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Son of State Senator Was Turned Away From Psychiatric Hospital; FAA to Test Pilots, Others for Sleep Apnea; CNN.com Documents Life at Airport; Congressman Radel Pleads to Coke Possession; "Survivor's" Probst Impacted by Typhoon; President Obama Sings; Michelle Obama Jokes; George W. Bush Paints Leno Portrait

Aired November 20, 2013 - 15:30   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BROOKE BALDWIN, CNN ANCHOR: Bottom of the hour, I'm Brooke Baldwin, live today in Washington, D.C.

And I want to take you to Virginia, not too far away here, where this state senator was stabbed repeatedly in the head and the chest.

Creigh Deeds is showing signs of a full recovery. His condition, we have now learned here at CNN, has been upgraded to good.

But this is just one day after police say his son, Gus, attempted a murder -suicide, the 24-year-old eventually dying of what police believe was a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CORINNE GELLER, VIRGINIA STATE POLICE: Based on the evidence we have right now, we are looking into this as an attempted murder and suicide.

Now, this is not an absolute determination because it's still very much an ongoing investigation.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: Gus Deeds was often seen at his father's side, out and about in the campaign trail. This is him there in the blue shirt.

Gus was a music major, according to reports, really a stellar student. He had been attending the College of William and Mary, but the school says that last month, he left the college.

The newspaper, "The Richmond Times Dispatch," is also reporting that Gus Deeds was sent for a mental health evaluation under what's called a emergency custody order.

But the paper reports he was released this past Monday, one day before this alleged altercation.

The reason? According to the newspaper, no psychiatric beds could be found for him. And according to "The Washington Post," two hospitals in the area say they did have beds, but never received a call.

Joining me now, two guests here, Doris Fuller, executive director of the treatment advocacy center -- so, welcome back to you, Doris -- and also Jeff Gardere, clinical and forensic psychologist.

And it's a tragic story all the way around. This was one of my first questions when I first started reading about this, because you have this report from the Washington post, suggesting this massive breakdown in the system.

Doris, to you, first, put this in perspective. Is this a rarity to not have hospital beds? Is this a one time thing, or does this happen more than we realize?

DORIS FULLER, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, TREATMENT ADVOCACY CENTER: It happens all the time, Brooke.

We live in a country where we have 7.7 million people who have severe mental illness. About half of them are in treatment at any given time. The other half are not.

We have 43,000 public hospital beds for people in psychiatric crisis. We have been eliminating them for 50 years. There's not enough today. It happens every day.

We probably wouldn't even be talking about this if it hadn't been for senator deeds, because somewhere in America, every day, multiple times a day, someone who's in crisis and needs a hospital bed doesn't get a hospital bed.

BALDWIN: And the state of Virginia, specifically, Jeff Gardere, you say, is among one of the worst states when it comes to mental health resources. How bad is it and why?

JEFF GARDERE, CLINICAL PYSCHOLOGIST: Yes, well, from what we're hearing, Virginia's had its highest suicide rate in the past 13 years. It has a very high suicide rate.

Two reasons have been given. One is that, of course, the poverty rate and unemployment in Virginia, and the stress that goes along with that. But the other part of it is inadequate mental health resources.

We know this happens all over the nation. It seems to be a bad problem in Virginia right now.

And what we're hearing, that the hospital said, yes, they did have some beds. The people who evaluated Gus said they didn't, weren't able to find beds.

So, again, you see a breakdown of the mental health system.

BALDWIN: So, with the breakdown, and Doris, you and I, we dedicated half an hour on this show to talking specifically about mental health in America. And, you know, you're right. We probably wouldn't be talking about this if it didn't relate to the fact that it was a state senator involved.

But what's at the top of the list in terms of what needs to change? What needs to improve?

FULLER: Well, having more beds is a great place to start.

You know, when people are -- the supreme irony here is, when Senator Deeds himself was in crisis because he had been stabbed, there was no problem finding a bed, because we have beds for people with medical problems.

But we don't value having beds for people with psychiatric problems. We still don't know a lot --

BALDWIN: How do we get those beds?

FULLER: Pardon?

BALDWIN: So how do we get those beds?

FULLER: How we get those -- we need different public policies. We need to have public policies that recognize we need the beds, and we need to restore -- first of all, we could stop closing them.

We have been closing beds for 50 years. So, let's stop right now closing beds.

Then let's look for a way to replace them. We don't necessarily need to go out and rebuild the huge hospitals that were closed.

But we need to have acute crisis facilities that are accessible to people who are in crisis.

BALDWIN: Jeff Gardere, 30 seconds. What's your one suggestion? What's need to change?

GARDERE: We need to see mental health have parity with all the other medical issues.

Even in the medical schools, we need to step it up as far as teaching behavioral medicine to our doctors so they can better treat our kids and our citizens.

And that's what we do at my medical school, Touro College of Osteopathic Medicine. Behavioral medicine is required of all our doctors.

BALDWIN: So incredibly important. Doris, Jeff, thank you so much.

Coming up, Congressman Trey Radel in court today for possession of cocaine. The Republican representative said, quite frankly, he had hit rock bottom. He asked for forgiveness today, but will he face jail time? And new regulations for pilots and air traffic controllers, why a pilot's weight may actually play a role in flight safety. We'll explain that, coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: Overweight airline pilots will soon be tested for sleep problems that could threaten passenger safety. This is a major policy change for the FAA.

Overweight pilots and air traffic controllers will soon be tested for sleep apnea. It's a disorder that can trigger excessive sleepiness during the day.

So, back in 2008, a pilot and copilot fell asleep in a flight over Hawaii, overshot the airport. Do you remember that?

Eventually, the plane did land safely. The pilot was later diagnosed with sleep apnea.

Correspondent Rene Marsh joins me here in Washington to explain this change. And, so, first, just explain how is sleep apnea linked specifically to people who are overweight?

RENE MARSH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yeah, so Brooke, the symptoms are loud, chronic snoring. You may even stop breathing for a short amount of time.

And according to the National Institutes of Health, half the people with this condition we're talking about here, they're overweight.

Now, that extra fat tissue around the wall of the windpipe, it makes it really narrow, so that disrupts the breathing while you're sleeping. And, so, essentially, that means you don't get a good night's rest, and, of course, that's a problem if you're flying a plane or if you're an air traffic controller.

So, the FAA's new rule means that pilots or controllers with an body mass index of 40 or more will have to be screened for sleep disorders, and if necessary, they're going to need to get treatment before they get their medical certificate to fly.

So, a BMI of 40 equates to a 5'11" person weighing about 287 pounds.

So, this all really essentially comes down to flying safety. There's a potential of a pilot falling asleep or even lack of concentration.

They say that mild to moderate apnea could be the equivalent of a blood alcohol level of .06-to-.08 percent. In many states, that's the legal definition of intoxication, Brooke.

BALDWIN: So then how are the pilots, how are the industry groups responding to this?

MARSH: Well, it is, as you mentioned, up top, it's a wide-reaching rule. It applies to anyone who flies. That means commercial, non- commercial. And we expect that it could affect some 125,000 of the nation's 600,000 pilots.

So we reached out to a group that represents commercial pilots. At this point, they don't have a response yet.

But a group representing private pilots, they're asking the FAA to rethink this rule. They say there's a lack of evidence as to why these pilots should have to undergo these screenings, Brooke.

BALDWIN: OK, Rene Marsh for us here in Washington. Rene, thank you very much.

Love and loss, new beginnings or just another day at work, the passageway to some of life's biggest moments begins at the airport.

The CNN.com team has a fantastic piece online today. Airport nerds, you know who you are; you have to check this out.

So our guys spent 24 hours at the world's busiest airport. That's Atlanta's Hartsfield-Jackson International, documenting the lives of the people working and living and just passing on through to their final destinations.

Here's a sneak peek.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm always going. I'm always going.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Look at my baby.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Hello, mother.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Seventeen-fifty-seven, I'm in route to 58.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The translator told us last night, she woke up and her eye was black.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We get to play with explosives.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The amount of that we receive is very minimal. Most people are very compliant.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: She takes one step, I need to take two.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: "ATL24," and so, with me now with a preview of this incredible digital piece, CNN.com producer Jamie Gumbrecht.

Jamie Gumbrecht, congratulations. This is an amazing, amazing piece of reporting.

I know you were up and at them, what, at 6:00 in the morning following the cargo for US Air.

Walk me through what you guys did. JAMIE GUMBRECHT, CNN.COM PRODUCER: We spent a year and a half negotiating to get access to the airport.

And that all launched today, which you can see, we have a really full look at everything going on, from the travelers to the people who make the travel possible, to the people that make it safe.

And this is taking place in a place that has nearly a million takeoffs and landings throughout the entire year.

BALDWIN: So give me some of the scoop, as we figure out this you touch here. Just talk to me.

What are some of the behind-the-scenes nuggets that people like you and I who travel a lot would never know.

GUMBRECHT: The place where I spent most of my time is with the cargo folks at Southwest and UPS.

We also had people who were working with FedEx and with Delta, and we had people who were embedded with every agency that makes it work, that you might not actually spend all that much time with.

So, in the course of that time, we really got to see where a package goes once it's dropped off, and how it gets to an airplane.

We got to see what happens when somebody is arrested when they come right off a plane, what happens when people get to say their last hellos and goodbyes.

It was really powerful and really intense, because there's a lot of pressure everywhere in the airport.

I mean, we think that there's a lot of pressure just to get on an airplane in time. What if you're trying to get everybody's bags there on time? What if you're trying to do it safely?

BALDWIN: I can't imagine.

I just tweeted it out. I think this is just an amazing piece of reporting that you all have done at CNN.com. CNN.com/ATL24, Jamie Gumbrecht, thank you so much.

GUMBRECHT: Thank you.

BALDWIN: Coming up, a United States congressman arrested for possession of cocaine, Trey Radel was in court today.

He apologized. He said, quite frankly, he hit rock bottom.

What happens to him next? We'll tell you, coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: Just 10 months after taking office, Congressman Trey Radel pleaded guilty to buying three-and-a-half grams of cocaine outside of a restaurant here in Washington.

Also, police found a vial of cocaine in his apartment. The judge today sentenced him to one year probation.

The freshman congressman apologized profusely in this courtroom. This is what he told the judge. Quote, "I think in life I've hit a bottom where I realize I need help."

He says he will go to rehab in Florida. In a statement, Radel said that he struggles with alcoholism, which led to what he called an irresponsible choice.

I want to brings in HLN legal analyst, Joey Jackson, in New York. And. Joey Jackson, we first -- we now know all the nitty-gritty details as far as how this bust went down, and interestingly, the congressman was not a target.

JOEY JACKSON, HLN LEGAL ANALYST: Absolutely. What had happened, of course, and you know, Brooke, that law enforcement officials are very aggressive at targeting this whole war on drugs issue.

And this happened to be a major sting in the Washington, D.C., area where several agencies were getting together, the Drug Enforcement Administration, the FBI.

And they were really going after those sellers and other high-level distributors who were distributing this around the area.

Of course, when they learned upon apprehending and arresting one of those buyers that one of his customers was a congressman, they, of course, decided to pursue that and that led to his arrest and subsequent prosecution.

BALDWIN: So we know that this happened in Washington, and we know that sometimes courts here in D.C., they send lower-level addicts to rehab instead of sending them to prison.

If this freshman congressman had gotten busted for cocaine, let's say, in his home state of Florida, do you think he would have faced a tougher punishment rather than just one year?

JACKSON: You know, it's interesting, Brooke, because what happens is, is every jurisdiction is its own sovereign, right?

So every state throughout the country, and, of course, D.C. is the District of Columbia, but every state, of course, has a governor and a legislature, and they develop laws.

Florida has one of the toughest drug laws in the country, and so, you have to wonder whether it did happen in Florida, whether it would have been punishable as a felony.

And, of course, the consequences could have been much more severe in terms of jail time and in terms of him retaining and keeping his seat and everything else.

And so the fact that it happened in D.C. certainly changes the equation here quite a bit.

BALDWIN: One year probation for the congressman.

Joey Jackson, thank you.

JACKSON: A pleasure and a privilege, Brooke.

BALDWIN: Coming up, former President George Bush, he has become, as you can see, you be the judge, an artist since he left office.

We're going to play a clip here as he appeared with Jay Leno last night.

But, first, the Philippines is the location for the current season of CBS's "Survivor."

The scenes on the show stand in stark contrast to the images of just absolute devastation that we have been witnessing since the super typhoon hit the country.

"Survivor" host Jeff Probst shares how the impacts of the typhoon are truly impacting his world.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JEFF PROBST, TV HOST, "SURVIVOR": I've spent over the last two years, eight months in the Philippines, and while we didn't shoot in that exact area, there's such a sense of community in that country, because it's an island. It's an island community.

They don't have much to begin with. It was not uncommon when we would go through the villages to see people in a tin shack with wood on the side and maybe a fire burning inside and a clothesline with a few shirts on it.

That was their daily life. And you wouldn't know anything was not OK, because everybody had this joy in their heart.

But when you take that very little bit they have away and you combine it with all of this disaster, now you have just a major catastrophe and rebuilding that's going to be enormous.

"Survivor" has always been connected to the communities we go to, so we even have our own internal stuff that we're doing with the doctors we've worked with there, who are on -- you know, on the ground and we're helping support them.

You can't help but feel simultaneously helpless and, on the other hand, grateful that you're safe, because this could hit us, it could hit anybody.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: So, I'm here in Washington, D.C., today, So. as we end the show, we thought we would share a little D.C. humor with you, beginning with two different presidents.

The first, President Obama, we know he's got a set of pipes. And as you will see, he is not afraid to use them.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I'm so in love with you -

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: Well, now we know the president's crooning is not just reserved for the podium.

Oh, no, his wife, the first lady, Michelle Obama, says he is always singing at home. In fact, he can't resist those shower acoustics.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MICHELLE OBAMA, FIRST LADY OF THE UNITED STATES: That was pretty awesome. I mean, he's got a pretty good voice.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He does.

M. OBAMA: I always think, my husband's got swag, you know?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes, Michelle.

M. OBAMA: He's got a little swag.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He definitely does.

M. OBAMA: Yeah, no, it was really sweet. But he sings all the time.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Oh.

M. OBAMA: Oh, yeah, he's in the bathroom all the time, just singing. He's always willing to sing.

He's like, do you want me to sing that? Do you want to sing that for you?

But he's got a good voice, so that was very sweet.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: So the president can swing, but the first lady says when it comes to moves on the dance floor, she has those skills.

And now to another president, once the target of, oh, so many late- night laughs, George W. Bush, alongside wife Laura, got the chance to return a couple of barbs last night on "The Tonight Show With Jay Leno," and the conversation turned actually to his recent heart complication.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) JAY LENO, HOST, "THE TONIGHT SHOW": When he had that heart scare, how scary was that?

LAURA BUSH, FORMER FIRST LADY OF THE UNITED STATES: It was scary. It was very scary.

LENO: Yeah. Yeah.

L. BUSH: But --

GEORGE W. BUSH, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I wasn't that scared.

LENO: Was it you had ObamaCare?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: The former president also had a gift for Leno. Take a look. It is a painting he did himself of the comedian.

The former president has taken up painting since leaving the White House.

I'm Brooke Baldwin. Such a pleasure bringing you the news today from the nation's capitol.

Now we go to Jake Tapper. "THE LEAD" starts right now.