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Stand Your Ground Law under Fire in Florida; Movie Review by Grae Drake; Is Secret Service Prostitution Scandal a Stray Incident?
Aired April 21, 2012 - 14:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
ROB MARCIANO, CNN HOST: You are in the CNN NEWSROOM, where the news unfolds live on this Saturday, April 21st. I'm Rob Marciano, in today for Fredricka Whitfield.
Happening now, George Zimmerman may be released from jail anytime. A judge set a $150,000 bond during a hearing that took an unexpected turn yesterday, when Zimmerman took the stand and said this --
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GEORGE ZIMMERMAN, FORMER NEIGHBORHOOD WATCH OFFICER: I wanted to say I am sorry for the loss of your son. I did not know how old he was. I thought he was a little bit younger than I am. And I did not know if he was armed or not.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MARCIANO: CNN's David Mattingly is following the developments from Sanford, Florida.
David, when exactly is Zimmerman expected to be released, potentially today and where is he likely to go?
DAVID MATTINGLY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, he could be released at any time. There's no set timetable with this. In fact, yesterday his attorney was saying it might even take a couple of days. There's a lot of things to consider here, first of all, his security.
He has to be able to escape all the scrutiny that's on him right now and go back into hiding, possibly out of state where he was before when he turned himself in. Also, authorities are going to have to be able to keep track of him. He's going to have to have a GPS device on him so if he does go out of state, they have to have assurances that that technology is going to work wherever he might be going.
Also, another thing. He's going to have to make bond, he's going to have to come up with $15,000 cash and there's a lot of wheels in motion right now that are affecting exactly when he's going to be getting out.
MARCIANO: David, we played a little clip of Zimmerman yesterday taking the stand. Kind of a surprise move. It's the first time he's spoken publicly about the case. What's been the reaction on the ground there? MATTINGLY: Well, the reaction we heard from first was from the family of Trayvon Martin. I was looking right at Trayvon Martin's parents sitting in the courtroom, listening as George Zimmerman was looking and talking directly to them in the courtroom. They sat there rather stoic, not reacting much throughout the proceedings.
They may have leaned to each other and said something quietly occasionally, but soon as this hearing was over, they got up and walked out of the courtroom quickly, not talking to anyone, not answering any questions.
Instead they let their attorney speak for them and he expressed their outrage that George Zimmerman was allowed to get up and make an apology. They questioned his motivation, they questioned the timing of this. They say he could have done this, many opportunities prior to that hearing, and they viewed it as quote, "self-serving," that he was doing this in order to get his bond.
MARCIANO: You know, watching this yesterday, this hearing, it looked to me almost like a trial. I mean, at one point the defense was questioning the state investigator. What was their goal there?
MATTINGLY: Well, that was very unusual, but nothing is normal about this case. The defense was actually trying to find out a little bit of what kind of evidence the prosecution actually has against George Zimmerman.
It was a surprise when the defense put the investigator from the state on the stand and started asking very specific questions, and we were learning that they didn't have the answers to some very basic questions, the foremost here being, who threw the first punch in that altercation between George Zimmerman and Trayvon Martin?
MARCIANO: And that's going to be key to, you know, try to get down to the bottom of, and I guess we'll have to wait for the trial there. All right. David Mattingly on the watch there in Sanford, Florida. David, we'll check back with you later in the afternoon. Thank you.
One of the biggest questions coming out of the Trayvon Martin case is what will happen to that "Stand Your Ground" law? Florida has just taken big steps towards deciding on that. Coming up, our Josh Levs will have some details on that.
Now to the case of the missing little boy that's gone cold but never been closed. The FBI is tearing up a basement in this New York City apartment. It's a building that they're in right now, and they're sifting through dirt, hoping to find clues about what happened to 6- year-old Etan Patz. He vanished from the neighborhood 33 years ago and hasn't been seen since.
At the time the boy's case was front page news across the country.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ERNIE ALLEN, NATIONAL CENTER FOR MISSING & EXPLOITED CHILDREN: In many ways he was the first missing child. He was America's missing child.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MARCIANO: The FBI has brand new interest in the local carpenter, who used to have a work shop in that basement and was one of the last people to see Etan before he disappeared. The carpenter hasn't been charged with any crime and he says he had nothing to do with the child's disappearance.
A California woman remains in jail, charged with the first-degree murder of this woman, Brittany Killgore. Killgore, who had recently filed for divorce from her Marine husband, stationed in Afghanistan, disappeared April 13th.
Her body was found days later in a neighboring county. Detectives have not revealed the relationship, if any, between Killgore and the woman charged with her murder, Jessica Lynn Lopez. Lopez is being held on $3 million bond.
A top U.S. senator wants to know if anyone from the White House played a part in the Secret Service prostitution scandal. Iowa's Republican Senator Chuck Grassley says he is asking whether or not the Secret Service agents reserved or shared hotel rooms with White House staffers prior to President Obama's arrival in Colombia last week.
Six Secret Service agents have lost their jobs already and the investigation is far from over. Stay with CNN. Drew Griffin is actually in Colombia right now, and we'll talk with him later on this program.
Mitt Romney, pushing forward to November. He took a sort of victory lap while speaking at the Republican National Committee gathering in Arizona yesterday. Romney split his message between a call for party unity and attacks on President Obama, and a word for his past and present Republican rivals.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
FORMER GOV. MITT ROMNEY, R-MASS., PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Let me also commend the people who had the courage to run for president on our side of the aisle this year, some still running.
Some have gotten out of the race but each contributed to the process. Each of them campaigned in an aggressive and dynamic way to spread our message of conservatism and each is going to play a vital role in making sure that we win in November.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MARCIANO: On Monday, Romney will be campaigning in Philadelphia with Florida Senator Marco Rubio. He's been mentioned as a possible running mate. But before Rubio takes that campaign stop, you can catch him on "State of the Union" with Candy Crowley, tomorrow right here on CNN at 9:00 am Eastern.
When you look at his delegate count, his campaign debt, presidential hopeful Newt Gingrich doesn't have much of a chance of becoming the nominee, but he doesn't want to give up the perks of still being in the race. That includes the Secret Service following him around everywhere.
It could be costing taxpayers more than $40,000 a day. His campaign has come under attacks for wasteful spending, as you can imagine, and in spite of his struggling campaign, his chief donor Sheldon Adelson's family gave his super PAC another $5 million last month. That brings their total contribution to more than $20 million so far.
U.S. Airways has take an step towards uniting with its larger competitor, American Airlines. Three of American's largest unions agreed to support a potential merger with US Airways. While this is not a formal bid just yet, this move is significant in garnering support for it. American Airlines filed for bankruptcy last year and earlier this year announced plans to cut 1,000 jobs.
Up next, we'll take to you a remote island in West Africa. It's a place you probably never would see. And these animals are facing an uncertain future.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MARCIANO: A couple of things happening overseas today. Police in Afghanistan say they foiled a major militant attack in Kabul. Look what they found hidden under bags of potatoes in a truck today, more than 10 tons of explosives. Five men were arrested. They reportedly confessed to being members of regional terrorist groups.
Across the border in Pakistan, recovery crews are still searching for the wreckage of a passenger plane that crashed yesterday in Islamabad. They've already found at least 120 bodies.
The U.N. Security Council approved a plan today to send 300 unarmed military observers to Syria. Their mission will be to make sure all sides of the conflict are following the terms of last week's cease- fire agreement.
And drivers are still preparing to race tomorrow in Bahrain. It's a major Formula 1 race, the Bahrain Grand Prix. The race is set to go on, despite last night's fighting between police and anti-government demonstrators that witnesses say left one protester dead.
Folks going to the movies this weekend can check out a Disney nature film about an adorable baby chimp in a rain forest. In the West African nation of Ivory Coast, our writer-producer Brenda Bush recently visited chimpanzees in neighboring Liberia. She takes us to a remote sanctuary where former lab animals now face an uncertain future.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BRENDA BUSH, WRITER-PRODUCER (voice-over): So it's not "Planet of the Apes," but it is a real-life island of the apes. These research chimpanzees were released after years of experimentation. They were brought to this island on Liberia's Farmington River to live out the rest of their lives far from prodding needles and other painful laboratory tests. This is their sanctuary.
BUSH: We've counted about a dozen chimpanzees here. They seemed agitated when we first arrived, but now they've calmed considerably and they seem to be watching us as we watch them.
BUSH (voice-over): Not many Liberians even know about these chimps. We had to travel an hour up river in a rudimentary canoe to get here. I'm told there are some 60 chimps roaming free on several carefully selected Liberian islands, and humans better watch out.
BUSH: Oh, heck no.
BUSH (voice-over): It was my daughter who insisted I come here.
BUSH: I've got to be honest, I have the same fear I had when I first came to this very island.
BUSH (voice-over): This may help explain why the chimps don't like people. They lived in these cages while researchers conducted pioneering studies of hepatitis over two decades. Liberian authorities say the research also led to a solvent detergent used to cleanse blood of viruses.
Ironically, it was the bloodshed in Liberia that freed the chimps. Years of civil war forced the New York Blood Center to shut down its facility in Liberia. Now the future of the animals may be in jeopardy.
Liberia is demanding compensation from the New York Blood Center for research carried out here during the 1980s. Some of that money would be used to continue feeding the chimps for the rest of their lives. Food is the one thing they rely on humans for, even those unwanted visitors.
BUSH: We learned that if you don't throw food at the chimpanzees they will throw rocks at you. So we brought plenty of bananas for them.
BUSH (voice-over): So the chimps can count on getting food from the few visitors who venture out here. But with the Liberian government and the New York Blood Center in arbitration, the long-term care of the chimps is in question.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MARCIANO: Well, Brenda Bush joins us live. Now, Brenda, you're from Liberia. That was your daughter you went to go see. Fascinating journey you took us on. Glad you shared that with us.
BUSH: Thank you.
MARCIANO: I guess the question is we're feeding the animals. But what else can be done to ensure that they live out their retirement well here?
BUSH: Well, that's the -- you know, Rob, I think we're going to have to wait and see the outcome of this legal case between the Liberian government and the New York Blood Center. They are the ones, the New York Blood Center is responsible for feeding the animals, taking care of them right now.
I spoke to the New York Blood Center. They said they can't talk while this case is under way. But the people -- my sources in Liberia say the New York Blood Center has indicated they can't continue taking care of these animals. And so really, we don't know yet. We will have to wait and see what happens.
MARCIANO: You know, you just, your heart goes out to these animals. Lord knows what they went through when these tests were being done. Even if they've been treated well or been out of human contact, there's -- they have a reputation for being a little bit agitated.
Was it -- was it -- their closest living relatives to humans. Was it a frightening -- I'd be kind of scared of these animals. It was, wasn't it?
BUSH: It was so scary. It was such a frightening experience. I'll tell you, and the fear for me started even before we got in the water. We were -- the canoe we took was a handmade canoe. I mean, it was just -- it looked so rudimentary. It was carved out.
And then we went to get in the canoe and the man, they call it a canoe, the man says to me, when you get in the canoe, don't move. I'm like don't move? What do you mean, don't move?
MARCIANO: Don't jump out.
BUSH: No. You don't move. You don't even turn, because it's a really small canoe.
MARCIANO: Might flip over.
BUSH: Yes, exactly. So at that point, I was like, OK. I don't need to see chimpanzees. And my daughter said, no, mom. We've got to go. It's going to be fun. You'll be fine.
So we get there. And you don't see the chimps because they see you coming way before you see them. You hear this -- they're going crazy and then you see them and they're jumping up and down. Oh, my gosh -- because you're used to seeing chimpanzees behind glass. There's no glass.
MARCIANO: Right, sure.
BUSH: There is no fence. There's you and there are the chimps. You know? So that was scary. It was scary watching them. It was -- it -- but like my daughter said, if you throw them food, which we knew, they won't throw rocks at you. But chimps are so smart. They're like, if you come see us, you better bring us some food.
MARCIANO: And what's more, we'll throw you some rocks. Wow.
BUSH: Yes. And they have good aim, I'm told. MARCIANO: I bet. I bet. Well, that's fascinating stuff. Great pictures. And we know you'll be following up on that to see where that takes us next. Brenda Bush, all right. Good stuff. Welcome back.
Tax fraud. It's a billion-dollar business and just ahead, we're going to tell you what you can do to not become a victim of stolen identity. Stay tuned.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MARCIANO: Chief medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta. You know him. As if he's got not enough on his plate, he's gearing up for a grueling triathlon. Well, at least he won't be alone. Some of our viewers are actually going to join him. Sanjay talked to one of them in this edition of "Fit Nation."
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: A little less than five months away until race day for me and a group of CNN viewers we call the Lucky Seven. We're all training to compete in the Nautica Malibu Triathlon.
And so far, you know, training seems to be going well for just about everyone. And now that the Lucky Seven have all gotten their road bikes, they've started riding outside, I wanted to check in with one of them to see how things have changed for her since joining the program.
And joining me now from Lockport, New York, right outside Buffalo, is Adrienne Lagier, one of our "Fit Nation" triathlon participants. Adrienne, good to see you. You're up in Lockport, I think it's spring break for you and your students. How are things going for you? What are you doing up there?
ADRIENNE LAGIER, TRIATHLON TRAINEE: Well, I'm enjoying some wedding planning here. Getting to visit my parents, and I've been able to work out with my sister while I've been here. So that's the first time I've ever actually come home with a plan to actually exercise. So it's been a different type of spring break in Buffalo this time around.
GUPTA: We got a couple other updates for you as well. You remember Glen? When we first met Glen, he was sleeping with a CPAP machine every night to help deal with his sleep apnea. Well, I'm happy to report that he's lost about 30 points since joining the challenge. And for the first time in years, he is sleeping soundly enough without the machine.
Also, Rick Morris, a firefighter from North Carolina who smoked nearly a pack a day, well, he smoked his last cigarette during our kickoff weekend. He said he would, and he did. And since quitting, his blood pressure has dropped from 150/95 to 114/60. No meds, just diet and exercise. I'm really proud of their progress. Can't wait to see more of their transformations as well. And hopefully you can follow along. Check out CNN.com/fitnation. You can also join us on Facebook, where we're doing something new. We're posting beginner workouts every Monday morning.
Back to you.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MARCIANO: OK, Sanjay. I know he probably filed his tax return recently. Millions of us filed just this past week. In the upcoming days, hundreds of thousands of us could find out that our identity was stolen and fake tax returns filed.
Today in our weekly "Financial Fix" segment, we get advice from four victims of tax fraud. Karen Lee is the author of "It's Just Money, So Why Does It Cause So Many Problems?" She is here with us live.
Karen, I know tax or identity theft is a big problem. But I wouldn't think that tax fraud would be associated with that. How big is -- ?
KAREN LEE, AUTHOR: It's new and it's growing. It's a huge problem. Last year the IRS gave out $1.4 billion in fraudulent tax refunds, it was a six-times increase over the year before.
MARCIANO: Wow, that is huge.
LEE: It is huge.
MARCIANO: So that many -- and just to people who have stolen your identity, and filed a return and got -- ?
(CROSSTALK)
LEE: And got refunds. They're even using fake employment information. It's crazy.
MARCIANO: So obviously they're stealing Social Security numbers.
LEE: That's right. That's right.
MARCIANO: And then -- so what -- if you're one of these people, what can you do to get your money back?
LEE: Right. OK. So let's talk about it. You've got two agencies you must go to. The first is the Federal Trade Commission. You want to go on their website. It's real easy to find, on the right side, it's got identity theft. And also call their hotline.
The second thing you need to do get is get in touch with the IRS. They have an identity theft unit. There's an 800 number for that and then this year they started a new form. It's form 14039 and this is an identity theft affidavit. And you need to go online with them and file that.
MARCIANO: They got a new form. That's how I knew how big this thing is.
LEE: It's new.
MARCIANO: How big a problem it is.
LEE: That's right. The thieves get smarter.
MARCIANO: Right. So I had somebody kind of write a false check for me and I haven't had my identity stolen, but I know people who have. I mean, it's an absolute nightmare. What are some of the things you can do to protect yourself?
LEE: And that has been going on for a long time. And so some of what we're going to talk about here, we've heard before, but it's a good reminder. So the first thing is, you've got to keep your Social Security number private. Do not give it out to just anyone. Do not carry the card in your wallet.
Check your credit at least every 12 months. And as you know, you can get a free credit report every 12 months.
Secure your personal information at home. If you keep all your financial documents in one place, lock them up. When you're getting rid of them, shred them. Burn them. Whatever you need to do. Never, ever give your personal information out over the phone or e-mail.
Now, when we need to get someone's Social Security number in our office, we always e-mail them to call us with the number. Do not put it up over the Internet.
Another thing is to empty your wallet. Copy the front, copy the back and keep that piece of paper somewhere private in case it turns out that your wallet gets stolen.
MARCIANO: Huh. I wouldn't think about that.
LEE: That's right.
MARCIANO: All right.
LEE: So that's the next question is what do you do?
MARCIANO: Yes.
LEE: If it gets stolen?
MARCIANO: Exactly.
LEE: So this is the thing. Most people, the first thing they're going to do, is they're going to look to call the numbers on the back of their card, but the most important thing to do is to call the three credit bureaus. You could go online or you could call them, but it's Transunion, Experian and Equifax.
MARCIANO: And what do you do, you say, hey, I just got my stuff stolen? You're going to see some bad things happening? LEE: They put a fraud -- you don't know. But you put a fraud alert on your account and in fact, a great tip from my friend Pat Aler (ph) in Buffalo told me that the next growing area of identity theft is when someone's died. So if your loved one has died, you want to call those three agencies again, let them know that that's happened and make sure that they put a freeze on their credit.
MARCIANO: So it just puts a freeze on -- I mean, you know, and that's -- especially with the financial crisis we've just had, you know, credit is everything that --
LEE: Well, and like you need this on top of everything else you're going through.
MARCIANO: So the money that has been doled out to these fraudulent returns --
LEE: Obviously --
MARCIANO: -- from the taxpayer dollars?
LEE: Right. Now the IRS, it's up to them to try to get that money back. I think we know where that is going to go. But if you go through the right avenues, obviously you can get your true refund. But the hassle in your life. So do what you can to protect your information.
MARCIANO: One more thing to think about during tax season, our favorite time of year. Protect your identity. All right. Karen Lee, thanks very much. Again, the book, let me plug the book one more time. It's -- where is it, the title on here? It's called --
LEE: "It's Just Money."
MARCIANO: "Just Money," yes, "Why Do We -- "
LEE: -- "So Many Problems."
MARCIANO: There you go.
LEE: Yes.
MARCIANO: I like it.
LEE: And also, you can go to my website you can get links to all of those sources that we said you needed to go to, the Federal Trade Commission, IRS and the three credit bureaus all on my website under useful links.
MARCIANO: Perfect. So if you weren't paying attention the last three minutes, we've got you covered.
LEE: Great.
MARCIANO: All right. Thanks, Karen.
LEE: Thank you.
MARCIANO: All right. Coming up, the Trayvon Martin case has triggered a nationwide debate about gun laws. Josh Levs has the details. "Stand Your Ground", should that law exist?
JOSH LEVS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's the big question right now. And there's some change happening. Florida has now chosen a group of people to tackle that very question. And, folks, what they decide could impact the entire country. I'll explain coming up.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MARCIANO: A total of six Secret Service agents are now out of work, either fired or resigned. They and several others are being investigated for alleged misconduct while on duty in Colombia.
Eleven U.S. military members are being questioned separately. They're accused of soliciting prostitutes and possibly compromising presidential security. Stay with CNN, we're live from Cartagena, Colombia, in a few minutes.
Also the FBI is tearing up the basement of this New York City apartment building. They're sifting through dirt, hoping to learn about what happened to 6-year-old Etan Patz. He vanished from the neighborhood 33 years ago and hasn't been seen since.
The FBI has brand new interest in the local carpenter who used to have a workshop in that basement. The carpenter says he had nothing to do with the child's disappearance.
And George Zimmerman could get out of jail as early as today. Yesterday a Florida judge granted his release on $150,000 bond. That means his family needs to posts $15,000 to get him out while he awaits trial for the killing of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin. Zimmerman has called it self-defense.
And this is one of the biggest questions coming out of that Trayvon Martin case, what should be done about that "Stand Your Ground" law? Florida has selected the people to tackle that question and their decision could affect laws nationwide. Josh Levs is here to explain that. There's many more states besides Florida who have the same law.
LEVS: Yes, very similar laws. And what we're seeing a step forward in this debate. Look, we don't know yet how this will ultimately play out in the Trayvon Martin case, if it will be determined that "Stand Your Ground" even applies in that case.
But what's not in question that law is under a national microscope. And this debate is going on all over the country, should this law exist or not exist, and what should it say if it does?
What's happening in Florida, they've selected a group of people, 17 people, who are tasked with a huge challenge. They have to determine should this law exist, what should it say. And they're looking at the whole scope of Florida gun laws but they're also are taking a spectacular look at this Stand Your Ground idea, which allows a person to use force if that person feels threatened in certain circumstances. So a lot of people are saying, what's the task force going to do? What do we know about it?
Here's what the lieutenant governor said just the other day.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JENNIFER CARROLL, (R), FLORIDA LIEUTENANT GOVERNOR: We have appointed highly qualified task force, the 17 task force member, inclusive of many different points of views, and racially, regionally and professionally diverse.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEVS: So, Rob, that's making some people happy, they'll hear different points of view. There will be public meetings all over the state. Expect a lot of drama and passionate testimony on different sides. We'll be watching this for a while.
MARCIANO: It's like about ad hoc committee I guess. Have they selected the people yet?
LEVS: Yes.
MARCIANO: What's the timeline of the decision?
LEVS: I'll go through both of those with you. They've announced who the 17 people are and I want to you know a little about them. We have a graphic. Let's break it down a little. I talked with the governor's office. 17 members total, four are state lawmakers, one of whom wrote the Stand Your Ground law in Florida and has said he doesn't believe it applies to Trayvon Martin. There are defense attorneys, prosecutors on there, members of neighborhood watch programs, just like George Zimmerman, the man who killed Trayvon Martin, says it was in self-defense. There are judges on there and a leader of a Latino group. Keep in mind how race plays out here. George Zimmerman Latino, Trayvon Martin, black. The chair is African- American, so is the vice chair of this. So they're trying to be as diverse as possible. And they have a long road ahead. Beginning to meet Nay 1st and hoping to have a decision to give to the governor and to the legislature by next spring. No specific date on it.
A year from now, we could see changes and then we could be seeing changes throughout the rest of the country.
MARCIANO: That could be a bit of a ripple effect. An interesting angle to this case.
Josh Levs, thanks for the insight.
LEVS: You've got it.
MARCIANO: The economy is number-one issue this election season and a new CNN/ORC poll says 43 percent of Americans think it's improving. That's up 40 percent since February. 57 percent still think the situation is bad. 42 percent believe economic conditions have stabilized. 24 percent say things are starting to recover. And 33 percent believe the country is still in a downturn.
All right. "Act Like a Lady and Think Like a Man," that's the weekend's most anticipated movie. It's all about this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: A lot of stuff I went through to get her, I wrote in the book to tell women how they can get the man they want.
STEVE HARVEY, AUTHOR: You'll walk away educated. You'll walk away knowing for the first time you actually get to see how men think.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MARCIANO: I volunteered to consult for the movie, but they said no. I'm apparently not that much of a man.
Does the movie version of Steve Harvey's book live up to the hype? A movie critic gives her grade next. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MARCIANO: So are you ready to get romantic this weekend? This weekend's big movie releases are all about love. Our movie critic, Grae Drake, from Fandango and movies.com is here to give us grades on "The Lucky One" and "Think Like a Man."
She joins us from Los Angeles.
Hi, Grae. Let's start with "The Lucky One." Give us a quick summary of the movie?
GRAE DRAKE, MOVE CRITIC, FANDANGO & MOVIES.COM: OK. Well, Zac Efron plays a sergeant in the Marines who finds a picture of a beautiful girl that keeps him from getting blown up. Thanks to the wonder of the Internet, he actually finds the girl in real life. He shows up at her doggy kennel, and starts to take his shirt off and lift heavy things. And if you know Nicholas Sparks movies -- he directed "The Notebook," excuse me. He wrote the book "The Notebook" -- and from there, romance happens. It blooms.
MARCIANO: I bet. Let's see a little clip. Right here.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED ACTRESS: Give us a quote of your favorite philosopher.
UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR: Sometimes the questions are complicated. And the answers are simple.
UNIDENTIFIED ACTRESS: Don't tell me. Voltaire? It's Voltaire. Isn't it?
UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR: It's Dr. Seuss.
Thank you very much for the tea. (END VIDEO CLIP)
MARCIANO: Listen, start quoting Dr. Seuss, that's a home run for me.
(LAUGHTER)
You mentioned -- so you saw the -- I haven't seen it. You know, what's your grade on it?
DRAKE: Well, here's the thing. What I really liked about this movie is that it's super romantic, bordering on really creepy. So it's just like love. Zac Efron, again, it's -- he luckily is aging, according to schedule. In his mid-20s and finally looks like it. So it was fun to watch him sort of stalk this girl, and I was into it, which was surprising. I think it's a credit to his acting abilities and makes me want to stand up and salute. So I give him a big thumbs up.
(CROSSTALK)
MARCIANO: From what I've read, did a fair amount of research as far as spending time with soldiers and, heck, that goes a long way trying to weave war in with love. Doesn't it?
DRAKE: Absolutely. He does a really good shell shocked in this movie. And I think he's by far the most interesting part.
Now, the thing that I didn't quite love, as a Nicholas Sparks fan myself, I thought the chemistry between the two lead actors was a little off. I didn't quite buy their love scenes. And I also didn't quite buy the climax of the film where she gets super mad at him. Not a spoiler, if you know anything about Nicholas Sparks.
So, overall, I don't think this movie is going to reach basically the men as per usual, but I think ladies are going to like it, because if you like any of his other movies, this is the same thing.
MARCIANO: OK. This is my first segment doing with you. You give it a thumbs up, A, B, C, D. How do you grade this thing?
DRAKE: Well, I'm like a naughty school teacher. I love giving grades and I give this one a C, because I thought that -- especially with Nicholas Sparks, this was average. But Zac Efron is great.
MARCIANO: All through school. C's not bad. Still passing.
Speaking of men, this next movie, "Think Like a Man," quickly, let's watch a clip from that one.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR: Steve Harvey's a trainer.
UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR: Look. Mama's boy and Chapter Seven, that's you.
UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR: I'm not a mama's boy.
UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR: You don't think that, do you?
UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR: Listen to this. Men respect standards, get some. I prefer my women not have standards.
UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR: You're sick.
UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR: It's brainwashing. I'm telling you.
UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR: She's trying to push me towards my dreams --
(END VIDEOTAPE)
MARCIANO: Grae, that one's about men, how they're thinking. Don't necessarily want those secrets to get out, but what did you think of the movie?
DRAKE: Steve Harvey is a traitor to men because he wrote a book called "Act Like a Lady, Think Like a Man," giving women all these inside view of what men are really thinking and how they get that. And how they deal with other situations, too, like what happened if your man loves his mom too much, what happens if he won't commit? So the movie is a little bit weird for the first 30 minutes, because I felt like I paid $12 to watch Steve Harvey give me a seminar on relationships. It's pretty awkward.
But --
(LAUGHTER)
-- the good news is, they drop that after the beginning and then you get to focus on the fantastic ensemble. These folks have so much charisma. They make the movie really funny, really relatable. And it's actually an amazing ensemble comedy, which, by the way, is hard to pull off, as we saw earlier with Gary Marshall, who directed "Valentine's Day" and "New Year's Eve." Those were awful. I had no idea of the difference between all those crazy people. And "Think Like a Man" really nails it.
MARCIANO: What do you give it for a grade?
DRAKE: This one gets a B from me. Again, first 30 minutes, a little awkward, but after that, this is so much fun to watch. And I got -- I did get a little good advice. OK? I'm not going to lie.
MARCIANO: I'll have to preview it before I let my wife see it. I don't want her seeing all the scenes.
Thanks, Grae.
DRAKE: Yes, something for men and women in this.
MARCIANO: That's right.
DRAKE: You're welcome. Have fun.
MARCIANO: Sweet. Thanks. Get all of the movie greats at Fandango and movies.com. Love it.
All right. Love this as well. Get ready for a spectacular show in the sky tonight. No tickets needed. No grades. Just let me know what you think. All you need to do is look up. Best chance to check out the meteor shower. We'll explain next.
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MARCIANO: Moth madness hitting Texas due to the mild winter. Droves of moths invade, the winter experts think, because of a mild winter. Usually the cold air during winter kills off the eggs. As you know, across much of the country, it wasn't cold at all. The moth eggs survived. Pest control can only do so much. Best advice, shut off the lights and close the door and wait it out.
All right. You want to shut off the lights and get outside tonight potentially to see this.
Bonnie Schneider is joining me to go over the weather forecast for this and also the Leonid meteor show.
You know the Leonids. You know how big a deal those are. This was completely off my radar. I had never heard about this.
BONNIE SCHNEIDER, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Last year, not much of a show. The moon so bright it competed with the meteor shows. This year, we have a better chance and better viewpoint of seeing the Leonids.
MARCIANO: All you need to do is basically look outside and the darker the better. After midnight is best, and close to dawn. Just look to the northeast sky towards the constellation Lyrid, which I probably couldn't pick it out without a sky map.
SCHNEIDER: Yes.
MARCIANO: Look to the northeast and look for shooting stars.
Of course, Bonnie, we need clear skies to take care of that. I'll let you get to the forecast and show folks where the sky will be clear.
SCHNEIDER: Most of country will have a good viewpoint and perspective to see this. Good news. There are some places where it's not going to be visible. The eastern half of the country. Why? A front is passing through. It's been stormy in New York City. We'll see more of that kind of covering up the pretty skies for tonight. I think Georgia, you'll see a better picture if you're more to the west of Atlanta. But then you can see -- look at this big section of the U.S. where we are going to see clear skies like in Denver and St. Louis.
Here's a little bit about the Leonids meteor shower. Specs of the Comet Thatcher's dust hitting the top of the atmosphere at 120,000 miles per hour. Incredibly fast. With that speed it hits the atmosphere and disintegrates into a flurry of meteors. The meteor shows occur about 15 to 20 per hour in most years. I mentioned to rob, the new moon this year is actually going to make for a better show because when you have a new moon, the darker side of the moon faces the earth. We want a darker moon so it doesn't compete with the meteor showers.
So where and when can you get a chance to see the spectacular show? Midnight to dawn, best after 3:00 a.m. Watch just before the sun comes up and the sky is dark. That's when you'll really get a good viewpoint. Adjust to the dark, lay in the dark in a lounge chair and use the sky as possible. Some people, when looking in one direction, it's confusing where to look. You may catch it more in your peripheral vision even if you get confused on what direction to see it? Anywhere towards the Midwest or the western half of the country, you really have a spectacular show. Because it's happening on a Saturday or Sunday night, many won't have to wake up for work the next day and may have a chance to see it. You'll have to wait until next year to see it again so try to get out there this weekend if you can -- Rob?
MARCIANO: Good advice, on a Saturday night, you're right.
We just talked about romance movies, do that, and go outside and watch shooting stars. Who know what will happen.
(LAUGHTER)
All right, Bonnie. Thanks.
SCHNEIDER: Sure.
MARCIANO: One of the stories we're following, the scandal that has shamed the Secret Service. It all began in this hotel in Colombia. Is this an isolated incident? Examining the culture of the Secret Service, next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MARCIANO: Three more Secret Service employees stepped down over a prostitution scandal that rocked the agency, bringing the total so far to six. 12 members are facing allegations of partying with prostitutes at this hotel in Colombia before the president arrived for a summit. So was this more than just a stray incident?
Brian Todd finds out.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It's the sheer number of Secret Service personnel involved in the alleged incident with prostitutes that's raising serious questions in Washington.
SEN. SUSAN COLLINS, (R-ME), HOMELAND SECURITY & GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS COMMITTEES: It's hard for me to believe that was the first and only time. There were just too many people involved.
TODD: In fact, 11 total. Sources say too supervisors among them, leading law enforcement experts to be concern about potentially a larger problem within the Secret Service, a comfort level with this kind of conduct.
(on camera): Is this incident part of a pattern in that agency? We spoke off-camera with several former Secret Service agents and supervisors who say it's not. They never witnessed or saw anything like this.
(voice-over): They did tell us of so-called wheels up parties, when Secret Service officers, White House staffers and members of the media get together after the president have left a city and have drinks at bar or hotel room. They say those get-togethers are comparatively tame.
Jeffrey Robinson, who, wrote a book on the Secret Service with a former top agent, says this about those parties.
JEFFREY ROBINSON, AUTHOR: Do married guys take off their rings at these parties? They often say wheels up, rings off. OK. That's a problem for these married guys and their families. Do people get drunk? Gee, there's a new story.
TODD: Robinson says those are isolated incidents, not part of a broader culture at the Secret Service.
There was an incident in 2006 when a Secret Service agent was tasered, charged with public intoxication after an altercation at a bar in Waco, Texas. In 2002, "U.S. News & World Report" published an investigative piece detailing incidents of agents having raucous parties, barroom brawls, sex with under-aged girls. Some of that information came from disgruntled former agents who had grievances with the agency.
(on camera): There is real concern this is a cultural problem within the agency. Is it?
BARBARA RIGGS, FORMER DEPUTY DIRECTOR, SECRET SERVICE: No. It is not. I mean, I can tell you unequivocally it is not. And I lived it 31 years.
TODD (voice-over): Serving under six presidents, Barbara Riggs was the first woman to become a supervisor in the presidential protective decision, the first woman to become deputy Secret Service director and she also supervised advanced teams.
RIGGS: Yes, we have had people who have been involved in inappropriate behavior. After duty, can you go out and have a beer? Absolutely. Can sometime there be an incident? Yes, there has been. Is it systemic? No.
TODD: A current Secret Service official mirrored that, saying, in an agency of 7,000 people, yes, there have been incidents of misconduct and criminal behavior. The official would not respond to a broader cultural problem at the Secret Service but did say, in regard to this incident and others, they've responded appropriately.
Brian Todd, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
MARCIANO: Our Drew Griffin is in Colombia, following the story, and he'll join us live with developments in the next hour of the CNN NEWSROOM.
Spring has sprung and the grounds at the White House are in full bloom. Up next, a sneak peek at the First Garden.
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