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Trayvon Martin's Parents Break Silence; Dangerous Heat Wave Won't Let Up; California Wildfire Threatens 4,100 Homes; 6,000 Forced To Evacuate In California Town; Potential Mob Trial Witness Found Dead; Rodriguez Denies Plea Negotiations; Police Tracking From Phones

Aired July 18, 2013 - 13:00   ET

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

WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: Trayvon Martin's parents now speaking out. They say they're stunned by the verdict. They also say it sends a terrible message to black kids across the country also.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It is hot.

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BLITZER: The heat reaching a boiling point and relief is still days away. Plus this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's our house right there so we've kind of had to, you know, say our goodbyes just in case we don't come back.

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BLITZER: A massive wildfire in California burning out of control right now forcing thousand from their homes.

This is CNN NEWSROOM. I am Wolf Blitzer reporting from Washington. Shock, disgust and disbelief. That's how Trayvon Martin's mother says she reacted to the verdict in the George Zimmerman trial. The parents are speaking out today for the first time since a jury acquitted Zimmerman in their son's death. Martin's mother, Sybrina Fulton, says the verdict puts other children at risk of being profiled.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SYBRINA FULTON: Is this the intent for the justice system to have a victim's? I mean, it is sending a terrible message to other little black and brown boys that you can't walk fast, you can't walk slow, so what do they do? I mean, how do you get home without people knowing or either assuming that are you doing something wrong? Trayvon wasn't doing anything wrong.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: In another interview, Martin's mother was asked about comments a juror made to CNN. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE, HOST, CBS: Did you hear that juror who spoke out with Anderson Cooper and what did you think when you heard her say that she believes that Trayvon played a huge role in his own death?

FULTON: I don't think she knows Trayvon. Trayvon is not a confrontational person. So, instead of placing the blame on the teenager, we need to place the blame on the responsible adult. There were two people involved. We had an adult that was chasing a kid, and we had the kid who I feel was afraid.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: Trayvon Martin's mother says she wants President Obama to go through the case with a fine tooth comb and the parents didn't say whether they plan to file a civil wrongful death lawsuit against George Zimmerman.

Let's bring in the former federal prosecutor, Sunny Hostin. She's been watching this trial from the very beginning as has the criminal defense attorney, Mark NeJame. Both are CNN legal analysts. Sunny, I understand you're going to be speaking with Trayvon Martin's parents later tonight as well after their interview with Anderson Cooper. What's the main thing you're hoping to get from them?

SUNNY HOSTIN, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: You know, I think that what has been lost in all of this is the victim, Trayvon Martin. And I think that we've heard a lot about George Zimmerman. I think that we've heard this picture or have seen this picture emerge of Trayvon Martin as a thug, as an aggressive person. And I want Trayvon's parents to describe to the world their son in their eyes, who Trayvon Martin was to them. And that's what I want to explore tonight.

BLITZER: Was there any reason, Mark, why the prosecution, the state attorneys who were going after George Zimmerman with the second degree murder charge, why they didn't speak more about who Trayvon, this young 17-year-old kid was?

MARK NEJAME, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: Well, I've put a lot of blame on the prosecutors' theory and their approach to this case. I think that they gave everybody a lot of false hope. I think they attempted to twist the second degree murder to make it work into facts that did not exist. And accordingly, I think that they're going to come back and claim they couldn't get character evidence and matters like that in there. But if they had handled the case in a different way, they could have given the world a much different picture and according to the parents and others, a much better picture. We didn't hear from one friend. We didn't hear from one teacher. We didn't hear from anybody who would have known Trayvon other than his parents and his brother who I thought his brother was spectacular.

But with that said, I think that people are allowing the state attorney's office and their approach to this case, the false hope they gave, their failed strategy. I think that they have to be looked at as far as why the whole story didn't get told or at least a better picture was not painted according --

BLITZER: Did --

NEJAME: -- to this.

BLITZER: I want to play first, Sunny, and then I will bring you in and ask you if the prosecution missed that opportunity. But listen to Sybrina Fulton, the mother describe her initial reaction to that not guilty verdict.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

FULTON: I was in a bit of shock. I thought surely that he would be found guilty of second-degree murder, manslaughter at the least, but I just knew that they would see that this was a teenager just trying to get home. This was no burglar. This was somebody's son that was trying to get home.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE, HOST, CBS: You were stunned by the verdict.

FULTON: I was stunned, absolutely. I couldn't believe it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: All right, Sunny, so did the prosecutors, Bernie De La Rionda and John Guy, did they miss an opportunity to speak more about who Trayvon was?

HOSTIN: Well, they may have. I mean, when we listened to juror B37 when she spoke to Anderson Cooper, she said, I didn't know a lot about Trayvon. I knew he was from Miami. That's about it. And when you are a prosecutor, you do want to humanize the victim. You want that victim in the courtroom. I don't want a, you know, Monday night quarter. These prosecutors I think did the best they could with the evidence that they had. They did bring the case when others were reluctant to do so, and I think you have to commend them for that. But certainly, there was that thing missing in this -- in this case in this courtroom. Who is Trayvon?

BLITZER: But I just want to make sure I am not missing something. Maybe, Mark, you know the answer. Was there some legal reason they couldn't introduce more about the victim in this case or rules of evidence or whatever? Is there any explanation from a legal perspective why we didn't learn more about Trayvon during the course of this trial?

NEJAME: Yes. I think one of it is just bringing on the right witnesses. You could have gotten a better picture of any individual on either side. That wasn't done. But also, look, none of us are perfect. Me, you, Trayvon Martin, George Zimmerman, Sunny, any of us. And when you in fact open up character evidence, then you open the door to everything. And I think they made a strategy that they did not want to have certain things come out rather than letting everything come out. And that was a strategy that apparently was a failed strategy. They were very skilled lawyers. I think their strategy, their approach and their twisting of the facts as it related to the second degree murder was what in fact turned out to be their doom, and if they did not have the family and others better prepared for the great probability that this was going to be a not guilty verdict, you know, many of us toying with the facts, dealing the facts. We're not dealing philosophically or spiritually. We're deal -- or morally. We're dealing with legality and they did not prove their case. And that was just anticipated by many.

BLITZER: And maybe they were nervous that if you put all of the positive stuff out there about Trayvon, there may have been negative stuff that could have been undermined the prosecution's case. All right, we'll continue this conversation. We're going to have more on this story coming up. Sunny, as usual, Mark, thanks to both of you for joining us.

NEJAME: Thank you.

BLITZER: Trayvon Martin's parents, by the way, Sybrina Fulton and Tracy Martin, they will sit down with Anderson Cooper to talk about how their family is moving forward. This all new interview tonight, 8 p.m. Eastern. You'll want to see it.

Meanwhile, 10s of millions of Americans are sweating it out right now under heat advisories throughout the Northwest and Midwest. Temperatures in the 90 degree range feel like they're in the hundreds because of a high amount of humidity.

And in the west, fire fighters are battling hundreds of blazes. We have reporters from east to west reporting on all of this. Emily Schmidt is here in Washington on the National Mall. Casey Wian is in Idyllwild, California where thousands have been forced to evacuate. Chad Myers is over at the CNN Weather Center in Atlanta. Emily, how are people handling this heat as they get around the nation's capital?

EMILY SCHMIDT, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, they've been doing this every day this week. And if you look behind me at the guys who are playing soccer on the National Mall, they make it look easy. But that is a little bit deceptive because there is a heat advisory out here. It feels like it's in the triple digits. That means you've got to be drinking a lot of water. Some people are improvising. One woman today told me this is a three popsicle day.

But, of course, when you're in Washington, the business of the day has to go on. We met one woman who came down from Pennsylvania today because she's planning to meet with lawmakers on Capitol Hill to lobby for a cause. She's going to attend a rally and she says this heat just cannot get in the way of those plans.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JENNIE SHEEKS: -- there for a cause.

SCHMIDT: Is the weather going to get in the way of that?

SHEEKS: Never. Yes, never. We're actually going to go on a march so we're going to walk in the heat at, like -- I think from 2:00 to 3:00. So, right in the hottest part of it, there will be a few thousand of us walking.

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SCHMIDT: Now, so far, there have not been any major heat-related problems here in Washington. We have not seen major injuries. We have not seen major power outages. But we do see in small ways how this heat is impacting people. There was a cab that was pulled over on Constitution Avenue because it had over heated. On Metro, they're allowing water. And we have now learned Amtrak is putting in speed restrictions on the northeast corridor between Washington and Boston because of this excessive heat -- Wolf.

BLITZER: Very hot here at least for another day or two. Let's go to Casey Wian right now. Other problems in California. What, about 6,000 residents, Casey, there under evacuation orders because of a massive mountain fire. What's going on?

CASEY WIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, that's right. And as Emily was talking about, heat is a big factor here. We're not seeing a lot of wind driving this fire. Winds very calm between two and five miles an hour, maybe a just up to eight right now. But the temperatures, 99 degrees and the humidity level very, very low between five and 10 percent just providing a lot of fuel for that fire that is causing a lot of concern for this community here. Idyllwild under a mandatory evacuation. The order right now, as you mentioned, 4,000 homes, 6,000 residents supposed to be out of here. Most people are abiding by that.

One of the issues that fire fighters know, the 3,000 fire fighters who are battling this blaze is the inversion layer, the visibility. We're expecting they're going to get aircraft in the air any moment to start fighting that fire which has now spread to 23,000 acres -- Wolf.

BLITZER: We'll stay in close touch with you. Thanks, Casey.

Let's go to Chad right now. Chad, when can residents in the Northeast, the Midwest begin to feel some serious relief?

CHAD MYERS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: You know, it's going to come to the Midwest first and then to the Northeast second. It will be hot probably for another 36 hours in Wisconsin, 48 hours in Michigan, and still 72 hours before the real cool air finally gets all the way to Philadelphia and New York. It's going to be awhile just because it's so hot everywhere.

In fact, earlier today, I looked at the heat index at Willow Run Airport. This is near Detroit. We're talking about heat index of 102 at 11:00 in the morning. And, you know, it's just been day after day of this now. I know it's summer and I know it is supposed to be hot. But when you see temperatures and heat indexes like this and days in a row, New York, Philly, D.C., four, four and three with another couple to go yet, you are going to see people that get in trouble because they just don't drink enough water.

This is the issue. And, you know, I was in New York City last week and it was -- it was 102. The heat index was 102. And I tried to walk outside. I tried to walk just to -- just to kind of get some exercise. I would go into the Fair Way market, the West Side market, the Zabars (ph). Every six blocks, I'd go in and get a bottle of water and try to cool off inside with some air conditioning. And that's what you have to do today. You have to try to find some air conditioning if you are outside at all, especially if you have to go outside and work. At least try to get a little bit of comfort, maybe on your work, or on your lunch break, too -- Wolf.

BLITZER: Drink a lot of water, too, --

MYERS: Yes.

BLITZER: -- if you're going to work outside.

MYERS: You bet.

BLITZER: All right, Chad, thanks very much. Casey, thanks to you. Emily, we'll all -- we'll continue to watch the weather and the fires out west.

This story just coming into CNN. Very, very interesting development connected to one of the biggest organized crime trials in the country right now. The Massachusetts police, they have a body they have identified as Steven Rakes. What makes this interesting is that Rakes was a potential prosecution witness in the murder trial of James Whitey Bulger, the man who allegedly used to run the Irish mob, as it was called, in Boston. And I say potential witness because prosecutors, just this week, dropped Rakes from the witness list. Rakes' body was found yesterday in Lincoln, Massachusetts. That's about 20 miles from Boston.

We're in the courtroom live gathering more details. Our own Susan Candiotti is inside. As soon as we get more information on what's going on, we'll share it, of course, with you.

Here is what else we're working on this hour here in CNN's newsroom. Just a while ago, President Obama spoke out about his health care law. Missing from his remarks, once again today, any reaction, by the way, to the Zimmerman verdict. Also, Alex Rodriguez says he'll be back. He'll be back on a major league field next week for the first game of the -- for his first game of the season and a dark cloud certainly hangs over his legacy. We have a rare interview with a Yankee player. That's coming up.

And you are being tracked by more than just your Smartphone. That's right, when you get into your car and pull out of your driveway, police, potentially, could be snapping pictures of your license plate.

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BLITZER: President Obama says his signature health care reform law is bringing down premiums and saving people money.

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BLITZER (voice-over): At a White House event earlier today the president pushed back against Republican critics of the Affordable Care Act. He was joined by middle class families who support ObamaCare. The president says the law is forcing insurers to spend more on patients.

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Today because of the Affordable Care Act, insurance companies have to spend at least 80 percent of every dollar that you pay in premiums on your health care, not on overhead, not on profits but on you. Now many insurance companies are already exceeding that target. And they're bringing down premiums and providing better value to their customers.

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BLITZER: Uninsured Americans can begin purchasing health insurance under the new exchanges. That begins October 1st.

But despite the president's education blitz on health care, the plan still has lots of critics. A poll back in May found 43 percent of Americans support the affordable health care law; 54 percent oppose, although 60 percent of those who say they oppose the law actually feel it doesn't go far enough.

Many of them would want it to go further, for example, with a single payer option if you will.

Let's bring in our chief political correspondent, Candy Crowley, the host of CNN's "STATE OF THE UNION."

Candy, the president coming out, he's touting ObamaCare; a lot of uncertainty, though.

How much potentially could this still hurt him even though this is the law of the land?

CANDY CROWLEY, CNN CHIEF POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, a couple of ways. First of all, this is the signature piece of legislation. He will be known for this. If it fails, it will be a big fail. If it is a success, that will be on him for pushing it through. So he has a lot of sort of legacy riding on this.

More importantly, at least for a lot of members of Congress, it is clear that Republicans believe that health care still remains a potent issue, certainly to their base and to the folks that come out in mid- terms. The mid-terms are next year and will decide who controls the House, who controls the Senate.

So Republicans are pushing various parts of ObamaCare, saying this is bad and this is bad and it is not going to work.

And so coming up, what happens is, if, let's say, Republicans can take over the Senate, if Democrats somehow could take over the House, the mix is very important. For this president, who is fast kind of getting into lame duck territory, for this president to do anything big over the next couple of years, he is going to need a Congress that is a little more looking at things through his prism. So should he be able to take over the House in terms of Democrats taking over the house, a lot of people think it is a long shot, but should he be able to do that, he could maybe get more done. So there is a policy thing going on and there is a legacy thing going on for him.

BLITZER: There certainly is. These are critically -- obviously critically important issues.

I was watching the president at his event earlier today, and once again he didn't talk about any reactions to the Zimmerman verdict. He issued a written statement on Sunday after the not guilty verdict.

He could have -- as a lot of presidents often do, they come out and speak about one subject and say I'm going to get to that in a minute, but I just want to make a statement about something that a lot of folks in the country are talking about.

Does he really need to talk to the American people, though, about the not guilty verdict?

CROWLEY: I think there are a lot of people who expect that the first African-American president in a case that so many see through the prism of race would be a natural to say something about it.

But even as he is being pushed, there is also that other side of people, saying the president should not get granular into a case that's been decided by a jury.

On top of that, you have the Justice Department still sort of looking into whether there are any civil rights violations that they could bring charges against Zimmerman, so there is a lot going on. This is not an easy choice for the president, whether to speak or not to speak.

Having said that, I suspect he will. He has -- the simple answer so far is he has not been asked about it. We're told that he was ready with an answer when he did some interviews with Spanish speaking outlets. He wasn't asked.

So I suspect he will at some point say something, and I think he will probably disappoint a lot of people. This is a very cautious man. And he has been cautious certainly when it comes to racial issues.

I know you remember with his pastor during the campaign, that just took a very long time for the president to come out and he indeed did deliver a speech on race. But he takes a long time, I think, to ponder these things. So I don't expect that you will see him do this off the cuff.

BLITZER: A person on his staff that who doesn't have any choice -- he has got to talk about it -- is his press secretary, Jay Carney. He was asked about it every day, including just a few moments ago. Listen to this, Candy.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) QUESTION: Jay, today Trayvon Martin's parents spoke out publicly and they said they felt the verdict in the George Zimmerman case gave an awful message, a terrible message, they said, to young teenagers, and they don't think teenagers as a whole know what to do now.

In light of these comments, does the president have any message to the teenagers of America watching this case?

JAY CARNEY, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: I would say a couple of things.

First of all, as you know, the Department of Justice has said that it is investigating this matter, and will continue to investigate it, and we're not going to comment on the specifics of that process.

The president, as he said in his statement on Sunday, understands the passions that are surrounding the verdict. He shares the view that Trayvon Martin's parents have expressed, that the response to the verdict should be peaceful and calm.

But beyond that, as you heard him say after Trayvon Martin was killed, in very personal terms, he understands how parents feel and, in particular, said that if Trayvon -- if he had had a son, his son would look like Trayvon Martin. And this goes to the broader issues that we have as a community in this country, that we need to address about --

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: All right, Candy. There you are. You saw the White House press secretary, Jay Carney, making points; I assume the president would make those same points if, in fact, he were asked about it, but apparently he doesn't want to volunteer comments along those lines.

CROWLEY: No, or get into the justice system and whether the verdict was right or it wasn't right or whether it had to do with race. This sounds to me as though when the president does speak, if he is not asked and just gives sort of an answer in a press conference way, that maybe somewhere down the line he addresses the issue of race again.

But this is certainly not something they're eager to embrace. It is pretty clear I think by what Jay said and by the fact that they say, well, by the way, there is an investigation going on at the Justice Department.

BLITZER: There certainly is. We'll see what happens with that investigation.

All right, Candy. Thanks very much.

Candy hosts "STATE OF THE UNION" Sunday mornings 9:00 am Eastern.

He hasn't played a single day in his Yankee uniform this year, but Alex Rodriguez is still making $100 million. Up next, an exclusive interview with the superstar who could be facing a career-ending suspension.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: The New York Yankees are getting close to getting A-Rod back. Alex Rodriguez is rehabbing this week, playing in the minors to test out his second hip surgery that he had in January. He hasn't played in the majors all season.

The Yankees' website says their star slugger could be in the lineup on Monday; that's just in time for the latest Major League baseball scandal, though. A-Rod almost never gives interviews, but he did stop to speak to our Jason Carroll.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ALEX RODRIGUEZ, NEW YORK YANKEES: You know, every day is a new day; obviously in this process there is a lot of challenges.

JASON CARROLL, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Alex Rodriguez knows a lot about challenges. He has recovered from hip surgery, the second of his career.

And the New York Yankee third base man is back on the field for now with a Double A team, the Trenton Thunder. Getting back in the game, the real game, may be his greatest challenge, one he hopes to overcome with help from fans.

RODRIGUEZ: I mean, the support has been overwhelming. And it's fueled me. This has been a very difficult process. And I am just humbled by the opportunity to play baseball. I love this game so much. I hate all the noise. But hopefully that goes away soon and we can get back to playing baseball.

CARROLL: Part of the so-called noise, Major League Baseball's investigation into allegations linking Rodriguez and other players to this Florida clinic, shut down for distributing performance-enhancing drugs.

Rodriguez denies being treated by the clinic, a possible suspension from the team; a $114 million contract and his legacy hang in the balance.

CARROLL: A lot of pressures, a lot of allegations out there.

How are you managing to deal with that while also trying to manage the physical part of trying to come back?

RODRIGUEZ: It is a good question. It is never easy. It is not fun.

CARROLL: What's harder, is it the mental or is it the physical? Which one is harder?

RODRIGUEZ: I think in this case it is both.

CARROLL: What happens if there is a suspension?

How disappointed would you be if you're not able to come back? RODRIGUEZ: Well, I am going to focus on the positive. Obviously, that situation I can't comment on at the moment, but I am really looking forward to coming back to New York. I feel like I owe the Yankee fan base my A game. I don't think they had that last year.

CARROLL: No negotiations going on, no sort of plea deals, nothing like that, no deals being made?

RODRIGUEZ: I don't think there is anything going on right now. And that's as far as I am going to take it. I think it is important we have a process. I think we have a good system with Major League Baseball, and let's let the process play out.

CARROLL: If something is not ruled in your favor, would you want to continue to fight?

RODRIGUEZ: I just would rather not get into any of that right now. It is premature, and we'll let the process play out. That's my responsibility right now.

(END VIDEOTAPE)