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Winter Olympics Commence in Sochi, Russia; American Wins Gold Medal in Snow Boarding; Russian Cyber-Security an Issue for Olympics; Man Accused of Murder in Movie Theater not Granted Bail; Trial Continues for Man Accused of Killing Teen over Loud Music; Rand Paul Criticizes Democratic Support for Bill Clinton; Interview with Author Cokie Roberts; Woody Allen Writes Op-Ed Denying Child Molestation Accusations

Aired February 08, 2014 - 10:00   ET

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

VICTOR BLACKWELL, CNN ANCHOR: A warning about the winter games. The State Department issues a new travel alert amid fresh fears of terror in Sochi and tells Americans, don't expect privacy while you're there.

CHRISTI PAUL, CNN ANCHOR: Woody Allen is fighting back this morning in an op-ed in the "New York Times." The filmmaker defends his innocence against molestation allegations, saying Mia Farrow is the one to blame.

BLACKWELL: And Cokie Roberts joins us live on a new book about America's first ladies and whether she expects to have a first gentlemen.

PAUL: Good morning to you, 10:00 a.m. here in the east. I hope that Saturday has been good to you so far. I'm Christi Paul.

(CROSSTALK) It's been good to us. I'm Victor Blackwell. You're in the CNN Newsroom.

We begin this morning with the 2014 Winter Olympics now officially under way in Sochi. And we have already an announcement, spoiler alert, though. We want to let you know if you're going to watch the events later, turn the volume down, take 25 seconds.

PAUL: That would be good. Just turn away from the TV for a second, and go. Here we go. We can tell you earlier today Sage Kotsenburg won the first gold medal of these winter games. He was competing in the men's snowboard slope style competition, even tweeted, which we'll give it away, too, if you're on Twitter, "Wow, I just won the Olympics! Bringing back the first gold here to the USA! Love seeing all the support from everyone. You rule." Congratulations to him.

BLACKWELL: Now there are about 230 American athletes at the games. And the delegation got to take part in an amazing opening ceremony that organizers say was watched by 3 billion people around the world.

PAUL: Of course, in the middle of that excitement of the games the U.S. is again, this is a fresh warning for Americans heading to Sochi, in no uncertain terms here, either. BLACKWELL: Yes, the State Department is cautioning about potential cyber-security threats. It's urging Americans at the Olympics to be attentive at all times for their own safety. Let's bring in CNN senior international correspondent Nick Paton Walsh on the phone with us. They're having some issues with the power in Sochi right now. Nick, the travel alert was issued last month, and then a new alert last night. Tell us about this new alert.

NICK PATON WALSH, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT, (via telephone): Yes, this was being reinstated yesterday by the State Department clearly as a result of more recent concerns they perhaps have. What it originally states is if you come to Russia as an American tourist you'll be inside the Russian federation within Russian jurisdiction, and the Russian law gives them the right to look at your e-mails, your Internet traffic or communications, and your cellphone traffic as well. So you have to be cautious of that if you're passing sensitive information as well.

Hacking in Russia is nothing new. If you remember when the Internet first came around, a lot of cybercrime, a lot of hacking originated from Russian Internet domains. Things have changed now and the State Department is warning more about the issue of government surveillance. Of course, critics of the U.S. would say that the NSA has been doing a little surveillance of their own.

But what we're talking about here is perhaps being more mindful of what they pass across the Internet traffic, sensitive information if they're coming to the games. I've experienced hacking myself. It is often bizarre. I was here during the Boston bombing aftermath in Dagestan and on a Macintosh computer, on a browser. Suddenly in front of me in Russian there was a mock interface for a pc and a whole bunch of files moving around. It was extraordinary. The way to stop it was simply to pull out the battery and the power. It's not an alien experience to have here. And, of course, the State Department is simply saying just be mindful about when you come in.

PAUL: Nick, let me ask you. If somebody is over there and they have this experience and something may even be stolen from them, do they have any repercussion, or are they at the mercy of the laws there?

WALSH: I think it's important to bear in mind the Russian government said it needs this and it wants to protect people's safety here too, and then they're getting a load of flak from American officials about are the games safe enough and are the security measures in place, and they will need that surveillance to be able to combat Islamist extremists here and terrorism in southern Russia. So it's a complicated argument for them. Of course, they have little legal redress against the Russian state if they're behind the surveillance. Many other individuals accused of some sort of hacking in Russia as well. So I think the warning really is not to anticipate you're going to get a great success in the Russian legal system if you fear you've been hacked. Just be careful about what you bring with you and what you send around when you're inside Russia.

BLACKWELL: The security on the ground there, Nick, there's been discussion over the weeks of this ring of steel. Talk to us now that we're into this full day of competition, what that looks like on the ground and if we're seeing the crowds that, I guess, they expected in Sochi with all that led up to the opening ceremonies.

WALSH: The issue really, I think, is about what that constant drum beat of anxiety has done to American attendance. What we're seeing on the ground is pretty substantial security operation. Wherever you look near the venues you will see some signs of that. That's not abnormal for Olympics. What is abnormal is to hold Olympic venues like this so close to active insurgency like we're seeing in southern Russia. That's why people are concerned.

What we also learned yesterday is that there is perhaps an impact on American attendance with all of this talk. What they have been talking about, American tour operators, is how, in fact, one of them yesterday had 1,000 tickets he hadn't been able to sell that he had allocated for American tourists who simply haven't shown up. The question is, is that a picture of the entirety of U.S. attendance here? There is certainly an awful lot of talk about the empty seats at the opening ceremony yesterday. We did ourselves have the option to buy a $1,600 ticket to that ceremony just hours before it began.

So I think people are looking to see in the days and weeks ahead whether or not we will see an influx of international crowd of tourists. That same tour operator told me he had way more family members of athletes on his books than fans. This kind of constant concern continues.

I should point out today, you know, the operations against militants in southern Russia is still continuing. They're not widely reported in Russian media, but we can tell you in Dagestan today five merchants were killed in a siege by Russian forces. One leader of a group and that group had links to the bombings said one Russian security official. So there is certainly an ongoing battle inside southern Russia. It's far away from here and this place is protected by that ring of steel. But all of that possibly have added to the willingness -- damaged the willingness of the American tourists to come here for fun.

PAUL: Nick Paton Walsh, boy, we certainly appreciate your perspective there today. Thank you.

BLACKWELL: Amanda Davis is also in Sochi keeping up with some of the controversies surrounding last night's opening ceremony. Run through it. What's that all about, Amanda?

AMANDA DAVIS, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT, (via telephone): Well, we didn't see it here in TV in Russia but it's about the five Olympic rings which we know so well as a fantastic symbol to the start of the Olympic games. And very early on in the opening ceremony that they place so much emphasis on, the rings were raised. They developed out of snowflakes. But we only saw four out of the five rings. That is what the people in the stadium saw.

What people saw at home on television here in Russia was all five rings lit up. So the big question in 24 hours is how on earth did that happen? Anyway, the director who was directing the proceedings has now put his hands up and admitted that what they did is they cut to the pictures from the rehearsal. The picture that was cut in to the ceremony had no spectators in the background. So a fair amount of controversy about that here. There are lots of #Sochifailed, #Sochiproblems. Even now t-shirts being sold with logos like "You had one job."

And I have to say the reason I'm on the phone to you now is that we've actually just had a power cut here in Sochi at our studio as well. So that is another little story of the problems that people are having here at the Winter Olympics.

The most fantastic one, though, I think you might have the picture is the U.S. bobsledder Johnny Quinn. He posted the picture this morning. He was in the bathroom having a shower. Athletes share their bedrooms. He was in the bathroom having a shower. He then found himself locked in his bedroom and didn't have his phone with him. So the only way out was to break his way out of the bathroom through the bathroom door. It really is a spectacular picture. Whatever happens, I think, in terms of the events, Johnny Quinn will now be best known for the man who used his strength to break through a bathroom door.

BLACKWELL: Good thing the door was at least partially made of cardboard. Amanda Davis, thank you so much.

PAUL: For years filmmaker Woody Allen has been dogged by these allegations of abuse against his adopted daughter. This morning he is firing back in a big way and blaming Mia Farrow for the accusations.

BLACKWELL: And a man on trial for killing a teenager in Florida because of his loud music. His defense and what the prosecution is alleging, that's ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLACKWELL: Filmmaker Woody Allen is now fueling the fire of pretty vicious family feud.

PAUL: In a scathing op-ed in the "New York Times" Allen blasts his ex, actress Mia Farrow, accusing her of fabricating claims of sexual abuse against their adopted daughter Dylan.

BLACKWELL: He claims Farrow coached her daughter in believing she was assaulted after the couple split in 1992. This is just one week after Dylan Farrow penned her own letter in the "New York Times."

PAUL: Let's bring in CNN's Alexandra Field in New York. This story just keeps getting more life to it, I would say, Alexandra. What have you learned today?

ALEXANDRA FIELD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Absolutely, Christi. More than 20 years later, this is still a case of she said, he said, she said. We know tomorrow "The New York Times" will publish this letter written by Woody Allen. In it he again flatly denies the allegations that he sexually abused Dylan Farrow, the seven-year-old daughter he adopted with Mia Farrow, and he is again saying that his ex is to blame for fuelling some of these allegations. Here's what he writes in the letter. He says, quote, "Not that I doubt Dylan has come to believe she's been molested, but if from the age of seven a vulnerable child is taught by a strong mother to hate her father because he is a monster who abused her, is it so inconceivable that after many years of this indoctrination the image of me Mia wanted to establish has taken root?"

And Dylan is firing back at Allen's defense. She writes, quote, "His op-ed is the latest rehash of the same legalese, distortions, and outright lies he has leveled at me for the past 20 years." This public feud was reignited in just a past few days after Dylan Farrow published an open letter in which she detailed the allegations that she has maintained against Woody Allen for two decades now.

PAUL: All right, thank you so much. We appreciate it, Alexandra Field.

BLACKWELL: Let's talk more about this controversy with clinical psychologist Jeff Gardiere. He joins us now from New York.

PAUL: Jeff, thanks for being with us. Woody Allen is alleging Mia Farrow coached their daughter Dylan into making accusations in order to hurt him. Dylan, I mean, she still is defending her account of events and she's very detailed about it. How possible is it that a parent can convince a child something this monumental happened to them if it didn't?

JEFF GARDERE, CLINICAL PSYCHOLOGIST: Yes, there have been case, and we know that, well-documented cases where we have something called false memories, where there may be a case of parental alienation where one parent wants to turn the child against the other parent and, therefore, may begin coaching them as to a sexual abuse that perhaps did not happen.

BLACKWELL: So Dylan Farrow, she is -- after Woody Allen responded to her letter, she has now responded to the "Hollywood Reporter." I'm going to read what she wrote here. "Once again, Woody Allen is attacking me and my family in an effort to discredit and silence me, but nothing he says or writes can change the truth. For 20 years I have never wavered in describing what he did to me. I will carry the memories of surviving these experiences for the rest of my life."

So she's says for 20 years she has held on to this. In a case where a parent coaches a child, of course, no implication that's what's happening here, but in a case where a parent does coach a child, how long does that stay with an individual?

GARDERE: That can stay with an individual for the rest of their lives, because at some point they have to hold on to that reality that is in their mind in order to have a consistent self of ego and who they are. It's not like they can turn around and say, well, you know what, the folks are right on this one. This never happened, and I lived a lie for 20 years. So humans just don't do that. So it stays with them forever. Everyone suffers in those sorts of situations, Victor. PAUL: Here's the thing. In 1993 the former state attorney for Connecticut did tell reporters, and this was later in another report as well in '97, there was probable cause to arrest Allen. But officials decided not to press charges in order to protect the fragility of the child. How often does that happen?

GARDERE: That happens quite often because if there is sexual abuse we certainly don't want to re-traumatize that child by taking them through all of the legal processes. At some point you have a case of diminishing returns where that person, it doesn't matter whether the person is prosecuted because the victim has to live with that crime forever.

PAUL: Dr. Jeff Gardere, thank you for breaking it down for us.

GARDERE: Pleasure.

BLACKWELL: A face-off over loud music and a 17-year-old boy is dead. Was it murder? Was it self-defense? This is a live look inside the courtroom where the trial is being held in Jacksonville. You're looking at evidence here. This is the inside of the car door where several shots were fired. We will take you into the courtroom and you'll hear more, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLACKWELL: So it's a Saturday morning but the murder trial of Michael Dunn is closing in now on its second hour of testimony today. Dunn is accused of murdering 17-year-old Jordan Davis after an argument at a gas station over loud music in a car that Davis was in. This is a live look inside the courtroom in Jacksonville. You're seeing the car door, the car that Davis was in. Our Tory Dunnan is live outside the courtroom covering this case. Tory, There's been about an hour of testimony thus far. What are we learning? Can you hear me?

PAUL: I don't think she can hear us.

BLACKWELL: All right.

PAUL: OK. She does have a report for us though. Let's take a look.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

LELAND BRUNSON, WITNESS, FRIEND OF JORDAN DAVIS: When I reached in and touched him, blood appeared on my fingers.

TORY DUNNAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Michael Dunn, the man charged with first degree murder in the Jordan Davis case looked on as witnesses relived the night the 17-year-old was shot and killed, Davis' best friend Leland Brunson among those who testified. He was sitting next to Davis in the back of a red SUV when an argument over loud music broke out at a Jacksonville gas station.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's fair to say he asked for common courtesy, just to lower the music, correct?

BRUNSON: Yes.

DUNNAN: Kevin Thompson, another teen in the SUV, says Dunn, who was in his parked car next to them asked them to turn down the music. Everyone agrees the music was turned down, but that's when things escalated between Davis and Dunn.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: But isn't it true that Jordan Davis said to you -- that -- and turn it back up?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, sir.

DUNNAN: Thompson testified he did exactly that. And that he turned the music back up. It's at that point the timeline gets fuzzy. Dunn told investigators he heard threats, then saw a weapon.

MICHAEL DUNN, ACCUSED OF FIRST-DEGREE MURDER: I saw a barrel come up on the window, like a single shot shotgun where there's a barrel. Then this part of the barrel, I saw that part of the barrel. And it was either a barrel or a stick, but, sir, they're like we're going to kill you.

DUNNAN: Dunn by his own admission says he pulled out a gun that he kept in his glove compartment, and he says in self-defense fired multiple times. Jordan Davis was shot. As for Michael Dunn's claims of being threatened with a weapon first, police say they never found a weapon inside the teen's SUV. In court all three teens maintain they never had a weapon.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLACKWELL: And we've got Tory Dunnan with us now outside that courthouse in Jacksonville. We've seen the evidence that's been introduced, those photographs of the SUV. But we're expecting more testimony today, right?

DUNNAN: Oh, yes, we're expecting testimony throughout the day court actually going until 5:00 this afternoon. And let me tell you a little bit about what's been going on so far today. They've been having the lead evidence tech on the stand. He's the guy who gathered all of the information on scene, on the evidence. I want to point out the fact that the prosecution asked him if he found any weapons of any kind inside the red SUV, the teens' SUV, and he said, no, he never found any weapons. Victor and Christi, that's a key component of this case because Michael Dunn said he saw a weapon or something pointed at him through the window. The teens testifying yesterday they never had one, they never got rid of it, never handed it off and it just didn't exist.

BLACKWELL: Tory Dunnan for us in Jacksonville, thank you.

PAUL: Toronto Mayor Rob Ford, pretty much equates to controversy at this point when you hear his name. Well, police are investigating now a possible threat against him and his family.

BLACKWELL: And Rand Paul says Democrats should give back all the money Bill Clinton helped them raise because of the Monica Lewinsky scandal.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PAUL: Bottom of the hour right now and so glad to have your company. I'm Christi Paul.

BLACKWELL: I'm Victor Blackwell. Let's start with five stories we're watching this morning.

PAUL: Number one, fans of team USA are out in force in Sochi. They're celebrating. Here's your five-second warning, people. The spoiler alert.

BLACKWELL: Spoiler alert.

PAUL: If you want to step away for just a few seconds, turn the volume down, we've got to tell you about a winner. Here we go. Sage Kotsenburg won gold in the men's snowboard slope style competition first gold of this winter games. Afterward, he tweeted, quote, "Wow, I just won the Olympics. Bringing back the first gold here to the USA."

BLACKWELL: Yes. Stay off Twitter all day, too, then.

Number two. Woody Allen is speaking out about allegations of molestation. In an op-ed released by the "New York Times" last night the 78-year-old filmmaker says he never committed a crime against his adopted daughter Dylan. One week ago Dylan wrote her own letter accusing Allen of abusing her when she was a child. Allen says his ex, Mia Farrow, coached their daughter after their highly publicized split in 1992.

PAUL: Number three, two Brooklyn men spent the last 21 years in prison for three murders that they did not commit. Thanks to new DNA evidence, though, Antonio Yarbough and Sharrif Wilson have been cleared of killing Yarbough's mother, young sister, and another 12- year-old girl. Shoddy police work and inadequate legal representation apparently contributed to their 1992 conviction.

BLACKWELL: Four now, the U.S. is urging North Korea to release American Kenneth Bae immediately. The State Department says it is deeply concerned that Bae has now been moved from a hospital back to a labor camp and it's worried about his health. He's a father of three. His health is ailing. He's been held in North Korea since November of 2012.

PAUL: And number five, police in Toronto now investigating a possible threat to Mayor Rob Ford and his family. Ford's ignored calls for him to resign, as you know, after he admitted in November that he smoked crack cocaine. He stirred up even more controversy this week saying he thought the Canadian flag should be raised at city hall instead of the rainbow flag in support of gay athletes at the Sochi Olympics.

BLACKWELL: Most Americans say that the Republican Party is out of touch with women's issues. That's the result of a poll. Here's the look at the numbers. CNN/ORC shows that only 42 percent of Americans say the GOP understands the problems and concerns of women, but 63 percent believe Democrats do. And if you ask just women, if Republicans understand them, women over 50 are more likely to say no, 64 percent there. But Republicans are trying to fight that image, like potential 2016 candidate for president Senator Rand Paul. He says Democrats cannot rally around Bill Clinton and also claim they support women's rights.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. RAND PAUL, (R) KENTUCKY: I really think that anybody who wants to take money from Bill Clinton or have a fundraiser has a lot of explaining to do. In fact, I think they should give the money back. If they want to take a position on women's rights, by all means, do, but you can't do it and take it from a guy who is using his position of authority to take advantage of young women in the workplace.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: Let's start the conversation right here with Amy Holmes, a conservative and anchor at TheBlaze.com, and Maria Cardona, a CNN political commentator and Democratic strategist. Good to have both of you back.

AMY HOLMES, ANCHOR, THEBLAZE.COM: Good morning, Victor.

MARIA CARDONA, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Good morning.

BLACKWELL: I'm going start with you, Amy. Is this timely, relevant? Is it going to work or is it 20 years too late?

HOLMES: Well, Bill Clinton obviously is not going to be on the ballot in 2016 and we'll wait to see even if Hillary Clinton is. There seems to be a lot of indication the answer is yes, but, you know, it's an open field.

I think, you know, when you look at women you have to understand we're not a moonlight as this very panel demonstrates, that married women with children, for example, tend to vote GOP. Single women tend to vote for Democrats. And it really depends on what the issues are at stake.

On the number one issue facing voters, and that's the economy, women share that concern and that's their number one issue. And then they look at both parties to see which party best meets those needs.

BLACKWELL: Amy, what about this use of the Monica Lewinsky scandal to run against Democrats? Is that going to work? Are you going to see other candidates mention it?

HOLMES: I don't think so. And as I mentioned, Bill Clinton is not on the ballot in 2016. But I think Hillary Clinton if she chooses to run for president will have to answer questions about what role in her sort of administration or presidency would Bill Clinton make. He campaigns for her. They hold hands together on that campaign stage. Is he going to be an adviser? Is he going to be living in the White House? I think those are interesting questions and relevant questions.

BLACKWELL: I wonder, Maria, if this discussion of the Lewinsky scandal and attack on Bill Clinton is some way around about, backhanded insult to Secretary of State Clinton. Do you see that there is some relation here or is there some attempt?

CARDONA: It's pathetic. And I would tell Senator Rand Paul that 1998 called and they want their spin back. I mean, this is completely ridiculous. It's actually a little weird how obsessed Senator Paul is with Bill Clinton and his -- whatever happened with his sex life.

And if you go back and actually look at Rand Paul's record with women, it doesn't surprise me that he's grabbing at straws trying to do anything but actually answer both his own stances with issues that impact women and the Republican Party's. It's clear that the Republican Party has a huge problem with women. Your poll indicates that. And when you have a senator who is lashing out at Bill Clinton because his own record, you know, voting against the violence against women act, voting against paycheck fairness, I don't blame him. He has nowhere else to go and neither does the party.

BLACKWELL: So, Maria, I want you to listen to what Republican Congresswoman Cathy McMorris-Rodgers, people know her because she delivered the official response to the president's state of the union. She also commented on the polls about Republican Party understanding the problems of women. Listen to what she said. We'll talk on the other side.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. CATHY MCMORRIS-RODGER, (R) WASHINGTON: The Republicans, I think, are suffering from a few statements that had been made by Republicans that have been damaging. Republicans, I think, are very good at times speaking from our head of facts and figures. And we need to also speak from our heart and make sure that people know that we care.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: So is she right? Are people hearing words like, you know, "legitimate rape" and many of the things we heard during the 2012 campaign and, I guess, painted the entire party with that same brush?

CARDONA: Absolutely. And I commend the congresswoman because she's at least trying to get Republicans to understand that they have a problem talking with women, which I think they understand because they had even sensitivity training.

But it's not working, and it's not working because it goes beyond just talk. It goes to the actual policies that affect women. And until Republicans are able to talking about equal pay for equal work, until Republicans are able to talk about leaving women alone to make their own tigers with themselves and their doctors and their families, they're going to continue to have this problem with women, especially when it's men talking about it.

BLACKWELL: So, Amy, what about that? Leaders of the party have discussed with members of the House and the Senate about when you are running and when you're campaigning, speaking at these town halls. There's a certain way you should and should not speak about women's issues and same-sex marriage. Is it just semantics or also policy?

HOLMES: Well, you know, you could ask Susanna Martinez, the Republican female governor of Nevada -- sorry, rather, what she thinks about GOP issues and reaching out to women. You can ask Susan Collins or Nikki Haley of South Carolina. There are lots of GOP women who represent the party and represent the issues that they believe matter to their voters.

As far as questions of abortion, which is I think is what Maria was referring to, there are also lots of pro-life women. If you saw the march on Washington on life just this year, you saw thousands and thousands of pro-life women. I don't think that women's issues are, you know, just center we'd our ovaries and our gin gynecology. They also have to do with the economy and national security and the NSA, a whole panoply of issues. And I think Democrats tend to reduce us just down to our gender.

BLACKWELL: We'll continue to have this conversation as we move closer to primary season and potentially the run of Hillary Clinton. Amy Holmes, Maria Cardona, thank you so much.

CARDONA: Thanks, Victor.

HOLMES: Thank you.

PAUL: A Florida judge decides to keep a suspected killer behind bars for now. But have you seen this video, because this decision comes after prosecutors show it, here it is, of what the man allegedly did inside a movie theater, the moment that culminated into the fatal shooting of a father, coming up next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PAUL: Well, the retired political officer charged with killing a man who was texting in a movie theater is not going to get out of jail, at least not sometime today.

BLACKWELL: A Florida judge denied Curtis Reeves bond after seeing this video of last month's shooting. It's infrared video. Pay attention of the bottom right of the screen here. It capped two days of testimony who detailed, so troubling it brought both Reeves and the victim's widow to tears. CNN's Martin Savidge talks us through what the video shows.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MARTIN SAVIDGE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The video is grainy but it captures a powerful screen. It comes from a camera mounted on the wall of the theater and it starts with the lights on, people taking their seats for a matinee of the movie "Lone Survivor."

Keep your eye on the far right side. The man in the white looking shirt is allegedly 71-year-old retired police officer Curtis Reeves. His wife is next to him. After the lights dim the camera continues to see infrared. Watch as Reeves appears to lean toward the front row. Prosecutors say he's complaining to 43-year-old Chad Oulson about using his cellphone. Oulson is just out of view.

Reeves leans back, then leans forward again when prosecutors say Oulson said something back. Moments later, Reeves gets up and leaves. Eyewitnesses say he claimed he was reporting Oulson to management. When he returns, witnesses say the men argued again, more loudly.

Now watch this. You see an arm said to be Oulson's reaches into view and plucks Reeves' popcorn out of his hand and throws it back at him. And nearly the same time you can see Reeves thrust his right arm forward. Prosecutors say that's the moment Reeves fired a gun pulled from his pocket.

Let's look at that again slowed down. Oulson allegedly yanking the popcorn around throwing it at Reeves, and Reeves responding by firing his weapon. You can see the gunshot shockwave dislodged just around the camera appearing like snow.

The defense played its own enhanced version of the same video. In it someone seems to throw a glowing object that appears to hit Reeves and fall to the floor. The defense says that was Chad Oulson throwing his cellphone. Reeves told police he thought Oulson has struck him. Reeves did an audio tape interview with the detective. In it the former SWAT officer said the younger, aggressive Oulson frightened him.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What made you shoot him?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, I guess it scared the hell out of me. I thought the guy was fixing to beat the -- out of me.

SAVIDGE: Also caught on the video, an off duty deputy can see moments after shot taking control of Reeves' gun and remaining with him until police arrived. At the hearing he testified to a conversation he overheard between Reeves and his wife.

ALAN HAMILTON, SR., SHOOTING EYEWITNESS: She postured and she said, that was no cause to shoot anyone. And then he leaned back around and stuck his finger out, you know, as to, you know, scold her and said, you shut your -- mouth and don't say another word.

SAVIDGE: Nicole Oulson, Chad's widow, was wounded by the shot that killed her husband. And as the judge announced his decision that Reeves was to remain behind bars until trial she seemed barely able to keep her emotions in check.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

It may have looked like it but just a reminder, this two-day hearing was not a trial. It sounded a lot like one, in fact, when the judge rendered his decision about not granting bond, he said this may sound like a verdict but it's not. And the defense chimed up in a way that sounded also like a trial because they say they're going to appeal. Christi, Victor? PAUL: Martin Savidge, thank you so much, martin.

So journalist and author Cokie Roberts is here to share her latest book.

BLACKWELL: Here she is.

PAUL: All righty. Talking about America's first ladies but you know this is a very smart woman and we are just dying to hear her thoughts on a few other things political.

BLACKWELL: We have other topics coming up.

PAUL: Hillary Clinton, Chris Christie. She's going to talk about it all in a moment. Stay close.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PAUL: It's 49 minutes past the hour. Before famous first ladies like Michelle Obama and Hillary Clinton there were a Martha and an Abigail, women who really helped shape America's political foundation. We have all heard the stories of how the founding fathers helped define democracy and independence but they didn't do it alone. A new children's book called "Founding Mothers, Remembering the Ladies" highlights the contributions women like Martha Washington and Abigail Adams made during the American Revolution. Author Cokie Roberts is joining us live from Washington. Thank you so much for being with us.

COKIE ROBERTS, AUTHOR, "FOUNDING MOTHERS, REMEMBERING THE LADIES": Good to be with you, Christi, Victor. These are great ladies. I wrote about founding mothers for grown-ups ten years ago and hit the best-seller list, and a sequel to it, "Ladies of Liberty." And kids really need to know these stories. So Diane Good, a fabulous illustrator, collaborated with me and we wrote this wonderful book for little kids, for kids in seven to 12-year-old age group. And I'm happy to tell you I've been out talking to the kids and they are so excited to learn these stories and to see these fabulous pictures.

PAUL: You know, I can't imagine the research and the work that went into this. But is there one particular story that you learned about going through journals and papers that really struck you?

ROBERTS: There are lots of them, of course. And as you say, the research is daunting. Of course you're basically reading other people's mail and diaries, so it's kind of snooping and fun. But I think one that people are surprised to learn is that, of course, in times before modern warfare, diseases killed many, many more soldiers than weapons did. And smallpox was the scourge of the time of the revolution. And Martha Washington, much to George's surprise, went to Philadelphia and had the very, very dangerous smallpox inoculation, which could kill you. But if you lived through it you were unlikely to get smallpox. And he wanted his soldiers to get the inoculation. And once Martha got it, he was able to say, well, what, the girl did it. So the soldiers then got it and they were much less affected by the disease than the British or the Hessian soldiers. So lots of stories like that. The kids can launch, you know, just grab on to and understand.

PAUL: You know, former first lady Hillary Clinton obviously in the news quite a bit lately. Was there another former first lady that you studied that would compare to Hillary Clinton today?

ROBERTS: Yes, I would say Abigail Adams certainly was -- they were all, by the way, quite influential. Anybody who thinks this just started with Eleanor Roosevelt has just not read history. But Abigail Adams, we are so lucky that we have thousands of letters because John was away all the time, which was unfortunate for her but happy for us. And she was very politically very astute. She was always writing on political issues, including, of course, her famous words to remember the ladies when the country formed a new code of laws. He ignored her.

But the -- her advice was sometimes good, sometimes bad. When she supported vigorously the Alien and Sedition Acts, I would say that was bad advice. He lost because of it. But it was certainly something that you can look at her writings and say she was a forerunner. The big difference, of course, is that she couldn't hold power. Hillary Clinton has been elected to the Senate twice and then secretary of state. That's different than just being influential behind the scenes.

PAUL: So I want to just tap into your political mind here with all that you have covered over the years. One, is Hillary Clinton in your opinion going to run in 2016 and, two, does Chris Christie have a chance against her?

ROBERTS: She -- I think she's probably likely to run. I'm not sure she's made up her mind to run. And I think that she knows all of the plusses and minuses. But it's reached a point where it's almost just sort of a machine moving for her candidacy and a lot of people behind her. So I think the likelihood of her just looking at the historical imperative is very strong.

Chris Christie, I never thought before Bridge-gate was going to be the nominee of the Republican Party. Unless the Republican Party has some great epiphany between now and 2016 I can't imagine them nominating a New Jersey perceived moderate as their standard bearer.

PAUL: Cokie Roberts, it has been such a pleasure to talk to you. The book, again, is "Founding Mothers, Remembering the Ladies." I know my three girls will certainly enjoy this. Thank you so much.

ROBERTS: OK, thank you, Christi. Great to be with you.

PAUL: Thank you. Victor?

ROBERTS: I just had a friend send me a text that says, "OMG! I love Cokie Roberts. Lucky you."

PAUL: I do, too.

BLACKWELL: He enjoyed that. Alex Rodriguez, coming up in the Newsroom, he drops his lawsuit over the doping suspension. That report is next. And we're now hearing from America's first gold medalist in these winter games. What he says has been the craziest thing ever.

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(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PAUL: All right, spoiler alert. If you're watching the Olympics, just so you know, we're going to announce a winner here, because just moments ago in Sochi we heard from the very first person to win gold at the 2014 Winter Olympics and, yes, he's an American.

BLACKWELL: Yes, 20-year-old Sage Kotsenburg competed in a brand-new event called men's snowboard slope style. Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SAGE KOTSENBURG, U.S. GOLD MEDALIST: I was goofy-footed right to left, your back facing down the mountain first. So backside, it's four-and-a-half rotations, four-and-a-half 360s in the air, and I corked it out. So it's like going off axis. And as I explained earlier, you grab a tweet behind your back. And it's a grab that I kind of only really do with like the double corks.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: I understood two or three words of that.

PAUL: I heard him say --

BLACKWELL: Goofy footed.

PAUL: Goofy footed. And he's tweeting, too. If you're tweeting, just so you know, it's leaking out.

BLACKWELL: Stay off social media if you're waiting to watch it in the evening.

All right, the ongoing battle between Alex Rodriguez and major league baseball is taking an unexpected turn. The Yankee slugger who had once vowed to fight until the end has dropped his lawsuit and accepted his massive 162-game suspension. In other words, the 38-year-old cannot play an inning until 2015. He also will lose next year's salary, $25 million.

PAUL: Make some great memories today whatever you do. We're glad you spent part of your day with us.

BLACKWELL: I hope we're one of the great memories of the day. I think we had a lot of memorable moments today.

(LAUGHTER)

BLACKWELL: I think we did. Stay here though because more is coming up in the CNN Newsroom. We turn to our colleague Fredericka Whitfield. Hey, Fred.

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: I'm going to borrow the words of Sage, the Olympian, you all corked it out. Now I'm going to cork it out.

(LAUGHTER)

WHITFIELD: That's my new lingo for the day. I'm feeling the Olympic spirit. Thanks so much, guys. Appreciate it.