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Early Start with John Berman and Zoraida Sambolin
Amendment One Passes; Bomber was Undercover Agent; Delta Pulls Ads From "Daily Show"; Bionic Woman
Aired May 09, 2012 - 05:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
ASHLEIGH BANFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: And a very good morning to you. Hello there. This is EARLY START. I'm Ashleigh Banfield.
ZORAIDA SAMBOLIN, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm Zoraida Sambolin. We're really happy you're with us this morning. We are bringing you the news A to Z.
It is 5:00 in the East. So, let's get started for you here.
BANFIELD: Up first, the people of North Carolina overwhelmingly passing a constitutional amendment on same-sex marriage. The White House opposed Amendment One, but it was backed by 61 percent of North Carolina's voters in last night's primary. That means their constitution will now read, quote, "Marriage between one man and one woman is the only domestic legal union that shall be valid or recognized in this state."
CNN political editor Paul Steinhauser is live in Washington, D.C., this morning.
And, boy, has this been playing out. We first heard the Vice President Joe Biden. He says that he endorsed marriage equality and he is a Roman Catholic.
How is this going to play out politically in Washington?
PAUL STEINHAUSER, CNN POLITICAL EDITOR: You know, you're right. It puts President Obama, in a way, in a bind because Vice President Biden and other top members of the administration have come out in support of same-sex marriages. He has not. He's OK with civil unions. He has not fully embraced same sex marriage.
No, the president does any measure like the one in North Carolina, which would discriminate or prevent other rights for same sex. So, it does put him in the bind in a way.
What happens in North Carolina now? Well, this could have wide ranging impacts, and not just on same-sex couples but on male and female couples as well, because it will prevent domestic partnerships in the future and any attempt at civil unions.
Remember, North Carolina also, Zoraida, a battle ground state, a state that President Obama won four years ago, he'd like to win again. It's where the Democratic Convention is going to be.
Will this hurt him? Maybe. On the flip side, maybe it will wake up the supporters of same-sex couples and generate support come November.
One other thing, where will same-sex marriage be on the ballot in November? Minnesota is going to have a very similar ballot to what we just saw in North Carolina. And Washington state as well will be vote to go ban gay marriage.
Both those states considered pretty safe for the president come November -- Zoraida.
SAMBOLIN: You know, we were having conversations about this on Facebook and Twitter yesterday. A lot of people said, really, remember this is about domestic partnerships and civil unions, not just same-sex marriage. So, it's a good point. Thank you.
And Indiana six-term Senator Richard Lugar defeated yesterday. You kind of feel bad for this guy, right? After dedicating 36 years to the Senate, is he going to go out silently?
STEINHAUSER: It doesn't seem that way. He had quite a statement last night that he put out. Lugar, of course, defeated by a candidate who was backed by the Tea Party movement, Richard Mourdock, who is state treasurer in Indiana. As you mentioned, six-term senator, longest serving Republican in the Senate.
But times have changed for the Republican Party, and he was opposed because a lot of his controversial votes in favor of TARP, some of the votes in favor of President Obama's Supreme Court justices.
Take a listen to what he said in his concession speech in Indiana last night.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. DICK LUGAR (R), INDIANA: We are experiencing deep political divisions in our society right now. And these divisions have stalemated progress in critical areas. But these divisions are not insurmountable. I believe that people of goodwill, regardless of party, can work together for the benefit of our country.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
STEINHAUSER: Besides that speech, he also put out quite a statement. And it reads here, "Bipartisanship is not the opposite of principle. One can be very conservative or very liberal and still have a bipartisan mindset. Such a mindset acknowledges that the other party is also patriotic and may have some good ideas. It acknowledges that national unity is important and that aggressive partisanship deepens cynicism, sharpens political vendettas, and depletes the national reserve of goodwill that is critical to our survival in hard times."
Some tough comments there from Lugar.
You know, four moderate senators, those who are known to reach across the aisle, are retiring as well. So, it could be a different and even more partisan Senate next year, Zoraida.
SAMBOLIN: All right. Paul Steinhauser, nice to have you at 5:00 in the morning. Appreciate it. We'll see you at 6:00.
STEINHAUSER: Thank you.
BANFIELD: And it is four minutes past the top of the hour.
We've got some new information this morning for you on this story. The FBI investigating two different air scares to find out if they're links. Here's what's strange: both -- they were bomb threats. Both against two Southwest airlines flights from John Wayne Airport in California to Sky Harbor in Phoenix last night.
The FBI says that one of the flights was searched in California before takeoff. Officials cleared everybody off the plane and brought in the bomb squad and the bomb sniffing dogs. And another flight was searched in Phoenix after it landed. Both planes were eventually given the all clear.
SAMBOLIN: Drones, an undercover agent, and undetectable underwear bomb, the Saudis in a search that is far from over. The thrilling story of a busted terror plot is still unfolding this morning.
Our Fran Townsend, a former homeland security official has now confirmed that the would-be bomber in a thwarted plot to blow up a U.S. airliner was actually an undercover agent working with Saudi Arabia who infiltrated al Qaeda. The device they were going to use was similar to the one used by the so-called underwear bomber back in 2009, but it was much more sophisticated.
Over the weekend, a U.S. drone strike in Yemen took out a key leader of al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula. Fahd al-Quso, believed to be involved in this attack. But the terror group's expert bomb maker is still out there.
Congressman Peter King, chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee told Anderson Cooper that all these leaks could actually jeopardize that search.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. PETER KING (R), NEW YORK: I've been briefed on this. As far as I know, this isn't in any way declassified by the CIA or the administration. It's really to me unfortunate this has gotten out because this could really interfere with operations overseas.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SAMBOLIN: That new al Qaeda bomb is now at the FBI lab in Quantico for analysis.
BANFIELD: The mother and ex-wife of kidnapping suspect Adam Mayes are in police custody this morning. Sixty-five-year-old Mary Francis Mayes and 30-year-old Teresa Mayes are now charged in connection with that abduction of Jo Ann Bain and her three daughters.
The sad fact is the body of the Tennessee mother and her oldest daughter were found dead in Mississippi over the weekend. Authorities believe the two other young girls are still alive and with Adam Mayes today. His former sister-in-law spoke exclusively to CNN's Anderson Cooper about the suspect.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR: If Adam is guilty of these crimes, do you have any idea why he'd do this?
BOBBI BOOTH, SISTER OF TERESA MAYES: No, I don't. I've known Adam for at least 25 years, and he's always been weird and unusual -- and when I say weird, like listens to different type of music. He's just a different type of person all together, the whole family is. But I never dreamed he would do something like this.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BANFIELD: Police and the FBI are asking for the public's help to track down Adam Mayes and those two girls, and they're offering a $50,000 reward for any information in this case.
SAMBOLIN: A wall of fire now threatening homes in Los Angeles County. Dozens of people in the Acton area forced to leave their homes. Fire officials are working through the night to try to get to all those hot spots.
And so far, more than 120 acres have been burned. Crews have now contained about 40 percent of the blaze. So far, no injuries have been reported.
BANFIELD: So better check your Twitter this morning just to see if you are actually still in control of your account. Hackers claim they broke into 55,000 Twitter accounts and posted the passwords online earlier this week. Twitter confirmed the hack attack did happen and said it was taking action but also kind of suggested that it was a weak attempt, pointing out that half of the accounts that were stolen were spam, were already suspended, and only a tiny percentage of the sites of 140 million active users.
Well, tell that to the person who got hacked who isn't a spam site. My advice to you folks, always, go change your password this morning just to be extra safe.
SAMBOLIN: That is good advice.
And this just in. Gas prices are dropping. AAA just posted on their Web site the new national average for a gallon of gas is $3.75, down more than a cent over the past 24 hours. The price of oil is down about 9 percent in the past five days because of fears of an economic slowdown.
So we should be seeing gas prices drop even lower over the next few weeks. Don't kill the messenger. I put this out yesterday, and people upset at me, saying, they're still high in my town.
BANFIELD: They're going after you for saying they're dropping.
SAMBOLIN: I put it out as good news. They're like, it's not good news for us.
BANFIELD: You know something? I'm trying to remember a couple of weeks ago when we were talking about almost $4 gas. Did we get to $3.90 something?
SAMBOLIN: We were almost at $5 for a gallon of gas.
BANFIELD: Christine Romans is turning over at her desk saying, I can't get through to that Banfield. We were right on the cusp of it.
SAMBOLIN: And look where we are now. Good news.
BANFIELD: And getting better hopefully.
SAMBOLIN: Yes.
BANFIELD: And then Memorial Day will come. Sorry. Buzz kill.
Nine minutes past 5:00.
Still ahead: snuggle with them, smuggle with them? Seriously? Wait until you see what screeners found stuffed inside an itty bitty teddy bear and a sweet little Mickey Mouse.
SAMBOLIN: And we get it. Your child's cute and gifted and you like to tell everyone online. Up next, a new study on why we brag in general, but specifically on Facebook.
You're watching EARLY START.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SAMBOLIN: It is 12 minutes past the hour.
Let's get you up-to-date on our top stories. Here's Christine Romans.
CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, ladies.
North Carolina is rewriting its constitution to add a ban on same-sex marriage. Amendment One passed easily last night with 61 percent of the vote. The state's constitution will now read, "Marriage between one man and one woman is the only domestic legal union that shall be valid or recognized."
Mitt Romney getting closer to nailing down the Republican nomination, winning all three primaries last night in Indiana, North Carolina, and West Virginia. He now has more than 900 delegates with 1,144 needed to clinch. Romney capturing Indiana with 65 percent of the vote. West Virginia with 70 percent, and North Carolina with 66 percent.
Joran van der Sloot will fight attempts to extradite him from Peru to the United States. Right now, he's serving a 28-year sentence for killing a Lima woman he met in a casino. He's charged with extortion and wire fraud in the U.S. in connection with the disappearance of an Alabama teenager Natalee Holloway. A conviction here could jeopardize his chances of being paroled in Peru.
A man traveling with his 4-year-old son said he had no idea the boy's stuffed animals contained gun parts that could be assembled into a loaded .44 caliber firearm. A scanner at the Warwick, Rhode Island airport detected the gun parts inside a carry-on bag. They were found in a teddy bear, a bunny rabbit, and a Mickey Mouse toy. Police say a domestic dispute was behind the incident.
You might say Texas Rangers slugger Josh Hamilton was in the zone last night. He belted four home runs, all of them two-run shots against the Baltimore Orioles. Hamilton is just the 16th player in Major League history to do this and the first since 2003. He went five for five with a career high eight runs batted in. He had 18 total bases. That is an American league record.
If you're leaving the house right now, you can watch us any time on your desktop or mobile phone. Go to CNN.com/TV -- ladies.
BANFIELD: All right. Christine, I'm still stuck on your Joran van der Sloot story, that he's fighting extradition because all I keep thinking is -- a Peruvian jail, an American jail.
ROMANS: That chance of getting -- that chance of parole in Peru is what he's looking for, 28-year sentence.
BANFIELD: Isn't that weird that there might be a chance of parole in 28 years for that very violent murder he's convicted on? I mean, I just think it's so bizarre. But usually, you don't hear people fighting extradition if they can get out of the horrible prisons.
But I don't even know if the prison isn't that bad. Maybe it's not. Who knows? He's getting four squares a day.
ROMANS: Sounds like a field trip for you, Ashleigh.
SAMBOLIN: All sorts of details about him being there and it just did not sound good at all.
BANFIELD: A good friend over "In Session" that was in the prison says it's not the most place in the world, as it shouldn't be.
Christine, thanks. We'll check in with you in a bit.
It's 15 minutes now past 5:00.
Time for a good quick check on the weather.
SAMBOLIN: Hope it's good, right?
BANFIELD: Marciano, you have just said no to the tie. You are sticking it to the man.
ROB MARCIANO, AMS METEOROLOGIST: You know, I just do what I'm told around here. That may change next week. Good morning, again, guys.
BANFIELD: Is that your dresser told you not to put a tie on?
SAMBOLIN: Looks good.
MARCIANO: Yes, my 3:00 a.m. stylist.
Let's take a look -- I got a report out of NOAA yesterday, if it felt warm this past year, you're not alone. For the lower 48, the last 12 months are the warmest on record here in the U.S. from January to April, for 2012 so far, that's the warmest start that we've seen. April itself, the third warmest on record.
So there you go -- the warmest 12 months on record. Kind of like the tiger slam back then when he had all four majors, not in the calendar year, but in two years. That's kind of what we're dealing with here. It's warmth.
All right. I-95, we're looking at rainfall here. This front slogan moving across the area, Philadelphia, back to Baltimore, and D.C. -- all the big cities across the Northeast are getting it this morning. That will slow you down on the roadways, maybe air travel as well.
And in front down across the South, it kind of slows down a little bit. So the rainfall spreads out from the Cumberland River, even back to the Rio Grande. Some thunderstorms is about to hit San Antonio now, although I think that will be about it after several days of thunderstorms in that area.
Here's where it is across the Carolinas, down across parts of South Georgia as well. And temperatures will cool down behind this front, 61 degrees in Chicago, 71 degrees with some rainfall today in New York City -- guys.
SAMBOLIN: Thank you, Rob.
It is 16 minutes past the hour. It's time for our "Early Read".
So, we start in Florida. A Florida woman eight months pregnant with her 16th child.
BANFIELD: What?
SAMBOLIN: There's more.
BANFIELD: That's the news. Just stop right there.
SAMBOLIN: I'm not -- I am burying the lead. She was zapped with a stun gun by police. How about it? And it keeps on going.
"Tampa Bay Online" reports 39-year-old Angel Adams is accusing police of using excessive force, endangering her life and the life of her unborn child. The trouble started when police came to Adams' home yesterday accusing her son of throwing rocks.
Adams claims the two officers forced their way inside without a warrant. There was a scuffle. She got zapped.
Police say Adams, her son, and her 21-year-old daughter started the fight with the officers. Adams and her daughter are both now charged with battery.
BANFIELD: One of the 16 children and Adams are charged with battery.
We like to get those so hot of the presses, they haven't even hit the press yet. They're literally like online.
So, in another "Early Read," a Houston grandmother says she got canned from work because she had cancer. This is the lawsuit. I'm not kidding here.
The affiliate we're working with, KTRK, has this story. The woman's name is Janet Hustus. She worked for the Crowne Plaza Hotel. She was diagnosed with breast cancer five months after she was hired for that job. And then says she consulted with her manager just before she underwent the treatment that she had to do.
It took her about eight weeks of missed work. Then when she returned, she says it was just a matter of days before the hatchet came down and she was fired.
She's now filed an official employment lawsuit for employment discrimination. Crowne plaza says, sorry, Hustus was fired for other reasons unrelated to the illness.
We're glad to report that Hustus she is now cancer free, does have a new job. But this one will either be battled out in court or come to some kind of settlement.
But there we go. Those are the claims on both sides.
SAMBOLIN: Reminds me of the story yesterday, right, the woman who had shoplifting, right?
BANFIELD: So long ago?
SAMBOLIN: Yes, and she got canned. Two lawsuits in a row, I would imagine, right?
BANFIELD: But, you know, again, this happens so often. And when somebody makes that response to a discrimination lawsuit like that, they both have to put out their details, and it all comes down to the evidence, don't it?
SAMBOLIN: All right. A new study reveals we're all just a bunch of narcissists.
BANFIELD: I knew that.
SAMBOLIN: "The Wall Street Journal" breaks down this research. Harvard scientists found volunteers were willing to give up free money to talk about themselves instead of answering questions about other people.
It wasn't a lot of money. I have to qualify that.
That could explain why sites like Twitter and Facebook are so popular. Forty percent of our speech is devoted to telling others what we think or what we feel. And brain scans show that talking about actually ourselves triggers the same sensations of pleasure as food, money, or sex.
Did you know that?
BANFIELD: I did not. I did not. I just know those pictures look like sushi. They don't look like brain scans to me.
For an expanded look of all our top stories, you can just head to our blog at CNN.com/EarlyStart. And there's lots of stuff there I'm sure you'll enjoy.
SAMBOLIN: It's now 20 minutes past the hour.
Mark Zuckerberg, a dropout in a hoodie, making a pitch to Wall Street investors. He's not even close to being the most successful dropout CEO. Christine Romans has a list that may surprise you.
We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SAMBOLIN: We are minding your business this morning.
Lots of buzz about Mark Zuckerberg as his company Facebook tries to gather up new investors for its IPO. Everyone on Wall Street --
BANFIELD: Look at that. There he is. He's the most famous guy in --
SAMBOLIN: In a hoodie. They're taking a look at his credentials.
And one time he doesn't have on his resume is a college degree. Remember, he dropped out of Harvard after he started Facebook.
BANFIELD: Yes. He is the first CEO of a tech organization that dropped out.
Listen, Christine, before we even go there, I've got to look at these pictures and just ask you --
ROMANS: That was a couple days ago.
BANFIELD: I get it. That's his thing. That's his image. He's always in a hoodie. He never puts a tie on.
This was a really big deal, and I think it was offensive to some.
ROMANS: He was going to talk to investors to woo them for the IPO in his company, right? He's wearing a hoodie like he's kind of got this persona.
Look, he dropped out of Harvard, started Facebook from his college dorm. He was going to wear a hoodie. And there were some analysts said it showed a little immaturity, quite frankly.
Here's a guy who's now in the big leagues, most famous college dropout. I would say he's the second biggest college dropout.
BANFIELD: Steve Jobs.
ROMANS: Steve Job is the first one.
BANFIELD: Bill Gates.
ROMANS: OK, Bill Gates.
All right. So, now, there you go. You got a whole bunch of these guys who kind of really changing the way we used to technology and changing the way we live our lives and they didn't learn this in college. Maybe the kernel of the idea was in college, but they did this without the college degrees.
So, I want to talk about Steve Jobs. Reed College, he was only there for one semester. Steve Jobs, of course, Apple's Steve Jobs.
Do you know what? He went back to actually audit a calligraphy course. So, he did back to Reed College for calligraphy. But he didn't go back for any kind of tech reasons.
Bill Gates, Microsoft, Harvard, dropped in his junior year. I mean, look, he and Paul Allen were doing so well. I mean, he had to run the business. I mean, there was just no question. he did stay as well.
Michael Dell was premed at the University of Texas, Austin, left his freshman year. He was going to and buying old computers and refurbishing them. At one point, he realized, he promised his parents he was going to do this premed thing.
And he had so many old computers in his dorm room. I'm going to take the summer off and see what I can do. Promised his mom and dad, if sales aren't good, I'll go back to school. He did $180,000 in sales his first year. So --
BANFIELD: In a freshman year?
(CROSSTALK)
ROMANS: These are --
BANFIELD: Think his parents are proud of him now?
ROMANS: Oh, yes. I think all of these people's parents are proud of them.
I want to be very clear about something. If your kid is telling you they want to leave, make sure they have a really good idea and make sure you tell them that the unemployment rate for a college grad is 4.1 percent. Unemployment rate for everyone else is 8.2 percent.
So, a college degree, armed with a college degree, that is how you're going to get ahead in the global economy. I will say that these guys are exceptions to the rule.
SAMBOLIN: Yes.
ROMANS: What exceptions they are. And all the hype and euphoria about Facebook just reminds everyone.
BANFIELD: It's not just a great idea. It's also that they're already implementing it, they've already got a business plan, they're already making money, and it's taking off. And then maybe --
ROMANS: The road to hell is paved by student debt from people who dropped out of school --
BANFIELD: With a great idea.
ROMANS: And didn't have these ideas and now are saddled by student debt.
Stay in school, but we can all cheer for the people, those guys.
BANFIELD: We can all dream, right?
SAMBOLIN: Christine, thank you.
BANFIELD: Thank you.
It's 26 minutes now past 5:00. And right now, a desperate search is on in Tennessee for two young girls and the man that the authorities say kidnapped them. We have now learned that the suspect's ex-wife and the kids' grandmother have been arrested in connection with all of this. Find out why coming up.
SAMBOLIN: Plus a 2-year-old Arkansas boy who couldn't resist reaching into a gumball machine.
You're watching EARLY START.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SAMBOLIN: Welcome back to EARLY START. I'm Zoraida Sambolin. Here's what's happening at half past the hour.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SAMBOLIN (voice-over): Voters in North Carolina have overwhelmingly approved a constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage. The measure passing with 61 percent of the vote. The state's constitution will now requite, "Marriage between one man and one woman is the only domestic legal union that shall be valid or recognized."
And right now, the FBI is investigating two airlines who has a possible bomb scares. Authorities searched two southwest flights last night, one in John Wayne Airport in California, another after it landed in New Mexico. Both were given the all clear.
And Twitter under attack. Hackers claiming they stole 55,000 accounts and posted them online. Twitter says they're looking into it, but close to half the affected accounts are only spam or inactive. You may want to change your password this morning -- Ashleigh.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BANFIELD: Oh, very good advice. All right. Zoraida, thank you.
It's 31 minutes now past 5:00, and this morning, police in Tennessee and Mississippi, along with the FBI, too, are asking for your help to help track down a kidnapping suspect who may have killed two of his victims. Adam Mayes is his name. He's the subject of a two-state manhunt. Take a look at your screen. That's him in a convenience store.
He's accused of abducting Jo Ann Bain and three of her daughters. The mother and the oldest daughter were found dead over the weekend. And in a very bizarre twist, police have now arrested his mother and his ex-wife. Earlier, I said it was the children's grandmother. It was not. It was his mother and his ex-wife. And the police are accusing these two women of helping him in the kidnapping of these four people.
CNN's George Howell is following the developments. He's live in Atlanta this morning. This is such a bizarre story. What now do we know? Because it seems we get dribs and drabs of information every day, George.
GEORGE HOWELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Indeed. Well, let's talk first about the people that we know who are in custody. Mary Francis Mayes (ph), Mayes' mother, and his ex-wife, Teresa Ann Mayes (ph). And again, both are in custody. You can understand that investigators are questioning them, trying to get any information that they can about where Adam Mayes may be at this point.
We know that Mary Francis Mayes was arrested for conspiracy to commit, especially aggravated kidnapping, and also, Teresa Ann Mayes, for especially aggravated kidnapping. Again, we now know that Teresa Ann Mayes, apparently, drove the car with the three in the car back when this happened.
And at this point, the big question we need to find out, everyone needs to know where Alexandria and Khaliyah are. That's the question. And also, of course, where is Adam Mayes. Again, it's been several days. Investigators combing this area between Whiteville and Guntown, Mississippi.
And just the other night, we heard from Bobbi Booth, Teresa Mayes' sister, and she described Adam as being untrustworthy, also being violent. And she gave some insight into why this may have happened. Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
HOWELL: What's in your gut? What do you think went on here?
BOBBI BOOTH, SISTER OF TERESA MAYES: I think there's an affair of some type going on. I just don't know what.
HOWELL: So, you think he was having an affair with Jo Ann Bain?
BOOTH: Yes.
HOWELL: Is there any explanation, though, why he would kill her or why he would kill a daughter?
BOOTH: No. I have no clue why anybody would kill a person.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOWELL: At this point, we've been told that Adam Mayes is described as armed and dangerous. Last seen in Guntown, Mississippi, the same place where the shallow graves were found. Obviously, if you have any information about this, call investigators immediately.
BANFIELD: Just such a sad story with those two little girls still out there. And obviously, everybody is hoping that they're still OK. George Howell for us live in Atlanta. Thanks this morning.
HOWELL: Thank you.
SAMBOLIN: It is 34 minutes past the hour. Police in Austin, Texas, releasing dash cam video of a school bus running over a student last week. The young victim is OK, but a warning, you might find this video really hard to watch.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
(HORN HONKING)
(SCREAMING)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SAMBOLIN: Oh, wow. That student was thrown several feet, but he was not seriously hurt. The driver was placed on administrative leave and faces disciplinary action. Oh, my gosh, that is tough to watch.
BANFIELD: And tough to hear the reactions of kids on the bus as well. And other students all watching.
SAMBOLIN: He's OK. He's OK.
BANFIELD: It's lucky. It's hard to see that. Looking at the orange light, and it looks as though he goes through the red light.
SAMBOLIN: Oh -- it was odd there.
BANFIELD: Well, it looks like the bus driver goes through a red light, and that the student is on the other side. And obviously, now, thinks it's safe to cross. So, that may be why there's disciplinary action, just from, you know, taking a look a little closer. It takes three times to look at that video to notice because you're sort of anticipating what's going to happen.
So, here's another story that we've been following for a while, and we've been waiting on a decision on this one. A teenager has now been kicked out of his Indianapolis high school because he pulled a stun gun on students that he says were bullying him. His name is 17- year-old Darnell Young (ph).
There he is with his mom. He says he was taunted constantly and threatened for being openly gay. His mom gave him a stun gun. She says she just wanted to protect him because she said the school wasn't doing the protection she needed. School district says it doesn't condone any bullying, but that weapons just plain aren't allowed on school grounds for any reason.
They now say that Young can return to school but not until January of next year.
SAMBOLIN: Videos shot by barefoot bandit, Colton Harris Moore (ph), during his notorious two-year crime spree have just been released. They show him taking off in stolen planes in the middle of the night and joyriding in a car while listening to country music, this near Boise, Idaho.
In seven video spanning 45 minutes, he never speaks or shows his face. The Washington State teenager was sentenced in December to seven years in prison for a number of crimes in several states, including burglary and identity theft. He was taken into custody in a hail of bullets in the Bahamas in 2010 after crash landing a plane that was stolen from an airport in Indiana.
BANFIELD: OK. Here's one that you can probably identify with. See all those gumballs? Well, there's a kid out there who's got lots of gumballs now because firefighters in Arkansas had to be called to a grocery store where little two-year-old Terrell Parks Jr. (ph) had his arm into that gumball machine --
SAMBOLIN: Just two years old.
BANFIELD: -- and was not going to let go.
(LAUGHTER)
BANFIELD: He was not going to let go of those gumballs. No way, Jose. His dad says several people tried to yank him out before they finally called for official help.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
VINCENT JOHNSON, TEXARKANA, ARKANSAS FIREFIGHTER: Initially, we did not have a plan. We were hoping that we would come in, and it would be as simple as putting some oil or something on it and sliding it out. Wasn't that simple. It turned out that we had to disassemble part of the machine to get his finger out.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BANFIELD: Took the machine apart.
SAMBOLIN: Look at him.
BANFIELD: Look what's inside. I don't know if you can see, but look what's in his hand.
SAMBOLIN: A gumball.
(LAUGHTER)
BANFIELD: He has it.
SAMBOLIN: I got it!
BANFIELD: Look, he's got the gumballs. He was not letting go of those gumballs, no matter what. Take the machine apart, but I got my goods.
SAMBOLIN: Look how sweet he is.
BANFIELD: Look at that sweet little thing. He has no idea, at this point, you're on national TV, adorable boy. And haven't we all done something like that at a really young age?
SAMBOLIN: Our kids.
BANFIELD: Our kids, too.
(LAUGHTER)
BANFIELD: Yes.
SAMBOLIN: All right. Thirty-seven minutes past the hour. Up next, find out why Delta Airlines is pulling commercials from "The Daily Show" with Jon Stewart.
BANFIELD: "The Daily Show!" Who watches "The Daily Show"?
(LAUGHTER)
SAMBOLIN: That's what she said.
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SAMBOLIN: Welcome back. Forty-one minutes past the hour. "The Daily Show" with Jon Stewart is known for reporting the news with a bit of a controversial twist. So, back on April 16th, it aired a segment about the, quote, "war on Christmas versus the war on women." It culminated with a picture of a Christmas manger positioned between a naked woman's legs.
We're not even going to show it because it's inappropriate for morning television. It infuriated the Catholic League, and they called the bit, quote, "a vulgar assault on Christians." It followed that up with calls for sponsors to pull its advertising from the comedy show as well.
So, now, almost three weeks after that bit aired, Delta Airlines has pulled its advertising. Delta says they weren't comfortable with the image "The Daily Show" used, and that, here's their statement, quote, "Delta doesn't discriminate nor do we condone discrimination in regard to age, race, nationality, sexual orientation, religion, or gender."
Delta also told CNN that the Catholic League had no influence on their decision. So, joining me is branding expert, Peter Shankman to talk about this.
PETER SHANKMAN, BRANDING STRATEGIST: Good morning.
SAMBOLIN: Good morning to you. So, I watched it this morning, and I have to tell you -- I'm Catholic.
SHANKMAN: Right.
SAMBOLIN: And when I watched the bit, I was offended.
SHANKMAN: Right.
SAMBOLIN: However, I realized that this is Jon Stewart. This is what he does, and he is offensive. Do you find it surprising that Delta made this move?
SHANKMAN: Well, you know, the interesting thing -- number one, Delta made the move three weeks later, and number two, they made the move and said they didn't make the move because of the Catholic League. So, for the Catholic League to go on and say this is a win for them, it's kind of a stretch.
You know, the opposite effect happened with Kellogg's, where Kellogg's said, we're not going to pull it, and we think people -- if they want to vote against a TV show, should do it by switching the channel. So, I don't really know how big of a win this is for the Catholic League. It happened three weeks after.
If you remember, when the Rush Limbaugh debacle happened a few months ago, advertisers not only pulled their advertisements within days if not hours, but came out with statement saying we're doing this because of this.
SAMBOLIN: Very specific statements, right?
SHANKMAN: Exactly.
SAMBOLIN: So, how unusual --
SHANKMAN: Delta said nothing like that.
SAMBOLIN: They did it. So, how unusual is that?
SHANKMAN: It's very unusual. Again, it's not -- that's why I don't necessarily believe that Delta did it in deference to the Catholic League, because when Delta pulls -- look, companies pull advertising all the time for tons of reasons.
You know, they might be marketing to a specific segment at one point in the year, and a couple of months later, targeting a different segment that doesn't necessarily stay up late to watch the show. So, I don't think the Delta did it in deference to this bit, whether they thought it was funny or not.
I think that it was just their time the package probably ended, and they moved on. And the fact that it was only Delta and not the other 60 or so advertisers on the show. It doesn't strike me as much of a win for the Catholic League.
SAMBOLIN: You talked about the timing on this and that it was three weeks past. So, if you had to speculate because this is what you do, right?
SHANKMAN: I do.
SAMBOLIN: Why do you think they would do it three weeks later?
SHANKMAN: I just think it happened to be -- that was probably the time their slot ended. And their advertising rep probably called them and said, do you want to renew? And they said, no, we're going somewhere else, not because of this. But, look, if Delta pulled this and then came out and said we pulled it but not because of this, but kind of because of this.
You know, that wouldn't have sounded good on Delta's part. They came out and said, look, it's been three weeks later. We pulled the ad. It had nothing to do with this. We're just moving our advertising.
SAMBOLIN: Well, that seems suspicious, all right? SHANKMAN: Not necessarily, because the companies move their advertising all the time. You know, the fact that Kellogg's came out and said we're not --
SAMBOLIN: They really think it was the end of a cycle and they just said, OK, we're done here?
SHANKMAN: Again, if Delta was catering to the Catholic League and didn't want to offend them, they would have said, yes, we pulled it because we agree with the Catholic League. This was offensive. Delta said nothing like that. They said we're pulling it because we're moving our ads.
You know? And there's no reason for Delta to lie in that regard. It's not like they're claiming flights are on time when they're not.
SAMBOLIN: Well, we actually tried to reach out to them to try to figure out the timeline here and why it was pulled at this point, and we were told, we'll get back to you on that.
SHANKMAN: Let's keep in mind, also, what we're watching here. This is comedy central. OK? You know, this didn't happen on this show or this didn't happen on a news -- it's comedy central. When this show is over, airs "South Park," you know?
(LAUGHTER)
SHANKMAN: So, let's understand where they're coming from here. Jon Stewart's job is to generate controversy and to be offensive and to go after Fox News on a daily basis, which is exactly what he did.
SAMBOLIN: OK. But when you actually listen to their statement, right, it was very generic. And they did, you know, allude to the fact that they don't condone, you know, racial discrimination or anything of the sort. There was a reason. We're just trying to figure out what was that reason?
SHANKMAN: I mean, my question is where does that statement even fit? Look, a PR person has a horrible job in this situation. A PR person has to come in and say, here's what we did and here's what management is telling me to say, and here's I'm going to say it with a smile on my face.
They're not going to confirm or deny anything. You know, having been in PR for many, many years, it's the hardest thing to sit there and go, I didn't really know what the answer is. I'm just going to smile -- and that's exactly they did. They give a generic statement that didn't confirm or deny anything that they were doing.
SAMBOLIN: So, you think any backlash for Delta on this?
SHANKMAN: I really don't. I mean, this is -- you know, again, for this to come three weeks after the fact. If you can remember, when the Rush Limbaugh thing happened a few months ago, within three weeks he lost 75 percent of his advertising.
SAMBOLIN: Yes.
SHANKMAN: This is one advertiser. And more importantly, for -- I think the bigger picture is the fact that Kellogg's said, no, we're not going away. And a viewer can vote by changing the channel. So, Kellogg's basically stood up to the Catholic League and said we don't think this is a problem.
And for one advertiser to go away three weeks after the fact, I really don't think it's going to hurt Jon Stewart at all.
SAMBOLIN: All right. Peter Shankman, thanks for coming in. Thanks for sharing your opinion.
Ashleigh, back to you.
BANFIELD: You know, I'm a Christian too, and I had had a different experience, Zoraida. I actually thought that was hilarious.
SAMBOLIN: Oh, really? I did not. You know, we didn't show the picture here, so it's kind of tough to really, you know, talk about it.
BANFIELD: I know.
SAMBOLIN: But if you go online and you watch it, I mean, for some, it could be very offensive.
BANFIELD: I can definitely see how it could be, but I think, you know what, Peter, you nailed it. It's "The Daily Show." It's where they have F-bombs regularly beeped out. They say every word in the book on that show. So, you've got to know what you're signing up for if you're watching. Thanks, guys.
It is now just -- let's see -- 47 minutes past 5:00. Time to get us caught up on the news where Christine Romans is best at collecting up the top stories. Hello.
CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Good morning. OK.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ROMANS: North Carolina voters have overwhelmingly approved a constitutional ban on same-sex marriage. Amendment 1 passing easily last night with 61 percent of the vote. The state's constitution will now read "Marriage between one man and one woman is the only domestic legal union that shall be valid or recognized." North Carolina becomes the 30th state to adopt such a ban.
A shake-up in the Sandusky sex abuse case centering around testimony from that key witness, Mike McQueary. The former grad student told a grand jury he saw coach, Jerry Sandusky, sexually assaulting a child back in 2002. Prosecutors now say that incident actually happened in 2001.
Sandusky's attorneys say they want the charge dropped. Meantime, court documents reveal McQueary intends to file a lawsuit against Penn State based on whistleblower protections.
And down the stretch, he swerves. Police in hot pursuit of an alleged drunk driver on a horse racing track. He's driving a car, not riding a horse. Police say 28-year-old Martin McDonald (ph) busted through the gate at the Zia Park Casino in New Mexico, took his pick- up on a joyride.
Police set up a barricade after a few lapse, and they surrounded him. They say he passed out in the back of the police cruiser, later told them, he just thought it'd be cool to do a few laps like a NASCAR driver.
All right. A paralyzed woman finishes a marathon in London 16 days after the race began with the help of a bionic suit. Thirty-two- year-old Claire Lomas is the first person ever to complete a marathon this way. And look at that -- I don't know. That's a joy. That's -- oh, wow!
Lomas was left paralyzed from the chest down after a horse riding accident five years ago. Her special suit enables her to stand, walk, and climb stairs. She raised more than $100,000 for spinal cord research. Brava.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ROMANS (on-camera): And the one thing you need to know today. Did you know it's Teacher Appreciation Week? This is the largest profession in America. 3.2 million of you are getting up and going to work this morning. We appreciate you -- ladies.
SAMBOLIN: Absolutely. They're being celebrated all over the place. Big banners --
(CROSSTALK)
BANFIELD: All those people in our studio audience.
(CROSSTALK)
BANFIELD: Yes. That's great. We do love our teachers no matter what. Fabulous. Thank you, Christine.
ROMANS: You're welcome.
BANFIELD: Guess what? Up next, she's back.
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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm sexy and I know it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BANFIELD: Yes. I'm sexy and I know it, she's saying and showing. This is the so-called hot dog hooker, and she's walking out of jail and giving reporters a show you have to see to believe.
SAMBOLIN: You have to see Christine's face right now to kind of believe this one.
(LAUGHTER)
SAMBOLIN: All right. And if you're leaving the house right now, you can always watch us any time on your desktop or on your mobile phone, just go to CNN.com/TV. We'll be right back for you.
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SAMBOLIN: It is 52 minutes past the hour. Time to take a look at what is trending on the web. The biggest wave ever surfed now stands at 78 feet. So, check out this video.
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SAMBOLIN (voice-over): Our producer around here is very excited about this because he's a surfer. Look at this. Garrett McNamara (ph) caught this monster off the coast of Portugal last November, but it wasn't verified as the biggest wave ever until this past weekend at the Billabong XXL Global Big Wave Awards. Guinness is expected to approve the record really soon.
It beat a wave surfed back in 2008 by Mike Parsons (ph) by one foot. There's a bit of irony with McNamara's win, however. Look into this, he also won Wipeout of the Year with this wave caught in Hawaii this past January.
BANFIELD (voice-over): OK --
SAMBOLIN: Fierce.
BANFIELD: Oh, look at that.
SAMBOLIN: Yikes.
BANFIELD: Oh, murder.
Hey, so, Steven Samaniego (ph) is our producer who gets up in the morning in the winter even to surf off the coast of Long Island. So, I'm just going to guess here. And Steven, if I guess wrong, I'm sorry, but this is my knowledge of surfing. This looks like it would be tow-in surfing where you can't even get -- this is paddle in? Wow!
SAMBOLIN: That's an amazing wipeout also. How ironic is that, right? You win the best and the worse.
(LAUGHTER)
BANFIELD: But you know, I thought the tow-in surfers always did the highest waves. Isn't that interesting? That's a paddle-in wave, folks. That's incredible. All right. So, lunchtime got a little more sexy on Long Island. Take a look.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm sexy and I know it.
BANFIELD: I'm sexy and I know it. Katherine Scalia (ph) or Scalia. She's the so-called Long Island hot dog hooker, and she says she's going to be back at work today on the side of the road with her hot dog van after pleading guilty to a misdemeanor prostitution charge. Police say she was selling sex from her hot dog truck and offered to take an undercover cop home for 50 bucks.
But despite the guilty plea, she insists, I am not a hooker. Freedom! Free at last. She also says she proved it by giving a free show to the reporters yesterday. Take a look.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I gave them a little happiness. The next thing you know, he asked me for (EXPLETIVE DELETED). I had 20 cop cars there with handcuffs on me. I plead guilty to stripper, a stripper. Not prostitution. Prostitution is sex. Listen, I'm Sister Theresa over here, OK? Showing you cleavage is indecent exposure. Prostitution is sex. Sexual acts.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BANFIELD: I'm Sister Theresa over here.
(LAUGHTER)
BANFIELD: That is going to be my new line. I'm Sister Theresa. So, a judge ordered her to undergo some psychiatric evaluation.
SAMBOLIN: Really?
BANFIELD: And she was sentenced to serve seven days in jail, but she already served five of those. So --
SAMBOLIN: I was watching her yesterday as she was coming out. She says she's going to be wearing a pink bikini today. In case you want to go check her out.
BANFIELD: Wonder how much the hot dogs cost.
SAMBOLIN: Don't know.
BANFIELD: And I don't mean the $50 hot dogs. I mean the hot dogs out of the hot dog truck. Famous (ph), by the way.
SAMBOLIN: Fifty-five minutes past the hour. Coming up, why you should check your Twitter account this morning? For more that what your friends are saying, we're going to give you a lot of details on that one. You may want to change your password this morning. You're watching EARLY START.
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