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Markets Edging Lower at Open; Ukraine's Ousted President Lashes Out; Clinton Papers Released; Obama and Biden Move; A Jesus Film for a New Generation

Aired February 28, 2014 - 09:30   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Happening now in the NEWSROOM, thousands of secret memos and papers from the Clinton White House finally released for the first time for all to see.

Plus --

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SETH ROGEN, ACTOR: I don't know if you know who I am at all. You told me you never saw "Knocked Up," chairman. So, it's a little insulting.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: Seth Rogen, not laughing, at the empty seat that his Senate hearing on Alzheimer's. Let the Twitter shame begin.

And the movie "Son of God" in theaters today. I'll taught with producers Roma Downey and Mark Burnett about how hard it was to find the perfect actor to play Jesus.

NEWSROOM continues now.

Good morning. I'm Carol Costello. Thanks so much for joining me.

Wall Street looking to start the day in the red. Markets trading lower at the open after a worse than expected report on the GDP. The opening bell just rang, so stocks still up just a bit. Alison Kosik is in New York following this.

Good morning, Alison.

ALISON KOSIK, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol.

We found out that GDP took a big hit in the last three months of last year. Economic growth was actually revised down to a 2.4 percent annual rate from a 3.2 percent pace. And that's actually worse than the third quarter as well.

Now, this is just the second revision. We've still got one more to go before we get the final number of the fourth quarter of last year. But this is not the trend that we want to see. So what happened here? Well, first of all, consumers didn't spend as much between October and December, and that spending actually accounts for the lion's share of economic activity. They spent less on automobiles, on appliances and electronics. Also, businesses didn't restock their shelves as much as they did in the previous quarter. Government spending was also down.

Now the big worry, Carol, is that the loss of momentum in the final half - the final end of last year could carry through into the beginning of this year, especially with all the harsh weather that we've been having.

Carol.

COSTELLO: You know, but nothing really seems to affect the stock market for very long. We're in the plus column again today, even though we had a lousy GDP number, right?

KOSIK: True. And a lot of that has to do with the Fed. The Fed is still pumping that stimulus into the financial system. That continues to keep propping up stocks. But, you know, once that stimulus is gone, all bets are off, that's if the Fed continues dialing back on that stimulus, Carol.

COSTELLO: Alison Kosik reporting live from New York.

Let's talk about Ukraine now. Its ousted president has resurfaced in Russia to condemn the uprising that toppled his government. And in a news conference that ended just last hour, he blamed the west for mobilizing what he called pro-fascists and he called on Russian President Vladimir Putin to act. In the meantime, men in military uniforms and armed with assault weapons have swept into two airports in the Crimea region, which borders Russia. No shots have been fired, but it's not clear who these men are or what their intentions are. Ukraine's interior minister is accusing Russia of staging an armed invasion. So let's get the latest from the Pentagon and the U.S. reaction to all of this and CNN's Barbara Starr.

Good morning, Barbara.

BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol.

Well, from the Pentagon to the State Department, to the White House and the CIA, all of Washington looking at those very pictures of these men at these airports in Ukraine wondering who they are and what they are up to and what may come next. What we are hearing from our sources is the U.S. does not believe that Russia is planning any invasion of Ukraine. Nobody really thinks that's on the table.

The concern is, as we see these pictures of perhaps Russian backed militias going to these various locations in the Ukraine, is this the emerging Russian strategy to secure various individual locations and exert their influence that way. Because what the U.S. believes right now is that Vladimir Putin is using all of this, the exercises, the uncertainty, the security troops to flex his muscle, to show the world that Russia still has the capability, not a full scale invasion, but certainly the muscle and the influence to try and control events in Ukraine. The U.S. keeping an eye on this around the clock, Carol.

COSTELLO: Barbara Starr reporting live from the Pentagon this morning.

Would they have done this to Angelina Jolie? I would say no. Seth Rogen, they did. And he is not happy. The actor delivered moving congressional testimony about the rising impact of Alzheimer's disease to more than a few empty seats.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SETH ROGEN, ACTOR: After forgetting who she and her loved ones were, my mother-in-law, a teacher for 35 years, then forgot how to speak, feed herself, dress herself and go to the bathroom herself, all by the age of 60. Americans whisper the word Alzheimer's because their government whispers the word Alzheimer's. And although a whisper is better than the silence that the Alzheimer's community has been facing for decades, it's still not enough. It needs to be yelled and screamed to the point that it finally gets the attention and the funding that it deserves and needs.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: So, look, he's trying. Moving words, right? But only two senators actually stayed to listen. Rogen clearly cares about this issue. He was not happy about the hearing's low turnout, so he turned to Twitter and his 1.8 million followers. Quote, "not sure why only two senators were at the hearing. Very symbolic of how the government views Alzheimer's. Seems to be a low priority."

Senator Mark Kirk was quick to respond. He tweeted Rogen kudos for his efforts, except Senator Kirk did not stay for Rogen's testimony. And that fact was not lost on Rogen who tweeted, quote, "symbolically, it hurts the cause to see that many empty seats. Wish you hung around. Nice meeting you."

Now, to be fair, Senator Kirk was at most of the hearing, but he left for a meeting with the astronaut, Jim Lovell. But in the end, Rogen says, it seems these senators don't care about people who suffer from Alzheimer's. In case you're wondering, 5 million Americans suffer from Alzheimer's disease, 15 million Americans care for them.

You can bet more than one political operative will be anxiously awaiting a dock drop at the Clinton Presidential Library. More than 4,000 pages of confidential documents will be made public later today and everybody's wondering whether anything juicy will be revealed. The last time those private papers were released from the Clinton era, they showed Hillary Clinton called Monica Lewinsky a narcissistic looney tune. Those revelations coming from Diane Blair, a close Clinton friend who died in 2000. Mark Preston is CNN's political director.

Good morning, Mark.

MARK PRESTON, CNN POLITICAL DIRECTOR: Hey, good morning, Carol.

COSTELLO: Any hints for us? PRESTON: Well, you know, what's interesting about this is that we'll see about between 4,000 and 5,000 documents that will be released today. In all, we expect 33,000 documents released over the next month. So there's got to be something in there that will cause some interest.

I mean this is all during the time when President Clinton was president. We know that his wife was one of his top political advisors during that time, specifically during the issue of health care. So we're going to be looking to see what, if any things that was corresponded between her and his political advisors on the issue of health care, which, of course, is President Obama's key initiative right now. So we'll be looking for that today and, of course, the weeks to come.

What we don't know specifically, what is in these documents. And as you said, we don't know what she interacted. And really what I think these documents are going to show is really provide perhaps a window into somebody, like it will provide like a window into Hillary Clinton and how she is thinking specifically as the Diane Blair documents had shown just about a month ago, Carol.

COSTELLO: So why have these documents been kept under lock and key? Why release them now?

PRESTON: Well, back in 1978, the federal government had passed a law that any documents that were sensitive in nature, Carol, would be held under lock and key. And that would include presidential appointment, anything that had any kind of sensitive communication and they would be held for 12 years and then they would be reviewed. So President Clinton had left office in 2001. Those documents came up for review in 2013. They were reviewed. And so now, a year later, they've decided to release them.

There's nothing political in nature of that. In fact, had president -- or had Hillary Clinton become president back in 2008, had she won, she would be a sitting president right now when these documents had come up. So there's nothing nefarious about it necessarily, but she is looking to run, of course, in 2016. So there is some interesting timing behind it.

COSTELLO: OK. Well, we can't wait. CNN political director Mark Preston, thanks so much.

PRESTON: Thank you, Carol.

COSTELLO: Still to come in the NEWSROOM, jogging through the White House, dancing with vegetables. The Obamas pushing to end childhood obesity. Is it working? Athena Jones live at the White House.

Good morning.

ATHENA JONES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning.

We'll see more of that video of the president and the vice president jogging through the White House and talk about what's changed in the four years since Mrs. Obama launched her campaign after the break.

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COSTELLO: Let's move. That's the message from the two most powerful men in the country in a new video from the White House highlighting the need to get out there and get active.

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JOE BIDEN, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Mr. President, you ready to move?

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Absolutely. Let's do this thing. Let's move.

BIDEN: Man, you're hard to keep up with.

OBAMA: You (INAUDIBLE). But after a good workout, got to drink up.

BIDEN: All right.

OBAMA: Otherwise I'm going to be in trouble with Jill and Michelle.

BIDEN: Just let Michelle know I did drink this, all right?

OBAMA: Same time next week?

BIDEN: Same time next week.

OBAMA: All right.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: I think the dogs were a nice touch, Athena Jones.

ATHENA JONES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol. The music was great too.

COSTELLO: It was good. It was really good. So tell us more. This is a fun campaign.

JONES: It is. That video was part of a promise the first lady spelled out earlier this week as part of this week long celebration of the fourth anniversary of Let's Move. She said she wanted folks all around the country to tweet pictures and video, Instagram, put on Facebook pictures and videos of them moving, showing how they move with the #letsmove. And the prize or the surprise, I guess, was going to be this video that they just put out showing the president and vice president jogging around the White House.

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MICHELLE OBAMA, FIRST LADY OF THE UNITED STATES: We're really just changing the entire arc of their day and creating healthy environments for kids from morning till night. And I think with those small changes, we're starting to make some progress. (END VIDEO CLIP)

JONES: And some of the changes the first lady brought up this week during one of her speeches was that now big chain restaurants are offering more healthy menu, whole -- separate menus of healthy option. Organizations are planting gardens at schools. And she also said that water has now surpassed soda as the most consumed beverage in America. You saw the vice president and the president taking a sip of water at the end of that workout. And so water, she says, has now surpassing soda. So those are some of the changes that the first lady mentions coming out of this four year old campaign.

One more bit of news we got this week is that very young children, obesity rates among very young children ages two to five have dropped 43 percent in the past decade. Now, of course, they're not attributing that drop directly to the Let's Move campaign, but this is the kind of good news the first lady is hoping we'll see more of as this campaign goes on.

Carol.

COSTELLO: And I'm sure we'll see more of Michelle Obama dancing with eggplants. I love it. Athena Jones, thanks so much.

JONES: Thanks.

COSTELLO Still to come in the NEWSROOM, it's being called a Jesus movie for a new generation.

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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I thought only God could do that.

DIOGO MORGADO, ACTOR: Which is easier to say his sins are forgiven or say you get up and walk.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: The Hollywood power couple behind "Son of God" talk to CNN -- me -- next.

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MORGADO: Blessed are the pure in heart for they shall see God.

Pray to him and he will listen.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

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COSTELLO: "Son of God" hits theaters nationwide today and some are calling it the Jesus film for a new generation.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MORGADO: Your sins are forgiven my son.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I thought only God could do that.

MORGADO: Which is easier to say his sins are forgiven or say you get up and walk?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I've had reports the young prophet of Nazareth is rumored he works miracles.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They all do.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Blessed are the pure in heart for they shall see God. Pray to him and he will listen.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: 5,000 came to see him.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: It is the first time in 50 years the life of Jesus from birth to the resurrection has been on the big screen and some making for a huge hype (ph). Churches, student groups even a Christian university are renting and hiring movie theaters to screen the film and buying up about half a million tickets even before today's release.

"Son of God" is produced by Mark Burnett and his wife Roma Downey. This is the same Burnett who produces "Survivor" and Downey is an actress from the TV series "Touched by an Angel" -- you remember that. She plays the Virgin Mary in "Son of God". I had a chance to talk with the couple who call themselves the noisiest Christians in Hollywood.

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ROMA DOWNEY, ACTRESS & PRODUCER, "SON OF GOD": Oh we are so excited. We've been working on this for a number of years. It doesn't feel like work. It has been a passion for us to get to do what we love to do and to get to combine it with what we believe and to get to do it together as a husband and wife. And "Son of God" finally on the big screen.

COSTELLO: That's -- do you realize Mark that pastors across the country are actually renting out entire theaters so that they can bring their congregations to see this movie together.

MARK BURNETT, PRODUCER, "SON OF GOD": It's amazing. We've been reading what you've been reading, you know. And it really is a movement. I mean we've read not only are they taking out theaters. In some cases, every single screen in a Megaplex, "Son of God", "Son of God", "Son of God", "Son of God". It's historic.

But this is -- let's face it -- it is one nation under God. And it's a nation built pretty much on the bible. So it makes sense.

You know also, it's been 50 years since Jesus' life was on the big movie screen, which was "The Greatest Story Ever Told". So this is the new Jesus movie for the new generation, 2014.

COSTELLO: How difficult was it to find the right actor, just the right actor to portray Jesus, Roma?

DOWNEY: Oh, it was the most difficult piece of casting that we had to do. Indeed, that we may ever have to do. We knew that we needed an actor who could be strong, who had presence and charisma on screen but who could also play tender, show kindness, have compassion.

We put it out there to everybody we knew. I actually sent an e-mail out to everyone on my list saying, "Looking for Jesus". We found him in Portuguese actor, Diogo Morgado, who gives the most beautiful performance in the center role. I think that his performance will be touching people for generations to come.

COSTELLO: A couple of things about this actor. And he's a great actor. And he's a beautiful guy, right? He's already inspired the hashtag, #HotJesus. Did you -- did you take into account his sexiness, Mark, when you were casting him?

BURNETT: You know, it is the truth. Roma said it's going to be him before we even met him, just from having a feeling about this guy. And he is a big guy, 6'3", very strong, he's the lion and the lamb. But he has a great humility.

Roma says she has worked with a lot of really good-looking actors who really have a swagger and they know they are really good-looking.

DOWNEY: Yes and he has none of that. He has a natural humility about him. He is easy on the eyes, it is true. But I have to say that his beauty is not just from the outside. He is a lovely, lovely man. And he has a quality of kindness in his performance and a warmth about him that I think will just allow audiences to fall in love with Jesus all over again.

COSTELLO: And you know, I'm just going to ask you this tough question. Because some people say he certainly doesn't look like a Palestinian Jew which Jesus certainly was. And why is that? Why do we continue to cast, you know because he looks pretty much like a white man with light brown hair.

BURNETT: Well, he is not. Because he is actually Latin; he is probably the first Latin Jesus. He's a good-looking guy, and his hair is a little lighter. He's actually Hispanic. His third language is in fact English, that's Portuguese and Spanish. He is a big star in Brazil and Spain and Portugal.

So you know -- but he -- yes he is good-looking and but I think it's great to have a Latin playing Jesus. And by the way, I think it's now over 50 theaters nationwide booked out solely for the Spanish version of this. It's really historic.

COSTELLO: I'm sure and just about questions about the number of religious movies. There are half a dozen that are set to come out. Some of them controversial like the one about Noah's Ark. Yours has not been controversial it's been very well received. How is yours different, than perhaps Noah's Ark will be?

DOWNEY: Well you know we knew that bringing the gospels and the bible to the big screen in this way came with a big responsibility. We worked with theologians and scholars and with faith leaders all across denominations to make sure that we told the story accurately and then we applied to it all the great production qualities, you know special effects, (inaudible) score. So, on the one hand it is this big epic thriller. And on the other hand, it is this deeply intimate personal story of love. But we took that seriously and we took advice on it.

BURNETT: Yes. You know one thing is -- it's not just any book, correct? It's a sacred text. It's a sacred text that millions of people have willingly died for. Could have saved themselves but wouldn't deny their faith and currently, billions live by it. It's not anything to mess around with. You've go to be faithful to a sacred text like this.

COSTELLO: Thank you so much. And good luck with the movie. And we expect more to come, right?

BURNETT: Yes.

DOWNEY: Yes, thank you. We are super excited. We are hoping people come and bring their families this weekend to see "Son of God".

COSTELLO: Thanks to you both, Mark Burnett and Roma Downey.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: All new in the next hour of the NEWSROOM $10 fare between Europe and the United States. Really? One airline CEO says it could happen in the next few years; $10 to go to Europe. There's got to be some kind of catch right. Is it real? We'll take a look in the next hour of NEWSROOM.

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