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NTSB Releases Its 2014 Most Wanted List; Films Fight for Success after Sundance; Obama Summit on Soaring College Costs; Christie Speaks on Hurricane Sandy Recovery

Aired January 16, 2014 - 10:30   ET

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

CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: The NTSB is releasing its 2014 most wanted list this hour. It's actually a wish list that outlines what changes the agency wants for reducing transportation accidents and saving lives. The new list comes out the day after the five-year anniversary of the miracle on the Hudson. Captain Sully Sullenberger, passengers and rescuers toasted an amazing emergency landing and then a disappointed Sullenberger spoke to the CBS Evening News about how safety improvement suggestions have fallen on deaf ears.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHESLEY "SULLY" SULLENBERGER, "MIRACLE ON THE HUDSON" PILOT: But surprisingly and sadly the several dozen recommendations made by the NTSB as a result of the investigation of our flight so far to my knowledge, none has been adopted by FAA or by industry which is a very, great disappointment not only to me but to the NTSB officials that I've talked to.

One of the recommendations is a common sense one that you think would be adopted immediate that would be to include life vests for every passenger on domestic flights and not just the seat cushions for floatation that most flights have now.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: Sounds like a simple solution right? CNN's Rene Marsh is in Washington. Tell us more Rene.

RENE MARSH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well Carol literally minutes ago the NTSB put out its annual wish list. And they do this every year. It's something made the list the agency believe that it will help prevent deadly transportation accidents and ultimately save lives.

So this year, four items were added to the NTSB's most wanted list. And that deadly Metro North Train derailment that we saw it was top of mind for the agency there you see the pictures it happened in Bronx, New York. And for the first time because of accidents like that the NTSB added improving rail mass transit safety to the list of most wanted safety improvement.

Also on the list helicopter safety, cruise ship and ferry safety as well as increasing survivability in crashes. Those are all new additions to the NTSB list. Now the agency used Asiana Flight 214 as an example of how seat design for example contributed to safety of the people on board. You see the picture there, the plane is in pieces. However, the majority of people on board walked out of it alive. So what the NTSB wants to is see that we keep on doing what we're doing to make sure that more people survive if in the event there is a crash.

Now Carol this list is simply a blueprint of the areas that the NTSB will focus on this year. They can only make recommendations. So this does not have the power of law -- Carol.

COSTELLO: All right Rene Marsh many thanks to you.

Still to come in the NEWSROOM Governor Chris Christie gets back to work in a very familiar place -- that would be the Jersey Shore. Sunlen Serfaty is there, good morning.

SUNLEN SERFATY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Chris Christie is trying to change the subject and move to a new normal here on the Jersey Shore. We'll be live at this event coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: A critical day ahead for New Jersey Governor Chris Christie. At noon the New Jersey -- at noon Eastern I should say the New Jersey assembly special committee will meet and they'll officially take over the investigation into Bridgegate. Now they're expected to subpoena several of Christie's current and former aides as part of the probe.

But for his part Christie is trying to put focus back on governing at an event on the Jersey shore today spotlighting Super Storm recovery efforts. CNN is covering all angles of the story today. Erin McPike is in Trenton, New Jersey.

But we'd like to begin on the Jersey Shore with Sunlen Serfaty. Sunlen, good morning.

SUNLEN SERFATY: Good morning Carol. Here is where Chris Christie wants to hit the reset button. He's spent the last week apologizing. Now he's really trying to change the subject line and move to at least showing that he's still governing. Now interestingly enough, this event was scheduled for last Wednesday, the very day that this scandal broke. And that event was abruptly canceled by the Governor's office. So really his return here today is him trying to change the message and move towards a new narrative in his governors.

Now what we see him talk about is really where he's most comfortable talking how he's helped in the recovery efforts in this after Super Storm Sandy. So in a few minutes he will sit down with families and homeowners who are still recovering after being devastated by the storm. He'll bring with him new numbers about relief efforts and help tout new numbers from his state office. So hoping to bring a little good news and really get people talking more about his recovery efforts. Also this weekend Carol, Chris Christie will also travel to Florida to hold multiple event, multiple fundraising events. Really the big key there is Sunday night dinner he'll have with top Republican governors across the country -- Carol.

COSTELLO: All right Sunlen -- many thanks to you.

Let's go now to Trenton, New Jersey where that special committee has formed to investigate the New Jersey bridge closures. As I said, that will convene at noon Eastern Erin McPike will be covering that. Good morning.

ERIN MCPIKE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Carol good morning. So the New Jersey assembly meets at noon and will vote to form this special investigatory committee which then meets at 1:00 for its first hearing where we'll then see them begin to issue subpoenas. We believe they're first going to issue subpoenas for documents like text message conversations and e-mail conversations of Christie's staff.

And then later we expect them to issue subpoenas for members of Christie's staff and other port authority officials. We believe they will subpoena Bridget Anne Kelly the deputy chief of staff who was fired for sending that e-mail that said "time for traffic problems in Fort Lee". Most likely Christie's top political advisor Bill Stepien who was also dismissed last week and maybe even Christie's current chief of staff Regina Egea.

Now on top of that Carol, the New Jersey Senate is also convening today and they will form a separate special committee to investigate. That committee will be led by Loretta Weinberg and she is the Democratic Senator who represents Ft. Lee obviously, the area that was affected by the bridge closures.

But the action is going to be in the assembly committee. John Wisniewski who led the transportation committee and that investigation will be leading that committee. Now that -- that special committee has brought on their own special council by name of Reid Schar you'll see him pictured there, he is with the firm Genre and Block.

And he was the former assistant U.S. attorney in Illinois. And what's very interesting about him is that he was the lead investigator and prosecutor for both of the corruption cases that former Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich went under. As you know Blagojevich is now in prison.

But both sides have lawyered up because Chris Christie's administration brought on Randy Mastro and he is a partner at the firm Gibson, Dunn and Crutcher, he's also a former assistant U.S. Attorney from New York. So he's going to be assisting the internal review and also helping with the inquiry by the U.S. Attorney of New Jersey.

Got all that? So lots of lawyers here. In this very serious investigations on all ends -- Carol.

COSTELLO: I know my head was starting to spin. Thanks so much -- Erin McPike and Sunlen Serfaty. Let's bring in our CNN chief political analyst Gloria Borger now who wrote a column about Christie, his persona and his presidential hopes for CNN.com. Gloria I want to read folks the part of that op-ed piece you write in part. Quote, "You don't get elected to any office in this country much less President of the United States without accumulating political enemies. But the real question is why you consider someone an enemy and then how you deal with it?"

So part of Christie's appeal has been his approach to things like this. Can he pull off, I mean what can he do to make sure that people are thinking the right things about how he deals with his political enemies?

GLORIA BORGER, CNN CHIEF POLITICAL ANALYST: Well look, this whole story doesn't help him right. Because even though he says he had nothing to do with it, his staff looks petty and vindictive. And why did they choose the Mayor of Fort Lee, New Jersey as a political enemy? Because he, as a Democrat, decided not to endorse Christie; that has nothing to do with substance and what it ended up doing was hurting the people of Fort Lee, New Jersey OK. So he's got a problem there.

And what he's trying to do a, is distance himself from it. B, as Erin was pointing out, do his own internal investigation. Because he wants to get back on track as somebody who is a good manager, who's a truth teller and who is by the way presidential.

So he's trying to take control of this and as we see in the fact that he is now as you know meeting with storm survivors, right, and people who were hurt by Hurricane Sandy he's trying to get back to business, OK. So he's -- he's got these two tracks at the same time --

COSTELLO: What's interesting about -- what's interesting about that Gloria and I must say that it was kind of gutsy that he goes to the Jersey Shore. Because there are allegations that he misused Sandy relief funds to make a campaign commercial that was masquerading at something else.

BORGER: That's right.

COSTELLO: That's pretty gutsy. He's like you know I'm just going there and do my thing. Who cares about these allegations?

BORGER: Well it's -- you know it's sort of -- it's vintage Chris Christie. And look, nobody wants Chris Christie -- people who like him, they don't want Chris Christie to morph into a false version of himself. What people like about Chris Christie is that he's in your face. And you know he's -- he's everything in an interesting way which I wrote about in the column that lots of people say President Barack Obama isn't.

You know, he prides himself on working on both sides of the aisle, he prides himself on getting things done. And so what he's saying is "Look, I'm still the person you liked. And I am not the person who is petty and vindictive. My staff was." The big question I think that people have to answer and they will answer for themselves as this unravels is why was there an environment in Chris Christie's office in which people thought that they would actually please him by shutting down lanes of the George Washington Bridge right?

COSTELLO: Right.

BORGER: To get back at the mayor? What is it about -- about Chris Christie's management style, his personality that led them to believe, if he didn't know anything about it, that led them to believe that this is something he would approve of and in fact encourage?

COSTELLO: We'll see what he says later today. Gloria Borger, thanks as always.

BORGER: Yes.

COSTELLO: Still to come in the NEWSROOM. From critical darling to box office bombs, we'll tell you why success at the Sundance Film Festival doesn't always translate to the box office.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: The stars are out in Park City, Utah today for the kickoff to the 30th annual Sundance Film Festival. More than 100 films are vying for studio attention. But film festival buzz doesn't always translate into box office bucks.

CNN's Miguel Marquez has more for you.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: How was school?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The worst day of my life. What do you think?

MIGUEL MARQUEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Nominated for the Sundance Grand Jury Prize in 2004, "Napoleon Dynamite cost $400,000 to make. He knows in the film biz, taking in $45 million at the box office -- making it a smashing success.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What are you drawing?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: A liger.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What's a liger?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's my favorite animals. It's like a lion and a tiger mix.

MARQUEZ: But the old Sundance buzz doesn't work for every film. The list of losers -- long.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Put on a play and make it the best you've ever done. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm working on the original play.

MARQUEZ: Remember "Hamlet 2"? Of course not. It premiered on Sundance in 2008.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It was stupid.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It was stupid but it was also theater.

MARQUEZ: Its rights purchased for a near record $10 million and returned less than $5 million.

ANDREW STEWART, VARIETY: There is no magic bullet to Sundance in term of what's going to work and what's not going to work. The fact that Sundance is there and gives these films and film makers the opportunity to succeed -- I think it's a really great thing.

MARQUEZ: The film industry infamous for its kill or be killed culture, as competitive as it is combative.

Sundance the world's largest independent film festival will screen more than 120 full-length films this year, 34 of them in competition, the others premiering trying to create that all-important buzz. It's a record year with more than 12,000 films submitting entries -- only a sliver get in and even a smaller slice win.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Am I pretty?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You are the most beautiful girl in the whole world.

MARQUEZ: "Little Miss Sunshine" premiered at Sundance in 2006. A year later it was nominated for four Oscars, winning two of them.

Sundance can help but success often comes in unlikely ways.

Miguel Marquez, CNN, Park City, Utah.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: So beautiful there.

Still to come in the NEWSROOM, college costs soar as the President takes notice. Brianna Keilar is at the White House where a special summit is about to get underway. Good morning -- Brianna.

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Good morning to you Carol. This summit is all about making college more affordable and accessible for low income students. We expect President Obama to make the case that this is the key to economic mobility as he meets with higher educational officials. We'll have a live report right after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: Next hour, President Barack Obama and the First Lady convene a summit that's sure to resonate with millions of parents. They're focusing on rising college costs that are pushing a degree out of reach for many families and saddling the graduates with crushing debt.

Here's why. According to numbers crunched by Bloomberg News, the cost of a college degree has risen more than 1,100 percent since 1978; that's nearly double the rising cost of medical expenses at about 600 percent. For perspective your grocery bill has climbed about 244 percent during since that time.

Brianna Keilar live at the White House this morning with a preview of the President and first lady's remarks. Good morning.

KEILAR: Good morning to you Carol. This summit is based around the fact that's really for low income Americans, for low income young Americans. It's really impossible to break that cycle of poverty without getting a college education. The ability to do that is very, very small without that degree.

So this is -- we'll be hearing the President speak to this. He'll be talking to leaders in higher education. We expect at this point there are about 80 presidents of colleges from around the country here. And he will be talking about some of the -- what the White House is calling 100 new commitments for college affordability and accessibility.

Some of those things for instance would be make test preps for colleges -- ACT, SAT test prep -- more accessible to young Americans. Also to do better matching -- making sure that when young people are looking for a college that it's a college that matches them, that is going to be a college where they will best be able to graduate. In addition, there's remedial programs, tutoring, mentoring and really trying to throughout the summers as well as summer programs that can help sort of bridge that gap as some students fall behind.

And it really -- Carol, it falls into I think the agenda that President Obama has laid out for this year. He's talked about wanting to decrease the disparity between the rich and poor. You're seeing that here as well. And also he's enlisting the of these higher education officials. He's talked a lot about not really waiting for Congress, trying to do some lobbying on his own with industry leaders and education leaders. And you're seeing that play out here today -- Carol.

COSTELLO: All right. Brianna, live at the White House this morning. Many thanks.

And stay with us for President Obama's remarks on college affordability. He's due to begin speaking in about 30 minutes from now at 11:20 Eastern. I'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: All right. This news conference with Chris Christie about to get underway -- you're looking at live pictures from the Jersey Shore obviously at a fire station there. The governor about to speak at an event spotlighting Superstorm Sandy recovery efforts; he's trying to get over this big -- these two big scandals that he's facing now.

CNN's Sunlen Serfaty is there. Sunlen, has the governor showed up yet?

SERFATY: He has showed up -- Carol. I just saw him in another room just moments ago.

What he's doing right now is he's meeting with families who are still trying to recover from Superstorm Sandy. And we're in the room with them just a few minutes ago and he was holding a woman's hand kind of stroking her hand and saying, it's OK, it's OK. Because she was recalling with a lot of emotion how hard it was for her and how much her family had been through at the time.

Now interestingly enough -- another moment of color is we're in a room right off of this fire house and there was a jazzercise class going on. And the women lured Chris Christie over to take a picture with him. He, of course, did. He came over and he obligingly took a photo with the ladies. And then I asked a bunch of questions and said, "Is this a reset? Is this reset?" He ignored all those questions.

Clearly Carol -- as we've talked about all morning, he is trying to move on from the scandal at least physically speaking and emotionally speaking. For him today it's important that he gets back talking about where he really feels comfortable which is talking about how he's helped people recover from Superstorm Sandy. But again Carol -- ignored all of those questions.

COSTELLO: Well, you know, it is interesting because there are also allegations that somebody misused Sandy relief funds to make this big commercial for Chris Christie and his family and that's how they're terming it. It was supposed to be for recovery efforts, this commercial and highlight New Jersey's efforts to help people recover. Some people say that those funds were misused. And yet here he is on the Jersey Shore talking to hurricane relief victims.

SERFATY: Absolutely. That is a great point. And there still are a lot of outstanding questions about how that money was used whether it was used for promotional reasons for him and his family during a reelection campaign or whether it was legitimate. So there are still questions that remain. So it is as you know, a kind of a sticky, tricky situation even to be talking about Sandy.

But you have to remember that this really is his wheel house. This is his issue of significance that really propelled him into national significance.

So we think going back there really is a comfortable position for him to be in. Again, this is a controlled environment. We tried to get questions to him, and he wouldn't answer. It will be interesting Carol to see if he does address any part of that controversy from the podium he'll speak to at the firehouse in just a few minutes.

COSTELLO: Let me ask -- are these invited guests too or did these people just show up?

SERFATY: These are a lot of people in the neighborhood. This is just a few miles off of the Jersey Shore so many of these people are still recovering from Superstorm Sandy. Many people just showed up today. As you can see it is a packed house there or there are many seats -- they're all filled up and a lot people standing as you can see right here behind me.

COSTELLO: All right, Sunlen Serfaty, thanks so much. She'll continue to cover this. And of course, when the Governor begins speaking, we'll take his presser live.

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