Return to Transcripts main page

CNN Newsroom

American Voice of Al Qaeda Killed; Temporary Marriage?; Primary Calendar Showdown; Trial of Michael Jackson's Doctor Continues; Hurricane Gathers Strength Near Bermuda; Retrial of American in Italy Wrapping Up; Witnesses Rescue Child Under a Car; Fired for Being Too Fat; $3 Million Worth of White Teeth

Aired September 30, 2011 - 16:00   ET

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

BROOKE BALDWIN, CNN ANCHOR: And here we go, top of the hour.

Watch this.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BALDWIN: He's been called the heir apparent to Osama bin Laden. Anwar al-Awlaki, the mastermind behind the so-called underwear bomber and the Times Square plot, is dead. I'm Brooke Baldwin. The news is now.

(voice-over): A trip to school turns into a daring rescue scene. What happens next when a young boy falls in the school parking lot?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: His leg was pinned in such a way that I knew that we had to lift the car somehow.

BALDWIN: You have to see how everyone snapped into action.

Then a grandfather goes missing without a trace.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: My dad would never not call his kids. There's four of us. And it's just, by the time the fourth day, the fifth day, and then the sixth day, we knew something was wrong.

BALDWIN: His family put together their own search party and picked up on his trail six days, two cars, one ravine later.

Plus, this man claims he was fired from his job because he is too fat.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: H.R. representative's exact words were, "We're letting you go due to your weight."

BALDWIN: Sunny Hostin is on the case.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BALDWIN: Let's continue on, shall we? Thanks for being with me on this Friday. I'm Brooke Baldwin.

Beginning with one man. He was the future of terrorism. The Osama bin Laden of the Internet. American-born, al Qaeda-affiliated, savvy, plugged-in, using YouTube and Web site podcasts to encourage and recruit the disaffected, those hell-bent on jihad. But today we're told Anwar al Awlaki's life ended in a rain of American, a Hellfire missile shot from a CIA drone in Yemen.

Al-Awlaki and his followers staged some of the highest-profile acts of terror. You remember the Fort Hood shootings? That killed 13 people, the attempt to set off a bomb in the middle of Times Square and the bid to blow up a passenger jet using explosives sewn into a Nigerian man's underwear and the plot to blow up American cargo planes with bombs hidden in printer toner cartridges.

To be very clear here, al-Awlaki was a very, very big get. He was the only American on an official U.S. hit list and his killing has touched off a firestorm among critics. They contend that this killing breaks U.S., break international laws. But if you heard the president today, he was very clear, no terrorist is safe.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: But make no mistake: This is further proof that al Qaeda and its affiliates will find no safe haven anywhere in the world. Working with Yemen and our other allies and partners, we will be determined, we will be deliberate, we will be relentless, we will be resolute in our commitment to destroy terrorist networks that aim to kill Americans, and to build a world in which people everywhere can live in greater peace, prosperity and security.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: Want to bring in Mike Baker, what is a former CIA covert operations officer, also now the president of global intelligence and security firm Diligence, LLC.

Mike Baker, the details today barely eking out. We know it was a drone strike, CIA drone strike, targeting his vehicle. What more do you know? How did this thing go down?

MIKE BAKER, FORMER CIA COVERT OPERATIONS OFFICER: Well, I mean, this was not the first effort to try to take out al-Awlaki there going back to late 2009.

There had been a handful of attempted strikes that had not worked. And as recently as May of this year, we were almost on his tail. So this -- he's -- again, persistence pays off, I suppose you could say. And as you pointed out, he was sort of the face of what people were calling al Qaeda 2.0.

He -- very Western demeanor because of being born and raised as a child in way and then going to college here in the U.S., and his English ability, his way of speaking, not necessarily his scholarliness. He was not exactly the most studied of the imams out there, but he did have a way of appealing to a variety of disaffected and impressionable youth who I think found his Western demeanor and his English very alluring.

BALDWIN: Yes. He knew English, Western colloquialisms, certainly was hell-bent on targeting the U.S.

But I also want to point out, Mike, that we know now that this was a joint military operation. U.S. officials say manned American military aircraft were overhead. They were ready to help. The U.S. military also helped al-Awlaki, but it was ultimately that CIA drone that fired that fatal missile.

I'm just curious, just given your knowledge, are there many joint ops like this?

BAKER: Well, there are.

There's incredibly close cooperation between the CIA and the military and has been for decades, for a very long time. Much has been made of the inability of the various agencies to play well together. That's improved since 9/11. But the cooperation, the liaison, the work between the military and CIA has been there for a very long time.

The CIA was born from the military. So, that's not a surprise. And I think, again, there's this interesting -- you pointed it out -- this interesting argument and the discomfort being raised about the fact that he was a U.S. citizen. I find that very puzzling.

BALDWIN: Right. It's precedent-setting, Mike.

BAKER: Well, it is precedent-setting in a way.

I think there's an ability to get lost in this angst-ridden theoretical argument about, oh, my God, he was a U.S. citizen. Well, let's face it. He had taken up arms against the U.S. There are significant provisions within the -- the regulations to be able to pull somebody's citizenship when they do take up arms against the United States of America.

Why we didn't do that early days, I don't know. But I find that all very sort of a lovely theoretical argument. I have no angst over the fact that we have taken him out.

BALDWIN: OK. How much work though -- how much work, how much goes into something like this? Is there some any kind of -- I imagine some element of luck? As you mentioned, he escaped two earlier attempts, I think, of Osama bin Laden being found. That was a whole, I don't know, months, years, SEAL Team Six operation.

Is it similar to that or is just kind of the case of getting word he's moving and then scramble the drone?

BAKER: Right. No, you raise a really, really good point.

There's always a small element of luck in any successful operation. And there is also a tremendous amount of work that goes into something like this. We all saw -- because there's been more information out about the bin Laden takedown, we all saw the years that went into that. Well, leading up to something like this, there's a tremendous amount of surveillance, analysis, source work that goes on prior to the point where you have the confidence then to take this action. So, you know, no one should look at this and think, well, we happened to have a drone up in that area and we got lucky that we spotted him. Again, you need a small element of luck usually for all of this to fall into place, but there's just a tremendous amount of work that goes into this.

BALDWIN: Mike Baker, thank you very much. Appreciate it.

BAKER: Sure. Thank you.

(NEWS BREAK)

BALDWIN: Now this:

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don't think it was superhuman strength at all, just the collective group, total team effort.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: A little boy was just going to school when he slipped and got stuck under that car -- how police and bystanders rushed to his rescue.

And if you want a quick marriage and a real easy divorce, got a solution. Go to Mexico City. This city is thinking about a way to offer newlyweds to opt out of marriage say within the first two years. You like that? That proposal is next, "Globe Trekking."

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: It's time to take you "Globe Trekking" with some of the stories from overseas.

And if you have ever had cold feet about taking that whole death do us part vow, listen to what's happening potentially in Mexico City.

Mexico City lawmakers are mulling over this new proposal that would arm newlyweds with an exit strategy. They are thinking about temporary marriage licenses.

So, I thought who should we talk to about this? This guy, CNN assignment editor Nick Valencia.

So, this story just fascinates me.

NICK VALENCIA, CNN PRODUCER: It is an interesting story.

BALDWIN: So it's the whole like until death do us part, maybe for just two years thing.

Some people are calling it throwaway marriage, other people, the legislators putting this forward, saying they hope that it will drop the high divorce rates of Mexico City, a city of 18 million people, half of which get divorced after two years. So, what do they do, Brooke? They're proposing this initiative so after two years, you have the option of whether to opt out of your marriage. It's the mother of all prenups.

BALDWIN: So, let's say you're with your honey and you think, all right, two years have been OK. Can you just re-up for another two years? Is this like an employment contract?

VALENCIA: Essentially. You could either opt in to your marriage and cement that bond or choose to go your separate ways.

And we're hearing, if this is approved, the contracts have set out advanced marital duties, such as child care, schooling, budgeting. So there's caveats in place already. And, right now, they're just talking about it. This is an initiative, and it's only in Mexico City. Essentially, you could either opt-in to your marriage and cement that bond or choose to go in separate ways. And we're hearing, if this is approved, the contracts would set out advance, you know, marital duties, such as child care, schooling, budgeting. So, there's caveats in place already.

And right now, they're just talking about it. This is an initiative. And it's only in Mexico City. If you remember this in recent years, they passed a same-sex marriage. They passed abortion. And a lot of people think that this has the opportunity to pass.

BALDWIN: Really?

VALENCIA: Why? Because the congress there is left-leaning. It's a very progressive-minded congress. The church is also concerned about this.

BALDWIN: I mean, you think of Mexico, you think of Catholicism and the whole lifetime commitment thing. I mean, what's the reaction -- has there been a reaction from the Catholic Church?

VALENCIA: They have -- they're voicing concern. This, as you know, is the second largest Catholic country in the world, second largest Catholic country in the world.

BALDWIN: Wow.

VALENCIA: And the interesting caveat to this is a lot of the youth, you know, this is aim at the 25 to 30-year-old range, those in between that age range. A lot of them still identify as Catholic. They still go to church every Sunday. They wear their rosaries, they still pray. But it's indicative of the change of mindset of society there.

BALDWIN: And so, ultimately, as you said, they're hoping that this would decrease the divorce rate if you have the option to opt out? Is that right? Am I hearing, right?

VALENCIA: Yes, that's right. It's aimed at lowering the emotional strain of going through a break-up. You know, these lawmakers hope that it will help people not get divorced. BALDWIN: When is the vote expected?

VALENCIA: They're still talking about that right now. It's just an initiative. They're just, you know, talking about it now. It's a proposal, no word on the vote yet, but when we have that, we'll get back to you.

BALDWIN: You will, indeed. We're going to follow it with you, Mr. Valencia. Thank you so much. I appreciate it.

VALENCIA: Thank you, Brooke.

BALDWIN: Now, this --

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don't think it was super human strength at all. I think just the collective group, you know. It's all team effort.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: A 6-year-old boy was just headed to school when his grandfather when he tripped and wound up underneath that car. We're going to share how police and bystanders rushed to his rescue.

Also next, the latest news crossing the CNN Political Ticker. Be back in two minutes.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: Let's head to Washington, talk politics just for a moment here. We have Paul Steinhauser and Mark Preston. Both of whom are standing by for the latest news fresh off the Ticker.

Mark, let's begin with you. What do you have?

MARK PRESTON, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL EDITOR: Well, Brooke, you know, we do have some breaking news right here. If you're interested in what's going to happen in the Republican presidential primary, you're going to want to hear this.

CNN has just entered with an agreement with the Republican Party of Florida to host a debate in late January. Just hours ago, Florida decided to hold their primary on January 31st. CNN and the Republican Party of Florida will now present candidates for the Republican presidential nomination one final time to make their case to the voters of Florida, as well across the nation, why they should be president.

So, late January, a big debate. And, of course, this follows our announcement yesterday with the Arizona Republican Party who will be hosting a December 1st debate -- Brooke.

BALDWIN: Oh, wow.

So, then, I guess, Paul, to you, since everything's moving up a month now, who does this help and hurt?

PAUL STEINHAUSER, CNN DEPUTY POLITICAL DIRECTOR: Yes. As Mark said, OK. So, earlier today, Florida jumps to the 31st, so what happens next?

BALDWIN: Yes.

STEINHAUSER: Four states that are supposed to go first -- Iowa, New Hampshire, Nevada, South Carolina, they vow to go first. And what we'll probably see in the next few days is them announcing that they will move their primaries up even earlier than Florida. Early to mid- January.

So, Brooke, everything's going to be moved up about a month. But what does that mean for the candidates? Well, for the two guys, for the people who are already in, Romney and Perry, in particular, it may help Romney a little more.

Here's why -- he's kind of been running, some people say, for almost five years now for the White House. He's already got the teams built up in these early states. Perry meanwhile, he just jumped in six weeks ago. So, if he's got one less month now to get ready, he may help Romney more than Perry.

And, Brooke, and I think Mark will agree on this, for the candidates who -- not even candidates yet -- Christie, Palin, Giuliani, well, if they're going to jump in, I guess they got to do it now because they got one last month to get ready?

PRESTON: Yes, they absolutely do. So, the big question is: will we see the likes of Christie or Palin and Giuliani get in the race? And, you know, you never know with any of three of them. I mean, they're all wild cards at this point. But if you are a betting person, probably not any of them, but who knows?

STEINHAUSER: Time wasted, no doubt about it.

BALDWIN: What do we call them? The non-candidate candidates. And, quickly, in terms of that primary filing deadline, isn't it pretty close? Like sometime in October, yes?

PRESTON: Yes. Well, states have different -- they have had different filing deadlines and that's actually the reason. Not only that, it's building big -- building staffs to get into these states and, of course, the number one thing is raising money and getting support for your campaign.

BALDWIN: Money, money, money.

STEINHAUSER: The clock is ticking, no doubt about. And, yes, money, money.

BALDWIN: All right. Gentlemen, thank you very much, Paul and Mark.

And to a story I've been waiting for here. We're going to tell you about this 6-year-old boy who wound up trapped under a car. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: His leg was pinned in such a way that I knew that we had to lift the car somehow.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: How this group of officers, you see them, bystanders rushed in to help. We're actually going to talk to the family member of this little boy who has had a way to say thank you. We'll have that news for you live coming up.

And then a huge planter that looks like a Chia, but also looks a little bit like a presidential candidate. You have to see this. "Political Pop" -- Brianna Keilar, coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: Unfortunately, we hear a lot about violence in our nation's campuses. Well, one teacher said, no, not in my classroom. You will see as he breaks up what could have been a very serious fight. The whole thing captured on cell phone camera.

Watch for yourself.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

(INAUDIBLE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You boys are pissing me off! Hey, hey. Both of y'all, just listen! Shut up and sit down!

I need a change out of you and you. If you don't take that mess over there right now, right now, you going to push through me to get to, you ain't. So take it over there and you can't squash like gentleman, get out of his face, get out of mine and get over there. Take it.

You want to squash? You can do that off campus. Y'all don't do that in here. And whatever makes you believe you could, we can squash this right now.

You got something else to say, come back this way. You got something else to say -- anybody?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: This video right here, it is most definitely making the rounds on the Internet. It has tens of thousands of hits already on YouTube. We still do not know who this teacher is, where this happened. Tough-talking teacher there.

Another emotional day in the Michael Jackson death trial. Testimonies from two paramedics who arrived on the scene after Michael Jackson's death. The court is about to resume. We'll dip in and get a live report, coming up next. Also, the Amanda Knox appeals trial wrapping up with the victim's attorney addressing the court and the prosecution saying Amanda Knox, quote, "killed for nothing." "Reporter Roulette" is next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: As we've been reporting here on CNN, U.S. officials say they no longer have to worry about a top recruiter for Al Qaeda. He moved to Yemen. Anwar al Awlaki was born an American, born in New Mexico. He moved to Yemen when he was seven years old, but he returned to the U.S. in 1991, getting degrees at Colorado State University, San Diego State, and George Washington University.

And the 40-year-old was known as the bin Laden of the Internet for his use of YouTube to recruit want to be terrorists. And last year YouTube actually removed multiple clips of al Awlaki trying to incite violence. CNN's senior international correspondent Nic Robertson takes a closer look at this man.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Anwar al Awlaki, the radical Yemen-based preacher seen here online. His followers say he's like Osama bin Laden.

ABU MUWAZ, HEAD SALAFI YOUTH MOVEMENT: He reminds me of Osama bin Laden and also Ayman Zawahiri in terms of his soft-spoken, and at the same time the knowledge that they have, the foundations that they have.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hand me over your scrolls.

ROBERTSON: This is the same Anwar al Awlaki who exchanged e-mails with Major Nidal Hasan, accused of killing 13 people at Ft. Hood. After the killings Awlaki praised Hasan on his website calling him a hero.

Why Awlaki is so influential is a combination of birth and upbringing. He was born in the United States. His father was a minister in the Yemeni government. He is smart and privilege. He preached in Imam Johari Malik's mosque in Virginia. He doesn't agree with Awlaki's extreme views and denounces the killings at Ft. Hood. But it was here at Malik's mosque that Awlaki met Major Hasan as well as two of the 9/11 bombers.

The 9/11 Commission reports even before this he was on the FBI's radar. According to the commission by the time we sought to interview him in 2003 he had left the United States.

Nic Robertson, CNN, London.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BALDWIN: Up next, Reporter Roulette.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) BALDWIN: What Michael Jackson's doctor said at the death scene, hurricane Ophelia's gaining strength in the Atlantic, and the latest on this trial where we potentially could see Amanda Knox walk free. It's time to play Reporter Roulette. Matthew Chance, I want to begin with you in Perugia. Today, what happened in court?

MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: A really important day because it was the last chance of all the lawyers, the defense, the prosecution to put over their case to the jury before we hear Amanda Knox speak on Monday. The defense said this has been no evidence really connecting Knox to the crime scene. They dismissed the DNA evidence used in the earlier conviction even saying the police here in Perugia planted evidence to secure a conviction.

The prosecution obviously rejecting that. They want the jury to uphold the sentence against Amanda Knox and Rafaelle Sollecito, a former boyfriend, saying both of them are young, killed for nothing, and deserve the maximum sentence. Fortunately for them in Italy, the maximum sentence is life imprisonment, not the death penalty.

BALDWIN: Amanda Knox will be pleaded for her life. Do you know when she goes free or spends the rest of her life in jail?

CHANCE: We're thinking later that day. It's not set in stone, but yes, there will be these pleas of innocence. Amanda Knox will get 15 minutes. She's going to speak in Italian. For months she's been preparing what she's going to say. Rafaelle Sollecito will be making his plea for innocence as well.

Then the jury retires and considers its decision. Everybody's hoping that later on Monday there will be a decision by the court and we'll learn whether Knox is going to be set free or spend decades potentially behind bars.

BALDWIN: Matthew Chance, we will be speaking with you on Monday. Until then, thank you. We do invite you to watch "CNN Presents Murder aboard, the Amanda Knox story." It will be on TV tonight, 11:00 eastern right here on CNN.

Next in Reporter Roulette, day four of Dr. Conrad Murray's trial in the death of Michael Jackson. Paramedics who answered the 911 call are testifying, two of them. Ted Rowlands live at the L.A. courthouse. Some of this testimony we're hear from this one man raising powerful red flags.

TED ROWLANDS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Richard Senneff has been on the stand for the bulk of the day and will be when they reconvene in the afternoon and what he has basically told the jury, when he first walked into the room, he first of all thought it was a very bizarre scene, so he said, what's this patient's underlying condition to Dr. Murray, because obviously there was something going on with this patient. There was an IV tube, he appeared thin. Murray said, nothing, nothing.

As they started the CPR process, there was no heartbeat, he felt cold and he felt he was dead. He called his doctor at UCLA and between the two of them, we heard a recorded conversation, they said, well, let's pronounce him dead. They didn't. They ended up taking him to the hospital.

But the most damning testimony came when this paramedic said he asked Murray, what have you given him? And Murray's response had nothing to do with Propofol. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DEBORAH BRAZIL, PROSECUTOR: You told us that Dr. Murray advised you that Mr. Jackson was a healthy male, no underlying health condition and that Dr. Murray had administered Lorazepam to him, correct?

RICHARD SENNEFF, PARAMEDIC AND FIRE FIGHTER: That's correct.

BRAZIL: And he was treating him for exhaustion and dehydration, correct?

SENNEFF: That's correct.

BRAZIL: Did Dr. Murray ever mention to you having administered Propofol to Michael Jackson?

SENNEFF: No, he did not.

BRAZIL: Did Conrad Murray ever mention the word "Propofol" to you during the time that you were at the location or in his presence?

SENNEFF: No, he did not.

BRAZIL: At no time he mentioned Propofol, correct?

SENNEFF: No, ma'am.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Double negative.

SENNEFF: He never mentioned the word "Propofol."

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROWLANDS: And Brooke, the defense attorney is cross examining right now, and has been able to get a little bit of groundwork, believe it or not, with this witness. The timetable, remember yesterday there was testimony that they had brought Jackson down to the floor after the 911 call. Well, the 911, this paramedic testified that they were still moving Jackson down, so there's a little time issue that they could exploit later on.

And the other thing that he is likely to ask him would be what would you have done if he told you about Propofol. The defense would say there's nothing the MET could have done.

BALDWIN: Thank you, Ted.

Finally, Alexandra Steele is tracking Hurricane Ophelia. Where is she, and how strong is he? ALEXANDRA STEELE, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Let's show you. We certainly have a hurricane on our radar. Here it is, south of Bermuda. It is the fourth of the season, third major hurricane, which means category three or higher with winds of at least 110 miles per hour.

BALDWIN: When will Ophelia be hitting? Will she at all be hitting the U.S.?

STEELE: No, it will not affect the U.S. at all, but it will affect Bermuda and we have tropical storm watches for Bermuda. And here's the movement of it. By tomorrow evening, we will feel the effects in Bermuda, especially east. That's where this thing's going to move. Move directly north. Bermuda will see and feel tropical storm force winds, so gusting 50, 60, 70 miles per hour and then it will continue on a northern track and strike in Newfoundland Monday morning.

BALDWIN: Alexandra Steele, we'll talk about it next week. Thank you very much. That's your Reporter Roulette for this Friday. Now listen to this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GOV. CHRIS CHRISTIE, (R) NEW JERSEY: Have really colorful posters, right?

(LAUGHTER)

Sixth grade student council, it's really important to have colorful posters.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: Remember this, the advice from New Jersey Governor Chris Christie for a sixth grader running for student council? Did his advice pay off? I'm going to talk to someone. I bet she knows a thing or two about colorful posters, Brianna Keilar. That's coming up.

Also, it's not often you see a teacher take charge. Wait until you see how one teacher handled two kids fighting in class.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: If you were running for student council, you would take campaign advice from your own governor of your state, right? Well, what if you did and it didn't pay off? One New Jersey sixth grader is maybe experiencing a little of that today. Let's go to Brianna Keilar live at the White House. We talked baseball yesterday, but today we're talking student council. Remind us of the story first.

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: OK, here's what happened. Poor little Zack Martini, 11 years old from Springfield, New Jersey, running for student council. He's at an event for his governor, Chris Christie, the guy so many Republicans want to jump into the presidential race. And so he asks for advice, and here's what he gets. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm in sixth grade and I'm thinking of running for student council in school, so any tips?

(LAUGHTER)

CHRISTIE: Ask them for their vote. People like to be asked. Have really colorful posters, right?

(LAUGHTER)

Sixth grade student council. Really important to have colorful posters.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KEILAR: He put up the posters, Brooke. He asked for the votes. And according to Zack's father, who told the ticket, it didn't pan out for him. He didn't win. He's going to try again next year, but I will attest for little Zack martini that there is life after failing to secure a student council position.

BALDWIN: Just look at you now, Brianna Keilar. You don't need those colorful posters anymore.

Let's talk Rick Perry, though. What is this about a giant Rick Perry head?

KEILAR: This is downright weird. Checking eBay today, there's a six- foot tall flower planter of Rick Perry's head. The company commissioned this what looks sort of like a big Chia head of Rick Perry along with his then competitor for the gubernatorial race, Bill White, former mayor of Houston.

So they kind of had a contest between the two of them that actually White ended up winning. Even though obviously he didn't win the governor's race there and you know, Brooke, it kind of reminds me of something else we saw a few years ago.

BALDWIN: Let's look.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Chia Obama makes the statement, I'm proud to be an American. Display it on your desk, in your home, at your school. Own a piece of Americana. Show pride and support with Chia Obama.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: I'm so glad we got to hear that.

KEILAR: It's really funny and this ad is pretty hilarious. I think actually the description of it is the funniest thing. It actually says, first off, it's pricey, if you look at the price tag.

BALDWIN: How much?

KEILAR: It say $4,500 is price. It says Rick stated at a Tea Party debate he would be offended if somebody thought he could be bought for $5,000. He obviously hasn't evaluated his worth as a gigantic planter. So you can secure this bad boy for $4,500.

BALDWIN: A cool $4,500. I'm so glad too that there is political equality in the land of the Chia. Little Obama, little Rick Perry --

KEILAR: This one's giant though.

BALDWIN: I'm a little afraid of it. Let's be honest. Brianna Keilar, we had a little fun today. Thank you very much for sitting in for Joe Johns. Appreciate it.

KEILAR: Have a good weekend.

BALDWIN: You, too.

Coming up, toothbrushes and whitening strips. That is what these three dental hygiene heisters stole. I'm not making this one up either. They're $3 million dental heist.

But first, did you know that this was banned books week? The American Library Association tracks complaints and bans on reading materials and they say for the past year, since 2010, these are the top five titles that were challenged by society.

Let's take a look at these together. Number five, "The Hunger Games." Number four, "Crank" and number three, I remember this one, "Brave New World." What could the top two most banned books be after the break?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: Now to the top two books that have been shunned by the American Society over the past years, banned books week. So these may be we thought would interest you. Number two on this list, "The Absolutely True Diary of A Part Time Indian" and the number one book "And Tango Makes Three." Remember that?

Now I know you remember this story, from just a couple of weeks ago when bystanders jumped in. They rescued the motorcyclist trapped under the burning car. Well, we have a new example of how just some onlookers jumped in to help.

This happens in Boca Raton, Florida. There's a 6-year-old boy, I know it's kind of hard to see through all these people. He is pinned underneath that maroon car. You can see it's highlighted for you, multiple people, multiple Boca Raton officers working together just to try to lift this car just enough.

There he comes, to get that boy out of there, immediately hugs someone. Here's the officer talking about really just the urgency of the situation.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) OFFICER ERNIE BUCINSKAS, BOCA RATON POLICE: His leg was pinned in such a way that I knew we had to lift the car somehow.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: Little boy is Dominic Roberts, he was getting out of his grandfather's car in front of his school when he just tripped and fell, somehow got trapped under this car. Once he was free, Dominic was taken immediately to the hospital.

Doctors had to reattach his left ear. He also had be treated for a punctured lung and road rash. Police are saying the incident was a freak accident. The driver will not be charged.

By the way, Dominic's family tells us one of the first responders actually visited him today there in the hospital and brought him a little Spider-man toy.

And a lot of you, you know I sit here and the commercial breaks are kind of get to tweeting with you. And a lot of you have been tweeting me asking about those top five tips that we heard from Rick Newman, from U.S. News and World Reports to how to avoid those bank fees.

Let's just show you quickly a refresher course if you missed it. He said you have to know your bank's rules that was one of the points he made. The second one was complain and I know from Twitter, some of you already are.

The next one is accept the loss of some privileges. Two more to go. Don't chase officers - don't chase offers. Rewards from other banks and finally, if you need to, he says find a better bank. We're going to put that list and my entire conversation with Rick Newman up on my blog. Momentarily there's the URL, cnn.com/brooke. Now this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: HR representatives words were letting you go due to your weight.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: That man claims he was fired from his job because he was overweight. Can you say lawsuit here? But there's more to it than that. If you have ever had a job, you want one, have extra pounds or maybe are just trying to lose some, stick around for this man's story.

We'll share that with you and you know it's Friday and Friday means you get to ask me some of your questions and for some reason, one of the questions I got was, are you really as nice as you are as you are on TV? Here's my answer.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: Ben wants to know are you as nice in person as you seem to be or come across on TV? Ben, I don't know what you're talking about. I think I'm a really genuine, nice -- keep it down a little bit anyway.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Here's your copy you asked for.

BALDWIN: No. I'm the nicest person possible on television -- Jessica -- it is a little warm in the news room. Thank you.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: OK, quick note. We keep passing this along because I need you to move with me when we move on Monday. The show moves up one hour in the CNN lineup starting Monday. So you will still get two hours from us, you just have to watch earlier from 2:00 to 4:00 Eastern or 11:00 to 1:00 Pacific in the CNN NEWSROOM.

Set whatever you have to do. I will see you coming up next Monday. Now, to this story on the case, a company is being sued by the federal government for firing one of its workers in Texas. I want you to listen to what this man, his name is Ronald Kratz, what says he was told when he was let go.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RONALD KRATZ, SAYS HE WAS FIRED OVER HIS WEIGHT: HR representatives exact words were letting you go due to your weight.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: Kratz weighed 680 pounds at the time. Now, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission said the company violated Disabilities Laws in letting this man go.

So we had a bunch of questions for our favorite legal gal, Sunny Hostin on the case for us on this Friday. So I guess, first question is, is being obese, is being morbidly obese, considered a disability under this law?

SUNNY HOSTIN, CNN LEGAL CONTRIBUTOR: Well, the EEOC, which is in full, entitled to enforce Title One American with Disabilities Act says yes. Says under the ADA obesity certainly is protected.

But I will tell you before this year really, before 2011 when the ADA had some amendments to it, obesity was not protected so courts never really enforced that. I think it's too soon to tell whether or not it's a disability, but the EEOC's position certainly is that obesity is a disability under the ADA.

BALDWIN: Are there any, I don't know circumstances let's say in which an employee could be fired for being too fat?

HOSTIN: Well, you know, the issue is what most people are employees at will, right? They don't have employment contracts. They just employees at will so they can be fired for no reason or any reason at all as long as it's not a discriminatory reason. So if being fat isn't a disability under the ADA then sure you can be fired for that reason or any reason. So, bottom line is it's too soon to tell, but the EEOC's position is that if you're overweight, if you're morbidly obese then you are disabled.

And an employer has to make a reasonable accommodation for you just as the way an employer would have to make a reasonable accommodation for someone who can't see or someone who can't hear. So this is a hot legal topic right now and I think it's something that we'll be watching, Brooke.

BALDWIN: It's an eye opener that's for sure. What about the company? What's their response to this federal lawsuit?

HOSTIN: Yes, well, we got, we did get a statement from BAE Systems and it says, "BAE Systems believed that acted lawfully in this matter given that the issue is the subject of pending litigation. It would not be appropriate to comment further. BAE Systems takes pride in the diversity of the company and in supporting employees with disabilities.

BALDWIN: Do we know yet if Ronald Kratz has found another job or is he still unemployed?

HOSTIN: My understanding is that he has not found another job and part of this lawsuit is that he is seeking back pay and he wants his old job back.

BALDWIN: OK, case number two. This got a lot of us talking. You know, we all like to keep our teeth nice and white, right, but who knew Crest white strips were such a hot commodity.

Three people were arrested in Florida, I know, had no idea. Here they are, kind of wanted to see their teeth. Is that bad? Three people arrested in Florida for allegedly stealing $3 million worth of white strips and electric toothbrushes. I don't even know what's say to you, Sunny.

HOSTIN: Isn't that something?

BALDWIN: I mean, that's a lot of money for a lot of products.

HOSTIN: It's interesting. They're pretty expensive. I mean, it's like $56 for the Crest white strips and I know this because I use them. I get a lot of e-mails from viewers asking me how I whiten my teeth. Well, that's how I do it.

And I also have one of these sonic toothbrushes, but basically it is a hot commodity and what happens is that there are people called boosters, they go to CVS and Walgreens and Wal-Mart, places like that and they steal this stuff.

And then they take it to a pawn store and then they sell it. And then the pawn store, pawnshop basically then goes on e-Bay and sells it again for profit. So, this is a really big issue and $3 billion worth of the stuff was found. BALDWIN: Shouldn't be laughing. I mean, is this an unusual case or do people steal Crest white strips and this kind of dental hygiene stuff often?

HOSTIN: It isn't an unusual case, interestingly enough. I called a couple of my law enforcement folks and they said, no, this happens often and a lot of these retail stores now have loss prevention specialists that are doing these undercover stings and working with law enforcement authorities trying to crack down on this.

So, you know, bottom line is this is really important. I guess, Brooke, people really want white teeth. I know I do. It's really fascinating to me. This is a big, big issue for law enforcement.

BALDWIN: Had no idea. Learn something new every day. Sunny Hostin, thank you so much on the case. Have a wonderful weekend to you and all of you as well. Thanks for sticking with us.

We will see you Monday, remember, one hour earlier. In the meantime, let's go to Washington. Joe Johns in for Wolf Blitzer. "THE SITUATION ROOM" starts right now.