behind those numbers are real people suffering real consequences, including a little boy who stole our hearts in a Super Bowl commercial.
Chief medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta explains why he is now taking on Washington.
DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Next week Washington is going to feel the force, so to speak. He's a little guy with a big mission. Take a look at who I met when I was out in L.A.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MAX PAGE, PLAYED DARTH VADER IN COMMERCIAL: Hey, Dr. Gupta?
GUPTA (on camera): Yes, sir.
MAX PAGE: You're it. GUPTA: I'm it?
MAX PAGE: Yes.
GUPTA (voice-over): Max Page only knows one speed. Full steam ahead.
(On camera): I don't think I could keep up with this kid.
(Voice-over): Now you've probably seen Max before even though you may not know it. Remember this Volkswagen ad from Super Bowl XLV? Darth Vader? Nope. Just Max.
MAX PAGE: Yehey, we have that (INAUDIBLE).
GUPTA: And within mere seconds of meeting him, Max was asking about my daughters.
(On camera): Three girls.
MAX PAGE: Let me guess. Four-year-old?
GUPTA: Yes.
MAX PAGE: Two-year-old.
GUPTA: Yes.
MAX PAGE: (INAUDIBLE).
GUPTA: You got it. How did you know?
(Voice-over): We're at the Children's Hospital of Los Angeles with Max and his brother Ellis to see Dr. Michael Silka.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Can I see your pacemaker? Good.
GUPTA: That's right. Max has a pacemaker, actually it's his third. And he's only 6 years old. For parents Jennifer and Buck, the first sign of trouble came before Max was even born.
JENNIFER PAGE, MAX'S MOM: My 38-week appointment, we found out that Max had structural damage to his heart. They didn't know -- they couldn't get a heartbeat. They took an emergency C-section, and born in a whirlwind.
BUCK PAGE, MAX'S DAD: The last feeling I remember is it's almost hopelessness because it's out of my hands as a dad, and as a dad, that's not something you're used to.
JENNIFER MAX PAGE: I just said, please, just save my son. It's all we're here for. I don't even know what you just said. I don't understand anything you're going to do, I just -- I need you to save -- I need to have a chance to know this kid.
GUPTA: It's hard to imagine, but for mom and dad it was all a blur. Max was born with a heart condition known at Tetralogy of Fallot. It's rare. It includes four separate problems in the heart, which leads to a lack of oxygen in the blood.
Without a pacemaker, and eight major operations so far, Max probably wouldn't be here.
(On camera): Can you feel it, Max? Can you feel a pacemaker?
MAX PAGE: If you like touch it or like something hits it, it's kind of when I ever feel it.
DR. MICHAEL SILKA, CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL OF LOS ANGELES: You know, it's just like the movie "Cars," you know, they show the pistons and the engines going around, and you want them working together, right? You don't want one going like this, the other one going at a different rate. You have to have them working together.
GUPTA: And something like this for Max or for any child like Max should be cared for in a children's hospital? I mean could any hospital --
SILKA: No, no, this is a fairly sophisticated, fairly subspecialized area of medicine. I'm with -- I'm a pediatric electro physiologist. There are probably slightly over 100 of us in the country, so there aren't that many people who really do what we do.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GUPTA: And it's that kind of skill that Max needs.
Fred, there are only 56 of these specialized children's hospitals in the whole country. And as Washington talks about budget cuts, the programs that train these doctors, they're on the chopping block.
So little Max is headed to Capitol Hill next week to lobby for that program and also to argue against cuts to Medicaid which helps tens of millions of other kids. And we'll see how it goes -- Fred.
WHITFIELD: All right. Thanks so much, Sanjay.
And you can see the rest of Sanjay's report on mini Darth Vader, Max Page, on this weekend's "SANJAY GUPTA, MD". Washington feels the force this Saturday and Sunday at 7:30 a.m. Eastern right here on CNN.
All right. Young people are organizing in D.C. today because they are worried that they will be hurt if a debt deal isn't reached in time. I'll talk to one student body president.
And CNN reporters, anchors and producers, while we always have a bag packed, and we've got the inside scoop on some of the best restaurants, hotels, and travel spots around the globe.
In this week's "Travel Insider," CNN meteorologist Chad Myers takes us to his favorite science museum.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) MYERS (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 Tellus Science Museum. Behind me, the Periodic Table of Elements. I know you've 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 hadn't really heard about. But what is it and why is there a sprinkler head back there?
If that metal that's in your sprinkler had that melts in a fire and turns the water on because it has such a low melting point. Also very cool gems here from calcite, and quartz, and (INAUDIBLE) from all over the world, and especially here in Georgia.
Something else I love about this museum. There are very few places that you ever see this sign. "Please touch." Where is the "do not" in there? No, they want you to touch right there that. 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 here 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. The world 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 crusts and the lithosphere, places I've never even heard of. The lower mantle, the outer core and 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 112-pound meteor.
Chad Myers, CNN, Cartersville, Georgia.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: Here is a rundown of some of the stories we're working on. Next, students sound off about debt crisis with a letter to the president and to Congress.
Then, the end of the shuttle program means thousands are out of a job. Hear what they are doing to survive.
And later, they blog and tweet to demand change, but is it just laptop activism? Our guest calls it slacktivism.
All right, time is running out in the search for a deal to raise the country's debt limit. Talks continue today. The focus has shifted back to a short-term deal to buy more time for negotiators. Last hour I talked with CNN contributor, John Avalon, about the standoff over a broader reducing program.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOHN AVLON, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: It's a complete indictment of the dysfunctional culture of hyperpartisanship in Washington D.C. That these folks are trying to play political games when we've got an objective deadline approaching.
There's a hardcore group of folks in the Republican House in particular who are approaching negotiations with an all-or-nothing mindset. Now, look, it's a question of priorities. Tea Party members were elected by saying in large part they wanted to reduce the deficit and the debt, which they believed was generation theft.
The question is, is that your first priority, or drawing an absolute line on taxes?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: Our young people are unhappy that the debt crisis still has not been solved, so they have formed an organization called Do We Have a Deal Yet? It's a coalition of almost 120 student body presidents representing about 2 million college students. They're meeting in D.C. today to read a letter to the president and to U.S. Congress, letting them know that young people want politics to be put aside.
Joining me is Kaveh Sadeghian, president of the student assembly at the college of William and Mary. So, ood to see you.
KAVEH SADEGHIAN, STUDENT ASSEMBLY PRESIDENT, WILLIAM & MARY: Hi, thanks so much for having me.
WHITFIELD: Well, good to see you. So, what is your biggest fear if this debt deal is not reached in time?
SADEGHIAN: That's something that we're not choosing to really accept as a possibility at this point. The whole premise of Do We Have A Deal Yet is kind of banking on the fact that we will keep asking that question until it gets to a point where we have a deal. I mean, August 2nd is really the deadline we're looking at. But I think there's so much at stake at this point --
WHITFIELD: Tell me in your view, what you believe is at stake? Short term and long term, especially for your generation?
SADEGHIAN: Exactly. Well, one of the things we keep saying is we feel Washington is kicking the can about this, but we're here to basically show that the can can kick back, so to speak, because we're kind of that can. And we're not only facing the short-term things, but our generation -- we're going to be homeowners one day, we're going to be parents one day, and this is going to be affecting us way - you know, for years to come as we continue to grow older, so this is something that we feel that we need to have a voice in as well.
WHITFIELD: So, you're worried about Social Security, you're worried about interest rates, if you were to buy a home or car, etc., you worry about Medicare. If you had an opportunity, and perhaps lawmakers and even the president are listening to you right now, what would you say to them directly as to what you would want to see in this deal to help better secure your future?
SADEGHIAN: Essentially, we're asking -- and again, we're over 150 student body presidents, representing about 2 million students now. We come from a huge -- from such an electic variety of students. You know, to have 150-plus students, and we put all those things aside and we came to a consensus.
What we are asking -- there has to be shared sacrifice, and there has to be -- everything does have to be put on the table, but focus on the common purpose and focus on what America needs for the future because we need to stop acting as individuals and what is in the best interest of me or you, and start focusing on what is in the best interest of this country.
WHITFIELD: Okay, Kaveh Sadeghian, thank you so much for your time and we appreciate it. Enjoy your time in Washington.
SADEGHIAN: Thank you, appreciate it.
WHITFIELD: All right. Atlantis is back on the ground, but the future is up in the air for thousands of NASA workers now that the shuttle program is ending. We talk to some of them about their plans.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Main gear touchdown. Hurley now deploying the drag shoot.
WHITFIELD: Mission complete for the space shuttle Atlantis. The predawn landing at the Kennedy Space Center marked the end of 30 years of shuttle flights for NASA.
So, it's a day of mixed emotions at the Kennedy Space Center. The end of the shuttle program means the end of thousands of jobs. 2,300 NASA workers will be laid off within days. Almost 6,000 more will lose their jobs in the coming months. Some shuttle employees already moved on while others face an uncertain future. This story now from CNN's John Zarrella.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JOHN ZARRELLA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Stephanie Estrada is lucky. She knows it.
STEPHANIE ESTRADA, ATTORNEY: Every single step I have taken, it was timely and the right move, and -- for some reason it has worked out.
ZARRELLA: Stephanie is a lawyer. She wears suits. She wore them before, too, but those were called bunny suits, NASA speak for the garb you put on when working on spacecraft. Stephanie saw it coming. The shuttle program was ending. ESTRADA: I was willing to do anything, whether it be technology related or law related or working at McDonald's, I didn't care.
ZARRELLA: While still with NASA, she went to night school, got her law degree and left the space agency before it left her. By the time the three shuttles are sent to museums, nearly 8,000 people will have lost their jobs.
BILL BENDER, FORMER NASA EMPLOYEE: This was given to me as a -- just a reminder from everybody. They signed it.
ZARRELLA: Bill Bender already lost his. He ran the department that tracks and photographs shuttles as they liftoff and land. Bender thought he made a wise decision moving from shuttle to NASA's new constellation program. It was going to be the future, taking humans to deep space. Instead constellation got deep six'd. Five months ago, Bill found himself without a job.
BENDER: And I still want to be part of it, but I'm beginning to come to the point where maybe I need to maybe let it go and look after things and look after myself.
ZARRELLA: It's gotten to the point where Bill is giving thought to a job in Afghanistan working on perimeter defense imagery.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Thirty minutes to get this thing hooked up and get this thing all plugged in and ready to go on you.
ZARRELLA: As soon as Atlantis lands, Ray Zink will lead a convoy of trucks to the runway to prepare the shuttle for its next move. Zink's job won't end until the vehicles leave for museums. After that he plans to start up an organization that bring science and engineering to kids.
RAY ZINK, SHUTTLE MOVE DIRECTOR: We all have a lot of experience and knowledge that we would love to pass on to another generation. So, we figured let's get together, and let's find a place to do this and let's go where the kids are or bring them to us.
ZARRELLA: Zink has seen a lot of friends go. Within 24 hours of atlantis' landing, he will see more. 2,300 people will be leaving. The shuttle program is over. It's done.
John Zarrella, CNN, at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: The end of the shuttle program is not winning the support of many Americans. According to the latest CNN ORC poll, half of all Americans feel it is bad for the country. One third say no affect, and 16 percent believe the money can be used better elsewhere.
A generation demands change by "liking" protests on Facebook pages. Is it a lazy form of activism. Our guests explains slacktivism.
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FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: All right, they're known as the millennials. A generation that came of age at the turn of the century. They don't know a time when they went without a smartphone or a laptop. My next guest, comedian Dean Obiedallah, says their reliance on social media is turning them into a bunch of slackers. He says making a cyber comment, they are thinking that they are actually affecting the world and they don't take any action in the real world, he says, and he's calling it "slacktivism."
Dean, why have you been thinking so much about this so much to the effect that you wrote an article on this on cnn.com.
DEAN OBIEDALLAH, COFOUNDER, ARAB-AMERICAN COMEDY FESTIVAL: Well, I'm going to be honest, I am part of that generation. I'm a little bit older chronologically. I am -- I love social media. I mean follow me on Twitter. I love the whole experience. But for some people, and not all of them, frankly, but for some, the idea of this clicking like on a FaceBook article or re-tweeting someone else's thoughts makes you feel like you're an activist.
And then my point is, that's not enough. It's great to raise awareness. It really is an easy way to engage. It's never been easier. But you must take the next step to make effectively (ph) change.
WHITFIELD: OK.
OBIEDALLAH: And that's my whole reason I --
WHITFIELD: Except there are some recent examples. Just think Egypt and, you know, what some are now calling the "Arab Spring." You know, all of that, in large part, was ignited by some activism online, on FaceBook. Doesn't that count for something?
OBIEDALLAH: It does. And I perform as a standup comic a great deal in the Arab world, including Egypt. FaceBook helped link people together. It brought people together. But I can assure you, all the tweets in the world were not going to drive the leaders of Tunisia or Egypt out of their office. It was people going to the street and doing more. The same thing in America. We look at our history. Do you think if Martin Luther King did not go down and fight segregation, instead tweeted the "I Have A Dream" speech, it would have been that powerful? No. It would have taken hundreds of tweets.
I mean, but the point is, you have to do more. It is great to organize, but we must do more. Even if its protests, get involved in grass roots organizations, it's really simple to get involved today. So that's my -- I'm trying to tell people to get involved.
WHITFIELD: So let me guess, how are you going to convey that message? FaceBook?
OBIEDALLAH: FaceBook and Twitter , of course. No, I love social media. I'm not saying there's anything wrong with it. I don't like reality shows as much, because I think that's making us lazy and we sit around and we're this vieweristic (ph) generation where, you know, we watch people do things and we think -- oh, we judge them and feel good about ourselves. No, we -- of course. I mean I started "Comedians for Sarah Palin" on Twitter. And it's fun and it's joking but it tries to make a point at the same time. You know it's use it. But that's the first step, not the last step. And that's my point of this.
You know, the quote I have from Robert Kennedy is a real inspiration to me and practical. You know he says, few people can change all of history, but together, by making little steps, we can leave a legacy of our generation. And that's what I hope that we do. That we're aware of that slacktivism generation should not be the label. The kids, the young people today, the colleges that I perform for are smart, they're active in things, but just don't leave it on social media. Go out and do it in the streets.
WHITFIELD: You're worried that they just won't take it a step further?
OBIEDALLAH: That -- exactly it. Let's not just press "like" on FaceBook and like I feel good about myself. It's going to take more. And, believe me, elected officials are more impacted by people going out. Even 20 people protesting gets media coverage today. Look here at the young guy on earlier before today about the students for the debt deal. That gets media coverage. Little things like that can do it. I think young people today, they don't realize how little it takes to make a difference and to raise an issue and to get media coverage about an issue that you're passionate about.
WHITFIELD: All right. Well said. Dean Obiedallah, thanks so much. Always good to see you.
OBIEDALLAH: Thank you.
WHITFIELD: Appreciate it.
OBIEDALLAH: Nice seeing you. Thanks for having me, Fred.
WHITFIELD: All right. And our "Talk Back" question today centers on a classic battle, the separation of church and state. Should politicians even participate in religious events. Matt says this. "Political authorities should refrain from sponsoring or endorsing demonstrations such as public prayer, unless they are trying to promote unity among religious beliefs."
Our Carol Costello will be back with more of your responses after this.
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WHITFIELD: All right, you have been sounding off on our "Talk Back" question. Should politicians participate in religious events? Carol Costello back with your responses.
Carol.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Oh, boy, have people been responding.
WHITFIELD: I'm sure.
COSTELLO: Let's start with Jason, Fredricka. He said, oh they have -- Jason says, "politicians are Americans citizens too. They deserve to worship God or anything they want to. It's sickening how faithful "faithless" people are and their continual attack on those who do believe in a higher being."
Timothy says, "I wouldn't say shouldn't be involved. I would say shouldn't be leading. It is one thing to go to something, to pray, as a private citizen or leading seeing guidance. It is quite another to endorse a divisive religious opinion when we should be working together on the issues."
Tom Says, "when a politician leads a national prayer event, he's simply trying to be "seen by others." Jesus already told us not to pray in public. Don't they read the Bible they believe in?"
Olivia says, "that's their right. Yes, even if I don't agree with their religious views. It would be nice to know that some politicians have some type of moral compass."
Please keep the conversation going, facebook.com/carolcnn. And thanks, as always, for your response.
WHITFIELD: All right, we asked and people delivered. Thanks so much, Carol.
COSTELLO: Thank you, Fred.
WHITFIELD: And we also asked about this, what you want to see. Your "Choose The News" story just moments away.
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WHITFIELD: All right, this just in. The U.S. Treasury Department announced a few minutes ago that Chrysler has paid off its government loans under the TARP program six years early. Taxpayers committed $12.5 billion to save Chrysler. Treasury says taxpayers will lose $1.3 billion on the rescue. Chrysler is now fully owned by Fiat.
And you voted and we listened. Here is your "Choose The News" winner. They are Afghanistan's first female pilots and they're getting their wings right here in the USA.
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ED LAVANDERA, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The passion and dreams of these four women easily cuts through their broken English.
2ND LT. SOURYA SALEH, AFGHANISTAN ARMY: We are going to open the door for our ladies in Afghanistan. It's a big day for us to open this doors for others. That other ladies that have the dreams but they cannot do it, we want to show them.
LAVANDERA: These ladies are lieutenants in the Afghanistan military. They've come to the United States to study English at the Defense Language Institute at Lackland Air Force Base in Texas. But it's their dreams of piloting helicopters that could help change the future of women in their homeland.
COL. HOWARD JONES, U.S. DEFENSE LANGUAGE INSTITUTE: These young ladies are pathfinders. They're trailblazers. And as such, they are subject to the criticism, the antagonism of those that don't want to see this particular path plowed.
LAVANDERA: The soldiers say they're prepared for the scrutiny and are confident.
2ND LT. MARY SHARIFZADA, AFGHANISTAN ARMY: We will show the women of -- especially the women of Afghanistan that we don't (ph) afraid (ph) anything if you want -- if you want to do something new, you can do it. Just believe yourself that you can do it.
LAVANDERA: But back home, these women are still battling cultural chauvinism. Men who believe women have no place in the military.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Do you feel like you have the support of men in your country?
2ND LT. MASOOMA HUSSAINI, AFGHANISTAN ARMY: We have some examples that there are (INAUDIBLE) as like him. And maybe some of them think that it's not good that we are here.
LAVANDERA: One of the women's English instructors says these future pilots want to redefine the role of women in Afghan culture.
CHRISTINE WHITTEMORE, U.S. DEFENSE LANGUAGE INSTITUTE: They look at this as they're opening the door for a lot of other women in their country. And they're also changing the image, perhaps, the international image of the Afghan women. They understand the importance of this.
LAVANDERA (on camera): These four Afghan women will spend anywhere between six to eight months here in San Antonio at Lackland Air Force Base, where they'll be mastering the English language, learning the intricacies of military jargon. And then from here, they'll move to Alabama, where they'll train with the U.S. Army and learn how to be helicopter pilots.
LAVANDERA (voice-over): These four women wouldn't be the first female pilots in Afghanistan. There is one there now. Captain Latifa Nadizada (ph). She became a pilot more than 20 years ago. But it's clear the Afghan military is still adjusting to women in its ranks. This pilot and mother has to bring her child to work.
CPT. LATIFA NADIZADA (through translator): She comes with me every day. One day I'd like to see childcare in the air force.
LAVANDERA: She won't be alone any more in bringing a woman's touch to the Afghan military, as these four new ladies prepare to blaze new trails in the skies over their homeland.
Ed Lavandera, CNN, Lackland Air Force Base, Texas.
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WHITFIELD: And if your choice did not win or you just want to check out the runners up, I'll have links on them on Suzanne Malveaux's page at facebook.com/suzanne.
All right, the CNN NEWSROOM continues with Randi Kaye.
Randi, take it away.
RANDI KAYE, CNN ANCHOR: Hi there, Fred. Thank you.
