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Early Start with John Berman and Zoraida Sambolin
Pope Francis Gets To Work; Michelle Obama En "Vogue" Again
Aired March 14, 2013 - 05:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR (voice-over): It's the dawn of a new era. Pope Francis now on the job leading the Roman Catholic Church.
ZORAIDA SAMBOLIN, CNN ANCHOR (voice-over): Revealed for the first time. The man who shot Mitt Romney's infamous 47 percent video comes forward.
BERMAN: And striking a pose. This is your new "Vogue" cover girl, first lady, Michelle Obama. Again, I suppose.
SAMBOLIN: She looks good.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BERMAN (on-camera): Welcome back to EARLY START, everyone.
SAMBOLIN (on-camera): And I'm Zoraida Sambolin. It is Thursday morning. It is 5:30 in the east.
BERMAN: History unfolding in Rome at this very moment as Pope Francis gets to work as leader of the world's 1.2 billion Catholics. At noon eastern, the pope holds a private mass with the cardinals who elected him inside the Sistine Chapel. This morning, we're learning a lot more about Jorge Mario Bergoglio, fondly known in Argentina as Father Jorge, and what his election might mean for the Roman Catholic Church moving forward.
Our coverage begins as it has the last few mornings with this team Miguel Marquez who is live from Rome. Good morning, Miguel.
MIGUEL MARQUEZ, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Good morning there, John. Well, the pope, Pope Francis was off to a busy start already this morning. He was at the Basilica of Sta. Maria Maggiore, and he prayed to the Virgin Mary there. He also interestingly went to the crypt, which is inside that church, one of the oldest churches in Rome, also owned by the Vatican.
He went to the crypt of St. Ignatius of Loyola who founded the Jesuit order, the order that he is part of. And of course, Rome is crazy about the new pope already. In all of the national newspapers, it is top news here. La Sorpresa de Francesco, the surprise of Francis. Papa Francesco in another. Of course, the pope, this is really sweet one. Gracia, Roma. Thank you, Rome. You know, he came out last night and thanked the people for coming out, wished them well, said, I hope you get a good sleep. This is, perhaps, the coolest one. Even the newspapers here in Italy are absolutely beautiful. When's the last time you saw a newspaper in Latin? I don't think I'd be getting through this one anytime soon, but an absolutely beautiful keepsake for anybody who's in Rome today.
An amazing night last night. An amazing day today. He will hold mass with the 114 cardinals that elected him later on. And we expect to see that on Vatican TV, as well. It should be an amazing, amazing mass.
BERMAN: Miguel, as you said, it was an amazing night. And you were just right in the middle of it all. What was that like? To you, what was the most interesting moment?
MARQUEZ: Well, a couple. When that crowd of 150,000 people went silent. It's very moving. It was shocking. And then, when he left the balcony, and then, when he came back out to thank everybody for coming, to wish them well, and to have a good night, it was -- it said a lot about the man.
He was humble. He was sweet. Despite the grandeur of that event, you got a very good sense of the man last night -- John.
BERMAN: Miguel, I have to say, Zoraida and I were talking. We were both jealous that you could be there and see that.
SAMBOLIN: Yes.
BERMAN: It sounds like quite an experience.
MARQUEZ: And you should be.
SAMBOLIN: Serious envy going on here.
BERMAN: Miguel Marquez, thanks very much.
(LAUGHTER)
SAMBOLIN: All right. So, let's bring in John Allen, CNN senior Vatican analyst, and Father Edward Beck, CNN contributor. Gentlemen, I know that you have been working very hard and around the clock, so we really appreciate your time this morning. So, let's talk about this selection. It was a very swift selection.
And I know we've chatted a lot about that. But this particular -- when he was cardinal, appealed to two different voting blocks that were in that room. Let's talk about that appeal, because some are known as reformers. And the other one, they're pretty much the status quo within the Roman Catholic Church. So, John, I'm going to start with you. How is it possible that he can appeal to both sides?
JOHN ALLEN, CNN SENIOR VATICAN ANALYST: Well, I actually think there are at least three blocs in the College of Cardinals to whom Cardinal Bergoglio, now Pope Francis, appealed. One would be those cardinals who wanted to elect the pope from outside the west, to somehow put a face on that burgeoning catholic footprint. Two-thirds of the 1.2 billion Catholics in the world) outside the west.
The second (ph) would be those who wanted a pope who can speak for the aspirations of the world's poor and for the peace and justice tradition that is so much at the heart of catholic social teaching.
And then, finally, there would be those cardinals, a good number among those 115, who wanted to shake things up in the Vatican, who thought there was an old guard that was too wedded to traditional ways of doing business, and they wanted an outside or to give it a new lease on life. Of course, Cardinal Bergoglio, now Pope Francis, has never worked in the Vatican a day in his life.
SAMBOLIN: Yes.
ALLEN: He's been in the trenches in Buenos Aires in Argentina, running a complex archdiocese there. And so, you ramp all that up. I don't think it's that hard to figure out how he got those magic 77 votes that represented two-thirds of this voting bloc, Zoraida.
SAMBOLIN: So, Father Beck, we didn't know much about this man. We're learning a lot about him and the name that he chose and what a humble man he is. So, when you look at all the pomp and circumstance of the Vatican, how is he going to be able to reconcile that with the life that he has led, so far?
FATHER EDWARD BECK, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: Well, you know, I was thinking that a lot of people were hoping that the 115 cardinals would elect Jesus Christ, with an MBA and a law degree, but he simply wasn't in the room. A 115 flawed men were in that room. And they elected Pope Francis.
A little historical perspective, we're sitting yards away from where the first pope was crucified upside down, St. Peter. And Jesus said, Peter, you're rock. And on you, I will build my church, but let's remember, that was a cracked rock. Peter, who denied Jesus three times, the first pope and a saint.
So, now, we have Pope Francis, who may have had some things people don't like, but this is a humble man who walked out on that balcony and said, I want you first to pray for me before I can pray for you. This is an amazing testimony. This is a man who supposedly gave up his palace where he was living to live in a simple apartment because he wanted to be more of the common person.
He rode the bus rather than be chauffeured in his vehicle. And he communicates with his parishioners --
SAMBOLIN: So then, you wonder how he's going to be able to deal with, you know, the new life as a pope, which, you know, people kiss his ring. Let's move on. Let's talk about these flaws, because this particular man is accused of failing to stand up to the military dictatorship in Argentina. This is back in the 1970s when 30,000 people disappeared or were killed in the dirty war. So, how is this legacy that is following him going to affect now that -- affect him now that he's pope? I'm asking that question to you, John Allen.
ALLEN: Well, listen, I think in the days to come, people are going to be digging extensively into the new pope's background and certain his relationship to the military once in Argentina will come up. Whenever Cardinal Bergoglio, now Pope Francis, has been asked that question, he (INAUDIBLE).
He was foursquare against the military dictatorship and on the side of those who were being (INAUDIBLE). However, what he resisted was what he thought was an over politicization of the church that is he didn't want to see, particularly, priests getting directly involved in partisan politics because his argument was, the best way to save that society was by preaching the gospel and promoting a change of heart and mind, because only unless the individual heart changes can the social structures change.
Now, not everyone accepted that choice. But Zoraida, I don't think once this dig is over, there's going to be any serious case that was he an apologist for that dictatorship.
SAMBOLIN: All right. We're going to check back in with you, guys, let you continue talking about our new pope and what we can expect for the Roman Catholic Church. Father Edward Beck, CNN contributor, and John Allen, CNN senior Vatican analysts. Thank you very much, gentlemen.
And coming up in our next hour, we'll speak with Anne Barrett Doyle. She's a co-director of watchdog group, The Document, sexual abuse within the church. Her thoughts on Pope Francis and how he will address this scandal.
BERMAN: So, a second term and a second "Vogue" cover for first lady, Michelle Obama. What the first lady says about her marriage when we come back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BERMAN: Welcome back to EARLY START, everyone. First lady, Michelle Obama, is everywhere this these days, from late-night talk shows to the academy awards. And come April, she will be on newsstands everywhere, becoming the first American first lady to grace the glossy cover of "Vogue" twice. CNN's first lady of fashion, Alina Cho, has more.
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ALINA CHO, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Second term, second cover. First lady, Michelle Obama, en "Vogue" again.
JONATHAN VAN METER, VOGUE CONTRIBUTING EDITOR: There's something so groundbreakingly modern about the Obamas. You know, they are the first Black president and first lady. And you know, Anna Wintour at "Vogue" is crazy about them. CHO: "Vogue's" poweful editor-in-chief is a massive Obama fundraiser, once rumored to be the next U.S. ambassador to the U.K., so it's her friend, the first lady, appearing on "Vogue's" April cover, wearing a sleeveless dress by Reed Krakoff. Yes, that Reed Krakoff, the same designer Mrs. Obama chose for the inauguration. Here she is in Michael Kors. But writer, Jonathan Van Meters, spoke to both of them, the first lady and the president.
VAN METER: Them as a couple, their marriage, their children, how they live in the White House, how they deal with the bubble.
CHO: What struck him?
VAN METER: They're so sweet with each other. There's a lot of affection. And if there's any married couple to whom the phrase, they finish each other's sentences applies, it's them.
CHO: Of their marriage, the president says, "I think it would be a mistake to think of my wife when I walk in the door is, hey, honey, how is your day? Let me give you a neck rub. I think it's much more. We're a team." "Of his clothes, she jokes, this is the man who still boasts about this khaki pair of pants I've had since I was 20. And I'm like, you don't want to brag about that."
VAN METER: She very effortlessly tells a story that leads to a punch line that could crack you up. And what I loved is that, sometime, she and I weren't finished laughing.
(LAUGHTER)
VAN METER: And he was done and ready to move on, the president, and she would sort of look at me and keep laughing with me, like, I just loved that spirit in her, that jovial spirit, that really surprised me.
CHO: A story compelling readers to go beyond the cover.
Alina Cho, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SAMBOLIN: Forty-four minutes past the hour.
Mitt Romney's infamous 47 percent comment didn't do his presidential campaign any favors. And now, for the first time, the man who recorded it has come forward. Scott Prouty was tending bar at the Romney fundraiser last year. This was in South Florida.
Romney said 47 percent of voters would choose President Obama because their dependent on government and feel like victims who are entitled to handouts. Prouty says he didn't go in with a grudge against Romney and wasn't hoping for any gotcha moments.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SCOTT PROUTY, RECORDED ROMNEY'S 47 PERCENT COMMENT: I had brought the camera, and a lot of other people brought cameras, you know, like I said, for thinking that he would come back and take pictures. Clinton, in the past, had come back with the staff and taken pictures. And that was, you know, really my thought.
I really had no idea he would say what he said. I thought it would -- he would say basically the same things he was saying in public. I had no idea it was going to be this big thing that it turned out to be. I had no idea. And I felt an obligation, in a way, to release it.
I felt an obligation for all the people that can't afford to be there. You shouldn't have to be able to afford $50,000 to hear what the candidate actually thinks.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SAMBOLIN: Prouty said that he sat on the video for a couple of weeks and struggled with the idea of actually releasing it. He claims he didn't reveal his identity before the election because he didn't want to draw attention away from the video.
BERMAN: And it got a lot of attention.
SAMBOLIN: It sure did.
BERMAN: This progring note -- programming note, I should say. We're just days away from the launch of a new CNN show that will cover the world of politics and oh so very much more. "The Lead" with Jake Tapper live from Washington premieres Monday at four o'clock eastern time right here on CNN.
SAMBOLIN: And a lot of controversy over whether some small knives should be allowed on airplanes.
BERMAN: Ahead, why the TSA is defending its decision?
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SAMBOLIN: Forty-nine minutes past the hour. Let's get you up to date. Here's Christine Romans.
CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: And good morning again to both of you.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ROMANS (voice-over): It is Pope Francis' first full day on the job. He'll hold a private mass at noon eastern in the Sistine Chapel with the cardinal who chose him. The new pontiff was also supposed to meet with his predecessor, Pope Emeritus, but the Vatican now says that's not likely to happen today.
TSA administrator, John Pistole, is expected to defend his decision to allow small knives on planes when he testifies today before the House Homeland Security Committee. Earlier this week, he said he was sticking with his plan, which gets under way next month. It's designed to reduce waiting time at airport security checkpoints. Three major carriers, Delta, American, and U.S. Airways, oppose that plan.
A developing story for you. Another carnival cruise ship having some trouble right now while docked in port, uh-huh, at Phillipsburg, St. Maarten in the Eastern Carribean. Several passengers aboard the Carnival "Dream" have contacted CNN, complaining of nightmare conditions there. Listen.
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The bathrooms are not working. They're backing up.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The toilets are backing up?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's correct.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: OK. Go ahead. The elevators?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The elevators have not been working. They've been turning them on and off. On and off.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROMANS: It's only been a month since the world watched as the Carnival cruise ship, "Triumph," was tugged to land after stranding thousands of passengers and crew with deplorable conditions in the Gulf of Mexico for four pain staking days. Again, this is "The Dream." It is docked in St. Maarten.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BERMAN: We will be watching that closely.
(CROSSTALK)
ROMANS: And contacting Carnival for some reaction, of course.
BERMAN: Thanks so much.
Fifty-one minutes after the hour. Cold temperatures are hanging around the northeast. And it is still soggy in parts of the Pacific Northwest. Alexandra Steele is live at the CNN Weather Center with the details. Alexandra, tell us what will be happening today.
ALEXANDRA STEELE, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Hi. Good morning to you guys. And also, record heat in the southwest. Burbank, California in the 90s yesterday. More warmth today. So, good morning. Waking up Boston and Albany to Hartford. Well, we've got a few lake-effect snow showers here in the northeast. A clipper is coming. Quicker clipper. It's quick. And it drops maybe if half an inch to an inch of snow.
Minneapolis, Chicago, so just some snow showers for you today. And farther northwest, there's that rain. Pretty dry today, kind of in earnest, the rain will move in in the Pacific Northwest tonight. So, another soggy night. So, the big picture, the warmth in the southwest. It's also very warm here in the southeast and only getting warmer as we head through the next couple of days.
Take a look at St. Louis, Friday, 72 degrees, almost 20 degrees above average, but then, a pretty cold weekend. The northeast from the next couple of days, below average, from New York to Washington, to upstate New York. Atlanta, though, temperatures warming up into the 70s.
So, the southeast, Atlanta, the Nashville to Charlotte, each day get a little bit warmer as we head through the weekend. That's the look around the country, guys. Back to you.
BERMAN: All right, Alexandra. Thanks so much.
SAMBOLIN: Fifty-two minutes past the hour. Busy first day for the first pope from the new world. We are live in Rome and Buenos Aires just ahead.
And up next, "Veronica Mars" fans -- I know -- just bought themselves themes a big-screen sequel to the cult favorite television series. It is trending really high this morning. You're watching EARLY START.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BERMAN: We're taking a look at the top CNN Trends on the internet this morning.
So, you can call it the first fan feature. An online Kickstarter campaign is bringing back the short-lived but much-loved TV series, "Veronica Mars," to the big screen. Series creator, Rob Thomas and its star, Kristen Bell, launched the drive yesterday. They were hoping to raise $2 million over the next month. It turns out they reached that goal in less than 24 hours.
SAMBOLIN: Can you believe that?
BERMAN: No, I am not a fan.
SAMBOLIN: You're not.
BERMAN: I've never really seen the show, but I know people who are crazy about this show. And the fans have been hoping for a new version ever since the series wrapped up its third season around 2007. Thomas says they plan to shoot the film over the summer and release it early next year. A lot of people say this kind of fundraising, you know, and funding could change the film industry.
SAMBOLIN: Absolutely. Can you imagine? Unbelievable. Twenty-four hours, right?
BERMAN: Very quick.
SAMBOLIN: Unbelievable.
And, time to get your geek on for Pi day. That is P-I in the mathematical constant, beginning with 3.14, hence the March 14th celebration. There will be Pi day festivities, I hear, all over the world, many beginning exactly at 1:59. So, days' time (ph) match the first five values of Pi.
Here's one popular way to celebrate with pies for Pi day. Peach mango, maple pecan, apple pear? Ah-ah. People like to get creative and fruity to mark this occasion.
BERMAN: This is an overwhelming --
SAMBOLIN: I'd say Pizza Pie.
BERMAN: -- is like an overwhelming amount of nerdiness associated with this whole thing.
SAMBOLIN: Yes.
(LAUGHTER)
SAMBOLIN: OK. To check out our other top CNN Trends, head to CNN.com/Trends.
So, as we all know, the big news is that the Catholic Church has a new pope. And of course, that means the late-night comedians have a lot of new jokes.
BERMAN: Here's some late-night laughs.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JIMMY FALLON, HOST, "LATE NIGHT WITH JIMMY FALLON": The big news, of course, is that we have a new pope. Though, there was a little uncertainty when the cardinals released smoke, because it was hard to tell if it was white or black.
(LAUGHTER)
FALLON: It's true. Or as most people put it, the pope is Vin Diesel.
(LAUGHTER)
DAVID LETTERMAN, HOST, "THE LATE SHOW WITH DAVID LETTERMAN": Now, yesterday, two different times, coming out of the Vatican chimney, black smoke, and believe me, ladies and gentlemen, it's not the first dark cloud hanging over the Vatican.
(APPLAUSE)
LETTERMAN: Thank you so much.
(APPLAUSE)
CONAN O'BRIEN, HOST, "CONAN": NOW, THIS IS CRAZY. We have a new pope. The Vatican has chosen the first-ever Argentinean pope.
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
O'BRIEN: Yes. Yes. So, once again, a bunch of old White guys got a Hispanic to do a job they didn't want to do. (LAUGHTER)
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
(LAUGHTER)
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BERMAN: EARLY START continues right now.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SAMBOLIN (voice-over): The first full day for Pope Francis. The start of a new era for Catholics around the world.
BERMAN (voice-over): Standoff with a suspected killer. Right now, police think they have the gunman who murdered four people surrounded in upstate New York.
SAMBOLIN: And here we go again, and developing at this hour, word of another cruise ship with overflowing bathrooms and passengers not able to get off.
BERMAN: Uh-oh.
And survival against all odds. Ridiculous pictures. Skydiver lives to tell about his terrifying plunge after his parachute failed.
SAMBOLIN: And wait until you hear what he's planning to do next.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SAMBOLIN (on-camera): All right. Good morning. Welcome to EARLY START. We're glad you're with us this morning. I'm Zoraida Sambolin.
BERMAN (on-camera): And I'm John Berman. Great to see you today. It is Thursday, March 14th. It is 6:00 a.m. in the east, and we're going to start with history unfolding in Rome this morning. This is the first full day on the job for the first Latin-American pontiff ever. In the first order of business, a private mass in the Sistine Chapel with the cardinals who elected him.
The new pontiff was also expected to meet with his predecessor, Pope Emeritus Benedit, but, at this point, the Vatican says that is not likely to happen today.
A question a lot of people are asking is, what do we know about Jorge Mario Bergoglio and what will his papacy mean for the Catholic Church? We have this covered from all over the place. Miguel Marquez and Jim Betterman reporting from Rome this morning and Shasta Darlington is in Buenos Aires where Argentines know the new pontiff simply as Father Jorge.
Our coverage begins with Miguel Marquez live from Rome this morning. Good morning, Miguel. MARQUEZ: Good morning, John. One thing we do know for sure about Pope Francis is Rome is pretty darn crazy about him. The national newspapers here, check this out, gracia, Roma as he said last night. Thank you, Roma. He thanked them for coming out.
