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FBI Studies Al Qaeda Bomb; FBI Continues Search for Missing Tennessee Girls; Veterans Charity Under Scrutiny; N.C. Ballot Addresses Same-Sex Marriage

Aired May 08, 2012 - 11:00   ET

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

KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: And hello, everyone. I'm Kyra Phillips. It's 11:00 on the East Coast, 8:00 on the West.

It could have been hidden underneath someone's clothes right now. Or in a pocket or shoes on an airplane bound for America. Instead, al Qaeda's latest attempt at a bomb undetectable by airport security is in an FBI lab.

And the person who was planning to use it is in custody somewhere or dead. Hours after news broke of a plot that was actually foiled two weeks ago by the U.S. and Saudi intelligence, a sense of relief is still mixed with fear.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HILLARY CLINTON, SECRETARY OF STATE: The plot itself indicates that these terrorists keep trying. They keep trying to devise more and more perverse and terrible ways to kill innocent people. And it's a reminder as to why we have to remain vigilant.

REPRESENTATIVE PETER KING (R), HOMELAND SECURITY CHAIRMAN: Al Qaeda and its affiliates can metastasize and morph and they are constantly adapting. They are constantly trying to catch up.

Whenever it appears we have them boxed in, they find a new method. They have very able scientists, doctors working for them. These are very sophisticated people. They never stop.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Well, this plot is said to be the work of al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, meaning Yemen.

And we're following the takedown with CNN's Barbara Starr at the Pentagon and Nic Robertson in London.

Barbara, let's go ahead and start with you. What do we know about this device?

BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Well, Kyra, at this hour, the FBI is in possession of the device, conducting that forensic and technical analysis on it to trying to determine who made it and how it was made. According to the FBI, the latest indications are it was very similar to previous devices that al Qaeda and Yemen has used, most likely with very little metallic content or no metallic content. That means very difficult for those screening devices in airports around the world to detect.

This is the hallmark signature now of al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula. We saw it with the underwear bomber attack attempt in the United States. We saw it with the plot to put explosive devices inside printer cartridges on airliners bound for the United States.

This by all accounts appears to be another attempt in that direction with a much more sophisticated detonation type of device, technology attached to it. We don't know a lot about that.

But this is their latest effort by al Qaeda to get past U.S. and international security screening and get a device on an airliner bound for the U.S. It is the hallmark of one particular man, Ibraham al- Asiri. He's working with al Qaeda in Yemen. He has done this technology before. He's in the cross hairs of the United States. Kyra?

PHILLIPS: We're going to talk more about him with Nic in just a second, but, Barbara, it took two weeks for this story to get out. A number of reasons, we could probably assume why that happened. But what are your sources telling you?

STARR: Well, you know, actually it was Congressman Mike Rogers, chairman of the House intelligence committee, a Republican, who this morning in Washington did raise the prospect of how did all this information leak out.

We must give credit to the Associated Press, which broke the story originally, but the question is, you know, if it was two weeks ago, was it tied to the anniversary of the death of Osama bin Laden?

Several sources tell us no, that this was a plot that unfolded separately from that around the same time. So this has been something that's been underway being tracked for the last several weeks and just now the administration, once it was reported in the open news media, the administration coming out today talking a little bit more about it.

But, Kyra, very importantly, holding its cards close still. A number of sources I've spoken and other CNN journalists have spoken to have told us that intelligence operations remain ongoing, that there are still risks out there.

They're still trying to roll up certain elements of this potentially of al Qaeda in Yemen, so they don't want to talk a lot about it and there's still a bit we don't know, although the Obama administration says to the American people there are no direct known threats right now to U.S. aviation.

Kyra? PHILLIPS: All right. Nic Robertson, let's bring you in on this. Barbara mentioned Ibrahim al-Asiri, al Qaeda's chief bomb maker and the fact that he's still around. Why hasn't this guy been taken out?

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Because he's hard to find. Al Qaeda, through what's going on in Yemen at the moment, it came close to civil war last year. The government fighting on three different fronts.

Al Qaeda there has taken control of three different provinces. That's large swaths of territory that the government is trying to fight some rebels in the north of the country, its guys trying to keep control of the capital.

The president is struggling to unify the army. And while all this is going on, al Qaeda has taken advantage. Al Qaeda last week in one of their publications were bragging they have taken control of laboratories. They have all the chemicals they need.

What the advantage is they have are that it is a large area. The disadvantage they have is that Yemen is quite isolated from the rest of the world because of the trouble it's going through and, therefore, it's hard for them to get bombs out of there and that seems to be where they have stumbled again this time, Kyra.

PHILLIPS: The fact that the Saudis tipped off the CIA on what was going on here, what does this tell us about the relationship between the U.S. and the Saudis?

ROBERTSON: The Saudis have a huge amount at stake in Yemen. It's called al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula because it's not just Yemen al Qaeda's active in, but it's Saudi Arabia, too.

Many of those al Qaeda members, Ibrahim al-Asiri, acting there in Yemen from Saudi Arabia. They're Saudis. So the Saudis know they have to stay on top of this because those bombs could end up crossing the border, a huge land border that's very porous along the desert and mountains and those bombs could end up back in Saudi Arabia.

So they have a real vested interest in staying on top of this for themselves, beyond their partnership with the United States and other intelligence agencies.

And what I'm told is that once they had an idea about this particular plot, they passed it along to the CIA. They passed it along to British international intelligence, MI6, which is what they do.

They also say that these agencies then, particularly the CIA, were able to move this along and develop it sort of on a separate track themselves, as well, Kyra.

PHILLIPS: All right, Nic and Barbara, thanks so much.

Well, a new strategy for keeping our borders safe spelled out this morning on Capitol Hill by U.S. customs and border protection chief, Michael Fisher. It's the first change in strategy in eight years.

The aim? A more focused approach at keeping out terrorists, drug smugglers and illegal immigrants and less focus on blanket resources over wide areas. The plan calls for the continued use of drones, helicopters, foot sensors and fences.

But Fisher says his most effective weapons, 23,000 border patrol agents.

Well, he faces more than 50 counts of sexual abuse against young boys. Now, the case against Jerry Sandusky may be in trouble.

Prosecutors admit that there's a problem with their star witness's story. Penn State assistant coach, Mike McQueary, he's the redhead you see there in the video and the guy who says he saw Sandusky in the shower with a young boy.

Now, he said it was in 2002. But now prosecutors say it actually happened a year earlier. That's a big deal. Not only does it call McQueary's credibility into question, it also could mean that the statute of limitations has expired on some of the allegations. Sandusky denies the crimes.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Getting ready to "f" you up.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Getting ready to "f" you up. Remember those words by that police officer? We actually first told you about this and Kelly Thomas last September. He was beaten to death, allegedly at the hands of Fullerton police officers.

Months later, the two officers charged with beating him to death are back in court. Their preliminary hearing resumes in less an hour. This is critical because a judge will decide if there's enough evidence to put these cops on trial.

Officer Manuel Ramos and Corporal Jay Cicineli both face charges of involuntary manslaughter. Ramos, who's on the left, is also charged with second-degree murder. Why? Because prosecutors believe it was Officer Ramos who told Thomas, "My firsts are" -- quote -- "getting ready to 'f' you up."

Just one part of a new, graphic video played in the courtroom yesterday. Before we go any further, a warning. The video is graphic and it's important to keep in mind that we're talking about mental illness here. Kelly Thomas was schizophrenic and homeless.

And prosecutors say what started with a call about a man looking into cars and pulling on door handles turned into this. You will hear Thomas being tazed and Thomas being beaten repeatedly.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: OK. No! No!

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Help us!

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He's on something.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Kelly Thomas died from his injuries five days later. Casey Wian is following all the developments from Los Angeles and, Casey, you know, obviously, what we showed is sickening, but it isn't even the most disturbing part.

CASEY WIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, that's right, Kyra. During that very graphic videotape played in court yesterday, you can actually hear Kelly Thomas saying he's sorry to officers over and over again.

But you can also hear those officers saying that he was continuing to resist them. And perhaps the most disturbing thing of all, you can hear Thomas call out to his father and from the tape it's very clear that he was afraid he was being beaten to death.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KELLY THOMAS: They are killing me, daddy.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don't want to take those off.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Relax. Relax.

KELLY THOMAS: Daddy. Killing me. Daddy. Daddy.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WIAN: Now, that video is so disturbing that there were audible gasps in the courtroom and at one point, the judge ordered the playback stopped because he was having trouble concentrating. Several spectators left the courtroom.

The end result of that beating, according to a coroner's report, Kelly Thomas died of asphyxiation, complicated by the injuries he received. These pictures we're about to show of those injuries are very graphic.

But here they are and you can see how badly that Thomas was beaten. During the videotape, officers can be heard saying, "He's on something," but toxicology reports found that there were actually no drugs nor alcohol in Thomas' system. Kyra?

PHILLIPS: And, you know, we have spoken a number of times to his father, Kelly Thomas' dad, Ron. What was his reaction after yesterday's hearing and just having to look at all this again?

WIAN: He has looked at that videotape several times. It was reported in the courtroom, he sat stoically, watching the video.

But he actually heard some new information, he said for the first time yesterday that was very disturbing to him and that was, when paramedics arrived after that beating, they initially went and treated the officers who had very, very minor injuries before they went and treated Kelly Thomas for his life-threatening injuries, Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Well, we will follow the hearing today and stay close to the story. Casey, thanks so much.

In the meantime, the FBI is investigating possible civil rights violations into this case as well.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: It seemed like a no-brainer, reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act. It's sailed through every time it's come up since it was first passed in 1994. But this time, it's hit a bit of a speed bump.

Republicans in the House want to remove some of the special protections for illegal immigrants and a path for citizenship for immigrants who help police in criminal cases. It comes up for a vote in the judiciary committee today.

But I wanted you to listen to one man's plea when it came up for debate in the Senate. We're talking about Minnesota's Al Franken. He reminded all of us of another Minnesota senator, his good friend, Paul Wellstone. You may remember that he was killed with his wife and daughter in a plane crash in 2002.

Franken remembered what Mrs. Wellstone stood for and it was a pretty powerful moment. Take a look.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SENATOR AL FRANKEN (D), MINNESOTA: Madame President, Sheila Wellstone isn't with us today. Sheila and Paul and their daughter, Marcia, were tragically taken from us too soon, but Sheila's example is with us.

Her legacy is with us and her words are with us. And I'd like to close with those. Here's what Sheila said. "We really have to look at the values that guide us. We have to work toward an ethic that respects every individual to be physically and emotionally safe. No one regardless of age, color, gender, background, any other factor deserves to be physically or emotionally unsafe. In a just society, we pledge to act together to ensure that each individual is safe from harm. In a just society, I think we have to say this over and over and over. We are not going to tolerate the violence."

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: After Franken's emotional appeal, the Senate passed it by a wide margin. And just a quick rewind. The Violence Against Women Act originally passed in 1994. In 2000, Congress took on dating violence and added protections for the elderly.

Well, in 2005 greater protections for children and Native American women were added. But this time, Congress let the law expire. Seven months have passed and still no deal.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: All right, just a quick note for all of you heading out the door. You can continue watching CNN from your mobile phone now. Or if you're heading to work, you can also watch CNN live from your desk top. All you have to do is go to CNN.com/TV. And, of course, tell your boss it's educational.

He was known as the painter of light. Now, it looks like artist Thomas Kinkade -- seen here with Serena Williams -- died from an accidental overdose of alcohol and anti-anxiety medication. This was according to an autopsy report obtained by KNTV in San Francisco.

Now, Kinkade produced scenes of country gardens and pastoral landscapes that captivated millions of his fans. The famous painter battled personal problems, as well, including filing for bankruptcy and a DUI in 2012.

Well, the artist's brother said Kinkade suffered a relapse just before his death.

And the man who wrote one of our favorite classics, "Where the Wild Things Are," has died at the age of 83. Maurice Sendak is credited with transforming children's literature. He illustrated nearly 100 books in his 60-year career. Sendak's last book, "My Brother's Book," will be published next year.

And while your home is plummeting in value during this bad economy, one house never seems to lose value. This 55,000-square-foot mansion is worth a whopping $110 million according to real estate site, Movoto.com.

We're talking about the White House. Never too small or boring for that matter either, 132 rooms, 35 bathrooms, a bowling alley and a movie theater. It's also one of the most expensive properties in America.

And if that's out of your price range, how about the House That Ruth Built? Well, that house is actually a stadium, but I just love the famous quote. However, Babe Ruth's Sudbury, Mass., home is up for sale, $1.65 million, more than Ruth made in his entire 22-year career, by the way.

The baseball legend lived here from 1922 to 1926 and word is he loved chilling out, feeding the chickens here. It's undergone extensive renovations, but some of the Bambino's personal touches still remain -- a room with burn marks on the floor where he his said to have flicked all those cigar ashes.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) PHILLIPS: Well, the hour's top stories, the latest attempt by al Qaeda to build a bomb that airport security can't detect. We've told you about the plot that originated in Yemen and was stopped by U.S. and Saudi intelligence. The takeaway is al Qaeda's determination to learn from its mistakes, but the good guys are learning, too.

The FBI is analyzing the confiscated bomb and this senior U.S. official says, quote, "We are confident the study of the device will yield valuable insights that will aid us in adapting security practices and counterterrorism operations here and abroad."

Brian Todd is on that part of the story out of Washington. So, Brian, was this another underwear bomber like we saw on Christmas Day, 2009?

BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It appears that it was something maybe similar to that, Kyra. All U.S. officials are saying right now is that it was some kind of an evolution of that bomb that Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab carried onboard that airliners on Christmas Day, 2009.

They are not saying just exactly what this device was made of or how it differed from that device, but one official said that, like the earlier device, it appeared to be non-metallic, and that means it would have been much harder to detect, even with some of these body scanners at airports. It also may have had that odorless, white powder, PETN, in it, which again, is hard to detect even with the sophisticated imaging technology that's now used in some airports -- Kyra?

PHILLIPS: So what other ideas do we think al Qaeda is working on?

TODD: They are working on, not only on the underwear bombs, but they have been known to work on bombs planted inside the body. The alleged bomb maker for al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, Ibrahim al Asiri (ph), has actually done that in the past. He planted a bomb inside the body of his own brother and that very close to killing Saudi Arabia's interior minister a few years ago, back in 2009.

I asked Dr. Jack Sava, the chief trauma surgeon at Washington Hospital Center about how they go about doing this, implanting bombs inside bodies.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DR. JACK SAVA, CHIEF TRAUMA SURGEON, WASHINGTON HOSPITAL CENTER: The fundamental question will be, how well do you want to do it. If you want to do it to 20 people and have 19 of them die and one success that you could send on your mission, that would be easier. You could do that sloppy. But if you wanted to do it well and expect them to remain sterile, not cause infection, then you're talking about a hospital or clinic setting.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

TODD: The doctor says that if the surgery is not so sophisticated, then a bomb could maybe last three or four days inside the human body before complications set in. But if both the bomb and the surgery are sophisticated in nature, maybe in the clinic setting that he talked about, it could last days, weeks, or even months inside the body before any complication sets in -- Kyra?

PHILLIPS: Brian, here's my question. You have done all the stories on all the new scanners and all the new technology in the airports and all the controversy and the debate. Is it worth the money? Do we need them? How invasive is it? Can -- I guess, the technology that we have now, is it enough to stay ahead of what al Qaeda is working on now?

TODD: You know, that's the huge question today. That's really being debated. Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano and the chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, Mike Rogers, have just said essentially, last night and this morning, that they believe that these scanners would have detected this potential explosive.

But if you talk to terrorism experts and security experts, that's not at all clear that these back-scatter -- these body scanners would have detected it. And also, these body scanners are not used in every airport overseas. Not even used in every airport in the United States. It's a question of implementing those, where they need to be and, again, whether they are sophisticated enough right now to actually detect these types of bombs. And that's really not at all clear at this point.

PHILLIPS: All right. Brian, thanks.

TODD: Thanks.

PHILLIPS: The FBI is intensifying the search for two missing Tennessee girls said to be in extreme danger. Agents believe that they are being held by a close family friend. Officials say two bodies found over the weekend are those of the girls' mother and oldest sister. Jo Ann Bain and her four daughters were reported missing on April 27th. The alleged kidnapper? Adam Mayes. And he's considered armed and dangerous.

Martin Savidge has been covering from case for us. With us again today.

So what does the FBI think on this point on where he could be? Is he still holding these girls captive?

MARTIN SAVIDGE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yesterday, they had found the shallow graves, but they were not identifying who was inside them. Now we know. It is the mother and the eldest daughter. The concern, of course, immediately, is for the remaining two sisters. That's an 8-year-old girl and a 12-year-old, Kyliyah and Alexandria.

And Adam Mayes is the key in all this, according to authorities. They believe he's still holding them and they believe they are still alive. We don't know how we know that. They won't comment to us why they believe this. He is believed to have changed their identities. We talked about this yesterday. He's cut their hair and they also think he may have dyed their hair. But where they are exactly, it isn't clear at this point.

But this story has been focusing on western Tennessee and northern Mississippi. We know that FBI has SWAT teams in the area. They have been setting up strategic check points, road blocks. They don't do it all the time. They don't do it at the same time. But it's clear they must have some intelligence or some reason to think that Adam Mayes is still in that area.

PHILLIPS: That he's still there.

OK. So while the FBI is saying, OK, we need help, take a look at this guy. Pay attention.

(CROSSTALK)

SAVIDGE: That's key. That's key.

PHILLIPS: And we're obviously plastering his picture all over the place.

You have been discovering more interesting twists to how the family knew this guy, how close he was to them. I mean the relationship here with him and the mom and the husband goes back years.

SAVIDGE: Goes back a long way. That's what's really surprising here. Everyone describes the relationship as a very close-knit family. This man, Adam Mayes, was a very good friend of that family. It appears that the husband, Gary Bain, is a good friend of Adam. So what happened is the real question here. We know the family was preparing to move to Arizona. Adam Mayes was very close to the family. Could he have somehow snapped as a result of the fact they would be moving away from him? Neighbors and friends say Adam Mayes looked at the girls as his own daughters.

So we also know Adam was in the home the night before they were to leave. This is the day when everybody disappeared in that family, with the exception of the husband. But we don't know exactly what happened. In the meantime, we don't know how the two women that were killed were killed.

PHILLIPS: We still don't know why the FBI let him go, let him walk. He was free to go after they questioned him.

SAVIDGE: Yes. Once the mother and daughters disappeared, they brought him in for questioning because he was close to the family.

PHILLIPS: Right.

SAVIDGE: He answered the questions but there was some misleading information. They wanted to question him again. They went back, he was gone. When they went to his house and went to his land, they searched, that's when they found the shallow graves. And it was the bodies that, of course, triggered the urgency. They realize they had a missing family. Now they realized they had two young girls very much in jeopardy. PHILLIPS: Martin, thanks.

The FBI is urging anyone with information that could lead to the location of Adam Mayes and the two missing girls to contact the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation at 1-800-TBI-FIND.

Just when we thought that we have seen it all with the John Edwards trial, just how juicy would it be if prosecutors called his former mistress, Rielle Hunter, to the stand? They are expected to wrap up their case in Edward's corruption trial this week. But they are not saying if they will take that potentially-risky move. But if they did, wow. Former Edwards' speech writer is expected to take the stand today. And just to remind you, Edwards is on trial for allegedly using campaign donations to hide his affair with Hunter's pregnancy. If convicted, he could get 30 years in prison.

Let's take a look at the big board. The Dow Industrials down 165 points. We're watching your dollars.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: If you're leaving the house, you can continue watching CNN from your mobile phone. You can also watch CNN live from it your desk top. Go to CNN/TV.

If you write that check to donate to a charity, do you know for sure the money is going to the people it's intended to help? Maybe not. And there are new questions about a veterans charity. Millions of dollars donated to help the men and women who sacrifice so much to help keep us safe. Well, this charity is under scrutiny.

Here's Drew Griffin with part one of his investigative series.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DREW GRIFFIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Mary Alice Dick, a retired English professor, is pretty charitable, but especially to groups supporting disabled veterans. So it didn't surprise her when she opened her mailbox and found this.

(on camera): With your husband's name on them?

GRIFFIN (voice-over): In the fundraising industry, they are called guilt packages. When this one arrived, a big calculator with her husband's name on it, Mary Alice felt the guilty tug to make that donation.

MARY ALICE DICK, CONTRIBUTED TO CHARITY: It says Disabled American Veterans. How many people are going to look at it and think that they are the same organization?

GRIFFIN (on camera): And they're not?

DICK: No.

GRIFFIN (voice-over): In fact, the gifts were not from the well- known and respected Disabled American Veterans but from a newer, much smaller charity, the Disabled Veterans National Foundation.

Something didn't smell right, so this retired English teacher did some research and found that the DVNF gets an "F" from a charity watchdog group.

According to its tax filings, raising nearly $56 million in donations for veterans in the past three years. But according to the records CNN found, none of that $56 million has gone to direct services for veterans.

DICK: Making lots of money off of it. When you're talking about millions of dollars that people are doing by grabbing money from people who don't have it.

GRIFFIN: The purpose is to try to explain to me why these numbers don't ad up. CNN has been trying to reach the Disabled Veterans National Foundation off and on for nearly two years. A public relations man returned our phone call outside the group's Washington, D.C., headquarters in 2010, but the manager refused to talk. Despite e-mails and more phone calls, our repeated requests for interviews were denied.

DANIEL BOROCHOFF, CHARITYWATCH.ORG: Up to $2 billion is raised in the name of veterans in this country and it's so sad that a great deal is wasted. Hundreds of millions of dollar of our charity dollars intended to help veterans is being squandered and wasted by opportunists and individuals and companies that see it as a profit- making opportunity.

GRIFFIN: Daniel Borochoff runs a charity watchdog group out of this office in Chicago. He grades charities on how much good and bad they do with your donations. Veterans and military charities are some of the worst, he says. And that includes the Disabled Veterans National Foundation, which he gives an "F" because hardly any of the donations make it to the people the group is fundraising for.

So back to that $56 million the group has raised.

(on camera): Where did all that money go? As far as we can tell, up to the 10th floor of this Manhattan office building, to a company called Quadrica Arts (ph), a company that specializes in fundraising. And as far as we can tell, Quadrica Arts (ph) knows a lot about fundraising for itself.

(voice-over): Quadrica (ph) is a private company which, according to its web site, raises money for more than 500 charities and nonprofits worldwide.

In an e-mail to CNN a company spokesman said, quote, "It does not discuss specific client relationships." But that spokesman did say, Quadrica (ph), "at times, chooses to invest money in partnerships with non-profit organizations." To date, they told CNN, it's actually lost $7 million investing in veteran non-profit organizations.

That may be true. But in the case of the Disabled Veterans National Foundation, according to tax documents, not only did all the nearly $56 million in cash donations go to fundraising costs, but the DVNF still owes its fundraiser another $5 million. It sounds like backward math. DVNF is reporting on its tax returns that it is costing more than a dollar to raise a dollar. Despite the fact that its fundraising contractor, Quadrica (ph), says it wins its fair share of business because it is a lost-cost provider in the non-profit marketplace.

BOROCHOFF: It's like printing money. They print out solicitations and send them out to millions of people. They don't care about the percentage return. All they care about the money they get from it.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: What did we say? $56 million? Here's the $56 million question. How do they get by with this? How come they are not shut down?

GRIFFIN: We have been searching for that answer. According to the IRS, on paper, this is a registered, charitable organization. Despite the fact that a lot of groups give them warning signs and "F" grades, people keep sending them money. And the Disabled Veterans national fund does give away stuff, junk really. We found out that includes coconut M&Ms for the vets.

PHILLIPS: We're going to find out more about that tomorrow.

GRIFFIN: Exactly. We'll expose a trick of the trade for a lot of these groups. They give away stuff called gifts in kind. It is donated surplus junk that the veterans group says they don't need. Here's an example. A vets group in Arizona gets a shipment of hundreds of chef's coats, chef's aprons, needle point sets, men's football pants. And another group gets thousands and thousands of bags, 11,000 bags of coconut M&Ms.

PHILLIPS: Bottom line, when you get something in the mail, you do your homework --

GRIFFIN: Check it out.

PHILLIPS: -- before you send in the money.

GRIFFIN: Check it out. Know where you're sending that money and know what they are doing with that money. This group raises money and all of the money, plus, goes to the fund raiser.

PHILLIPS: Part two tomorrow.

Thank you, Drew.

GRIFFIN: You bet.

PHILLIPS: A charity that I can tell you is extremely legit is called TAPS. It's the Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors. It provides everything from counseling 24/7 to grief camps for children. The money goes right to the programs. If there's something else that you or your vet needs, TAPS can connect you with the right resources. Here's the web site, TAPS.org. If you want to give back, this is a charity you can believe in.

Time for our "Political Junkie" question. Who was the first president to ride in a specifically-built presidential limousine? Tweet the answer to @kyraCNN.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Before the break, I asked can which president rode in the first built presidential limo. It was FDR. The Sunshine Special was made for the Secret Service in 1939. Congrats to Kyle from Ohio University for tweeting me the right answer.

Voters in North Carolina have a big one on their plates today, Amendment 1, a constitutional ban on same-sex marriage and on domestic partnerships and civil unions of any kind, same-sex or heterosexual.

Keith Boykin, Democratic strategist, and Tom Blair, author and entrepreneur.

Guys, North Carolina already bans same-sex marriage, so what's the point of this? Keith?

KEITH BOYKIN, DEMOCRATIC STRATEGIST: There is no point. It's gratuitous, it's divisive. It's reflection of where the Republican Party is, unfortunately. If you look back at 2010 when the Republicans came into office and a lot of these states, they said they were going to campaign on the economy, but instead what did they do? Govern on different issues, talk about women's issues, taking away rights from labor unions, they started going after gays and lesbians, taking away the rights of people to vote. They have focused on this radical right wing conservative social policy agenda that has nothing to do with the economy and building jobs. It's a disaster.

PHILLIPS: Tom?

TOM BLAIR, AUTHOR & ENTREPRENEUR: Is this the same North Carolina that's going to host the Democratic National Convention in a few months?

(LAUGHTER)

Here's what I say. People don't like change. And change is hard to accept. If you look at the church, it took them a few hundred years to accept that the sun didn't revolve around the earth. Lincoln, his views on slavery changed from the 1820s to the 1860s. Same with Lyndon Johnson. Number one civil rights advocate, growing up in Texas his views were entirely different than in the White House.

I think you see the views of Obama changing. Point being, America's views are changing. And even today, in North Carolina, when you look at the polls, it's 50-50 for same-sex marriage. My guess is, if we went back 50 years on a national poll, it would be 95 percent against same-sex marriage. Point being, in 10 years, this won't be an issue. The momentum is there. It's people fighting change, change that's inevitable.

(CROSSTALK)

PHILLIPS: Go ahead, Keith.

BOYKIN: I agree with the idea -- that this is inevitable that change is going to happen and people are going to ultimately support same-sex marriage. But the Republican Party is standing in the way of that. Yes, I understand this is not unanimity of opinion on one side of the other, but you have people in the Republican leadership, who came into the legislature in that state in North Carolina, who made this an issue where the Democrats have been fighting it for years, and that's what's happening. There is a right wing social agenda on the Republican Party.

And even if the Republican leadership doesn't believe it, they are giving a wink and a nod to the people who do believe it so that they can try to stay in power. That's the worst type of cynical politics.

PHILLIPS: Mitt Romney is going to be in Michigan this afternoon. We've been talking about that. Check out what he's saying about the auto industry.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MITT ROMNEY, (R), FORMER MASSACHUSETTS GOVERNOR & PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: The auto companies needed to go through bankruptcy before government help. And frankly, that's finally what the president did. He took them through bankruptcy. That was the right course I argued for from the beginning. Finally, when that was done and help was given, the companies got back on their feet. So I'll take a lot of credit for the fact that this industry has come back.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: So Mitt Romney says he saved the auto industry. Seems like I heard something like that before.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

AD NARRATIVE: Made in America. For generations, Michigan auto workers it's more than a slogan. It's a way of life. When a million jobs were on the line every Republican candidate turned their back even said let Detroit go bankrupt. Not him.

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Don't bet against the American auto industry.

(CHEERING)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Tom Blair, who is massaging the facts here?

BLAIR: Well, I think it's a perfect example of "success has many fathers" and "failure is an orphan."

(LAUGHTER)

Does Mitt Romney deserve credit? Probably about as much credit as each auto worker who took a cut in pay and cut in benefits to make this work.

(LAUGHTER)

Probably as much credit as every dealer who lost their franchise after decades of struggling hard. And probably as much as 100 million American taxpayers who sucked in when we saw some big checks going out to Detroit.

But to give the devil his due, I think Mitt might be a little frustrated with last week, listening to tape after tape of the president guiding the SEAL team in to capture bin Laden. So I would be critical of Mitt because I think the first rule in any leadership, whether it be in the military, in government, in private industries, is a leader takes less credit for a success than they deserve.

(CROSSTALK)

BOYKIN: But you can't take credit for something you were against, though. That's what is so hypocritical. It's not that he is taking credit for something he played a part in. He was opposed to it. Let me read you the quote the "New York Times" from the first sentence of what Mitt Romney said. He said, "If G.M., Ford and Chrysler receive this bailout, you can kiss the American auto industry good-bye." There is no way you can turn around and four years later say I'm responsible for their survival. That's just so blatantly hypocritical you can't expect the American people to believe that.

PHILLIPS: Tom?

BLAIR: I don't think I disagree with you. I think I said any numbers of folks can take credit. And let me go back --

(CROSSTALK)

BOYKIN: But not Mitt Romney. But not Mitt Romney.

BLAIR: He may not have paid as much taxes as he should have but every American contributed to the success of the American automobile industry.

BOYKIN: You know that's too clever.

(CROSSTALK)

PHILLIPS: Tell you what, Tom made his point. Tom made his point. Five seconds, Keith. We got to go.

BOYKIN: We all contributed. But Mitt Romney was opposed to this. He can't take credit for it now.

PHILLIPS: I guess we'll talk about this again.

Tom Blair and Keith Boykin, thanks, guys.

That's "Fair Game."

Mitt Romney finally has Rick Santorum's endorsement. Can't really call it a ringing endorsement but it still counts, I guess. Here it is from a Santorum e-mail to supporters. "We both agree that President Obama must be defeated. It will require all hands on deck if our nominee is to be victorious. Governor Romney will be that nominee and he has my endorsement and support."

All right. There it is. Santorum saying he'll support the nominee. Oh, yes, that Romney guy. Did I mention it came in an e- mail? The 13th paragraph of the e-mail no less. And what's the matter, he couldn't find a news camera anywhere. Hey, Rick, I could have sent someone by if you needed a camera. We have a few extras now that they've dropped out.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Google is taking hands-free driving to a new level. The DMV gave Google the first license for a self-driving car. Google has been working on this for some time. And now the Toyota Prius that drives itself will be able to cruise down the street along side other cars. A special red license plate with a symbol so it will be easily recognized. Thank goodness.

The days of making cash off of mom's cookies, brownies, guess what, a thing of the past in Massachusetts, because it's going to ban bake sales at schools starting August 1. Here is the reason -- to help fight childhood obesity, which apparently affects about 1.5 million students in that state. They are even pushing to extend the ban to include weekend and community events. Parents are pretty upset and say the goal for the bake sale is to raise money to do great trips and educational tours. And selling apples and bananas just ain't going to cut it.

Thanks for watching. You can continue the conversation with me on Twitter, @kyraCNN, or on Facebook.

CNN NEWSROOM continues now with Suzanne Malveaux.