Return to Transcripts main page
CNN Newsroom
Life or Death for Troy Davis?; Palestinians Applying for U.N. Full Membership; Bus-Sized Satellite to Hit Earth Friday; Death at Seaworld; Battle for Gadhafi's Hometown; CNN Crew Under Fire in Sirte; Science on Trial; GOP Candidates and the Obama Plan
Aired September 19, 2011 - 14:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
RANDI KAYE, CNN ANCHOR: It is 2:00 p.m. in the East, exactly two days and five hours until Troy Davis is scheduled to be put to death. As you may know, Davis is the convicted killer of a Savannah, Georgia, police officer, but since he was sent to death row in 1991, seven of nine prosecution witnesses have recanted or changed their stories.
A campaign for clemency has spread around the world, but today the only views that matter belong to the Georgia Board of Pardons and Paroles. The board meeting now in Atlanta is Davis' last real hope to avoid execution 7:00 p.m. local time Wednesday.
My colleague David Mattingly, just outside today's hearing.
David, you told us last hour the defense testimony had ended. Is the state's testimony still being heard right now?
DAVID MATTINGLY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Randi. They're taking the prosecution and any comments from the family of the victim as last. They will have the last word in this. But right now the people supporting Troy Davis, after all that's been said, have finally said everything they could possibly say. The board has taken all of their evidence, all of their arguments, and they asked a lot of questions, we're told, while this was going on.
The attorneys for Davis tell me that they were looking particularly at three board members who were not on this board three years ago when this board denied clemency to Davis. We know historically, this board has never gone back on its decision, so everybody was looking at what these three board members, these new board members, would be saying and what they would be asking.
He came away telling me that they asked a lot of questions, they've done a lot of homework on this, that they've been studying the case for months, which was a good sign, he said. He also said they asked a lot of very detailed questions about information that has not gone into court, not part of the appeals system. This would include recent witnesses who have come forward implicating someone else in that 1989 shooting.
So they came away feeling like they had their full say, that a lot of good questions were asked. And now they're just going to have to wait. But, again, the final say is going to be had by prosecutors and by the victims in this case, the family of Officer MacPhail. That's what's going on right now inside.
Outside, you see supporters still out here. They've been going nonstop since before dawn this morning, nonstop messages of support for Mr. Davis -- Randi.
KAYE: And David, I want to share with our viewers someone who actually testified for the defense. That is the pastor of Ebenezer Baptist Church. Let's listen to what he had to say and I'll come right back to you.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RAPHAEL WARNOCK, SR. PASTOR, EBENEZER BAPTIST CHURCH: I am actually on my way to see Troy later today. I have visited with him a couple of times on death row. I'm very impressed with his faith.
He sent actually a message to my congregation by letter the other day, and I read it to the congregation yesterday. He said that he believes that God is with him and that God moves slowly, but that justice will prevail.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KAYE: And David, from what I understand, Troy Davis' family isn't even thinking about an execution right now. They say that they are planning ahead, they're planning on days past this execution date.
When will we actually know what the board decides?
MATTINGLY: Any time between now and the execution time. Everyone is very acutely aware that that is Wednesday evening.
This board has a lot to consider, a lot to look at, but, again, this has been in front of them for a long time now. It's impossible to know what those five board members will -- how they will act and when they will act on this, or what they are finding important as they go through this hearing.
But one thing is clear, Randi. They do have the power of life and death in this case, so you know they're going to be making this very carefully.
KAYE: Oh, I'm sure. A lot of pressure for those board members, for sure.
David Mattingly there in Atlanta.
David, thank you very much.
And now to Washington, where President Obama has revamped his grand bargain for bringing down the deficit. He's kept the "grand," but left the bargaining for later, if ever. While a bipartisan congressional super committee tries to find $1.2 trillion in government savings, the president unveiled a $3 trillion mix of spending cuts and tax reforms. The cuts would come from Medicare, Medicaid, and other so-called mandatory programs from reduced war spending in Iraq and Afghanistan, and from interest payments that drop as we borrow less.
Now, on the revenue side, the president wants to let the Bush-era tax cuts expire. We've heard that before. He'd also cap deductions for high earners and close a variety of loopholes. We should point out a pretty good chunk of these new revenues would pay for the jobs plan the president proposed last week.
Today, Mr. Obama scolded House Speaker John Boehner for ruling out tax hikes, but then issued a warning of his own.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I will not support any plan that puts all the burden for closing our deficit on ordinary Americans. And I will veto any bill that changes benefits for those who rely on Medicare, but does not raise serious revenues by asking the wealthiest Americans or biggest corporations to pay their fair share.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KAYE: And that brings me to what's being called the "Buffett Rule," as explained by CNN Chief Political Correspondent Candy Crowley.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CANDY CROWLEY, CNN CHIEF POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The president's plan to pay for his jobs program includes the idea of a millionaire minimum tax rate at least as high as middle class rates. The administration calls it the "Buffett Rule" for billionaire investor Warren Buffett.
WARREN BUFFETT, CHAIRMAN, BERKSHIRE HATHAWAY: I have a lower tax rate, counting payroll taxes, than anybody in my office.
CROWLEY: It's a catchy moniker designed to help sell an idea, a plan that is populist at its core, although Republicans call it something else entirely.
SEN. LINDSEY GRAHAM (R), SOUTH CAROLINA: When you pick one area of the economy and you say we're going to tax those people, because most people are not those people, that's class warfare.
REP. PAUL (R-WI), CHAIRMAN, BUDGET COMMITTEE: Class warfare will simply divide this country more, will attack job creators, divide people, and it doesn't grow the economy.
CROWLEY: Opposition to tax rates for the wealthy on a par with middle class rates is tricky politics. It sounds completely sane and only fair, certainly when put in the hands of a master politician.
WILLIAM JEFFERSON CLINTON, FMR. PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: If you look at the group that has had the biggest income increases, and the benefit of most of the tax cuts of the previous eight years, before the Obama administration took office, those of us in that income group, we're in the best position to make a contribution to changing the debt structure of the country.
CROWLEY: Republicans say they're all for tax fairness, but as part of a major overhaul of the tax system that closes loopholes and lowers rates for everyone. They have a friend in Democratic budgeteer Alice Rivlin.
ALICE RIVLIN, ECONOMIST: I'm very fond of Warren Buffett. I think his basic observation that he pays too little taxes is right. But the way to fix the tax code is to fix the tax code, not to add another complication.
CROWLEY (on camera): See, you're nodding.
(voice-over): The GOP also insists there are plenty of places the rich can pony up, particularly when it comes to a Republican pet project, Medicare and Social Security reform. Take a memo for Mr. Buffet.
SEN. MITCH MCCONNELL (R), MINORITY LEADER: With regard to his tax rate, if he's feeling guilty about it, I think he should send in a check. But we don't want to stagnate this economy by raising taxes.
CROWLEY: Given the Republican House Speaker's consistent opposition to tax hikes, the Buffett Rule looks like a no-go. Republicans suspect that's just what the president had in mind.
SEN. DICK DURBIN (D), ASST. MAJORITY LEADER: I wonder if John Boehner knows what it sounds like when he continues to say the position of the Republican Party in America is it that you can't impose one more penny in taxes on the wealthiest people. I wonder if he understands how that sounds in Ohio to working families who are struggling paycheck to paycheck.
CROWLEY: What looks DOA on Capitol Hill may have many lives on the campaign trail.
Candy Crowley, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
(NEWSBREAK)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAYE: World leaders are gathering in New York City for the annual opening of the United Nations General Assembly. The Palestinians' bid for full membership is expected to dominate this week's high-level meetings.
The United Nations, all 193 nations, are represented in the General Assembly. You can consider the General Assembly really the main policymaking body of the U.N. like our Congress, but each country, rich or poor, small or large, gets equal representation, one vote.
A full range of international issues is on the table, including historic talks today on diseases such as HIV, diabetes and cancer. But the big question weighing over this session is whether the U.N. will recognize Palestine as a state.
So let's go straight to our senior State Department producer, Elise Labott, who's keeping an eye on the General Assembly for us in New York.
Hi, Elise.
ELISE LABOTT, CNN SR. STATE DEPARTMENT PRODUCER: Hi, Randi.
KAYE: So we understand that the U.N. secretary-general and the Palestinian president, Mahmoud Abbas, met today. Do you have any details about their meeting?
LABOTT: That's right. Well, we're hearing both from the Palestinians and from the United Nations, President Abbas told U.N. Secretary- General Ban Ki-moon he's making good on his promise to go to the U.N. Security Council later this week to apply for full statehood to the United Nations.
The secretary-general said, well, I'm obligated, as secretary-general, to let the Security Council know, and I'll do that. But, Randi, a lot of negotiations going behind the scenes, trying to convince President Abbas to go another route, to go that General Assembly route that you discussed, which perhaps could upgrade the Palestinians' status with the U.N., but also kind of maintain -- contain the fallout, if you will, and preserve a chance of the U.S. and others really trying to get together, back to negotiations.
They say the road to a Palestinian state isn't in New York, here at the U.N., it's in Jerusalem at the table.
KAYE: How feasible though, Elise, do you think this really is for the Palestinians to find statehood and be granted full membership as well?
LABOTT: Well, I don't think right now the full membership at the U.N. Security Council is in the cards. We're not going to see some magic moment this week.
They could submit the application. There's a lot of talk that it could be delayed, and perhaps give him that big victory he wanted to go to the U.N. Security Council, but not really have a confrontation.
The United States, as we've been reporting, has threatened to veto. And perhaps the U.S. and others are going to even block, not even giving him a majority, which would really be political suicide for him. No one wants to see a big confrontation here this week, so what they're hoping is that he'll go to the U.N. Security Council and upgrade his status.
It's also really unclear what he's going to do. Last week in his speech, President Abbas did say that he was open to some kind of last- ditch attempt, but a lot of people do see it as a tactical move to get as much as he can. But some say, listen, this is the Palestinians' moment. The Palestinians certainly think of this as a kind of rendezvous with history.
They're saying we haven't gotten any legitimacy at the table with the Israelis, we want to seek international legitimacy. And they do have a lot of support within the U.N. community. As you said, there are 190 foreign nations. There is a lot of support for Palestinian statehood.
KAYE: And just very quickly, we also mentioned that another topic there are going to be these non-communicable diseases. What do we know about that?
LABOTT: Well, all the nations of the General Assembly got together, a very high-level summit, a lot of heads of state and foreign ministers, about how to deal with diseases like cancer, heart disease, lung disease. These are what they call in some way lifestyle diseases, which are affected by tobacco use, alcoholism. And how do they start promoting a healthier lifestyle which could perhaps end some of these communicable diseases, or at least decrease them, and not have such a drain on world populations?
A lot of these deaths are in developing countries. And so they want to promote better living, better eating, less alcohol and food, and attention to these kind of killers that are really doing a lot more to the population than we talk about.
KAYE: Yes. Certainly a lot going on there at the U.N. this week.
LABOTT: Absolutely.
KAYE: Elise Labott --
LABOTT: An exciting week.
KAYE: Oh, yes. I'm sure. Thank you very much.
LABOTT: Sure.
KAYE: So, a bus-sized satellite that's out of gas is threatening to hit the Earth. I am not kidding. Where it is expected to land, the odds of it possibly hitting people, and how you can track its location, live. We'll have it all for you next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAYE: I have been waiting to show you this all day. Take a look at this spectacular time lapse view from the International Space Station as it orbits the Earth.
As you can see, it starts over the Pacific Ocean, it flies above North and South America, before entering daylight near Antarctica. By the way, those occasional flashes of light, yes, they are indeed lightning. And speaking of outer space, a bus-sized satellite weighing six tons is out of gas, so to speak, and heading towards the Earth's surface. NASA says the Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite, also called UARS, was decommissioned in 2005. And instead of adding it to the space junk orbiting Earth, NASA decided, well, to bring it down.
As you see in this animation, Shuttle Discovery launched UARS into orbit in 1991. The satellite collected data about the Earth's atmosphere and its interaction with the sun. Now that it's decommissioned, NASA is taking it out of orbit. Quite simple.
The program's integration manager tells "The Washington Post," "Rest assured that we have it totally in control." But still, a satellite is expected to hit the Earth on Friday. People are wondering, well, where is it going to land?
So, for that, of course, we turn to the man with all the answers on this kind of stuff, Chad Myers.
Tell me it's not heading South. Is it?
CHAD MYERS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: I can tell you from a weatherman's perspective that it's got a 71 percent chance of hitting water.
KAYE: OK.
MYERS: Is that good?
KAYE: That's not good for the fish, but it's good for us.
MYERS: Because the Earth is covered in 71 percent water. That's why.
KAYE: There you go.
MYERS: That's where that number comes from.
There is no possible way that I could tell you where it's going to land without being able to tell you what quick shop would sell the winning Powerball tonight.
KAYE: Darn. I was turning to you for both.
MYERS: The same idea. No, can't do either one, and here's why. Because even NASA says that there's about a one day plus or minus as to when they know this is going to fall.
And then, even after they give us that two-hour window -- that's like a two-minute warning -- it's a two-hour warning -- there's still plus or minus 25 minutes from that two hours. So hour, and a half or two- and-a-half hours from when they tell us it's going to fall. The only problem is it's going so fast that, in that time, this thing travels 7,000 miles.
Look at all the rest of this space junk up there that has to fall down someday. Four thousand pieces of junk up there. There's 1,000 satellites that are actually really working. There goes one fast. He's a high atmospheric satellite.
Look at that one kind of going across there. I love watching that.
Let me get on Google Earth. This is what it looks like, about the size of a bus.
There will be 26 pieces that actually make it to the surface. I know a lot of it will burn up, but 26 pieces will not burn up.
And where will it land? Well, around and around she goes, where she stops nobody knows. Kind of like a carnival barker, I believe, here.
Here it is right there. It is over Northern Africa at this point in time. But the success of travels takes it one and then another, and then another, and it goes around the Earth, because that's what it was supposed to do.
It was supposed to take pictures of the entire Earth over the entire day. So, it goes around, and the Earth spins under it.
When it falls down, we'll have a couple of hours. If it starts to go out of the atmosphere somewhere down in the South Pacific, and it's running over the north Atlantic coast, or somewhere up in here, we will know right away.
You can go on to -- and this is another Web site I want to get to you -- you can go on to NASA, and you can go to @NASA on your Twitter box, or you can go UARS, and NASA will let us know when it feels that it's falling out of the atmosphere.
It was supposed to be Saturday, but because of a little bit of solar activity, kind of a little solar storm over the weekend, they have pushed it ahead. That solar storm actually pushed the satellite a little closer to its death.
They don't have any control over this thing. They can't turn it left, they can't turn it right, they can't make it go down anymore.
There's the live tracker right there, kind of heading on up. You saw it just a little bit ago. It was over Northern Africa.
Now you see where it is. What is that? That's the Black Sea. That's a little bit too far away for me to see, but there you go, Caspian Sea, heading on up.
So this thing is going to keep running around for the next couple of days, and then it will come splashing down. The biggest chunk is 600 pounds now. As it gets to the ground, it will be 300 pounds. And that could leave a mark.
KAYE: Yes, just a bit of a mark. Well, I wrote down all those Web sites, so I'm going to track it and make sure it's not heading our way.
Chad, thank you.
MYERS: We'll keep you up to date, too.
KAYE: OK. I know you will. Thank you.
MYERS: You're welcome.
KAYE: Well, the government says SeaWorld is to blame for this whale killing a trainer. SeaWorld calls the allegations baseless. Up next, all sides to this tragic and controversial story.
But first, a high-tech executive is reinventing himself, moving from flip cams to -- grilled cheese?
Dan Simon explains in "The Connection."
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DAN SIMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Jonathan Kaplan made shooting video a breeze as inventor of the flip cam.
JONATHAN KAPLAN, THE MELT: My interest in technology has basically been as a tool to make consumers happy and to develop products that consumers love.
SIMON: Kaplan sold his company to tech giant Cisco for $590 million. Cisco wound up abandoning the flip in today's era of do-everything smartphones, but Kaplan's sense of what consumers want he thinks he still has got it with this.
Yes, it's a grilled cheese sandwich. He's launching a chain of restaurants called The Melt. The first one opening in San Francisco. Quite a radical transition from those engineering rooms in Silicon Valley.
(on camera): So how do you go from making camcorders to grilled cheese sandwiches? Well, Kaplan says there are some similarities. Both, he says, are about creating a fun, easy experience for customers.
You're a guy who could have happily retired, yet you chose to go into the restaurant business, which may even be harder than the consumer electronics business.
KAPLAN: Well, it's exciting. You know, I think to me, the idea of making people smile and making them happy has always been what motivated me. And the idea of a grilled cheese and soup does nothing except for bring a smile on to your face.
SIMON (voice-over): That may be the case, but as you might have expected, Kaplan has a share of online skeptics.
"Who does he think he is, Ray Kroc?" referring to the man behind McDonald's phenomenal success. "I predict another empty store front by this time next year," says another.
But Kaplan says, just wait.
KAPLAN: Once you try The Melt, you're, like, wow, this is the grilled cheese I wish my mom made, not the grilled cheese my mom made.
SIMON: Customer reception thus far? Lines out the door.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I love it. I'm from Wisconsin, so I know cheese, and this is good.
SIMON: Kaplan hasn't let go of his passion for technology. It took customized cooking equipment to make the sandwiches quickly and get the right consistency.
The Melt is also big on mobile.
KAPLAN: We need to let people order on their mobile phones, pay with their mobile phones, pick up with their mobile phones, because that's going to be the way they want to do things.
SIMON: His goal is to open 500 of these restaurants in the next couple of years. Maybe that Ray Kroc comparison will be true after all.
Dan Simon, CNN, San Francisco.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAYE: SeaWorld Orlando is defending itself in federal court today over the death of a whale trainer. In February, 2010, as park guests watched in horror, trainer Dawn Brancheau, seen here, was pulled into the water and drowned by a 22-foot-long, 1,200-pound killer whale named Tilikum, the same whale that was involved in the 1991 death of a trainer in Vancouver.
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration investigated the incident and cited SeaWorld for three safety violations, including one willful citation that accuses SeaWorld of exposing employees to hazardous conditions when working with killer whales. SeaWorld has dismissed the allegations as unfounded and is contesting them.
Who, if anyone, do you think is to blame? Let's take a look back.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KAYE (voice-over): You're looking at video of Seaworld trainer Dawn Brancheau. A tourist taped this. It was just moments before the 12- pound killer whale called "Tilikum" took the veteran trainer into his mouth and dove under water.
Brancheau sways from side to side, he follows. She splashes him with buckets of water and feeds him fish, a reward for playing along. Then, suddenly, his behavior seemed to change. The wife of the tourist who took this video described what happened on NBC.
SUE CONNELL, WITNESSED SEAWORLD ATTACK: He grabbed her by the head and in a very hard thrust she went down and I screamed and she screamed. Then I started yelling to the other trainer because he wasn't he looking, I said, he just took her down, he took her down.
KAYE: Look closely at this video. You can see Brancheau's long ponytail swinging back and forth. But it may not have looked attractive to the six-ton killer whale until she got closer. The man who trained her said she made a fatal mistake.
THAD LACINAK, FORMER HEAD TRAINER AT SEAWORLD: I think she made a mistake by putting her -- allowing herself to be that close to his mouth and laying down. That's a pretty vulnerable position to be in with an animal like him. So I think -- I think even if Dawn was sitting here with me right now she would tell you that that was a mistake that she made.
KAYE (on camera): Remember, Tilikum had killed before. In 1991, he and two other whales dragged a trainer who had fallen into their pool under water at a park in British Columbia. Thad Lucinak says that's why Seaworld was more cautious with him. Trainers were not allowed to swim with Tilikum.
LUCINAK: He's not used to people being in the water. He was laying there looking at her. She was rubbing him down and all of a sudden the ponytail was there.
KAYE (voice-over): On this video, you can see what he's talking about. Brancheau is on a shelf that slides out into the pool, laying in about four inches of water right next to the 22-foot-long orka.
LUCINAK: The ponytail drifted there, he probably grabbed it and then pulled her in. Then went, whoa, I've got to her in the water.
KAYE (on camera): Lucinak who has worked with whales for more than three decades says he is convinced at least in the beginning that Tilikum had no idea he was doing anything wrong or hurting his trainer. He says Brancheau understandably panicked and that drama only got the killer whale more excited.
(voice-over): The medical examiner says Dawn Brancheau likely died from multiple traumatic injuries and drowning.
LUCINAK: I constantly remind trainers, never get comfortable, totally comfortable with the animals.
KAYE: He says there's a reason these whales are called killer whales and what they may think is a game can be fatal.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KAYE: As we mentioned, Seaworld is challenging those findings. We'll continue to keep you updated on that case.
Coming up, attacking Gadhafi's hometown, a CNN crew under fire. The incredible sights and sounds in a report you will only see right here on CNN. That's next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) KAYE: A fierce battle is under way for control of the Libyan city of Sirte, the hometown of ousted leader Moammar Gadhafi. It's one of a handful of pro-Gadhafi strongholds still left in the country.
Heavy fighting yesterday left more than 20 rebel fighters dead and dozens wounded. CNN's Phil Black and his crew came under fire for several terrifying minutes. Here's his firsthand account of how it all went down.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
PHIL BLACK, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Revolutionary fighters advancing through Sirte. A commander sees movement in the distance. He calls for one gunman to fire. The rest of the unit joins in, shooting wildly. They come under fire. An ambulance is hit by a rocket-propelled grenade. They and we are caught in the open.
(on camera): It started off -- seemingly taking a pot shot across something in the distance. A lot of the fighters then opened up. Then there was some big return fire.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Turn around!
BLACK (voice-over): CNN producer Ian Lee was hit.
IAN LEE, CNN PRODUCER: I've been shot. Down, down, down, get down.
BLACK: Go, go, go! Watch the left. Get down. Right side, go to the right side of everything. Go, go, go. That's it, good.
(voice-over): We start to check Ian's injury.
(on camera): It looks like there's still a piece of shrapnel inside. You can feel it?
LEE: Yes. When he was moving around, I could feel it inside.
BLACK (voice-over): At a nearby field hospital, medics help Ian while dealing with their own grief.
(on camera): A colleague of these men was killed in the same attack just meters away from where we are, we think hit the ambulance that was near us.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is our colleague. He is paramedic and at the same time ambulance driver.
BLACK: What was his name and how old was he?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (Inaudible).
BLACK: And how old was he?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He was about 27, 28.
BLACK: Tell me about him.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: At 9:00 morning, he wake up me and the hospital to tell me he go to the front line. We joking that ambulance -- we are coming here. Suddenly he came to us.
BLACK (voice-over): This medic was there, too. He saw his friend die, but he must keep working. Casualties keep coming. On this day alone, more than 20 revolutionary fighters are killed in the chaotic battle for Sirte. Phil Black, CNN, Sirte, Libya.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KAYE: Incredible reporting there by Phil Black. As you just saw in his report, those Gadhafi loyalists who are still fighting are showing no signs of giving up and rebel forces say some loyalist fighters are targeting civilians.
A rebel spokesman says they kidnapped 18 civilians yesterday and executed 12 of them. He also accused the loyalists of firing from mosques and civilian homes.
All right, still to come, predicting earthquakes, even for scientists it is still a stab in the dark. So why are six Italian scientists being tried in court after a deadly earthquake two years ago? You won't believe the answer. That is next.
But first, following the death it of singer Amy Winehouse, her father has established a foundation in her name. Its aim, to help causes that had special meaning to her. Mitch Winehouse explains in our "Impact Your World" segment.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I was in New York City, and my cell phone rang and it was Andrew, our security guy, and he broke the news to me that Amy had died.
In my mind immediately was Amy Winehouse Foundation. She loved children and one of her greatest wishes was to have children of her own. We're looking to help hundreds of charities.
The mission statement is very much to help children who are suffering from economic disadvantage, who are ill, who are suffering with drug abuse. Her legacy will be the foundation as well as her music.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAYE: It is one of earth's great mysteries. Scientists have yet to fully understand, predicting exactly when an earthquake might strike. After last month's earthquake in Virginia, workers at the National Zoo in Washington said several animals began to act differently, somehow sensing something big was about to happen.
Call it a sixth or seventh sense perhaps humans don't seem to have that gift. So that makes next week's trial in Italy especially on the surface at least perplexing. You see six scientists and an official have been indicted on manslaughter for not accurately predicting the deadly earthquake in L'Auila two years ago that killed 309 people.
The magnitude 6.3 quake struck the night of April 6th, 2009. It devastated the medieval Italian city and it came without much warning. Depending on who you ask, of course. Prosecutors say scientists are to blame for the little warning, giving residents there a false sense of security.
Scientists say the earth gave little warning claiming they can't possibly be held responsible for pinpointing the quake before it happened. All right, so the question is, who is actually right here?
Joining me now to discuss this is CNN meteorologist Chad Myers and Lisa Bloom, attorney and author of the "New York Times" bestseller "Think, Straight Talk for Women to Stay Smart in a Dumb Down World."
Thank you both for joining me to discuss this. Chad, let me start with you. You believe actually that the plaintiffs have a case here. Why is that?
CHAD MYERS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Don't misunderstand me. This is not a slam dunk by any stretch of the imagination. But there may be a case because of some misinformation put out by some officials. There were 400 small earthquakes in this region leading up to this.
There was one scientist -- I'll talk about this in a bit -- that was warning days in advance are, an earthquake is coming, an earthquake is coming. The other scientists said, yes, well, it's possible, but not probable. I think we're OK.
Then the official said, there's no problem, go have a glass of red wine. Well, there was a problem, I suppose, for some people, if you're on one side of the aisle.
KAYE: So, Lisa, let me ask you. I mean, what are your thoughts legally? Did the prosecution have any holes in its case here?
LISA BLOOM, ATTORNEY AND BEST-SELLING AUTHOR: Well, it sounds far- fetched, doesn't it? I mean, in our country it's hard to imagine scientists being charged with manslaughter for failure to warn about an earthquake. But as Chad says, there are facts that make this unusual.
Apparently, for hundreds of years there have been earthquakes in this town and there had been advance tremors and people have a little bit of warning. They were able to get out and save their lives and the lives of loved ones.
Here, if these officials said, don't worry, everything is fine. I'm a scientist. You can trust me, and in fact, that was wrong information and over 300 people lost their lives. Perhaps they should be held accountable.
I think a criminal trial is a little bit much holding them accountable or manslaughter. You know, revoking their licenses, perhaps a civil trial. That's how we would handle it here in the U.S.
But there's a difference between failing to warn and giving false information that led people to their deaths. I think that's the key distinction here.
KAYE: So Chad, I mean, help us understand what scientists actually do know about predicting. I mean, if it they can't be absolutely positive, what can they tell us?
MYERS: Well, we do know that there are foreshocks, sometimes there's aftershocks when an earthquake happens. But sometimes there's a smaller quake before and people go riding into the streets and then the big shake comes and its' OK.
But what happened here in this case, and this is what the prosecution is going to be looking at, there was a scientist that knew about ground water radon. The earth had all of that shaking, 400 earthquakes had put some radon into groundwater wells.
This scientist said, wait a minute, I've never seen this much radon in these wells. Something is going on below the surface. This is my warning. But the problem was, he put out a 24-hour warning.
It it's going to happen. It's going to p happen. He told the mayor of the city and then it didn't happen in 24 hours so everybody went back to their old thing, saying this it guy is just a quack. It happens six days later.
KAYE: So, but if you look at what's going on here, Lisa, we have about 5,000 scientists from around the world basically saying that science is on trial here. So how do you get around that? Does it sound to you that it it's really science that's on trial?
BLOOM: Well, I don't know exactly what that means. You know, science is on trial in many cases here in the U.S. where we have battles of the experts over all kinds of things, including the upcoming Michael Jackson doctor trial. Science is going to be on trial.
So that's not unusual and that might be a little bit of an overreaction. When you first hear about the case, you think it sounds crazy, right, they're being tried because they didn't predict an earthquake. Nobody can predict an earthquake.
But when you drill down into the facts of this case, if they did not operate in good faith, if they told people there was nothing to worry about and 300 people lost their lives and that information was not given in good faith or given negligently, then you have to have are sympathy for these people.
As I said, there is historical context. For hundreds of years they have been warned. They have been safe. They have relied on their local scientists.
KAYE: All right, Lisa Bloom, Chad Myers, such an interesting case. Interesting discussion. We'll continue to follow it. Thank you both.
BLOOM: Thank you.
KAYE: All right, I want to show you something because this is really important for a lot of people and a lot of kids in schools these days. If you've been bullied or you're worried about someone who may have been bullied or may be even be doing the bullying, I want to show you a Facebook app that could really prove useful.
I have it up right here on my screen. You can see, it's called stop bullying, speak up. It's right here on my computer. It's really important because it's a result of a partnership between Facebook and Time Warner, the parent company, but it's interactive, too. I want to click this map for you.
This is the "I Spoke Up" map, which I was really fascinated by because you can actually look, as you drag your mouse over it, how many, for example, in New Mexico total pledges four people spoke up, you can share your own story, you can talk about the app with others.
It it's really just another way to make a difference. You know, we've done a lot of stories here at CNN on bullying and how important it is to get help and speak up no matter what you think might happen.
Just share your voice, share your story. You can do that here. Anderson cooper, by the way, will host a second town hall special on bullying. We should tell you that will air Sunday October 9th 8:00 p.m. Eastern.
So you probably want to tune in for that as well. A really important cause, stop bullying, speak up.
So he lost his job, his bid for the presidency. Now it's time for Dominique Strauss-Kahn to "face the music," next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAYE: Every day on this show we take time out to point a finger at someone who's really skewed up. Well, today, who better than Dominique Strauss-Kahn, former head of the International Monetary Fund.
He has been at the center of the he said/she said alleged rape of a New York City hotel maid case for months. But now, only after the maid accusing him, was successfully painted as a liar and charges against Strauss-Kahn dropped, that he dropped this bombshell.
He told French TV that the incident in New York was, quote, "not only an inappropriate relationship, but more than that an error, a mistake." Yes, Strauss-Kahn now admits he behaved badly. Don't get me wrong, he's still denying there was any violence or aggression.
He went on to say, quote, "it was a moral weakness, a moral mistake." No kidding. It took you this long to figure out that making a move on the woman cleaning your hotel room was wrong? You could have said this publicly weeks ago from the comfort of your $50,000 a month New York City apartment as police and prosecutors searched for the truth. Strauss-Kahn has paid a small price for his behavior. He resigned from the IMF and ended his bid for the presidency of France. And did I mention that according to the "New York Times," the French TV anchor who interviewed Strauss-Kahn is a friend of his wife's and hardly raised an eyebrow when he said during throughout this ordeal he felt, quote, "trapped and humiliated."
Poor guy. Whatever you did or didn't do, Dominique Strauss-Kahn, it is time for you to finally "Face the Music".
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAYE: Well, we've been talking a lot on today's show about President Obama's deficit reduction plan. How is it all playing in Washington? Let's check in with Peter Hamby for a political update. Hi, there, Peter.
PETER HAMBY, CNN POLITICAL PRODUCER: Hi, Randi. Well, yes, one man's revenue enhancements or another man's free enterprise crushing tax increases. That's the line from the Republican presidential candidates today who uniformly came out swinging against President Obama's deficit reduction plan.
The two front-runners put out these statements. I want to read them to you. Mitt Romney said, quote, "President Obama's plan to raise taxes will have a crushing impact on economic growth. Higher taxes mean fewer jobs. It's that simple. This is yet another indication that President Obama has no clue how to bring our economy back."
And Rick Perry, the Texas governor who's beating Romney slightly in the polls said this, "President Obama's plan is a bait and switch that offers more than a trillion dollars in higher taxes for a promise of temporary tax relief."
You know, Jon Huntsman called it disappointing, Ron Paul calling it class warfare, really echoing some of the talking points you heard from Mitch McConnell and Paul Ryan on the Sunday shows yesterday about President Obama's plan to implement $1.5 trillion in tax increases on the rich and corporations.
So expect this to be a talking point on the campaign trail in Iowa, New Hampshire, South Carolina, Nevada and Florida. We're going to hear these Republicans candidates I guarantee you in the coming weeks saying that President Obama wants to increase taxes on what they're going to say business owners, the job creators in this economy.
And that's exactly the wrong thing to be doing. You know, no surprise, again, Randi that the Republican candidates are uniformly against President Obama's plan today, Randi.
KAYE: Yes, and these are the GOP candidates obviously who are not in office. They are plenty of Republicans in office who sound like they're just are as unhappy.
HAMBY: Yes, that's right. I mean, this is a collision course in the making with John Boehner, the speaker of the House. I mean, he's vowed to, you know, not include any tax increases in any deficit reduction deal and President Obama pretty aggressively said today that needs to be part the package or he's going to veto it.
KAYE: All right, Peter Hamby, appreciate the update. Thank you so much. And that will do it for my time with you today. I will hand it over now to Brooke Baldwin. Hi, Brooke.
BROOKE BALDWIN, CNN ANCHOR: Ms. Kaye, thank you very much. Have a wonderful rest of your day.
