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Reuters: Gunmen Shot Dead U.S. Chemistry Teacher as he Exercised at Benghazi School; Hackers Steal Two Million Passwords; Obama: No iPhone for Security Reasons;

Aired December 05, 2013 - 10:30   ET

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

JOMANA KARADSHEH, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: When we were there a few months ago, Carol, the city was empty of Westerners. Attacked by Islamist extremist, many of them was linked to al Qaeda had really driven Westerners out of Benghazi. Just last month there was also in late October there was also an attack on the Swedish consulate there, there are no casualties.

So this is not the first time that we're seeing Westerners being targeted. And thus U.S. government and other Western governments have warned their citizens of going to Benghazi and the areas around it because of the activity of Islamist groups and the fact that the government has no control over these groups. There is no one is being held accountable even in the Benghazi consulate, we have not seen anyone yet being brought to justice.

CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: All right, Jomana thanks so much. We're going to let you go because the phone connection isn't that great.

But Reuters is also reporting this. I've talked to the director of that international school where this American worked. He taught chemistry. I believe he was from Texas the director at the school in Benghazi told Reuters, quote, "He was doing his morning exercise when gunmen just shot him. I don't know why. He was so sweet with everyone."

And they're in disbelief this morning. But again, an American teacher, teaching at an international school in Benghazi, Libya, was shot and killed this morning very near that U.S. consulate that came under attack where the American ambassador and three other Americans were killed. We'll keep you posted when we get new information in.

Checking other "Top Stories" at 31 minutes past, we got blockbuster GDP number this morning. The economy grew 3.6 percent last quarter, higher than estimated. But the number may not be as strong as it sounds. Americans have more money in their pockets but they're spending it at the slowest pace in four years. And companies are stockpiling goods, which may hurt manufacturing next year.

New details about the reach of the NSA spying program: According to documents leaked by former NSA contractor Edward Snowden, the agency gathers nearly five billion records every day that show the whereabouts of cell phones around the world. That means the NSA can track movements of individuals and keep track of anyone they call. Some two million user names and passwords stolen in a massive hack attack that includes Facebook, Gmail and Twitter accounts. A cyber security firm says hackers got the information and then posted it online.

Our chief business correspondent, Christine Romans, is in New York with more on this. Good morning.

CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN CHIEF BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Good morning. Posted it online, Carol, for other hackers to see and use as well. Let me show you the hack attack and the numbers for who was hacked here. It's Facebook, it's Twitter, it's all these names that you know so well.

How do they do it? Key logging virus software secretly infected these people's computers and then it copied to log-in credentials for Web sites and sent them back to the hackers. So it was key logging software. It means they've got the passwords, they probably got personal information. And it's a whole lot of people here. This is a massive hack attack on the heels of another one earlier this fall; 38 million passwords, you remember, were hacked from Adobe.

So there are some -- there are some problems. Malware. There are problems with security. And a lot of people have got to be very careful here and watch to see if anyone has stolen their information or identities.

COSTELLO: So how can people protect themselves?

ROMANS: Well you know the first thing you've got to do is you've got update your anti-virus software. Experts say that's the first -- the first thing you do right away. Download the latest patches for your Internet browsers. I mean it's easy to just kind of log on and keep going on and on.

But you really have to keep up with all of that for internet browsers, for Adobe, for Java. And then I want to show you the most frequently used passwords, Carol. You don't want to have these passwords. Apparently these are the most popular passwords. 123456. 123456789. Password. Admin. Carol, I know yours is Carol. That's not good either. That's not good either. If you had one of these please change it.

COSTELLO: Do it now, leave your TV set and do it now.

ROMANS: And watch carefully. Thanks, Carol.

COSTELLO: Thanks, Christine.

Despite slumps from sales and in stock price there is still one person Blackberry can count on as its customer-in-chief and that will be President Obama. Here is what he had to say back in 2008 shortly after he was elected.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: But I'm still clinging to my Blackberry. They're going to pry it out of my hands.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: Now it turns out there may be a more critical reason why the president cannot leave his Blackberry behind.

Senior White House correspondent Brianna Keilar is in Washington to tell us why. Good morning.

BRIANNA KEILAR, SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol. Well they did not pry that Blackberry out of the President's hands when he came into the White House. But yesterday he actually said while he was pitching the Affordable Care Act to young people that it's for security reasons that he doesn't have an iPhone and that he still has a Blackberry.

That said, he still -- he's has been very loyal to the brand, which he came into the White House using. You could definitely say that it was kind a crack berry for him and continues to be. And it's pretty fascinating because of the fact that you know George W. Bush didn't use e-mail and he certainly was president during the time of hand-held mobile devices. He didn't have one.

But President Obama, that's certainly a tool that he has always had. Now I will say, though, the president doesn't completely shun all Apple products. He uses the iPad quite a bit when he's looking at news even if he is maybe reviewing one of his speeches. And it was also interesting yesterday, Carol.

He talked about how his daughters, Sasha and Malia spend quite a bit of time on their iPhones. And we actually saw that during the inaugural parade just this past January that they were taking photos of the parade, they were taking photos of their parents and even taking some selfies.

But the President, no, he can't have an iPhone, saying it's for security reasons.

COSTELLO: Understand. Brianna Keilar live at the White House this morning.

Still to come in the NEWSROOM the federal budget battle hits your refrigerator. Millions of us could see milk prices double, unless Congress acts soon.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: The least productive Congress in modern history may now hit you where it hurts the most. That would be your wallet. How does $7 bucks per a gallon of milk sound? Ouch right if Congress doesn't pass the farm bill by the end of the year milk prices could rise precipitously.

Zane Asher is in New York at the stocks exchange to tell us why. Good morning. ZANE ASHER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi Carol so if Washington doesn't pass the farm bill, then the farm bill policy would revert back to an old law a 1949 law that requires the government to provide major subsidies to farmers. And at that time the reason why at that time they provided major subsidies is because the dairy industry back then was a lot smaller. And so the government intervened at a much sort of larger scale.

But the problem is that they would buy up milk prices at double the market rate.

So if Congress doesn't come to an agreement by January 1st, that is what you're going to see happen and also some people are saying it might even reduce the quantity of milk available in the stores. So what you're going to see happen is right now the average price of a gallon of milk is $3.47.

You might even see that price rise to as much as $7 a gallon. And it's not just milk prices specifically but anything that contains milk, so butter, cheese, those prices could also rise and also other commodities like corn and soy and wheat and that kind of thing -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Now you would think that maybe lawmakers would have a political motivation to pass the farm bill because if that happens, people are going to be really mad.

ASHER: Yes absolutely. Not only will people be mad but people are saying that you know people might even sort of move away from milk and find alternatives. But listen the bottom line is that a lot of people are saying that Congress is definitely motivated to pass this bill, especially because nobody wants consumers to pay up to $7 a gallon for milk.

But here is the problem. The farm bill in and of itself is made up of so many components the most contentious of which is food stamps. So there's been so much debate in Congress about food stamps. The Senate wants to cut it by, cut to about $4 billion the House wants to cut it by $40 billion. So that is what's holding the up and other of these contentions because so many people rely on food stamps and the numbers has actually risen dramatically since the recession -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Well they're going work, what, four, five days this month? So maybe they'll get it together.

ASHER: Yes we'll see.

COSTELLO: Zain Asher, thanks so much.

ASHER: Of course.

COSTELLO: Still to come in the NEWSROOM it has been 50 years since the Ford Mustang hit the streets of America. And now the company is releasing an entirely new design for the pony car. A live report from New York, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: Checking our top stories at 45 minutes past. Fast food workers at 100 cities across the nation are making their voices heard today fighting for a minimum wage of $15 an hour. That would more than double the current federal minimum wage of $7.25 an hour. President Obama has expressed support to raising the minimum wage to $10 an hour.

Celebrity chef Nigella Lawson is back on the stand today after her shocking admission in court yesterday that she used cocaine. Two former assistants of the celebrity chef are on trial for fraudulently spending more than $1 million.

Miami Heat guard Roger Mason Jr. got robbed while he was out for a late dinner. WSCN is reporting four hooded men entered a Miami restaurant on Sunday. They emptied the cash register and they swiped Mason's two-tone diamond Rolex. Police have now arrested two of the suspects. They're still looking for the other two. And yes, they did manage to recover Mason's watch and his sister's purse.

It is here. After months of speculation and anticipation from fans of the pony car, the newly redesigned Ford Mustang has finally been revealed. Ooh, she's a beauty, isn't she? Ford is promising more power, better fuel economy and to the chagrin of some fans, a four- cylinder engine. CNN's Peter Valdes-Dapena takes a look.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PETER VALDES-DAPENA, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Ford Motor Company has just unveiled an all-new, completely redesigned 2015 Mustang. And this is, without a doubt, one of the most significant Mustangs.

First of all this new mustang has independent rear suspension, instead of the solid rear axel design almost every Mustang has had since 1964.

Second, it will be available with a 300-horsepower turbo charged four- cylinder engine for buyers who want performance and fuel economy. That's not a first but it's the First time that's it's been available on a base model Mustang. And that big 5-liter V-8 will still be available, too and they'll be able to get V-6 engine for cost- conscious buyers. The new Mustang goes on sale in the fall of 2014.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: OK. Peter is live now -- swanky music, first of all. Ooh. How much is the car?

VALDES DAPENA: They haven't announced pricing yet. But you know, probably -- car companies usually don't raise prices much from one model year to another. So it should be similar to a current model year Mustang.

COSTELLO: What would that be? I don't know.

VALDES-DAPENA: $20,000, you know $200,000, low twenties.

COSTELLO: That's a lot.

VALDES-DAPENA: For a base model car.

COSTELLO: But it is a beautiful car. Have you driven it?

VALDES-DAPENA: Of course not. No. This car has only just been revealed. They're still doing some changes to it. There are a few specs that they're not talking about yet. Because they're still doing some major changes, this car will not be ready for journalists to test drive for a little while yet. As I said it's not going on sale until the fall.

COSTELLO: It looks like it's being marketed to young people I would assume.

VALDES-DAPENA: You know, they've told me in the past that the Mustang is the one model that sells to literally just about everybody. Yes, young people like it. They get the low-cost cars. But older buyers who remember the Mustang from when they were kids -- especially empty nest parents, you know, parents whose kids have finally gone off to college, can live their dream and buy the Mustang too. So it's popular with older folks as well.

COSTELLO: It's beautiful. I mean it looks kind of like the old-style Mustang. Not that one in particular but it looks like a throwback to me.

VALDES-DAPENA: It does. Well they've gone with -- they've proved with the last generation Mustang that that retro styling is very, very popular. When they did the last generation, the current car also looks kind of like the original the 60s car. It's been very popular so I think they didn't want to leave that behind. They've updated it significantly. It's smoother. It's rounder. It's a great-looking car but they still want to retain that classic look.

COSTELLO: Well, it's a beautiful car and Peter Valdes-Dapena, thank you so much for showing it to us this morning. We appreciate it.

Bye, Peter. I don't think he could hear me.

Tonight at 9:00 p.m. eastern, CNN will air a powerful documentary. "AN UNREAL DREAM tells the story of Michael Morton who's robbed of 25 years of his life.

It was the day after Morton's 32nd birthday. The year was 1986. Morton's wife, pictured here, was attacked and killed in their Texas home. Morton was at work at the time and he had no motive, yet he was charged, tried and convicted for murder.

Now freed with the help from the Innocence Project, Morton spoke with CNN's Chris Cuomo.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MICHAEL MORTON, MURDER CONVICTION OVERTURNED: I am probably the personification of that old axiom you remember from school about you can't prove a negative. How do you prove you didn't do something?

CHRIS CUOMO, CNN HOST (on camera): How rough was it inside?

MORTON: I never liked it. But I got used to it.

CUOMO: How long did it take you?

MORTON: Probably 14 or 15 years.

CUOMO: 14 or 15 years.

MORTON: To get to where I was used to it.

CUOMO: Are the first years the hardest?

MORTON: The first years are hard just because it's a shock and it's new and it's constant adjustment, constant recalibrations.

CUOMO (on camera): You say "I always thought that I would get out." What fueled the hope?

MORTON: It's difficult for me to say whether it was just faith that I knew I was right and I wasn't guilty that this would work out or just that I didn't know how deep I was in.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: Morton was exonerated in 2011 thanks to DNA testing. Testing that was not available back in 1987. And, yes, police have the real suspect in custody. It's an amazing story. You can see the UNREAL DREAM tonight, "The Michael Morton Story" on CNN 9:00 p.m. Eastern. We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: This morning 41 pilot whales are still stranded in the shallow water off Florida's Everglades National Park. Officials say the outlook for the whales is not good and they're still not sure how many can be saved. It's also not clear why the whales beached themselves. CNN's John Zarrella has more from the everglades.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOHN ZARRELLA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Carol, the coast guard has now joined the effort to save the whales. A cutter is out there to provide a security perimeter around the animals as well as three smaller coast guard vessels. But clearly, time is running out.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ZARRELLA (voice over): From the air, the pilot whales look like black pearls spread over the blue-green waters of the Gulf of Mexico. Surrounding them in boats -- rescuers, biologists, Everglades National Park rangers and volunteers. The whales have been stuck in shallow water for at least two days now. The outlook is not good. LINDA FRIAR, EVERGLADES NATIONAL PARK: There isn't a whole lot we can do. We tried this technique called herding and you can imagine what that is, it's trying to get the boats around them and kind of nudge them out, either by sound or moving them around. It wasn't effective the first round. Last I heard, they were trying a second time.

ZARRELLA: From the water we could we could see the rescuers trying to herd the whales, keeping them from heading to the beach where some have already died, moving them toward deeper water. Wildlife officials say there were about 50 whaled that is stranded themselves; biologists say they don't know why. Of those, just over three dozen are still alive.

FRIAR: You were out there, you're saying there might be hope that they were moving away from that area. The challenge is to get them to go out into deeper water. They're all freely swimming now.

ZARRELLA: But the frustrating part is, park officials say, the whales keep circling back.

(on camera): If the whales can't or won't make their way back into deep water, rescuers say it's only a matter of time before they go into distress and their bodies begin to shut down. At that point, they'll have to be euthanized.

(voice over): Some of the remaining whales are, officials say, already exhibiting signs of distress. How much longer they can survive, no one is sure. But the rescuers will remain out there until they're saved or all hope is gone.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ZARRELLA: The dilemma is that these whales are like a family. They are a family. And when one or more than one are in trouble or have stranded themselves and died on the beach, like so many of these have, the rest of the whales are reluctant to leave -- Carol. COSTELLO: John Zarrella reporting. Thank you.

Hide the kids eyes and cover their ears. Santa is coming to town. But his eyes are not exactly twinkling. This Santa is warning of trouble, big trouble at the North Pole. Here is CNN's Jeanne Moos.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEANNE MOOS, CNN SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It looks like a hostage video. But instead of al Qaeda, it's Santa.

JIM CARTER, ACTOR, "DOWNTON ABBEY": I bring bad tidings.

MOOS: This disheveled and depressing Santa is none other than the perfectionist butler Carson on "Downtown Abbey". But instead of serving he's dishing out threats.

If the ice doesn't stop melting at the North Pole due to global warming --

CARTER: There may be no alternative but to cancel Christmas.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No.

MOOS: Oh, yes. In this spot for the environmental group Greenpeace, Santa says he's written to Presidents Obama and Putin, but all he's ever gotten is indifference.

CARTER: These individuals are now at the top of my naughty list.

I do not agree.

I've never been called a liberal in my life, and I don't intend to start now.

MOOS: Actually actor Jim Carter has been a member of Greenpeace for 30 years.

CARTER: Please help me.

MOOS (on camera): But, Santa, critics say the Arctic ice actually increased this past year.

(voice-over): An organization of climate change skeptics told CNN, Santa should be celebrating the return of the ice, but those who believe in global warming say the long-term trend is toward a steep decline in Arctic ice.

And what about the decline in Santa's jolly appearance?

CARTER: I have to warn you of the possibility of an empty stocking forevermore.

MOOS: Sad sack Santa provoked comments like, "Hope that you are proud of yourselves, Greenpeace, for scaring innocent children with your bully boy tactics as usual."

After all, kids freak out even over rosy-cheeked Santas. Not since a real-life bandit robbed a Nashville bank dressed as St. Nick have we seen such a sorry excuse for a Santa, though I have interviewed a few.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Don't drink and drive.

MOOS (on camera): OK.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You might spill it.

MOOS (voice-over): This guy sure doesn't inspire. He conjures up the end of the world. And who would you trust to save the ice caps? This guy or this one?

CARTER: Don't worry about that, milady. I have an idea.

MOOS: Jeanne Moos, CNN.

CARTER: Cancel Christmas.

MOOS: New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: Man, he's freaking me out.

Thanks for joining me today. I'm Carol Costello, "LEGAL VIEW" with Ashleigh Banfield starts now.

ASHLEIGH BANFIELD, CNN HOST: It is not just cold and miserable out there. It is downright dangerous. And if that's not bad enough already, another wave of snow and ice is right behind this one. Find out how much worse it could get.

Also ahead, a possible national championship, the Heisman trophy, and a young man's freedom all on the line. We're about to find out if Florida State's star quarterback will be cleared or charged with rape.

And, remember, he denied smoking crack before he admitted to smoking crack. And now Toronto's mayor denies offering a drug dealer thousands of dollars to keep that infamous crack-smoking videotape a secret.