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82-year-old Neil Armstrong has Passed Away; Tropical Storm Isaac Heads Toward Florida and the Gulf Coast; Jeffrey Johnson is the Suspect in the Empire State Building Shooting
Aired August 25, 2012 - 15:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: In New Britain, Connecticut, a school superintendent wants to start fining parents $75 for every day their kids skip school. People have mixed feelings about that.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's not fair $75 for every time that these kids don't want to go to school. Some of these mothers barely have a car to take them to school.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: These kids are outside. They're buying drugs or stopping cars in the mid evaluate street and riding their bikes around and they should be in school.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: The policy still has to go in front of city council, but city officials say truancy is a major problem. Parents who can't afford the fine would have a community service option.
Hello again, everyone. I'm Fredricka Whitfield.
We're tracking tropical storm Isaac as it heads toward Florida and the gulf coast now. High winds and rain have already downed trees and power lines in Haiti. At least two deaths are reported there now. Isaac brushed past Cuba last hour bringing a little more than just a little bit of rain to the island nation and it's now moving into warmer water and that's where things get uncertain for the U.S. gulf coast. How strong will Isaac get? And when will it hit potentially? Florida is under a state of emergency right now as Isaac approaches.
This is Orlando that you're about to see. The city has set up locations places where people can pick up sandbags. More than 100,000 of those bags are available should the area be hit by flooding from Isaac.
Let's bring in CNN's Jim Spellman. He is in Key West, Florida.
So, Jim, there have been evacuation orders imposed there in the keys?
JIM SPELLMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: They're encouraging visit o people who traveled here to the keys to leave. They stop and ensure that really call them to evacuation. They've added flights to try to get people out today. But once the last flight leaves this evening, Fred, they are going to close the airport down and there's only one way to get in and out of the keys and that is U.S. route one. Its 120 miles back to the mainland of Florida.
So, if you're leaving they want you on your way now. But for people who are staying, they already got preparations under way. The storm shutters are going up and they've opened four shelters and encouraging anyone who lives on a trailer or especially people who lives on a boat down here to get out of the boat. Go stay in the shelter. But you know why people come to Key West, come here to party. Some of those people are not deterred at all. I spoke to a guy named Paul all the way from Chicago. Listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SPELLMAN: Are you going to evacuate, Paul?
PAUL CANNELLA, TOURIST, CHICAGO: No.
SPELLMAN: Why not?
CANNELLA: We came here to have a good time and not going to let a little hurricane get in the way. So just you know big flavor and life time experiences. So, I hear about hurricane party. So, we are going to have some fun with it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SPELLMAN: The mayor here tells me they've been lucky before with hurricanes. They hope to be lucky again with Isaac -- Fred.
WHITFIELD: Well, let's hope so, indeed.
All right. Thanks very much, Jim Spellman. Keep us posted there from the Keys.
So, tropical rains for tropical storm Isaac still drenching Haiti. Officials confirm at least two people have died. But they are concerned the death toll will rise as authorities search tent cities in Port-Au-Prince.
CNN's Gary Tuchman is in Port-Au-Prince and he described the harsh conditions there.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GARY TUCHMAN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: The people who live in this large tent city outside of Port-Au-Prince have lived a very tough life. Most of them have been here for two and a half years since the earthquake hit Haiti in January 2010. And now, it's been made tougher.
The rain is finally starting to take off from tropical storm Isaac. And what we've seen here in this camp is what we're seeing throughout Haiti, lots of flooding problems and lots of destroyed tents and it's the only home that these people have.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: All right, later on this hour, we'll be talking to a U.N. humanitarian official who is also on the ground in Port-Au-Prince trying to help the storm victims there.
So, what everyone wants to know now is where is this storm going? What kind of potential does it have?
Let's bring in meteorologist Jennifer Delgado I the CNN weather center.
So Jennifer, right now tropical storm, is it inevitable that it will all become a hurricane?
JENNIFER DELGADO, METEOROLOGIST: Yes. You know Fredericka, it is very likely. Right now it is a tropical storm. But what we don't want people to think this is a storm and I can ride this out. The problem is it will be moving in a very favorable environment and we're expecting this to actually strengthen much more. Right now the winds are at 60 miles per hour.
I want to point out to you, heavy rainfall coming down in Port-Au- Prince as well as Dominican Republic and you can see from Cuba, really, they are picking up some heavier rain and that's associated with a disturbance that's being enhanced by tropical storm Isaac right now. So, as I show you on the radar, the rain is really just kind of capturing that and in Key West where our Jim Spellman was, rain is coming down, a lot of lightning there, but more rain on the way.
Let's talk more about the warnings and watches in place. Of course, I'm pink. We're talking about a hurricane warning. And that means for Sunday, we're expecting for tropical storm conditions to work in the parts of Southern Florida. That includes Key West.
As we go into the afternoon we're talking potential for hurricane conditions. Anywhere you see in blue and that includes Miami and that's a tropical storm warning. So now you really want to know the track of this system and as we show you, as we go through the future, notice but Sunday at 8:00 a.m., 65 miles per hour and as it gets through Key West. National hurricane center is forecasting at 75 miles per hour. That would make it of course a hurricane, a category one.
But we have a big change. When it moves into the gulf of Mexico, notice warmer waters as we said favorable environment likely a category two, certainly this could be very dangerous. Anyone who enters from state New Orleans all of the way over toward the western part of Florida, they really need to pay close attention to the track of the system. And then, of course, it weakens and this is Wednesday 8:00 a.m. still, a potentially as a hurricane category one.
Now, as we've been saying you never, ever focus on the exact track. There is a cone of error there. I want to point to you though, a lot of models now are in better agreement taking it through the Gulf of Mexico, but certainly, some of them have it in a westward motion.
I can tell you this, the track of the system may not be certain yet, but we are going to be looking, Fredericka, at a lot of rain coming down, some of these locations 10 to 20 inches of rainfall.
WHITFIELD: Oh, my God.
DELGADO: Incredible. That is going to lead to flooding. You have to add in storm surge, especially right on the western coastline of Florida. As we could go through the next couple of days, this could be a very dangerous system.
WHITFIELD: Wow. And some of the cities along the coastline there in the southern tip, not good drainage in the first place so, 10 inches is pretty serious.
DELGADO: Absolutely.
WHITFIELD: All right. Thanks so much. Appreciate it.
Jennifer Delgado, keep us posted.
All right, more developments today.
Now, in the shooting near the New York Empire State building yesterday, police say all nine people hit on the street were hit by police gun fire.
Let's get to Jason Carroll now -- Jason.
JASON CARROLL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: And Fredricka. That was confirmed to us early today by New York City police commissioner Ray Kelly.
In the beginning, there was some speculation in terms of how exactly those nine innocent bystanders were hurt. We are now being told, three were struck by bullets, six were struck by fragments.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CARROLL (voice-over): Police surveillance video captures the shooting in front of the empire state building. 58-year-old Jeffrey Johnson suddenly appears to pull a gun when confronted by two police officers. Police fire, Johnson goes down.
Amateur video shows a different angle. Johnson is still moving after being shot. He dies a short time later. Nine bystanders are hurt after the shooting, all by police bullets including Robert Asika, a tour guide.
ROBERT ASIKA, SHOOTING VICTIM: When I turned around I saw a guy in his suite and he brought a gun. Then, I guess he shot at the police officer and the police officer shot him and one of them shot me in the arm and I fell.
CARROLL: None of the bystanders' injuries were life-threatening. Police fired 16 rounds but were quick to explain why so many innocent people were hurt.
RAY KELLY, COMMISSIONER, NYPD: There were flower pots and other objects around. So, when the officer did fire the bullets fragmented and that's what caused the wounds of the bystanders.
CARROLL: Police say the shooting happened moments after Johnson shot and killed a former coworker, 41-year-old Steven Ercolino. Johnson was a women's accessories designer at Hazan Imports. He was laid off a year ago, but had a long-standing grudge against Ercolino over sales of his designs. Witnesses say Johnson used his 45 caliber pistol to shoot Ercolino in the head, then, kept firing at him.
We heard pops, pops, so we think it is like, you know construction sites. So, we thought it was some metal or wood fall. It was really loud. Then, we heard more. And I heard four more shots pop, pop, pop, pow. And we were, like, OK, that's gunshots. So, we all kind like you know, turned over and we looked and saw see a guy in a gray suit just walking away.
CARROLL: His neighbors say he lived alone at this apartment building in New York's Upper Eastside with his cat, one had recently died.
GISELA CASELLA, JEFFREY JOHNSON'S NEIGHBOR: I'm in shock. I can't believe it. He was the nicest guy. I think he snapped or something. I don't know.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CARROLL: And there have been some questions about exactly where he got the gun from, where Johnson got the gun from. It turns out he purchased it legally in Sarasota, Florida, back in 1991. However, it turns out he did not legally have a permit to carry the gun here in New York - Fredericka.
WHITFIELD: And Jason, you mentioned there was some longstanding dispute between Johnson and Ercolino. What more do we know about their relationship or the exchanges they may have had?
CARROLL: Well, we are hearing a little bit more about that. Apparently Ercolino filed some sort of a police complaint against Johnson basically saying that Johnson had threatened to kill him. And also, Fredericka, Johnson in turn had also filed a report against Ercolino. So it turns out that they must have had some sort of a grudge against each other that that got to a point when both of them ended up going to the police and filing report against each other - Fredericka.
WHITFIELD: Jason Carroll. Thanks so much. Midtown Manhattan.
All right. Have you downloaded one of the political campaign apps for your Smartphone? Well, there's some concern they could be invading your privacy.
And what's next for the legacy of tour de France champion Lance Armstrong? We go in-depth on the doping scandal.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: All right. Here's what's going on across the world today.
The casualty count is rising following a massive blast at an oil refinery in Venezuela. Authorities say an explosion rocked the Amway oil refinery early Saturday killing at least 26 people and injuring 82 others. A gas leak reportedly sparked the blast causing significant damage to the refinery and nearby homes. Venezuela is the world's fifth largest exporter of crude with the U.S. being one of its biggest customers. No word on what, if any, the blast could have on oil prices.
Then on to Syria now, activists say August is the deadliest month in the country's 17-month crisis. More than 370 people have been killed with still one week left to go.
Meanwhile, government troops are bombarding Aleppo again and rebels claim the Syrian military has increased aerial shelling in civilian areas.
All right, now to the doping scandal that could cause cycling champion Lance Armstrong all seven of his tour de France titles and his legacy perhaps. Right now, in Maryland - Columbia, Maryland, a charitable cycling event that will benefit a foundation to fight cancer.
What's going on right now? The anti-doping agency slapped him with a lifetime ban from competition yesterday for illegal -- for allegedly doping.
Let's bring in Jonathan Mann and still saying allegedly because nowhere on the books is it proven that he was doping.
JONATHAN MANN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Just the opposite. He insists he's never doped and he was probably the most tested athlete in sports history. Hundreds of doping tests and he never --
WHITFIELD: But he is positive on that.
MANN: Right. He never failed a doping test. He's not giving up anything. He's saying I'm just tired of fighting you guys. I am tired of saying no. In a sense and this is maybe the crucial thing. He's not waving a white flag. He's giving them the finger.
WHITFIELD: OK. So, you sought the U.S. anti-doping agency is saying we're looking at him abandoning the fight as admission of guilt.
MANN: They are.
(CROSSTALK)
MANN: Unless you keep fighting and unless you participate in the process, they say that you deemed that you are submitting. What he is saying is the process is unfair. You know, the U.S. justice department investigated Lance Armstrong. They empanelled a grand jury. They got the food and drug administration.
WHITFIELD: It's on Capitol Hill.
MANN: Four federal agencies tried and sought and investigated and dropped the investigation. He's saying if you look fairly the way they did I will come out clean. He is saying I'm not fighting the USADA anymore because there is no way that I will get a fair hearing. So, let them do whatever they want.
WHITFIELD: Interesting. So, the USADA is recommending that he be stripped of his titles. But it's really this international cycling union that would make the determination, right?
MANN: The crucial issue. The International cycling union has determination, and they were in court with Lance Armstrong saying the USADA has no jurisdiction. Like Lance Armstrong, they were saying well, if this is true, show us the proof. Lance Armstrong says I haven't seen the evidence against me. I know I've passed these drug tests. The union, the international cycling insist show us the evidence.
So for the time being USADA is saying he has to be stripped of these titles and the international cycling union said he won seven tour de France jerseys. He keeps them until we are told otherwise.
WHITFIELD: So, it really does the favorable then for Armstrong if there is already that presence, that statement coming from the international cycling union which says, you know, until you prove it and still no proof.
MANN: It kind of does. And you know, the live strong events that are going on across the country are still going on. He raised more than $40 million last year. He raised more than $40 million a year before. This man isn't just a sports legend. He's a legend in the fight against cancer.
So, the USADA has important work to do. They're doing it and it's not up to me to say whether they are doing it right or wrong. But Lance Armstrong says, I did what I did. I stood on the podium seven times. And the most extraordinary thing is even people who came in second from Lance Armstrong, they don't want to take the yellow jersey away from hm. Some of them have -- at least one of them came forward, he was caught doping too. So, if number two is caught doping, and number three is caught doping, who do you give the championship to if everyone else was doping, too? And they are like, leave it alone. Lance Armstrong won.
WHITFIELD: Interesting. So, now what then potentially? Lance Armstrong, he came out with this very detailed statement saying, you know, everyone knows I won these seven jerseys, et cetera. I will continue fighting for example my family. I'm going to continue fighting for people with cancer, for my foundation and I still want to prove that I'm the most fit 40-year-old on the planet.
MANN: And he can still do that. He's racing today.
WHITFIELD: But he can't be in triathlon.
MANN: He can't be in any internationally sanctioned event. He can still do - so, he's out of the ironman competition, for example.
WHITFIELD: Yes.
MANN: That was very dear to his heart. He wanted to do that. He was doing very well. But he is still doing local events and doing publicity events and maybe even presumably once there is a final decision in all this, he may be back in the international competition.
But for the time being, Lance Armstrong is the seven-time champion of the tour de France, a major philanthropist, and the USADA still has to prove its case to international agencies and to the rest of the world. He's got his mind made up. But, you know, for the rest of us, the jury is still out.
WHITFIELD: He's still vowing to live strong.
MANN: He still. Lance, vowing to live strong, exactly.
WHITFIELD: Wow.
All right, thanks so much Jon Mann. Appreciate that. I know you are a big biker. I know follow the ins and outs of everything in the world of biking, not just Lance Armstrong, but everything else.
All right, thanks so much. Appreciate it.
All right, maybe it's an offer of a big return on an investment or maybe it is a phone call asking for money for a charity that you perhaps have never heard of. Well, some of these have the markings of a scam targeting seniors in particular. We'll show you and the seniors in your life how to protect yourself.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: All right. We've heard the warnings, as America's population of seniors grows so are the number of scams trying to steal their money. Here's how damaging it could be.
A new survey from the certified financial planners' board shows that seniors who do get caught up in a scam lose an average $140,000. Ken and Darya Dolan are personal finance experts and we are so excited that you're back.
Ken, you have been away for awhile battling cancer. But you are strong and you are back better than ever. And we are going to talk about some of these scams.
KEN DOLAN, PERSONAL FINANCE EXPERT: I want to take a second to thank you and all of CNN team for your support. Darya has done a wonderful job, but for my family and friends and this is for my nurse, the anthologist and all of the gang, I want to thank them very, very much. I am now cancer-free. I may have to borrow some hair, Fred.
WHITFIELD: Yes. That's OK.
KEN DOLAN: Otherwise, I'm back. WHITFIELD: Hair or no hair, I'm glad you're back.
DARYA DOLAN, PERSONAL FINANCE EXPERT: We have hurricane Dolan back.
WHITFIELD: All right. That's right. Fantastic. Well, congratulations and we are so glad you're back.
KEN DOLAN: Thank you Fred. Thanks for your prayers.
WHITFIELD: Absolutely. Let's talk about some of the scams now, beginning with identity theft and this happened to you all and you all know what to look for. So many of us, you know, are subject to identity theft or scams like this. What happened to you guys?
DARYA DOLAN: I get a phone call from a bank I never do business with asking me if I opened up an account as I'm sitting here in the palm beaches in Florida, if I opened up an account in long island New York at a sears, and I said no, that's not me. They said we didn't think so. So the next thing I know I now have a seven-year fraud alert on all of my credit reports, but thank God the bank was diligent because I was using one of these services that never told me.
KEN DOLAN: Bottom line, Fred, is if we can have our identities stolen, although only once, anybody can. So, the bottom line is, protect your Social Security number, protect your home address and protect your passwords and give as little informational most anybody that you can. But be very, very careful. There are smart people out there stealing your identity.
DARYA DOLAN: And it is all over the net and no matter what you do because I haven't lost anything to have this happen. So there you go.
WHITFIELD: This is a big business, scamming people and another way in which people do it is they may give you a phone call. They send you something in the mail that says you can get this great return on this investment. What are the signs to look for?
DARYA DOLAN: Any time you see an unusually high rate of return, I don't care how good they make it look.
KEN DOLAN: CDs are paying less than one percent and you'll get 10 percent?
DARYA DOLAN: Or seven percent or something that maybe you could have gotten a number of years ago. Please use that as a warning bell. Quick case in point I took my mother who had a CD that was maturing to a bank locally.
KEN DOLAN: To roll the CD.
DARYA DOLAN: To roll the CD. And of course, we sit down and he didn't know who I was. And he says I have something that we can do a little bit better for you. It's a guaranteed bond and so I was interested. I said oh, really? It's guaranteed? Who guarantees it?
KEN DOLAN: Watch out for her. DARYA DOLAN: And he said the corporation. I said, excuse me, time out. There is no such thing as a guaranteed corporate bond.
WHITFIELD: So what did you do? Did you just hang up? Do you not have the dialogue with anyone?
DARYA DOLAN: No, we were in the bank so she ended up with CDs because she --.
KEN DOLAN: If you hear insider information and getting in on the ground floor, Fred. Hills, head for, comma, hills!
WHITFIELD: Head for the hills. OK, thanks.
And this happens so often, both my parents, I know it's what happened to them. They told me about it all the time. Someone calls. They say they represent a certain organization. We want you to make a donation on the phone. It is so easy. You can do it right now. Then what do you do? I just tell them, you know what? Say thank you and click. But, what do you advice?
KEN DOLAN: The problem is --
DARYA DOLAN: Seniors are too nice and they are too nice and often times they haven't had a family member to talk to so here is a nice person on the phone. The first thing you need to do if it is some charitable organization or purported to be charitable organization, I would be happy to make a donation if you send me your material.
KEN DOLAN: They are all through it because of mail fraud.
WHITFIELD: Yes.
KEN DOLAN: So, ask for material as a start and then hang up.
WHITFIELD: OK. Then say in the mail you do receive something about a sweepstakes or, you know, there's a check. You hadn't entered anything, but suddenly you get a check and it looks enticing. It looks legit. You want to cash it. You say don't cash it. But then, what do you do?
KEN DOLAN: The bottom line, Fredricka Whitfield, if you didn't enter a sweepstakes you didn't win a sweepstakes. And in some states, cash in the counter the winning check is illegal and you could be in trouble. If you didn't enter, you didn't win and if you get asked for money up front to claim a sweepstakes prize, not legit.
DARYA DOLAN: One other quick sing, if you see sweepstakes bucket in a store somewhere, sign up and win a free airplane flight to the virgin islands or something, don't fill those out because oftentimes that's used as a way to get name, addresses and pertinent information, just don't do it.
KEN DOLAN: And last, but not least, I know we're tight here. The Nigerian letter still works. Please send us money and I'm a Nigerian official with some bribes and some -- WHITFIELD: Isn't that a shame? We have to be so suspicious of everything.
DARYA DOLAN: Or your bank account number.
WHITFIELD: Yes!
KEN DOLAN: And it works. People are still doing it.
DARYA DOLAN: Quickly, we even got an e-mail from a friend of ours. It wasn't sent by him saying he was in an airport in London and that somebody had robbed him and he needed money.
KEN DOLAN: Be careful. Don't believe half of what you hear, Fred.
WHITFIELD: Delete, delete, delete. Hang up! No contact. Period. Just be rude. That's the way it's got to be.
All right. Ken, Darya, but never rude to you. So we appreciate you being back. Appreciate it. Thanks so much. You all have a great one.
KEN DOLAN: Thanks, Fred.
WHITFIELD: Good seeing you both.
DARYA DOLAN: Thanks, you too.
WHITFIELD: OK.
All right, we're also tracking tropical storm Isaac. There are hurricane watches for Florida's east coast already. And then in Haiti the storm is making a miserable situation even worse there especially for people still living in tent cities. We will hear from a man trying to help out.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: A tropical storm is the last thing an already vulnerable Haiti needs. But tropical storm Isaac just slammed into Haiti today, heavy rain and strong winds lashing at the southern coast. Hundreds of thousands of people are still living in tents after that deadly earthquake in 2010 and now they're in need of help from the international community.
Kevin Kennedy joins me right now. He's acting -- he is the acting United Nations humanitarian coordinator, if I have that right.
So Mister Kennedy, you are also the team leader who has led the United Nations response to hurricane Katrina. So, give me an idea. I mean, no one expected people in tent cities to be able to farewell in a tropical storm. So, how do you help the people there who just keep getting hit by one devastation after the next?
KEVIN KENNEDY, ACTING UNITED NATION HUMANITARIAN COORDINATOR: The disasters are something that plagues Haiti and the earthquake of 2010 was extraordinary.
So far, though, I think we're faring reasonably well, Fredericka, in our response. And I have to say our response is the government of Haiti which is in the league here plus the U.N. agencies and plus NGOs and past organizations.
And our immediate concern at the moment is the possibility of more rain to come later this afternoon or this evening. We can possibly get another ten inches and should that happen we'd be very concerned about flooding in the low-lying areas and those camps adjacent to the sea crash.
WHITFIELD: So Mister Kennedy, I'm sure that the people living in Port-Au-Prince and any other area that's receiving this U.N. help, they're grateful for the immediate response when something like this happens.
But long term, what, if anything, is really being done to help with the infrastructure. I mean, two years after the earthquake and people are still living in tent cities by way of hundreds of thousands. I mean, can they ever hope to be in a solid structure?
KENNEDY: Yes, I think so, Fredericka. But bear in mind, we started with 1,500 camps and 1.5 million people in camps. Today, there is a little under 400,000 people in camps. So, progress has been made and two-thirds of the people have moved on to more permanent structures.
One of the problems that's unique to Haiti and is big here is of land ownership. Only about five percent of land in Haiti is property registered title. So it is OK to build temporary shelters in the land that's really accepts is owned by somebody and may not own illegal sense, but has it. But to build permanent structures is more difficult.
I would add one thing to the list. One of the, I think, one of the neatest programs that we're running and I've settled 17,000 families in the last year is the rental subsidy program. For about $650 per year per family, you can rent the space in the existing dwelling that has been declared green that is tried to stand up in another earthquake.
WHITFIELD: So, Mister Kennedy, if the Haitian government is not going to do it or can't do it in terms of, you know whether it's building a greener, you know, buildings or buildings that are in a better position to sustain earthquakes or natural disasters, then is it incumbent upon or how confident are you that the U.N. and the international community can come together with the cohesive plan to actually start breaking ground on building some structures so that people can feel safe when a storm comes their way or an earthquake?
KENNEDY: I would say, Fredericka, it really has to be a government of Haiti solution and I think we can support in a lot of ways and far news internationals, but it really has to be a local solution.
Bear in mind that since the earthquake, and since the election of new president last year, if only we had an actual government with the prime minister, and ministers and the cabinets and prober farm for three months. So I think in the last few months we collectively made a lot of headway in the various flaws and various measures to actually put it in place in the right kind of programs to reap a long-term solution.
WHITFIELD: Kevin Kennedy, thanks so much for your time.
I know people are grateful for the efforts of the U.N. and other NGO organizations that are trying very hard to help the people there and trying to stabilize what is still a vulnerable situation for too many in Haiti. Appreciate your time.
All right. Here in the U.S., Florida is right in Isaac's path and that's a pretty big concern especially for the organizers of the Republican national convention. The four-day event kicking off Monday in Tampa.
CNN political director Mark Preston is in Tampa.
And so Mark, when you look at the map and see that this storm might share the outer bands with Tampa, it means upwards of 20 inches of rain, what, if anything, can convention organizers do to keep things going as planned?
MARK PRESTON, CNN POLITICAL DIRECTOR: There's no question it will get very wet, very quick here, Fredericka. They're also concerned about high winds here in the Tampa area and we expect flooding from the outer bands of this storm as it marches its way up into the gulf coast.
You know, when I was on the phone with an official who has been on all of the briefings with the governor and with convention officials and with the local officials here in the city, and this was made very clear. There was no discussion right now about evacuating the 50,000 people who are going to be in here in Tampa. They do think there will be any reason to do that. They feel safe enough that the storm will have that kind of effect here in Tampa.
There is one concern, however, about bridges closing down and that concern is actually getting delegates to the convention center, not away from the convention center when we had such high winds here in Tampa. They do in other parts of the country and sometimes bridges close down and that's what they've been looking at right now, Fredericka.
WHITFIELD: OK. The weather is one reason was why some modifications may be made in the programming. But apparently, that is not the case that pertains to when Ann Romney was scheduled to speak at the convention. What are the changes imposed there and why?
PRESTON: Well, Fred, was there a little bit of a political kerfuffle, I guess what we saw yesterday. What happened was, is that Ann Romney was scheduled to speak on Monday evening that kickoff of the Republican convention. It was going to be book and effect. She was started off. Her husband would close it on Thursday evening. However, the three broadcast networks have decided not to cover the convention at all especially during the time when Ann Romney was to deliver her speech. She's such a good surrogate. She is so good on television that convention organizers in the Romney campaign wanted to showcase her to the largest audience possible that they could. So, they have switched her to Tuesday night right to give her speech right before Chris Christie gives the keynote.
But here's the rub. They are initially were thinking of moving her to Thursday night. She would be the one to introduce her husband to the nation. However, that spot would be held by Marco Rubio who is a rising star in the Republican Party. He's very well respected among Latinos, especially Cubans here in Florida. And if Mitt Romney is going to win in Florida, a must win for him, he needs the Cuban vote. They decided to keep Rubio in that spot, but there was some discussion about it.
WHITFIELD: All right, Mark. And then, this latest thing, you know, was Ann Romney who earlier this week went on NBC news talking about, you know, how the race to the White House shouldn't go negative. And then the birther issue comes up yesterday. Mitt Romney brings it up referring to his birthplace -- just take a listen to what that moment was all about.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MITT ROMNEY (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I love being home in this place where Ann and I were raised, where both of us were born. Ann was born in Henry Ford hospital and I was born in Harper hospital. No one's ever asked to see my birth certificate. They know this is the place that we were born and raised.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: OK. So what is Romney or even the Romney camp saying? I mean, how are they explaining that moment now today?
PRESTON: Well, they're saying that it was unscripted and in fact, the governor addressed it yesterday just a few short hours after he had made that remark in Michigan and he had an interview with CBS news. Let's hear about what he had to say that, Fredericka?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE REPORTER: Why did you say that?
ROMNEY: We're in Michigan and Ann and I were both born in Detroit. And of course, our little humor always goes a long way. So, it was great to be home to be in a place where Ann and I had grown up and the crowd loved it and got a good laugh.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE REPORTER: This was a swipe at the president and I was wondering why you took it.
ROMNEY: No, no swipe. There was no question about where he was born. He was born in the U.S. This was about us and coming home. And humor, you know, we have to have humor to campaign, as well.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE REPORTER: You threw red meat at the conservative wing of the party.
ROMNEY: No, this is about being home in Michigan, the place where we were born and raised.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PRESTON: Well, I'll tell you what, you know what? It's fair to say that the Romney campaign has had a very difficult time staying on message this week and it hasn't been their fault. There's been a lot of focus of course on Todd Akin, the Missouri Senate candidate who has caused controversy for the Republican Party. This storm right now that is heading toward the U.S., I know that they are keeping up message, but this is one thing, Fredericka. This is one comment that Mitt Romney actually has to take some responsibility for taking his campaign off message -- Fredricka.
WHITFIELD: Yes. OK.
All right. Thank so much, Mark Preston. Appreciate that.
All right, don't forget this programming note, CNN's live coverage of the Republican national convention beginning Monday night 7:00 p.m. Eastern.
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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE ANNOUNCER: This is CNN breaking news.
WHITFIELD: This sad information that we are now just getting confirmation from the family of Neil Armstrong at the age of 82, the first man to walk on the moon has died. We don't have any other details about the circumstances of his death and at the age of 82. We do have confirmation from the family, from family members now.
Aviation expert with PBS' "News Hour," Miles O'Brien, formerly from CNN, back with us on the phone, now joining us from Vero Beach, Florida.
So Miles, you know clearly, this is an iconic figure in American history, in space history. This was the one small step for man, giant leap for mankind. Tell me more about his legacy and if you know anything more about the circumstances of his death?
MILES O'BRIEN, CORRESPONDENT, NEWS HOUR (via phone): One giant loss for mankind, Fredricka. This is a towering individual, and when the historians many years from now, many centuries from now write the history books about our era, Neil Armstrong will probably be in the first paragraph, if you think about it. It's one of the great accomplishments of our time.
Neil Armstrong, as best we know from the family died of complications subsequent to having some heart surgery a few weeks ago and at the age of 82 he has left us. He was really an engineer's engineer, a modest man who was always uncomfortable in his singular role as the first person to set foot on the moon. He understood and appreciated the historic consequence of it, and yet was never fully willing to embrace it.
He was modest to the point of reclusive. You could call him the J.D. Salinger of the astronaut corps. In the course of my time at CNN, I tried on numerous occasions, to get him to sit down for lengthy interviews with me. And on one occasion in the context of the flight of John Glenn on the space shuttle back in 1998. Got Walter Cronkite to help me write a letter to Neil Armstrong and tried to do that, always refused.
It's interesting. In 2004 I had the high honor of being asked by the sitting Smithsonian air and space museum to bestow an award on Neil Armstrong, an achievement award, which was you know, you talk about are you sure you want me to do that kind of moment. And I did that and I had the most pleasant evening with he and his wife, and my wife at the time. We had dinner with him. It was a delightful evening.
He was -- we talked about family. We talked about kids. We talked about life. We talked about everything, but what was it like to be on the moon which he clearly didn't want to talk about. It was very interesting. I left that evening thinking he was my best buddy. And a few months later in the same building at the air and space museum, upon the celebration of the 35th anniversary of the moon landing, I arrived with the CNN crew in tow and went over I said hey Neil, it is your friend, Miles. And he saw me with the camera and literally did a 180 and ran away from me.
(LAUGHTER)
O'BRIEN: So, that sums him up. He was a quiet, engaging, wonderful, from the Midwest kind of guy. A guy who relates to with my own western roots, but when it came to public exposure that was associated with this amazing accomplishment of his, he ran. He literally ran from it. And part of it was he felt as if this was an accomplishment of many thousands of people, and it was. And he took the lion share of the credit and he felt uncomfortable about that.
It's kind of like being an anchor person on television, you know. Those of us in front of the camera get a lot of credit for the work that happens behind the scenes. The difference is to us who are anchor that are happy to accept that credit. Neil Armstrong never would.
WHITFIELD: Well, you know Miles, just underscoring some of your messages there. I want to read a portion of the statement that came from the family which really does underscore. You know, you just describe, he was a modest man, you know, who was kind of uncomfortable in this role.
The family saying this, quote, "we are heartbroken to share the news that Neil Armstrong has passed away following complications resulting from cardiovascular procedures. Neil was our loving husband, father, grandfather, brother and friend. Neil Armstrong was also a reluctant American hero who always believed he was just doing his job. He served his nation proudly as a Navy fighter pilot, test pilot and astronaut. He also found success back home in his native Ohio and business in academia and became a community leader in Cincinnati."
That's just a portion of their statement and they did go on to talk about his advocacy of aviation exploration throughout his life and never losing his boyhood wonder of these pursuits. You really did just crystallize in your encounter with him and what the family has felt for so long.
O'BRIEN: Yes, you know, Neil Armstrong was a young man. He looked up at the sky and saw, you know, a barnstormer and never lost the bug for aviation. And many of the Apollo astronauts will tell you a very similar story. And he pursued the technological side of it and embraced - you know, he was a test pilot's test pilot. And, you know, I remember that same night I was telling you about, you know, he gave a speech which was almost like a scholarly report on the state of aeronautical engineering. It was an extraordinary speech and it was not one of these boilerplate speeches that you so often hear from people who are famous who just go around and, you know, deliver them to rubber chicken dinners. It was something that he had clearly spent many hours speaking about and shared it and wanted this crowd at the air and space museum to think about. It was extremely provocative and just regaling with tales of what it was like to go to the moon. He, in a sense he rejected that in every way.
The flipside of this is, that reluctance, that modesty, in a sense robbed, you know, future generations, those of us who were alive knew who Neil Armstrong was. If you go to a classroom today and you ask young kids, who is the person to walk on the moon? They will probably tell you Lance Armstrong. And the fact is some people criticized him over the years for not embracing the role model aspect of that particular historical moment.
And so, you know, today is not a day to talk much about that, but that is something to think about in the future is, what is the responsibility of role model?
WHITFIELD: Yes. But that speaks a lot to him and his approach, you know, to that history-making moment and what he did with it thereafter.
Miles O'Brien, always good to hear your voice. Thanks so much for helping us to recall the life and legacy of Neil Armstrong, dead at the age of 82. The first man to walk on the moon, 1969.
We'll have much more coverage of Neil Armstrong's passing after this.
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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE ANNOUNCER: This is CNN breaking news.
WHITFIELD: Mourning the loss of an icon, 82-year-old Neil Armstrong has passed away, his family confirming this to CNN. He died of a cardiovascular procedure whose complications resulted from that is what the family members say. This is the man known for the one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind, walking on the moon, the first to do so in 1969.
You heard from Miles O'Brien of PBS' "News Hour," formerly of CNN, recall his encounters with Neil Armstrong saying he was actually a very modest man, actually very reluctant to embrace the role that he - would end up embodying as a result of being the first man to walk on the moon.
John Zarrella who is in Miami, our correspondent there, has also had his first encounters with this iconic legend of a man, Neil Armstrong.
John, joining us right now. So John, you covering space there from Florida, what was your encounter like with Neil Armstrong?
JOHN ZARRELLA, CNN CORRESPONDENT (via phone): Well, Fredricka, I think most of what Miles said, you know very, very private person, very down to earth. He really shied away from the spotlight. You know, his public appearances were very, very rare.
I saw him, I guess it was a couple years ago for the last time that I saw him, and he was attending a 40th anniversary reunion of the Apollo 14 mission. And he was always very good about that when he was in good health. And he would make sure, as most of the Apollo astronauts did and the mercury astronauts, they would always go to those events up at the Kennedy space center.
And he was there and he was very gracious and took pictures with everybody. And of course, everybody wanted their picture with Neil. And, so you know the kind of pressure he was always under whenever he was out in the public. Everybody wanted their time with Neil Armstrong.
And I know that, even on the big anniversaries of the Apollo 11 mission, he would go to those, he went to the 25th, I recall, very well, up in Washington, D.C. and again to the last one that they had for the 11 astronauts of the Apollo 11 crew. But beyond those big events, those big public events, the times that you saw him, the times that people would have to spend with him were always during those moments when he was with the other Apollo astronauts that, of course, they had shared such a tremendous bond together. And you always felt the sense that he was very comfortable, you know very much at home in those surroundings.
But you know, one thing about Neil was that, you know unlike the other Apollo astronauts, they were all members of the astronaut scholarship foundation out of the Kennedy space center, which races money for college scholarships. But you know, Neil was always the one who would never sign autographs for anyone. He always felt like that was wrong to do that. One of the things that you'll never see is any piece of memorabilia autographed by Neil Armstrong, very, very rare.
WHITFIELD: Wow, that's fascinated. John Zarrella underscoring the legacy of the man who said his accomplishment of walking on the moon was not his, but the accomplishment of many. We'll have much more on the death of 82-year-old Neil Armstrong after this.
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