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Obama Invokes Executive Privilege. Bernanke Moves To Spur Economy. Market Reaction To Economy. Intense Power Struggle Inside Egypt. Vital U.S. Alliance At Risk. Sandusky Won't Testify. Jury Unable To Reach Verdict In Priest Case. Report: Cyber War Against Iran. TV Announcer Strays Into Gibberish. Where Kids Don't Expect A Future
Aired June 20, 2012 - 14:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
BROOKE BALDWIN, CNN ANCHOR: Thank you. Good to be with you. I'm Brooke Baldwin.
You know when he talks, people listen. And any minute, Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke will be facing reporters and will tell them why he is making a move in beefing up the economy. In short, he's persuading banks to pick up lending. That, of course, impacts each and every one of us. We are monitoring that for you.
But first, let's get to this bitter showdown testing the limits of political power, playing out as we speak. You have Republicans, they're planning to go ahead here with this contempt vote on Attorney General Eric Holder, even after President Barack Obama invoked executive privilege for the very first time in his presidency to withhold these documents about the botched fast and furious gun running investigation. And the president did that minutes before the House Oversight Committee started its contempt hearing. Republicans have been demanding that Holder turn over these documents that the president is now sealing with this executive order. And committee chairman Darrell Issa has been leading the charge against Holder. Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. DARRELL ISSA (R), OVERSIGHT CHAIRMAN: Our purpose has never been to hold the attorney general in contempt. Our purpose has always been to get the information the committee needs to complete its work. If the Justice Department had delivered the documents they freely admitted they could deliver, we wouldn't be here today.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BALDWIN: Republicans on this committee say that will hold that contempt vote on Holder very soon. They are furious over getting big- footed today by the president.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. JASON CHAFFETZ (R), UTAH: This is not about Eric Holder. It is about the Department of Justice and justice in the United States of America. Have the guts -- I hope we have the guts and the perseverance to get to the bottom of this.
REP. DAN BURTON (R), INDIANA: How much did the president know about this? Why would the president claim executive privilege unless there was something very, very important that he felt should not be made known to this committee and possibly to the public.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is a very sad day.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is a very sad day.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is a sad day.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BALDWIN: On the flip side, Democrats on this committee, they're dismissing this as a witch hunt. They rushed to defend Holder's character.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. ELIJAH CUMMINGS (D), MARYLAND: It seems clear that you had no interest in resolving this issue and that the committee planned to go forward with contempt before we walked into the meeting with the attorney general. It pains me to say this, but this is what I believe.
REP. MIKE QUIGLEY (D), ILLINOIS: This committee's actions redefine hypocrisy.
REP. CAROLYN MALONEY (D), NEW YORK: I am offended personally by your calling the attorney general a liar.
REP. EDOLPHUS TOWNS (D), NEW YORK: I just don't get the point. It just does not make sense to me. And it's the most ridiculous thing that I think I've seen in my years of being on this committee.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BALDWIN: So, now that you've heard both sides here, let me bring in Kate Bolduan, standing by, covering the back and forth here on The Hill.
And so, Kate, let me just get this straight here. So the House committee, they're moving forward with this contempt vote on Holder any minute now, even though we know see that the president has laid down this executive privilege. So, let's just say they vote to put Holder in contempt. Then what?
KATE BOLDUAN, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, the committee would vote. And if it is along party lines, which we would expect, Republicans have a majority on that committee. So then they would -- that committee will have voted to approval this contempt citation against the attorney general. But the attorney general is not really held in contempt of Congress unless the full House votes on the same and the majority -- and Senate the same. So that vote would need to happen. We would expect that to happen soon, as it's been indicated to us, but unclear exactly when. First things first, of course, getting through the vote in committee.
After that, it becomes a little bit more unclear, Brooke. The understanding, and as it was put to me by a top Republican senator, Chuck Grassley, is that this would -- if the House would vote to hold Holder in contempt, it would then go to the U.S. attorney of the District of Columbia. Essentially going to the Department of Justice. But it would seem unlikely kind of in reality that the -- that this department would move to prosecute its own kind of head of the department.
But it's kind of unclear though what this executive -- how the executive privilege plays into this as we move forward. It's truly kind of unknown. And to be honest, it's almost not about the penalty, if you will, that the attorney general might face. It's more now about this absolute full-scale battle in a political season between these Republicans in Congress and the administration.
BALDWIN: So with this executive privilege that the president has now exercised, even if Holder is held in contempt based upon this vote that has yet to happen, but as you pointed out, there is a Republican majority there in the House, would the president though -- excuse me, not the president, but the attorney general then be -- is it like pardon? Would he be pardoned because of this executive privilege?
BOLDUAN: To be honest, Brooke, it's unclear how things would proceed. The president is asserting executive privilege for these documents. These are certain documents that the -- the chairman of this committee and Republicans on this committee say are essential to their investigation.
BALDWIN: Right.
BOLDUAN: That's a bit of -- that's a bit in dispute if you speak to Democrats on the committee, as well as the attorney general. But moving forward, how this plays into what happens to Eric Holder, it is unclear. Executive privilege does -- would -- with -- effectively takes these documents off the table, saying that they're not -- it can't be part of your investigation. You can't be subpoenaing, if that's even a word, those documents --
BALDWIN: We'll use it, subpoenaing.
BOLDUAN: We're going to use it -- use those documents. But it is unclear. But I want to emphasize, if -- and for the purposes of everyone watching this, it's almost less about what could happen to Eric Holder in terms of a penalty or any, you know, what kind of penalty he could face. It's more about this very public airing of grievances --
BALDWIN: Right.
BOLDUAN: In this very public battle now on a constitutional level they're fighting about this stuff between the Republicans on this committee, as they've been fighting over this for months --
BALDWIN: Right. BOLDUAN: And now the White House stepping up, really ratcheting up the rhetoric here.
BALDWIN: Right. This very public battle very much so in an election year.
Kate Bolduan, thank you. We'll be watching. We'll check back in with you when and if that vote happens there with that House committee.
BOLDUAN: Sure.
BALDWIN: A quick background for you on this executive privilege that we're talking about here. Presidents have used it 25 times since 1980. Take a look at the list here. We're looking back at a couple of presidents. As we mentioned, this usage of executive privilege, this is the very first time President Obama has used it. But former President Bill Clinton did the most by far. You see invoking executive privilege there 14 different times. CNN's senior political analyst David Gergen joins me here on the phone.
And, David Gergen, just explain this to me. I mean as we await this contempt vote, we have the president exercising this executive privilege. Is this really about Holder's status or is this about Republicans and Democrats battling it out in an election year?
DAVID GERGEN, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST (via telephone): It's much more about the latter. Both sides realize that the stakes are high in an election year and the president has just raised the stakes a great deal by exercising executive privilege for the first time.
Now, as a legal matter, neither the contempt citation against Eric Holder is likely to go anywhere, as you just heard. You know, if the full House were to vote him in contempt, that would go to the U.S. attorney's office in D.C. And as a matter of standard practice, U.S. attorneys do not bring charges against someone in the executive branch, especially the attorney general, their boss. So that's not going to go anywhere legally.
And the executive privilege is not going to go anywhere. What normally would happen, Brooke, is after a lot of scuffling and each side making their political points, if they're really serious, they would sit down and negotiate this out.
BALDWIN: So as they may negotiate, just looking back, what is the most, you know, I don't know, infamous example of a president using executive privilege. And an addendum to that question is, why now? Why this situation with President Obama?
GERGEN: Well, the most egregious abuses of executive privilege occurred in modern history with Richard Nixon, that used executive privilege widely with regard to -- you know, tried to with regard to Watergate and other related things.
But there are legitimate uses of executive privilege. It is a -- it is a privilege that's recognized by the law. It's not an unqualified privilege and that's why, you know, it's a gray area about when a president can use it and when he can't. That's usually thrashed out in the courts. But typically the parties settle and agree to negotiate long before you spend two years in a courtroom over something like this.
Why did President Obama do this? Because what's happening here now is that Republicans would very much -- what they would only like to do is force Eric Holder to resign. They would like to get a -- they'd like to have a major, major resignation five months before the elections and claim one of the top officials in the United States over a, quote, scandal. And the president doesn't want to let that happen, obviously. He respects Eric Holder. He wants to fight.
BALDWIN: OK. David Gergen, thank you so much, our CNN senior political analyst.
GERGEN: Thank you, Brooke.
BALDWIN: I appreciate it. I know you just hopped off a plane. Appreciate it.
Congressman John Mica, by the way, is going to join me next hour. The Florida Republican is on the committee on Oversight and Government Reform. We're going to ask him about this, about the attorney general here, this back and forth, Republicans and Democrats, and, of course, the president's first time usage of executive privilege. Stick around for that.
A lot happening today. Take a look at this.
Any minute, the man at the center of America's economy will step up to the microphones and explains how this country avoids getting hit by the crisis unfolding overseas.
I'm Brooke Baldwin. The news is now.
A funeral director says kids in Chicago don't expect to live a full life. A crisis gets worse in one of America's biggest cities.
Plus, the future of war. An explosive report says the U.S. is behind a computer virus targeting Iran.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They don't give a damn about Hosni Mubarak.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BALDWIN: And, as the former Egyptian president clings to live, a power struggle inside Egypt. A country that gets more than a billion dollars a year from the U.S.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BALDWIN: Another thing we are standing by for today is to hear from Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke on his latest effort here to light a fire under the U.S. economy. A short time ago the Fed announced an extension of a bond swapping program designed to encourage banks to get off their duffs, if you will, and start lending. Joining me now from New York, Rick Newman, chief business correspondent for "U.S. News & World Report."
And, Rick, let's just take a little peek here at the stock market because it's been sort of agnostic on this. Not really going up or down too much. Up seven points at the moment. Not exactly earth shattering right now and also not an earth shattering move from the Fed perhaps. But it is something today. So, talk to me about this. We talked about it before, Operation Twist. He's extending it. Remind me what that is.
RICK NEWMAN, "U.S. NEWS & WORLD REPORT": Well, this flat stock market means that the Fed really surprised nobody. The stock markets have sort of anticipated this. Basically what the Fed has said it's going to do is a little bit more of what it's already been doing. This is a very modest amount of stimulus through the rest of the year. The Fed could still do more, but they haven't said they're going to. This is not the notorious QE-3 that a lot of people are talking about. This is something that's much more modest. And, if anything, it will push long term interest rates, such as those on mortgages, down by just a little bit.
The problem with that, Brooke, is that the people who can qualify for mortgages have basically already taken advantage of record low interest rates. And there's nothing in this move that will allow people -- the people who really need the relief, which is the people who have only average or subpar credit, to get the loans.
BALDWIN: Right.
NEWMAN: That's really what's holding back a big part of the economy right now is that people that -- the people who need the relief in terms of -- especially in terms of refinancing, really can't get it because banks will not lend them the money. And there's nothing about this that's going to change that problem.
BALDWIN: You're right it is -- it was sort of the least modest -- didn't exactly face as much opposition in QE-3 quantitative easing. So let's look at this, though, Rick Newsman, all together because I want to just take a snapshot of the U.S. economy, where we stand today. You have a lot of different measuring sticks. We've actually chosen four. So let me just walk through this with all of you.
NEWMAN: OK.
BALDWIN: Unemployment, 8.2 percent. We did have a nice little run between October and February. But the drop in the jobless rate has since flattened out. That's not good.
The stock market having its usual ups and downs. For the year, the Dow is up just about 350 points. Look at that, up and down, up and down.
Housing starts. I think we'll call this tepid. A big gain. You see the peak there. That was April. A big drop in May. Pretty much a wash for 2012. Not exactly catching fire. And then finally, consumer spending, down for the year. Again, not good. Rick, instead of hearing predictions of the economy taking off, we're now hearing the "r" word again, recession. How did that happen?
NEWMAN: Yes, it's -- this is an old story, Brooke. For the third year in a row, the economy has started out the year pretty strong and then it has sort of petered out. So the -- and that was -- that information was contained in the Fed's statement today. They basically kind of downgraded their outlook for the economy. They did not predict a recession. And they said the economy still is growing, it's just growing more slowly. And that is likely to be the case for the rest of the year.
Obviously, at this point, the problem in Europe is really -- is definitely weighing on the U.S. economy. President Obama is right about that. That doesn't seem like it's likely to get resolved any time soon. And there's just no obvious spark for the economy right now. So, everybody's basically in the doldrums wondering what's going to spring us out of this rut, and there's nothing that's, obviously, going to do that.
BALDWIN: Yes, we're looking for some big bag of tricks from Ben Bernanke. Hey, speaking of, do me a favor and stand by.
NEWMAN: Sure.
BALDWIN: He is now addressing the nation here, the Fed chief, Ben Bernanke. Let's dip in.
BEN BERNANKE, FEDERAL RESERVE CHAIRMAN: Otherwise be thereby supporting economic recovery.
In conjunction with today's meetings, FOMC participants, the seven board members and 12 reserve bank presidents submitted their individual economic projections and policy assessments for the years 2012 to 2014 and over the longer run. These projections are important inputs to committees deliberations.
Incoming information suggests that the economy continues to expand at a moderate pace in the face of headwinds generated by the situation in Europe, a still depressed housing market, tight credit for some borrowers and fiscal restraint at the federal, state and local levels. Business and household spending are increasing at rates consistent with moderate, economic growth, though household spending appears to be rising at a somewhat slower pace than earlier this year. Employment gains have been smaller in recent months and the unemployment rate at 8.2 percent remains elevated. In light of these developments, committee participants have generally marked down their projections for economic growth, but most still see the economy as expanding at a moderate pace over coming quarters and then picking up gradually.
Based on their projections for economic growth, FOMC participants foresee slower progress in reducing unemployment than they did in April. Committee participants projections to the unemployment rate in the fourth quarter of this year have a central tendency of 8.0 to 8.2 percent, declining to 7.0 percent o 7.7 percent in the fourth quarter of 2014. Levels that would remain above participants estimates of the longer run, normal rates of unemployment.
In addition to projecting only slow progress and bringing down unemployment, most participants see the risk to the outlook weighted mainly towards slower growth and high employment. In particular, participants noted that strains in global financial markets, associated principally with the situation in Europe, continue to pose significant risks to the recovery and to further improvement in labor market conditions.
Meanwhile, inflation has declined recently, primarily reflecting lower prices of crude oil and gasoline. Longer term inflation expectations have remained stable and the committee anticipates that inflation over the medium run will run at or below the 2 percent rate that it judges most consistent with its statutory mandate for maximum employment and price stability. More specifically, participants projection of inflation have a central tendency of 1.2 to 1.7 percent for 2012 and 1.5 to 2.0 percent for 2014.
The economic projections submitted by FOMC participants are conditioned on their individual assessments of the appropriate path of monetary policy. As you can see from the chart, committee participants have a range of views about when the initial increase in the federal funds rate is likely to be warranted. After a thorough discussion of those views and of the ongoing uncertainty and risks surrounding the outlook, the FOMC, as I mentioned, maintained its collective judgment that economic conditions are likely to warrant exceptionally low levels to the federal funds rate, at least through late 2014, and have agreed to provide further support to the economy by continuing the maturity extension program. The committee is prepared to take further action as appropriate to promote a stronger economic recovery and sustained improvement in labor market conditions in a context of price stability.
Thank you. I'll be glad to take your questions.
BALDWIN: So, when we hear the Fed chief speak, of course, the nation listens and the markets react. I've been listening and I've been watching the market.
Let's go to Alison Kosik. She's also watching those markets for us.
You know, it's been -- what was it, it was up seven points. It's down about 22 points now. And maybe, Alison, to Rick Newman's point, my last guest, he was saying, look, you know, this was anticipated. This move was not something crazy.
ALISON KOSIK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Right. It definitely was right along the lines of what the market expected. I mean what we did see, the Dow drop almost 100 points as soon as the announcement came out at around 12:30 today. Clearly the market, you know, came back off of those lows. You know now down, as you said, about 25 points.
Look, you heard it right there, the Fed chief acknowledging the U.S. economy is weaker. It knew it had to do something. So what it did, it did the least it could do without doing nothing. It didn't want to do anything too dramatic. But something had to be done clearly. You know even, you know, the Fed chief saying hiring is weak, consumer spending is rising at a slower pace than earlier in the year.
So what they did was they extended a program that's already underway. It's nicknamed Operation Twist. Kind of a snazzy name. And it essentially means -- it's when the Fed sells short term securities and uses the proceeds to buy longer term ones. And the whole goal in doing this is to push down long term interest rates, Brooke. What that does is it makes it cheaper for businesses to get loans. It makes it cheaper for consumers to get mortgage and other credit.
But here's the problem with it, at least according to one analyst that I've just talked with. He says, you know what, even with these lower interest rates, you can't force borrowers to borrow money. You can't force banks to lend. You've got to have confidence to do both of those things. That's one of the thing that's lacking in this economy, Brooke.
BALDWIN: Alison Kosik, thank you.
Rick Newman, bringing you back in. Alison mentioned lack of confidence. You know, listening to Ben Bernanke, to hear that our unemployment rate will be above 8 percent for the rest of the year. If I'm sitting there, and I was listening because we're all Americans, we're all paying our taxes, I didn't like what he said.
NEWMAN: Neither did President Obama, by the way. That's bad news for him in November. What I -- another thing I heard him say is that he does not -- in the base case scenario, he does not expect the unemployment rate to get back down to 7 percent until 2014. That's two and a half years from now. And that still is an elevated unemployment rate.
So Ben Bernanke's basically telling us what we already know. It's an extremely slow recovery. We're probably not headed into a recession, but it's just maidenly a stagnant economy. And, of course, it's official when Ben Bernanke says it. So it gets more credibility that way.
You know, one ironic thing about this, Brooke, is that by basically saying, you know, long term interest rates are going to stay low for the indefinite future, there's no rush to spend any money and to go out and borrow. I mean he might stimulate a little more activity if he were to say, interest rates are going to go up in six months. Then I think you'd see a lot of people saying, well, I'd better lock in the rates now.
BALDWIN: All rushing the market. Right.
NEWMAN: Of course he hasn't said that and no one expects him to. So I -- we're really just going to be looking at more of the same for probably the next six months at least.
BALDWIN: Hopefully more of the same. Hopefully not a recession. Rick Newman, we appreciate it very much there.
NEWMAN: Thanks for having me.
BALDWIN: Also, Alison Kosik, thank you as well.
Speaking of money in America, the U.S. gives more than a billion dollars to Egypt every year. But as you know, there is this intense power struggle happening there right now that could change everything and leave America vulnerable should something happen in the Middle East.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BALDWIN: Just a quick reminder as we're keeping a very close eye here on this live picture of Capitol Hill. House Oversight Committee soon will be holding a vote. A contempt vote regarding Attorney General Eric Holder and the fast and furious operation from some year and a half ago. So as soon as we see movement there, we will take you there live.
Meantime, Egypt. Hosni Mubarak said to be clinging to life. The attorney for the former Egyptian president says Mubarak is off life support. His health is improving. But this just one day after rumors that the ousted Egyptian strongman was clinically dead. That swept across the world last night. All of this as Egyptians await the official outcome of last weekend's presidential runoff. And our correspondent on the ground there, Ivan Watson, says demonstrators in Egypt, quote, "don't give a damn about Mubarak." Instead, two sides are in the middle of this intense fight for power in what could lead to a dangerous breakup with the United States. I want to go straight to the Pentagon to Barbara Starr.
And, Barbara, in terms of, you know, of dollars and cents here, the country gives this country -- the U.S. gives Egypt more than a billion dollars a year in aid. How much money is at stake here?
BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: A lot of bucks at stake here, Brooke.
You know, this isn't just about a break up. This is about something very deep here. Decades old military alliance with Egypt. The most populous nation in the Arab world. A key ally of the U.S., day in day out, for decades.
Right now the U.S. gives Egypt about $1.3 billion. Technically it's in financing, so they can turn around and buy U.S. weapons. In addition to that, more than a million dollars for the training and education of Egyptian military personnel. Some 700 U.S. personnel, military personnel in Egypt. So you begin to see the depth and the breadth of this relationship.
The U.S. wants to maintain it. They need that Egyptian alliance, of course. But, with this crisis afoot, what they can't do is keep it up with the Egyptian, keep up that alliance if the Egyptian military does not give up power and transition to democracy to the candidate that most people in Egypt believe was elected to office. So things are coming to a head in the next few days possibly about all of this.
BALDWIN: As things come to a head, you pointed out, this is about an alliance, Egypt and the United States. If they raise some sort of conflict in the Middle East, whether it's Iran, whether it is Israel, the U.S. needs access to Egypt.
STARR: Yes, just think about it. When you look at the map, you know, Egypt, a vast piece of territory in a very crucial part of the world. That southern rim in the Mediterranean. Think of it as the gateway into the Middle East. The U.S. wants to know that it can have access to air space, to ports, to land bases if it ever came to that, if it need that. That's one of the key reasons that the U.S. has been in this alliance with Egypt for so many years.
But, it comes back to this. If the Egyptian military, which basically has been running the government for the last several months, does not give up power, really, truly, fundamentally and turn it over to the people that the Egyptian people believe they elected to office, and if that does not happen, there will be very little choice for the Obama administration because all the indications are Congress would move to try and cut off that to Egypt -- Brooke.
BALDWIN: Yes, that's one of the big questions, how much is the military willing to cede to the government. Barbara Starr, thank you so much.
The defense rests today in the Jerry Sandusky trial. The fate of the former football coach could soon go to a jury. We're going to tell you what happened on the stand and why a juror was replaced at the last second.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BALDWIN: Big news today out of the Jerry Sandusky child rape trial. His defense lawyers rested just a couple of hours ago without calling the former coach to testify.
CNN's Susan Candiotti is in Bellefonte, Pennsylvania. She has been covering the trial for us really from the get-go. Help me understand this. Because, Susan, I know there were reports that Sandusky wanted to testify, so why not? What happened?
SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, our reporting is that Jerry Sandusky was prepped and ready to go. But in the end, it does appear that his defense attorneys may very well have decided that it would be too risky for him to take the stand.
Perhaps wouldn't work to their advantage, that he would have had to face a very tough cross-examination and could have opened the door to other testimony.
For example, remember, earlier in the week NBC said it had been subpoenaed by prosecutors for yet another video tape excerpt of an interview that they did, Bob Costas did with Jerry Sandusky so all of that could have come out.
But, Brooke, we do know this. In the state of Pennsylvania, before this happened, it would have been important or it would have had to have happened that Jerry Sandusky was called before judge and asked evidently in private because that's what the rule is whether he was waiving his right to testify.
That's the way it has to be done here to avoid any issue, possible appeals issue, if Jerry Sandusky was found guilty. That apparently happened behind the scenes.
BALDWIN: Susan, what about this juror today who was replaced sort of last minute late in the game. What happened?
CANDIOTTI: Well, the first thing in the morning the judge announced to everyone that one juror on the panel, a woman, was too sick to continue. She had to leave. So instead the judge has replaced her.
He'd replaced her with alternate number one who is a woman who also has like some other jurors a Penn State connection. She's a Penn State alumna. She also heard Jerry Sandusky speak at her graduation.
And so she now becomes the seventh juror who has some link to Penn State in addition to another juror who has a link to one of witnesses in this case. So it's an interesting jury.
BALDWIN: Susan Candiotti, thank you. Now the defense has rested, we'll look for the closing arguments tomorrow morning.
It is a huge landmark case. Major leader of the Catholic Church accused of covering up sex abuse is waiting for a jury to decide his fate. Just a short time ago, jurors delivered a big surprise to the judge here.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BALDWIN: A landmark case is unfolding right now involving priests and the abuse of children. Jury deciding the fate of one of the highest ranking Catholics in Philadelphia telling the judge we can't reach a verdict on four of these five counts. Here is the back story.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BALDWIN (voice-over): Monsignor William Lynn is the highest ranking church official ever facing criminal charges for his role in the investigation of child sexual abuse by priests.
Lynn, who took the stand in his own defense said he repeatedly sent word of child sex abuse up the chain of command, but operated under strict orders from his superiors.
He is accused of endangering the welfare of a child for allegedly covering up allegations of molestation and rape against priest. The monsignor faces up to 21 years in prison.
Also on trial is Father James Brent who is charged with the attempted rape of a 14-year-old altar boy in 1996. He could get 27 years in prison. Both men pleaded not guilty.
Now the priest Edward Avery was due to go on trial with Brent and Lynn, but he pleaded guilty in March after admitting to sexually assaulting the 10-year-old altar boy in the late '90s. He was sentenced to two and a half to five years in prison. The trial marks the first time U.S. prosecutors have charged not just the priest who allegedly committed the abuses, but an official. Lynn who stands accused of failing stop the assaults.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BALDWIN: Let's go do Sarah who has lived and breathed this case. Sarah, what's happening with the jurors?
SARAH HOYE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (via telephone): Right now they are returning from lunch and today was an important day. They did come back and said we cannot agree on four of the five charges.
The judge is telling them to go back and keep deliberating and keep trying. We're looking at the 49th day of trail and today is the 12th day of deliberations. Everybody is looking for an answer -- Brooke.
BALDWIN: Sarah Hoye, we'll see if they deliver on that answer. We appreciate you there in Philadelphia.
And now to an explosive report here as the Western Iran may face off. We're not hearing the U.S. may perhaps be behind the cyber attacks targeting Iran. That's next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BALDWIN: Two years ago this month, Iranian nuclear scientists discovered this crucial piece of their hardware literally spinning out of control. It's not an accident either. It was just sabotaged.
Cyber warfare and it set back the Iran nuclear program by up to two years and now Iran is a target yet again. A target the "Washington Post" is calling and I'm quoting them, "the first sustained campaign of cyber sabotage against an adversary of the United States." Message we're messing with Iran.
Ellen Nakashima is one of the "Washington Post" reporters who helped uncover the story and Ellen, thank you for joining me here. You write in the piece that's what's happening now is a prelude to something even bigger. What is it exactly that we are doing and what's the goal?
ELLEN NAKASHIMA, "WASHINGTON POST": Well, the goal is to delay Iran's alleged pursuit of a nuclear weapon. The United States and Israel are going about it in a variety of ways, including obviously sanctions and diplomacy.
And what we are learning is there has been for several years now, a number of years a secret campaign to delay their program using cyber weapons, cyber means to, in some cases, sabotage some of the critical pieces of equipment that help Iran develop such a weapon.
BALDWIN: You know, you write about the sophistication, if I may, I just want to read part of your piece, quote, "the virus is among the most sophisticated and subversive pieces of malware to be exposed to date. Experts said the program was designed to spread across highly secure networks and then control everyday computer functions and send secrets back to its creators."
I should also mention that the previous virus that attacked Iran got loose and then started circulating the entire globe. So needless to say, sounds like there's an element of clearly now danger.
NAKASHIMA: I want to clarify that. Flame is a virus that was used to steal data, to spy and collect data on the exciter networks of Iran and including listening in perhaps on some of their conversations.
The other virus, which actually sabotaged some of the centrifuges in a uranium enrichment plant was a separate type of computer malware that was meant to actually damage or destroy equipment.
Now you have to do the espionage work first before you can actually unleash a tool that damages something. That's what flame was designed to do.
BALDWIN: OK. Turn everyone to washingtonpost.com for your piece. Ellen Nakashima, I appreciate you coming on and talking about that with me.
Now to this, did you see this? Baseball announcer calling a game and suddenly starts talking about a henchman, a botched robbery, was it a migraine. Might it have been something more serious?
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BALDWIN: You may not believe what you're about to hear. This TV announcer for the Texas Rangers, his name is Dave Barnett, appearing to trail off into pure gibberish when calling Monday night's game against the San Diego Padres.
In case you missed it, this is how fans saw it play out live on television.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DAVE BARNETT, TEXAS RANGERS ANNOUNCER: He's at fifth on what Adams is insisting on calling it a botched robbery. What happened was is his henchman was literally out of --
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BALDWIN: You catch that, run a fifth, a botched robbery and his henchman. What was he talking about? It turns out he may have suffered some sort of medical episode right there on live television.
I want to bring in our senior medical correspondent Elizabeth Cohen to help us understand what exactly happened. So now he thinks he suffered a migraine?
ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN SENIOR MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, doesn't that sound odd, because if you think migraine, it's just something that hurts, right?
BALDWIN: I get maybe one ocular migraine a year.
COHEN: Do you talk about robberies?
BALDWIN: Hopefully, not yet. No, what happened?
COHEN: What can happen is that someone can have a silent migraine where actually they don't feel pain, but it can disturb their vision or it can disturb their language. It can disturb their speech.
What's going on is when you have a migraine you'll get let's say a lot of blood flow at a vessel and then a little bit. A lot of blood flow and then a little bit.
That sort of those changes in blood flow can sometimes mimic the effects of a stroke. It's not a stroke, but it can cause disturbances just in that one area of the brain and then it's over quickly. It happened in the eighth inning and he came back at the end of the game.
BALDWIN: Right, is it possible he knew at the time when he was talking about henchman and robberies? Was he cognizant of the words coming out of his mouth, do you think?
COHEN: The doctors we talked to said it's very possible that he heard robbery and whatever he said. That he might have been thinking, wait a minute, what was that? He might have been aware that he was saying something that doesn't really make sense.
BALDWIN: Is there treatment, preventative treatment for this kind of thing?
COHEN: The same medicine to treat the pain of a migraine can also treat the language disturbance because they come from the same effect, basically, from the same phenomenon.
So it may be that he wasn't taking his medicine because migraine suffers don't always take it on a constant basis. It may mean that he switch medicines. Who knows, but doctors we talked to said medicine can help that in the same way that it could help pain.
BALDWIN: At least he appears to be a-OK. As you mentioned, he was back calling the game.
COHEN: You might think he was having a stroke, right, when someone starts to talk like that.
BALDWIN: But you know he wasn't because he ended up back at work.
COHEN: Right, he ended back at work and if they had seen any weakness on one side or whatever, they would have rushed him to the hospital.
BALDWIN: Elizabeth Cohen, thank you.
And now I want you to listen to this. The number of murders in Chicago since January has now surpassed the number of troops killed in Afghanistan this year, more than Afghanistan. I know it's shocking. One funeral director in the city reveals a haunting outlook here.
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BALDWIN: The numbers here are so staggering, the headlines all too frequent, almost mind numbing. I'm talking about Chicago, five killed, 34 wounded in weekend shootings there.
Weekend violence killed six, about 40 wounded and then two dead and 15 wounded in shootings across the city. One of the victims, a 16-year-old boy shot and killed in a fight over a bicycle.
Look, you know and I know the violence here, this isn't new, but this year is turning out to be particularly bloody. Murders are up more than a third over last year. Shootings are up as well.
We've talked here on the show about some of the victims. That 6-year-old, Ailee Ashel shot to death on her front porch with her mother and sister nearby. Police are working overtime to try to hold back the violence.
But Chicagoans who've lost loved ones over the years say police, they can't do it alone.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It takes a community to say something. We just had gang members driving past in a car. When is the community going to say something about that? It takes a community, not only the cops.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This is not just something that's happened on the south side and west side. This is happening in everybody's community. If you don't do something, it will in your community soon.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BALDWIN: Reverend Corey Brooks of Chicago's New Beginnings Church is a member of that community. He's spending four months walking from New York all the way to Los Angeles to raise money, to raise awareness here for his own fight against violence in Chicago.
I hear you're now in Pittsburgh walking away. Reverend Brooks, it's a pleasure to have you on. I've read a little bit about your perspective as to what's happening in Chicago. It's so easy to blame the gangs. But you say that's not the whole picture. What is?
REVEREND COREY BROOKS, NEW BEGINNINGS CHURCH OF CHICAGO: Well, Brooke, first of all, thank you for allowing me to be on your show. We're facing a myriad of issues in Chicago. Primarily, we're facing four giants, four ills, a social ill, spiritual ills, educational ills and economic ills.
Whenever you have that many things going on in a community, it's a time bomb waiting to explode. So all those problems need solutions and we need all hands on deck to solve those problems. BALDWIN: I want to get to the solutions in a minute. But I just want to quote a funeral director in Chicago saying these kids don't expect to live a full life.
This is part of this article. He was talking about how he talks to two or three mothers a week who are burying their little ones.
He is talking about the young people that are attending the funerals and they are actually thinking, OK, this is how I will be celebrated if and when I get shot.
I read you officiated funerals. How do you change the culture?
BROOKS: Well, we have to change the mind set and the mentality of people, and that's the reason why we need all hands on deck. It takes preachers, pastors, politicians and parents. But it also is going to take some of those entertainers who are out there to have a message to help these people get the hope to bring back life in our community.
We need everybody speaking to the issues. We need everybody speaking to the problems. We need everyone working on the solution. That message must be communicated not by one person, but it's got to be communicated by several people.
BALDWIN: Officiating these funerals, I know you've taken the risk you've done so with funerals of some gang members. Just in 30 seconds, what is in world is that like?
BROOKS: Well, you know it's very tough. I try to tell myself and remind myself that whether they are in a gang or not in a gang, they are people. This is not a gang problem. This is a humanitarian problem.
So people have to be treated the same with love, compassion and respect regardless of their background and regardless of their color and if all of us can remember that, we can make America much better place.
The people on the south side of Chicago who are in gangs and people just in general who are getting shot and killed, they deserve to be helped and assisted just as much as any other person. So we need all the help we can get in the city of Chicago.
BALDWIN: I know you are trying to raise money for this community center you want to build on this plot of land where you've sat on top of this motel for 94 days. I wish you good luck. And with that we go, Corey Brooks, thank you so much.