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Madeleine McCann May Be Alive; GOP Turns Up Heat in Secret Service Scandal; Birth Strike Forces JetBlue Landing; Obama Slow Jams the News; Lawmaker Calls For Sullivan's Job; FBI, Police Investigate Saints G.M.; "Credible Threat" Against Sen. Rubio; Mad Cow, Disease Seven-Game Suspension for World Peace
Aired April 25, 2012 - 09:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Nice to see you, Christine. Good morning to all of you. I'm Carol Costello.
Happening now in the NEWSROOM, is Maddie McCann still alive. New photos and new leads this morning. Investigators now say they have the, quote, "best opportunity yet," to solve this case, so what do they know?
New scare in the sky. A third bird hit a plane in mid air. Just in the last few weeks. This time two geese slamming into the windshield.
A threat against Rubio. Reports this morning the Florida senator and possible Romney VP pick is being targeted.
Hooker scandal hits the hill. The first member of the Obama administration getting grilled this hour on the Colombian prostitution debacle. The White House saying their staff is in the clear. So why do they have to testify?
Cover-up. John Edwards' former top aide coming clean admitting he helped cover up Edwards' affair with his mistress, Rielle Hunter.
Entertainment-in-chief. President Obama going late night with Jimmy Fallon. Has presidential politics moved from behind the podium to the stage?
NEWSROOM begins right now.
We begin this morning with startling new developments in a missing child case that riveted much of the world nearly five years after Madeleine McCann vanished during a family vacation to Portugal. British Police came out this morning and say they believe she may still be alive. They've released a new image showing how she might look. She'll be 9 years old in mid-May. She was 3 years old when she vanished. You may remember investigators face blistering criticism for the way they handled that case.
CNN's Max Foster is following the latest developments from London.
Bring us up to date.
MAX FOSTER, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: You know, Carol, what we've had is an update really on a British police investigation instigated by the British prime minister about a year ago. What they're doing is they're going through all of the evidence gathered by the Portuguese police, by the British police, and by private investigators. They've got 37 officers working on this full time.
They got a quarter of the way through it and they say they found lots of new leads. Let's look at the detail then of what they have come up with. And what they're suggesting is that the British police calling for Portuguese police to reopen this case which at the moment is still closed. The Portuguese are leading on this, not the British. The British want them to reopen it.
Up to 200 leads they're talking about. Things that could be investigated, gaps in the evidence, could be investigated by the Portuguese police. Forty thousand pieces of information is what they've got and they're dealing with right now. Approximately 100,000 pages worth of evidence, Carol. A huge investigation. But it's still closed at this point.
COSTELLO: Are the McCanns reacting in any way this morning, Max?
FOSTER: No word yet from the McCanns. But if we bring up the photo, this photo we're told was put together in very close cooperation with the McCanns. So that's their message today. Look at this picture. If it's recognizable in any way, then get in touch with the police. And it's deliberately being designed to look like a picture that a child would have taken at school.
So it's a sort of picture that any parent could have on their mantel piece and really encouraging people who were in Portugal at the time, you know, are there any ideas you may have which you haven't gone to the police with or people who since then might have seen a girl looking like Madeleine McCann would look like today.
COSTELLO: Max Foster reporting live from London for us this morning.
Also this morning new developments and new casualties in the Colombian prostitution scandal. Three more members of the Secret Service losing their jobs pushing the total up to nine. But that's not satisfying the political blood lust. Republicans turning up the heat and demanding the focus shift to White House staffers who also made the trip.
Senior congressional correspondent Dana Bash is on Capitol Hill where an important hearing gets under way in the next hour. Tell us about that, Dana.
DANA BASH, CNN SENIOR CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: It will be Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano. She is actually -- her department is in charge of the Secret Service, so that is why this is going to be the first time we're going to hear from an administration official, and an important one, in public testimony about this scandal. And I spoke yesterday, Carol, to the top Democrat and the top Republican on the Senate Judiciary Committee. And when it comes to the Republican, never mind the Secret Service, he wants to know more about the White House advance team.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BASH (voice-over): The White House counsel looked into it and is satisfied no one on the advance team to Colombia did anything inappropriate. But GOP senator, Chuck Grassley, isn't.
SEN. CHARLES GRASSLEY (R), RANKING MEMBER, JUDICIARY COMMITTEE: I'm not going to be satisfied until we get some independent look at this.
BASH: Grassley, the top Republican on the Senate Judiciary Committee, says he wants an outside probe. The Homeland Security Department's inspector general should investigate whether there was any misconduct in Colombia by any White House staff. His reason?
GRASSLEY: So that there's no political implications with it and the reason for all of this is this is a serious matter. This isn't just a case of prostitution being used some place. This is a case of national security and the -- and the protection of the president of the United States.
SEN. PATRICK LEAHY (D), CHAIRMAN, JUDICIARY COMMITTEE: With all due respect, he knows that's not going to happen.
BASH: The Judiciary Committee's Democratic chairman says he sees no evidence of White House wrongdoing and dismissed Grassley's call for an independent investigation of the White House advance team in Colombia.
LEAHY: With all the press that's down there, with all the coverage, if the White House has been involved this thing would be on the front page of every newspaper in the country by now. The fact of the matter, they weren't.
BASH: Until now outrage and disgust over the Secret Service scandal has largely been bipartisan. No longer. Familiar partisan battle lines are emerging. Patrick Leahy accused his GOP counterpart of playing politics.
LEAHY: Let's get this out of politics. We're talking about the security of the president of the United States. I don't care if they're Republican or Democrat. I want our president to be secure especially when they are in another country. Don't play politics with this. We'll get all of the facts. And the facts will all be made public.
BASH: Speaking of facts being made public, that's another area where Grassley is dissatisfied. He wants the White House to release information about its internal inquiry.
GRASSLEY: The most transparent administration, they say, in the history, which they aren't, but it seemed to me like all of this -- their methods and what they found out ought to be made public at the very least.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BASH: And Carol, just a postscript to all that, last night, Senator Grassley told "JOHN KING, USA" that Senator Leahy accusing him of playing politics is a, quote, "cheap shot" since Grassley has been an aggressive overseer of the executive branch both under Republican and Democratic presidents.
So tensions are going to be probably pretty high between these two lead senators at this morning's hearing which starts in just under 20 minutes. But more broadly, of course, the main questions that a lot of these senators will have for Janet Napolitano with regard to the Secret Service is whether or not this was just a one incident or whether this is a cultural problem and this has happened before.
COSTELLO: I know you're going to pop in and listen. And we'll check back with you at 10:00 a.m. Eastern.
Thank you, Dana Bash, reporting live from Capitol Hill.
At the U.S. Supreme Court, oral arguments get under way in a critical test of immigration law. At the center, Arizona's controversial law crack down on illegal immigration. SB 1070 raises the question of whether state laws can trump federal authority on immigration issues. Critics say it's a racist law that relies on racial profiling.
Arizona says the flood of illegal immigrants, though, has created a crisis for the economy and the public safety and says the law just wants to help federal authorities. The Obama administration says the Arizona law overreaches and only creates more problems.
In other news this morning, John Edwards' former aide goes back on the witness stand today. Andrew Young testifying that he helped the former presidential candidate cover up his affair with a campaign videographer. Young publicly claimed he was the father of Rielle Hunter's child.
Young is the prosecution's star witness in the federal trial. Edwards is accused of using campaign contributions to hide his mistress.
A JetBlue airliner is forced to make an emergency landing after two geese slam into the windshield just after takeoff. It is the second such bird strike on a commercial flight in less than a week.
Listen to the pilot as he alerts air traffic control that he's returning to the airport.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) UNIDENTIFIED MALE: JetBlue 571 contact New York departure 120.8.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: JetBlue 571, we got to come back. We hit two big geese.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: JetBlue 571, roger. And stand by. JetBlue 571 make right traffic runway 1-6.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Right traffic 1-6, JetBlue 571,
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: JetBlue 571, would you like to declare an emergency?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We are declaring an emergency.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: No one was hurt. An initial inspection showed no damage to the plane.
New Jersey's governor defending the decision to suspend two state troopers over this video. Not unusual you think. Well, it shows the police officers escorting a caravan of exotic luxury cards down the Garden State Parkway. Speeds reportedly topped 100 miles per hour.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GOV. CHRIS CHRISTIE (R), NEW JERSEY: It's a completely ridiculous story. Shouldn't have happened. Dumb thing to do. But let me assure that it's not the last dumb thing that we'll see happen.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(LAUGHTER)
COSTELLO: The caravan included dozens of elite sports cars like Ferraris and Lamborghinis, and yes, they were traveling at those break neck speeds. One witness dubbed it death race 2012.
In politics this morning, Florida Senator Marco Rubio is under police protection after his office said he received a credible threat. Rubio's office says no details of that threat will be given, it's serious enough to prompt security at his Washington office and at his home in Miami. An investigation is under way.
Mitt Romney fired up this morning after a five-state primary sweep. Connecticut, Delaware, New York, Pennsylvania, and Rhode Island, all sewn up. But you can't help but notice there are two very different kinds of campaigning going on right now. Romney playing hardball in New Hampshire saying a better America starts tonight while President Obama plays serious but funny on Jimmy Fallon's show.
To CNN political editor Paul Steinhauser. He is in Washington.
Good morning, Paul.
PAUL STEINHAUSER, CNN POLITICAL EDITOR: Good morning, Carol. How are you?
COSTELLO: I'm good. Let's talk about Mitt Romney's speech because it seemed he was taking a playbook from the Democrats frankly.
STEINHAUSER: He sure did in a way. Listen, this was an important speech because he was trying to pivot now from a primary campaign to that general election battle against President Obama. He used that speech to do it. And while the speech is getting some rave reviews from some people, it also is interesting.
Listen, hey, Carol, you know every poll you've seen and I've seen indicates that Romney has a problem identifying with middle class Americans, average Americans, and the problems they're facing. So, you know, in a speech last night he talked about single mothers who have to take two jobs. About grandparents who can't afford the gas to visit their grandchildren.
And he said help is on the way. And he also talked a lot about fairness. Now that's something you hear President Obama talk a lot about.
Take a listen to Romney from last night and also the president from his speech yesterday as well. Here you go.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MITT ROMNEY (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: We will stop the unfairness of government workers getting better pay and benefits than the very taxpayers they serve and we will stop the unfairness of one generation passing larger and larger debts onto the next.
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We want to keep tax -- cuts for the wealthiest Americans who don't need them and didn't ask for them or do we want to make sure that they are paying their fair share?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
STEINHAUSER: There you go. Boy, sounds -- sounds pretty similar, doesn't it, Carol? Pretty interesting stuff. I think you're going to hear more of that from Romney to comment.
One thing I'll say about that Jimmy Fallon interview, the preezy of the United Steezy. I love that line.
(LAUGHTER)
COSTELLO: You're going to see it shortly, Paul. Thanks so much.
STEINHAUSER: OK.
COSTELLO: So stick around it is fun to watch.
The president actually is off to Iowa this morning to speak at students at the University of Iowa. He's been on a youth tour for the past few days trying to shore up support among young voters. And if his appearance on Jimmy Fallon show last night, was any indication, hey, he was a hit. Of course he found the perfect stage on late-night TV.
Listen as the president joins Jimmy Fallon on a slow jam of the news. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
OBAMA: The reason it's so important to keep down costs is so we keep college affordable.
JIMMY FALLON, HOST, "LATE NIGHT WITH JIMMY FALLON": And the president knows his stuff, y'all. That's why they call him the POTUS. Which means person on top. What is it?
OBAMA: Jimmy, POTUS stands for president of the United States.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He's the POTUS with the mostest.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: Just (INAUDIBLE). Maybe Obama didn't make his audience swoon but he is playing to a familiar tune. Throughout the presidential race, polls have shown him to be more likable than his presumptive Republican challenger, Mitt Romney.
The wild night in Colombia has cost nine Secret Service agents their jobs. At least one lawmaker says that's not enough. He thinks their boss needs a pink slip, too. We'll have that conversation after a break.
And more than a technical foul. The NBA slaps Metta World Peace with a seven-game suspension for throwing an elbow to the head of an opposing player. We'll talk that story, too, next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: Sixteen minutes after the hour.
Checking our top stories now:
A 4-year-old girl who disappeared while on vacation in 2007 may still be alive. British police released a new image showing what Madeleine McCann might look like now. They've been reviewing the case for nearly a year. McCann was at a resort in Portugal with her family when she vanished.
This morning, the U.S. Supreme Court hears Arizona's appeal over its controversial immigration law. Key issue: can states enforce their own immigration laws or is that the federal government's job?
Arizona will argue illegal immigration creates financial and safety concerns.
The NBA has suspended Lakers forward Metta World Peace seven games for this hit to the head in Sunday's game against the Thunder. James Harden got a concussion. The league's penalty was contact point, intent and Metta World Peace's previous incidents, you know, back when he was Ron Artest.
A total of nine Secret Service agents have now lost their jobs over the Colombian prostitution scandal. Two more resigned yesterday and another was forced out. Twelve agents and 12 military members are being investigated for allegedly soliciting prostitutes before Obama's trip to Colombia earlier this month.
Despite the number of agents losing their jobs, at least one member of Congress thinks another head needs to roll. That would be the Secret Service's director, Mark Sullivan.
President Bush made him the top dog back in 2006. There have been some bumps during Sullivan's tenure and Congressman Randy Forbes of the House Armed Services Committee thinks enough is enough.
Congressman, welcome.
REP. RANDY FORBES (R), VIRGINIA: Thank you, Carol. Good to be with you.
COSTELLO: Lawmakers are holding a hearing. It kicks off in about 45 minutes. What do you want to hear?
FORBES: Carol, I think we're going to hear this is a much bigger problem than we thought. We talk about coming to Washington to change things and fix what's broken. But when we look at those things and they involve our friends or maybe point blame in our direction, it's so easy to cover it up and move to something else.
But this is the Secret Service of the United States. They are the lead agency in defending the leadership of the country. I think people want this fixed.
COSTELLO: Why do you think that Sullivan needs to go because he does have a lot of supporters?
FORBES: Well, I think one of the things that you look at and I know the White House talked yesterday this is just a bunch of knuckleheads. But, Carol, we need to look at a culture. If there's any place that we should demand a high standard of conduct and character, it should be the Secret Service.
And think about the culture that would hire this many knuckleheads. Think about the culture that would assign this many knuckleheads to such a premiere mission. Think about the culture that wouldn't detect this through all of the years of training.
And even when all of this was happening down there, it wasn't the Secret Service that determined it and reported it up and stopped it. The only reason we know about it and are talking about it today is because one prostitute didn't get paid for her services.
I think that's a culture that needs to change. This is an agency we shouldn't be laughing about. We need to make sure we fix this problem.
COSTELLO: Senator Charles Grassley, a Republican, he wants to know if White House staffers were involved. Are you as concerned as he is about that?
FORBES: My biggest concern is not to point the blame or punish somebody, Carol. It's just to fix this problem. You know, sometimes we can push away the problems that we saw with half billion dollars in Solyndra, maybe Fast and Furious putting guns in the hands of criminals that kill innocent people, or maybe even the GSA, and million dollars of taxpayer money.
But when it comes to the Secret Service and protecting the president and leadership of this country, we can't afford mistakes. We've got to make sure we corrected this culture and make sure it doesn't happen tomorrow.
COSTELLO: Congressman Forbes, thank you for joining us this morning. We appreciate it.
FORBES: Thank you, Carol.
COSTELLO: Still to come on NEWSROOM: the FBI and state police are now investigating the Saints G.M. over allegations he could eavesdrop on opposing coaches. That would be a federal crime.
Coaches are talking now. We'll tell you what they're saying.
NEWSROOM back in two minutes.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: So the New Orleans Saints scandal just got a lot worse.
Jeff Fischel is here to talk about that.
So, we first hear allegations that the G.M. is listening to other coaches on the sidelines during games.
JEFF FISCHEL, HLN SPORTS: You think it's just a football problem at that point.
COSTELLO: It's not.
FISCHEL: The FBI is investigating. Right now, the state police say they are investigating as well.
This is a problem now that looks like it's going beyond football. New Orleans Saints already in trouble over the bounty hunting scandal, now have to deal with this.
Now, to be clear, the general manager, Mickey Loomis, denies the report from ESPN that says while he was in the Super Bowl at home games he could listen to the coaches of the other team talking and of course deciding what they're going to do on the field., calling plays, et cetera.
Loomis again strongly denies it. The team denies it. ESPN citing unnamed sources saying they couldn't determine if Loomis listened to this.
On Monday, Saints spokesman said it never happened. Yesterday, reporters asked the interim coach Joe Vitt now about the report.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOE VITT, SAINTS' INTERIM HEAD COACH: It's ludicrous. Absolutely ludicrous. It's impossible. I've never heard of it before.
That's something from "Star Wars." When I first heard something being a wiretap, I mean, I thought they were talking about Sammy the Bull Gravano or something. I didn't know what they were talking about. What are e you talking about? This is ludicrous.
And then to associate Mickey with that. It's irresponsible. It's a shame.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FISCHEL: Now to be clear, the league says the accusations happened in the 2002, 2003, 2004 season. This is long before new coach Sean Payton was there. This was back when Jim Haslett was the head coach.
He now has also responding to the reports saying there's no way this happened. Look what he said. He said, you know, during my years -- during my years, at no time during my tenure did the Saints Mickey Loomis and I discuss monitoring opposing deep coaches communication nor did I have any knowledge of this.
So, of course, the Saints coming out unified against this. And the NFL saying, you know, the NFL saying, we don't know anything about this.
So, the questions are how is someone else finding out about this and how is ESPN coming up with the report?
COSTELLO: Oh, well, maybe they'll be questioning them. But I don't think ESPN will be like giving up its sources.
FISCHEL: No.
COSTELLO: But the FBI is now involved because it's a crime.
FISCHEL: Right. And one question would be what's the statute of limitations on this. One expert says it should be five years which would fall outside of those limitations. But, really, if they are covering something up, how far back might it have gone or how recently has it been going on?
COSTELLO: We'll talk more about it later.
FISCHEL: OK.
COSTELLO: Jeff Fischel, thanks so much.
Now is your chance to talk back on one of the big stories of the day. The question for you this morning, could America elect a non- Christian president?
Mitt Romney is a Mormon. And although he's been running for president since 2007, maybe many Christians are still not comfortable with his religion. On the campaign trail, Romney has discussed what bonds him with other Christians.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MITT ROMNEY (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I happen to believe that Jesus Christ is the son of god and my savior. I know people have different views and I respect those views and don't believe those qualify or disqualify people for leadership in our nation.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: Still, some students at Liberty University, an evangelical college, are upset that Romney will speak at commencement. They call him a cult leader.
Pastor Joel Olsteen, an influential voice in the Christian community disagrees but he qualifies his support for Romney.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOEL OLSTEEN, PASTOR: When I hear Mitt Romney say that he believes that Jesus is the son of God, that he's the Christ, raised from the dead, that he's his savior, that's good enough for me. I would encourage them in the same way.
You know what? We don't all have the same views. realize Mormonism is not traditional Christianity. But I'm probably broader and more open in the fact that when someone loves Jesus and believes they're the son of God, that's good for me.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: Osteen says he could support a Muslim or Hindu president based on their values, leadership ability and faith, but could we or dare I say could American voters support an atheist for president?
So, the talk back question today: could America elect a non- Christian president?
Facebook.com/CarolCNN, Facebook.com/CarolCNN. I'll read your comments later this hour.
Still to come this morning, graphic testimony in John Edwards' corruption trial. His former aide is talking about the ex-candidate's secret life and his affair. The defense taking a shot at Andrew Young today.
Also, the price of a rising star. New threats against Senator Marco Rubio. Apparently, they're serious enough to police to give him extra protection in Florida and in Washington. We're going to talk to the reporter who broke that story. We're back after a quick break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: On Wall Street, I think the bell has just rung. Stocks are set for a higher open today and a lot of it has to do with one company. And you know what that company is, it's Apple.
Alison Kosik is at the New York Stock Exchange.
Wow. Apple. It's unbelievable.
ALISON KOSIK, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Apple. It's quite the darling on Wall Street and quite the darling for everybody else, isn't it, Carol?
COSTELLO: If you have stock, it is.
KOSIK: That's true. But you know what? Everybody is buying their stuff, too. So, you know, what goes for Wall Street so goes what's happening on Main Street.
You look at Apple, Carol, it's huge. It's becoming a bigger and bigger factor on Wall Street. It's the world's most valuable company.
Did you know that just a few weeks ago it came in with a worth of $600 billion. The company is worth $600 billion. The only other company that hit that mark was Microsoft back in 1999.
Now, one investment group says if Apple was in the Dow, the Dow would be around 15,000. Today, the Dow opened at 13,000, just a few second before you came to me, Carol.
Apple shares are up almost 10 percent. Guess what Apple did? It posted better than expected earnings in sales in the first three months of this year.
We did see futures pull a little back after we got a report on durable goods orders. Those are big ticket items like airplanes to refrigerators. We found out that they fell 4 percent in March because orders for planes plunged. It was the biggest overall drop in three years.
So, it's shifting the focus back to the economy and weakness we see in the world economy. But nevertheless, we are starting on a high note. Take a look. Dow is up 67 points. The NASDAQ a big player for where Apple is a big player is up 52 points -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Wow. Alison Kosik reporting live from the New York Stock Exchange.
Stories we're watching in the NEWSROOM:
Police say a 4-year-old girl who disappeared while on vacation five years ago may still be alive. British police released a new picture this morning showing what Madeleine McCann might look like now. They've been reviewing the case for nearly a year. McCann was at a resort in Portugal with her family she vanished.
This morning, the U.S. Supreme Court hears Arizona's appeal over its controversial immigration law. Key issue: can states enforce their own immigration laws or is that the federal government's job?
Arizona will argue illegal immigration creates financial and safety concerns.
The FBI and Louisiana state police are investigating Saints' general manager Mickey Loomis. The probe follows an ESPN report that says Loomis had an electronic device in his superdome suite, allowing him to eavesdrop on opposing coaches. The Saints are strongly denying the allegations.
Europe's tallest volcano is spewing lava erupting for the seventh time this year. Mt. Etna in Italy is also Europe's most active volcano. The eruption is sending a plume of ash 100 feet into the air. But it's not disrupting flights or threatening any cities.
A former aide to John Edwards goes on the stand today and may be cross examined. Andrew Young has been spilling intimate details about his former boss's secret love life during testimony. Edwards is accused of using a large amount of campaign contributions to hide his mistress.
Senator Marco Rubio has gotten a lot of attention as a possible running mate for Mitt Romney. But the Florida Republican's rising star brings unwanted attention, too. Apparently, he's been receiving threats and they are serious enough for police in Washington and in West Miami to give him extra protection.
Marc Caputo is with the Miami Herald. He broke this story.
Good morning, Marc.
MARC CAPUTO, POLITICAL WRITER, THE MIAMI HERALD: Good morning. How are you?
COSTELLO: I'm good. Thanks for joining us. Any idea of what these threats are specifically?
CAPUTO: We don't know specifically. I hope we don't ever find out because it will mean that there's too many leaks. From what we understand the office received a credible threat according to the U.S. Capitol police and I believe -- but we're not sure -- this may have come through the West Miami Police Department. Again, we're double- checking that.
COSTELLO: Is it unusual --
CAPUTO: Turned over to the Capitol police, and they said it was serious.
COSTELLO: Is it unusual for a candidate -- not a candidate but for a possible V.P. candidate I should say to have police protection in Washington and in West Miami?
CAPUTO: Well, right now he doesn't have it. I don't think -- if you monitor your e-mail and you see what people are saying out there, it's not unusual to have loonies target various politicians of various parties. That's what's happening here. Rubio didn't have security until now. Now he has it. Obviously if he's chosen as Mitt Romney's vice presidential candidate, he'll have around the clock Secret Service security.
But right now, it looks like it is just Capitol police in the Capitol and it's the West Miami police down here that are providing the security for him at his house and his office and when he's out and about in the capital.
COSTELLO: And, of course, did this start after his name came up as a V.P. choice?
CAPUTO: That's a good question. We don't have access and Capitol police certainly won't give it to us. To all of the threats, complaints and, you know, hinky, scary stuff directed at various politicians. So, we don't know.
But this definitely happened as of late. Whether it's connected to him being a vice presidential candidate or whether it's connected to him advocating for immigration reform in his way, whether it was connected to him being a Republican or from Miami, who knows? But certainly, this stuff happens.
It's a reflection -- it's a bad reflection on what can happen in politics. People can get a little stirred up and loonies can go out there and do lunatic things and so, they're taking threat very seriously.
COSTELLO: Sadly you are right. Marco Caputo, from the "Miami Herald" -- thank you for joining us this morning.
CAPUTO: Thank you.
COSTELLO: Still to come, the first case of mad cow disease in the United States in six years. It's found in a dairy cow. Health officials say there is no threat to our food supply. So, how worried should we?
Senior medical correspondent Elizabeth Cohen will join us to tell.
And do you remember Octomom? Oh, God, who could forget? The California woman had fertility treatments and she gave birth to octuplets. Well, police were called to investigate child neglect. All of that in showbiz headlines, after a break.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
IRA GLASS, RADIO HOST: You don't see a lot of people lining up to reinvent radio.
JAD ABUMRAD, RADIOLAB HOST: There's few things about my job that are intuitive to me. The one that really is intuitive is jus -- is just working with sounds.
GLASS: He invented a new way to think about the oldest broadcast media.
ABUMRAD: Winning the Peabody was great. But like the genius thing, it's totally trippy.
ROBERT KRULWICH, RADIO HOST: He's certainly like the Gershwin of journalism or something. I don't know. It's just a very amazing thing.
ABUMRAD: I mean, it think the sound is something like when you're on the edge of a dream.
KRULWICH: If they want to call that genius, I think that they should.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: Welcome back to NEWSROOM. It's 40 minutes past the hour.
We're just finding out police were called to "Octomom" Nadya Suleman's home, after hearing reports of child neglect. Now, you remember, Suleiman is mother to 14 children, including those octoplets.
A.J. Hammer is host of "Showbiz Tonight." He's in New York with the rest of the story.
A.J. HAMMER, HOST, "SHOWBIZ TONIGHT": Yes, Carol, so far, the police and local social services haven't found any cause or reason to take action. "Showbiz Tonight" did speak with the police department this morning and they just told us everything appeared to be in order and there's no criminal investigation under way at this time. But they did confirm that they were responding to reports that there was general neglect in the house and specifically neglect regarding the living conditions for Suleman's children.
They said that Suleman was cooperative but they did contact Social Services. Now, police were reportedly called by Suleman's hairstylist yesterday afternoon who described the situation to TMZ and provided them with pictures, she's saying the plumbing in the house is shot. Only one toilet is functional for the entire family and it's a lot of people and she also says that Suleman locked her kids in the bedroom at one point by putting a chair against the door and there aren't enough beds in the house and some of the children have to sleep on the floor.
Now, Carol, when I spoke with the Octomom two weeks ago, she told me everything was in control and the kids were doing just fine.
So, obviously, we'll have to wait and see if this goes anywhere.
COSTELLO: I'm just trying to get over the fact she has a hairstylist. I mean, if indeed those allegations are true, she has a hairstylist.
A.J., thank you so much.
A.J. will be back with us next hour to tell us who "People" magazine is calling the most beautiful woman in the world. We look forward to that, A.J. Thanks.
Still to come, mad cow disease is found in America. Health officials say there's no threat to our food supply. So how worried should we be? Senior medical correspondent Elizabeth Cohen will tell us.
And a million dollar bounty on Tim Tebow and it has nothing to do with football. That story in two minutes, in sports.
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COSTELLO: It's 45 minutes past the hour. Welcome back. Checking our "Top Stories" now.
A total of nine Secret Service agents have now lost their jobs over that Colombian prostitution scandal. Two more resigned yesterday. Another was forced out; 12 agents and 12 military members are being investigated for allegedly soliciting prostitutes before President Obama's trip to Colombia earlier this month.
This morning the U.S. Supreme Court hears Arizona's appeal over its controversial immigration law. Key issue, can states enforce their own immigration laws or is that the federal government's job? Arizona will argue illegal immigration creates financial and safety concerns.
Hillary Clinton is more popular than ever. A new "Washington Post"/ABC News poll shows 65 percent of people gave the Secretary of State a favorable rating compared that to 2008 when Mrs. Clinton was running for president, only 52 percent of people viewed her favorably. Remember Clinton has said she will not run for President.
This morning the first U.S. case of mad cow disease has been confirmed. It's the first case in six years. But health officials are reassuring Americans that the threat is extremely low. It was discovered in a dairy cow in California during a random test at a rendering facility.
Senior medical correspondent Elizabeth Cohen is here. You know, some networks led their newscast with this mad cow story. And it scared me. So I'm just wondering from you how scared I need to be?
ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN SENIOR MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: You know of all that things that I report on, I have to say I don't find this extremely -- extremely scary. And I'll tell you why. This is one cow, ok. This cow was never going to be eaten, which is how you get mad cow disease. This was a dairy cow. And you don't -- the milk is not infectious. So if the milk was consumed that milk is not infection so it will not have gotten anyone sick. This one cow. So I think that's really important to remember.
COSTELLO: And you called the rendering plant where the cow came from. What did they say?
COHEN: Right. What they said, they -- they were actually very open. They said this is how it works, we have all these dead cows at our facility. And we tell our people go out in the field, hundreds of dead cows. Pick 60 let's say to test. And so they picked this cow randomly and they tested it. And if they had not picked this cow and this is where it does get a little scar scary.
If they had not picked this cow, this cow would indeed have been rendered. It might even be made into soap or chemicals then really that's not such an issue but it could have been made into livestock feed and then you and I could have eaten that livestock or that poultry.
Now I said it's scary. But here is -- here is the safeguard to prevent that scary thing from happening. You -- in this country you're not allowed to put brains or spinal cord or anything else that could have mad cow disease in it into food for animals or humans. So they say don't process that part of it. Don't touch that part of it. Don't put that into food for anybody or any animal.
So that's the safeguard to keep mad cow disease out of our system.
COSTELLO: Ok and also the government has safeguards in place. At least I hope so.
COHEN: Well that is the government safeguard.
COSTELLO: So they -- that is a -- ok that is a government safeguard. But I mean as far as testing the cows or testing animals for mad cow disease.
COHEN: Right. Well, first of all, if an animal shows signs of mad cow disease if they are stumbling around, obviously that animal is taken away and is never put into the food supply all of that. The problem is there is a really long incubation period. So a cow could get the disease, to contract the disease and not show signs for years, maybe even like eight years. That's a long time.
So the cow looks fine. So that's why they do this random sampling. But you know the word "random" tells you this cow might never have been found. It was just random that they chose that carcass. This cow could have been made into feed for livestock. And that's why you have the safeguard that you don't use the brains and the spinal cord for any cow ever.
COSTELLO: Ok. COHEN: You cannot go to a U.S. restaurant and get cow brains. It's not on the menu.
COSTELLO: And -- so if you've milk, you can drink it.
COHEN: Right exactly there is no danger and you know even folks, even consumer advocacy groups that can't stand the USDA and criticize the morning, noon and night even they are saying that they are not worried about this one cow incident.
Now they do think the USDA need to sort of step up its effort to do a better job systemically but this one cow does not make them nervous.
COSTELLO: Elizabeth Cohen thank you.
COHEN: Thanks.
COSTELLO: Still to come, Meta World Peace pays a price for violence. The NBA hands down a seven-game suspension to the Lakers forward and it's just as the playoffs are about to begin. Sports just ahead.
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COSTELLO: We asked you to "Talk Back" on one of the big stories of the day. The question for you this morning, "Could America elect a non-Christian president?
This from Andrew, "No way, this is one of the cornerstones of the founding fathers and the core values that country was built on. The further we move away from these principles, the worst things get."
This from Ali, "This country is not ready for even a woman president, let alone a non-Christian one".
This from Zak, "I'm a Muslim, I support anyone that has good strong values, if it was a Muslim running, I believe all Muslims would vote for them which gives them a good lead".
This from James, "As an Atheist, I know for a fact that there is too much hatred in this country for an Atheist to be elected to any significant office".
And this from James, "We could and we should. I thought this country was founded on the belief that church and government should be separate. Maybe I was wrong."
Keep the conversation going on Facebook.com/CarolCNN, I'll read more of your comments in the next hour of the NEWSROOM.
And we're following a lot of developments in the next hour. Let's check in first with Max Foster.
MAX FOSTER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Carol new leads in the search for the missing young girl, Madeleine McCann. Police here in London say she could still be alive. Details coming up.
ALISON KOSIK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Alison Kosik at the New York Stock Exchange warning signs for the global economy. A new report says the U.K. is back in a recession. That as China's growth is slowing and Europe is still in trouble. The question is, will all of that circle back to the U.S.? Carol I'm going to have more on that at the top of the hour.
DANA BASH, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: I'm Dana Bash on Capitol Hill where Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano is testifying as we speak, she is in charge of the Secret Service. She's talking about the prostitution scandal in Colombia. What's she saying? We'll tell you at the top of the hour.
COSTELLO: Also coming up you've heard people referred to Mitt Romney as the Republican presidential candidate and former Governor. But some members of the Mormon Church call him Bishop Romney.
We're going to take a closer look at that part of Mitt Romney's life in the next hour.
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COSTELLO: Meta World Peace, the punishment has been meted out and it is not pretty.
JEFF FISCHEL, HLN SPORTS: Seven games, do you think that's fair? Seven games?
COSTELLO: He gave the guy a concussion.
FISCHEL: He did. He did. You know, the Lakers star is getting a seven-game suspension, as I said, for that vicious elbow on Oklahoma City's James Harden.
This was it Sunday. Take a look. Meta World Peace says it was an accident. NBA commissioner, David Stern said he weighed a lot of factors including World Peace's previous transgressions. Before this, he had been suspended 111 games in his career. 110 of those when he was known as Ron Artest.
But he totally rehabilitated his image since coming to the Lakers; even won the NBA citizenship award last season for his efforts to increase mental health awareness.
Harden suffered a concussion on the play. He still hasn't been cleared to play. The suspension means World Peace will miss the Laker' final in the regular season. And the start of the playoffs. The Lakers and Thunder could meet in the playoffs in the second round. Oh, boy.
Louisiana state police are joining the hunt and joining the FBI in the investigation allegations against Saints G.M. Mickey Loomis. ESPN reported on Monday Loomis had an electronic device in his super dome suite, allowing him to eavesdrop on opposing coaches.
Saints inter-hedge coach Joe Vit, calls the report, quote, "absolutely ludicrous.
NHL playoffs, New Jersey and Florida in overtime. The Devils Ilya Kovalchuk takes two defenders with him. Passes to Travis Zajac. That's the game winner. Devils force a game 7 in the opening round series. Game seven tomorrow night.
Could we finally get a college football playoff? Please. ESPN says college football officials are working on a plan for a four-team playoff to replace the current BCs system, the semis and the national championships would be played at neutral sites. If it happens, the changes would not take effect until the 2014 season. But still that would be so awesome.
And here, I'm sorry to say, it's the latest NFL bounty program. A Web site is offering $1 million to any woman who can prove she slept with Tim Tebow.
COSTELLO: Oh come on.
FISCHEL: Tebow says he's a virgin. The Web site, ashleymadison.com provides hook-ups for people seeking extra marital affairs. I think they assume that now that he's in New York with the Jets perhaps there will be temptation. They want proof by the end of this upcoming season.
COSTELLO: A number of actresses have expressed interest in him. And they say that interest is sparked by the fact that he is indeed a virgin.
FISCHEL: Really? So but again that interest -- would only go so far, I guess?
COSTELLO: I'm sure Tim Tebow will make his own decision -- I don't need to talk for him. He knows his all mind. Thank you.
You're staying away from those idols. Thanks Jeff.
FISCHEL: You know, I'm just putting it out there for the people.
