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Arctic Temps Blast Midwest, East Coast; Rainstorm Threatens Typhoon-Ravaged Philippines; Dolphins Owner Speaking Out; Gas Prices Falling Below $3/Gallon; SeaWorld Appeals OSHA Rule; Obamacare Enrollment Falls Short
Aired November 12, 2013 - 09:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning. Thanks so much.
"NEWSROOM" starts now.
Happening now in the "NEWSROOM", marines on the ground, a country in crisis --
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Even though we are not sure that it is clean and safe, we still drink for it, because we need to survive.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: CNN on the ground like no other network, with Americans providing critical, vital aid.
Also, booing the mayor.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I would like to invite to the podium, his worship, Mayor Rob Ford.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: Toronto's Rob Ford hearing from his city.
Plus, $3 a gallon for gas? It's coming to a station near you.
Also --
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JAY CARNEY, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: Take it from me. They'll be low in October.
COSTELLO: You said it, Jay Carney. Obama enrollees, their goal by the end of the month is 800,000. Well, guess how many they have now.
KATHLEEN SEBELIUS, HHS SECRETARY: I can tell you our early enrollment numbers are going to be very low. (END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: Nowhere near it.
The dolphins sink. And 11-12-13 is today, the day to walk down the aisle? Or is it just another Tuesday?
You're live in the CNN NEWSROOM.
Good morning. I'm Carol Costello. Thank you so much for joining me. Get ready to bundle up. An arctic blast is plunging south and many of the big cities along the East Coast will see their first snowfall of the season. This is what it looks like this morning in Pittsburgh, about an inch of snow.
On to Detroit now where they also got, you know, in on the snow action, slick roads and snow caused accidents on the roadways.
Snow in November doesn't sound all that unusual but, hey, here in Atlanta, it will drop into the low to mid-20s tonight. Trust me, the south is not used to that. I don't think people even know how to dress for that kind of weather, Indra Petersons.
(LAUGHTER)
Tell us more, if you must.
INDRA PETERSONS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: You know, I'm not from the south. And I'm from California. So I'm learning along with the rest of you. OK? And we already have the flurries here. You can actually see the band out making its way through right around New York, even through New England. We're seeing just these little flurries. Pretty easy, early for the season. You can actually see how many people have a chance at very minimal dusting. A lot of it melting even when it hits the ground.
But, as you mentioned, yes, we're trying to even see some of this as far as the south today. So unbelievable. That is a good month early before you see those flurries. So where are going to be seeing the heavier stuff, of course? Right off the lakes, looking at more of those lake-effect bands. Even as highs up to about seven inches in those regions.
But the big stories, of course, is as that front goes through, we're going to be talking about first rain switching to snow, which we've already seen early this morning. And then behind it, as it exits off, you know, we're not going to be looking for any more rain or snow anymore but really the cold and dry air.
And it's going to stick around for some time. That huge arctic high that started to bring those cool temperatures in the Midwest. Well, today, it has expanded. Yes, not only to the northeast but even down to you, Carol, into the south.
Look at these temperatures. I mean, these are your highs for today. Dallas, even Dallas in Texas, high today 48 degrees. In Nashville, just into the 40s. New York City into the 30s and through tomorrow it doesn't get much better. New York City still staying at 40. So you have a good 15, 20 degrees below normal.
The big thing is we all want to have a lot of fun with this. I know it's the first snowfall for so many of us. Especially people in the south. If you've got some good stuff, send it over to ireport.com and we will kind of show on air.
(LAUGHTER)
COSTELLO: Yes.
PETERSONS: So, Carol, unbelievable. Stay warm. If you're like me, you probably just have flip-flops.
COSTELLO: Well, that happy little penguin makes everything better.
PETERSONS: Right.
(LAUGHTER)
COSTELLO: Exactly. Thank you, Indra.
Weather also a concern in the Philippines this morning where a new tropical rainstorm is complicating relief efforts for survivors of that deadly typhoon. Nearly four inches of rain has fallen in some areas, slowing down flights carrying much-needed aid to areas wiped out by the storm. And on the ground the situation isn't much better. Power outages, downed trees, and piles of debris clogging the roadways.
Also on the roads, displaced residents desperate to escape. UNICEF estimates that more than 800,000 people have been forced from their homes, while the Philippines government says another two million need food.
Officials tell CNN the situation is growing increasingly desperate.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TOMODO HOZUMI, UNICEF REPRESENTATIVE: The situation on the ground is very serious. Their immediate needs include food, shelter, clean water, and sanitation.
MARTIN ROMUALDEZ, PHILIPPINE CONGRESSMAN: I believe an air drop in these various municipalities is what's in order because we can't wait. People have gone on with almost three days without any clean water, food and medication. People are getting desperate.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: Paula Hancocks is in Tacloban this morning.
Good morning.
PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol. Well, it is a desperate situation here. And it's not improving as quickly as you might think. There's not really an organized relief effort at this point. It seems still fairly chaotic. We are seeing supplies coming in to the Tacloban airport here. We know that the U.S. Marines are involved as well. They brought in some C-130s, some helicopters and forklift trucks, and what you really need to try to disseminate these -- the food, the water, the medicine among the people who need it.
But it still doesn't seem to be getting to everyone. It still seems a very slow process. And we are coming to the end of day four after this storm. So there is, obviously, anger among some of the survivors that they haven't been helped out as quickly as they had hoped. Many of them have actually walked for hours through the devastation and made their way here to the airport to try and find out what they can do here, can they get food and water here? The military has been giving it out.
And thousands of people are actually coming with as much as they can carry to get out of the country -- out of this city. They want to leave the devastation behind -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Paula Hancocks, reporting live this morning from the Philippines.
For more on how you can help the survivors of this disaster, please visit CNN.com/impact.
A Michigan state trooper lucky to be alive this morning after tumbling over a guardrail while chasing a suspect. And the whole thing caught on tape.
Check this out. The suspect made a run for it as police cars converge. Hopefully you'll see this soon. He leaped over the guardrail with the trooper following in hot pursuit. Here it comes. There you see him going over the guardrail. Both fell about 30 feet.
The trooper is recovering at home. The suspect is in prison for a probation violation.
Think being a Harlem Globetrotter is all fun and games? Player Bull Bullard was showing off his exceptional moves during a game in Honduras, but -- the goalpost couldn't handle it and toppled over on top of him. Bullard took a nasty hit on his forehead but he was able to walk off the court to a standing ovation.
Miami Dolphins owner Stephen Ross making his first public comments since Jonathan Martin left the team and the NFL launched a bullying investigation. Saying he wants to get to the facts, Ross plans to meet Martin tomorrow.
Dolphins lost to the winless Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Monday Night Football, obviously missing two starters on the offensive line because Miami looked pretty -- well, they look pretty bad.
Richie Incognito remains suspended as you know. ESPN reports that Martin will probably not play again this season. The source says Martin wants to return to the NFL, not just -- just not with the Dolphins.
CNN's Joe Carter is in Tampa with more on that dreadful Monday night game.
Good morning.
JOE CARTER, CNN SPORTS CORRESPONDENT: Hi. Good morning, Carol. You know, you said that Jonathan Martin plans to meet face-to-face with the Dolphins' owner Stephen Ross. This is -- this is going to be a huge moment when those two meet tomorrow because we now know that this will be the first person within the Dolphins' organization that will speak face-to-face with Jonathan Martin and find out exactly what prompted him to abruptly leave the team after being with them for over a year and a half.
So we'll get a lot more details as to how the Dolphins plan to move forward, obviously, with their coaching staff, their front office personnel and player personnel once those two meet. But, you know, the owner, who is so embarrassed, so appalled by what's gone on the past couple of weeks that he felt it necessary to share his side of the story last night in a press conference and basically promised change for the Miami culture.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And a touchdown for Donald Penn.
CARTER (voice-over): As the saga around the Miami Dolphins continues to unfold, the team's owner, Stephen Ross, is the latest to speak out. The billionaire owner appeared embarrassed by the allegations surrounding his team.
STEPHEN ROSS, MIAMI DOLPHINS OWNER: What's gone on is really something, you know, couldn't have been a worst nightmare.
CARTER: Before Jonathan Martin abruptly left the team on October 28th, Ross said he was unaware of any bullying inside the Dolphins organization.
ROSS: I never heard that. Coach didn't hear it. Nobody heard that.
CARTER: And when he finally saw the vulgar and threatening messages from Richie Incognito to Martin, it raised immediate concern.
ROSS: I was appalled. I think anybody would be appalled. I didn't realize people would talk or text or, you know, speak that way.
CARTER: In the team's first game without Incognito and Martin, the Dolphins furthered an already embarrassing week by losing to the last- place Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Monday Night Football.
RYAN TANNEHILL, MIAMI DOLPHIN QUARTERBACK: The more and more adversity hits you in the face, you've got to be able to step up and face it, and be able to handle it. You know, life is full of adversity. You know, not everyone deals with a situation like this.
MIKE POUNCE, MIAMI DOLPHINS CENTER: We're here to play football. The distractions are outside. It was external, not internal.
CARTER: While everyone involved is still trying to figure out exactly what really happened between Martin and the Dolphins, the team's owner made it very clear that change is coming.
ROSS: There will not be any racial slurs or harassing or bullying in that -- in that workplace, in that locker room and outside the locker room.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CARTER: Ross was very adamant, Carol, that he wants more checks and balances in place so that something like this never happens again. Except we don't know exactly what happened until both sides their story -- Carol.
COSTELLO: That's the true story. Joe Carter, many thanks to you.
All right. Are you sitting down? Put the coffee cup on the table or the breakfast to the side for just a second. Because do you know what time it is? It's 9:10 on 11-12-13.
Come on, we had to do it. It's a sequential miracle, a once-in-a- lifetime type stuff. And by once-in-a-lifetime, I mean next year when it will be 10:11 on 12-13-14. OK, stop with the jokes because people are taking this quite seriously. "USA Today" is reporting thousands of people are getting married because sequential in their minds means luck. To us, to you, maybe it just means Tuesday.
9:10, 11-12-13. Let's revel in it for just one more second, shall we? OK. That's enough.
Still to come in the NEWSROOM, more numbers of the very best kind. Filling up at the gas pump is costing you a little less than it did a week ago. Up next, what's behind the drop in prices and why more and more of us are seeing gas worth $3 a gallon or less.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: Checking our top stories at 14 minutes past the hour.
Toronto city council meets tomorrow to discuss what to do about Mayor Rob Ford. At least one council member is expected to introduce a motion calling on Ford to take a leave of absence. It's the latest fallout from the mayor's stunning admission that he smoked crack cocaine and a wild video of Ford ranting while apparently under the influence.
Despite his troubles, Ford says he ain't going anywhere. That prompted this reaction yesterday when Ford was introduced at an event honoring veterans.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I would like to invite to the podium, his worship, Mayor Rob Ford. (END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: Ugly. Toronto's Annual Santa Claus Parade is Sunday. It is not clear yet what role, if any, Ford will have. Last week his office said the mayor would not march, as he has for the last three years, and then later a spokesperson said Ford would, in fact, be participating.
A Florida teenager used a bow and arrow to protect herself against an intruder. The girl says she got out of bed to unlock the door, thinking it was her mom. That's when this 54-year-old woman walked in and refused to leave. The teen threatened her with a weapon but instead of using it, she locked herself in her room and called police. The suspect now faces trespassing charges.
The lawyers for Boston bombing suspect Dzhokhar Tsarnaev are headed to court today. They hope to get a judge to ease restrictions as he awaits trial. He is not allowed to watch television, listen to the radio or pray with other inmates. The ACLU wanted to argue on Tsarnaev, saying the strict conditions threaten his right to a fair trial, but the judge will not allow the ACLU's participation.
Wal-Mart is the latest retail giant to kickoff Black Friday than usual this year. The company will open its doors at 6:00 p.m. Eastern Thanksgiving night. Early shoppers will be given wrist bands so they can brows the store until sales begin. Other stores opening include Kmart, Toys 'R" Us and Best Buy.
There was a time when $3 a gallon for gas was considered obscenely high. You know, like three years ago. Get ready to party like it's 2010. Gas prices have been dropping.
So, Christine Romans, how low will they go?
CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN CHIEF BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Well, I have a chart to show you, my dear. I mean, you've seen them falling. Last year, they were $3.29 on average. Already you're seeing potentially half the states could have below $3 gas by Christmas, that's according to Gas Buddy. That's their projection of how low gas prices could go.
Why? Because crude oil prices have been dropping, $94 a barrel for a gallon of crude. You've seen crude oil prices continue to come down. Crude is about almost two-thirds of what goes into the price of gas. So, when you have crude oil prices are coming down, Carol, that's a very big factor for lower gas prices.
COSTELLO: Best news I heard all day. Christine Romans, thank you so much.
ROMANS: You're welcome.
COSTELLO: Still to come in the NEWSROOM: SeaWorld fights back. A federal ban on swimming with killer whales threatens to kill the theme park. We'll explain what's at stake, just ahead.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) COSTELLO: It's been three years since the SeaWorld trainer, Dawn Brancheau, was killed by a killer whale at SeaWorld. Since that time, OSHA has forbidden trainers to be in the water with killer whales, even if they're performing. But a hearing now underway in Washington could change that.
It's an issue dramatically depicted "Black Fish."
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He does a (INAUDIBLE). Then he goes back in.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I feel sad for Tilikum.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Not to be a savage. He's not killing because he's crazy. He's not killing because he doesn't know what he's doing. He's killing because he's frustrated and he's got --
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: CNN's Martin Savidge explains why today's hearing could be a make or break moment for SeaWorld.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MARTIN SAVIDGE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The 2010 death of veteran SeaWorld trainer Dawn Brancheau brought an end to breathtaking performances like these. Brancheau was mauled by the killer whale she was working with. She was the third death linked to the same killer whale.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: All of a sudden, the whale just latched to her and took her under.
SAVIDGE: The Occupational Safety Health Administration ultimately fined SeaWorld $12,000. That's a drop in the whale pool for a company that pulls in $1.5 billion a year.
But OSHA also prohibited sea world trainers from getting into the water with its killer whales. That was a showstopper.
So, SeaWorld's appealing. And the case centers on something called the General Duty Clause, which essentially says employers have to provide a workplace free from recognized hazards.
(on camera): A known hazard .like this is kind of the key here.
BENJAMIN BRIGGS, LABOR & EMPLOYMENT ATTORNEY: It really is, yes.
SAVIDGE (voice-over): Benjamin Briggs has argued corporate appeals to OSHA rulings. He believed SeaWorld will say interaction between humans and killer whales is essential to their business.
In other words, part of the magic.
(on camera): Is that a legitimate argument? BRIGGS: I think it is a legitimate argument. Again, they're taking the position that this isn't just the way that we do work. It's what we're -- it's our product.
SAVIDGE (voice-over): SeaWorld says it's gone to great lengths to control the risks to its trainers but can't eliminate the danger completely and shouldn't have to. Saying OSHA has no more right to impede SeaWorld's business any more than they could demand speed limits for NASCAR.
Martin Savidge, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COSTELLO: We'll keep you posted.
Still to come in the NEWSROOM: White House, we have a problem. We're talking Obamacare enrollment. What the president wants and what the president is getting are two very different things.
Jim Acosta is at the White House today.
JIM ACOSTA, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Carol. That's right. Obama care numbers are trickling out. No surprise, they are low. More in just a moment.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: Good morning. I'm Carol Costello. Thanks so much for joining me.
Just when you thought things couldn't get any worse for Obamacare, out comes a new report by "The Wall Street Journal" that says fewer than 50,000 people have enrolled through the federal health care Web site. In other words, just 10 percent of the administration's targeted goal for the first month of enrollment. That did not escape late-night TV.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JAY LENO, COMEDIAN: A new record was set today, 100 meters set by Senate Democrats running away from Obamacare. Oh my God! Not looking good. Man, this is -- yes, not looking good.
President Obama said he is sorry that some Americans have lost their existing health coverage due to Obamacare. You know, I think he's getting a little desperate. Today, he said if you like your complete lack of coverage, you can complete your complete lack of coverage.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: And senior White House correspondent Jim Acosta live at the White House this morning.
Hi, Jim.
ACOSTA: Good morning, Carol. Senior administration officials say they aren't ready to confirm those numbers in "The Wall Street Journal" report. But what they are saying openly and repeatedly is that these numbers will be very low.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ACOSTA (voice-over): It's the number that has all of Washington on the edge of their seats. Just how many Americans have signed up for Obamacare in October, the first month of enrollment?
JAY CARNEY, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: Take it from me. They'll be low in October.
ACOSTA: Administration officials have cautioned, don't get too excited.
KATHLEEN SEBELIUS, HHS SECRETARY: I can tell you our early enrollment numbers will be very low.
ACOSTA: In the insurance market places run by the federal government, "The Wall Street Journal" reports, roughly 50,000 people signed up in October. CNN estimates another 60,000 have enrolled in the marketplaces run by states, which means the troubled program has a lot of catching up to do to meet the administration's target of 800,000 by the end of November.
A health and human services spokeswoman says the health department cannot confirm these numbers. "We've always anticipated that initial enrollment numbers would be low and increase over time.
The main culprit? The bug-riddled Obamacare Web site -- a problem that the president has said he would take care of himself if he could.
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I wanted to go in and fix it myself, but I don't write code, so --
ACOSTA: Beside the site's technical problems, there were apparently security concerns with Healthcare.gov before its launch. This internal Obamacare memo dated September 3rd released by House Republicans reveals administration officials were worried about the possibility that the Web site's security controls are ineffective.
But that problem was never shared with Henry Chao, at top official at the agency developing the site. Chao was asked by House Oversight Committee staffers, "You were being excluded from finding out about significant problems with security?" Chao replied, "It is disturbing."
