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Ticking Clock on Airport Cuts; Sharks Shutter Some Florida Beaches; Interview with Andy Casagrande; Bin Laden Son-in-Law Pleads Not Guilty; Big Budget "Oz" Movie Hits Theaters; Beer Offers Taste of Success; Subaru Recalls "Zombie Vehicles"
Aired March 08, 2013 - 10:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
JOE JOHNS, CNN CRIME AND JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: Nine states right now allow gay marriage and 41 other states have laws that sort of oppose it.
So again, the Supreme Court is now in the position of Bill Clinton because they have to get out ahead of where the country appears to be going.
If you look at polls most people support the idea but the states aren't quite yet there. So it's a very similar situation it will be interesting to see where the justices go -- Don.
DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: Yes and it's -- when you -- I mean, when you sit right down and just look at it, it's really all about civil and equal right, human rights. We're a country that treats everybody equal I mean everyone should be treated equally under the Constitution.
JOHNS: Right absolutely. That discrimination question that law schools debate all the time. I mean the definition of discrimination is treating similarly situated people different.
(CROSSTALK)
LEMON: Different sets of rules for different people.
JOHNS: Different, right, right. So -- so I mean as a legal question, it's one thing. As a politics and policy question, this country has had a hard time with it.
LEMON: Joe Johns, I appreciate it, sir. Thank you.
Moving on now. Clocks ticking down for dozens of airport control towers. The FAA says it has to make steep cuts because of the $85 billion in forced spending cuts that went into effect last Friday.
On the line, 173 air traffic control towers set to close April 7th. Contractors at those towers can try to convince the FAA that closing their particular towers would harm the national interest.
Tory Dunnan has more now. So Tory, live from Washington, who is most at risk here? TORY DUNNAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well Don, that's what everyone is still trying to work out at this moment. And this week more than 100 small and medium sized airports across the country are getting letters exactly like this one. It says the FAA may close their air traffic control tower next month. We actually visited one of the towers that's on the list.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DUNNAN: Sun Air Flight 2455 carrying three passengers leaves Hagerstown, Maryland, headed for nearby Dulles Airport.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: See you later.
DUNNAN: A half hour trip. It's one of up to six commercial flights a day.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Run way 27 --
DUNNAN: Today there is a controller in the tower, but the question is for how long.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And 73 Joy Echo, I have I 4 traffic --
DUNNAN: Virtually every airport faces controller furloughs. But scores of small to medium sized airports, including Hagerstown, could be forced to close their towers. Phil Ridenour is the airport's director.
PHIL RIDENOUR, HAGERTOWN REGIONAL AIRPORT DIRECTOR: And without the air traffic control tower here, we don't have that -- these extra sets of eyes to watch over the airport.
DUNNAN: This tower stands 70 feet above the run way and gives flight controllers a 360 degree perspective of the sky but also importantly, of the ground.
RIDENOUR: And so it's kind of like having a town without a stoplight. You take that stoplight away and it's just kind of a free for all.
DUNNAN: The FAA says any changes would not impact safety. Even if the tower closes, commercial, recreational and military flights would still take off and land. Pilots would be controlled by a center 60 miles away. For this flight instructor, that poses a problem.
DUSTIN SHOWALTER, HAGERTOWN FLIGHT SCHOOL: We have to kind revamp our services to get our students to a location where we can be talking on tower frequency.
DUNNAN: Some Republicans say concerns about the impact of forced spending cuts are exaggerated.
GOV. GARY HERBERT (R), UTAH: The sky is falling mentality permeates I think some of the efforts here in Washington, D.C. I think that is hyperbole, I think its exaggeration and downright on the offensive side of the line. DUNNAN: Back in Hagerstown, business leaders worry what will happen after March 1st.
JOHN LATIMER, HAGERTOWN, WASHINGTON CO. CHAMBER OF COMMERCE: And their indecision is going to have a direct impact on our bottom line in our community to the businesses that serve our community. So for us I think it's just -- it's continued frustration.
DUNNAN: Frustration at airports across the country.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
DUNNAN: Incidentally, Hagerstown Airport is within eyesight of Camp David the President's Retreat. You can't expect that to be a part of Hagerstown argument to keep the tower open. Now we expect almost all airports to argue that closing towers will hurt local community interests, but the FAA says that is not enough to keep the tower open.
Don as we've mentioned, it must harm national interests.
LEMON: Tory Dunnan, thank you very much Tory.
An amazing sight off the coast of south Florida -- thousands of sharks. We're talking to Discovery Channel's "Shark Week" expert Andy Casagrande about the unbelievable phenomenon.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: So spring break, you've got spring fever. Tired of being in the house for the winter, you want to go to the beach. I'm going to give you some advice right now. Look before you enter the water. That's the message to swimmers in south Florida. Several beaches have closed because of these schools of black tip and spinner sharks spotted off the shores in places like Boca Raton, Singer Island and Boynton Beach. Swimmers are on high alert and there is a big appetite for these powerful creatures in the water.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Freeze.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Did you get it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: Did you guys see that? That is from Shark Week, Shark Week is a popular event on the Discovery Channel, a week of programming dedicated to the underwater hunters.
Andy Casagrande, hey look you know all about these creature, but I don't know, maybe we just want to see that video. Andy is the Discovery Channel's "Shark Week" expert. He's also a cinematographer and a television producer. Andy the pictures again, they are incredible, but it's also scary to look at.
ANDY CASAGRANDE, DISCOVERY CHANNEL, "SHARK WEEK" EXPERT: Yes. I mean I can understand why you know some people when you hear about a single shark swimming off our beaches it may raise concern, but hearing about thousands of sharks swarming just off our coast the reality is it's really not that scary.
This is an annual migration that these black tip and spinner sharks are basically migrating south. It's very similar to the snow birds they come from New York and New England, they come to Florida to you know escape the harsh winters of the north and chill out Florida for the summer, sorry for the winters.
So these sharks are following these temperature gradients and although it might look a bit scary, in reality, they're pretty harmless.
LEMON: Well, ok. I hear what you're saying. But then you see how many sharks are swimming just offshore when you're in the water. Look at that, thousands. So you know, if you see thousands in a school like that, you know that there are thousands more out there and they're probably not far from where you're swimming.
CASAGRANDE: That's true. And what's really interesting is these migrations have been happening long, long before we've ever actually paid any attention to it. The researchers at the shark lab at Florida Atlantic University have been studying this closely for three years now. And some of the aerial surveys, they've counted over 15,000 sharks in a single flight.
So there is a lot of sharks but they're smaller species, they feed on smaller fish. They're not really targeting humans. I mean, it's -- it's an amazing spectacle, but in reality itt's not quite --
(CROSSTALK)
LEMON: So we're over reacting.
CASAGRANDE: Well I would say when you see great whites screeching out of the water ripping seals in half, I can understand why people get a big concern. But these are small spinner and black tip sharks. Florida is home to many, many shark species and it's an amazing place to live and I would definitely not try to discourage people from coming here.
The sharks welcome you. They are very polite predators and they mean well.
LEMON: Yes I see it doesn't bother you. Because I know that sharks are out there and usually they don't really like humans in a rare chance. It does happen, it does happen.
We have seen though it appears --
CASAGRANDE: Correct.
LEMON: -- that we have seen more Andy more and more sharks recently. Is the shark population rising or are we doing a better job of just documenting? Can we see this video again from "Shark Week?" Your video is amazing. CASAGRANDE: Thank you.
LEMON: Yes.
CASAGRANDE: Yes, I mean the reality is that people do want to believe that sharks are coming in closer and closer to shore and there are more sharks out there that are attracted to humans. But the truth is they've been around for millions and millions of years, but like you said, now we're documenting it better. Everyone and their mom has a -- has a phone with a cameras on it, the high rises are getting higher so we can see deeper out to the water.
The reality is the sharks have always been there. It's just now that they're of much more interest to us through television entertainment, through documentaries and they are just fascinating animals.
So I grew up and you know loving sharks and I still do. So I think it's a good way to inspire people to care about the ocean and it's an amazing spectacle to see.
LEMON: Yes wow, we have to go. I don't want to go guys, I want to look at more of this video and talk more to Andy, but Andy unfortunately we do have to go. So we're going to ask what like learning, what you're learning about being so close to the sharks? But we'll talk offline. Andy Casagrande, "Shark Week" on the Discovery Channel, thank you for joining us.
CASAGRANDE: You got it.
LEMON: All right.
Osama bin Laden's son -- son-in-law in a New York courtroom this hour. Susan Candiotti joins us live and that's next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: Just this hour, Osama bin Laden's son-in-law was in federal court in New York City. He pleaded not guilty to conspiring to kill Americans. That's him you see on the right next to his father-in-law. Sulaiman Abu Ghaith was captured last week in Jordan.
I'm joined now by CNN's Susan Candiotti, she's our national correspondent. Susan you're outside the courtroom now. You were in the courtroom for the hearing. What was his demeanor? What did he look like?
SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well Don, he didn't say anything at all. This was a hearing that lasted very briefly. Only about 15 minutes or so. This was an arraignment. He's indicted at this point on one charge of conspiring to kill Americans. And if found guilty could be spending the rest of his life behind bars.
But he entered the courtroom quietly before things began. He was escorted in, handcuffed behind his back, those cuffs came off as the hearing began. He did not say anything in court. Nor was he required to. That "not guilty" plea was entered on his behalf by his defense attorney.
And the photograph that you've been seeing of this man over the past couple of days, you've seen him with receding hairline and with a very dark colored beard. Well, now that beard has turned gray. And he was quiet, he sat and listened to the proceedings as they went on.
And what we learned is this. That he was arrested overseas according to prosecutors on March 1st, they didn't say exactly -- February 28th, excuse me. And then he was transferred, flown to the United States, it would appear via first Turkey and then immediately from Jordan on to the United States, arriving here last week on March 1st.
He has been held in detention ever since. He's being held without bond. And the judge decided that he would set a trial date probably sometime next month is when he will decide on the trial date. But there's a lot of discovery to take place until then before that time. Back to you -- Don.
LEMON: All right, Susan Candiotti. Thank you.
More news after the break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: Checking top stories right now. North Korea delivers a new round of threats and shows its leader visiting military facilities. No word when that video was taken. The rogue nation warns it will end all non-aggression acts with South Korea. This after the U.N. placed new sanctions on the north after it threatened a possible pre-emptive nuclear attack on the U.S.
Tokyo Electric Power is struggling to stop ground water flooding at its damaged Fukushima plant. The devastating earthquake and tsunami two years ago caused the worst nuclear disaster since Chernobyl. Reuters said damage at the plant might delay the removal of melted uranium fuel by four years.
Facebook's latest facelift is complete. If you haven't seen the changes to the news feed, it's supposed to reduce clutter and focus more on stories from people you care about. And there are several new feeds. One for all friends which shows you everything they're sharing. One for photos. One for music. And one called "following" which has news from pages you like and people you're following.
South by Southwest officially kicks off today in Austin, Texas. But the annual festival got an early start last night with local (inaudible) hosting a start-up crawl with drinks, snacks, and games. South by Southwest features music, movies and the latest interactive technology. It runs through next Sunday.
CNN's Nischelle Turner is in Austin for all the fun and she has a look at the prequel to "The Wizard of Oz".
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JUDY GARLAND, ACTRESS: There's no place like home. NISCHELLE TURNER, CNN SHOWBIZ CORRESPONDENT: Classic line, classic footwear. The "Wizard of Oz" is beloved. According to the Library of Congress, more people have seen the 1939 musical than any other film. Now 74 years after Dorothy left Oz, Disney's revisiting the yellow brick road with "Oz the Great and Powerful" billing it as a prequel.
SAM RAIMI, DIRECTOR: It sets up a lot of the things that happened in the famous story we're all so familiar with.
TURNER: This new Oz is not a musical. What it lacks in show tunes it makes up for in modern 3d and computer -enerated effects. Disney's betting heavily on this gamble spending an estimated $200 million just to produce the movie.
What's at stake for the studio?
PAUL DERGARABEDIAN, PRESIDENT, HOLLYWOOD.COM BOX OFFICE: For them, this is a big deal. Not only is it iconic property that they're being entrusted with, they have a lot of money on the line.
TURNER: Major money and creative hurdles. While the Oz books by L. Frank Baum are in the public domain, Warner Brothers owns the rights to the "Wizard of Oz" film. And so several story elements in that movie, like Dorothy's iconic ruby slippers are off limits to Disney.
DERGARABEDIAN: I think the Disney lawyers had to be onset to say hey you're going a little bit too close to what the ownership of Warner Brothers is part of. And so we have to be careful of that.
TURNER: So will Disney's interpretation of the land of Oz alienate fans of the Hollywood classic? Not according to James Franco, who plays Oz.
JAMES FRANCO, ACTOR: We pay respect to a lot of the aspects that people expect and love about the world of Oz. And that's, mainly taking from the books.
And then there's you know, a fresh take on some of the characters. So you're getting, you know, enough of the old and enough of the new.
TURNER: So while you won't see a tin man or scarecrow in this Oz, the yellow brick road is still in place along with the witches. And Disney is hoping the land of Oz can once again turn movie magic into box office gold.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: The incomparable Nischelle Turner reporting.
A bizarre recall by automaker Subaru. We're back in a moment.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TOM FOREMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Every day amid the hustle of Brooklyn, something is brewing at Steve Hindy's place. It looks like, tastes like and goes down like beer but it smells like success.
STEVE HINDY, CO-FOUNDER/PRESIDENT, BROOKLYN BREWERY: We sell beer now in 25 states. And the name Brooklyn rings bells in Sweden, in Britain, in Italy, in France, in Germany, in Japan, in China.
FOREMAN: Hindy was a long time foreign correspondent in some of the world's most dangerous places. He quit the news business back in the 1980s and decided to turn his hobby of making beer into a small business.
He started in a part of New York where property values were comparatively reasonable. His small team focused on keeping costs low, quality high, helping community charities instead of buying big ads, and crafting distinctive brews that stood out from mass produced beers.
GARRETT OLIVER, BREWMASTER, BROOKLYN BREWERY: I think the reason why we've been successful is that we've always trusted that people have good taste rather than trying to dumb things down or do focus groups and try to figure out what does everybody like.
FOREMAN: The result, even as the recession raged, Hindy's place kept going. Even as per capita beer consumption plummeted, the Brooklyn Brewery kept growing.
HINDY: Well, I think it's just the fundamental fact that people are drinking less beer, but they're drinking more special beers. And, you know, we offer a whole range, a whole rainbow of flavors of beer.
FOREMAN: This year, he says they will expand their staff of 90 people, open a new shop in Stockholm, and sell $50 million worth of beer.
HINDY: Our future is very exciting.
FOREMAN: For a former reporter and Brooklyn, that's a headline. Tom Foreman, CNN.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: This is a bizarre car recall to tell you about. They're being called "zombie cars". Alison Kosik at the New York Stock Exchange, explain this. What's this all about?
ALISON KOSIK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, this is one of the (inaudible). So this, yes, involves almost 50,000 vehicles. And what's happening here is that these cars run the risk of these ghost-like potential just to sort of start themselves without any human getting involved.
But this isn't a movie. This is a recall. This recall applies to about 47,000 2010 and 2013 Legacy Outback and Impreza models. The remainder of the recall includes 2013 Cross Tracks.
Now Subaru does say that the defect is tied to an audio box remote starter and that if you drop your key fob, it can mistakenly tell the car to start. The problem is the engine can wind up running up to 15 minutes. It will stop and start until it runs out of gas, so that's a big problem. Or even worse, there could be a risk of a carbon monoxide build up if the car is in the garage.
So if you have one of these cars, the suggestion is from the manufacturer that you go ahead and replace that key fob, go to your dealer, you can get it free of charge -- Don.
LEMON: All right Alison Kosik. Thank you very much. Appreciate it.
I'm Don Lemon. Thank you so much for joining us today. The "NEWSROOM" continues right now with Ashleigh Banfield.
You've been doing a lot of Jodi Arias stuff. You are the Court TV lady after all.
ASHLEIGH BANFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: I know. I'm a Court TV lady. Do you know what though?
LEMON: Yes.
BANFIELD: Every so often, like every decade it seems, a case comes along that has details that just floor you. But at the same time, have questions about jurisprudence that are very, very legitimate, and there are a lot of them in this particular case all surrounded by just crazy talks.
LEMON: Why do -- in the few seconds we have left, before you start your show, why this Casey Anthony -- why do these trials capture the American attention?
BANFIELD: Look, I hate to say they're pretty girls, but they're pretty girls. That's number one. But number two, when you have somebody who is an artful liar and more skilled than just about anyone else you've ever met --
LEMON: yes.
BANFIELD: -- it's fascinating especially when they face 12 people and insist that they save their lives with their lie.
LEMON: I'm going to get out of her. I'm on your watch now. Have a great show. Good seeing you.
BANFIELD: Love to see you. Bye Don, thank you.
LEMON: Bye-bye.
Banfield: He was close to Osama bin Laden.
