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Fierce Battles in Ukraine; Obama's Foreign Relations Woes; Stiviano Speaks Out; Interview with Cedric "Cornbread" Maxwell; Mystery of Flight 370; Could Scandal Impact Clippers Performance?; Beef Recall Leads to Claims of Deception; White House Correspondents' Dinner

Aired May 03, 2014 - 13:00   ET

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

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: All right. Hello again, everyone. I am Fredricka Whitfield. We're following several big stories this hour.

First in Ukraine where there has been a major development in a tense standoff over a team of abducted observers. We'll tell you what happened. And what Russia is saying right now about the growing violence on the streets.

And in the U.S., the controversy over embattled L.A. clippers owner Donald Sterling heats up. The woman who recorded his racist rant breaks her silence, defending his character and describing the nature of their personal relationship.

And a startling update to a story we brought you on one of the biggest beef recalls ever. The California Slaughter House allegedly puts out diseased meat, knowingly, and is the backdrop for an illicit romance between an employee and a government inspector.

All right. Violence in Ukraine is pushing the divided country even deeper into crisis. Video posted on YouTube shows a bus burning in a city where people were warned to stay off the streets today. CNN cannot confirm the authenticity of the video, but our crews on the ground say there was violence there today.

That comes just after Western military observers who had been abducted were released in the neighboring town.

Nick Paton Walsh has more on the on-going violence.

NICK PATON WALSH, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Fred, I'm standing on the outskirts of Kramatorsk here and we've just emerged from inside that city. And there is a bizarre atmosphere of calm there. There are still pro-Russian militants at some of the buildings there. And despite claims from the Interior minister that they have seized the security service building, even a TV tower there as well, there's very little sign in that town of the Ukrainian military at all.

We understand from residents that they moved towards one of the check points on the outskirts. There's gunfire there, two tanker vehicles there. Tankers tore apart by the violence there clearly and residents telling us that somebody was killed at that check point confirmed by medical staff at one of the hospitals who say they've seen three dead in the last 24 hours. One from clashes on the outskirts at Slavyansk and two from the attempt by the Ukrainian army to move in to that today.

It appears the military may have moved in and gone on somewhere else. Because there simply has no sign of them in any of the buildings which the Interior minister said had been seized. A very strange and repetitive rhythm we see here. A lot of rhetoric from Kiev officials suggesting that they're moving in, and then a little resonance for that actually on the ground.

A lot of anger inside that particular town because of the Ukrainian military advance and I think we're really seeing a worrying dissent now into daily clashes.

A glimmer of good news today with those -- the party of 12 OSCE military observers and their Ukrainian escorts being released by the self-declared administration of Slavyansk after the --

WHITFIELD: All right. That was Nick Paton Walsh for us reporting.

So Russia is blaming Ukrainian troops for the violence. President Putin's spokesman says Russia is getting dozens of calls from people in southeastern Ukraine pleading for help. Reuters reports that today Russian officials say Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov called on U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry to tell Ukraine's government to stop military operations.

Back here at home, some Americans don't seem pleased with the job President Obama is doing overseas. In this NBC News/"Wall Street Journal" poll, 53 percent of Americans disapprove of how he's handling foreign relations. But this comes just as President Obama is handling the U.S. economy and the view is it is strengthening.

Here is Erin McPike.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ERIN MCPIKE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The political winds are shifting for President Obama. Now that he's got the breeze at his back on the economy.

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Our economic strength is a source of strength in the world.

MCPIKE: He is facing stiff head winds abroad. After years of dismal jobs reports, Friday's announcement the unemployment rate dropped to 6.3 percent, and 288,000 new jobs were added to the work force should have been cause for celebration. But that good news, tempered by a world crisis, when he appeared with German Chancellor Angela Merkel in the Rose Garden.

OBAMA: Now these are challenging times. And Russia's actions in Ukraine pose a direct challenge to the goal that brought Europe and the United States together for decades, and that is a Europe that is whole, free, and at peace. MCPIKE: Foreign policy was a source of strength for the president amid a still sour economy when he ran for re-election two years ago.

JOE BIDEN, VICE PRESIDENT: Osama bin Laden is dead.

MCPIKE: But with Russia's Vladimir Putin refusing to relent in Ukraine, and Republicans forming a special congressional committee to keep the heat on over how the White House handled Benghazi, pressure is mounting on President Obama.

MARIE HARF, STATE DEPARTMENT DEPUTY SPOKESPERSON: Everything that this committee would look at has already been looked at, ad nauseam by multiple committees.

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: OK, but if no one --

HARF: What's the point?

MCPIKE: And still lingering, fallout from whistleblower Edward Snowden's leaks about aggressive U.S. spying tactics, including listening in on Angela Merkel's cell phone.

OBAMA: I am going to also go ahead and maybe say something about NSA, just because I know it's of great interest in the German press as well. It has pained me to see the degree to which the Snowden disclosures have created strains in the relationship.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MCPIKE: President Obama said yesterday that he and Angela Merkel spoke about imposing additional sanctions that would really cripple Russia's economy further, if they don't see a change in Russia's actions in such a way that could impede peaceful Democratic elections that Ukraine plans to hold on May 25th -- Fred.

WHITFIELD: And then, Erin, the president meeting with Angela Merkel, you know, about Ukraine and Russia and that strike. And, you know, the feeling is Germany has the leverage here. Does the president feel reassured, you know, by her and by her country that they'll be able to take a strong stand?

MCPIKE: That was certainly the message that came out of the press conference yesterday. Of course as we have been talking about for the past couple of months, the White House has really tried to get European leaders on board in this -- in their plan to impose more sanctions on Russia, and certainly Germany is very powerful within that group. And that was certainly the message that came yesterday.

WHITFIELD: All right, Erin McPike, thank you so much. Appreciate that.

All right. We're going to have much more on the NEWSROOM right after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) WHITFIELD: All right. And now to the controversy surrounding L.A. Clippers owner Donald Sterling. It is heating up after the woman who recorded his racist comments came to his defense in an interview with ABC's Barbara Walters.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARBARA WALTERS, ABC NEWS: Is Donald Sterling a racist?

V. STIVIANO, ALLEGEDLY GIRLFRIEND OF DONALD STERLING: No. I don't believe it in my heart.

WALTERS: Have you heard him say derogatory things about minorities in general? Blacks in particular?

STIVIANO: Absolutely.

WALTERS: You've heard him say derogatory things?

STIVIANO: Yes.

WALTERS: Don't they sound racist to you?

STIVIANO: I think the things he says are not what he feels.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Deborah Feyerick is covering the story from New York.

So, Deborah, did V. Stiviano give any explanations, you know, for Sterling's comments?

DEBORAH FEYERICK, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, she did. And as a matter of fact, what's really interesting about this interview, Barbara Walters says that the two of them had been together yesterday afternoon, so the suggestion is that they are still talking, despite everything that's happened. She said that she's trying to help Sterling, rescue him from himself.

But to explain the comments that he made, she says look, Sterling is from a different generation, his parents, to set the record straight, are Jewish immigrants. They came to the United States, he was born in Chicago back in 1934. And she says one of the problems that Sterling had was when she would bring people to the Staples arena, people that were described in her words as gangsters and thugs.

And that apparently is what Sterling did not like and he was getting pressure from people around him saying, you know, this was not acceptable.

WHITFIELD: And she also talked about their, you know, relationship, what the status is, whether she's a girlfriend, whether she's associate, a co-worker or what.

FEYERICK: She described herself as his personal assistant, his confidant, his wing man, his right arm in her words. She said that they met while she was working at his foundation then they developed a different relationship. He was paying her off the books, those are his words, and they did everything together. They traveled together. She kept his records, she kept his, you know, appointments, things like that. That's what she's apparently claiming.

And when Barbara Walters asked well, are you in love with him, she said I love him like a father figure, which is very different. She seems to think this was platonic. But Donald Sterling is heard -- are on the tapes, says, you know, she says to him you are in love with me, but it appears that she was not in love with him. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

WALTERS: Can you tell me what your relationship with Donald Sterling is?

STIVIANO: I'm Mr. Sterling's right hand arm, man. I'm Mr. Sterling everything, his confidant, his best friend, his silly rabbit.

WALTERS: His what?

STIVIANO: His silly rabbit.

WALTERS: His silly rabbit?

STIVIANO: Yes.

WALTERS: Is that what he calls you?

STIVIANO: No. I call myself that.

WALTERS: That's what you -- I see, OK.

STIVIANO: I joke around and I make him laugh. I do things that some people find very silly or I do things that sometimes people can't understand our relationship. I'm his everything.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FEYERICK: That's a pretty bold statement when you parse it, Fredricka, that she's his everything, you know, and that she's his right arm. Whatever you want to call this, it does not appear that it was platonic. Look, his estranged wife in a lawsuit basically says they were having a sexual relationship and that he was lavishing her with expensive gifts.

Very interesting, the audiotapes apparently were released according to a friend because V. Stiviano was trying to pressure Sterling to have his wife back down on that very lawsuit. And now I did speak to a friend who said that Stiviano described it as a professional relationship, but that same friend said she also saw a video that clearly portrays them in a very bad light together. They clearly crossed the line. And she said even she was uncomfortable to look at some of the images between the two of them. So it will be interesting to see what else emerges. WHITFIELD: Yes. It just seems -- it's a complicated issue and this interview further complicates it. I mean, from her definition of their relationship, the personal relationship, the confidant, to, you know, his language of saying, well, I just don't want you to take pictures with thugs. Well, I mean, code language for black people.

FEYERICK: Right.

WHITFIELD: I mean, so it doesn't explain anything away. It just makes it messier. And Donald Sterling himself also spoke right, to "Dujour" magazine, and he had a few things to say which I don't think it clarified anything either. Did it?

(LAUGHTER)

FEYERICK: Well, no. It definitely didn't clarify anything. As a matter of fact, what he ends up saying is -- he ended up saying, you know, I wish I had paid her off. And so that's a whole new level in terms of what was being -- you know, look, they have been talking, you really do have to wonder what they were talking about because V. Stiviano does not come out as his enemy during this interview with Barbara Walters.

She comes out as somebody who is defending him, who's casting him in a more humane light, the fact that he feels isolated. So you've got to wonder. But one thing that was clearly bothering Stiviano was the lawsuit filed by Sterling's wife. So --

WHITFIELD: All right.

FEYERICK: A lot of players involved in this situation -- Fred.

WHITFIELD: OK. There is more. Deborah Feyerick, thank you so much.

All right. So the L.A. Clippers -- and by the way, there's a game tonight. They want to win, they have to win their game seven tonight before the season comes to an end. But the controversy swirling around the franchise, the owner, Donald Sterling, and the NBA as a whole is far from over.

Here to talk about it is former NBA star Cedric "Cornbread" Maxwell.

Good to see you. He played for the Clippers, helped win two championships as a Boston Celtics player, and is now a Boston Celtics radio analyst.

All right. Good to see you. So Donald Sterling has a reputation of being a fighter in the courtroom inside and out. Do you think he will give up his team without a fight, even if the NBA owners, you know, vote unanimously that he needs to sell the team?

CEDRIC "CORNBREAD" MAXWELL, FORMER BOSTON CELTICS PLAYER: No, I don't. I really don't think he's going to really let this team go without a fight, and let me say this, too. If she's my best friend, if she was my confidant, then let me find some more friends because I don't tell a story to somebody and then let it go out another way. The stories kind of turned around going back and forth. Should -- the issue really shouldn't be on her, but it is about her, too. I think the thing that Donald Sterling has done really has been horrible. The commissioner did it the right way. Banned him for life. Made sure that now he's going to have to sell this basketball club. And how ironic would it be, if in fact a guy like Magic Johnson, bought this team or Oprah bought this team, a prominent black person?

WHITFIELD: Yes. It would indeed be ironic. But V. Stiviano really -- I mean, she's a component here, but she really has become kind of a distraction because, you know, the root of the problem here is Donald Sterling's recorded sentiment, his behavior, you know, present and perhaps even something that has spanned, you know, for many decades.

So in your view, does this case, Donald Sterling's behavior -- you know, how he's been able to get away with this sentiment for a very long time as a team owner for 30 years, does it kind of soil the NBA in your view in any way?

MAXWELL: Well, I think one of the things you really look at, talk about what Donald Sterling has done in the past. I think you can go look at the lawsuit that he had with the harassment and the allegations about him not wanting black people to live on his property. Well, he settled that out of court. So a lot of those records were closed and they weren't going to be open any more.

I think one of the things you look at with this basketball club now is how do you go further? How does the NBA make this right? Because one thing you're doing, you're appeasing the fans. You have to appease all of the clients and the advertisers, running away in droves. They have to do something. And I think they've done the right thing.

WHITFIELD: You do think they've done the right thing. What do you think -- he is a litigious person, he's likely to fight this. And if he refuses, you know, to give up the team and if he does make this a legal battle, you know, at what point do you think the -- I guess the NBA has to change its game on Sterling?

MAXWELL: Well, I think -- I think almost immediately because, you know, you would think everybody is applauding it, saying Donald Sterling is done. Well, he has a lot of options right now. He's already a lawyer. He's going to represent part of himself. He is right now fighting for his name. So I don't see him letting this go. I think I talked to the people, and, you know, you talk about a kangaroo court, I talked to my barber in the barbershop the other day. And he was talking about well, what are they going to do, how are they going to get rid of him.

Everybody I talk to says the same thing. But this is not going to be an open and closed case. It won't happen like that. Donald Sterling, the guy I know, will drag this out, and drag it out maybe for years with injunctions.

WHITFIELD: And so you are in agreement that this is the proper type of punishment? Because there are a range of punishments for a range of offenses as it pertains to the NBA, as it pertains to players, there may be suspensions. I mean, you yourself even -- you know, had a misstep by making a sexist remark about a female referee as an analyst. You didn't lose your job. You had to apologize on the air, but there are I guess a range of consequences for different offenses.

He is at the top. He is an employer. Do you believe that losing the team, giving up the team, is severe, or is this -- you know, is this tantamount to his offense?

MAXWELL: Mark Cuban said it best, the owner of the Mavericks. This is a slippery slope for everybody, not only owners but for players, broadcasters, anybody involved. This is really moved the knob a long way, and all counter sports. Because I think look at it this way. If my conversation, if your conversation, a private conversation was let out, I think everybody right now would be in trouble.

Nobody really would have a job, but I think the right thing was done by the NBA in going this far, trying to remove Sterling, making sure that everything was done the right way. But again, the litigations and how this is going to go on, I think it's going to go a long way. It isn't over.

WHITFIELD: All right. Cedric "Cornbread" Maxwell, thanks so much. Good to see you from Boston.

All right. The hunt for Flight 370 will soon look a lot different. We'll tell you what likely will be involved and the strategy behind this new phase straight ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: The search for Flight 370 is about to start a whole new phase.

Here is CNN's Richard Quest.

RICHARD QUEST, CNN AVIATION CORRESPONDENT: Fred, after all the urgency of getting to hear the pings within that 30-day limit, and then having the Bluefin underground to see what it could see in this limited area, the search is now moving into what the Australian prime minister called last week the few phase.

It's going to be a lot longer between eight months and a year according to officials in Malaysia. It's going to require different types of assets. Not maybe just one autonomous underwater vehicle but maybe some remotely operated ones, too, because they are widening the scope from a narrow 10-kilometer radius around one of the pings that are going to start looking at several other areas as well.

And to make all this happen, the Australians, the Chinese and the Malaysians are all to meet in the Australian capital in Canberra early next week. They will be putting in place the various rules and contrast, the cost sharing. They will be coming to understandings about how this search will move forward.

And as if to prove that it is moving into another phase, the families of the passengers on board Flight MH-370, they have been told that the airline is closing the various assistance than just around the world and the hotels. And they are being told to go home to the comfort of their home where information will be given and where advanced payments are now being made by way of compensation.

A few phase, indeed, is beginning in the hunt for the answers to the mystery of MH-370. This new phase will be neither quick nor easy -- Fred.

WHITFIELD: All right, Richard Quest, thank you so much.

Let's bring in CNN aviation analyst Mary Schiavo and CNN analyst and ocean search specialty Rob McCollum.

OK, Mary, ladies first. What can happen Monday in this meeting between Australia, China and Malaysia?

MARY SCHIAVO, CNN AVIATION ANALYST: Well, I think one of the things is going to happen. There's going to be a parsing out of responsibilities. And I am sure Rob will talk in a minute about the search and how that is going to go. They'll probably take a hiatus for a short period of time. But there's an awful lot that can happen when there are not vessels on the water and submersibles under the sea.

There's a lot of unanswered questions in this report and a lot of work to be done such as more examination of the cargo. More examination of what really was done on the plane, everything from when the batteries were changed to all sorts of information about the pingers to help narrow in the location. And also, there's lots of mysteries about what really was the communication between civil air traffic control and the military. I think that there is a lot more to be explained there. And maybe some additional information.

WHITFIELD: But is that information that would be made public, the examination of the batteries or even the cargo?

SCHIAVO: Oh, eventually, absolutely. And the United States, all that kind of information. And we filed -- we do our investigations just the same way, according to that -- requirements, I mean, ICAO requirement. And all of that is eventually put on a docket for the public to see, and the reason is to improve aviation safety in the long run.

WHITFIELD: OK. And so, Rob, do you see that this meeting will also really -- or one of the central things to this meeting might be about resources or money or is it strategy?

ROB MCCALLUM, OCEAN SEARCH SPECIALIST: I think it will be both. I think there will be an agreement formed on the long-term strategy, where to from here, not just the medium term, the immediate search. Well, there are actually three phases, the finishing off, the pinger locations which will require another deployment of Ocean Shield. And then the medium term game which is to go out and scan that much larger area, the last 370 miles of the flight path. And also beyond that if you like, the salvage of the black boxes and any wreckage. WHITFIELD: And so, you know, Mary, all of those countries, you know, have been committed to just simply hang in there and, you know, as long as possible. But they also have to be talking about the end game, don't they?

SCHIAVO: They do. And even the closing of the family assistance center in Beijing. You know, in all crashes that happens eventually, and it's about -- usually at about the 45-day mark. And carriers usually do it very officially. They say our assistance centers are closing and they have caregivers, and they actually give people notice that at this point the caregivers will not be available any more.

The reason is often legal proceedings start and the airline doesn't want to be caught, you know, between the tricks in between. And so this is kind of a natural progression. This is how it happens. And it's real hard on the families. I won't kid you about that. When the care stops, it's tough.

WHITFIELD: Yes. It looks like it is.

All right, Mary Schiavo, Rob McCallum, thanks to both of you. Appreciate it.

MCCALLUM: Thank you.

WHITFIELD: All right. The NBA is doing all it can to force Donald Sterling to sell the L.A. Clippers but tonight, the team is playing for their chance to move on in the playoffs. We'll have a live report next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Are you a racist, Mrs. Sterling?

ROCHELLE STERLING, DONALD STERLING'S WIFE: No. Of course not.

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Why are you wearing the shield?

STIVIANO: Why are you holding a microphone?

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Did you set Donald up?

ADAM SILVER, NBA COMMISSIONER: I am banning Mr. Sterling for life from any association with the Clippers organization or the NBA.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Wow, what a week, huh? Were you able to keep up with all of that?

All right. The whole world now has heard the racist comments by L.A. Clippers owner Donald Sterling, and all this controversy has gotten to be pretty distracting for the team. Well, tonight they are playing, they're up against the Golden State Warriors in game seven of the NBA Playoffs.

So what is happening out there at Staples arena?

Let's go to our Ted Rowlands who is there in L.A.

So, Ted, this scandal has to be impacting the players, the coach. I know they're trying to stay focused but it's got to be a huge distraction.

TED ROWLANDS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, you have to think so, Fred, especially the first game after this all came out last Saturday when the recording came out. The game that the Clippers played in this series, the next game they were horrible. And they came out of the gate, they were down 20 plus points within minutes. It seemed like they were just not focused.

Now Doc Rivers, the head coach you mentioned, he's been pushing the team to be very focused tonight. Any game seven is absolutely exciting. Tonight a lot of eyes are going to be on the Staples Center here in Los Angeles, people watching from around the country to see how the Clippers do.

There are a lot of people who are not Clippers fans but are interested now because of what's happened off the court in how this team is doing, and a lot of people I think because they were offended by those horribly racist comments are basically now Clippers fans, or at least here in the short term in the playoffs.

WHITFIELD: OK. And then of course we know that NBA owners will be meeting next week to see if they can force Donald Sterling to, you know, let go of his team. Meantime, there are a whole lot of folks waiting in the wings who are discussing, kind of openly and privately, about whether they would want to own the Clippers themselves. Who are they?

ROWLANDS: Yes. It's amazing. Every day someone else comes popping out, saying that they would like to own the Clippers or at least there are reports that they want to. Floyd Mayweather, the boxer, Oscar De La Hoya also says he wants to own it, you've got the Larry Ellison, Oprah, David Geffen, (INAUDIBLE) want to buy it, Sean Combs, the list goes on and on.

And what it basically says, Fred, is that this is a valuable team. You know, for years the Lakers owned Los Angeles and the Clippers were really kind of a joke in terms of when you compared the two franchises. But now the Clippers because of what they've done on the court, they're a great basketball team now, and all of the excitement and the attention around the team, it's a valuable team which goes to one of the potential Sterling arguments, if he wanted to fight this in court by saying a forced sale would hurt him financially, that just isn't true.

This is a valuable team. He will make tens, hundreds of millions of dollars. A lot of people would love to get their hands on the Clippers. WHITFIELD: Right. And we're just showing that tape of Magic Johnson at that press conference. And you know, the question was asked to him, and he wasn't quite ready to rule it in or rule it out. So who knows whether he --

(CROSSTALK)

ROWLANDS: Right. He's gone back and forth a few times.

WHITFIELD: All right. Right. Ted Rowlands, all right, thanks so much in L.A. Appreciate that.

All right. Coming up next, cancerous beef. Is it being sold in a grocery store near you? The latest shocking allegations involving a massive meat recall.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: All right. We've got new information right now about a massive recall of beef. It involves a small slaughter house. We reported on this story earlier this year. Rancho Feeding Corporation pulled nearly nine million pounds of bad meat from stores across the country. And the reasons why are just the tip of the iceberg.

CNN's Chris Frates reports.

CHRIS FRATES, CNN INVESTIGATIONS UNIT CORRESPONDENT: Fred, it all started with a whistleblower, prompting federal agents to set up surveillance, then came a raid, a massive recall, and CNN has learned some pretty salacious details.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

FRATES (voice-over): CNN has learned what investigators believe happened inside the Rancho Feeding Corporation, the plant behind one of the biggest meat recalls in years. It involves cancerous cows, meat not fit for human consumption, and an illicit romance. Federal officials familiar with the investigation believe Rancho processed cancerous cows when government inspectors were not there, and after they were slaughtered hid the warning signs of cancer, trimming off diseased parts, using a fake stamp of approval, or even replacing the heads of sick cows with healthy ones.

It's not clear which employees were involved.

(On camera): But that's not all. CNN has learned that the government's own food safety inspector, the person responsible for protecting consumers from bad meat, was having a romantic relationship with a plant foreman.

(Voice-over): CNN obtained an e-mail sent to the USDA that details the romance between the USDA Inspector Lynette Thompson and a plant foreman. The e-mail says the foreman admitted to an assistant plant manager he had, quote, "been seeing Lynette Thompson," and went to her trailer three different times and they were intimate. The e-mail included personal texts, said to be between Thompson and the man. She texts, "I need a kiss later." He responds "Me too." And this one where Thompson says, "Play dumb, please, for my kids. Delete everything, K."

Documents show there was an acrimonious relationship between Thompson and plant officials and she had complained about the processing of cancerous cows. But having a romance with a plant employee is against USDA rules for an inspector.

We tried to get in touch with Lynette Thompson but we're told she did not want to speak to CNN.

Rancho has since been sold and the former owners won't talk on camera. But the lawyer for one of them did. And Jeffrey Bornstein says the relationship between the foreman and the inspector was not connected to the recall. But he did admit his client, Jesse Amaral, made mistakes.

JEFFREY BORNSTEIN, ATTORNEY FOR JESSE AMARAL: There were opportunities for cows to have gone through the process without proper inspection or otherwise properly being handled.

FRATES: Bornstein says his client is sorry but the owner had no intent to hurt the public.

BORNSTEIN: He takes responsibility for mistakes in judgment that were made. He made mistakes in judgment. He regrets not being better able to recognize, respond and to stop some of these alleged bad practices.

FRATES: Bornstein says his client is cooperating with the federal investigation but wouldn't discuss specifics of what went on in the plant. Neither will the federal officials who are conducting the criminal investigation. That has Congressman Jared Huffman wondering if the USDA has something to hide.

REP. JARED HUFFMAN (D), CALIFORNIA: One would speculate at this point that in order for there to have been a deception that allowed a whole bunch of improperly processed meat to get certified for sale, someone at USDA was deceived, right? Something must have broken down in their process, too. And so in the absence of information, I am left to believe that maybe they're a little concerned that they dropped the ball, too.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

FRATES: The U.S. attorney's office in San Francisco is investigating, and a law enforcement source tells CNN that charges against Rancho's former owners have, quote, "been decided." So an indictment could come at any time -- Fred.

WHITFIELD: All right. Chris Frates, thank you so much.

All right. She's been found guilty twice of murder. But Amanda Knox still says she didn't do it. Hear what she told CNN in an exclusive interview next. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Amanda Knox says regardless of what an Italian appeals court says, she did not kill her former roommate. Earlier this week the court released a 300-page document explaining its guilty ruling in January.

Knox was a college student in Italy when she and her then boyfriend were found guilty of the 2007 death of Meredith Kercher. That verdict was thrown out and Knox was again found guilty.

Here is what she told CNN's Chris Cuomo in an exclusive interview.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

AMANDA KNOX, CHARGED WITH MURDER IN ITALY: If Rudy Guede committed this crime, which he did, we know that because his DNA is there on -- on Meredith's body, around Meredith's body, his handprints and footprints in her blood. None of that exists from me. And if I were there, I would have had traces of Meredith's broken body on me, and I would have left traces of myself around -- around Meredith's corpse. And I -- I am not there, and that proves my innocence.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: As for the judge who tossed out the initial conviction, he says this latest verdict is, quote, "a result of fantasy and has nothing to do with evidence."

If Italy's highest court upholds her conviction, the country could ask for her to be sent back to Italy. U.S. authorities would then have to decide whether to extradite.

All right. Tonight is the night the White House can cut loose a little bit. It's the annual Correspondents' Dinner. And we'll give you a sneak peek next.

But first, "Fit Nation."

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So I am going to show you a couple of exercises that you're going to do a few times a week. All right?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: OK.

GUPTA: The first one is just a simple squat. I want you to spread your feet a little wider than shoulder width. Put your arms straight out here. Now I want you to keep your chest up just like me. You're going to squat down below your knees. Get down a little lower there if you can. Good man. So with this one, watch me first. I am going to come down, I'm going to do an easy jump and I'm going to come right back in.

The benefit of these is that you're both strengthening your muscles and you're starting to strengthen the heart. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Give me five more of those and you can see what happens to your heart and your breathing as you start to go here.

Number two exercise, I'm going to give you is what we call an isometric. So we're going to introduce the next exercise called a plank which is great to strengthen your core muscles, the muscles in the front and the back of the spine.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: OK.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I want you to basically get right into a flank position just like this. What's happening is the muscles in the front and the back of the spine are being worked, even though they're not moving. Can you feel that?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh, yes.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And watch me, you're going to turn this way, and you can give me 30 seconds just like this. Try this and face this way. And see what that looks like. There you go. Maybe a minute forward and 30 seconds on each side, and you can do these every single day. All right?

And then finally, we're going to talk about exercising some of the muscles around your chest. And I think there's nothing as good as a push-up with maybe a little rotation. So for this one, let's kind of face this way. The classic push-up down to the ground. Back up. Let's put in a rotation in this. And if you get better, you can start using some weights to help, too. But I'm going to have you rotate left, push-up. Rotate right. Push-up.

So we're going to strengthen your whole body. And, again, if not strength training or cardio, we can do this together, and I think if you do that a few times a week we're going to get you ready for your race.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Awesome.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: All right? You are definitely going to be great.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Thank you. I appreciate it.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: My pleasure. Get into it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: All right, here's a look at what's ahead on "YOUR MONEY," Christine Romans is here with a preview -- Christine.

CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN CHIEF BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Fredricka.

A decisive turn for the jobs market. Has a real recovery finally arrived? Plus, no joke, comedian Louis C. Kay ranting against Common Core education standards. He's not alone. We're going to break down what it means for you and your kid, next -- Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: All right, thanks so much, Christine.

All right. Tonight it's the big night where reporters in Washington put on their tuxedos and gowns and have a little fun with each other. Those elected to office and those who want to be.

(LAUGHTER)

It's the annual White House Correspondents' Dinner. Our Erin McPike is here with us now with a little preview of what to expect.

So, Erin, we know that Joel McHale from TV's "The Soup" is hosting. Is there anything out of the ordinary that we can expect this year? What's different about this year?

MCPIKE: Well, we may, indeed, hear a little bit something different from Joel McHale. He was on CNN just yesterday and talked to Jake Tapper about what he's going to be joking about tonight.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JAKE TAPPER, CNN ANCHOR, THE LEAD: How does one prepare for the White House Correspondents' Dinner? You just watch C-SPAN?

JOEL MCHALE, HOST, THE SOUP: No, I don't. Just -- I just won't do any political jokes at all. I'll just stick strictly to Kardashians, strictly to things on E! A lot of "Bad Girls Club." A lot of single mom stuff from MTV. And I think people will get it.

TAPPER: Do you think this crowd watches those reality --

MCHALE: Definitely. I think they love "The Real Housewives of Atlanta." I think everyone can relate. It's universal. Don't you think?

TAPPER: No.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MCPIKE: So it doesn't -- it doesn't really sound like he's going to be taking a lot of shots at President Obama's Cabinet or maybe even President Obama, himself.

Now, Fred, I can also tell you that we're going to be seeing the cast of "Modern Family" at the dinner as well the cast of "Scandal" and then one of my favorite shows, the cast of "House of Cards" there at the dinner tonight.

Now also with CNN, we've got Governor Rick Perry sitting with us as well as Governor Chris Christie and actress Diane Lane, and of course a couple of members of the Obama administration as well.

WHITFIELD: Well, of course. Well, you know, because it used to be that correspondents who go would really rather have someone of a political persuasion kind of at their table. That's kind of what it's always been about. But then in recent years, and we know the Correspondents Association has gotten a lot of flack for it, but now you've got a lot of Hollywood, you know, making -- I guess making the heads turn and it seems like it's more of the Hollywood event than it is the Washington event these days.

MCPIKE: That's right, Fred. And I interviewed the woman who runs the dinner, the executive director of the White House Correspondents Dinner. Her name is (INAUDIBLE) and she told me when it became such a big Hollywood party and it was in 1993, which was Bill Clinton's very first dinner. He had a big Hollywood following. And they all wanted to come to the dinner.

But then she said of course when Barack Obama took office, it became even bigger. So during those two administrations, the Clinton administration and now the Obama administration, we're seeing a big influx of Hollywood stars for this whole weekend, really.

WHITFIELD: Yes. And everything in between those two administrations. OK.

All right, Erin McPike, thank you so much. We appreciate it. We look forward to it.

Of course, we'll be covering it this evening. CNN gives you the best seat in the house for the Correspondents' Dinner. You'll watch it tonight. Is the event at 8:00 but our coverage begins even earlier than that. So tune in this afternoon and tonight, 8:00.

All right. Coming up in 30 minutes, we're counting down to the fastest two minutes in sports and a possible historic Kentucky derby win. And at 3:00 from tornadoes to flooding, CNN's Chad Meyers looks back at this week's wild and dangerous weather.

I'm Fredricka Whitfield, see you in 30 minutes. "YOUR MONEY" starts right now.