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Teen's Parents Applaud Arrest; Closer Look At Zimmerman's Lawyer; "Stand Your Ground" On Trial; Rosen's Romney Comment Stirs Up Twitter; Bipartisan Slams Of Dem's Comment; Verizon Wireless Adds Upgrade Fee; Ex-Coach, Woman: 4,450 Texts, 283 Calls; Wade: Pay Us For Olympics; Zimmerman Charged With Second Degree Murder; Zimmerman's Family "Devastated"; "Resurrection" Box Stirs Controversy; Ann Romney: "My Career Choice Was to Be a Mother"
Aired April 12, 2012 - 10:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: But we begin this morning by taking a closer look at the Trayvon Martin case. George Zimmerman is scheduled to make his first court appearance at 1:30 Eastern Time.
The judge will read the second degree murder charge against him and discuss his right to counsel. Today's hearing comes 46 days after Zimmerman shot and killed 17-year-old Trayvon Martin.
His parents and hundreds of supporters have argued for Zimmerman to be charged once details of the altercation started coming out and were relieved at the special prosecutor's decision.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SYBRINA FULTON, MOTHER OF TRAYVON MARTIN: We simply wanted an arrest. We wanted nothing more than, nothing less. We just wanted an arrest and we got it and I say thank you.
TRACY MARTIN, FATHER OF TRAYVON MARTIN: As Attorney Crump said, this is just the beginning. We got a long way to go and we have faith.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: Martin Savidge is covering Zimmerman's first court appearance today. He's outside the courtroom in Sanford. So, Martin, will Zimmerman physically be in court today?
MARTIN SAVIDGE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Don't think so, Carol. The way it usually works here is that he will be connected electronically. It will be a television connection where he will remain inside the facility of the jail where he's being housed and he will appear in the courtroom in front of the judge that way.
There will be a camera allowed for the media to look inside the courtroom. We expect, of course, that his attorney will be there, Mark O'Mara and it's at that time, that it is expected he'll enter a plea of not guilty. So that's how we anticipate it's expected to go down with this arraignment or first appearance as it's called -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Tell us about the community reaction in Sanford. Are people -- are they relieved or are they still angry?
SAVIDGE: It depends on who you talk to. I mean, there are some, of course, those who are supporters of Trayvon Martin. I think the best way to put it that they are pleased. Nobody was really celebrating because they realize there's a long way to go.
The supporters who believe George Zimmerman, clearly, they're not happy about things, but I think overall in the city of Sanford, you could say they let out a sigh maybe a sigh of relief because emotions have been running so high.
I think the rhetoric had been running very high. You had a couple of days ago the police car that was shot up, so there was this sense that as long as it continued as it was, there could really be a potential for violence and danger.
Now that it's fallen into the hands of the legal system, I think people are willing hoping at least that the rhetoric and the emotions begins to die down as the legal process starts up.
COSTELLO: Martin Savidge reporting live from Sanford, Florida.
I want to take a closer look now at the man defending George Zimmerman. Once out of law school, Mark O'Mara served as a criminal prosecutor then he entered private practice as criminal defense attorney.
He spent the last 30 years in Central Florida specializing in criminal and family law. He's well-known thanks in part to serving as a legal commentator on local television. He became a fixture of the local media during its extensive coverage of the Casey Anthony murder trial.
And he had the same role during the early days of the Trayvon Martin murder case and it was in that role he made an interesting comment about Florida's stand your ground law, which may be central to Zimmerman's defense. Listen to his comments from a month ago.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Can you confront someone, shoot them and get away with that?
MARK O'MARA, GEORGE ZIMMERMAN'S ATTORNEY: Well, under certain circumstances, with our laws the way they are today, the answer would be yes.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: With this law on the books, it sounds like people have a license to kill.
O'MARA: Other people call it the license to murder statute because it doesn't require actions to avoid the confrontation.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: O'Mara says it's too early for him to map out a defense strategy. He says Zimmerman needs to be released on bond to help prepare his case and for his own well being.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
O'MARA: He's stressed. He's tired. He's been through a lot with the way this case has been handled to date. I'm just hoping that his mental health stays well and that we can move forward with getting the case figured out.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: O'Mara says if the case does go to trial, it will probably be toward the end of the year or later. Now, let's take a closer look at the stand your ground law and how things are now setting up for a possible trial.
In order for the prosecution to win its case, it faces two challenges. First, it must demonstrate the death was caused by a criminal act then it must convince jurors the act demonstrated a depraved mind without regard for human life.
CNN's legal analyst Mark Nejame is in Orlando where he's a criminal defense attorney. Good morning, Mark.
MARK NEJAME, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: Good morning.
COSTELLO: So, is this a difficult case for prosecutors?
NEJAME: I think it's far more difficult than some people would suggest and some media reports would indicate. Mark hit it on the head when you saw that little clip there.
Actually, Mark and I were co-commentators during that entire trial. So I spent about two months with him, almost every day. Mark knows the law inside out as you saw in his press conference yesterday. He was very measured. He's very controlled.
He's compassionate and strong advocate. So, I think that he's going to be laying it out and looking for all the areas to present at some point before a judge on the immunity aspect of the stand your ground law.
COSTELLO: So, Mark, let me ask you this. George Zimmerman's legal advisers, we heard them in that news conference and people thought they were kind of whacky. How did Zimmerman find his new attorney? Do you know?
NEJAME: I do. We were going to be actually bringing it up later, but since you asked, very simply. We got a phone call from Mr. Zimmerman and I simply said that I did not want to handle the case.
Not on any personal grounds, as far as having a strong opinion one way or the other about the case, but I knew Natalie Jackson on Trayvon's side. She's a fabulous lawyer.
And I simply thought that it was best that young children of an older father, I've been involved in a lot of high profile cases and they own you.
So I gave five different names to Mr. Zimmerman and his people and they researched and found Mark to be the one they wanted to go with and they made a very excellent choice.
COSTELLO: Interesting. I guess, the other question I have, if you were defending George Zimmerman, what would be your line of attack?
NEJAME: Well, I think that I would find all the facts. I think that it's going to be an exhausting discovery in this case. There are a lot of things we don't know. There are suggestions of bigotry and racial overtones.
I think first of all, I would find out those 42 or 46 calls that he made calling about suspicious activity in the area, were those uniformly, with those people of color, African-Americans. Were they against Hispanics? Were they against people who were white?
If in fact it was a cross section, it would suggest that this was not a unique thing because he saw a young African-American male. If in fact those calls were disproportionately African-American or people of color then I think there's an issue there as far as him profiling.
Those are the things we don't know right now. I think I would look at forensics, if in fact there was a distance between the powder burns on Trayvon. It would suggest they were far away from each other.
If we show that the powder burns were quite close, we know that there was likely a struggle that was going on and it happened right at that time. There are so many things we still don't know that need to be found out before people take these extreme polarizing sides that they have taken.
I think that this case is very important because you've got two tragedies without question for the Martin family, but I also think that the Zimmerman family never would have expected this to happen in their lives as well.
It's a true, true tragedy for all involved and from what I understand. Trayvon's mother took to the air waves today and showed great compassion. And I think that will go a long way towards healing and figuring out what really went on without all the drama and emotion as much.
COSTELLO: Mark Nejame, thank you so much for sharing your insight with us this morning.
We have continuing coverage of the Zimmerman case throughout the hour. We'll hear from Representative Fredericka Wilson who has been calling for charges against George Zimmerman for weeks.
We'll also hear from Zimmerman's brother. He says Zimmerman is facing charges today because of characters influencing the case.
Also, a controversial comment about a White House candidate's wife has exploded across social media, string of sentiment for stay at home moms. It all started with this from Democratic consultant, Hilary Rosen on CNN's "AC 360."
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
HILARY ROSEN, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: What you have is Mitt Romney running around the country saying, well, you know, my wife tells me that what women really care about are economic issues and when I listen to my wife, that's what I'm hearing.
Guess what? His wife has actually never worked a day in her life. She's never really dealt with the kinds of economic issues that the majority of women in this country are facing, in terms of how do we feed our kids, how do we send them to school and why we worry about their future?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: Ann Romney went on Twitter for the first time ever to fire back. This is her tweet. She said I made a choice to stay at home and raise five boys. Believe me, it was hard work.
Hilary Rosen joined us in the last hour and she had this to say.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ROSEN: This isn't about whether Ann Romney or I or other women of, you know, some means can afford to make a choice to stay home and raise kids. Most women in America let's face it, don't have the choice. They have to be working moms and home moms.
That's the piece that I am not hearing from the Romney camp instead, everybody's attacking me. That's fine. Attack me, but it does not erase his woeful record on this issue.
COSTELLO: You know, I talk to a lot of conservative women who say that these kinds of comments just prove once again that liberal women really have a clue how conservative women choose to live their lives. And by your comment, I think that's just opened up that wound and widened the chasm once again.
ROSEN: You know, Carol, I don't think that women across this country who have to work to support their families and are raising children, view the divide here between liberal women and conservative women.
That's not how most Americans see themselves. They see themselves as having a rough time, as wanting leaders who speak to their issues. Barack Obama has done that and Mitt Romney has not.
And the Republicans are making a very effective, strategic decision today to attack me instead of talking about the issues that have been raised over the last few days.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COSTELLO: Our "Political Buzz" panel will take on this hot topic. That will come your way in just about 20 minutes.
A real life drama unfolds on a Los Angeles freeway. A police chase ends in a shootout. It's all caught on camera. That's just ahead.
And a married coach exchanges thousands of texts and hundreds of calls with a woman who's not his wife. Bobby Petrino's downfall logged in newly released phone records.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: Thinking about upgrading your mobile phone? If you're a Verizon Wireless customer, you better do it fast because the prices just about to go up.
Patricia Wu is at the New York Stock Exchange. She had details for us. So what are you talking about, Patricia?
PATRICIA WU, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning there, Carol. Well, we're talking about $30 fee if you upgrade your phone. It starts on April 22nd, so you can still get in under the wire if you go out today.
Now this applies to people who buy a new, discounted phone with a two-year contract. So for example, an iPhone, normally 200 bucks, if you're eligible for an upgrade, now, it's going to cost you $230.
Just to give you the big picture, every other major carrier already does this. AT&T and Sprint have a $36 fee for an upgrade, while T-Mobile has an $18 fee. I know Verizon has a trade-in program, you may be able to save a few bucks there. You should ask if you're going in for an upgrade -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Well, was kind of a silly question, but why all the fees? I mean, they get you coming and going.
WU: I know. Well, you know what it is? There are big changes in the wireless industry. Companies are making a lot of money on smart, I mean, they're not making a lot of money on smart phones because of those subsidies.
And they're also making less money on voice minutes because we're not using as many. Instead, you know what we're doing, Carol, we're downloading videos, music, browsing online.
And that causes the wireless spectrum to get jammed up, so if carriers are spending billions to build that up, that infrastructure. So these fees they help pay for that.
COSTELLO: Gotcha. Patricia Wu from the New York Stock Exchange. Thank you.
Now is your chance to talk back on one of the big stories of the day. The question for you this morning, is the Martin case more about race or justice?
This is a case that's once again ripped the country apart along racial lines. The prosecutor was careful to say she's committed to justice for every race, every gender, and every person. Even Martin family advocate Al Sharpton pivoted and calmly talked about unity.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I want us to be very clear. This is not anti anybody. There are whites, blacks, Latinos, Asians that have marched with us, that stand with us.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: That is a far cry from those fiery speeches where Sharpton demanded that George Zimmerman be arrested.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Don't talk to us like we're ignorant! We love our children like you love yours! Lock him up!
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: Critics like conservative fire brand Rush Limbaugh accused them of race baiting, saying Zimmerman was branded a criminal before everyone knew the facts. Well, those facts will eventually come out, but will we ever come together on race?
Yesterday, it took the victim's mother to peel away the racial politics.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
FULTON: I just want to speak from my heart to your heart because a heart has no color. There's not black. There's not white. It's red and I want to say thank you from my heart to your heart.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: So the talk back question today, is the Martin case more about race or justice? Facebook.com/carolcnn. I'll read your responses later this hour.
Another hot story out there this morning. Ann Romney getting feisty on Twitter. She fired back at the Democrat who said Mrs. Romney never worked a day in her life. Our "Political Buzz" panel will weigh in next. And new evidence about just how bad Bobby Petrino's behavior was. Phone records show thousands of texts and hundreds of calls between the now fired coach and a female staff member.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: A 51-year-old married father of four, an attractive 25-year-old single woman on his staff. You know what this kind of sort of usually leads to.
In the case of Bobby Petrino and Jessica Dorrell, it led to Petrino's firing as Arkansas football coach. Now, with the release of phone records, we see how consuming their relationship really was. Carlos Diaz joins us. Just so tawdry.
CARLOS DIAZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It really is. It shows that it was A, consensual and B, it was not a one-night stand. I mean, this went on for months. Basically, Petrino was using a cell phone that the University of Arkansas had given him, so that was mistake number one right there.
Then you've got over 4,400 text messages over the span of several months sometimes as many as over 100 text messages a day going back and forth between Dorrell and Petrino. I mean, it was utterly, basically, it's kind of like a schoolboy, schoolgirl crush if you will, if you're sending that much text messages back and forth.
Including in the seven months, over 60 photo text messages from Dorrell to Bobby Petrino, we don't know what was in those photos, but you can only imagine.
COSTELLO: I don't want to know. How did he have time to coach football?
DIAZ: Well, that's the thing too. I mean, Arkansas fans out there are saying what does that have to do with football? Come on, they shouldn't have fired him? What are you thinking? Well, guess what?
When they were playing on Saturday, one Saturday, they exchanged 70 text messages with each other last September, before a game last September. So, it doesn't even matter when he's trying to prepare for a team, prepare to beat a team.
He's sending text messages. At the cotton bowl, she actually texted him during the cotton bowl. He didn't send a message back because he was coaching. I would have loved to see him do that that would have been amazing, but still.
COSTELLO: Well, he's got a checkered past though, so Arkansas, maybe they should have expected something like this to happen.
DIAZ: You're talking about a guy, you know, and he does. His past in coaching is suspect at best. I mean, here's a guy who was at Louisville. There were rumors that he wanted to get back to Auburn. He denied those rumors and it came out it was true, that he interviewed for that job.
And then he went to the Atlanta Falcons signed a five-year deal and he coached 13 games before ditching the Falcons three games left before the end of the season and going to Arkansas. So you get what you pay for. You get what you expect and that's what they got with Bobby Petrino.
COSTELLO: OK, so, on a scale of one to ten, will he be hired again?
DIAZ: This year, zero. Next year, zero. The year after that, five. The year after that, seven. With time, it heals all wounds. I'd say in five years, he'll be back and coaching.
COSTELLO: Carlos, thank you.
Miami Heat star Dwayne Wade wants NBA players to be paid if they play in the Olympics. The point guard is expected to play with Team USA at the summer games in London.
Wade told espn.com, there's a demanding schedule that comes with committing to the national team and Wade says there's little rest between the end of the NBA season and Olympic practices and games and NBA training camps. So, maybe he deserves a little compensation.
DIAZ: Yes, because they don't make millions of dollars every year.
COSTELLO: That doesn't matter.
Stephen Colbert broke some big news last night. He found out that Michelle Obama is endorsing her husband for president. The first lady is really making the TV rounds maybe it's time for Ann Romney to do the same. Our "Political Buzz" weighs in next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: Robert Zimmerman says his family is devastated prosecutors have charged his brother, George, with second degree murder in the shooting death of Trayvon Martin.
Speaking on CNN's Piers Morgan last night, Robert Zimmerman suggested political pressure influenced the prosecutor's decision to file the charges.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERT ZIMMERMAN JR., GEORGE ZIMMERMAN'S BROTHER: We realized early on in this process that there were various organizations, individuals, who were not satisfied with any part of the answers that were given by pertinent parties in the investigation at the time such as the police.
They didn't like that answer. He had to go. The police chief I'm referring to, Chief Lee. They didn't like the answer of the Florida Department of Law Enforcement. They didn't like the first prosecutor.
They were starting to not, apparently, the congresswoman from Mr. Martin's district was voicing concern about this prosecutor. We are a family who respects the system. We understand there are many wrongs in the wheel of justice and this is one of the characters, players, the prosecutor, you know, the prosecutors throwing the book.
Sometimes prosecutors do that because they're hoping in some semblance of justice or some appearance of justice that someone will plead down or somebody will take some deal.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: Joining us live, Congresswoman Frederica Wilson. She represents Trayvon Martin's home district in Florida. Welcome.
REPRESENTATIVE FREDERICA WILSON (D), FLORIDA: Thank you so much.
COSTELLO: Thank you for being here. Congresswoman, I just wanted to get your reaction to Zimmerman's brother's claims that political and public pressure unfairly impacted this case. Did it?
WILSON: Not unfairly. Not unfairly at all. We were fighting for justice. It was a long time before I even knew that this murder has occurred. I had no idea of the incident and I think where the political pressure was in Sanford with Mr. Zimmerman's father being a judge.
And using his political influence to not have the state attorney press charges and I think that's where he needs to focus political activity. I'm a congresswoman who represents a district of over 600,000 people. And it's my responsibility to look after their needs, especially to fight for them for justice.
COSTELLO: And you have been outspoken about this case. Repeatedly calling on prosecutors to charge Zimmerman even talked a t the case on the House floor. Do you think your comments along with that public outcry surrounding the shooting influenced the prosecutor's decision to charge Zimmerman?
WILSON: Well, no, I think the evidence influenced to charge him with what he is charged with, but I think that the outcries helped bring the case to justice. I think and I truly believe that this case would have never been brought to justice without the outcries. This was a case that was almost, that almost slipped through the system without the public ever knowing it.
COSTELLO: Are you satisfied with the second degree murder charge?
WILSON: I'm satisfied with the arrest and I'm satisfied with the second degree murder charge, yes, I am. I'm relieved that Mr. Zimmerman has been arrested and I'm very prayerful that the wheels of justice will continue to turn and justice will be served in the end. I know this is just the beginning. And we have a long process ahead of us. But no family should have to endure what Tracey and Sybrina endured and -- and all of the hundreds of other family members he has in District 17.
COSTELLO: The Zimmerman family worries that because this case has gotten so much national attention and because it's such an emotional state, that it isn't possible for George Zimmerman to get a fair trial. How do you respond to that?
WILSON: I think it's possible for him to get a fair trial. There have been other trials that have carried more sensationalism than this and I think that he will get a fair trial. And that's all I can say. That I am sure that he will get a fair trial.
(CROSSTALK)
COSTELLO: Congresswoman thank --
(CROSSTALK)
WILSON: Might have to change it, you know, change the venue, but I'm sure he'll get a fair trial.
COSTELLO: Congresswoman thank you for being with us this morning. We appreciate it.
WILSON: Thank you, Carol.
COSTELLO: "Political Buzz" is your rapid fire look at the best political topics of the day. Three questions, 30 seconds on the clock. Playing with us today, Sirius XM radio host and comedian Pete Dominick on the left; Jason Johnson of Politic 365; in the middle and the right, CNN contributor, Will Cain.
Welcome to all of you.
PETE DOMINICK, RADIO HOST, SIRIUS XM: Hey Carol.
JASON JOHNSON, POLITIC 365: Good morning.
COSTELLO: Good morning.
So first question if you're feeling nostalgic for the McCarthy era, let Florida Congressman Allen West help you out. He was asked at a town hall meeting, how many members of Congress are card-carrying Marxists.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. ALLEN WEST (R), FLORIDA: I believe there's about 78 to 81 members of the Democratic Party are members of the Communist Party --
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: Ok, so 2012, maybe it's the new 1950 I don't know. West later said he was referring to Congressional Progressive Caucus members. Of course as you know Sarah Palin thinks West should be Romney's running mate maybe, so how about it guys? Allen West for VP? Will?
WILL CAIN, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: I love the specificity; 78-81 somewhere in that range. You know his mistake was limiting it so specifically to the Communist Party. The question actually said an international socialist. And come on I mean, you know we start drawing gray lines here. We go from progressives to social Democrat to socialist to communist. I mean, he just shouldn't have narrowed it so much. I'm kind of joking. VP, no.
COSTELLO: What do you mean you're kind of joking?
CAIN: Well Pete, like take Pete for example. Pete's a pretty -- you're a socialist, right, Pete?
DOMINICK: No, no.
CAIN: I'm kidding. I'm kidding. Hey on VP --
(CROSSTALK)
DOMINICK: See you've heard that. You heard it.
COSTELLO: Ok. Ok, so Pete, you go next now.
DOMINICK: Well -- well, listen. I think Congressman "kitten play" (ph) has proven over and over that he lives in bizarro land, whatever district that he is in Florida. He constantly makes all kinds of claims that have no evidence. He said I've heard this. This guy is an embarrassment to Will and all conservatives because he doesn't -- he has -- there's no evidence to anything he says.
As far as him being Romney's running mate, Romney/West sounds great. One is pro-life, one is pro-choice, one is anti-public health care, one is pro public health care. Wait a second now I'm sorry that's a Romney-Romney ticket. I get confused sometimes.
COSTELLO: Oh Jason.
JOHNSON: Look, Allen West is not a good idea. The guy is volatile. I mean he -- he went after Debbie Wasserman Schultz. He's always saying crazy stuff, he has that sort of he shot somebody in the air or try to shoot somebody when he was in Iraq. He will be a mistake through and through. He's not going to get you the military vote that's already going to vote Republican. He's not going to get you the African-American you know vote with that sort of 1992 high top aid from like you know Steve Urkel or something. There's nothing about him that's going to bring in the Republican Party or the Democratic Party, Romney should leave him alone.
COSTELLO: Ok second question. Let's talk about the Hilary Rosen and Ann Romney Twitter war. It started when Rosen slammed Mrs. Romney for, in her words, not working a day in her life. Ann Romney fires back, now this is a tweet. "I made a choice to stay at home and raise five boys. Believe me, it was hard work." Is this attack on Ann Romney's working woman cred fair? Will?
CAIN: No. I want to make a couple of points here. Actually, Hilary Rosen is a friend of mine and Hilary Rosen is a mother of two children. She said something stupid and I think very, very -- should be rebutted strongly on the merits of the idea, but as a person, Hilary is a -- is a very good person and I like her.
Secondly, what it does though is it exposes the stupidity of this war on women talk. You know, you play with fire, you get burned. You dance with the devil, use all those bromides (ph), you want to develop some narrative about a war on women, when you wade into that and say something like this be ready for it to be turned on you. Don't divide us. We're just all Americans.
COSTELLO: Jason?
JOHNSON: This is just another example of how the Republicans are trying to shift the narrative against you know away from the war on women. Look, the fact of the matter is everybody knows what Rosen was talking about. Ann Romney raised five boys. That's great. Raising children is work.
But she didn't have to worry about going outside the home to get a job which is a concern that most American women actually have. Everyone knows the difference here. The Republicans are trying to make this a new issue because they have no policies that make Independent women happy and Romney is losing to Barack Obama by 18 points amongst women in swing states.
COSTELLO: Pete?
DOMINICK: Wow, double down.
Well, I think Hilary was a little careless and made the same mistake I've often made and forgetting how difficult and how much work it is to raise kids. But to be fair, man, I mean, you know, Ann Romney was -- was born into privilege. She certainly married into tremendous wealth and didn't have to worry about things that almost every woman in this country has to worry about.
The economic inequality gap in this country as we all know is getting more and more and women that have to not only raise kids, but go to work every day just to meet -- to make ends meet to worry about concerns like providing their kids with health care, that is what women are really concerned about. This is all perception. Women know what's going on right now. We don't have to try to convince them.
COSTELLO: I would agree with that part. Women do know what's going on. We don't need people to tell us.
You're "Buzzer Beater" now. 20 seconds each. Michelle Obama has been all over the dial in the last few weeks. She's on Nickelodeon, on Jimmy Fallon and David Letterman, "The Biggest Loser" and now, "Stephen Colbert."
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) STEPHEN COLBERT, "THE COLBERT REPORT": You are popular. You are -- do you ever lord over the President the fact that you're more popular than he is? Do you ever say like, hey, watch it or I might not campaign for you?
MICHELLE OBAMA, FIRST LADY OF THE UNITED STATES: I might try that when I get home.
COLBERT: Have -- have you -- have you endorsed him yet? Are you prepared to do that?
OBAMA: I am prepared. I'm endorsing my husband Barack Obama. I think he will be a phenomenal president. He has done a phenomenal job. He's my man.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: Making TV appearances is working for Michelle Obama and it might pay off for her husband, too. Who knows? Maybe Ann Romney needs to get out there, too, so what TV show do you think Ann should strive for, Will?
CAIN: Leno, I don't know, something like that. I've got to return to the phenomenal answers that Pete and Jason just gave on the last question. Which I cannot believe the strategy of dividing Americans and narrowing down the qualified people to speak on the economy to exclude women who haven't participated in a job you qualify as earning a wage. Go with the strategy, boys. This is going to be a good one for you.
COSTELLO: Ok Jason answer the question as you will.
JOHNSON: First off Will, I'm not your boy.
Second off, we're talking about major issues that have to deal with how women function in this country economically. And let me say something else. If I was Ann Romney, the first place I would go is to the OWN Network. Look Oprah Winfrey used to support Barack Obama. That hurt her, now her channel is failing. She should see if she can pull some of Obama supporters from 2008 to join Romney in 2012.
COSTELLO: Pete?
DOMINICK: What TV show should Ann Romney go on? None. She should do radio, my show on Sirius XM. Stand out with Pete Dominick I'd love to have you on the program, Ann Romney. Will comes on all the time, Dr. Johnson is going to come on very soon, I hope.
But if she had to do a TV show I'd pitch a couple. How about "The Housewife of Mitt Romney" or no, no, no. What do Republicans watch today Will? How about this one I got an idea "Law and Order, Prenatal Unit".
My serious answer -- my serious answer is every night at 6:00 p.m. right here on CNN, on CNN right -- every night, John King is the most painfully fair interviewer ever, so I think she should go on with John King.
COSTELLO: Ok, point taken. Thanks for playing today.
Well it's interesting and spunky and I liked that.
DOMINICK: Thanks, Carol.
JOHNSON: Thank you.
COSTELLO: Still ahead on NEWSROOM, a high speed chase takes a dramatic turn and it's all caught on camera. What happened when the suspect opened fire on police?
And it looks like Betty White got the last laugh. We'll tell you what had the Twitter world in a frenzy.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: Checking our top stories now, the man facing second degree murder charges for killing Trayvon Martin will appear before a judge today. This is George Zimmerman's mug shot. It's the first time we've seen him since the night he killed Trayvon Martin. Zimmerman's attorney says he'll ask for his client's release on bond.
The international community is watching North Korea as it prepares to launch a new rocket. North Korea insists the operation is for peaceful purposes, but U.S. and South Korean officials believe it's a cover for a ballistic missile test.
And these are new pictures of John Edwards as he arrives for his trial. Jury selection begins today in the case of the former Democratic presidential candidate. He faces a half dozen charges over the way money was handled in his 2008 campaign and specifically, payments made to his former mistress. Edwards denies any wrongdoing.
Rock 'n' roll icon Axl Rose is turning down a big honor this week and he's saying "No thanks" to the Rock and Roll Hall of fame and he went on a sort of diatribe in written form. I must have thrown away his letter now but it was long.
"SHOWBIZ TONIGHT" host, A.J. Hammer has more on the story. Good morning.
A.J. HAMMER, HLN HOST: Yes, I hope you recycled that. That's a lot of trees there with that diatribe from Axl Rose, Carol.
Let me put this in perspective for you Guns n Roses was one of the biggest bands on the planet for all of four years before they imploded in what really was this massive fire ball. That's almost 20 years ago. And for the most part, it's been nothing but problems ever since. Axl released this long, long, long statement to "SHOWBIZ TONIGHT" about the Rock Hall and why he doesn't want the group that he co- founded to be given the honor. Now, he's trying to be nice about it saying he is respectfully declining the invitation to appear in this weekend's induction and he's asking not to even be included. Now, this letter from Axl, it's massive. I mean it's huge. It's over 1,000 words long explaining his position. Now, the Rock Hall holds a position as well. They tell it in 14 words. These are those words. "We are sorry Axl will not be able to accept his induction in person." Perfect.
The other members of the band are expected to be there, Carol. Green Day is going to be inducting them into the hall on Saturday. Guns n Roses will be honored whether Axl Rose likes it or not.
COSTELLO: I know. Well, Axl Rose -- Axl Rose doesn't even look like Axl Rose anymore. So maybe it's better. I don't know.
HAMMER: Well, there is that.
COSTELLO: There is that.
Let's talk about someone extremely sane and that would be Betty White. I love her. Anything she does --
HAMMER: I love her too.
COSTELLO: I want to hear about.
HAMMER: Yes. And let me tell you about this. She's new to Twitter, but she actually knows how to make an impression. We figured that out pretty quickly.
Betty had famously said in the past, that she wouldn't join Twitter, but she has now, @bettymwhite is her Twitter handle. And she joined up in part to promote her new (inaudible) show which is called "Betty White's Off Their Rockers". Kind of a punked by seniors. Very, very funny show.
Betty apparently decided to pull another joke on her co- star from "Hot in Cleveland", Valerie Bertinelli. Because all of a sudden yesterday, you had Valerie on Twitter. She started tweeting away this. "Just spoke with Betty and she's very upset. @BettyMWhite is not her, don't know how that got verified but it is not Betty. please re-tweet. So fans reportedly started re-tweeting that and calls were flying in to Bettye's office. Then came this next tweet. "Stop the presses. Betty just got a call." An account was opened on her behalf by her people. More to come and it's all a misunderstanding. @BettyMWhite is Betty's Twitter account.
Finally, this came in, Carol, I think @BettyMWhite pranked me but good. May be 90, but Betty White, Carol, has still got it and she is going to have a lot more Twitter followers now that we're talking about it.
COSTELLO: Yes, I'm going to follow her myself. A.J. Hammer, thank you.
If you want information on everything breaking in the entertainment world, A.J.'s got it tonight on "SHOWBIZ TONIGHT" at 11:00 Eastern on HLN. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: We asked you to "Talk Back" on one of the big stories of the day. The question for you this morning, "Is the Martin case more about race or justice?"
This from Sydney. It's about right and wrong. Things like this happen to African-Americans all the time, but what makes this case so different is that Trayvon's parents were not going to let their son die in vain like so many others."
This from Ray. Racist people are a minority. We should be coming together around justice, but instead, the ignorance of a few loud voices is separating us more.
This from Ervin. My heart goes out to the Martin family. It's always the person that committed the crime has all rights. I pray for the family. This from Robert. It's not about race, it's about justice. The ineptitude of the Sanford Police Department is what's turned this into a circus. White people are just as P-O'd with black.
Keep the conversation going, facebook.com/carolcnn and thanks as always for your comments.
A 2,000-year-old engraving found inside a tomb in Jerusalem. Is it the earliest symbol of Jesus' resurrection? Or is it just a religious; more on the controversy, next.
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COSTELLO: A group of archeologists say they made a remarkable discovery inside a 2,000-year-old tomb in Jerusalem. A burial box that depicts Jesus' resurrection. It's all documented in a TV special debut in tonight on the Discovery Channel. Here's a quick clip.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Jesus' body will have been laid right here.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That is a symbol of Christian resurrection.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: But not everyone is buying it. Some historians say there's no proof the burial box shows Jesus' resurrection, among them, our next guest, Robert Cargill, an assistant professor of Classics and Religious Studies at the University of Iowa.
ROBERT CARGILL, ASST. PROFESSOR, UNIVERSITY OF IOWA: Thank you for having me Carol.
COSTELLO: This is just such a fascinating topic, but why are you skeptical?
CARGILL: I am highly skeptical as are the majority of other scholars and archaeologists in the field. In fact the only scholars who accept Simcha's (ph) claims are working with or for Simcha on this project or some other project.
COSTELLO: Explain that further. Like explain the exact symbol they're talking about and where it came from for people.
CARGILL: There are five basic claims. And I'll go through them very, very quickly. One is they're claiming to have found Jonah's great fish. But it's not Jonah's great fish. It's a Greek vessel inscribed on the side of an ossuary (ph) -- just like we have in dozens of instances of vessels inscribed on the side of ossuaries.
But that didn't stop them from photo shopping this image, turning it on its side and then distributing it to the public so that it looks more like a fish. They want it to be the sign of Jonah. Number two, there are no fish in the margins. There's geometry all around this vessel. There's squares, there's x's, there's zigzag triangles and there's circles.
What they did is they took digital ink and got the same color as the area and hew extended the circle so that it crosses the back so that forms the tail of like a little Jesus fish that you would find on the back of a car. And then they put that in the museum reply and they sent that out to the public.
Number three -- there's no cross. It's just parallel intersecting lines. The inscription doesn't say what they say it says. Only the people working with or for Simcha says that it has the name of god rendered into Greek. And the funniest one of all, and I use the word funny, it's the nicest word I can find. The base of the vessel, a semicircular base of the vessel. They claim was the, I kid you not, the seaweed wrapped head of a (INAUDIBLE) that they've already abandoned it and just this morning, released a new discovery that says they found the name of Jonah in Hebrew in the bottom of this vase.
COSTELLO: Ok. So, You've really slammed them now, so I want to get, I want to play this statement from the man who made this Discovery Channel documentary. Let's listen
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SIMCHA JACOBOVICH: Right over here, you have the earliest icon of Christian belief. The earliest statement of resurrection anywhere, found anywhere. Even if it's not connected to Jesus, it's the earliest statement. You have something dating back earlier than the gospels.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: So, you're just saying he's full of it and doesn't know what he's talking about?
Rorschach test version of archaeology. They're looking at lines, they're looking at a griffito and they're trying to see whatever their imagination allows them to see. Just this morning, you know, the name of Jonah in Hebrew is a bunch of different length lines. (Inaudible) And you know, just this morning, if we're using that criteria, I found the name of yo-yo ma. It's just not there. There is no evidence whatsoever of early Christianity in either of the tombs and it's commonly known that Jewish groups believed in resurrection. Some Jewish groups believed in resurrection long before Christianity ever came about.
COSTELLO: Ok, so I guess you won't be watching that documentary, but --
CARGILL: I approve, I will be watching it and I'll be blogging it live.
COSTELLO: Oh, great. Ok. We'll follow you then, Robert Cargill, he's an assistant professor of classics and religious studies at the University of Iowa.
Thank you so much for being with us this morning.
CARGILL: Thank you again, Carol.
COSTELLO: Anne Romney is now responding to Hilary Rosen's controversial comment about here being a stay at home. First here's what the Democratic consultants said on CNN 360.
HILARY ROSEN, DEMOCRATIC STRATEGIST: His wife has actually never worked a day in her life. She's never really dealt with the kinds of economic issues, that a majority of the women in this country are facing.
COSTELLO: Ok. And this was what Ann Romney had to say on Fox News just a short time ago.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANN ROMNEY, WIFE OF MITT ROMNEY: This is what's so interesting about this. My career choice was to be a mother. And I think all of us need to know that we need to respect choices that women make. Other women make other choices to have a career and raise a family which I think Hilary Rosen has actually done herself. I respect that. That's wonderful.
But you know there are other people that have a choice. We have to respect women in all those choices that they make.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: In her defense, Rosen says Romney never had to care for her children and earn a paycheck like most American women.
Much more on this on the hours to come on CNN. We're back after a quick break.
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COSTELLO: Today's "Daily Dose", too little sleep can lead to obesity, even diabetes. In a study in the current issue of Science Translational Medicine looked at 21 adults for six weeks. Now, they all got less than six hours of sleep per night. As a result, participants had elevated blood sugar levels and burned calories more slowly than those people who had eight hours of sleep. So get your Z's in.
CNN NEWSROOM continues now with Kyra Phillips.
