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Dramatic Rescue from Colorado Flood; Corker Questions Obama's Leadership; Newlywed Charged with Murder; Top Colleges for High-Paid Grads

Aired September 12, 2013 - 10:30   ET

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

CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Happening now in the NEWSROOM --

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It just seems to be very uncomfortable being Commander-in-Chief of this nation.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: Sharp criticism of President Obama from one of the few Republicans who's been willing to work with him. Plus --

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I didn't think it was much of a relationship, to be honest.

I was standing up there and I noticed that when they were exchanging their vows, Jordan wasn't -- never once looked at Cody.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: A young bride admits to pushing her husband off a cliff days after their wedding. Why she says she should be released from jail.

And forget about your major, it's all about your alma mater. We'll tell you which colleges are turning out the top paid grads.

CNN NEWSROOM continues now.

Good morning. I'm Carol Costello. Thank you so much for being with me. We've got some amazing video to show you of a very scary and very dramatic rescue. It happened just outside of Boulder, Colorado, after flash flooding in the area. Take a look just last hour CNN affiliate KCNC was on the scene as rescue workers risked their lives to free this man from his overturned SUV. All the while, that water was moving very rapidly and you know endangering all of these rescue workers because they could have been carried downstream.

Just minutes ago, authorities described this very dangerous scene.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) SARA FARRIS, NORTH METRO FIRE RESCUE SPOKESWOMAN: At the scene there were three cars that were in the water. The road had been eroded from all the excess rain as they come through this drainage area. And so we were able to stabilize the cars and there was a victim in each car, we sent a rescue boat out and were able to rescue the victims. Fortunately they only had minor injuries and so they've all been transported to area hospitals.

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COSTELLO: More now from reporter Kelly Werthmann of KCNC.

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KELLY WERTHMANN REPORTER KCNC: Moments ago we watched an amazing rescue. The bridge behind me here is completely washed out and we watched as local rescue crews took a man out of his fully submerged car alive. We watched this rescue.

All three cars, as you can see, just mangled and fully submerged. We watched when rescuers got into the water, the raging water, in fact and had to turn the sedan over and inside they saw the man alive. They broke the window so that he could breathe and they could get the rest of the water out and then they were able to pull him to safety.

I'm told by local fire -- local fire crews that all three drivers were pulled to safety alive and they are now being treated for their injuries. This is just amazing.

The bridge here completely washed out by all of the rain that has fallen in this area. It's been falling since Wednesday afternoon. The floodwaters downed power lines and even closed parts of major parkways. Residents have of course done what they could to protect their homes. Parts of Boulder do remain under a mandatory evacuation at this time. Students at the University of Colorado came together to save their belongings after the flood reached the dorms and that campus will be closed today due to the widespread flooding.

Now, conditions are expected to get worse. It is expected to rain all day today as well as tomorrow with more thunderstorms coming this weekend. Again, just an incredible rescue here outside of Boulder.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: That was amazing. That was reporter Kelly Werthmann of KCNC.

Also, two people in Colorado have been killed because of all of this torrential rain. Not over yet. They are expecting five more inches today. So not so surprisingly the officials are warning people to stay off the roads and out of the floodwaters.

Let's talk politics now. He is one of the few Republicans who has shown the willingness to work with the Obama administration on a variety of issues, including Syria. But now, stunning comments by Senator Bob Corker about President Obama's leadership as Commander-in- Chief may have the White House on the defensive.

Chief congressional correspondent Dana Bash joins me now. Tell us what he said.

DANA BASH, CNN CHIEF CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well you know Carol I set out to do a story on how the Syria crisis and the way the President handled it will affect the rest of the White House's agenda on Capitol Hill. And the reason I wanted to talk to Senator Bob Corker is as you said, he is perhaps the Republican who works the most with the White House on domestic issues and international issues and on Syria.

I mean he helped write the resolution that actually passed the Senate Foreign Relations Committee giving the President authority to go ahead and strike in Syria. He's played golf with the President, something that Obama rarely does.

You know, I barely asked a question of Corker when he began expressing his frustration with the President even questioning the President's ability as Commander-in-Chief.

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SEN. BOB CORKER (R), TENNESSEE: I really do think they've hurt our credibility around the world just in the muddled way that they have dealt with this Syrian issue. It's just a complete muddlement (ph) if you will. And I don't know -- the President just seems to be very uncomfortable being Commander-in-Chief of this nation.

BASH: He's uncomfortable as Commander-in-Chief?

CORKER: Yes.

BASH: You're speaking not just as somebody who's watched him on television or who gives speeches in person but had dinner with him recently, had lunch with him yesterday. What makes you say that?

CORKER: It's just the results. We have these conversations. It appears that it has an impact. I would think that most Republicans who were at the luncheon yesterday would believe -- would ever believe last night he was going to make the greater case, the strategic case for us in Syria.

I heard no word, not one word of it. He's very good in an interpersonal setting. He just cannot follow through. He cannot speak to the nation as a Commander-in-Chief. He cannot speak to the world as a Commander-in-Chief. He just cannot do it and I don't know what it is.

And I sent an e-mail over this morning to Denis McDonough his chief of staff telling them I could not be more disappointed in what happened last night. I just think it so much he doesn't make the case for why this is important to U.S. credibility and why U.S. credibility in the region is so important to our own safety and to the world's safety.

BASH: Has he hurt his credibility with you specifically as one of the few Republicans, frankly, who was really eager to work with him on domestic, fiscal issues?

CORKER: Well there's no question I -- I probably shouldn't be saying everything I'm saying right now but I guess as a result of last night my temperature level is up slightly today. He's a diminished figure here on Capitol Hill. I can assure you of that.

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BASH: Now, Corker told me despite his frustration he would still drop everything when the President calls, when anybody from the White House calls. He said he's going to keep trying to work on the debt and the deficit, immigration -- all of those outstanding domestic issues never mind Syria. But he says that he is, as you just heard, very discouraged.

And I should tell you that he's not alone in the ultimate sentiment that the President and the White House have not exactly communicated on the Syria issue well. Even Carl Levin, the Democratic Chairman of the Armed Services Committee said that the different ideas and mixed messages coming from the White House has not hurt -- has not helped, rather.

But nobody has been as outspoken with their exasperation as Bob Corker.

COSTELLO: Well let me ask you this Dana, Vladimir Putin writes this op-ed in "The New York Times" basically chastising America and questioning America's exceptionalism. And I'm just going to read you a quote because President Putin was directly talking about what Mr. Obama said in his speech in his prime time address. This is what Putin says. "And I would rather disagree with the case the President made on American exceptionalism, stating that the United States policy is what makes America different. It's what's makes us exceptional. It is extremely dangerous to encourage people to see themselves as exceptional whatever the motivation."

And I read you this because a lot of lawmakers have come out and they are very angry at that sentiment. But when lawmakers talk about the President at a time we're considering military action, when the whole world can listen in, might that be adding to the loss of credibility that America has in the world?

BASH: That's a great question and it is I guess ironic because someone like Senator Bob Corker is a Republican and he stood up immediately and said we have to as the Commander-in-Chief says he wants to do this, it is our responsibility as members of Congress to help him which is why he did help thread a needle which is not easy to thread in the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on this authorization for military action.

So that is a really good point, Carol. I think that more broadly on the Putin op-ed, what was fascinating about it was how nuanced it was because the entire things was a slap at the President effectively saying, "All of the things that you promised you wouldn't be, you are now." And during his first campaign for President he kind of downplayed the idea of American exceptionalism and what Putin is saying, again, in a very nuanced, almost in an inside baseball way, you have to be the President and his aides almost to really get it, is you turned into exactly the person you said you wouldn't.

COSTELLO: Ok so -- so Putin is using the same sort of talking points that critics of the President use here in the United States. So again, this is a critical juncture. Isn't this a time when the nation is supposed to draw together, especially our members of government?

BASH: He clearly -- look Bob Corker is -- is again, for people out there who might not really understand how there -- if there really are discussions that go back and forth between the White House and Capitol Hill, there have been a lot now on Syria but before that there really hadn't been very many and particularly across party lines.

Bob Corker was the one person who was eager on the Republican side, eager to work with the President on a host of issues. And so for him to come out and say what he said is an example of how even people who have the inside lines, even people who can sit at dinner, which he did on Sunday night with the President, still feel like they can't get through to the White House and feel the need to come out publicly.

But you make a good point that, you know, it contradicts what they are trying to say, which is that the U.S. has to stay together and be strong but I think it really is an example of just how frustrated some members of Congress are and with not necessarily with the -- with the policy but with the message explaining the policy. That it is up to the President, they say, to use the bully pulpit to explain it and they feel like that he just -- has not done that well enough.

COSTELLO: Dana Bash great reporting as always. Our chief congressional correspondent thanks so much for being with me this morning.

While the United States and Russia get ready to sit down over Syria, there is new word that U.S.-funded weapons have now reached the Syrian rebels. The weapons provided by the CIA, organized in some way by the CIA started reaching rebels in the last two weeks.

Former weapons inspector David Kaye says it's a complex situation.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DAVID KAY, FORMER CHIEF WEAPONS INSPECTOR IN IRAQ: Now this is what makes this situation so complex. It's not just a government that's a rogue government with weapons of mass destruction. It's a government that is engaged in a civil war with I don't know whether you say one faction actually it's multiple factions in the rebel movement. And countries are taking sides. The Iranians and the Russians have been supporting with weapons and in the Iranian case with actual fighters, Assad. The Arab countries have been providing arms from the very beginning to some of the rebels. The U.S. has talked about aid, mostly humanitarian aid and has finally started arming hopefully the right elements, the more moderate elements of the rebel movement. (END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: Syrian rebels deny they started receiving any of those weapons. As this crisis in Syria grows there are things you can do to help the refugees who are caught in the middle of this. Go to CNN.com/impactyourworld for more information.

Still to come in the NEWSROOM a newlywed bride is behind bars this morning accused of murdering her husband by pushing him off a cliff. Now she's asking to be released from jail.

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COSTELLO: A young bride is facing murder charges; she's accused of pushing her husband off a cliff during an argument. Now, any time this morning we could find out if she will be released from jail.

CNN's Kyung Lah is in Missoula, Montana. Good morning.

KYUNG LAH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol.

What we are expected at any moment is whether or not this judge is going to decide whether she should be released on bond basically released with conditions or remain behind bars.

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LAH: 22-year-old Jordan Graham, the defendant, no longer the bride, trading her wedding dress for an orange jump suit and handcuffs but perhaps not for long. Later today the judge will rule whether Graham must stay behind bars or can be freed on bond before her trial.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Anything at all you guys would like --

LAH: Graham's mother, emotionless as she left court with defense attorneys, testified in court that her daughter should get home confinement, not jail.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Tell me what her defense is.

LAH: While tight-lipped, the defense argues Graham is not a threat, has no criminal history and no prior record of any violence except for admitting that she pushed Cody Johnson, her husband of just eight days, off this sheer cliff face first in the Glacier National Park during a heated argument.

The victim's uncle says his side of the family wants her to stay behind bars.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There's always an annulment. There was always divorce.

LAH: Prosecutors say Graham tried to cover up the crime by creating a bogus e-mail account and writing fake e-mails from a made up friend, an account that traces back to Graham's home address. The victim's friends say she seemed cold and calculating in the wake of her new husband's death.

(on camera): Was she texting during the funeral?

CAMERON FREDRICKSON, GROOMSMAN AT CODY JOHNSON'S WEDDING: She was on her phone, whether it was texting or a mobile app.

MAXIMINO ROCHA, CODY JOHNSON'S CO-WORKER AND FRIEND: I knew right then and there something was not right.

LAH: What was in your gut? What were you thinking?

ROCHA: My gut was that she had involvement with the process. I knew that there was a point in situation where Jordan probably could have done the right thing, even if it was an accident and the right thing wasn't done. So now we are just trying to pursue what the right thing is.

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LAH: Now, justice for these friends would be for her to remain in custody but defense attorneys say there is no legal reason for her to remain in custody until trial. Carol we are expecting this decision from the judge in the next three hours.

COSTELLO: So they just got married. I mean is there any idea of what they were arguing over?

LAH: We don't know the details of the exact argument. We just know that they were arguing, that they had argued before. And all we heard in court was that it was heated and we don't really know what the defense is going to be, if she meant to do it, she didn't mean to do it. But we do know that the defense is certainly laying the groundwork saying that she is, at this point, presumed innocent and should be home with her mother.

COSTELLO: Kyung Lah, reporting live for us. Thank you so much.

Still to come in the NEWSROOM, the highest paid graduates in the nation don't come from Princeton or even Harvard. We'll tell you which tiny, tiny university employers are coughing up cash for their grads.

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COSTELLO: We all know that if you want to get a top-paying job you need to go to a top college, right? But the school with the highest paid grads might surprise you. Here's a hint. It isn't Harvard. They didn't even make the top five. CNN's Alison Kosik is here to tell us who did. Good morning.

ALISON KOSIK, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Good morning. This is the kind of stuff you really want to know when you're choosing what college you want to go to and when you choose your major.

Let me throw a figure at you -- $143,000 in your first ten years out of school. Sound good? Then go to Harvey Mudd College. Yes, it does sound good. It's a heck of a lot more than I made in my first ten years out of school.

COSTELLO: Me too.

KOSIK: Harvey Mudd happens to be this really small, very selective school located right near Los Angeles. Only about 800 undergraduates are there and there's this new pay scale study that says the average grad, who comes out of there a decade into their career makes $143,000.

But oh, yes, it comes at a price. It costs about $60,000 a year to go to that school. That's the tuition. Because you have to look at how much their grads make. They make a lot because of what the school really specializes in. They specialize in something called STEM studies, that's an acronym: S for Science; T for Technology, E for Engineering and M for Math.

So that really matters. You know those are the degrees, Carol, that land those higher paying jobs. You want to see the rest of the list for colleges?

COSTELLO: Yes, I do.

KOSIK: Similar story here.

Ok. So number two, it's U.S. Naval Academy located in Annapolis. They've got a really strong engineering program there. Rounding out the list, Cal Tech -- that happens to be where 17 Nobel Laureates went. Physics, math and biology -- those are the major -- those are the most popular degrees there. And Stevens Institute of Technology, again the science is big there. And Babson, Babson is near Boston, it has a strong focus on being an entrepreneur -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Ok. Well then, now I get it because if you get a philosophy degree from Harvard, you're likely not to make $143,000 in the first -- you're likely not even going to get much of a job in the area of philosophy -- although I love philosophy. I took it in college.

KOSIK: Philosophy is fun. But you know some of those Ivy Leagues -- they are in the top 20. I mean like Princeton, Harvard, Brown, Yale -- they actually made the top 20. And if you look at all of the Ivy League grads together, if you group all of them together, they are actually the top earners. They make around $111,000 on average, ten years into your career.

So you have to realize just as valuable as the pay, though, is actually being able to get the job. You want to get a job to be able to get that pay. It's a bonus in going to the Ivy Leagues that may not have made the top five but made the top 20 is those Ivy Leagues are known for the tight alumni network-- Carol.

COSTELLO: Got you. Alison Kosik, thanks so much.

We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) COSTELLO: 56 minutes past. Checking our top stories:

An incredible rescue in Lafayette, Colorado. Rescue crews struggled to save a man trapped in an overturned car after a swollen creek washed out a road. The man's ok this morning. He was able to walk away. He walked up the bank into an ambulance. Boulder's Office of Emergency Management is urging area residents to stay at home and off the roads today.

The associate medical examiner who waffled at the trial of George Zimmerman, you know, he testified about Trayvon Martin's autopsy, well, he has been fired. Officials haven't said exactly why they fired Shiping Bao. CNN affiliate, Central Florida News 13 reports Bao's lawyer has filed a complaint with the county. The Miami Herald says he's hinting at a lawsuit.

That's all I have time for today. Thank you so much for joining me today. I'm Carol Costello.

"LEGAL VIEW" with Ashleigh Banfield after a break.

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ASHLEIGH BANFIELD, CNN HOST: So this is diplomacy? The president of Syria, the president of Russia -- both taking swipes at the President of the United States of America? We're going to hear from both of them this hour on CNN.

Plus, Americans arming Syrian rebels but are they in fact allies?