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Suicide Bomber Identified as American; Are the LA Clippers Worth $2 Billion?; Shinseki Exit Won't Ease Pressure on Obama; First Lady Fights for Healthy School Lunches; Marine Fights to Get Out of Mexican Jail; Living in Age of Guns; Oldest Person in America Turns 115; Healthy School Lunch Rules Delayed

Aired May 31, 2014 - 11:00   ET

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

DANA BASH, CNN ANCHOR: I'm Dana Bash in for Fredricka Whitfield. The 11:00 hour of NEWSROOM starts right now.

A suicide bomber who carried out an attack in war-torn Syria has now been identified as an American. Officials say he's a U.S. citizen who grew up in Florida. He went to school there and according to "New York Times" played in a youth basketball league, too. But somewhere along the way something changed. And he went to Syria to join extremists linked to al Qaeda.

Mohammed Jamjoom is following the story in Washington. Mohammed what have we learned about this American?

MOHAMMED JAMJOOM, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well Dana the State Department believes that his name Moner Mohammad Abusalha. They say that he grew up in Florida, that he went to school there although they're not sure yet when exactly he went to Syria. They have not divulged details about when he went or why he went. Although it seems that he went to join up with the ranks of these jihadists in Syria.

There is video that is posted online purporting to show the attack that he was involved in. Now, you see this huge blast in one of these videos. There's always a still picture of this man where you see him holding a cat.

The video that you're looking right now is actually showing the planning stages of this attack when artillery shells were being loaded into one of the trucks that was used for the attack.

This was a huge attack. And in the initial stages when we were trying to confirm the story American officials were saying they would not be able to confirm the identity of this man unless they were able to do DNA tests. But judging just by the shockwaves that was generated by that blast it was very unlikely they were going to be able to get their hands on any remains to do any kind of testing.

This is a very disturbing development, not just because there are Americans that are fighting currently in Syria and we're told by analysts that there are at least 100 Americans currently there. It's also disturbing for U.S. officials because they worry about what will happen when these fighters that are over there, the ones that survive the fighting actually come back to the homeland. There's great concern that American fighters that are in Syria that are learning terrorism techniques from the ranks of al Qaeda members might be able to plot out attacks against the U.S. -- Dana.

BASH: Well that certainly -- Mohammed that certainly leads to my next question which is the concern about that. If you have Americans in America who are presumably U.S. citizens and that are trained as terrorists, you know, the concern that it would be a lot easier for them to conduct those attacks here on the homeland.

JAMJOOM: Yes that's right. And U.S. officials have stated since yesterday that one of the things they're really looking into now is networks of recruiters that are tied to al Qaeda that are trying to convince Americans that might be attracted to this cause to come over to Syria and other hot spots, fight alongside them and then return to the homeland and use the techniques that they've learned against the U.S. or other countries. This is a very real fear. It's actually a nightmare scenario and it's one of the reasons that this story is so disturbing to U.S. officials.

Another reason it's so disturbing is because you have the actual, physical war going on in Syria, which is so bloody and so deadly, but you also have the propaganda war. And in an instance like this where there is now video of an American who was in Syria who became the first suicide bomber, that is going to be used repeatedly by jihadists there al Qaeda link jihadist as propaganda to try to recruit more Americans to their cause. They see this as a big win for them. Dana?

BASH: Very disturbing. Thank you very much, Mohammed Jamjoom.

And back here at home a new twist in the drama surrounding the sale of NBA -- the NBA's LA Clippers. The team's co-owner Donald Sterling dropped a major bombshell. He's suing the NBA for a whopping $1 billion -- billion with a "b". Sterling's lawsuit claims the NBA had no right to force the sale of the Clippers at all and that terminating his ownership is unconstitutional and in breach of contract.

This comes just as new questions are out there about his mental state and his wife, Shelly -- she's agreeing to sell the team for $2 billion to former Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer.

Our Alexandra Field joins us now with a closer look at this price tag. Alexandra -- wow. First let's start with the $2 billion money -- money mark. Is it really worth it?

ALEXANDRA FIELD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes blockbuster number. Apparently it was worth it to Steve Ballmer because he put up that money and he outbid the next closest competitor by about $400 million. But Dana you'll remember that a lot of people were estimating the team would sell for between $700 million and a $1 billion. So this certainly took a lot of people by surprise and it certainly will have the other NBA team owners taking notice.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

FIELD (voice over): A $2 billion bid for a basketball team smashes records, but what's Steve Ballmer the former Microsoft mogul getting for all that money?

RICK HORROW, HORROW SPORTS VENTURES: A team is better on the court today than the Los Angeles Lakers with a great lease at the Staples Center and a new upside television deal that he is about to negotiate in Los Angeles.

FIELD: Future TV deals both local and national could bring in close to an extra $100 million a year by some estimates, which is a lot, but not the big picture.

MIKE OZAMAN, FORBES MAGAZINE: In the first few years, profits are going to be very minimal. This isn't something he's buying because he wants to make money. This is someone who is going to take 10 percent of their net worth and they're going to buy a sports team in L.A., which is going to give them a lot of prestige.

FIELD: For $2 billion, there is plenty of prestige, a way for the wealthy to diversify investments, and with a salary cap in place NBA owners can be protected from dipping into their own pockets.

OZAMAN: Steve Ballmer knows that if he runs this team somewhat prudently, he is not going to have to put any capital into the team.

FIELD: If you have $20 billion.

OZAMAN: It's not a bad thing.

FIELD: In January Forbes' list of NBA team value ranked the Clippers 13th with an estimated worth of $575 million. Their potential sale price was estimated at around $1 billion once Donald Sterling's racist rant was revealed.

HORROW: The NBA should trip over itself and get the documents done, approve this transaction and move on to other business just as fast as humanly possible.

FIELD: The $2 billion price tag could help send the values of some of the league's most valuable franchises soaring.

OZAMAN: I don't think you'll be able to buy a big market NBA team for less than $3 billion.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FIELD: More big numbers. Now because of this agreement to sell the team for $2 billion, the NBA has said that it will cancel the meeting it had scheduled for June 3rd during which the other NBA owners would force Donald Sterling to sell the team.

But the owners do still have to approve this sale and while there are a lot of reasons why you can imagine they would want to approve the sale and do it quickly, the extra reason is this $2 billion price tag. Dana a lot of these owners are certainly thinking about the values of their own teams and how they could be elevated.

BASH: Not everybody has Microsoft money. Alexandra Field, thank you so much.

And coming up, V.A. fallout. This is the first full day on the job for the interim secretary of veteran affairs. What should his first step be? And how can veterans make sure Eric Shinseki's resignation doesn't end the pressure for reform. I'll ask a congressman and former V.A. doctor straight ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BASH: V.A. Secretary Eric Shinseki stepped down but that may only ramp up the pressure on President Obama to fix the Veterans Administration. It's so diseased, 42 V.A. facilities are under investigation for improper scheduling practices and delayed care for veterans.

So what's next at the V.A.? How do we get it back on track? On the phone is Michigan Congressman Dan Benishek. He is a former V.A. doctor himself and a member of the House Veterans Affairs Committee. Also with us is CNN's Erin McPike.

Erin I want to start with you and to give us the latest particularly how members of Congress, Republicans, in particular are going to keep the pressure on for reform now that Shinseki is out.

ERIN MCPIKE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well Dana, as you well know once the White House begins to float some of the names who could replace Eric Shinseki as the head of the V.A., Republicans will certainly make their feelings known. They are also calling for a criminal investigation.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MCPIKE (voice over): Taking reporter questions about how it came to this President Obama explained.

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We occupy a -- not just an environment that calls for management fixes, we've also got to deal with Congress and you guys and I think it is Rick's judgment that he could not carry out the next stages of reform without being a distraction himself. And so my assessment was, unfortunately, that he was right.

MCPIKE: But Shinseki's resignation might not end the firestorm.

OBAMA: Well, the distractions that Rick refers to, in part, are political.

MCPIKE: House Speaker John Boehner warned --

REP. JOHN BOEHNER (R-OH), HOUSE SPEAKER: One personnel change cannot be used as an excuse to paper over a systemic problem. Our veterans deserve better and we'll hold the President accountable until he makes things right.

MCPIKE: The President tapped Deputy Secretary Sloan Gibson to lead the V.A. for the time being. Acknowledging Gibson has been on the job for only three months.

OBAMA: We're going to need a new V.A. secretary. So, Sloan is acting. Sloan, I think, would be the first to acknowledge that he is going to have a learning curve that he's got to deal with.

MCPIKE: But Obama insisted that Gibson can bring order to the V.A.

OBAMA: I want somebody who is spending every minute of every day figuring out, have we called every single veteran that's waiting? Have they gotten a schedule? Are we fixing the system? What kind of new technology do we need? Have we made a realistic assessment of how long the wait times are right now and how are we going to bring those wait times down in certain facility where the wait times are too long?

MCPIKE: Still, he'll have investigations and Congress to contend with.

REP. JEFF MILLER (R), VETERANS AFFAIRS COMMITTEE: Our committee in the House will continue in full force investigating all of the systemic problems that exist within the department up to and including the criminal activity that is growing more apparent every day.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MCPIKE: Now, the President said that he'll leave all questions about a potential criminal investigation to the Justice Department -- Dana.

BASH: Erin, thank you very much.

And we turn now to Congressman Benishek. Thank you so much for being with us. Now you were among the lawmakers probably one of the first seeking Shinseki's resignation. Now it's happened. What should be the very first thing that the acting VA Secretary, Sloan Gibson, should do?

REP. DAN BENISHEK (R) MICHIGAN: Well I think they should be listening to the people that provide the care. That's really been the problem at the VA right all along is that the upper management sort of dictates the way things going -- are going without talking to the people who actually are caring for patients.

You know I took care of patients at the VA for 20 years and they never listened to any of my ideas, you know. They just have like an idea that they just carry out and it just makes things less efficient.

A good example is the fact that the V.A. decided to get rid of the sterilizer in the hospital that I was at without even talking to the chief of surgery. So then there was no sterilizer at the hospital. It makes the (inaudible) scared.

They don't have a plan to hire physicians in the V.A. You know, they're always short of physicians. You know there's all kinds of ideas from the people that take care of patients how to manage this better and frankly upper management is complacent there is no culture of accountability within the V.A. and nobody gets fired. People keep (inaudible) bosses no matter what their performance is and that's what we need to change and that needed to come from the top and this is, Mr. Shinseki resigning is one thing but instilling that urgency that we need to fix this is another thing. We need to make sure we have leadership that does that and the management is not complacent.

BASH: But how do you do that? I mean you were mentioning you do have such a unique perspective. You were a V.A. doctor yourself. Now you're in congress and you have oversight of the V.A. So you have the ability to change it, at least to give ideas that can be implemented based on your unique experience. So, how do you do that?

BENISHEK: I would hope that the administration would listen to some people that had experience within the V.A. You know, someone like myself because, like I said, they do things within the V.A. that, you know, hinder the timely care of veterans rather than faster because they're not listening to the people on the ground. There's no way for positions on the ground to communicate with upper management, it's very frustrating.

BASH: I'm sure it is very frustrating and I am sure you would agree that it's not just this administration and not just the administration beforehand. It's not one party or another. This has been going on for decades really since the beginning of the V.A.

BENISHEK: Absolutely.

BASH: It's a systemic problem.

And one of the things that I thought -- think is just maybe most outrageous to people is something that I believe you brought up in one of the hearings last week which is the financial incentives that people at these V.A. offices have to cook the books to fake lower wait times. You pressed the V.A. official on that and you didn't get much of an answer, did you?

BENISHEK: Well, you know, I asked for the names of the people that actually did the destruction of the data so we could question them and he didn't even talk to those people. He reassured us that they were doing it within the rules, but how does he know if he didn't even talk to the people that were involved. That's the kind of answers we get from the V.A. all the time in our committee and frankly, I'm happy that there's been this media firestorm because we've been talking about the issues in the three years that I've been in Congress bringing up issues in Pennsylvania and Florida and Los Angeles and now in Phoenix.

Finally, we have some national press on it that pressed the administration to make some significant change. And I'm glad it's happening because this has been going on for far too long, as you mentioned.

We need to stay on it and hope that they'll take input from people in the committee. Like I said, I've got experience. Many other people in the committee have experience within the V.A. They may not (inaudible) but working with them and, you know, we can provide positive input and it's not a political issue as far as I'm concerned. It's bipartisan. The (inaudible), the subpoena for the records were completely bipartisan and unanimous in the committee and we want to take care of the veterans.

BASH: Well, I'm sure you do. And as somebody who it's my day job to watch Congress and I have been doing it for years where there's a lot of partisanship, this is one of those rare bipartisan issues where I'm seeing Democrats and Republicans like you come together to try to fix a problem, but it certainly is not going to be easy.

Congressman, thank you very much. Appreciate your time. See you back in Washington.

BENISHEK: Appreciate being on here, Dana. Thanks.

BASH: Now, you're going to want to be with us tomorrow morning, rather, for the "STATE OF THE UNION" with Candy Crowley. Former U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Susan Rice returns to the show. The timing couldn't be better.

Hillary Clinton has just released excerpts from her new book where she addresses the terror attack on the U.S. consulate in Benghazi. Susan Rice on CNN's "STATE OF THE UNION" tomorrow morning 9:00 a.m. Eastern. You're going to certainly want to tune in to that.

And we turn to something that parents all around the country are dealing with and Michelle Obama certainly has been, too. Should kids be getting pizza or salad for their school lunches?

First Lady Michelle Obama is in a food fight of sorts with Congress and so far she's lost. What is the future of her healthy eating standards for schools?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BASH: House Republicans may have taken salad off the menu at some schools across the country. On a party line vote the GOP controlled appropriations committee in the House voted Friday for a one-year delay of new nutrition standards for school lunches. Struggling schools can for now continue to serve pizza and fries. That's not sitting well with the First Lady who has made this her focus.

Athena Jones has the story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ATHENA JONES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The First Lady has been flexing her political muscles in a food fight over school lunches.

MICHELLE OBAMA, FIRST LADY OF THE UNITED STATES: We have to be willing to fight the hard fight now.

JONES: But today she lost round one with House Republicans.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The amendment is not agreed to. JONES: That means schools may get a one-year delay on a rule that would limit fat and salt in school meals and require healthier ingredients.

REP. SAM FARR (D), CALIFORNIA: Give schools an opt out saying you don't have to participate in the school lunch program if it's hard. Well, we don't tell kids, look, you don't have to take math if it's hard or science if it's hard.

REP. ROBERT ADERHOLT (R), ALABAMA: This is where the heavy hand of the government is coming down and trying to dictate to local school systems everything about even putting salt shakers on the table. So, again, this is just buying time.

JONES: Still Mrs. Obama won't be pulling her punches any time soon.

The latest salvo in the battle for better food? A "New York Times" op-ed in which she writes about the Republican effort, "Our children deserve so much better than this."

The First Lady has often enlisted her celebrity friends to promote her Let's Move Campaign to encourage kids to exercise.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Deep inside the White House kitchen.

JONES: Today she went straight to a champ tweeting this YouTube video featuring Super Bowl star Richard Sherman as a chef.

OBAMA: Richard, take me through your final plate.

RICHARD SHERMAN, NFL PLAYER: Well, let me tell you. We're the best chef for the game.

JONES: And Mrs. Obama herself as a sideline reporter.

SHERMAN: Whether you're a pro-athlete or just a kid at school wanting a healthy meal, you have to put the right fuel in your body in order to perform its best.

JONES: Sherman may be a winner, but no touchdown yet for the First Lady.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

JONES: Now the next stop for this though is the House floor and Democrats are going to keep fighting to try and strip that waiver language out. It will probably be an uphill battle because Republicans control the House, but we'll be watching closely to see what happens.

Athena Jones, CNN, Washington.

BASH: This week I talked with cnn.com's Kelly Wallace about the issue. She's editor at large for CNN Digital focusing on family. I asked her about a conversation that she had about school lunches with her own two young children. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KELLY WALLACE, CNN DIGITAL EDITOR AT LARGE: It's so funny Dana because like you, you know, we talk about politics in my house quite a bit. And my husband and I were actually talking about what was going on here with the school rules and the First Lady's fight. And my eight-year-old daughter said, why wouldn't they want to serve healthy meals? And I just love that question.

Of course, we explained to her, you know, it's a little more complicated than that. And when we start talking to an eight-year-old about the house appropriations committee, you know, it is a little bit over her head. But we talked about her school where they have a program called "Wellness in the Schools" our PTA helps fund it a little bit and so she has fruits and vegetables at their -- for their lunches. So, it's kind of something that they have in their schools. She had a hard time understanding why all schools don't have that, too.

BASH: No, I get that. Listen, I'm going to have a guilty mom moment here, Kelly. That is this morning I was lucky enough that my son asked me for a banana for breakfast. But guess what happened before we were trying to get out the door to go to school. Guess what he wanted? A brownie.

So you're in that position do you give him the brownie and get him to school or do you have a fight which you know will end up in a tantrum and say no. And guess where I went.

WALLACE: You give him the brownie.

BASH: I gave him the brownie.

WALLACE: There's no question.

BASH: But it is also because he did ask for the banana. The point I want to make in giving this crazy mom story is that it's not always easy for a mom to dictate and determine what kind of food the kids are going to eat. So, it can't be easy and it isn't for a school to do it.

WALLACE: It isn't. And that's such a good point, Dana. We don't want to put ourselves out there, you know, holier than thou that our kids eat, you know, fruits and vegetables all the time, they don't.

But kids, you know, you have a son. They do learn from us -- right.

BASH: Yes.

WALLACE: So, if you do make fruits and vegetables more readily available, if you serve, you know, whole grain pasta once in a while and whole wheat bread, they kind of start getting used to it because it's around and I think that's kind of the thinking here with these rules.

It's hard, yes. And schools are saying it's costing more money and it's taking more time and those may be very valid points, but I think the overall issue is if we can encourage our kids and if they see it's available and especially at younger and younger ages, won't they likely develop the habits that, you know, picking up an apple may be just as easy as grabbing a bag of potato chips.

I know it's big picture -- yes.

BASH: Yes, you know, exactly. And you're talking about our role as parents and the kind of environment that we provide for them with regard to eating. Then that begs the question about some of the critics of Michelle Obama which is, you know, is it the role of government, particularly when some of these schools have real financial issues. Is it the role of government to be, you know, making these choices and everything else kind of be damned?

WALLACE: Absolutely. And you know politics better than almost all of us, right? I mean there is obviously that issue here. There are people who feel really, really strongly that government shouldn't dictate what moms and dads are giving their kids, you know, for breakfast and lunch and what schools have to give their kids. So, I think that is part of it.

But if you look at it, it looks to be about 90 percent of schools across the country are adhering to these new rules. So, majority of the schools are doing it and majority of families seem to think that it's not necessarily the government saying this is what we should do.

Science is saying, yes, less fat, less sodium, less sugar is better for our kids. So, with that backing, it's an argument to people saying it's not the government stepping in. It's kind of science and medicine saying this is probably a better way to go.

BASH: Thank you, Kelly Wallace.

And coming up more on school lunches, we'll talk to Representative Robert Aderholt why he says these new lunch regulations are too much, too soon.

And is the Mexican government making an example out of a U.S. Marine who says he just accidentally crossed the border with guns? He's now in a prison near Tijuana. That story, straight ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BASH: A U.S. Marine has no idea when he'll get out of a Mexican jail where he's languished for two months. In a phone conversation with CNN, Andrew Tahmooressi describes brutal abuse of conditions in a notorious Mexican prison near Tijuana. He says he has been shackled, punched, left naked, sometimes even under fed. He insists that he crossed the border by mistake and he was arrested because he had three guns in his truck, which are illegal to bring into Mexico. His mother explains why he was carrying the weapons.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

Jill TAHMOORESSI, MOTHER OF JAILED MARINE: He had arrived March 12th. He was diagnosed positive for PTSD and one of his symptoms was hyper vigilance to self-defense. That's why he carried a concealed weapons permit.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BASH: Our Nick Valencia who has been in phone contact with Tahmooressi joins us from just across the border. Nick, let's talk about this story because it is absolutely mind blowing to think about the fact that he is a U.S. Marine who has been in a Mexican prison for two months. We're not talking about North Korea here, we're talking about Mexico, who the U.S. is supposed to have pretty good relations with.

NICK VALENCIA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes. It is complicating matters. Some would say that the Mexican government is making an example of Tahmooressi. He came into the country, Dana, with .45-caliber handgun, a shotgun and AR-15 rifle and he maintains that it was an accident. But those that you talk to along the border, some here in this community in San Ysidro are skeptical of his story. The signs are clear on the interstates. You cannot bring weapons and guns into Mexico.

Some may be wondering why Tahmooressi had guns in his car to begin with. Well, accordin to his friend, Tahmooressi, had just moved from Florida to California and was essentially living out of his truck. The friend told me that Tahmooressi had asked that friend to store his guns in the friend's apartment.

But because there were two young children in that apartment, the friend didn't feel comfortable. So Tahmorressi had not only his guns in the car, but all of his clothes and really all of his possessions -- Dana.

BASH: Mexico of course is fighting a drug war, trying to. Concerned about guns crossing the border, understandable. Is this about the Mexican government just making an example out of this U.S. Marine?

VALENCIA: Well, those who are familiar with U.S./Mexico relations know that there is a long-standing, I guess you could call it rivalry. There is tension between the U.S. military and the Mexican military. This happens to be a situation where, you know, Tahmooressi could be very well made an example by the Mexican government despite his claims that he is innocent.

It is worth noting though when I talk to the State Department about this case, they did tell me that people every month, more than 100 people accidentally cross the border, which really the main issue here though is that Tahmooressi had guns, personal firearms that were registered to him according to his family and that he brought those across.

When you listen to the 911 call also, Dana, you hear him make mention concerned that Mexican officials were trying to take his guns away. His family said that his mind really hasn't been in the right place for quite some time now. He was recently diagnosed with PTSD and when I talked to the family members, his mother specifically, she emphasizes that he is going through post-traumatic stress and that things are very difficult and his mind was simply somewhere else during the whole unfolding of this incident -- Dana.

BASH: Nick, what an incredible story. We know you'll stay on it. Thank you very much.

Speaking of guns, has America's gun culture change the way we treat strangers? One journalist's personal experience coming up next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BASH: Last week's shooting rampage near Santa Barbara, California, reminded us that almost anywhere we go in the U.S. guns are a fact of life. That knowledge is changing the way a lot of people in the U.S. react to the actions of strangers. Where we might have once shouted an expletive or given a single finger salute after being cut off in traffic some of us are hitting the pause button.

Bill Torpy is a staff writer for the "Atlanta Journal Constitution." This week he wrote about a personal experience that crystalized his thoughts on the fear of getting shot. I'm going to read you some of his story. He said, "The passing car rolled to a quick stop. I just hurled an epithet to get attention. It worked.

It was dark and I was walking the dog along the side of the street, our neighborhood has no sidewalks, when an approaching driver for some reason flicked off his headlights and sped up. The move was mystifying, stupid and dangerous. And I wanted to get the guy's attention because every now and again I find it necessary to point out someone's stupidity.

Usually a vehicle is involved. I took a couple of steps towards the idling car when a small voice in my head called to me. Stand Your Ground law. Guns everywhere law. Justifiable homicide."

Bill, thank you very much for joining me. Your piece was incredible and really enlightening particularly to people who don't live in areas like where we are right now in the state of Georgia where you have these laws that allow people to carry guns. Why did you feel the need to write this? What about the shift in culture across America, particularly here in Georgia?

BILL TORPY, "ATLANTA JOURNAL CONSTITUTION": As you say, it was personal. I was driving down the road or walking down the road and the guy didn't almost hit me, but just really kind of a weird thing and I just yelled, epithet to get his attention and he did stop and something about vehicles just make people a little bit more intense.

BASH: You can have road rage even when you're not actually driving a car.

TORPY: I just wanted to go over and scold him and took a couple steps and then I just thought of all these things. That basically in Georgia it's, you know, you have the right to keep a gun in your house and your career as an extension of that. Now, guns are, the guns everywhere law is in effect and people feel empowered by their guns.

They feel worried about crime and I just thought, you know, this guy might have a gun. And maybe five years ago I wouldn't have thought that. Maybe because I'm getting older and maybe it's in the news and we write about it more. I basically got wise and turned around and let him go unscolded.

BASH: Let me just play the devil's advocate here. The fact that you decided to bite your tongue and not go after him in a way that you may have before. Could that be not a terrible thing? If people have in the back of their mind that an altercation that might not need to happen could end in serious violence.

TORPY: Sure. That's, obviously, the interesting twist to all of this. In my mind originally then I thought, wow, he got away unscathed by my wrath and telling him how to drive correctly. But I guess at the same point, you are correct. I didn't basically walk over to him. He could have then, you know, as the police were putting crime tape around my body could have said this guy was a threat to me. And I'm sure that would have, you know, I don't have, I'm not around to reason for myself any more and he'd get away Scott free.

BASH: And you've covered crime for a long time and the gun culture. Just, for example, where we are right now in Georgia, again, for people who are around the country maybe in cities in the northeast watching, they might not understand that here, for example, the Democratic candidate for governor whose last night is Carter, Jimmy Carter's grandson is for these very liberal gun rights laws.

TORPY: Right, right. Put him in a tough spot, but, yes, he did have to vote for it because in the fall he's going to be running against the conservative Republican incumbent and he didn't want to be --

BASH: But it speaks to the gun culture in so many places like here.

TORPY: Yes, he'd be, that would be a liability for him politically. You know, I think that those who are anti-gun will vote for him anyway. He basically is trying to move to the center or move to the right here in Georgia. And, yes, so, I think that he just did a calculus and he decided to go with it.

BASH: When I read your piece I thought about the old west and people walking into saloons and thinking about somebody getting shot. Maybe we are getting back to that place.

TORPY: Well, you can bring a gun -- the new law allows you to bring your gun into the saloon unless they have a sign saying up -- up there saying don't bring your gun in here.

BASH: The fact that we're mindful of it is fascinating. It's a great piece. Thank you so much for coming in. Appreciate it.

TORPY: Sure. Thank you. BASH: Now, healthier school lunches. For kids it seems like a no brainer, right? Well, some in Congress say it's not so simple. In a minute, we're going to meet a congressman who will tell you why.

But, first, a Michigan woman just marked a milestone. She turned 115 years old and she holds a distinct title in the U.S. Her story is a true American journey. Here's Gary Tuchman.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GARY TUCHMAN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A baby born in the 21st Century, his great-great grandmother born in the 19th Century. Jeralean Talley is the oldest living person in America and she is one of the last five known people in the world born in the 1800s. She lives with her daughter, Thelma.

(on camera): How old are you if you don't mind me asking.

THELMA HOLLOWAY, DAUGHTER OF OLDEST LIVING AMERICAN: Well, in November I'll be 77 years old.

TUCHMAN: And you are her little girl?

HOLLOWAY: I am her little girl.

TUCHMAN (voice-over): Her mother was born May 23rd, 1899. This is her 115th birthday.

(on camera): What is the secret to living to 115?

JERALEAN TALLEY, OLDEST PERSON IN AMERICA: The Lord. The Father above. He got everything. I got nothing.

TUCHMAN: I think you have a lot more, too.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He has got it all. He got mine and yours and everybody else's.

TUCHMAN: So the answer is to have a lot of faith? Taken in 1950.

(voice-over): Jeralean is the matriarch of five living generations, her husband lived to 95, passing away in 1988. She was born in Georgia during the presidency of William McKinley. She later moved to the suburbs of Detroit, Michigan, where she lived for almost 80 years. She says she always lived life with this outlook.

TALLEY: Do unto others as you desire them to do unto you.

TUCHMAN: The golden rule. Church has always been part of Jeralean's life. At the New Jerusalem Missionary Baptist Church, the entrance is named after her. Her pastor says religious leaders received many honors.

PASTOR DANA DARBY, NEW JERUSALEM MISSIONARY BAPTIST CHURCH: God only blessed one pastor, the pastor of the oldest person in the United States and that is me. And I'm grateful for that. TUCHMAN: While she credits her faith for her longevity, she also says the outdoors keeps her inspired.

(on camera): Do you like fishing?

TALLEY: I may go this year. I don't know.

TUCHMAN: You may go fishing this year?

TALLEY: I may go. I don't know.

TUCHMAN: What do you catch, what kind of fish do you like?

TALLEY: Trout and catfish.

TUCHMAN: Trout and catfish?

(voice-over): She has also won athletic awards.

TALLEY: I bowled until I was 104.

TUCHMAN (on camera): You bowled until you were 104 years old?

TALLEY: And I was 104, I said this is my last bowling, and I bowled a 200.

TUCHMAN: You bowled a 200 when you were 104 years old? Well, if I could bowl 200, I would quit and retire, too.

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BASH: It is too much too soon, that's what our next guest says about new rules that make school lunches healthier. His Republican-led House committee delayed new nutrition requirements giving school districts another year to figure out how to pay for them.

Let's talk to Congressman Robert Aderholt of Alabama. He is chairman of the House committee that voted to give some schools a waiver. Congressman, thank you very much for coming in.

I want to ask you point blank the argument you heard a lot of Democrats made. Kids are throwing out healthy food and that school districts, some of them, can't even afford it. But isn't it the job of grownups to push kids to do the things they don't want to do? They may not want to take math, science, or do homework, but they don't get a waiver.

REPRESENTATIVE ROBERT ADERHOLT (R), ALABAMA: There's one thing missing here. One thing we agree on, there should be healthy food overall in schools. The school nutritionists are in charge of providing the lunchroom meals every day. I have talked to them. They want to provide a healthy lunch.

What they're objecting to and what the problem is these overreaching standards by the United States Department of Agriculture that are coming down on them, and they're so onerous, they're unable to meet the standards. Let me just give you an example. A hardboiled egg is considered too much fat. Over 12 ounces of skim milk is too much fat.

The salt is so limited they're not even able to use salt shakers or ketchup dispensers in the lunchroom. It is becoming such a problem that the lunch workers are not able to provide really lunches that have any taste. The weight requirements are going up. I don't know if you tried to eat a biscuit from 100 percent whole wheat, but they're not very tasty.

We are trying to make some reasonable -- we're not saying go back to, I am not sure I say go back, I am not sure there was a time you fed hamburger and pizza every day to kids, we're not talking about doing that, not talking about eating Snickers and M&Ms for dessert and pizza and hotdogs for lunch every day, we're talking about having balance and common sense in the rules, and right now, that's not what we're having.

BASH: Congressman, as you know, I cover Congress, I see you in the hallway there sometimes. I am familiar with how Washington works. Let's face it, sometimes things change because there's a powerful industry behind it. How much pressure are you getting from lobbyists who benefit financially from having these non-healthy foods in kids' schools?

ADERHOLT: Zero. I have not even talked with -- people I talked to are people that worked in the lunchroom. I don't even know what industry it is that would be behind this.

BASH: The first lady, as you know, is suggesting that's what this is about.

ADERHOLT: Absolutely. And every time she says it I scratch my head, and I am not sure who she's talking about. I'm talking to lunch ladies and school nutritionists out there in the lunchroom every day. For my home county, a lady by the name of Evelyn Hicks, she came to me about two years ago, said I want to cook some good food, healthy food that the kids look forward to coming to every day.

These restrictions are so limiting, my hands are tied so much. I can't provide it. The kids are throwing the food away. The participates in the lunch program is going down, the cost is going up because they can't buy in bulk any more, and it is a shame to see the regulations coercing other kids now to bring their lunch.

The lunches they're bringing, they're bringing McDonald's and Burger King to school. It is defeating the purpose. What we're doing is saying let's not actually throw away all of those, let's work the legislation that I propose is only saying that we give the schools that are having a hard time meeting the standard, that because of economic reasons, give them 12 months. We're not asking they roll back the entire thing, just a waiver.

BASH: What's it like to go up against the first lady of the United States, especially somebody who is incredibly popular on something that she has made her passionate major issue?

ADERHOLT: Well, I would love to sit down with her and talk with her about it. She of course has not reached out at this point, but I would love to sit down with her, and more than just me sit down with her, I would like to bring people that work in the lunch rooms who have the best interest of the kids in mind. They're not there trying to make the kids obese or unhealthy.

They're moms and grandmothers that work there and want to provide healthy, good food for kids and just need a little flexibility. They're being regulated from Washington to the extent their hands are tied, and they're saying just give us flexibility. That's all my legislation does, give a 12 month waiver for the school lunch programs to have a little bit of wiggle room. They can make nice, healthy meals for the kids.

BASH: Congressman, maybe somebody from the first lady's office is watching and maybe we can create a summit or spur one on the program.

ADERHOLT: I have some great ladies I would love for her to meet.

BASH: Thank you very much. Appreciate you coming in.

The next hour of NEWSROOM begins after a short break.

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