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Taliban Suspend Talks over Captive Soldier; In Uganda, Being Gay is Now a Crime; Netflix, Comcast Team Up to Boost Speed; Olympic Medalist Rescues Stray Dogs; Obama Hosts Governors at White House

Aired February 24, 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: Good morning. I'm Carol Costello. Thank you so much for joining me.

Checking our "Top Stories" at just about 30 minutes past the hour a carbon monoxide leak at a New York restaurant this weekend left the restaurant manager dead and sent dozens of people to the hospital.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They just told us to get out of the building and that there were people really passing out in Legal Seafood.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We were eating dinner. The place was jammed, an hour wait and just very calmly the wait staff came and told us that we have to evacuate the building.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: They were lucky. Because even the first responders who arrived on the scene felt a little dizzy after responding to the call about a woman passing out. Officials blamed the leak on a broken water heater pipe.

In southern Maine, several guests there too complained of headaches and nausea when carbon monoxide started leaking at their motel. Seven people ended up being sent to a local hospital. Officials say they found high levels of gas near the motel's furnace. The building did not have any carbon monoxide detectors.

This morning the CDC is investigating another possible outbreak of Norovirus after more than 120 people fell ill on a cruise ship. The Holland America returned home Saturday after a week long voyage to the Caribbean. This comes just one month after hundreds of passengers were sickened by the stomach illness on two different cruise ships.

A crushing setback this morning for the American soldier held captive by the Taliban, the family has been fighting for his release; the Taliban suspending talks with the United States over a possible exchange of Army Sergeant Bo Bergdahl for five Taliban prisoners.

CNN's Barbara Starr has more from the Pentagon. Good morning.

BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Good morning Carol. We've talked about this for way too long now. Bo Bergdahl taken by the Taliban and other militants now possibly holding him when he apparently walked away from his base in July, 2009.

The Taliban sent a statement over the weekend to a number of news organizations saying indeed that they were having talks through intermediaries in Qatar trying to see about that exchange of prisoners -- Bergdahl apparently in exchange for a number of prisoners the Taliban wants that are being held at Guantanamo Bay. They even in this messaged referenced that video, that proof of life video that was made back in December. It hasn't been shown publicly but it was proof both to Sergeant Bergdahl's family, most importantly and to the U.S. that he was still alive.

But now apparently these negotiations have fallen apart according to the Taliban statement. A very delicate business here and of course for the U.S., the time pressure is on. If the U.S. really leaves Afghanistan by the end of this year, it will be much more complicated to try and get Sergeant Bergdahl back. Many officials say this is something they want to see happen. They want to bring him home -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Barbara Starr reporting live for us this morning.

Still to come in the NEWSROOM: why are we still debating climate change? It's real and we in part, are to blame. So why do there seem to be so many climate change deniers out there? We'll talk about that next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: A legal fight over climate change about to go down in the U.S. Supreme Court. Republican-led states are fighting an Obama administration edict that requires power plants to limit carbon emissions -- those gases are blamed for global warning. Republicans say the President's edict is an epic power grab over something many conservatives say isn't even happening.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. TED CRUZ (R), TEXAS: You know I'm always troubled by a theory that fits every perfect situation. You know back in the 70s, I remember the 70s we were told there was global cooling. And everyone was told global cooling was a really big problem. And then that faded. And then we were told by Al Gore and others there was global warming. And that was going to be a big problem. And then, it morphed. It wasn't global warming anymore. It became climate change. And the problem with climate change is that there has never been a day in the history of the world in which the climate has not changed.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: Now it's one thing to argue over how to lessen global warming. It's quite another to deny it's even happening. There is overwhelming scientific evidence that our climate is changing and that we are, in part to blame. Yet some very vocal Americans, like Senator Ted Cruz, continue to debate what is surely fact -- the question is why?

I wrote an op-ed on CNN.com exploring that very question. And what I found was surprising.

"Just 42 percent of adults in the United States have a great deal of confidence in the scientific community. And it's easy to understand why. Most Americans can't even name a living scientist. I suspect the closest many Americans get to a living, breathing scientist is the fictional Dr. Sheldon Cooper from CBS' sitcom, 'The Big Bang Theory.' Sheldon is brilliant, condescending and narcissistic. So whose trust would he actually inspire?"

With now Dr. Anthony Leiserowitz, the director of the Yale Project on Climate Change Communications; his group has been studying the why question for more than a decade. Welcome.

ANTHONY LEISEROWITZ, DIRECTOR, YALE PROJECT ON CLIMATE CHANGE: Thank you, Carol. It's great to be with you.

COSTELLO: Nice to have you here. So let's clear up one myth, do the majority of Americans deny climate change?

LEISEROWITZ: No, they don't and that's a really important points. We find out that about two-thirds of Americans believe that climate change is real. And in fact we see more broadly that there are six very different kinds of responses to climate change in the United States, six different Americas if you will.

For example we find that about 15 percent of Americans are alarmed about climate change. They think it's happening. It's human cause and a very serious problem.

About a quarter of Americans are concerned about climate change. They think it's happening and human caused and serious but they tend to think that the impacts are going to be more distant.

Then there is another quarter that we call the cautious. These are people who think it's happening, human-cause -- I'm sorry. Actually the cautious are still confused. They are still time to figure out it is happening or not, human caused or natural.

Then a very small group we call the disengaged, it's about five percent. These are people who don't know anything about the issue.

Then 15 percent we call the doubtful. These are people who think it's not happening but if it is, it's natural. Nothing that humans had anything to do with, nothing we can do anything about.

(CROSSTALK)

COSTELLO: Let's just talk about --

LEISEROWITZ: And then last but not least is the --

COSTELLO: Right the dissenters right -- that very vocal group of dissenters is the last group.

LEISEROWITZ: Yes, yes.

COSTELLO: And they are the ones who deny climate change is happening. Who are they?

LEISEROWITZ: That's right. So that group we call the dismissive. And these are people who are firmly convinced it's not happening, not human caused and not a serious problem. And in fact about three- quarters of this group and it's about 15 percent of the public believe that climate change is a conspiracy. They think that it's scientists making up facts, that it's a U.N. plot to take away American sovereignty. That it's a plot by Al Gore as we just heard Ted Cruz talk about.

You know all of which has nothing whatsoever to do with the basic, fundamental science in what you alluded to before is that the scientific community based upon the evidence, 97 percent of climate scientists agree that climate change is happening and human-caused. And yet this issue has become deeply divisive in our politics.

COSTELLO: Well my research also found that those very loud climate deniers are backed by lots and lots of money. A recent study by Drexel University found that conservative foundations and others have bankrolled climate denial to the tune of $558 million between 2003 and 2010.

Who are these wealthy climate deniers?

LEISEROWITZ: Yes so there are two main camps, one is the obvious camp and that is the fossil fuel producers. They are perfectly happy with the current energy system of coal and oil and natural gas because that's -- they are making more money than anybody else on the planet using and continuing to burn this old energy source.

But the other is the ideological opposition and that's what you're talking about with these conservative think tanks. They are deeply distrustful of climate change because they are afraid of the potential solution.

Climate change is not something that we can all solve through our own individual voluntary behavior. Yes we can make a difference by turning out the lights and buying a more fuel-efficient car and saving energy. But it's only going to be a small piece of what ultimately is going to require and national and yes global solution to this problem. And that violates some of their fundamental distrust about government and the role of government in society.

COSTELLO: Right because it's going to -- the government will have to play a role. And for small government I'm sure people who believe in small government, that's really not something they want so see. So --

LEISEROWITZ: That's right.

COSTELLO: -- I could ask you solutions but it would take too long. But thank you so much for explaining this. We really appreciate it.

And if you want to read my op-ed, on why are we still debating climate change go to CNN.com/opinion.

Also, this morning, the African nation of Uganda, history is being made. And it's rolling back the clock by decades. With a stroke of a pen, Uganda's President created a new crime, being gay. The decision to outlaw homosexuality has turned international anger and even Uganda's President has waffled back and forth on signing the measure.

CNN's Zain Verjee is in the capital where she conducted an exclusive interview with the President. Tell us about it, Zain.

ZAIN VERJEE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Carol. I have never heard so much about oral sex from a presidential press conference ever. I was blushing enormously. And at the end of it, CNN got a special statement that was signed by the President Yoweri Museveni which basically ends that homosexuals should rehabilitate themselves and society should assist them do so. That's also the majority of opinion here in Uganda.

We had an exclusive interview with him just a short while ago. And he told the West to basically stay out of African politics. Don't impose your ideas, your values on to African culture. He said that being homosexual is disgusting, unnatural and not a human right.

Earlier, I asked him whether his views and his actions are going to take Uganda backwards. Here is what he had to say on that press conference.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

YOWERI MUSEVENI, PRESIDENT OF UGANDA: We have been disappointed for a long time by the conduct of the West, the world conducted (inaudible). But we just keep quiet. We just see how you do things, how the families, how they organized. All these things. We see them. We keep quiet. We never comment, because it is not our country. Maybe you like it.

So this is now an attempt at social imperialism, to impose social values of one group on our society. Then our disappointment is now exacerbated, because we are sorry to see that you live the way you live. But we keep quiet about it. Now, you say you must also live like us. We said no. If the west doesn't want to work with us because of homosexuals, and then we would have enough space here to live by ourselves and do business with other people.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VERJEE: I was pretty floored by the scathing reaction to the West and just saying, this is a no-go area, stay out of it.

Carol I just want to give you an idea of the kind of how harsh this new law is going to be. If you are homosexual and is charged and convicted, the first time you end up in jail, 14 years. After that a maximum sentence of life in prison. If you know anyone who is gay or if you counsel anyone who is gay, if you don't report it, if you know that someone is a homosexual, you can be thrown in jail.

So the message today from Entebbe in Uganda from the president to the United States and the West and rights groups, is butt out -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Wow. Zain Verjee, reporting live from Uganda. We're back in a minute.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: If you spent your weekend binge-watching the new season of "House of Cards", join the club; the only thing probably getting in your way, slow Internet speed and frequent freeze-up. The good news Netflix and Comcast are teaming up to provide users with faster streaming. But what happens if you're not a Comcast customer?

Let's bring in our business correspondent, Zain Asher. She has more on this -- good morning.

ZAIN ASHER, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPODENT: Hey Carol, well, if you are not with Comcast, you might be out of luck. Verizon customers have seen Netflix speeds slow by 14 percent. You have a lot of Internet service providers complaining that Netflix is actually slowing down their networks. But Netflix is actually negotiating with Verizon as well. so there is good news in that.

What's interesting though is that U.S. customers actually generally pay higher broadband fees compared to other countries. So for example, here in the U.S., we pay 53 cents for a megabit of spit, compared with 39 cents in the U.K. and Canada and 22 cents in South Korea. So the big question is given all of this, how can you lower your cable bill or your Internet bill, for example?

"Consumer Reports" says that one-third of customers actually bother to negotiate for a lower bill and out of those guys actually half of them get some form of a discount. So it is actually worth trying.

A couple of tips first for you: first of all, find out what competitors are offering. So if you're with a service provider and you (AUDIO) look and see what competitors are offering. Look online, save those coupons. Call them up and say "I've been a loyal customer for x amount of years and see if they can match what their competitor is offering.

Also find out what sort of deals your current service provider is offering to new customers and see if you can switch to another package. But lastly, this is kind of sneaky but it's one that does work, believe it or not. Call, if you are not getting anywhere with the service representative you're talking to. Call back and see if another service representative might give you a better deal. It actually works, believe it or not.

But as a last resort, ask them for the disconnection department -- Carol, because those guys are more likely to try and fight for you to stay with them.

COSTELLO: I would ask for the manager. That sometimes works.

ASHER: Sometimes they don't put you through to the manager. So you might have to sort of ask for the disconnection department instead.

COSTELLO: I like the way you think. Zain Asher --

ASHER: Sneaky, sneaky.

COSTELLO: -- thanks so much.

Checking other top stories this morning at 50 minutes past the hour -- a 65-mile stretch of the Mississippi River slows between Baton Rouge and New Orleans, as crews clean up an oil spill. Oil flowed into the river after a barge hit a tow boat near Vacherie. The Coast Guard says it can know later today how much oil spilled into the water. Luckily, no one hurt.

Apple has issued a fix for a software program that could have put millions of iPhone users at risk. Experts say the flaw could have allowed hackers to access personal information like e-mail, instant messages and bank statements. While most iPhones update automatically, tech experts say users should make sure they have the latest software installed.

Russia says good-bye to the Winter Olympics with a little laugh during the closing ceremonies in Sochi. The host country poked fun at itself by mirroring its mistake from the opening ceremony -- an Olympic ring failing to light up again until the very end.

Russia is able to smile after their athletes dominated the games. They took home the host medals, 33. The Americans came in second.

Today's "American Journey" stretches halfway across the globe. You've probably heard about the all the stray dogs in Sochi and how some Olympic athletes are giving them new homes several time zones away.

Gus Kenworthy who won a silver medal for the U.S. in men's slopestyle skiing is adopting not one but five dogs -- a mom and all of her puppies. The dogs are still in Sochi but will be joining him soon in Colorado.

Here is Rachel Nichols.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

RACHEL NICHOLS, CNN SPORTS (on camera): So how much has your life changed since you stepped off that medal stand?

GUNS KENWORTHY, OLYMPIC SILVER MEDALIST: I don't even know if I know how much has changed. But it's just been insane. It's just been kind of like a whirlwind of excitement and just so much going on.

NICHOLS: You tweeted a picture of yourself on a Cornflakes box.

KENWORTHY: Yes, I mean, we won and like 12 hours later we were on a cereal box. So that was -- it was crazy but I mean it's a huge dream come true to feel like a lot of the biggest sports icons in the world have been featured on cereal boxes. So to get to be one of those, it's insane.

NICHOLS: Well, we want to see the dogs. Can we go see the dogs?

KENWORTHY: Yes, let's do it. NICHOLS: All right.

KENWORTHY: For sure.

Hi, mom. Mom, you want a sausage?

NICHOLS: You heard that there were stray dogs around here.

KENWORTHY: Yes.

NICHOLS: And you heard what they were doing. What was that like when you started to hear the stories?

KENWORTHY: I mean it just kind of sucked for sure. I felt for all the animals. I heard that they were just rounding them up and exterminating them and trying to keep them out of the public view. So I felt really bad.

But I mean I definitely wasn't like planning on trying to come here and be some animal activist or like --

NICHOLS: Right.

KENWORTHY: -- spokesperson for humanity, for the dogs or anything. I just -- this particular family just really kind of touched me and I just think they are so cute and that they need some help. And so I'm just going to try and bring this family home.

Hi. You're OK. Look. Come here.

NICHOLS: Well, you're going to have to give this one a Russian name.

KENWORTHY: I don't know.

NICHOLS: Right?

KENWORTHY: I mean I was thinking like Sochi is kind of nice --

NICHOLS: Well, that's good.

KENWORTHY: Or like Kator (ph), Rosa, Silver, I don't know. Something --

NICHOLS: Silver is pretty good.

KENWORTHY: Something for the event.

NICHOLS: Right?

KENWORTHY: Yes.

NICHOLS: Right. Are you going to show her your medal here? Does she like it?

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: Just moments from now, a meeting between President Obama and the nation's governors gets under way at the White House. The economy expected to be one of the big topics to discuss. The governors are in town for their annual winter meeting.

Last night, the President hosted the lawmakers at a black tie dinner and even joked about some of them who getting ready to be the next commander in chief.

CNN political director, Mark Preston, live in Washington to tell us more. Good morning.

MARK PRESTON, CNN POLITICAL DIRECTOR: Hey, good morning, Carol. Certainly, a lot of fun and joking and a lot of breaking of the bread but there is a lot of concern between the Republican governors specifically and President Obama and he made some jokes last night at the White House about that.

In fact, President Obama said that there was some people in the room that wanted his job. In fact, after today, they are holding a news conference today. We're going to see the Republican governors go across the street from the White House, Carol and they're going to hold a news conference of their own and they're going to call on the President to use his own executive order to be able to do some things, including opening up the Keystone Pipeline which our viewers are well aware of. We talk about it a lot here -- which would bring oil out of Canada.

They are also going to call for the federal government to open up federal land to oil exploration.

Also we're going to call on the IRS to not be able to look into people's taxes, the ability of political groups in their tax-exempt ability. Also, going to call on changes to the educational system as well -- so a lot of Republican policies that we are going to hear from these Republican governors. They broke bread last night. In fact, they have a lot of policy differences and we'll hear from them today on that -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Well and just to be frank, the governors across the nation, they are doing the most to help economies within their states because right at the moment, the President can't do much.

PRESTON: No, he can't do much. Look, the buck stops here. That's a famous political slogan. And that's exactly right because governors have to balance budgets. You hear that often and literally, it is the trickle-down effect. Governors have to balance budgets. Legislators have to deal with it on the state level. Here in Washington, D.C., you don't have to balance budgets -- that's why. They don't balance budgets here in Washington, D.C. -- they spend, spend, spend.

And you're going to hear that from the governors today, specifically the Republican governors -- Carol.

COSTELLO: All right. Mark Preston reporting live from Washington -- thanks so much.

And thank you for joining me today. I'm Carol Costello.

"@ THIS HOUR" with Berman and Michaela starts now.

MICHAELA PEREIRA, CNN HOST: The smallest army since before World War II, the Pentagon calling for big cuts in troop levels -- it is enough to keep America safe?

JOHN BERMAN, CNN HOST: Fifteen yards for racism, new rules on the table for what can and cannot be said on the football field.