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Shooter Kills TSA Officer At LAX; Boston Red Sox World Series Champion; U.S. Attorney Announced Launch Of Federal Investigation Into Kendrick Johnson's Death; SNAP Program's Reduced Budget To Take Effect Friday

Aired November 02, 2013 - 15:00   ET

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

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: It's 3:00 on the East Coast right now, noon out West. For those of you just joining us, welcome to the NEWSROOM. I'm Fredericka Whitfield. Here are the top stories we're following.

New information about a suspected shooter who terrorized passengers at LAX. The FBI digging for a motive, looking into why they say Paul Ciancia shot three TSA agents, killing one.

A strong turnout in Boston. More than one million strong celebrating the Red Sox's big World Series win. Fans also paying tribute to the resilience of the marathon bombing survivors.

And buckle up. An airline is putting a new spin on those preflight safety instructions.

A major investigation under way at the Los Angeles international airport a day after a gunman burst in and killed a TSA officer. Here's what we know today.

TSA administrator John Pistole is on his way to Los Angeles today. He is expected to meet with the family of killed TSA officer Gerardo Hernandez and others. Right now LAX is open, but no flights are leaving from terminal three where the shooting happened. A tweet from the airport says people who left things in that terminal yesterday can now get them at the ticket counter.

And we're also learning more about the suspected shooter, Paul Ciancia. According to a law enforcement official, he was carrying materials including an anti-TSA rant and a reference to a new world order. Ciancia lived in L.A., but he is from New Jersey. Police have been at his family's home in Pennsville, New Jersey. According to the police chief, the suspect sent text messages to his family yesterday, ranting about the government.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHIEF ALLEN CUMMINGS, PENNSVILLE TOWNSHIP, NEW JERSEY POLICE: Basically, the text message was just a message to the little brother, and the way it was written, they had some concern about it. That's when they brought it to our attention.

(END VIDEO CLIP) WHITFIELD: The chief says officers informed police in Los Angeles, but then it was too late.

All right, from the moment the first shot rang out, it was chaos at LAX. CNN's Dan Simon reports on how it all happened and the personal stories of the people who had to run for their lives.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is going to be a major, major incident working here at LAX.

DAN SIMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Los Angeles international airport. 9:20 a.m. local time. The FBI says 23-year-old Paul Anthony Ciancia enters terminal three, pulls a rifle from a bag, and opens fire.

CHIEF PATRICK GANNON, LOS ANGELES AIRPORT POLICE: He proceed up into the screening area where TSA screeners are and continues shooting and went past the screeners back into the airport itself.

SIMON (voice-over): At the security checkpoint, TSA officers who are not armed are shot. One 39-year-old Gerardo Hernandez is killed. He is the first TSA officer to die in the line of duty since the agency was established in 2001. Authorities say after shooting his way through the security checkpoint, Ciancia manages to make it all the way down this hallway. They say he is stopped by police in the food court area. Hundreds run for their lives.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It was a complete panic. People were screaming. You know, I saw children crying.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Pure and utter mayhem. I mean, people were tripping over each other on the floor, bags everywhere, crying, screaming.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Everybody started, like, flying down the hallway, and they were just, like, jumping over chairs, jumping over people, hiding, and we were kind of trapped at the end of the terminal.

SIMON (voice-over): Trapped with nowhere else to escape, some passengers run onto the airport tarmac. Others use anything they can to protect themselves.

LINO LINARES, EYEWITNESS: The first shot just, like, caught us off guard. The second shots went in, and then I just grabbed luggage, and I started making walls and walls out of luggages. And then I could just see the guy walking towards the escalator, and he's pointing down.

SIMON (voice-over): After making it hundreds of feet into the terminal, the gunman is shot by police, multiple times in the chest and lives. Though the motive is still unclear, a federal law enforcement official says investigators found information on the suspect, expressing anti-federal government sentiment and also anger at the TSA specifically. But what is clear, the gunman was intent on causing much more destruction. Authorities say he had additional ammunition.

MAYOR ERIC GARCETTI, LOS ANGELES: There were more than 100 more rounds that could have literally killed everybody in that terminal.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: All right. Thanks so much, Dan Simon.

We're learning more information about the TSA at LAX. Here's CNN's Barbara Starr for us live now in Washington.

So Barbara, you just finished talking with a former FBI profiler. What did she say about the suspected shooter, and what's going on with the TSA at LAX.?

BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Well, let's talk about the shooter first for a minute, Fredericka. We've talked to a couple of people today who are expert in profiling these types of suspects, law enforcement community people. And what they're telling us is let's take a deep breath here. This may not really be solely about the TSA, that this shooter had a broader agenda, a broader mistrust of government and antisocial behavior, if you will. I spoke to Mary Ellen O'Toole, a former senior profiler for the FBI. And I want you to listen to what she had to say about whether this really is or is not about the TSA.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MARY ELLEN O'TOOLE, FORMER SENIOR FBI PROFILER: My sense would be that he got into this through the Internet as opposed to personal interactions with government agencies where he was treated impolitely or treated badly. And again, the thought process for someone who decides my life's not going well. I'm angry at everybody. I blame everybody for what's happened to me. That thinking process takes a long time to develop. It doesn't just happen two weeks before the incident.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

STARR: And one of the things they're pointing to is this terrible tragedy, shooting and killing the TSA officer and wounding other TSA personnel. But then he moves on. He moves deeper into the airport. He could have stayed and very tragically shot at other very clearly marked TSA personnel, but he doesn't. He moves on. He moves into the airport. The feeling is that this is the kind of motivation and behavior that investigators are going to be looking at to try and figure out what exactly was going on in his mind. Remember, this may be the closest someone with a weapon has gotten to an airline cockpit since 9/11 as he moved deeper into that airport -- Fredericka.

WHITFIELD: And then Barbara, have you been learning that there have been concerns about the TSA at LAX up until this shooting yesterday?

STARR: Well, not that we've -- not that we've learned of yet. You know, this issue is out there that Dan Simon has been referencing about armed police officers no longer being required to stand specifically at the TSA checkpoints. They're able to roam around a little bit more, but they have to be within two minutes of being able to reach the checkpoint.

The question in these cases always comes up, is there enough security? Did security work appropriately during this incident? That will be a matter for investigators to look at. No indication yet that the TSA would be thinking about arming its personnel. That becomes a very expensive, very involved proposition. And they would still need plenty of people to monitor the rest of us. Look at our bags. Look at what's on our person as we go through these checkpoints. So nobody's yet talking about fundamental change.

WHITFIELD: Got it. All right. Thank you so much. Barbara Starr in Washington.

All right, let's move on to something very uplifting. That being this scene in Boston today. The same place that also saw so much heartache following the Boston marathon six months ago. Today, nearly one million people lined the streets to celebrate the Red Sox World Series victory. During the parade, a player placed the World Series trophy on the marathon's finish line right there, then draped it in a team jersey that said "Boston strong."

All right, tomorrow, tens of thousands of runners will pound the pavement in New York City at that marathon. Alexandra Steele has a look at the forecast.

ALEXANDRA STEELE, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Hi, Fred.

Well, 45,000 people running in the New York marathon, and it will be a cold start tomorrow morning, 34 degree, kind of wake-up time. And then marathon, we're going to see 46 degrees by about 9:40, 10:40 in that period. We're going to see temperatures stay in the 40s and some very strong winds as well. So cold and breezy. We're going to see highs only at 49 for the afternoon. So a chilly marathon - Fred?

WHITFIELD: All right. Alexandra Steele, thanks so much.

All the best to those who are going to be running. All right. Back to Boston next. Our Rachel Nichols talks to one player about what does victory, the World Series victory, mean to the people of Boston and to the players?

And then take a look at this. A hockey fight. I don't know. How unusual is that to happen? Well, this one really got out of control last night. The goalies even got into the action. And it sparked a new conversation about whether fighting should be banned in that sport, period.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: All right, many of the Red Sox players say they were inspired by the grit and the resilience of the bombing survivors. And star pitcher Jon Lester told CNN's Rachel Nichols, that's what fueled him this entire season.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RACHEL NICHOLS, CNN SPORTS ANCHOR: Every year someone wins the World Series. But this year, it felt like a whole city won it. And that's not just because this is Boston, a place where everyone's thrilled if a baby's first word is "Sox." But because in the wake of the horrific Boston marathon bombings that literally ripped the city apart, it was the Red Sox who gave people something to rally around, gave them a place to gather and cheer and hug. This season Fenway wasn't just a ballpark. It was a grassy green runway for the wounded to strut some on their prosthetic legs and show the world that they might have been knocked down, but they weren't knocked out.

I spoke to Red Sox ace Jon Lester the day after the team won the World Series, and he explained just how the survivors had become the team's inspiration.

JON LESTER, PITCHER, BOSTON RED SOX: I think it kind of it motivates you a little bit as far as, you know, those days that you're kind of struggling. You know, I know you have days where, you know, you go out and you pitch and you feel lethargic or whatever. It's the grind of the season. And I think when you're walking in from the bull pen and those guys are coming by, it's, like, OK. It doesn't matter. I've got to find a way.

You know, these guys are in wheelchairs right now. I mean, they've lived half their life walking. And all of a sudden in one day, in one second, they're in a wheelchair. And it's like, hey, that goes back to the woe is me. It doesn't matter how I feel. I need to go out there and compete for these guys.

NICHOLS: You know, the words "Boston strong" were etched into center field at Fenway for a reason. It's not just a slogan. It's the heart, the center, of how this community chose to define itself in the wake of the bombings. They're not victims, they're survivors. The fans, the players, the city, they all felt like they won the World Series together, and they're celebrating now big time.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: They are indeed. You can see Rachel Nichols each Friday night, 10:30, with her show "Unguarded" right here on CNN.

All right. A Cirque Du Soleil performer in the show, Zarkana, fell during a show last night and was taken to the hospital. A spokeswoman says he fell off what's known as the wheel of death. And the show was stopped. The performer is in stable condition in Las Vegas.

All right, CNN pushed for answers, and this week, major developments in the case of a teenager found dead inside a gym mat at his high school. Was Kendrick Johnson's death an accident or murder? The feds are investigating.

But first, each week we're shining a spotlight on the top ten CNN heroes of 201. And you can vote for the one who most inspires you at CNNheroes.com. Nearly a quarter of American households don't have a computer. Students unable to log on are less likely to graduate high school. Our CNN hero is driven to change that.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ESTELLA PYFROM, CNN HERO: I grew up in the segregated south. I actually started picking beans at age six. But my father, I used to hear him say, if you get a good education, you can get a good job. So we knew that education was important.

In today's time, many of our children don't have computers at home. And low-income families don't have transportation to get to where the computers are. Kids who don't have access to computers after school will be left behind.

My name is Estella Pyfrom. At age 71, I took my retirement savings to create a classroom to bring high-tech learning to communities in need.

All right. Let's get on board. Estela's brilliant bus is a mobile learning center.

Are you ready to get on the computers?

CROWD: Yes.

PYFROM: We want to do what we can do to make things better for all, adults as well.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: OK. Got it.

PYFROM: I see the bus as being able to bridge that gap.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.

PYFROM: Between technology and the like of it.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: She helps me by having one on one. And if I don't get it, she'll help me with it. I look forward to it a lot.

PYFROM: How we doing here?

It's not just a bus. It's a movement. We're going to go from neighborhood to neighborhood to keep making a difference.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Major developments this week in a case that CNN has been digging into for more than six months now. A U.S. attorney announced that he is launching a federal investigation into the death of 17- year-old Kendrick Johnson.

Johnson was found dead inside a rolled up gym mat at his high school in Valdosta high school in January. An official said Johnson suffocated after falling into the gym mat while reaching for his shoe. But his parents believe he was murdered.

CNN's Victor Blackwell has been on top of the story for more than six months. And I asked Victor how federal investigators plan to move forward.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

VICTOR BLACKWELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The U.S. attorney says it's a combination, a review and an investigation. So he and the FBI, will be looking at the original investigation from local authorities. But also they're going to go out and conduct their own interviews. I spoke with a former FBI special agent. And he says they're going to treat this like a cold case in many ways, going out trying to find the people who were in the gym, around that gym and knew the basic facts. So they'll create their own investigation as well.

WHITFIELD: There are an awful lot of in inconsistencies, everything from deeming it accidental and then suddenly, OK, it looks like foul play was involved. And even the condition of Kendrick's body. How will federal authorities go about that? Does it appear as though there may be a sophisticated cover-up and that being part of the federal investigation?

BLACKWELL: Well, that's what the family believes. They believe that this was a cover-up, and we've reported that. We do not know because that statement from the U.S. attorney was very carefully written. What the specific impetus, what that one detail was that initiated the investigation.

But we do know that there's a possibility that there could be another exhumation. In my conversations with a former FBI specialist, he says the there is the one from the state, the autopsy, and then the private autopsy. Maybe the FBI lab will want their own autopsy. So a third to kind of find out which one of these is more in the right direction of what actually happened.

WHITFIELD: Some of those things are long term. What's next immediately?

BLACKWELL: What's next? The authorities, FBI, will be going into Valdosta and starting to have conversations with the officials there, the investigators and the people in the community. We also know at the local level, we are expecting an announcement from the coroner to decide if he will open an inquest which would gather a jury of six people. They would listen to testimony, look at evidence and determine if Kendrick's death was an accident or homicide. If it's deemed homicide, it changes his death certificate, and that could start a parallel local investigation to find the person responsible.

WHITFIELD: Victor Blackwell, thanks so much. Keep us posted on this.

BLACKWELL: Sure will.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: President Obama hits the campaign trail this weekend, not for himself but for an old friend. But with all the Obamacare problems and criticism of the White House lately, is the president an asset or a liability? We'll talk to some experts next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: President Obama has put in place new people and set a new deadline to get Obamacare on track. They've got 28 days to meet the November 30th target to fix all the problems that people have been facing to sign up for health care. But what does this say about the leadership at the White House and the president's legacy?

Marc Lamont Hill is a CNN political analyst and professor at Columbia University. He is in New York. Good to see you. And Mercedes Schlapp is a former spokeswoman for President George W. Bush. Thanks so much for being with us.

MERCEDES SCHLAPP, FORMER GEORGE W. BUSH SPOKESWOMAN: Thank you for having us.

WHITFIELD: OK. So the president says he is responsible for getting the Web site working efficiently. That as we now learn only six people enrolled on the first day. So, you know, I wonder, Mercedes, do you think the president knew that before he said he'll get it done?

SCHLAPP: Well, you know, we don't know. At this point, what we do know is that obviously this has been an embarrassing week for the president. The president is trying to make ground in terms of explaining why the launch was so dysfunctional, so messy. And the fact that he said he didn't know about the site. But it doesn't make sense when you think that it's his most important legislative accomplishment and really part of his legacy and the fact that he wouldn't test drive it before it would go out to the public.

So, again, I think it's very disappointing to see what has happened with the president and him really being the lead along with Secretary Sebelius to make sure that the system was ready October 1st, ready to take on the massive volumes, the 4.7 million people that viewed it the first day. But yet, we only got six people who enrolled that day. I mean, that's just, I think, an embarrassment for the president.

WHITFIELD: It really is a terrible embarrassment. I think everybody would agree on that one, Marc, you know. Do you think the White House is seriously worried about the real feasibility of the president's law working at all? Not just in time, you know, for these deadlines, but just period?

MARC LAMONT HILL, CNN POLITICAL CONTRIBUTOR: No, absolutely. First of all, everyone can see that this is an extraordinary embarrassment. I do not concede that the president knew. You know, he's not the webmaster in chief. There are people under him whose job it is to make this work. The buck stops with him, but I doubt that he moved it and still moved forward at the same pace and speed.

As far as it being a sort of referendum on health care itself, no, I strongly disagree. Obamacare cannot be reduced to the Web site. And in many ways it already has been successful. All the people who were not in the health care line who are in it now, it's been successful for them. All the people who now with preexisting conditions who get covered, it's successful for them. The people who can now be covered up to 26 is successful for them. Even at people who have been forced to take new plans that are now cheaper and actually fit consumer protection standards, it's better for them and it is functional for them. So Obamacare is working in many ways, but this Web site is a mess.

The Obama administration has to get it right by 30th. But I think they will. But I think it's extremely slippery logic to think ha somehow the Web site didn't work for the first 30 days or first few weeks that Obamacare doesn't work. And I would say to anyone who makes that argument, if the Web site had worked perfectly, would the right be suddenly saying Obamacare makes sense? Universal health care is a good idea. Of course not. It is not reducible to the Web site.

WHITFIELD: You think this makes it easy. The fight --

HILL: Yes.

WHITFIELD: -- on whether this health care plan really has merit has just been made easy for the naysayers?

HILL: Low-hanging fruit.

WHITFIELD: All right. So let's talk about legacy, then. The president's legacy is defined in large part likely by this health care effort and that's whether it's effective or not.

So Mercedes, is this White House, in your view, in trouble?

SCHLAPP: Yes, absolutely. I mean, just this week he made the oversimplified statement, you know, to try and defend his oversimplified statement that if you like your health care, can you keep it. Well, in fact, 10 million people are likely to lose their health care the ones that they picked. And he called it quote, unquote, "substandard plans."

Well, for many of these people who did the research, they really thought that this was the best plan for their family says. So again, this simplified statement of not necessarily being -- I don't know if it's a misleading statement. I think it's so discouraging for so many Americans who really picked their individual health care because they really thought it was the best fit for their family.

So, again, he's running into not only the Web site problems but the credibility problems which I think is impacting him personally. I mean, you look at the approval numbers. It's the lowest it's been. I mean, the NBC/"Wall Street Journal" poll had him at 42 percent approval. So, again, I think this is hurting him personally, you know. I think that he is having problems also with how his team is functioning. Obviously, there's divisions going on between the policy team and the political team in terms of decisions that were made and how he was rolling out his oversimplified statement, if you like, the health care plan, you can keep it.

WHITFIELD: So Marc, you see that approval rating. It has dipped, I mean, dangerously low.

HILL: It's hovered in the 40s for months, though. It's not as if he was in the 80s.

SCHLAPP: For a lot of reasons.

WHITFIELD: Especially this, you know, Web site health care debacle start-up, I mean, that this is, indeed, impacting his legacy overall, Marc?

HILL: Of course. But I don't think it impacts the long-term legacy. I don't think -- I mean, two months ago people would have said, this Syria thing is going to taint the presidency. No one's talking about Syria. You know, six months ago they would have said nothing else. We are in a 24-hour news cycle. And then later on down the line it's not. That's not to say Obamacare won't be an index of Obama's effectiveness as a president, but it won't be the Web site. In three months no one will be talking about the Web site.

But I have to refute this idea that somehow President Obama was dishonest when he said if you want this policy, you can keep it. Under the grandfather clause, people can keep the policy at the end. The people who can't keep policies are getting policies that are often cheaper and better. And people say, well, I wouldn't make my individual choice, yes. But there is something in this country called consumer protection. There are certain states that we don't allow people to have whether it's food, whether it is fuel efficiency, whether it is energy, whether it is housing.

There are certain standards that we don't allow people to live under. And in this case many people had policies where they're paying 150 bucks a month, but they had $5,000 deductibles and they could only see a doctor once or twice a year.

SCHLAPP: But it's their choice. And again, we're leading to higher premiums and the fact that these policies are being canceled and people really believed the president when he said you can keep your health care plan, which is obviously not the case.

WHITFIELD: All right. We'll leave it there. Marc Lamont Hill and Mercedes Schlapp, thanks so much. We'll have you back. Appreciate it.

HILL: Absolutely.

SCHLAPP: Great. Thank you.

WHITFIELD: All right, you know "PARTS UNKNOWN." Well, tomorrow, another edition of "Parts Unknown" with Anthony Bourdain. He'll be visiting Tokyo. He says visiting the city changes the way you see the world. And I got a chance to visit with him about his very unique Tokyo experience.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ANTHONY BOURDAIN, CNN HOST, PARTS UNKNOWN: Well, I should tell you, Fred, we'll probably be using a parental advisory on that episode.

WHITFIELD: Really?

BOURDAIN: I've long been fascinated by the sort of subterranean repressed -- what seemed to us in the west, very strange sexual lives and obsessions in Japan. And to draw a line between the sort of fetishism and Anime and Otaku or nerd culture, to draw a direct line between that and the really incredible excellence in food. It is, to put this delicately, it is a detail-oriented country and with often with a very tight focus. And I think we try to draw a direct line from their sex lives to the excellence of their food.

WHITFIELD: What's the next country that you want stamped in your passport and you want to take us along with you?

BOURDAIN: I'd like to see Iran very much. I've heard extraordinary things. I've heard, you know, nice people. A government that can have varying opinions on their policies for sure, dodgy times, but I hear the food is awesome. And I would like to -- it's a place I'd like to learn about. I mean, I guess that's as simple as I could put it. It's a place I know very little about. It's a place about which many things have been said. I'd like to see for myself.

WHITFIELD: Well, I think many of us would like to go along with you by way of your "Parts Unknown." So, when that happens, we'll be along for the ride as well.

Anthony Bourdain, thanks so much. Good to see you. Congrats on yet another season.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: All right, Anthony Bourdain. OK. So perhaps Iran next, but for now it's Tokyo tomorrow. Anthony Bourdain's "PARTS UNKNOWN" 9:00 eastern time.

All right, if you're tired of listening to safety instructions on flights, you might welcome a new safety video on virgin Atlantic flights. It includes singing flight staff, a twin rapper and all the usual safety messages, but all set to music.

Let's watch together.

(VIDEO CLIP PLAYING)

WHITFIELD: Well, hopefully in the end that really does make everyone safer because after all, that is the objective.

We'll have much more of the NEWSROOM right after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: All right, sounds like something out of a Hollywood movie. An angry gun-toting talk show host breaks into his wife's love nest and discovers that she's having an affair with the former football star. And surprisingly, it's the true story of the late-night "Tonight Show" host, Johnny Carson. His former lawyer and longtime confidante, Henry Bushkin, dishes on Carson in a new tell-all book, even calling the late-night star cold.

Here's Nischelle Turner.

NISCHELLE TURNER, CNN ENTERTAINMENT CORRESPONDENT: Hey, Fred.

You know, millions of people watched Johnny Carson during his three- decade run on "The Tonight Show," but he was a really private man. And not many folks got to know what he was really like off camera. Well, that is all about to change because one of Carson's closest associates has written a new best-selling book that's pulled back the curtain on the late-night king's private life.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Here's Johnny!

TURNER (voice-over): And here's a side of Johnny you may not have seen before, thanks to longtime lawyer and confidante, Henry Bushkin.

HENRY BUSHKIN, AUTHOR, JOHNNY CARSON: Johnny off screen was not the guy on television.

TURNER (voice-over): According to Bushkin, Johnny was far edgier than the happy host he played on TV.

BUSHKIN: He self-described himself as having an unhappy personality. So you dealt with it. And you cheered him up as best you can.

TURNER (voice-over): The Carson described in the book is sometimes cold and cruel. A moody guy with deep mommy issues and unable to express love because of them.

BUSHKIN: Anybody who knew him knew that at the root of it was his mother because she was what I describe as Midwestern gothic, cold, aloof. The complete inability to give affection or give compliments. And so that fed down to Johnny.

TURNER (voice-over): The memoir is filled with juicy stories. Like the time a gun-toting Carson broke into the apartment his wife was using for her affair with football great Frank Gifford. Or when Johnny had to go into hiding after angering a New York mobster.

BUSHKIN: In the late '60s he and Ed McMahon were out practically every night after the show, drinking, pretty well hanging out at a place called Chili's. And one night Johnny tried to pick up the wrong young lady at Chili's who happened to be the wife of a well-known mob figure at the time. That led to Johnny getting spirited out of the place. And the husband coming into the joint several minutes later, actually. And Johnny hid out at home for three days until NBC got the boys to call the hit off, if you will.

TURNER (voice-over): Bushkin who had a falling out with Carson in the '80s knows some fans will consider his account a betrayal of the friendship. BUSHKIN: If you consider it a betrayal to learn how he was and how I was and how life was and how television was and how Las Vegas -- fine. Feel that I've betrayed him, but I'm not betraying him. I'm just telling you what happened. And whatever I've said doesn't take away his genius.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

TURNER: Yes, genius indeed. Carson still considered one of the best, if not the best late-night host, ever. Bushkin says he hopes the book will renew interest in Johnny, especially with younger audiences -- Fred.

WHITFIELD: All right. Thanks so much, Nischelle Turner.

All right, this weekend, 47 million Americans will be struggling to eat. The government has cut the federal food stamp program, and now food banks are worried that they may not be able to fill the gap. We'll talk with the head of the New York food bank coming up.

But first, driving 200 miles per hour, well, it's not easy, especially just a few inches there other cars. But one driver has to deal with a little bit more.

Here's Dr. Sanjay Gupta introducing us to a young man whose life has changed dramatically in this week's "HUMAN FACTOR."

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Green, green, green.

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: 20-year-old Ryan Reid is living his dream.

RYAN REID, RACE CAR DRIVER: I've been a race car driver since I was 4-years-old.

GUPTA: He was just 17 when one of NASCAR's top drivers recruited him for his development team.

REID: It was just like everything was falling into place in my life, and nothing could stop me.

GUPTA: But something did.

REID: I remember being thirsty a lot. I was using the bathroom extremely frequently, losing a lot of weight.

GUPTA: One of the first things his doctors checked, his blood sugar. Reed was diagnosed with type one diabetes.

REID: They were like no, Ryan, you'll never race again.

GUPTA: Reed found a doctor willing to help him get back on the track.

There had been adjustments. A new diet, sensor has been wired into his abdomen that transmits his readings. There's a continuous glucose monitor mounted to the dash inside his race car. That allows him to check his blood sugar during the race. And his fire suit now sports a bull's-eye.

REID: We have a guy trained on the pit crew to reach into the window to give me an insulin shot should I need it.

GUPTA: Reid made the debut at NASCAR's second biggest series, April 26th. And just last month, he finished in the top ten.

Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN, reporting.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

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ANNOUNCER: This is CNN breaking news.

WHITFIELD: Welcome back to the NEWSROOM. New pictures right now to share with you from terminal three at LAX, one day after the deadly shooting. There are tarps up as far as we know right now what appears to be the security checkpoint where the TSA officer was killed. There's also crime scene still across the door, crime scene tape and placards up on the doors.

The airport is open but no flights are leaving from terminal three and people have also been picking up their bags that they left behind when they evacuated yesterday. Terminal three is open for people to come pick up their belongings that may have been left yesterday but no flights in and out of terminal three as yet.

All right, Millions of Americans who depend on food stamps are having to go with less. The government has cut $5 billion from the program, and that means those who get assistance will get about $35 less per month. So, will food banks be able to fill the gap left by this federal cut?

We're joined now by Margarette Purvis, the president and CEO of the food bank of New York City. Good to see you.

MARGARETTE PURVIS, PRESIDENT, FOOD BANK FOR NEW YORK CITY: Hi, Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: Well, do you feel like you're going to be able to keep up with the demand especially as we enter this, you know, the cold months which is usually when a lot of food banks see more people in greater need?

PURVIS: Absolutely. No is the simple answer. You know, $5 billion in cuts actually represents the national budget for all charities involved in ending hunger across the country. It is not possible to make it up. What we are trying to do obviously is at least try to make sure that this thanksgiving is not as bad as it's basically been designed to be.

WHITFIELD: Well, how do you do that? PURVIS: Well, we've made sure that we've reached out to all of our soup kitchens and pantries to have them expect a longer line. Many of them have already made decisions related to, you know, we try to do turkeys, I mean, you know, thanksgiving is just like every other day that we try to make sure has dignity and try to hope that poverty doesn't steal the last part of it. But this year, not as many turkeys, people are doing things like roasters, doing more fillings and maybe not doing as much protein so we can have more to stretch to more families.

WHITFIELD: So the federal money that ran out yesterday was part of the stimulus money from 2009. Congress hasn't replaced it, nor does it look like it might happen. So, can you find of put in terms for us what do these food stamps mean for people? And if they are unable to get the food stamp equivalent to, you know, over $30 a month, or at least $30 less they're going to be getting this month, give us an idea of what people are able to count on from food banks such as yours, and who some of these people are. Because I think people don't have a really clear picture of who some benefactors are of food banks.

PURVIS: That's an excellent question, Fredricka.

You know, I'm going to start off with saying, I mean, obviously, we know that there is a lot of them are children. I mean, 91 percent of those who receive food stamps are actually living below the poverty line. Eighty percent of people who received food stamps are women and children, whether they be women who are the mothers of children or women who are seniors.

But I want to be clear about something when we talk about the beneficiaries. You know, the $5 billion would be those people I just described. But we must be clear. $5 billion in food stamps has a multiplier effect. Meaning that the way it shows up inside communities is more like $10 billion. So, grocery store call food stamps revenue. Farmers call food stamps income. And more than 60,000 people call these cuts or maybe used to call these cuts jobs. So, be clear, there are actually way more beneficiaries who are not receiving SNAP than the actual 47 million. I don't think that we've actually really called this out the way it should have been.

WHITFIELD: So, while $47 million is a huge number you are telling us we need to multiply it a few times because the number, the impact is even greater. Well, of course, we're going to wish you the best as you try to tackle this. We know an awful lot of people are counting on you and of other food banks across the country, and it also means that this season of giving is even bigger. You're going to need --

PURVIS: Absolutely.

WHITFIELD: -- and rely on a whole lot more people who are going to be willing to make donations to so many people still in need.

Margarette Purvis, thanks so much. Appreciate your time from New York.

All right, here's a question for you. How can you tell if someone is lying? Well, find out. Don Lemon is going to uncover what one study found and I'm actually not lying about that. He is coming up next in the NEWSROOM right after this.

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WHITFIELD: Allegations that the NSA was spying on the German Chancellor Angela Merkel has severely shaken the relationship between the U.S. and Germany. Our Fareed Zakaria asked Michael Hayden, former director of the NSA, who could have authorized such a mission?

FAREED ZAKARIA, CNN HOST, FAREED ZAKARIA GPS: Fredricka, the revelations about the NSA spying have embarrassed Washington but who is responsible? I had a chance to speak with someone who actually ran the NSA as well as the CIA, Michael Hayden. Listen in. I asked him who could give the order to spy on the leader of a friendly country.

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MICHAEL HAYDEN, FORMER NSA DIRECTOR: What you get are very specific intelligence requirements from our national command authority, and they are laid out to the intelligence community and then the intelligence community goes forward and lays out a collection plan the best way to get that very needed information.

Occasionally, Fareed, occasionally, what you have is political guidance kind of being placed on top of your operational planning. I had political guidance while I was director of NSA. I had targets. I had legitimate needs, but I was told frankly back off, that target's too sensitive. I don't want you doing that at this time for this purpose.

ZAKARIA: Does that mean that somebody in the White House very high up would have had to say in 2002, so this is the George W. Bush White House, somebody would have had to say, it is OK to spy on the chancellor of Germany, that the NSA would not have done that without such authorization?

HAYDEN: No. And I don't want to talk about anything specific, Fareed. I'm just not able to do that. But I would say that the political guidance was very often by exception. But there was a broad understanding that of the things you were being tasked to do, you would be led to certain kinds of activities.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ZAKARIA: So, you see, Hayden, was very frank. You'll have to watch my show to catch it all, "GPS, THE GLOBAL PUBLIC SQUARE" -- Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: We'll be watching, 10:00 a.m. eastern time.

That's so much, Fareed.

All that is going to do it for me, I'm Fredricka Whitfield. Much more of the NEWSROOM straight ahead with Don Lemon in New York.

So, Don, you are talking about lying today? DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: I don't know what you're talking about. That's something I never do. No lie, I never lie, ever. No, I'm serious. I never lie.

WHITFIELD: OK.

LEMON: Yes.

WHITFIELD: OK!

LEMON: And that's the truth.

WHITFIELD: I'll leave it at that. I wouldn't dare challenge you with something like that on the air, my buddy.

LEMON: I'll see you tomorrow.

WHITFIELD: All right. Have a good one.