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Bob Filner Expected Back at Work Today; Bob Filner Receives Public Support; NSA Leak Reporter Vows Revenge; Joe Biden's Son Hospitalized; NYT: Scientists Warn About Warming; Fruits, Veggies To Cost More; Boston Bombing Suspect Shot in Mouth, Face; Pakistan's Musharraf Charged With Murder; AP: Soldier "Laughed" At Charges

Aired August 20, 2013 - 10:00   ET

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

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CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Happening now in the NEWSROOM. Exit strategy.

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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The mitigation is ongoing and we're not going to comment on it.

GLORIA ALLRED, VICTIMS' RIGHTS ATTORNEY: The mediator has asked us not to comment.

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COSTELLO: Closed lips and closed door negotiations. It is day 30 of Filner watch. Will the people of San Diego get what they've been asking for?

Record rains hurting farmers. You're going to feel it at the grocery store. Plus --

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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The NFL would have women resort to carrying their personal items in plastic bags.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: That's disgusting because I don't want strangers to see what's in my purse.

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COSTELLO: Hands off our bags. Women fight back against the NLF's new purse policy. The second hour of NEWSROOM starts now.

Good morning. Thanks so much for being with me. I'm Carol Costello. Unfamiliar face could walk into San Diego city hall today. That would be the mayor. Bob Filner has not been in office since late last month. He's been quiet since his sexual harassment scandal started gaining strength, but this morning he is expected to be back at work. Even as he sits down with mediation with his own city, which reportedly includes talk over his potential resignation.

Kyung Lah joins us live now with more. Good morning.

KYUNG LAH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol. The expectation is that he may enter city hall, a place that he hasn't been in, in three weeks, as you point out. But they just don't know. The same people who told us they expected he might return today, they also say they can't predict what he's going to do.

This video that you're looking at, this is very significant because this is a very first video that we have seen of the mayor in three weeks and where was he going? He was entering a mediation session, a very important mediation session involving the San Diego city attorney, two councilmen, Attorney Gloria Allred who was representing one of the women, a former mayoral aide who was suing Filner in the city of San Diego on those sexual harassment charges.

So the very first time, Carol, that we've seen all of these players in one room. What they're going for? Allred has made no bones about it, Carol. She wants the mayor to resign as part of any sort of settlement deal.

COSTELLO: But it is possible that Mayor Filner will show up at work and mediation talks will go on.

LAH: The understanding is that this mediation session is ongoing. That there has been no resolution -- it is going to take -- it's going to take a while. Anyone who has been through mediation, you know it doesn't happen quickly. The guy who is running this, he's as former federal judge, a no-nonsense sort of fellow. He is going to take his time. Our understanding is that all sides, certainly they're far apart. We know how Filner has behaved and what the city wants. It will take time to reach some sort of agreement.

COSTELLO: Kyung Lah reporting live, thanks so much. Bob Filner has not received much support from the public until now. To counter all of the protests against the San Diego mayor during the past month, a group of Filner supporters gathered on Monday. They want everyone to know Filner is innocent until proved guilty.

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ANITA W. TURNER: How would you feel if your brother, your son, your husband, were accused, allegations. No evidence. No facts.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Are you saying that no sexual harassment ever happened and these women are liars?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I have no idea. They are accusers. That's where due process comes in.

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COSTELLO: Still ahead this hour, I'll talk to another supporter of Bob Filner. Maxine Sherard has known the mayor for 20 years. Find out why she says he's a decent guy. Interview at 10:30 Eastern. There's a new development on the menacing and ominous warning from Glen Greenwald. He is the reporter on the left who exposed Washington secret surveillance program. He's now lashing out at the British government for detaining his partner, David Miranda and interrogating Miranda on the NSA leaks.

And this morning, Miranda's lawyers are threatening legal action that will take place tomorrow unless the British government admits it has abused Miranda's rights. It's the latest round house punch just hours after Greenwald issues this treat.

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GLENN GREENWALD, JOURNALIST FOR "THE GUARDIAN" (through translator): I'll be far more aggressive in my reporting from now. I'm going to publish many more documents. I'm going to publish things on England too. I have many documents on England's spy system.

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COSTELLO: When questioned this morning what role did the United States play in Miranda's detention and the confiscation of his private belongings? CNN's Jessica Yellin pressed the White House for answers.

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JESSICA YELLIN, CNN CHIEF WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Was the White House consulted or given a heads-up in advance?

JOSH EARNEST, DEPUTY WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: There was a heads- up that was provided by the British government. So this is something that we had an indication was likely to occur, but it's not something that we've requested.

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COSTELLO: CNN senior international correspondent Matthew Chance is in London this morning to tell us more. Good morning, Matthew.

MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: That's right. David Miranda, the partner of Glenn Greenwald, "The Guardian" journalist that essentially broke the story of the NSA leaks from Edward Snowden. He has launched a legal challenge as you mentioned against the British authorities for what he considers to be an illegitimate detention of him at Heathrow Airport over the weekend. He was detained for quite a long time, nine hours, extremely disconcerting for him.

He issued some statements and made remarks when he reached Brazil after he was released by the British authorities. He said first of all this. They treated me like I was a criminal or someone about to attack the United Kingdom. It was exhausting and frustrating, but I knew I wasn't doing anything wrong. He was held at Heathrow Airport for nine hours. A lot of items, electronic items were confiscated by the British authorities including his laptop, his cell phone, video game console according to David Miranda. USB sticks, DVDs and watches. He went onto say when he was in Brazil that he was in a different country with different laws in a room with seven agents coming and going who kept asking me questions. I thought anything could happen. So as I mentioned, lawyers representing David Miranda have now announced they'll launch a legal challenge. That will start tomorrow unless the police acknowledge that their detention of David Miranda was illegal.

There is no sign of them doing that. In fact, they've already issued a statement within the last few hours saying that they believe the detention was legally and procedurally done correctly -- Carol.

COSTELLO: We'll see what happens tomorrow. Matthew Chance reporting live in London this morning.

Doctors are trying to figure out what's wrong with Vice President Joe Biden's oldest son. Bo Biden, 44-year-old Delaware attorney general was hospitalized in Houston after feeling disorientated on a recent family vacation. CNN political director Mark Preston is in Washington. Any clue on what's wrong?

MARK PRESTON, CNN POLITICAL DIRECTOR: You know, Carol, they are being very guarded about what they think might be happening to Bo Biden. But we have learned that in fact he is being evaluated at M.D. Anderson. That's a hospital that's world renowned for treating cancer patients. Again, they are not saying that has anything to do with cancer. They are being very guarded about his condition.

We do know though that in addition to Vice President Biden, Bo Biden's family, several family members surrounded him and Dr. Jill Biden is down there as well. He's 44 years old. He has had some health issues in the past. In 2010, he had a minor stroke. Bo Biden is someone who is part of this really large nuclear family in many ways. The Biden family is well known, Carol, for being very close knit.

You know, back in 1972, Bo Biden's mother died as well as his sister died in a car crash. He was in that car as well as his brother, Hunter, and it is his father who has raised them through the years. We don't know what is going on, but clearly something serious is going on and we're just waiting to hear from the Vice President's Office and from the Attorney General's Office.

COSTELLO: So young, 44 years old.

PRESTON: Two kids as well, Carol. We can look at it through all of the prism of politics that we talk about, but he does have a very young family.

COSTELLO: Mark Preston, thanks so much.

International panel of scientists say it's at least 95 percent certain humans are to blame for the earth's warming in recent years. "The New York Times" reports that language included in a leaked draft of a report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. The group warning sea levels could rise by more than three feet if greenhouse emissions are not reduced. That could put cities like New York and New Orleans in danger. A final report expected in September. We're going to talk much more about this report with CNN's Chad Myers that's coming your way in the next half hour of NEWSROOM.

Heavy rains washed across much of the Southern United States and that may wring some extra money out of your wallet. The crops of fruits and veggies have been wiped out in some areas and decimated in others and that means you and I will be paying more at the grocery store. So let's turn to our business guru, Christine Romans on what we can expect. Good morning.

CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Good morning. In some cases the produce stand, you won't find what you want or you'll find watermelon that tastes a little different and cantaloupe that taste a little different even peaches because all of this water sort of changes the way the sugar dilution inside some of these fruits and vegetables.

So in some cases it is going to taste a little bit different and in other cases you won't be able to find it or you'll pay more for it. So what we're talking about here? We're talking about all of this rain at a time and a part of the country where there are a lot of fruits and vegetables that come to market right now.

We're talking about watermelon and peaches and we're talking about in some cases corn. Earlier this summer, it was so wet in Iowa you couldn't get the sweet corn by the fourth of July. There were some delays there. In fact, grocery stores are reaching out to other states to get supplies and that's what's happening in the southeast too. People are having to switch suppliers for the grocery stores to find the right supplier.

I don't want to ring the alarm bell too soon, but even up here in New York it's been so wet this summer that perhaps pumpkins are a little bit delayed in their maturation right now too. I don't know. Green pumpkins by Halloween, unclear. You'll have to pay up a little bit more.

Earlier this week -- or last week I told you about shrimp at an all- time high. Here's a good piece of news. Because of the big corn crop production in the Midwest, you've seen corn prices coming down meaning lower meat prices down the road. Pay up for fruits and vegetables, but pay less for your meat, bad news for vegetarians. Good news for everyone else.

COSTELLO: Spoken like a true Iowan. Thank you so much, Christine.

Move over, Bo. There's a new dog in town. The Obamas have brought Sunny home. He's the all black doggy there. Looks like he likes Bo and Bo likes him. Both are Portuguese water dogs. And of course, the Obamas pick the name Sunny because she is full of energy and affectionate and happy. The first family is making a donation to the Washington Humane Society in honor of the new pooch.

Still to come in the NEWSROOM, a highway horror, a Jaguar burnt to a crisp, the driver, 87-year-old Dick Van Dyke. The comedian taking to Twitter after the crash.

Plus, he's al Qaeda's propaganda machine.

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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Today could be your last day.

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COSTELLO: California born and bred, son of goat farmers. Now he's speaking out in a new video. That's straight ahead in the NEWSROOM.

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COSTELLO: Checking our top stories at 15 minutes past the hour, fractured skull, a torn ear and bullet wounds through the mouth and face. Surviving Boston bombing suspect had those injuries before his capture in April. Details are in a newly released court document. It's not clear whether the 20 year old inflicted any of those injuries on himself or suffered them in his showdown with police.

After days of being pressured to do so, CNN has learned the Obama administration is stopping some military aid to Egypt. This comes amid escalating violence between supporters of ousted President Mohamed Morsy and the interim government. The U.S. official says the administration is still trying to decide how to handle the situation with one of its strongest allies in the Middle East and adds that no decision has been made to permanently stop that aid.

Former Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf has been charged in the 2007 assassination of opposition leader Benazir Bhutto. It marks the first time charges have been filed against an ex-military leader in Pakistan. Musharraf has been under house arrest since April and has denied having anything to do with Bhutto's killing.

Today the sentencing phase begins for Army Staff Sergeant Robert Bales. He's the soldier who admitted to gunning down 16 unarmed Afghan civilians in a house to house rampage last year. Bales faces life in prison. But in a shocking twist to an already bizarre story, the Associated Press is reporting that there are tapes of Bales and his wife laughing about the charges against Bales.

Our Pentagon correspondent Chris Lawrence is here to tell us more. Wow.

CHRIS LAWRENCE, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Carol. This is a potentially disturbing turn to what is already a very extremely horrific crime. But Reuters is reporting from the courtroom that prosecutors have indicated they will play some of this tape recording between Staff Sergeant Bales who is incarcerated at the time on the phone with his wife and in that call apparently prosecutors are indicating that they were laughing about some of the charges that were filed against him and even discussing a potential book deal for his wife.

Now, the defense argues you can't just play snippets of that. It has to be taken in context. The judge is saying they will be allowed to play it, but it has to be all of it. All two hours of it to really understand the context. The defense is arguing that Staff Sergeant Bales basically snapped. That he was on his fourth combat deployment suffering from PTSD. He was on drugs. He was drinking that night and that he had suffered a traumatic brain injury.

The prosecutors have flown in about nine Afghans. These are survivors of that massacre and their testimony -- if it's anything like what was heard on video about a year ago, it promises to be extremely graphic. Before we heard children screaming begging Sergeant Bales not to shoot them, he has admitted to the killings. He pleaded guilty to avoid the death penalty. What this is all going to be about is whether he gets life with no possibility of parole or life with parole, which could set him free in about 20 years if possible -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Disturbing story. Sure you'll be following it throughout the day. Chris Lawrence reporting live from the Pentagon.

All right, let's lighten the mood, shall we? Still ahead in the NEWSROOM, Dick Van Dyke's narrow escape. His Jaguar goes up in flames, but the 87-year-old actor pulled out of the car just in time, his sense of humor intact.

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COSTELLO: Legendary comedy actor Dick Van Dyke and his wife managed to escape unharmed after Van Dyke's car burst into flames and practically melted on a Los Angeles freeway. Witnesses the 87-year- old was actually rescued by a Good Samaritan and afterwards -- he's one funny man. His sense of humor was intact. Nischelle Turner is live in New York with more. He's so charming.

NISCHELLE TURNER, CNN ENTERTAINMENT CORRESPONDENT: Yes. And when you see the video, you see what he escaped from, you know it is OK to laugh, I would probably be laughing too and shouting hallelujah after this, a really scary moment, Carol. You know, Dick Van Dyke is 87 years old. He was driving his Jaguar if you can tell even with that burned out car is there, on the Ventura freeway in California when it caught fire, burned to a crisp.

You can see it there. This little vintage car is a newer Jaguar in good condition it looked like before it went up in smoke on the side of the road. Him and his wife have been posting reassuring messages on Twitter saying that he's OK and that they are very appreciative of the help he got from Good Samaritans, a little embarrassed about everything, Carol.

But it seemed like a lot of people really did stop to help. A few of them tried to use fire extinguishers to douse the flames. Of course, you know, the world we live in a few of them broke out their cell phones and shot video of the situation as well and you saw the dramatic pictures.

COSTELLO: Afterwards he said anybody in the market for a Porsche?

TURNER: That's what you said, yes, still getting zingers at 87. He did keep his sense of humor about the whole thing. He also tweeted, used jag for sale real cheap with a picture of the burned out car attached to that. He had a little fun because he got out unscathed.

COSTELLO: Good for him. We're glad to hear it. Nischelle Turner, thanks so much.

Defending Bob Filner, the San Diego mayor who is accused of sexual harassment also has a big PR problem, but his supporters are finally going public. Hear why they say you shouldn't judge Mayor Filner so quickly.

First, let's get a quick check of the markets, shall we. Looking good so far, markets up 27 points so far. We'll be right back.

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