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Disturbing V.A. Report on Veteran Health Care; Hernandez Taken to Hospital; Pope Francis Has Stern Message for Italian Mafia; Filmmaker Commemorates DUI Victim.

Aired June 23, 2014 - 14:30   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BROOKE BALDWIN, CNN ANCHOR: Bottom of the hour. You're watching CNN.

A new report focusing on the failures of the Veterans health care system in this country has found that these problems are even more severe and even more widespread than first believed. Phantom appointments and ridiculously long wait times might seem horrendous enough, but there's a new report by this independent government agency that has found even more disturbing details.

And our senior investigative correspondent, Drew Griffin, who first broke this story with all these issues facing our veterans, has more bad news for us today.

DREW GRIFFIN, CNN SENIOR INVESTIGATIVE CORRESPONDENT: The Office of Special Council -- who knows who they are, right? This is a group of actual prosecutors that the government has where government whistleblowers in any department can go to them and be protected if they want to blow the whistle on bad stuff they think is going on in the government.

The Office of Special Council sent a letter to the president today basically saying, we've investigated things at the V.A., we've gotten these whistle-blower complaints, we do not believe the V.A. We do not believe the V.A. is investigating. We do not believe that they can get to the bottom of these issues. And here's why.

BALDWIN: Why don't they believe that?

GRIFFIN: In 10 different cases across the country, specific examples where they believe a whistleblower came forward, veterans were harmed, nothing happened. Zippo, nothing. It's been going on for a couple years. They have 50 current allegations by whistleblowers of safety threats and harm to veterans under investigation, 29 of which have been passed on now to the office that investigates these things at the V.A.

And in a specific example -- to tell you how bad it is -- 2003, a veteran with serious mental health problems checks into a V.A. hospital, is not getting a psychiatric evaluation until 2011. Eight years before this mental health patient actually gets evaluated. It's crazy. BALDWIN: When you hear all these different stories and everything

you've been reporting, the issue as far as investigations go, because we're hoping it gets better. But what I'm hearing you say is the V.A. or the office within the V.A. is investigating, seems like a conflict of interest. And now this group is saying to the president, this needs to be better.

GRIFFIN: Based on everything to date, I don't think the V.A. can fix it self. I don't know how you fix this. I really don't know if I was going to give advice where I would give it. Other than I would blanketly throw out every senior manager in the V.A. I know that sounds harsh, but I don't know how else you would do this surgically. There is an entire bureaucracy that has been allowing this to happen for years and years and years, and I don't know how you get one administrator at the top who is going to somehow change the culture without throwing out all these people.

BALDWIN: It's a huge statement coming from someone who has been working the story for more than a year.

Drew Griffin, we'll be watching for you.

More on the explosive new details on "A.C. 360" tonight.

Thanks for staying on that for us.

GRIFFIN: Thank you.

BALDWIN: Now this.

Alleged killer and former New England Patriot, Aaron Hernandez, was taken from his Massachusetts jail cell over the weekend to a hospital. The sheriff won't say why Hernandez had to go to the hospital Saturday, citing, of course, privacy laws, only that he was there for less than half an hour, and it was not related to a fight or any kind of security issue he may have encountered inside that jail.

Now, Hernandez, he was the Patriots' starting tight end when he was arrested last year, charged with killing a semi-pro player and friend of his, Odin Lloyd. He's since been charged with two other murders on top of that.

CNN national correspondent, Susan Candiotti, has been following this from the beginning.

Susan, you have new information about what prosecutors think happened in the Odin Lloyd case.

SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Brooke. These are new details about the motive being alleged by prosecutors, according to a source, why Odin Lloyd was killed. They tell me this is something that you and I would think would be trivial and insignificant. While they won't say exactly what it was, they tell me it involves two things that happened a couple of nights before Odin Lloyd was murdered. First of all, at a nightclub where Hernandez and Lloyd had been partying with some people, Hernandez allegedly gets angry when he sees Lloyd talking with two men. He got visibly agitated about this. Then the party moves to Hernandez's apartment. And there, Lloyd, I am told, sees guns and ammunition that we know were stored at Hernandez's apartment which is about 10 miles from his house. Again, I'm not hearing exactly what it was, but I'm told those two things combined, adding up to something insignificant and allegedly fueled by paranoia on Hernandez's part, caused him to plan to kill Odin Lloyd. That is the murder charge against him.

BALDWIN: Wow.

Susan, thank you for all your reporting and the sourcing on this. Of course, we'll be watching your special report called "Downward Spiral: Inside the Case against Aaron Hernandez." It airs tomorrow night, 9:00 eastern here on CNN.

Susan Candiotti, thank you very much.

Coming up, Pope Francis has a stern message for the Italian Mafia. What he said about mobsters and the church, making international headlines. The question we're asking today, could his remarks actually impact his safety? Stay right here.

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BALDWIN: The Italian mob taking a big hit, not by authorities, but who many consider the highest authority after God, the pope. Over the weekend, he used the strongest words yet against the Mafia saying this, quote, "Those who along their life have gone along the evil ways as in the case of with Mafia, they are not of God, they are excommunicated."

And Italians are not only noting what he said but where he said it. Let me explain. He was at this outdoor mass in Calabria, a region known for mob ties. This is also where a 3-year-old boy was found in an alleged Mafia hit. His body was found burned with his grandfather in a car. Pope Francis met with the boy's father before making the anti Mafia comments.

Let's go to our senior Vatican analyst for CNN, John Allen, who is also the assistant editor at "The Boston Globe."

John Allen, as well know, you've been working this beat for many a year, the pope has condemned the Mafia before, this time is different because of the word usage. He said "excommunicated." What did he mean by this? How big a deal is this?

JOHN ALLEN, CNN SENIOR VATICAN ANALYST & EDITOR, THE BOSTON GLOBE: Popes have been speaking out against the Mafia for a long time. This is the first time the pope has used what we in the Catholic world like to call the e word, excommunicated. This is sort of the nuclear option in Catholic life, the most severe penalty any pope can impose. Technically speaking, the pope didn't ex-communicate anyone on Saturday. There's a whole process the church has to go through to do that. This is a whole shot across the bow against the Mafioso saying he's willing to apply that penalty in individual cases if it comes up. Bear in mind, Brooke, a lot of these Mafiosi types consider themselves faithful Catholics. They go to mass on Sunday, they give money to the church.

BALDWIN: I've seen "The Godfather." They go to church.

ALLEN: Absolutely right. They take part in the religious processions. They like to give money to the church. They like to wrap themselves in the pal flag. For the pope to be so explicitly denying them the opportunity to do that, yes, that's a big deal.

BALDWIN: John, we see this pope so freely wheeling and walking about, I'm wondering as far as security goes. Anti Mafia prosecutors are worried, worried the Mafia may put a hit on him. Really? Would they?

ALLEN: Having lived in Italy the better part of my adult life, I can tell you that even for the most sort of corrupt Mafia don, I think in that country the idea of taking out a hit on the pope might be a bridge too far. When John Paul II went to Sicily in 1993 and condemned the mob in language basically as strong as Francis used on Saturday, there was likely fear then about the pope's security. This was just a year after the mob had blown up Italy's most famous anti- Mafia judge, and its most famous anti Mafia prosecutor.

(CROSSTALK)

BALDWIN: Did security change then, John?

ALLEN: I'm sorry?

BALDWIN: Did security change then, after he made those comments in Sicily?

ALLEN: Listen, when he went to Sicily, I can tell you that the Italian Calabria area, which is their primary security service, was all over the scene to make sure nothing untoward happened to the pope. My guess is that the Vatican security service that has primary responsibility for the pope are having conversations right now with other Italian security services just to dial up a little bit, just to make sure all the appropriate steps are being taken to keep the pope safe. It would be one thing if we were talking about a Japanese yakuza who didn't have an investment in the pope. But in Italy, these guys take their Catholic credentials very seriously. I think if there were a procession of targeting the pope, that would be a death kneel to any popular support they enjoy.

BALDWIN: A bridge too far.

Love having you on John Allen. Thank you so much.

Up next, remember this video? This man made national headlines when he admitted to being drunk behind a wheel and killed a man. Now the person who produced this video is doing something to remember the victim and mark this major milestone in the case. That's next.

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BALDWIN: Filmmaker Alex Sheen's got exactly what the driver wanted. Remember this YouTube confession from 22-year-old Matthew Cordell. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MATTHEW CORDELL, ADMITS DUI KILLING: I take full responsibility for everything I've done to Vince and his family. I'm begging you, please don't drink and drive. Don't make the same excuses that I did. Don't say it's only a few miles or you've only had a few beers or you do it all the time or it will never happen to you, because it happened to me.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: Cordell's drunk driving incident killed Vincent Consani one year ago. Cordell is currently serving a six and a half year sentence.

And while he is doing time, the man who put him on camera is doing more to get people to stop people from drinking and driving. Alex Sheen went to the bars over the weekend this Saturday night with this wide-erase board, offering himself up as a designated driver. It says, "I would like to offer you a free ride home, someone I know killed a man while drinking and driving one year ago tonight. In honor of the man who died, I'd like to keep the road safe."

Joining me from Cleveland is Alex Sheen.

Nice to have you on.

ALEX SHEEN, FILMMAKER: Hi, Brooke.

BALDWIN: We know the why you did it, but tell me the response from those who you helped.

SHEEN: It was interesting. Obviously, I'm a stranger with this white board. People were pretty receptive to it. I think a lot of folks, they want to do the responsible thing. They want to put down the keys and not drink and drive. So there was people who stepped up and I was busy basically the whole three and a half, four hours, kind of chatting them up about what was going on in their lives.

BALDWIN: What was it about Matthew Cordell and his story hand you tube confession that struck you and resonated so deeply that you, yourself, and your own personal life took action?

SHEEN: As a founder of Because I Said I Would, a social movement and non-profit, our mission is to better humanity through promises made and kept. When you think about the issues of drinking and driving, it comes to individual commitments. We can point at laws and legislation. We can point at a lot of things. It ultimately comes down to us and the promise we make to not drink and drive.

So when I saw Matthew Cordell and his message to me as a stranger, through Facebook, he wanted to convince people to not drink and drive, that's when I decided to message him back and see what his intent was.

BALDWIN: We reached out to Mothers Against Drunk Driving and they gave us this statement: "This is a heartfelt gesture and Madd hopes others hearing about this are inspired to think twice before getting behind the wheel after drinking."

Let me ask you, Alex, does the family of Vincent, the victim, know what you've done or even Matthew Cordell himself?

SHEEN: I don't believe either party knows. But at the end of the day, my hope is that it encourages people to just think about their own decisions and what they're going to do after having a night of drinking, and I hope that a couple people reconsider taking those keys and getting in the car. I hope that Matt, in prison, knows that people are thinking about their physician decisions after he confessed. I hope the Consani family takes a little bit of thought into how this is affecting people. At the end of the day, it's about the impact. I hope it makes a difference, but who knows this.

BALDWIN: I think it's making an impact, at least on the lives of the couples and people you did take home voluntarily for free over the weekend.

Alex Sheen, awesome job. Thank you for coming on. Best of luck to you in the future.

Coming up, here we go, live pictures, Atlanta, Georgia. We'll talk about this new museum dedicated to the civil rights movement. One of the exhibits features Martin Luther King Jr's report card from college and the surprising grade he got in public speaking. Stay here.

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BALDWIN: This summer the nation marks a pivotal moment in America's civil rights movement. 50 years ago, hundreds of college students, black and white, converged in the Deep South for what became known as Freedom Summer when they risked their lives to register African- Americans to vote. Also happening, the opening of several museums to document the civil rights struggles of the 1960s including this one under the beautiful blue skies in Atlanta. The National Civil and Human Rights Center opened its doors today.

CNN's Victor Blackwell takes us inside.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BULL CONNOR, FORMER COMMISSIONER OF PUBLIC SAFETY, BIRMINGHAM, ALABAMA: We will use the same tactics we used before.

VICTOR BLACKWELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Bull Connor and President Johnson --

LYNDON B. JOHNSON, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Their cause must be our cause, too.

BLACKWELL: -- together, part of a comprehensive look for America's fight for equality inside the National Center for Civil and Human Rights in Atlanta. The $80 million facility honors the well and lesser-known stories of the civil rights movement. One of them, Henry Thomas.

HENRY THOMAS, FORMER FREEDOM RIDER: I was immediately impressed.

BLACKWELL: Thomas was just 19 years old in this mug shot. He was a freedom rider during the summer of 1961, demonstrating for civil rights throughout the south. His is one of many covered the center's replica of the burned out bus they traveled on.

THOMAS: There's a face now to those people who made that sacrifice 53 years ago. They're my heroes. I am proud of them.

UNIDENTIFIED ANNOUNCER: Over 40,000 persons already assembled on the ground.

BLACKWELL: The center is filled with the images and sounds of the era and an interactive exhibit that mimics the taunting and kicking the protesters endured during the lunch counter sit-ins.

Doug Shipman is the center's executive director.

DOUG SHIPMAN, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, NATIONAL CENTER FOR CIVIL AND HUMAN RIGHTS: We want a personal connection to both history and president, and we want them to feel inspired that they can actually take a stand on whatever issue they want to.

BLACKWELL: The highlight is the King papers collection, a rotating exhibit on some of Dr. King's personal writings on loan from Morehouse College.

ANDREW YOUNG, FORMER AMBASSADOR: It's a very goo beginning.

BLACKWELL: Former Ambassador Andrew Young fought for rights alongside Dr. King. He sees the center as a vision and the ongoing push for workers right, LGBT rights and the global fight for women's rights.

YOUNG: This is a moving, spiritual artistic creation that will continue to be developed to address the conflicts and the problems that we face today and in the future.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BALDWIN: Looks absolutely beautiful.

Victor Blackwell joins us live from the National Center for Civil and Human Rights.

The director you talked to said the center should be Atlanta's signature. How did this whole thing come together?

BLACKWELL: Well, it started about a decade ago, an idea of the wife of civil rights icon, Dr. Joseph Lowery. She went to then-Mayor Shirley Franklin and said this space near the Coca-Cola Museum should be dedicated to a national center for civil rights and human rights as well. It took $80 million to build. There was so pushback. There were some people who thought to cover this topic in such a large way in the middle of downtown Atlanta would be depressing. Some peep didn't want to see that chapter of American history. But they also dedicate a lot of time and energy and space in this facility to the people who fought for civil rights, and the on going fight for rights, not just for African-Americans or minorities, but LGBT, women, the human rights across the globe. So it's just a look at how the history of the fight for rights in America can inform the ongoing fights around the world.

BALDWIN: Quickly, in 30 seconds, Victor, you've been inside, what's a highlight?

BLACKWELL: Well, that lunch counter exhibit, where you can sit and put on the headphones -- I've seen the video from the '60s from the lunch counter sit-ins at the Woolworth's and other places, but to hear it and the movement of those voices and the kicking, the vibration of the seat, it really makes it quite real. That's a highlight I'll take with me.

BALDWIN: Incredible. One more reason to come to Atlanta.

Victor Blackwell, thank you for sharing it with us.

Victor just mentioned that important decade, "The Sixties." Make sure you watch CNN series, "The Sixties." It is back this week with the stories of American freedom fighters, men and women who never fired a shot but blazed the trail for civil rights. Join CNN or set the DVR for "The Sixties, A Long March to Freedom" this Thursday night at 9:00 eastern.

And the top of the hour is now.