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Early Start with John Berman and Zoraida Sambolin
Zimmerman Discovery Phase Underway; Trayvon Martin Autopsy Reveals Knuckle Injuries; TSA Failing To Track Security Breaches; Four Wildfires Burning In Arizona; $1 Million Settlement In Beating Death; Edwards Trial Winding Down; FDA Panel Backs At Home HIV Test; Woman Battles Flesh-Eating Bacteria; "Sudden Acceleration" Smoking Gun?; Woman Kills Her Four Children; New Simpson Attorney Seeks New Trial; Quadriplegic Recovers Hand Function; Man Sets Himself On Fire; French President's Plane Struck By Lightning
Aired May 16, 2012 - 06:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
ALI VELSHI, CNN ANCHOR: -- the day after Martin was shot and killed Zimmerman visited his doctor and according to the medical records, he had what's called a closed fracture of his nose, two black eyes, two lacerations to the back of his head and a minor back injury.
A closed fracture is one in which the skin is not split apart. Martin Savidge joins us live from CNN in Atlanta. Martin, these developments seem to bolster Zimmerman's argument that he killed Trayvon Martin as an act of self-defense. What do you make of it?
MARTIN SAVIDGE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, I think it's probably going be to argued both ways. And in fact, when we get to a court room, that's exactly how it is going to be argued.
Now, of course the defense team for George Zimmerman is going to maintain that, yes, the injuries to Trayvon Martin's hands, which came out from the autopsy report, the bruising of the knuckles would suggest that Trayvon Martin was in a fight with George Zimmerman.
I don't think anybody can test that fact. The question is who began that fight. Now, George Zimmerman maintains that it was Trayvon Martin who started the fight, walked up to him, punched him to the nose, knocked him to the ground and began beating his head against the sidewalk.
The family of Trayvon Martin says, no, it was George Zimmerman that you'll remember, started all of this altercation when he was tracking Trayvon Martin.
Last night, Ben Crump who is the attorney for Trayvon Martin's family talked specifically about this autopsy information and the bruising on the hands. Listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BENJAMIN CRUMP, MARTIN FAMILY ATTORNEY (via telephone): Trayvon was fighting for his life.
ANDERSON COOPER, HOST, CNN'S "AC 360": You say that's why he would have injuries on his hands.
CRUMP: Absolutely, he was standing his ground. It was self- defense. If somebody got a gun, I want to fight for my life.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SAVIDGE: That's precisely the argument both sides are making -- Ali.
VELSHI: Martin, well, we've heard a lot about George Zimmerman's injuries. What else can you tell us about those?
SAVIDGE: Well, a couple of things. You already pointed out what the injuries were two black eyes. He had a closed fracture of the nose and lacerations on the back of his head and back injury.
Keep in mind this was all diagnosed as a result of him going to his family physician the day after the altercation and the shooting of Trayvon Martin.
Again, the attorneys for Trayvon's family will say, look, he didn't go to the hospital that night. He didn't suffer a concussion.
If his head was truly being beaten against the ground and if this was a life and death struggle going to the doctor the next day does not necessarily bear that out. The defense will say, no, that's keeping right in line with their defense portrayal -- Ali.
VELSHI: All right, Martin, thanks very much. We'll continue to stay on top of the story with you. Martin Savidge in Atlanta.
ZORAIDA SAMBOLIN, CNN ANCHOR: All right, 2 minutes past the hour here. The Transportation Security Administration does not seem to get it. Apparently, that sums up a new report from the Department of Homeland Security inspector general.
It says the TSA is failing to adequately report, track and fix security breaches at U.S. airports. Like this one at Newark Liberty International where a man slipped into a secure area to kiss his girlfriend goodbye.
That is a breach that shut down the airport for hours and delayed thousands of passengers. Homeland Security finding only 42 percent of breaches are being properly reported by the TSA and the problems are being corrected only 53 percent of the time.
We'll find out how much more about that report and the breaches and how they may impact you when we are joined by CNN Aviation and Regulation correspondent Lizzie O'Leary. That is at 6:30 Eastern.
VELSHI: You know, someone might have thought that romantic that that guy snuck through security and kisses his girlfriend goodbye.
SAMBOLIN: Closes down the airport for hours. You shouldn't go there. Do it before she gets to that point. VELSHI: You're right. He was a slow kisser.
All right, four wildfires are burning this morning in Arizona with high winds making it difficult for firefighters to battle the flames. Crews are working to prevent the so-called gladiator fire from spreading across the Phoenix area.
So far none of it has been contained. None of it. It's already consumed more than 1,700 acres and everyone living in the historic mining town in the Prescott National Forest has been told to get out.
SAMBOLIN: The mother of a mentally ill homeless man who died after police beating him has accepted now a $1 million settlement from the city of Fullerton, California. Two of the officers who were seen repeatedly hitting 37-year-old Kelly Thomas face charges ranging from involuntary murder to involuntary manslaughter. You saw that beating. It was caught on tape.
VELSHI: Later this morning, we could be witnessing the final hours of John Edwards corruption trial. The former senator's attorney says still doesn't know whether he'll be asked to testify or won't say.
Edwards' daughter, Cate is expected to testify this morning and the defense is still considering calling Edwards' former mistress Rielle Hunter to the stand. Edwards faces up to 30 years before bars for allegedly using illegal campaign contributions to cover up his affair with Hunter.
SAMBOLIN: And at home, HIV test, it's getting the thumbs up from a panel of FDA advisers. They say the test is safe and effective and the projected benefits far outweigh the potential risks of false positive and false negative results.
Federal health officials say 20 percent of the estimated 1.2 million Americans that are living with HIV don't even know they're infected and they risk spreading the virus.
VELSHI: Doctors in Augusta, Georgia, say 24-year-old Aimee Copeland who contracted a rare flesh-eating bacteria is slowly making progress. It's been ravaging Copeland's body since a zip line accident two weeks ago. Her leg and part of her abdomen to be amputated, but Amy's father tells CNN that her recovery is nothing short of miraculous.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANDY COPELAND, DAUGHTER BATTLING FLESH-EATING BACTERIA: Doctors have been baffled. I understand that one of the doctors went by, looked at her charts and examined the vital signs and says this doesn't make any sense. But we know it does make sense because we believe in miracles and Aimee is our miracle child.
(END VIDEO CLIP) VELSHI: Pretty incredible spirit in that family. Andy Copeland, the father, says doctors expect a, quote, "roller coaster of highs and lows" for Aimee in the next few weeks.
SAMBOLIN: Quite a fighter there.
VELSHI: Yes, you sort of sense just from listening to the father what kind of a fighter she must be. To hear all that stuff happen and still be that positive, that's incredible.
SAMBOLIN: Incredible. It's 6 minutes past the hour here.
A dashboard camera puts you right in the driver's seat for a really terrifying ride. I wish I knew what they were saying. See what one couple saw when they say their car suddenly accelerated and crashed. We're going to show this full video to you after the break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
VELSHI: I know it's early and you're getting ready. Just stop for a second. Don't just listen, look, this is what it looks like when a car takes off by itself. And that is the crash.
The language you're hearing is Korean, which is why it would be difficult to understand. Korean officials are now investigating this video, which may show evidence that sudden acceleration caused a horrible crash that injured 17 people including the two who were in the car who are a couple in their 60s.
The car was going 80 miles an hour when it rear ended another car. The couple's son claims he extracted the video from a black box data recorder in the Hyundai, the kind that you find in airplanes. So we're very interested in finding out what happened.
SAMBOLIN: I had no idea the cars had data recorders.
VELSHI: Hyundai has said now that they do have them -- I don't know when they started doing them, but they have them in their new cars.
SAMBOLIN: Interesting. It's 10 minutes past the hour here. Let's get you up-to-date. Here's Christine Romans.
CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Good morning you two. A dramatic turn in the Trayvon Martin case. One day after shooting the unarmed teen to death, George Zimmerman had a closed fracture of his nose, two black eyes, two lacerations to the back of his head and a minor back injury.
Now, that's according to a medical report compiled by Zimmerman's family physician. The report could be introduced as evidence in Zimmerman's trial. It appears to bolster his claim that he killed Martin in self-defense.
Police investigators in Florida they still don't know what drove a young mother to kill her four children and then herself. They say three of the four kids ages 12 to 17 sought help from a neighbor before the mother, Tanya Thomas, called them back into the house and she fired the fatal shots. Thomas apparently sent a text asking that she and her children be cremated together.
Are you ready for another O.J. Simpson trial? Simpson hired a new lawyer that claims his case was so badly mishandled that he should be released from a Nevada prison and granted a new trial.
A judge is expected to hear that argument in July. O.J. Simpson is currently serving 9 to 33 years for a 2008 conviction on armed robbery and kidnapping charges.
If you're a poll watcher, it's sure hard to tell whether President Obama or Mitt Romney is more popular among women voters. The CBS/"New York Times" poll triggered quite a buzz yesterday.
When that poll revealed Romney had passed the president with a two-point edge among women, but then there's this latest Gallup Poll that tells a very different story. The president holds a nine-point lead over Romney among women.
The White House is thanking our military families with a free admission to our nation's monuments and national parks. This program is part of a celebration of Armed Forces Day. That is this Saturday. Members of the military and their families eligible tore free annual passes to 2,000 park locations. Those passes normally cost about 80 bucks.
All right, he's part man, part MP3 player. Take a look at this, a guy named Dave Herben implanted magnets into his wrist so he could wear his iPod Nano as a watch.
The magnets implanted in his wrist are specifically placed to hold on to the four corners of the Nano. It's gotten more comfortable than wearing that annoying wristband. Just, you know, magnets under your skin.
If you're leaving the house right now, you can watch us any time on your desktop or on your mobile phone, just go to cnn.com/tv. Ali, what do you have implanted and where?
VELSHI: I have a chip. I have one of those things like you put in a dog. I have an f -- RFID chip in my arm. I did it for a story.
ROMANS: It's still in there?
VELSHI: Yes, it's still in there. You can feel it. Put your hand and feel it.
SAMBOLIN: My goodness. How weird is that. It doesn't travel.
VELSHI: It's passive. It doesn't do anything. It is not magnetic but works on radio frequency waves. There was no information -- you could in theory keep information on it.
ROMANS: Wow, you always surprise me, Velshi. VELSHI: All the time we've known that, you did not know.
SAMBOLIN: Implanted in your body and you feel it.
VELSHI: That's why I don't judge people who put magnets inside their bodies.
SAMBOLIN: That will be reserved for us.
VELSHI: Weird disclosures about me coming out on this show this morning.
Let's move on to something less about me. How about that dreary weather out here in the northeast and the effect that it could have on your travel plans. Rob, no need to comment.
ROB MARCIANO, AMS METEOROLOGIST: I've just begin to comment. First of all, the company allowed you to do that so they could track you. If you're turned into the local pound, which is likely --
SAMBOLIN: Ouch.
MARCIANO: I'm for wearing -- yes --
VELSHI: You are going to come and claim me, will you?
MARCIANO: I have butt implants. The Philadelphia heaviest rain is about to get through the NYC and big apple area. If you're not getting rain right now, you probably have some fog in low-lying moisture. So, a poor visibilities, and that's going to affect not only the roadway travel, but travel at the airport, as well. The big airports including New York City, Philadelphia, Boston, you'll deal with low clouds and fog and bad visibility. San Francisco, as well.
And then, once the front comes through later on this afternoon, upstate New York, the Adirondack, the Berkshire's, the western mass, green mountains of Vermont and white mountains of New Hampshire, we'll see the threat of seeing severe weather potentially, most likely large hail and some damaging winds.
Isolated tornadoes but could get rough after two o'clock, especially. There is your front cooler behind it for Chicago and still dreadfully hot across parts of the southwest.
A town in Texas seeing this. You know, we've been talking a lot about sinkholes in Florida. Well, this town, now, the Brazos River has a drainage canal, and this was a pipe that got damaged. There you see the pipe where the storm a couple of days ago. Well, now, the water is not going through the pipe. It's going through this earth.
And now, it's creating this massive drainage ditch, a.k.a. sinkhole, and it's getting closer to neighbors, and they may have to start evacuating homes if it gets any worse, and this may have really no way to solve that problem there, Ali. So, if you have any good ideas -- VELSHI: Yes. You'd think with all the engineering problems that we can solve, drainage and sinkholes would be one. The second day in a row we've been reporting on sinkholes --
MARCIANO: Water is a powerful thing and difficult to control for sure.
VELSHI: Rob, good to see you, my friend. Thank you.
MARCIANO: All right.
VELSHI: Well, a quadriplegic gets restored function in his hand because of a medical breakthrough from a team of surgeons at Washington University in St. Louis. The location of the spinal cord damaged at the C-7 vertebrae, the lowest neck bone, allowed surgeons to avoid operating on the spine itself.
Instead, they rerouted nerves in the patient's still healthy upper arms. After a year of intense physical therapy, he's regained the ability to pinch, feed himself, and write. Although, he still needs help doing that. Still, pretty amazing, Zoraida.
SAMBOLIN: It is amazing. Thank you.
I have something pretty amazing, too. It's a new tech device, and it could help save American lives in Afghanistan. All owing U.S. soldiers to see -- allowing, excuse me -- U.S. soldiers to see their enemies actually before they strike. It's call the Throw Bot, and it's this week's "Technovation."
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SAMBOLIN (voice-over): You can toss it over a wall or even drop it from a three-story building. Known as the Throw Bot, this device is helping soldiers and marines detect insurgents and IEDs in Afghanistan.
JEREMY BLADE, RECONROBOTICS: It's essentially a 1.2-pound throw ball reconnaissance device that soldiers, marines, SWAT team, bomb team use for situational awareness. You can take it, throw it in their room, and you get a live video feed of what's going on.
SAMBOLIN: You steer the robot by remote control and see what it sees.
BLADE: The recon (INAUDIBLE) can be deployed in less than five seconds. It's simple. Pull the pin, flip the switch, you're ready to go.
SAMBOLIN: Infrared sensors let you see in the dark, and it's small enough to fit in a backpack or pocket.
BLADE: The thing that makes this robot unique is its size. Back in 2007, when this first came out, a lot of the bigger systems were 30 pounds, 50 pounds, a lot to carry for soldiers.
SAMBOLIN: The U.S. military is using over 2,000 systems and more than 400 police SWAT teams are using the Throw-Bot.
BLADE: Something like this can save lives if this goes in first. And it does get shot out, you're not coming out or one of your buddies isn't coming out shot at. You can get eyes inside before you go in.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SAMBOLIN (on-camera): Remarkable technology.
VELSHI: That is pretty amazing.
SAMBOLIN: Fantastic.
VELSHI: Hey, there's -- we've been talking about Facebook a lot. And there are questions about diversity on Facebook's board today. You might be surprised by who's not represented in the board. More, as you said, Zoraida. Maybe, you won't be.
SAMBOLIN: And for an expanded look at all of our top stories, head to our blog, CNN.com/EARLYSTART.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SAMBOLIN: So much going on this morning. Twenty-two minutes past the hour. We are "Minding Your Business." This morning, U.S. stocks closing at a three-month low because of concerns about Greece. That is a story that is developing hotly this morning. The Dow and S&P 500 each lost about a half of percent yesterday. The NASDAQ down a third of a percent.
VELSHI: Facebook also under a microscope. The IPO is two days away. Let's bring in Christine Romans now. New reports this morning, Christine, that Facebook is going to be -- first, we had that they were increasing the price range, now, they're actually increasing the size.
CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: So, adding to the frenzy that is Facebook, a frenzy of reports from unnamed sources close to the company. Reuters is reporting this. Bloomberg reporting this this morning. They will raise the size of the IPO. We told you many times they say they're going to issue 337 million shares.
Now, these reports say they're going to up the size of the IPO by 25 percent to more than 420 million shares, because of a lot of interest in this IPO. At the same time, remember, though, this is an IPO. IPOs are always risky. Initial Public Offerings are always risky for new investors, because we don't have really a track record for this company that's been public, right?
Eight years ago, Mark Zuckerberg, was in a dorm room in Harvard. Now, you've got a company that change the world's models and business plans, the like, we're going to start seeing more of those in the months ahead. Now, one thing that's interesting about Facebook as well is the diversity of its board. It is not a diverse board.
It's a seven-member board, all men, all very, very talented men, I will say, and who have been helping Mark Zuckerberg along the way grow this company, but Rachel Sklar is someone who is really interested in "Changing the Ratio." That's the name of her foundation to get more women in media.
She's pointing out that there will be calls and there will be serious push to get more women on this board. Listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RACHEL SKLAR, FOUNDER, CHANGE THE RATIO: There has been a movement now that Facebook is going to become a public company to have a woman added to the board. Fifty-five percent of Facebook's users are women and the liking activity that is, you know, generating all this interest is actually more than 60 percent generated by woman.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROMANS: And of course, you know, a lot of people say that the big grown-up there is Cheryl Sandberg (ph), a woman who is one of the most famous women in tech, but there are a lot of calls this morning for Facebook to do more about the diversity of its board.
VELSHI: And in fairness, most boards, even if they -- most like cater (ph) women tend to be men.
(CROSSTALK)
ROMANS: The interesting point from Rachel Sklar is that women are the ones who are driving Facebook's business.
SAMBOLIN: Absolutely.
ROMANS: Women are the ones -- even the adopters now of technology are women and minorities in faster, faster pace. So, you know, you want to make sure that there's that representation and advice on the board.
Also want to point out, we'll talk about it again later this hour, but Greece bears watching here this morning. Greece is going to have to have new elections.
VELSHI: Yes.
ROMANS: Greece, a $300 billion economy still a real problem for Europe and a real problem for the U.S. A small economy in the scheme of things, but we're also very closely watching Greece and its development --
VELSHI: And you should too if you have a 401(k) because it's going to hit the markets again.
SAMBOLIN: Yes. I used to say in quote, why does it affect me? And then, I'm a believer of the two of you --
ROMANS: But it affects you because five percent of the value of your stock portfolio has been wiped out in a month. VELSHI: Yes.
ROMANS: Yes.
SAMBOLIN: So, you want to listen up for this. You'll be back with that, and I know you're weighing in, as well. So, thank you very much.
ROMANS: You're welcome.
SAMBOLIN: Twenty-five minutes past the hour.
A serious gap in what could be the last line of defense against terrorism. Coming up, what the TSA is apparently not doing about security breaches at our nation's airports. You're going to want to stay tuned for that.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SAMBOLIN: Twenty-nine minutes past the hour. Welcome back to EARLY START. We're glad you're with us this morning. I'm Zoraida Sambolin.
VELSHI: And I'm Ali Velshi in for Ashleigh Banfield. Here's what's happening at half past the hour.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
VELSHI (voice-over): A potential game changer in the Trayvon Martin case. One day after the tragic shooting, accused murderer, George Zimmerman, had a closed fracture of his nose. two black eyes, two lacerations to the back of his head, and a minor back injury. Now, that is according to a medical report compiled by Zimmerman's family physician.
The mother of a mentally ill homeless man who died after a police beating that was captured on camera has accepted a $1 million settlement from the city of Fullerton, California. Two of the officers who were seen repeatedly hitting 37-year-old Kelly Thomas (ph) face charges ranging from second-degree murder to involuntary manslaughter.
A rapid at-home test for HIV is a step closer to reality. An FDI Advisory Committee giving its unanimous recommendation for the OraQuick HIV test to be sold over the counter saying it's safe, effective, and that the benefits outweigh the risks.
SAMBOLIN (voice-over): A federal report is shedding light on security breaches at some of our nation's major airports. It shows almost half go unreported. So today the House homeland security committee is holding a hearing to find out why that happens. Our aviation and regulation correspondent Lizzy O'leary joins me live from Washington and I was reading this report. I'm dumbfounded. A little worried. Can you share the findings?
LIZZY O'LEARY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: What we're talking about here is a series of security breaches. It sounds like an academic term but it means things that made it through the checkpoints, people got into areas where they shouldn't or in one case as in Newark airport, the body of a dead dog that made it onto an airplane without being screened for explosives. This was all started with some concern from Senator Frank Lautenberg who represents New Jersey because a lot of these happened at Newark airport so he asked for this report and here are the big findings I want to break down for you. About 42 percent of these breaches went unreported and that means they weren't collected in TSA's central data system. The airports didn't fix about half of the causes and then this is really the big one here, TSA doesn't comprehensively track all of these things so instead of having a holistic picture of how this is working at Newark and the six other airports or the five other airports that they looked at, six altogether, they have a scatter-shot picture and that would make it harder for TSA to take the 30,000-foot view and figure out how to correct some of these patterns and whether there are patterns to begin with.
SAMBOLIN: These are the only airports that they actually looked at. Do we have a list of those airports?
O'LEARY: We don't. Those were redacted so we know that Newark is one of them but we don't know what the others were. We know they were busy airports and the TSA for their part says, look, we agree with a lot of these recommendations and are working on it.
SAMBOLIN: You've got to wonder about that. There are a lot of rules and regulations and the fact that they don't fix some of these breaches, I think, is very scary there, so what are they suggesting should happen next?
O'LEARY: Well, they're suggesting they do want this kind of systemwide reporting system. They have one. It just seems that officers --
SAMBOLIN: Not working.
O'LEARY: -- aren't particularly good at using it and there needs to be more of a push from TSA leadership to make sure they're looked at and say we agree with that and are putting it in place. A lot of these were 2010, 2011 and TSA is saying, we get it. We want to move forward with this and it behooves everyone to be on top of this.
SAMBOLIN: I think it was at Newark they actually got a knife through. Am I right?
O'LEARY: Yes, you are.
SAMBOLIN: I'm going to switch gears on you. We found you online at Jeopardy. You were competing on Jeopardy. Tell me about the experience.
O'LEARY: It was fun. I did well going up into Final Jeopardy, I was leading but I choked in the end. The most important thing here is I was playing for a charity here in D.C. that does after-school tutoring and teaches kids to like reading and writing and the kids have published two books of their work but also I got to compete with Robert Gibbs so it was fun to be on a level playing field.
SAMBOLIN: What was the question that stumped you?
O'LEARY: Ah, it was this American has won an Emmy, the Mark Twain prize and the Spin Garn medal. You guys know it?
SAMBOLIN: No clue. Anybody in the control room want to chime in? Somebody want to cheat with me? I have no idea.
O'LEARY: Bill Cosby.
SAMBOLIN: No!
O'LEARY: Yep.
SAMBOLIN: I bet you'll never forget that again, right?
O'LEARY: Right.
SAMBOLIN: Lizzie O'leary, good for you. That looked like a lot of fun. You were the only girl there so I have to point that out. Good for you.
Thanks. 34 past the hour. Later on "STARTING POINT" we'll talk to the man with oversight on the TSA, Chairman Mike Rogers at 7:30 Eastern.
VELSHI: Okay, so how did President Obama do in 2011, last year? Politics, well, the history will have to decide that but his financial state seems pretty rosy. According to disclosure forms released by the White House on Tuesday, the Obamas held assets totaling between $2.6 and more than $8 million last year. Those disclosures come in a range which are why they numbers are that big. The president has treasury notes valued between $1 million and $5 million. A checking account at JP Morgan Chase holding another $500,000 to $1 million and his book bringing in between $100,000 and $1 million, same range for his children's work, "Of Thee I Sing." "The Audacity of Hope," not as popular these days, bringing in a mere $50,000-100,000.
SAMBOLIN: 35 minutes past the hour. Newark, New Jersey mayor Cory Booker has been called a superhero. From shoveling people out of blizzards, pulling a woman out of a burning home, how do you compete with that? Governor Chris Christie is trying to do so. The governor's office poked fun at the mayor's hands-on approach to leading. Check it out.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Governor.
CHRIS CHRISTIE, GOVERNOR OF NEW JERSEY: Hey. You guys got any problems you want me to handle like a fire anywhere, people trapped?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No.
CHRISTIE: Like a bad automobile accident where you need me to help some folks?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Nothing like that.
CHRISTIE: Maybe a cat in a tree?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No, I think we're all set here.
CORY BOOKER, MAYOR OF NEWARK: Cooper, what do we got?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Mayor, thank you for coming. There is a two- alarm fire on State Street, a car broken down on Route 1, and a little girl has lost her cat in a tree.
BOOKER: Alright, trooper. As you were. Governor, I got this.
CHRISTIE: Booker.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What was that?
CHRISTIE: Hey, Steve, hey, listen, I got to get going. I think we have a flat tire here. I'll hang up first. Good-bye.
BOOKER: Hey, Gov, sit tight. I got this.
CHRISTIE: Booker.
CHRISTIE: Absolutely.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Oh, God, my baby!
BOOKER: Governor, stand back! I got this. I got this.
CHRISTIE: Booker!
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SAMBOLIN: That was my favorite one --
VELSHI: Two guys with a good sense of humor. They are politically as far apart as you can get but both appeal to the media and in a state like that New Jersey, folks who are big spirited tend to like these two.
SAMBOLIN: The fact they did it together is fantastic.
37 minutes past the hour, Mr. Velshi.
VELSHI: 20 more Americans -- 20 million more Americans are about to become addicts, the how and the why. You'll want to pay attention to it after the break.
SAMBOLIN: But first, a quick check of your travel forecast with rob marciano.
MARCIANO: The rains are moving out of Jersey across the river and into Connecticut now and eastern Long Island and once these exit we're looking for fog to replace it in the form of dense fog so the airports will see issues today, especially New York metro, Philadelphia and Boston. Then once the front comes through later on this afternoon we get heating of the day. Upstate New York, eastern New York especially in the green mountain state of Vermont maybe under the gun for seeing severe weather in the form of hail and gusty winds. Cooler in Chicago, still toasty out in the desert southwest battling fires in Arizona. 84 in Denver, 64 in Chicago and 79 once the rain exits New York City. "EARLY START" is coming right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
VELSHI: This one has my attention. We could see the number of college students considered alcoholic hit 40 percent. Not because they're drinking more heavily, but because what defines an alcoholic might be changing. Alina Cho has been investigating this.
ALINA CHO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: A water cooler story of the day. It's remarkable, health experts are literally redefining the term alcoholic and if you've ever woken up from a blackout in college, guess what, you are one under new guidelines due to be released a year from now. You're not alone, in fact, 20 million more Americans could be diagnosed as having some sort of addiction. That's 60 percent of the country. Whether it's drugs or alcohol or listen to this, even shopping or gambling. The new guidelines are included in a revision of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, that's a mouthful, otherwise known as DSM. If you haven't heard of it, you should, the nation's arbiter of mental illness, the so-called psychiatric bible. Here's what you need to know. Currently there are two ways of categorizing drug and alcohol problems, substance abuse. That refers to a short-term problem that includes or can include binge drinking in college, then there's substance dependence. That means a long-term problem like alcoholism.
Now, under the new guidelines only one diagnosis for addiction, but with varying degrees, mild, moderate, or severe. A big reason why more will be diagnosed, doctors are adding to the list of symptoms of addiction while also reducing the numbers of symptoms that are needed for a diagnosis which could mean millions more people could be labeled addicts even without picking up another drink. What's more, listen to this, for the first time, the manual would also include gambling as an addiction and could include a category called behavioral addiction which is so broad that some are fearing doctors could label just about anyone an addict in any category whether it's shopping or sex, Internet or video games so why is this all so important?
For a variety of reasons but mostly because it's the standard that the government uses and it also dictates whether someone who is diagnosed with an addiction will get treatment and, of course, when you're talking about health treatment, you're talking about millions, possibly hundreds of millions of dollars.
VELSHI: If you could get diagnosed with something, then insurance can pay for the treatment. But some of these definitional changes are interesting. For instance, in alcoholism they're looking at people who drink more than intended. Does that mean if I thought I was going for one drink and ended up going for two on a regular basis, could that fall into --
CHO: Well, there's a lot of debate. There are 162 medical experts who are actually contributing to the rewriting of this manual. So far, you're just looking at a draft version right now. There have been 25,000 comments already from government agencies, hospitals, treatment centers but you are right. Untreated illness is such a big problem this will actually ensure that more people who are getting sick will get diagnosed and get the help they need. Opponents will argue this will artificially inflate the number of people categorized as addicts and cost hundreds of millions in what could be unnecessary treatment. So the pros, more people will get treatment who need it and the cons are that some critics, I love this term, say what it will lead to is the medicalization of everyday behavior.
VELSHI: I guess, those were the two sides on this. Alina, great to see you. Thank you.
CHO: You bet.
VELSHI: All right -- Zoraida.
SAMBOLIN: Thank you very much. Brooke Baldwin is in for Soledad O'Brien, and she joins us now with a look at what is ahead on "Starting Point."
BROOKE BALDWIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hello, good morning to you.
SAMBOLIN: Good morning.
BALDWIN: So, let's talk football, shall we? Ahead this morning, New York Giants QB and Super Bowl MVP, Eli Manning, coming by right here to the studio. We're going to talk, you know, how -- I know, I hear the ho-hoos in the studio. We're going to talk about, you know, look, how does the team -- love going into this year coming off the big win, right, the Super Bowl?
Also, really what I want to know, did you guys catch him on "SNL" recently when he wore a dress? Did he catch any flack from his teammates? Those are the hard questions we're asking this morning of Eli.
Also, it's addictive, it's soapy, and sexy. We have the Queen of Mean here this morning from the hottest new TV show of the year called "Revenge." She is the star, Madeleine Stowe. She'll be dropping by the studio, as well.
And, this is just absolutely fascinating. The secret life of a spy. We're going to be talking with legendary U.S. spy, Hank Crumpton. He's written this book. It's called "The Art of Intelligence," not only talking about the sexier side of that covert life but also total the frustration that comes along with it. What makes a good spy?
We've got all of that for you today so much more. And hey, just a quick reminder, you can watch CNN live, your computer, your mobile phone, while you're at work, while you're sleeping, maybe not while you're asleep, but just go to CNN.com/live, we're there.
SAMBOLIN: I think I'm going to stick around.
BALDWIN: Good deal. It's a good chill (ph). We'll see you at top of the hour.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SAMBOLIN: Fifty minutes past the hour. Let's get you up-to- date. Here's Christine Romans.
CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Good morning.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ROMANS (voice-over): A dramatic development this morning on the Trayvon Martin case. One day after that tragic shooting, accused murderer, George Zimmerman, had a closed fracture of his nose, two black eyes, two lacerations to the back of his head and a minor back injury. That's according to medical records compiled by Zimmerman's family physician.
And CNN affiliate, WFTV, in Orlando is reporting Martin's autopsy shows he had injuries to his knuckles when he died. The Martin family attorney telling CNNs Anderson Cooper the injuries prove the teen was fighting for his life.
A Norwegian man sets himself on fire and tries to break into the trial of admitted mass killer, Anders Breivik. Witnesses say the man shouted "shoot me" as he was tackled by police. He was taken to the hospital suffering serious injuries to his torso. Police say they don't know why he did it. Meantime, Breivik is on trial for the massacre of 77 people last July.
A New York judge has extended the restraining order against Alec Baldwin's accused stalker for another two months. Forty-year-old Genevieve Sabourin, a one-time actress, was arrested outside Baldwin's New York City home last month. She's accused of hounding him with e- mails and texts.
They met on set years ago. She was booked on five misdemeanor counts of harassment and stalking.
A plane carrying the new president of France get struck by lightning. No one was hurt, but the jet was forced to turn back to Paris. President Francois Hollande was on his way to Berlin to meet the German chancellor, Angela Merkel. He then boarded a second flight.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Look at me, Sam.
ROMANS: Wow. This next story will bring tears to your eyes. A golden retriever named Sam dog paddling for his life following the voices of his owner and firefighters who are trying to guide him to safety. Sam's owner says he took him off his leash for a second, and he ran down steps and was swept away into the strong cold current of the Merrimac River.
Rescuers guided Sam to a spot where a firefighter was able to rappel down a wall and plucked him out of the water.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
STEVE SOBA, SAM'S OWNER: I can't believe it. He's my best friend. He saved two lives tonight, the dog's and mine.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROMANS: Well, Sam and his best friend are doing fine and more proof that dogs are so smart.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ROMANS (on-camera): All right. Greece's problems are driving European stocks lower this morning. Greece's president is now warning of a possible run on the banks in Greece, increasing concerns that Greece may leave the European Union. And Ali, already, there has been an incredible flight of money out of the banks over the past couple of days in Greece, and a concern that that will continue.
VELSHI: Yes. Takes your mind back to discussions that we had in 2008 about what happens when there's a run on the bank where people don't even trust that the bank can keep their money safe. Banks lose money to loan to people, loans stop, and that has an effect around the world because of how connected we are.
So, something going on in Greece right now in terms of banks and loans we worry could have an effect here.
SAMBOLIN: How worry should we be?
VELSHI: Right. And, for the moment, probably not too worried, but for those of us who follow it very closely, we always worry about these things. So, we keep it very close to our, you know, information flow. At the moment, I don't think it affects us too much, but we're watching closely.
SAMBOLIN: All right. Thank you.
VELSHI: All right. Who would vote for a registered sex offender? That's what some people in one Texas community are asking this morning. We'll have that story for you after the break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SAMBOLIN: It is 56 minutes past the hour. Time for "Early Read." Registered sex offender wins a city council state in a small Texas community 60 miles east of Amarillo. Our affiliate, KFDA, reports Warren Red Mills of Skellytown, but he was forced to resign when residents learned of his past.
Mills served jail time for sexual contact without consent and probation for allegations of sexual contact with two minors. But in a city council election, Mills received the most votes. He will be sworn in later this month.
VELSHI: Wow. All right. If you were hoping the new Google glasses that we've talked about would turn your life into a scene from "The Terminator" movie, for instance, like this one.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I need your clothes, your boots, and your motorcycle.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELSHI: Yes. That would be cool, but you're going to have to wait for that technology. CNET paid a visit to Google and found Google's initial promo video may have exaggerated the way information would be displayed on Google glasses.
Instead of a terminator style full-view overlay like the one in the video, the current pro-type for the glasses will display information just slightly above the eye. You were saying sort of like an umbrella.
SAMBOLIN: Yes. At the eye level of an umbrella, the top of that umbrella. It looks kind of like your glasses, by the way.
(CROSSTALK)
VELSHI: You don't know what I see.
(LAUGHTER)
SAMBOLIN: Yes.
VELSHI: Company spokesperson says it's too early to know all of the functions that the glasses will have, but he did say photo sharing will be an option.
For an expanded look at all of our top stories, head to our blog, CNN.com/EARLYSTART.
SAMBOLIN: All right, folks. It's been fun having you this morning. That's it for EARLY START. I'm Zoraida Sambolin.
VELSHI: I'm Ali Velshi. "Starting Point" with our good friend, Brooke Baldwin, starts right now.
BALDWIN: You know, we don't often see Ali Velshi without his glasses. I'm just saying, you never know. Good morning, everyone. I'm Brooke Baldwin sitting in once again here for Soledad O'Brien, and our "Starting Point" this morning, broken nose, black eyes, George Zimmerman's medical report, is it possibly proof that he was attacked or that Trayvon Martin was fighting for his own life? We're going to look into that with a live report.
Also, air sick. The Pentagon now putting restrictions on the most sophisticated, the most stealth expensive fighter jets ever. I'm talking $400 million a plane here for the health and safety of its pilots, but is that going far enough? We're going to ask.
Also, new looser guidelines for diagnosing addiction. Listen to this, 40 percent of college students are alcoholics. Forty percent. Will this help? Will this hurt people with real problems? "Celebrity Rehab's" Bob Forrest is going to join me live this morning.
Also, football fan, two-time Super Bowl MVP, Eli Manning, is going to join me in studio. Will his team remain a powerhouse coming into the season? And really, how will his teammates have reacted since he dressed out in drag? Check it out on "SNL" very recently. Nice dress there, Eli.
It is Wednesday morning, May 16th. "Starting Point" begins right now.
