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Conrad Murray Trial Begins; Battle in Moammar Gadhafi's Hometown; U.S. Supreme Court Justices Decide on Docket; Jackson's Doctor Goes on Trial; The Power of Propofol; Brave Park Ranger Praised
Aired September 27, 2011 - 11:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
MARTIN SAVIDGE, CNN ANCHOR: Live from Studio 7, I'm Martin Savidge, in for Suzanne Malveaux. And let's get you up to speed for Tuesday, September 28th.
A sensational celebrity trial opens in Los Angeles in a courtroom there this hour. Dr. Conrad Murray is charged with manslaughter in the death of pop icon Michael Jackson. Jackson died of an overdose of anesthesia and other drugs in 2009.
Attorney Tom Mesereau successfully defended Jackson against child molestation charges in 2005.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TOM MESEREAU, FMR. JACKSON DEFENSE ATTORNEY: And the prosecution has to effectively and powerfully educate this jury that this particular drug is not like a prescription medication. It's not like a pill to help you go to sleep. It's not like an antidepressant pill. This is so radically different from prescribed medications, and this is something that is powerful, dangerous, and should never be in a home.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SAVIDGE: We plan to bring you portions of opening statements. That will be live when things get going.
Well, another high-profile trial is winding down. This one in Italy.
Lawyers for American Amanda Knox will make their final arguments this week. They are hope to convince a jury to overturn her murder conviction. Knox herself is expected to make a personal plea to the court. Prosecutors contend that Knox and her boyfriend slit her roommate's throat during rough sex. A lawyer in the case calls Knox a "diabolical, demonic she-devil" who thrived on hot, wild sex.
Libyan fighters say that they have seized the port of Sirte today. But troops loyal to Moammar Gadhafi still control most parts of the city. Sirte is Gadhafi's tribal home and one of several towns not under control of Libya's new political leadership.
Washington dodges a government shutdown. Lawmakers have a deal in hand to pay the federal government's bills through mid-November. A final vote is expected next week, when the House returns from break.
The spending bill was held up because Democrats and Republicans just couldn't agree on emergency funding for FEMA. That's the disaster relief agency.
President Obama is wrapping up a Western swing today. He will pitch his new jobs bill in Denver. At a Hollywood fund-raiser last night, the president reminded Republicans they were in charge in the run-up to the economy's big meltdown.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We knew that because this crisis had taken years to build up it was going to take some years to fix. So the question we have to face now is not whether people are hurting. Everybody knows that America has gone through a very difficult time, and there are folks all across California and all across the country that are still struggling.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SAVIDGE: The House of Blues fund-raiser was one of seven that the president attended on this trip.
Joran Van der Sloot admits that he killed a Peruvian woman in a newly-released videotape from police. He matter of factly describes how he elbowed Stephany Flores in the head, then strangled her with both hands in a hotel room.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): So it is true, and I'm going to ask you this, and you can say yes or no. Did you kill Stephany Tatiana Flores?
JORAN VAN DER SLOOT, CONVICTED OF MURDERING STEPHANY FLORES: Yes.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): You killed Stephany Tatiana Flores, right?
SLOOT: Yes.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SAVIDGE: His former lawyer claims that Van der Sloot killed Flores after she discovered information about Natalee Holloway on his computer. Van der Sloot was arrested twice but never charged in Holloway's disappearance in Aruba. And that was in 2005.
Workers are dangling off the side of the Washington Monument today, inspecting each block of marble. Damage from last month's earthquake is worse than first thought. The monument is closed indefinitely.
The government has released security camera video from inside the monument. It shakes violently during the quake, as you can see. Engineers say despite the damage, the Washington Monument is structurally sound.
The Postal Service is trying to generate excitement and, oh, yes, a little bit of cash to close its big budget gap. For the first time, it will put the image of a living person on the stamp, and the service is asking for your suggestions. Politicians currently in office or running -- well, don't think about it
All right. Back to our lead story, the Michael Jackson death trial.
Opening statements are expected to start soon in the manslaughter case against Dr. Conrad Murray. He of course was Michael Jackson's personal doctor and was with Jackson when he died.
Our Ted Rowlands is outside the Superior Court building in Los Angeles.
Ted, what do we expect in these opening statements?
TED ROWLANDS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Martin, each side will have as long as they want here in the opening, and obviously the prosecution is going to try to establish early their theme here, and that is that Dr. Conrad Murray was just egregiously off in his care of Michael Jackson, and he should be held accountable for his death because he was giving him this Propofol, this anesthetic that's normally used only in a hospital setting. He was giving it to the pop star as a sleep aid in his home.
Now, the defense, on the other hand, will try to portray their client as someone who was trying to help Jackson to get over an addiction, and they will tell the jury that over the next weeks, you will see that our client was actually trying to help him, not abandon him, but help him get through this.
Whether or not this jury will hook on to one of these sides early on, you never know, but it's very crucial, the opening statements in a trial, obviously. And we'll hear those about 8:45 local, barring a delay. A case like this, of course, delays are always possible. But 8:45 local, the scheduled start time for the opening.
The Jackson family has not come in yet. We did see the defense attorneys come in about 15 minutes ago.
SAVIDGE: And Ted, what is the atmosphere out there? How are the crowds?
ROWLANDS: Well, we'll take a look around here.
You've got Michael Jackson's supporters, who have been here in force for a lot of the hearings here. And, of course, were there constant during his 2004 molestation trial up in Santa Maria.
There are also some Conrad Murray supporters as well holding signs. But the overwhelming majority of folks out here, the media from around the world. You see cameras across the street. They're across the street, they're here, they're inside the courtroom. It's a madhouse, as expected, for a trial this size, with Michael Jackson at the center of it.
SAVIDGE: And Ted, do we know exactly who is going to take the stand first?
ROWLANDS: Yes. The first witness for the prosecution, which should happen at some point today, will be Kenny Ortega.
This is the gentleman that was the producer of the "This is It" concert series. In the preliminary hearing, he testified that Jackson was in good health. And the prosecution will use him to establish that Jackson was in good health, and that it wasn't those underlying health concerns that eventually killed him.
They should also show the jury likely a clip from "This is It," the documentary that was produced in part by Ortega. The defense will try to chip away at Ortega. And look for today the defense to use maybe e-mails or other ammunition that didn't come out in the preliminary hearing to try to establish the alternative, that Jackson was in horrible health and that that played a part in his death.
SAVIDGE: Ted Rowlands, outside the courthouse in Los Angeles.
I'm going out on a limb, Ted, but I think we're going to see a lot of you. Thanks very much.
We'll of course be monitoring the opening statements, and we'll bring parts of them to you live later this hour. If you want complete, live coverage, that's what our sister network HLN is there for you.
All right. Here's your chance to "Talk Back" on one of the big stories of the day. And today's question is: Does it matter to voters if Donald Trump or Warren Buffett endorses a candidate?
Carol Costello has more from New York -- Carol.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Martin.
"The Donald" is back. The GOP presidential contenders can't seem to get enough of him.
First, there was Texas Governor Rick Perry. And then there was Mitt Romney. Trump says they hit it off better than he had anticipated. And don't forget that still-to-be-determined it candidate, Sarah Palin, who broke bread -- well, pizza dough -- with Mr. Trump.
The Democratic National Committee is loving the GOP's courtship of Donald Trump. Take a look at their new ad which portrays Romney and Trump as two out-of-touch money men who favor the wealthy. Pay special note to the private plane.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) NARRATOR: Mitt Romney and Donald Trump are meeting today. Well, they do have a lot in common.
They have both done well for themselves. Both support an economic plan that would help out the richest and the big corporations, but not the middle class, that would slash Social Security and Medicare as we know it, cut funds for health care, research and development, and schools.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: Ouch. But maybe not for the reasons you think. After calling the ad amateur night, Trump told the Wolf Blitzer --
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, CHAIRMAN & PRESIDENT, TRUMP ORGANIZATION: They talked about keeping America competitive. We're not competitive. That's the problem. We're not competitive at all.
The world is laughing at us, Wolf, and so we are certainly not -- and I was very insulted it at the airplane they used, because my plane is much, much nicer than that. So that was a great insult.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: Look, President Obama has his favorite rich guy, Warren Buffett. Republicans have Donald Trump.
So the "Talk Back" question today: Does it matter to voters if Donald Trump or Warren Buffett endorses a candidate?
Facebook.com/CarolCNN. I'll read your comments later this hour.
SAVIDGE: All right, Carol. Even I knew he had a bigger plane, so that is kind of a chuckle there. All right. Thanks very much. We'll check back with you.
COSTELLO: Sure.
(NEWSBREAK)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SAVIDGE: Another big victory for Libya's new leadership today. Senior military officials say that they've once again taken control of the port of Sirte while fighting rages in the city. Sirte is Moammar Gadhafi's hometown, so a victory here is both strategically important and, of course, deeply symbolic.
CNN's Phil Black joins us live from Tripoli to talk about it.
And Phil, this port has changed hands, I believe, a number of times since the fighting began. So how secure is their hold now on the port? PHIL BLACK, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Martin, they say they control it, and we'll get a better sense of that come the end of the day, because, as you say, the ground here around that city has changed hands quite a few times. Quite often, these revolutionary fighters have advanced, made ground, but haven't been able to hold it, and so have had to pull back again.
In the east, what this now means is those fighters are at the outskirts of the city, which is progress, because up until a few days ago, they were a long way from the city itself. But to put that in some context, fighters to the west of the city have been at the outskirts for more than a week, and form there have been regularly advancing into Sirte, fighting rough, bloody urban street battles, taking heavy casualties, and then pulling back again. And what those fighters on the west are now telling us is that they no longer want to advance into that environment because they are taking such heavy casualties.
What they would like to do is sit there, maintain a line outside the city, and essentially implement a siege and try to wait out the pro-Gadhafi forces inside. It gives us a sense of just what a difficult fighting environment it is in there, how committed those pro-Gadhafi fighters are. But what it all means is that this city isn't about to fall imminently -- Martin.
SAVIDGE: And if they get Sirte at least under siege -- and, of course, Tripoli has already fallen -- what is left for the new leadership to concur in this war?
BLACK: Well, Sirte is perhaps the most strategically important one. It is the biggest of the remaining pro-Gadhafi holdouts. It is strategically important because it sits in the middle of the country, on the coast, essentially dividing the east and the west. It means that heavily-populated strip along the Mediterranean is not fully in their control.
There's another holdout known as Bani Walid, which is southeast of Tripoli itself. It is significant again because it is something of a gateway to the south of the country.
But what they are really waiting for is to be able to take control of the city so that they can symbolically say all of Libya has been liberated from Gadhafi's control. And it is only once that happens that the political leadership of the National Transitional Council say they will announce and form their own interim government to begin rebuilding this country -- Martin.
SAVIDGE: I just want to ask you one other subject. The new government says it will not return the Lockerbie bomber to prison. We've heard this before, but we also know that this seems to be the final answer coming from the government.
What is justifying their decision in this matter?
BLACK: This has been perhaps the most definitive answer to this speculative question. They have said no, no way will they return Abdelbaset Ali al-Megrahi, the Lockerbie bomber who, as we know, was convicted, sentenced to jail, but released by Scottish authorities on compassionate grounds because he was suffering prostate cancer.
We know he's here in Tripoli. We know he's not well. But the Libyan authorities say they won't send him back to a western country to either be prosecuted or returned to prison because he has already been prosecuted and served time. And they believe that one person cannot be prosecuted more than once for the same crime.
So, according to them, they say the case is closed, but they will help investigators who are looking to see if perhaps other people were involved and other people deserving charges and prosecution -- Martin.
SAVIDGE: Phil Black, thank you very much for that update.
Justices on the U.S. Supreme Court wade through thousands of appeals to decide which cases to take in their next term, the one upcoming. Well, our senior legal analyst, Jeffrey Toobin, will profile some of the big cases, including health care reform.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SAVIDGE: The new term for the U.S. Supreme Court begins next Monday, but justices met today to wade through thousands of cases and decide which ones to accept for review.
Our senior legal analyst, Jeffrey Toobin, joins us to talk about some of the cases the high court is most likely to take up.
And one of the big ones, naturally, Jeffrey, I think is going to be health care reform. So what's the issue there really?
JEFFREY TOOBIN, CNN SR. LEGAL ANALYST: Martin, this is the Super Bowl for the Supreme Court, the biggest case since Bush v. Gore in 2000. This is the case where opponents of President Obama's health care law say that it is unconstitutional to require individuals to buy health insurance. They say that's a violation of the Constitution.
That case has been percolating through many different courts, in lower courts. And yesterday, the United States Department of Justice, the Obama administration said they are not going to ask the full 11th Circuit to hear the case, they are going to go straight to the U.S. Supreme Court on this appeal.
It virtually guarantees that there will be a decision on the constitutionality of health care reform by next June. And that will be in the middle of the campaign. It will just be a huge, huge case. And, really, the single accomplishment of the Obama administration is going to be get a thumb's up or thumb's down from the Supreme Court.
SAVIDGE: Yes, no question. Huge.
But there are other cases, and a number of them are dealing with, again, church and state. And they could end up before the court, including one out of Utah. What's that one about?
TOOBIN: You know what? These issues come up every year, and they're hard. That's why. I mean, the justices usually divide 5-4 on these religion cases.
This is a case about Utah state patrolmen -- to state police officers who were killed in the line of duty. The police officers' organization put up 16 crosses as a memorial on public land, and plaintiffs in that community have said, no, that is a violation of separation between church and state. It is a religious memorial on public land, and the court may well have to decide that one.
SAVIDGE: All right.
And then we have another case that involves the state of Ohio and pits a judge against the ACLU.
TOOBIN: This is the one where a judge is going to put the Ten Commandments up in his courtroom. And this is very similar to a case out of Kentucky from a few years ago.
This one, I think, unless the court really has changed its minds on these issues, which is possible, because the court has gotten more conservative, but in an almost identical case from -- I believe it was 2003 -- the court said a judge cannot put the Ten Commandments up in a courtroom, that is too close a connection between church and state. But it will be an interesting test to see if the court has relaxed those rules, because it's virtually the same case.
SAVIDGE: Can I ask you real quick, how does the court decide what to take and what not to take? I mean, how do they make that decision?
TOOBIN: Well, this is one of the great mysteries of the Supreme Court. They get about 8,000 cases a year, and they only take about 80 cases a year.
Basically, the first thing they look at is, have the lower courts split? Have there been inconsistent rulings in the lower courts on the same issue that, you know, we have a Supreme Court to resolve those sorts of disputes? That's one category of cases.
The other category is a little more nebulous. That's cases where the Supreme Court simply says we have to resolve this issue, it's sufficiently important that we have to resolve it. And health care qualifies under both of those. There have been split decisions, it's very important, so we'll almost certainly see that case this year.
SAVIDGE: Jeffrey Toobin, thank you very much, as always, for the insight.
(NEWSBREAK)
SAVIDGE: America's middle class has been really hard hit during this recession, but while households across the country have watched their incomes fall, there have been a few exceptions.
Alison Kosik, standing by at the New York Stock Exchange. She has more on the lucky ones and how they've succeeded in maintaining their middle class status.
ALISON KOSIK, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Exactly. So, the common thread, Martin, for these lucky ones is that they live in places where there is a big industry, where there's a big demand for, let's say, a product or a service.
The best way to explain this, let's throw up this map that we made for you here, and we'll show you that incomes, for one, rose pretty well in D.C., Maryland, and Virginia because of government spending. In D.C., actually, we saw the biggest increase in pay between 2007 and 2010. Incomes were up 21 percent.
In North Dakota and Louisiana, they have demand for their coal, natural gas, and oil. That helped to raise incomes there. And in South Dakota, Kansas, and Iowa, agriculture, crop demand was the reason why you saw incomes rise there.
And here in New York and New Jersey, Wall Street. Ah, yes, Wall Street was the reason why you saw incomes go up in these areas.
Now, overall, when you look across the country, we saw incomes rise in 21 states. That's almost half the country. That's good news.
Keep in mind, though, this rise in incomes is only about five percent. But you know what? The way that this economy is moving ahead very slowly, I guess anything going higher as far as our incomes go is a good sign.
Right, Martin?
SAVIDGE: No doubt about that.
(STOCK MARKET REPORT)
SAVIDGE: Great to see. Let's hope that the optimism continues.
Thank you, Alison.
Propofol -- you're going to hear a lot about that. It's a sedative. And you're going to hear more because it's a key part of the Michael Jackson trial, at least for his former doctor. In a moment, we'll show you just how powerful this drug is.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SAVIDGE: Michael Jackson's doctor could get up to four years in prison. That's if the jury convicts him in the pop star's death. And the trial of Dr. Conrad Murray begins this hour in Los Angeles, and we're going to take you there live.
A few moments ago, Janet Jackson arrived, and we just saw the Jackson family arrive as well, including Michael Jackson's mom, Katherine, and other members of the family.
Joining us to talk about this case is CNN's senior legal analyst, once again, Jeffrey Toobin. And let's start off with the charge against the doctor -- Dr. Murray, that is -- involuntary manslaughter. Why is it manslaughter? Because we know the family had wanted to see a murder charge.
TOOBIN: Well, the difference between manslaughter and murder is intent. A first-degree murder or even second-degree murder requires intentional killing. And I think it would have been impossible to make a case against Conrad Murray. Why would he have wanted to kill Michael Jackson? It just doesn't make any sense.
Manslaughter is, as the charge says, involuntary. It suggests that, through recklessness, through incompetence, through just being a very, very bad doctor, Conrad Murray killed Michael Jackson. But because the intent element is so much less, the penalty element is also less. You know, four years maximum versus life in prison maximum, obviously, it's a big difference between the two -- two charges.
SAVIDGE: The opening statements, of course, are about to begin shortly and that's the chance for both sides to lay out their version of the case. So say you're the defense team, what do you expect to hear from them in these arguments?
TOOBIN: Well, I think basically the difference between the prosecution and the defense in so many cases applies here. The prosecution is going to say, look, this is a simple case. Conrad Murray gave him this drug, which was entirely inappropriate. The drug killed him, thus he's guilty of manslaughter. Very simple.
What the defense is going to do is say, no, no, no, this is a complicated case because Michael Jackson had a long history of drug use, demanded these drugs, asked for other drugs, had other drugs in his system, had other people supplying him drugs. Basically this death, tragic though it was, was the culmination of a lot of different factors and Conrad Murray is being treated as the fall guy here. That's the defense argument.
SAVIDGE: And the defense was prevented from showing the jury a video that allegedly shows Jackson being in poor health. So how do you think that's going to affect their case?
TOOBIN: Well, that's going to play out over a long -- over this full trial. That is not the last word on that issue just because they were not allowed to use that video in opening statements. Remember, the first prosecution witness is going to be the choreographer who was working with Michael Jackson at the time of his death.
He's going to say, look, Michael Jackson seemed fine to me. He was working hard, he was in good shape. The defense will certainly be allowed to prove the alternative or attempt to prove the alternative that, in fact, he had a big drug problem, he was in ill health. That's going to play out over the course of the whole trial.
SAVIDGE: Does the defense have to worry at all about dragging Michael Jackson through the mud? I mean he is dead, he can't defend himself, and of course he was very popular with many people. TOOBIN: Absolutely. I think that's going to be a very difficult line to walk. Certainly I would expect that the defense will portray their argument as sort of more in sorrow than in anger but we're all sorry that Michael Jackson is dead but don't make Conrad Murray an escape goat for a death that had multiple causes.
But you're absolutely right. Jury selection, a big part of the process for both sides was, you know, gauging attitudes towards Michael Jackson. And you know they both did their best but, you know, everybody in the jury pool heard of Michael Jackson. Everybody knew that he had died and knew something about his death.
So, you know, how the jury views Michael Jackson is something we'll probably only know afterwards when the jurors start talking about their attitudes.
SAVIDGE: Yes, it's definitely going to be an interesting case. Jeffrey Toobin, thanks.
TOOBIN: OK
SAVIDGE: Prosecutors say that Dr. Murray used a makeshift IV drip to administer the drug Propofol so Jackson could fall asleep. Just after Jackson's death, CNN chief medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta went into the operating room to show us just how powerful this drug really is.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: So we are here inside the operating room with Dr. Raphael Gershon, who's the chief of anesthesiology here. Propofol is a medication he uses all the time. So is this right over here?
DR. RAPHAEL GERSHON, CHIEF OF ANESTHESIOLOGY, GRADY MEMORIAL HOSPITAL: Yes.
GUPTA: It looks like milk of amnesia, they call it.
GERSHON: Milk of amnesia.
Benson, are you OK? We have to monitor his EKG, we have to monitor his end-tidal CO2, we have to make sure that he's breathing, we have to see a saturation, we have to make sure he's ventilated.
GUPTA: So these are all -- that's all typical stuff every time you use --
GERSHON: That's standard of care, yes.
GUPTA: OK. And Propofol --
GERSHON: We're going to start infusing this, you're going to get a little sleepy, Benson, OK? Give me some good, deep breaths.
GUPTA: So watch this goes and take a look at his eyes, how quickly he's --
GERSHON: Deep breaths, Benson. Doing great. You may feel a little burning, OK?
GUPTA: Ten, nine, seven, eight, seven, six, five, four, three, two, one.
GERSHON: There's a reason for his heart rate increasing. His eyes are closed.
GUPTA: His eyes are closed and what else are you looking for?
GERSHON: Look up here. If he stopped breathing. So this is watching his end-tidal CO2 and he's not breathing more, and my (INAUDIBLE) is going to help him breathe.
GUPTA: So take a look over here. All the breathing right now is taking place with this bag and this mask. So that medication, he wouldn't be able to breathe on his own without those things. I know you can see part of the problem. Just with that much Propofol there, he stopped breathing and he's going to need a breathing tube.
GERSHON: Easy?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Easy.
GUPTA: What's so attractive about this medication?
GERSHON: Well, people has really been I think the last 10 years or so even more, 15 years, and it's just basically a quick on, quick off. And then it may answer why people may think that this is something they could do at home because if it gets out of hand, it goes away quickly. But the problem is if it gets out of hand, there's nobody there to resuscitate you then nobody could bring you back.
GUPTA: So that was pretty quick. You just gave some of the medication.
GERSHON: In five, 10 minutes.
GUPTA: Five, 10 minutes, he's going from being completely awake to completely asleep.
GERSHON: He's not breathing or breathing forth.
GUPTA: One thing that's worth pointing out is that this is a hospital that uses this medication thousands and thousands of times a year but they do use this medication in nonhospital settings like outpatient clinics. The doctors here will tell you they've never heard of it being used in a home.
(END OF VIDEOTAPE)
SAVIDGE: That is fascinating.
Well, keep it here. We are just minutes away from start of today's court session and opening statements in the trial of Dr. Conrad Murray.
And then a monumental damage check happening right now at the nation's capital. Engineers are repelling down the Washington Monument to check for quake damage. We'll talk to a courageous park ranger who was inside when that tremor hits.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SAVIDGE: Here in D.C. today, we want to give you a heads up, literally. A heads up. Take a look at the video we have for the Washington Monument today. That is a person hanging outside.
You remember the earthquake that damaged portions of that monument? Today the exterior is being examined. Engineers are repelling down -- yes, the landmark meticulously looking and assessing that damage from this.
This is the video of last month's pretty violent and pretty scary earthquake. The moment it hit the monument. And you can see Park Ranger Nikollette Williams getting people out of harm's way. And she joins us now to talk about that scare and to talk about the healing of the monument.
Nikolette, thank you very much for joining us today. How are you feeling and are you over the tremors? I have been through a few and they are really scary stuff.
NIKOLETTE WILLILAMS, NATIONAL PARK SERVICE RANGER: They are really scary. I thought I was over them but I watched the video yesterday and I did get a little shaky after viewing it so --
SAVIDGE: What is going --
WILLIAMS: Not fully ready to go back up.
SAVIDGE: Did you know what it was when it was happening?
WILLIAMS: No, I did not. It was so violent that at first I did assume we were under attack. That was my first assumption.
SAVIDGE: So you thought that this could have been some sort of terrorist attack as opposed to a natural event, which was an earthquake?
WILLIAMS: Absolutely. Our training has been for attacks. We don't get trained in D.C. for earthquakes. So that was my first assumption. But it didn't matter, whatever it was, my next reaction was that we had to get everybody down to the bottom as fast as possible.
SAVIDGE: And what was happening inside? Describe some of it for us.
WILLIAMS: Well, you see on the video that I actually look directly up at the camera when it starts to shake and what I'm really looking at is the metal apparatus for the elevator is the first thing to shake and then I begin to feel the building itself moving under my feet, and I start to get hit with some debris and I want to just run. I wanted to get out of there and run as fast as I can but I realized that I have 20 visitors who are relying on me to get them down safely.
So I begin to shout at them, telling them to go down the stairs and that's when you see all of us descend down to that emergency exit level.
SAVIDGE: Well, I want to bring up this. Bill Lyon who's the spokesperson for the National Park Service talked to CNN's "AMERICAN MORNING" earlier today and listen to what he had to say.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BILL LINE, SPOKESMAN, NATIONAL PARK SERVICE: She had the presence of mind. She had the composure to make certain that she got people down to the 490-foot level and started walking down the stairs.
She showed a lot of courage, in fact, by coming back up to the 500-foot level to collect the last remaining visitors and to ensure their safety and put their safety ahead of her own in order to get everybody out safely.
(END OF VIDEO CLIP)
SAVIDGE: Nikolette, of course, he is talking about you and the tremendous amount of courage that it took not to take people down the first time but to go back up. How do you feel about such praise?
WILLIAMS: I -- it still makes me a little uncomfortable. My main concern was getting everyone out and safe. And then being safe was really what was important to me. And I'm glad that they were safe. But the terms that have been thrown around still makes me a little uncomfortable.
SAVIDGE: Well, you deserve all praise. Nikolette Williams, thank you very much for talking with us today. And we wish good things for the Washington Monument to get it back so we can all visit once more. Thank you.
WILLIAMS: Absolutely. Thank you.
SAVIDGE: Well, he's not on the presidential race but some Republicans think maybe he should be. And a big speech by Governor Chris Christie is adding to that speculation. Details ahead coming up in our "Political Ticker" update.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SAVIDGE: Well, 11:45 on the East Coast. That means it's 8:45 right now on the West Coast. And we're expecting the opening of the trial of Dr. Conrad Murray, Michael Jackson's doctor. We will be monitoring what the lawyers are saying as the opening statements begin. We will bring you parts of those statements to you live.
Meanwhile, the president's "No More Mr. Nice Guy" persona is fresh material for late-night comedy. One of them has him blowing up bridges, instead of building them. Jay Leno has our punchline of the day.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP, "THE TONIGHT SHOW WITH JAY LENO")
JAY LENO, HOST, "THE TONIGHT SHOW WITH JAY LENO": President Obama has been criticized for trying to get along with everybody, but now he's done with that.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's right.
LENO: Oh, he's starting kick ass now. Oh, yes. See what he did in Ohio to make his point? This was unbelievable. Take a look.
BRIAN WILLIAMS, HOST, "NBC NIGHTLY NEWS": Today, he chose to highlight a bridge between two important states and found himself in some troubled waters politically.
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: The bridge behind us happens to connect the state that is home to the speaker of the House with the home state of the Republican leader in the Senate.
(EXPLOSION)
(LAUGHTER)
OBAMA: Now, that's just a coincidence.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SAVIDGE: Well, he's not in the race, but he's in the spotlight. Once again, we're talking about New Jersey Governor Chris Christie.
Paul Steinhauser is part of the political team in television. He's live from the political desk in Washington.
And, Paul, what is on the schedule for Governor Christie today?
PAUL STEINHAUSER, CNN DEPUTY POLITICAL DIRECTOR: A big speech, Martin.
I can't top Jay Leno. I'm not even going to try, no collapsing bridges behind me.
But, yes, a big speech for Christie tonight. Where? Reagan Presidential Library in California. And that's why a lot of people are asking, well, is there going to be something in the speech about maybe him running for president? Remember, Republicans have been asking the New Jersey governor for a long time now to think about jumping into the race for the GOP nomination. He's been saying no, no, no.
We have heard a lot more of that, those calls, just in the last few days, since some people will say that maybe Rick Perry, the Texas governor, has not had a great debate performance in the last week or two. I spoke to some Christie advisers yesterday. And they said no. Don't expect that. The New Jersey governor is not going to be making any announcements about running for president. He hasn't changed his mind. The speech is called "Real American Exceptionalism." And they say it will be a good speech.
But, Martin, again, don't expect any announcements from Christie. Republicans love him. Why? Because of his tough talk against Democrats and because of his tough actions on reducing the budget in New Jersey, Martin.
SAVIDGE: Well, following all the bickering in Washington, what do Americans think of Democrats and Republicans these days?
STEINHAUSER: They are definitely not giving them a thumbs-up, no doubt about this.
Brand-new numbers out from CNN and ORC. And what do they say? Take a look at this, public opinion of the parties, favorable or unfavorable opinions. Neither the Democrats or the Republicans are in positive territory there. They are both below 50 percent when it comes to favorable and unfavorable ratings.
And you know what? Americans also say that neither the policies of congressional Democrats or Republicans will move the country in the right direction.
What about the Tea Party, though? Take a look at this. Now, again, the Tea Party is not an official party. It's a movement. But you can see right here Americans' favorable and unfavorables of the Tea Party movement even lower than the Democrats and Republicans.
Martin, I guess all this back and forth here in D.C. over about the possibility of these shutdowns and neither side getting along, well, it's really weighing on Americans. And they are giving a thumbs-down to both political parties.
SAVIDGE: Yes, they are very upset.
What was the name of that speech again by Chris Christie?
STEINHAUSER: Let me check my notes here. "Real American Exceptionalism," that is the name of the speech. It's 9:00 tonight at the Reagan Library in Simi Valley, California.
SAVIDGE: Sounds very presidential, I have to say, the title.
STEINHAUSER: Doesn't it? Yes, it does, doesn't it?
SAVIDGE: It does indeed. We will wait and see.
All right, thanks, Paul, very much.
STEINHAUSER: Thank you.
SAVIDGE: Well, for the latest political news, you know where to go. That's CNNPolitics.com.
Former first daughter Chelsea Clinton takes on a new role. Clinton made headlines last week when she interviewed her mother during the Clinton Global Initiative sponsored by her father's foundation. Now she is joining the board of directors of the IAC, a huge Internet media company.
IAC operates Match.com and College Humor. It also has a 50 percent stake in the "Newsday" -- "Newsweek," rather, Daily Beast company. Besides serving on corporate boards, Clinton is working on her Ph.D. at Oxford University. She keeps herself very busy.
Today's "Talkback" question, why does Donald Trump matter to the GOP?
Monica says, "Ever since that birther nonsense, no respect for this man."
We will read more of your responses just ahead.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SAVIDGE: You have been sounding off on our "Talkback" question.
Carol Costello has your responses.
Hello again, Carol.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Martin.
The "Talkback" question today, why does Donald Trump matter to the GOP?
This from Mike: "Why would any voter care about Trump? He has to be the biggest joke in politics. He's actually nothing more than an attention-monger."
We don't have many Trump fans. I will just warn you right now.
This from Lee: "In general, I don't care who endorses any candidate. I do my own homework. As far as Donald Trump, he has revealed himself to be a bit of a buffoon."
This from Christian: "The only endorsement thing that should matter is that the people of the United States concern yourself with the stances of the individual running, not with what the person with the biggest jet decides is important."
And this from Michael: "Remember when Oprah endorsed Obama? I'm positive that didn't hurt his campaign."
Just an added note. Donald Trump is wealthy and he is a campaign donor, so that might be one reason he's attractive to the GOP. And he is also a celebrity. And we are covering all those lunch meetings, aren't we?
But keep the conversation flowing, Facebook.com/CarolCNN.
SAVIDGE: Well, he fits the profile of the Republicans. And I actually like the guy.
So, anyway, before you go, Carol, you're probably a frequent flier. But you're not going to be a frequent flier like this next guy we're going to show you. This is how Jeb Corliss gets around. He's an American daredevil and a real-life iron man. He jumped from a chopper at 6,000 feet, blasting across China's Hunan Province on a wing suit. He amazed everyone watching when he coasted through a crack in the mountain.
Corliss performs stunts like this all over the world.
And when you think about this, Carol, this is perfect. First of all, you get to fly whenever you want wherever you want, and you don't have to bother with going through security, do you?
COSTELLO: There's no peanuts, though.
(LAUGHTER)
SAVIDGE: I hadn't thought about that. That's right. It would be very difficult to have a drink or a cup of coffee on board that flight.
(LAUGHTER)
COSTELLO: Exactly. But as you watch him flying through the air, it doesn't look real. It's just so bizarre-looking.
SAVIDGE: It does. Every time I watch it -- and I have seen him do this all around the world -- it is so impressive to see how you can at the speed of a jet engine go soaring through the air. And God bless him. I hope he continues to safely fly where no one has gone before.
COSTELLO: Oh!
(LAUGHTER)
COSTELLO: I know. It makes me nervous just looking at that. My hands are sweating.
SAVIDGE: Yes. Well, Carol, we will check back. Thanks very much.
Online comment boards, they can get really nasty. Some news Web sites are cracking down on Web bullies by forcing them to verify their identity on Facebook.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SAVIDGE: More news Web sites are scrapping their old comment boards the cut down on Web trolls and bullies. Now, to leave comments on their new comment boards, users have to use Facebook to verify who they are.
But some news junkies aren't willing to give up their an anonymity.
Casey Wian talked to one of them.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CASEY WIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Chuck Muell is a regular reader of the "San Diego Union Tribune's" Web site. He became a frequent commenter after reading a story about a 15-year-old rock- throwing Mexican boy who was shot and killed by a border patrol agent last year. Mel posted a commented critical in the board of patrol's tactics.
CHUCK MUELL, "SAN DIEGO UNION TRIBUNE" READER: I was astounded by the responses that I got from other people. The hateful, hateful responses.
WIAN: On many news sites, reader comments sometimes deteriorate into name calling, racial slurs, even threats. The "Union Tribune" home page editor, Tom Mallory, adopted a policy this month that seeks to clean up the comments while avoiding the expense of round the clock monitors.
TOM MALLORY, HOME PAGE EDITOR, "SAN DIEGO UNION TRIBUNE": I have had interns moderating the comments and had to warn them. Son, I'm going to expose you to the dark underbelly of the human soul here. Be prepared. It's a very rough place.
WIAN: "Union Tribune" readers who want to comment on a news article now must use Facebook to verify their identities.
MALLORY: The real name, the real identity makes debate better, makes conversation better. It brings respect. It brings a level up there that is just lacking when it's I have been pimp 201 versus (INAUDIBLE) versus this person.
WIAN: But many regular commenters, including Mel, don't like giving up their anonymity.
MUELL: If somebody else is unhappy with something that I have to say, then, they have direct access to me in some fashion. They can look my name up on the phone book. They can look me up on the web. They can make me a target.
WIAN: The "Union Tribune" says Facebook's identity verification tool will help keep Internet bullies at bay.
MALLORY: Looking at this profile, I don't see a lot here that indicates this is a real person.
WIAN: Other news Web sites including the "Los Angeles Times" and "New York Times" are using Facebook to some degree.
NOAH ARCENEAUX, MEDIA STUDIES PROF., SAN DIEGO STATE: I can see it dampening some of the debate, but I can totally understand why they would implement this policy, you know? If there is a lot of hate speech, a lot of violent stuff, you're going to alienate to readers.
MALLORY: If you have to say stupid or tea bagger or communist, you're not going to convince the other person of the argument.
WIAN: Mallory says the change has reduced the number of commenters on stories, though, he expects a friendlier environment will attract new voices. Not Mel, who may start his own blog to protect his anonymity.
Casey Wian, CNN, San Diego.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
