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American Morning
Hacking Scandal's 1s Casualty; Debt Talks on Pause; Delta 767 Clips Regional Jet; Egypt's Second Revolution; Mila Kunis Keeps Date With Marine; Protesters Return To Tahrir Square; Carmageddon Is Near
Aired July 15, 2011 - 06:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: And talks to raise the debt ceiling stall. The president ordering congressional leaders to figure out a way to get them moving in the right direction as another major credit agency threatens the United States with a downgrade.
ALI VELSHI, CNN ANCHOR: I'm Ali Velshi.
Breaking news: the FBI trying to find out whether a Rupert Murdoch tabloid tried to hack 9/11 victims' phones. The scandal now spanning across the Atlantic and claiming its first big victim -- on this AMERICAN MORNING.
(MUSIC)
O'BRIEN: And good morning. Welcome, everybody. It is Friday, July 15th. I'm Soledad O'Brien. And you are watching AMERICAN MORNING.
VELSHI: Kiran is off. Christine is off this morning.
Welcome, Soledad. Good to see you.
O'BRIEN: Thank you.
VELSHI: We are. We got a lot to do today. So, let's get right to it.
Serious new pressure on Rupert Murdoch and his global media empire. The Justice Department says it's now investigating the claims that one of its tabloids tried to hack 9/11 victims' phones.
A report in another British tabloid, "The Mirror," is quoting a source who says "News of the World," the newspaper which folded under the pressure of the hacking scandal, hired an investigator to try and tap the phones. Now, lawmakers, law enforcement, and 9/11 families are all demanding the truth.
O'BRIEN: Susan Candiotti is following the very latest for us on this.
And breaking this morning, we're also learning of one big casualty from the scandal -- News International chief Rebekah Brooks has now resigned. Let's talk a little bit about that.
SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: That's a major -- you know, the question is, does this mean that the walls are crumbling at News Corp? Clearly, it's too early to say that. But this is a crack in the wall. She was a protege of Rupert Murdoch. She rose through the ranks to CEO. You always -- lately, certainly, have been seeing her by his side with the flowing red hair.
So, for her to announce now that she is resigning is certainly big news. In fact, she even said, in her resignation letter, she feels a deep responsibility as she puts it, quote, "for the people we have hurt" and she wants to say, again, she says, "How sorry I am for what we now know has taken place."
VELSHI: Interesting to hear that kind of language because it really kind of resisting the we did something really wrong and her resignation letter says that.
O'BRIEN: But, pushing back, too, right? We now know.
VELSHI: We now know. Right. We didn't know before, she says.
OK. So, then, we got that and we got the fact that Justice Department here in the United States is getting involved in this scandal. We're hearing that the FBI is now involved.
CANDIOTTI: They are involved. And overnight, we are learning from the U.S. attorney general himself, Eric Holder, he told reporters in Australia that, in fact, yes, this investigation is ongoing. They've been hearing a lot from congressmen, senators, saying that this must be looked at -- 9/11 families as well. And so, Eric Holder says, yes, he is acknowledging the investigation.
Here's part of what he said.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ERIC HOLDER, ATTORNEY GENERAL: Well, there have been serious allegations raised in that regard in Great Britain and there are -- there's an ongoing investigation there. As is appropriate, there have been members of Congress in the United States who have asked us to investigate those same allegations, and we are progressing in that regard using the appropriate federal law enforcement agencies in the United States.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CANDIOTTI: So again, people are saying, too, we shouldn't jump top conclusions. They're looking at one report to see whether these allegations are true.
O'BRIEN: I was going to ask you, have there been any details about, of courses, you talk about 9/11 and phone hacking and people go crazy. Have there been any details about what they're talking about?
CANDIOTTI: There really aren't many details other than this report that was in the British tabloid that, in fact, a former cop, a surveillance -- who worked as a private investigator, was asked to hack into the records of 9/11 voice mails and phone records and you all -- and we all remember that after 9/11, we heard that, in fact, some of these recordings were made public, but by family members themselves.
So, did other -- did hacking happen as well? They want to find out. Certainly, the families do. They're calling this whole thing grotesque if it really happened.
O'BRIEN: A lot of people are. All right. Susan Candiotti, thanks, Susan.
VELSHI: All right. A new report in today's edition of "The Wall Street Journal" says that Osama bin Laden was putting together a team of terrorists to attack the U.S., 10 years to the day that the Twin Towers came down. The intel comes from documents that Navy SEALs seized when they killed the terror leader. Some of the first reports we heard suggested that bin Laden was looking to attack trains and bin Laden was reportedly looking for militants already -- who already had legitimate passports.
Over 1,000 9/11 survivors, some who fled the burning buildings who collapsed, will not be allowed to attend the ceremonies marking 10 years since the attack. Reports say the mayor's office told one survivor's group that there's not enough room at the place where the ceremonies are going to be held.
The annual ceremonies at Ground Zero are reserved for family members of people who died in the attacks.
O'BRIEN: That's got to be brutal for people who --
VELSHI: Survived them.
O'BRIEN: Yes. Completely.
Well, happening right now, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is in Turkey this morning. At the top of her to-do list is stepping up international pressure on the Libyan Dictator Moammar Gadhafi. Clinton says she believes that Gadhafi's days in power are, quote, "numbered."
Turkey is the first stop on the diplomatic world tour. That will take Secretary Clinton to Greece, then to India, Indonesia, and China over the next 12 days.
VELSHI: And the president is pushing the pause button on the debt debate. Here's the latest, and there's a lot to catch up on. Just 19 days remain until the U.S. hits the debt ceiling and triggers at least a partial default.
President Obama scheduled the address -- is scheduled to address the nation at 11:00 a.m. Eastern and we'll cover that live.
O'BRIEN: And there are no negotiations planned today. After five meetings in five days, leaders have been told to talk to their colleagues and then figure out how to move the process forward. The president is prepared to reconvene the debt talks on Saturday.
And while nobody is actually sounding very optimistic about a deal, there is a possible compromise in the works.
VELSHI: The Senate's two top leaders, Democrat harry Reid and Republican Mitch McConnell are working on a fallback plan, that's the compromised deal. It would give the president enhanced authority to raise the debt limit with procedures attached that could lead to spending cuts.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. HARRY REID (D-NV), MAJORITY LEADER: We don't have it worked out yet. But it's something that we're looking to. Hopefully, we can come up with this big, robust deal that we've been trying to get, but until we do that, we're going to have to look at other alternatives and his is one of them.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
O'BRIEN: Something has to be worked out pretty fast because now a second credit agency, credit rating agency, Standard & Poor's, is warning that there's a 50 percent chance that they will downgrade America's credit rating in the next three months.
At a hearing yesterday the Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke told lawmakers a stalemate on raising the debt ceiling is not an option.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BEN BERNANKE, FEDERAL RESERVE CHAIRMAN: I think it would be calamitous outcome. It would create a very severe financial shock that would have effects not only in the U.S. economy, but in the global economy. Default on those securities would throw the financial system into -- potentially into chaos.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELSHI: He made a very interesting point yesterday. He said whether or not you choose to default on loans or on Social Security, a default for credit purposes is a default.
Eric Cantor, by the way, has been pretty silent. He's laying low after reportedly challenging the president during debt talks on Wednesday. He says the president told him, "Eric, don't call my bluff," before abruptly walking out of the meeting.
But President Obama insists that's not how it went down.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: No. Look, at the end of the meeting, after we had already met for a couple hours, what I said to the group was what I think the American people feel, which is, we have a responsibility to do the right thing. We shouldn't be overly partisan. We shouldn't be posturing. We should solve problems.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELSHI: Now, as we said, the president is going to be addressing the nation at about 11:00 a.m. Eastern Time, and you can watch it right here live on CNN.
O'BRIEN: Minnesota might be back in business soon. Negotiators have reached a tentative budget deal, reached that last night. State officials are hoping to get it passed early next week to end a 15-day government shutdown.
Once that happens, those 22,000 state employees can get back to work, 98 road construction projects will resume, and the state parks could open again.
VELSHI: Jurors in high-profile cases like the Casey Anthony trial can expect a big pay day sometimes, but a Florida lawmaker is looking to ban future jurors from cashing in. This proposal would make it illegal for a juror to accept compensation for information immediately following a case. There would be a 270-day, or nine-month cooling off period. Violators could face a heavy fine and jail time.
This way, lawmakers say jurors won't be biased during the deliberations. The bill came about after Casey Anthony juror sort of went out and got a publicist right after the trial.
That brings us to our question of the day. Should jurors be able to cash in on their cases? We want to know what you think. Send us an e-mail, a tweet, or let us know on Facebook. We're reading some of your comments later in the show.
O'BRIEN: And Casey Anthony, of course, can walk away a free woman on Sunday, but clearly, her troubles are going to be far from over. Her face is recognized across the country. People were glued to watching the trial and what she's doing next. And what comes along with that infamy is kind of a P.R. nightmare.
So, how can Casey Anthony even begin to rebuild her life and her image?
David Mattingly weighs in for us this morning. He joins us live from Orlando.
Hey, David.
DAVID MATTINGLY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Soledad.
Casey Anthony will soon be free. She won't be behind bars anymore. But that doesn't mean she won't be able to have any privacy. She's going to be receiving a lot of scrutiny.
The question now is: will she be able to manage it?
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MATTINGLY (voice-over): As one of the most watched and talked about people in the country, public relations executives weigh in with a word of caution to Casey Anthony: do not confuse infamy with fame.
GENE GRABOWSKI, LEVICK STRATEGIC COMMUNICATIONS: It's not fame. There's interest in you. A lot of it is negative interest. Don't confuse that situation with celebrity.
Don't think that you have to go out and do a whole lot of things right now. As a matter of fact, it's best probably to lay low.
CROWD: Caylee! Caylee!
MATTINGLY: If that's even possible. Angry words we heard outside the Orange County courthouse are tiny in comparison to the Casey Anthony hatred expressed online. More than 770,000 people are signed on to just one of many anti-Casey pages on Facebook.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We the jury find the defendant not guilty.
MATTINGLY: Acquitted in a court of law, Casey Anthony may need to begin fighting for her freedom in the court of public opinion the minute she walks out of jail.
BRIAN PIA, LUCKIE STRATEGIC PR: Most people are going to be looking at her expression. I think people need to see remorse. I think people need to see that she understands the fact that she lost her daughter.
She doesn't need to walk out of jail smiling. She doesn't need to walk out of jail with a smirk on her face. She needs to walk out of jail looking like a mother who lost her child.
MATTINGLY: And from there, experts believe it would be time, at least temporarily, to disappear, consider the offers that come her way, and decide how best to tell her story.
MARVET BRITTO, THE BRITTA AGENCY: We're going to have to hear from Casey Anthony. We're going to have to hear a first person account. People will be interested in what she has to say. Whether or not they accept it or not is a different story.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
MATTINGLY: We know Casey Anthony will be leaving jail on Sunday, that's according to the terms of the latest sentence that she's carrying out for lying to the police. But we don't know where, when or how. Those questions will not be answered and probably, Soledad, until after she's out.
O'BRIEN: All right. David Mattingly for us -- David, thanks.
How long do you think before Casey Anthony's not something everybody is talking about? Is that a year, three years?
VELSHI: Well, I think if she disappears from the media. If she disappears, she goes away somewhere -- and as they said, disguises herself as David was saying.
O'BRIEN: Which she's not going to do.
VELSHI: It's going to be a long time.
O'BRIEN: Yes.
VELSHI: OK. Are you into World Cup?
O'BRIEN: I am. You know, I'm literally a soccer mom. My kids are in soccer camp, all four of 'em in soccer camp this morning. They're very into it, yes. World Cup fever.
VELSHI: This Sunday is the big game -- World Cup final, the women's World Cup final.
O'BRIEN: USA versus Japan.
VELSHI: It's interesting how we don't often say the women's World Cup final. We're just talking about soccer and --
O'BRIEN: Yes, World Cup.
VELSHI: It's America's first final since they went all the way back in 1999. The U.S. team beat France 3-1 on Wednesday to get to this final game. And that game drew the highest weekday ratings ever for a women's World Cup match.
O'BRIEN: How did that compare to the men's World Cup match?
VELSHI: It was still a lot less, but it's a pretty big deal. I've been hearing people who have been telling me they've been watching it.
O'BRIEN: At 7:25 Eastern, we're going to talk to one of the breakout stars of the tournament. It's the Team USA goalie, Hope Solo.
VELSHI: That's going to be fun. We're going to be talking to her. I'm excited about that.
Still to come this morning: two planes, a big one and small one, have a bit of a collision, a wee collision on the tarmac at Boston's Logan Airport. Everybody turned out OK. We'll tell you a little bit about it.
O'BRIEN: And Google taking a bite out of the social networking pie. Should the folks at Facebook be concerned? Yes, they should. Let's talk about that.
VELSHI: The beginning of the end for the "Harry Potter" movies.
O'BRIEN: Oh, how sad.
VELSHI: Are you really?
O'BRIEN: No. Actually not at all. By the way, it's not the end.
VELSHI: That's probably true. As a business guy, I will agree with you there. The so-called final "Harry Potter" film premiered at midnight. Shows from coast to coast. It will rock the box office this weekend.
And you are watching AMERICAN MORNING. We'll tell you about that. It's 14 minutes after the hour.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
VELSHI: Welcome back to AMERICAN MORNING. Welcome to you, Soledad. Good to have you here.
O'BRIEN: Thank you for having me.
VELSHI: Some scary moments for passengers on board two planes that collided kind of on the ground at Boston's Logan International Airport. Officials tell us Delta 767 was taxiing out to the runway last night when it clipped the tail of an Atlantic Southeast commuter plane.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Were taxiing pretty slowly and then we just felt a huge bump, like, you know, it was terrifying. It's like, what happened? Everybody just said at once, what happened?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The tip of the wing just - it was sheered right off and I think the whole tail section or like the tail fin came off of the other plane.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELSHI: One person on the Delta flight complained of neck pain, but there are no other injuries. The NTSB is investigating the incident.
O'BRIEN: Oh, that's got to be terrifying.
VELSHI: Yes. And it's real bad when you're in one of those planes and it happens.
O'BRIEN: Yes. And anything - about anything sheering off is -
VELSHI: Yes.
O'BRIEN: -- always bad words to hear about planes.
But how about this story. The TSA says a man was caught trying to board a plane in Baltimore last week with 13 knives in his carry-on luggage.
VELSHI: Wow.
O'BRIEN: No, seriously, where has he been? Does he know you can't bring it on a plane?
VELSHI: You can't do that. Yes.
O'BRIEN: It doesn't appear, the officials say, that 24-year-old, Amr Gamal Shedid was involved in any kind of plot or threat. He told investigators that he is, in fact, a knife collector. I'm a knife collector.
VELSHI: Apparently he is. Wow.
O'BRIEN: They're all in my carry-on.
VELSHI: Yes.
O'BRIEN: He's been charged with carrying a concealed deadly weapon and interfering with security personnel.
VELSHI: Right. So people who collect knives or guns know that if you can't put then -
O'BRIEN: They ship them.
VELSHI: -- there's a way to - right.
O'BRIEN: They don't bring them in their carry-on luggage.
VELSHI: Yes. You've got to check them and you've got to tell somebody.
O'BRIEN: They seal them. They ship them.
VELSHI: Right. That's the way to do it.
All right. Meantime, the TSA is moving forward with a program. It's kind of interesting. It allows for pre-vetted so-called trusted travelers to get through airport security faster. Now, they'll begin testing it in the fall at airports in Atlanta, Detroit, Miami and Dallas/Ft. Worth using select United, Delta and American Airlines frequent fliers. The program is designed to ease screening for travelers who provide additional personal information ahead of time.
O'BRIEN: The former Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld might want to sign up for that. Take a look at this. This is from TMZ.
VELSHI: That's him?
O'BRIEN: Yes.
VELSHI: Wow.
O'BRIEN: It's not a great shot, but it is him - VELSHI: That's him.
O'BRIEN: -- getting the full-on pat-down at Chicago's O'Hare Airport this week. Witnesses said he was - he was all smiles and he was very nice, probably because he knew people were taking pictures of him, so he's going to be during that pat-down.
VELSHI: Well, it's day eight of the space shuttle "Atlantis'" mission. The crew getting an overnight wake-up call from Paul McCartney and The Beatles singing "Good Day Sunshine." NASA is investigating a computer glitch onboard Atlantis, by the way. Officials say the shuttle is stable. There's no concern for crew's safety.
"Atlantis" is scheduled to return to earth on July the 21st. It will end up being a 13-day mission. They've extended it by a day.
O'BRIEN: And midnight magic for "Harry Potter" fans across the country. As the muggles line up for -
VELSHI: Oh, you didn't just say that, did you?
O'BRIEN: The muggles.
VELSHI: You call them muggles? All right.
O'BRIEN: The muggles - I did call them the muggles - lined up for hours at theaters, waiting for the midnight premier of "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2" the final chapter in the film franchise.
VELSHI: I so avoided this. Was it last night at midnight?
O'BRIEN: Well -
VELSHI: Like this - just a few hours ago or is this -
O'BRIEN: This morning.
VELSHI: OK. So the premier started. OK. Good.
O'BRIEN: Yes. Those are the pictures of people, who not only got in line but they got dressed out.
VELSHI: Nice. It's "Deathly Hallows Part 2" broke box office records, by the way, before it opened. This is why I'm confused about it. There were $25 million in advanced ticket sales. Nobody has ever gotten than.
O'BRIEN: It's going to be a good - a good weekend.
VELSHI: It's - it got rave reviews. Getting rave reviews. One of these days, I'll spend a week off work and just watch all of them. I haven't watched any of them.
Rob, have you? Rob Marciano is with us. ROB MARCIANO, AMS METEOROLOGIST: I'm embarrassed to say I haven't. But it -
VELSHI: You and me, we'll do a boy's weekend.
MARCIANO: Maybe we'll start out by dressing up in - in garb and getting in line for the theater.
VELSHI: Maybe we wouldn't and just say we did.
O'BRIEN: OK. Can I just say photos please, send the photos.
VELSHI: Yes. That's (INAUDIBLE).
O'BRIEN: Send the photos.
VELSHI: What's going on there, Ali?
MARCIANO: Good morning, Ali. Hi, Soledad.
O'BRIEN: Hi there.
MARCIANO: We are looking at thunderstorms that are going to pop across parts of the Northern Plains. And this is the area, this is the time of the year, jet stream moves a little bit far to the north and we're getting a little bit of action this morning. A matter of fact, there's a tornado warning just south of Fargo, towards Wahpeton, now heading into parts of Western Minnesota. This cell is moving to the east about 35 miles an hour. No reports of this on the ground, but notice it's a pretty good signature on the radar. So I wouldn't be surprised if there was a funnel that touched - touched down there. So just be aware of that.
And we'll see also thunderstorms fire along this stationary boundary later on today. So that could cause some problems if you're traveling through Atlanta airport. It will surprise you probably a couple thunderstorms especially south of the city. But north and east of there, we're looking at a really pleasant weather. The northeast, including D.C. up through Philly, Baltimore, and New York, to Boston, a little bit warmer than yesterday. But still low levels of humidity, so fairly pleasant.
But the heat is going to be building still across the Plains. It will be 100 plus again today and then it builds up towards the north. Once these thunderstorms exit the Minneapolis and Minnesota area, temperatures tomorrow, these are heat indices will feel like they're well up and over 100 degrees as far north as the Canadian border. It will feel like 111 as we get into Sunday and this could be a long-term event as this ridge builds maybe into Monday and Tuesday, we don't see this - this heat waning too much.
So everybody's getting a shot at a heat wave now. Looks like we're into the middle and latter part of July and now the folks who live in the land of lakes and the Canadian border are going to feel it towards the beginning of next week.
Guys, back up to you.
O'BRIEN: Ugly looking map.
MARCIANO: Yes.
O'BRIEN: Thanks, Rob Marciano. Appreciate it.
VELSHI: All right.
A family in Texas is fighting to keep their precious pet, Wilbur the pig. Sounds familiar? Oh, Wilbur is too cute. Last week they received a letter from their homeowner's association to say they had - they had 30 days to find Wilbur a new home. Neighbors have complained that Wilbur was tearing up the yard and that he stinks.
The owners say he smelled better than most dogs. The whole lack of sweat gland thing apparently. The family is now going door to door to get enough signatures to keep the Wilbur.
O'BRIEN: I had pigs as a child.
VELSHI: But did you live in a sort of a residential area?
O'BRIEN: No, no. I grew up in Long Island. And they don't smell.
VELSHI: Is that right?
O'BRIEN: That is correct.
VELSHI: Oh, OK.
O'BRIEN: I have an authority on this. Pigs do not smell.
VELSHI: I'll take your word for it then.
O'BRIEN: And check out these pictures. A humpback whale putting on a pretty amazing show.
VELSHI: Wow.
O'BRIEN: This is the Sea of Cortez. Celebration of her freedom. Way of saying, thank you, I believe. The boat found the whale tangled in netting. The crew then worked for more than an hour to try to free her and then she in turn followed the boat for miles and guessing to show her appreciation, they posted it all on YouTube.
VELSHI: That was excellent.
O'BRIEN: Isn't that neat?
VELSHI: I've seen whales but that's - that's like a whale in a show. That's fantastic.
O'BRIEN: Yes, it is.
VELSHI: All right. Soledad, I got a better one for you. Let's say it altogether, ah. Let's see.
O'BRIEN: Oh, that is cute.
VELSHI: They grow up so fast. These five cheetah cubs born six weeks ago at the National Zoo had their first physical this week, their well visit, I think you call it. They got their first vaccinations. The doctors say they'll be running faster than any other animal in no time at all.
O'BRIEN: What zoo was that?
VELSHI: What zoo was that?
O'BRIEN: What zoo was that?
VELSHI: Oh, it's in D.C.
O'BRIEN: Oh, that's right. That's great.
Still to come this morning, President Obama's 50th birthday bash. It's going to cost the guests $35,000 plus to attend. Kind of bad timing if you think about what we're talking about today.
VELSHI: Yes.
O'BRIEN: And we'll tell you when it's scheduled to take place.
VELSHI: And a Florida lawmaker is looking to ban jurors from selling their stories immediately following a trial. That brings us to our question of the day. Should jurors be able to cash in on their cases? This lawmaker is saying they should wait nine months before they take money from anybody.
We want to know what you think. Send us an e-mail, a tweet, or let us know on Facebook. We're reading some of your comments throughout the course of the show.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
VELSHI: Twenty-seven minutes after the hour. "Minding Your Business" this morning.
The Dow, NASDAQ and S&P 500 all close lower yesterday, that's after Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke backtracked on earlier comments that the Federal Reserve may be ready to provide further stimulus to the U.S. economy.
Markets also pushed lower after Standard & Poor's put the U.S. on credit watch. The agency says there's a 50 percent chance that it will lower America's stellar credit rating in the next three months because of complications with debt ceiling talks. That is the second warning from a leading credit rating agency this week.
Market movers today, Citigroup reports second quarter earnings before the opening bell and Google reported its earnings late yesterday, crushing estimates with a 36 percent rise in profits last quarter. Its stock jumped 12 percent in after hours trading yesterday.
Just in this morning, former "News of the World" editor and News International Chief Rebekah Brooks is resigning. News Corporation stock taking a beating all week over the phone hacking scandal, dropping more than seven percent in the past five trading sessions. The stock is currently down once again in pre-market trading this morning.
Also new this morning, Credit Suisse says it's being targeted by the Department of Justice. The bank is accused of helping wealthy Americans evade taxes by using a Swiss offshore bank accounts. Credit Suisse says it already responded to request of information by the Department of - Department of Justice, including subpoenas.
A new survey by Harris Research says more Americans are planning to retire later because of the recession and the financial crisis. Most older Americans expecting to work five more years on average, saying they plan to retire at 69 years old, instead of at 64.
The new social networking site Google Plus is growing extremely quickly. It's still in beta testing, but 10 million users have already signed up for it. That's only about one percent, by the way, of Facebook's number of global users. Right now, it's only available by invitation, but the company says it will be open to the public soon.
Don't forget, for the very latest news about your money, check out the all-new CNNMoney.com.
AMERICAN MORNING will be right back after the break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
VELSHI: Now, it could cost them a lot more than money. The FBI investigating, getting claims that a Rupert Murdoch tabloid hacked 9/11 victims' phones -- on this AMERICAN MORNING.
(MUSIC)
VELSHI: Good morning. And happy Friday, everyone. It is 6:31 on the East Coast, July 15th.
Looking from where -- this is the vie we see from outside our studios in New York City. Just a beautiful, beautiful morning.
Welcome back to AMERICAN MORNING.
Welcome to you. Soledad O'Brien joining us this morning.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: I'm happy to help you out for a day.
VELSHI: Thank you.
O'BRIEN: Top stories this morning;
The FBI now investigating Rupert Murdoch's News Corp over allegations that one of his tabloids tried to hack into the phone records of 9/11 victims and their families.
And Murdoch's right hand in Great Britain, News International CEO Rebekah Brooks, now resigned in the wake of the hacking scandal.
VELSHI: After five straight days, President Obama and congressional leaders are taking a break from the debt ceiling talks and from each other today. The president will update Americans at a news conference later this morning. Democrats and Republicans will meet separately to assess the progress of the talks.
O'BRIEN: He was planning another 9/11, "The Wall Street Journal" says Osama bin Laden was putting together a team of terrorists to attack the United States 10 years to the day that the Twin Towers came down. The intel comes from documents Navy SEALs seized when they killed the terror leader.
VELSHI: All right. They never left. Thousands of protesters are blocking Cairo's iconic Tahrir Square again. These are new pictures in to CNN -- the scenes of mass protests that toppled a dictatorship over the winter, now protesters are back to take back their revolution.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
AHMED SALEH, ACTIVIST: We don't see a good sign yet. We are still waiting for a good sign. We have only seen intimidation, threats, and some attempts to try to pretend they are doing what they are not doing.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELSHI: Frederik Pleitgen is live for us in Cairo this morning. Frederik, what are they protesting? What are they unhappy about?
FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, they're pretty much unhappy about everything that's happened since the end of the Hosni Mubarak government or regime. There's about, I would say, several thousands already on Tahrir Square. The protests are going to be very big, not quite as big as they were last Friday because the largest opposition group, the Muslim Brotherhood, is not participating.
Now what they're saying, Ali, essentially is that they believe that the old order, the order under Hosni Mubarak, has not disappeared, even though he has had to cede power. They say there are still corrupt government officials. They say a lot of the police officers who were (INAUDIBLE) in the police force and were Hosni Mubarak's police force, are still out there, people who have killed protesters in the past, are still on the loose and are not being put on trial fast enough.
They want deep economic reforms. They want more social security. They want a general deep sort of purging of the ranks, if you will, of the entire government bodies.
Now, what we have to keep in mind, Ali, this point in time, this country is being run by a military council. A lot of people on that military council were, of course, also part of the Mubarak system and many of them very close to Hosni Mubarak.
And so, therefore, many people believe that change is going too slow, they're being too protective of Hosni Mubarak and that's pretty much the core reasons why they are still here. You see them there, Ali, they say they are not going to leave until all their demands are met.
And I can tell you, in the evening here, when it gets a little cooler, because it's very hot here, a lot of people are going to be on that square, Ali.
VELSHI: All right. Frederik, we'll continue to follow this story with you -- Frederik Pleitgen for us in Cairo.
O'BRIEN: Well, the scandal has officially jumped the Atlantic. The FBI is investigating claims that one of Rupert Murdoch's tabloids tried to hack into the phones of 9/11 victims. A report in another British tabloid, "The Mirror," is quoting a source who says the "News of the World" hired an investigator to try to tap into the phones. But the man who was mayor of New York City on that day, Rudy Giuliani, told Candy Crowley that Murdoch is innocent until he's proved guilty.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CANDY CROWLEY, HOST, CNN'S "STATE OF THE UNION": As you know, "News of the World," owned by Rupert Murdoch, who has been a friend and a supporter of yours for a long time, now allegations that News Corp journalists or those working for News Corp, tried to hack into the answering machines or the phones of 9/11 victims or their families. Should there be an investigation?
RUDY GIULIANI (R), FORMER NYC MAYOR: There is an investigation. Sure. I mean, intercepting communications like that is a crime. It has to be investigated. I think what there shouldn't be, and we've learned recently, a bunch of criminal cases of different kinds, don't rush to judgment, give people a presumption of innocence.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
O'BRIEN: Murdoch finally gave an interview to one of his own papers, "The Wall Street Journal." He said he is ordering his own internal investigation into the phone hacking allegations.
Negotiations to raise the debt ceiling and keep America from defaulting are on hold this morning. They could resume tomorrow. After five meetings in five days, the president pushed the pause button last night, sending congressional leaders back to Capitol Hill to talk to their colleagues about the best way to move the process forward.
President Obama is scheduled to address the nation this morning at 11:00 Eastern Time and CNN will carry that speech live.
How is this for timing, by the way? The president having 50th birthday bash next month. It's also a fundraiser with couples being asked to fork over $35,000 to attend. The event is scheduled for August 3rd in Chicago, that's the day after the United States defaults -- if no one raises the ceiling on our debt limit.
O'BRIEN: We got some breaking news this morning. The first U.S. troops have left Afghanistan. The drawdown is under way.
Barbara Starr is live for us at the Pentagon.
Hey, Barbara.
BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Soledad. The first of the 33,000 surge forces, in fact, yes, on their way home out of Afghanistan now. U.S. officials are confirming about 650 troops, mainly from the Iowa National Guard, left Afghanistan on Wednesday. They will not be replaced and that's how they're going to begin to achieve this drawdown that President Obama has ordered. Bring troops home as scheduled, don't send in new troops -- Soledad.
O'BRIEN: Barbara, the administration is now jumping back into the "don't ask, don't tell" debate. What's happening now?
STARR: Well, this is really very interesting, but legally, a bit murky. The Obama administration has asked a federal appeals court to suspend its ruling that would end enforcement of "don't ask, don't tell" in the U.S. military. What the Obama administration says it wants is to keep to the new status quo, if you will, which is to follow that congressional law where the military will lift the ban on "don't ask, don't tell."
They're already working on it. They expect it within days to be able to tell the Pentagon the services are ready to go, that they will lift the ban on this, and there will be a 60-day waiting period and then, once and for all, "don't ask, don't tell' will be gone.
The Justice Department wants legally to stick to that plan and not go with some sudden lifting of it. Gay rights groups, obviously, very concerned about it, they say it's just time to get on with it and end this ban -- Soledad.
O'BRIEN: Barbara Starr at the Pentagon for us -- thanks, Barbara.
VELSHI: Casey Anthony is no ordinary Florida prisoner. She was at the center of one of the most watched and talked about trials ever. And there are serious concerns for her safety when she's released from jail on Sunday.
Gary Tuchman shows us the intense security plan that's in place for her.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
GARY TUCHMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Prisoners are released every day from the Orange County, Florida, jail. But perhaps none of them with the level of notoriety that will greet Casey Anthony when she leaves Sunday --
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Not guilty.
TUCHMAN: -- after her stunning acquittals. Her attorney, Jose Baez, talked to ABC News, about how her notoriety could bring danger.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Are you worried about her safety, such antagonism towards her?
JOSE BAEZ, CASEY ANTHONY'S ATTORNEY: I am. I am. And I'm afraid for her.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Will she have bodyguards?
BAEZ: You know, we're in the process of trying to take that next step for her and assist her in that regard. So, I don't know.
TUCHMAN (on camera): So now, there is an intense security plan in place. Casey Anthony will be released from this jail on Sunday, as early as 12:01 a.m. We don't know how she'll be taken out. We don't know where she'll do.
But the sheriff office is allowing two news photographers to videotape and take still photos of her leaving. Once she's gone, we'll be allowed to televise the images of her going free.
SUNNY HOSTIN, LEGAL CONTRIBUTOR, "IN SESSION": I don't think they can treat her like any other inmate in terms of the release. It would be irresponsible, given the frenzy surrounding Casey Anthony because, again, while she is in their custody, prior to release, they have to protect her. So that release is still part of their purview.
TUCHMAN (voice-over): But where will Casey Anthony go? Will she change her appearance? After all, this is a woman whose face is now known everywhere in the country.
HOSTIN: If her attorneys are doing the right thing and doing their jobs, they are going to have to explain to her that there is real hatred out there for her, that there have been death threats, that she cannot just walk amongst the population. That is not going to happen.
TUCHMAN: Jose Baez visited her in jail on Thursday afternoon. He is not saying anything about Casey Anthony's plans. But another defense attorney, Cheney Mason, has issued some speculation.
CHENEY MASON, CASEY ANTHONY'S ATTORNEY: She's only 25 years old. You know, a decade from now, hopefully, she will have some stability in her life and maybe a husband and they can be somewhere in Montana and start over.
TUCHMAN: Casey Anthony's journey to Montana or elsewhere is only a couple of days away.
Gary Tuchman, CNN, Orlando, Florida.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VELSHI: I don't know where that elsewhere is going to be.
All right. Mila Kunis, remarkable story. Is she going to attend this Marine ball that she was invited to by a Marine on YouTube or not? The actress's rep is putting an end to the rumors apparently once and for all.
O'BRIEN: We've got it here first.
VELSHI: Yes.
O'BRIEN: And a Florida lawmaker wants jurors banned from selling their stories immediately following a trial.
So, that brings us to the question of the day. Should jurors be able to cash in on their case? We want to know what you think. Send us an e-mail, or a tweet, or just go right to Facebook. Let's us know. We'll be reading some of your comments a little later this morning.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
VELSHI: Forty-four minutes after the hour.
You know, jurors in these high-profile cases like the Casey Anthony trial, I suppose they can hope for a big payday. They certainly don't earn much while they're undergoing jury duty.
One Florida state representative is looking to ban future jurors from cashing in.
O'BRIEN: There is a bill that's proposed that would make it illegal for a juror to accept compensation for information immediately following a case. In fact, he wants 270 day or nine-month cooling off period. Now, if that doesn't happen, violators could face a big fine and jail time, too.
VELSHI: They, in fact, want to be able to charge the person receiving the money and media organization who might be paying it.
We want to know what you think. Should jurors be able to cash in on their case whether by writing a book or giving interviews to the media?
Here are some of your answers.
Cody says on our blog, "If you're going to put the jurors through the trial and then they receive death threats, let them get them whatever they can out of it. Bad things come out of this, as well as people making money out of it.
O'BRIEN: Jeff Patterson on Facebook says, "No! Being a juror is an honor you get for being an American. If jurors are going to think more about what they can make out of a trial instead of justice for those involved, our system of justice will fail." And I think that was part of the reason behind the law --
VELSHI: Right.
O'BRIEN: People could actually even influence a case if they knew there was a payday.
VELSHI: If they thought there might be something. Very honorable, though, of you, Jeff.
O'BRIEN: An honor.
VELSHI: An honor.
O'BRIEN: I never thought of jury duty as an honor.
(CROSSTALK)
VELSHI: And on twitter, we've got one that says, "Absolutely not. Jurors are supposed to be dignified people, do their duty, and move on. When money is involved, it looks bad."
O'BRIEN: Joshua on Facebook says this, "Better than a law would be to have jurors signed a confidentiality agreement with the court that precludes them from discussing any aspects of the deliberation for profit, donating the money to charity would be OK."
VELSHI: Lots of interesting views about this. Do we think that people have really profited from writing books on big cases?
O'BRIEN: "Madam Foreman: A Rush to Judgment," about the O.J. Simpson.
VELSHI: OK.
O'BRIEN: You remember this book?
VELSHI: Yes. Now that you mention it, I remember.
O'BRIEN: OK. There's this one --
VELSHI: I couldn't think of one off the top of my head.
O'BRIEN: Some of the jurors wrote about Michael Jackson's trial.
VELSHI: Right.
O'BRIEN: But I never heard any of these books.
VELSHI: And I think it does -- you just mentioned, Michael Jackson, O.J. Simpson, these are the biggest of big trials. Keep your comments coming. Send us an e-mail, a tweet, or tell us on Facebook. We'll read more of your very interesting thoughts throughout the course of the show.
All right. Mila Kunis isn't going to let her country down after all.
O'BRIEN: Thank God.
VELSHI: Yes. The "Black Swan" actress is keeping her date to the Marine Corps ball. Reports had swirled that Kunis was trying to bail, but her rep says her shooting schedule is now clear. Marine Sergeant Scott Moore asked Kunis through a YouTube video. He's stationed in Afghanistan. No word yet if Justin Timberlake will say yes to Kelsey DeSantis, the Virginia-based marine posted a similar YouTube video inviting JT to her Marines Corps ball.
O'BRIEN: They're both cute. I think it should happen.
VELSHI: And they can both kill you with their pinky.
O'BRIEN: Yes, they can. See, another reason not to say no.
VELSHI: That's right.
(LAUGHTER)
O'BRIEN: Still to come this morning, during the debt ceiling talks, the sky is the limit for insults and temper tantrums. Jeanne Moos has some of the highlights and low the lights, really, for us. It's 47 minutes past the hour.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
O'BRIEN: Welcome back, everybody. It's 50 minutes past the hour. Here's a look at some of the headlines this morning.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
O'BRIEN (voice-over): There is a pause in the debt ceiling talks. The president sending both sides back to Capitol Hill to come up with a plan for moving the negotiations forward with 19 days to the default deadline. They could meet again tomorrow.
The FBI is now investigating claims that a Rupert Murdoch newspaper tried to hack into the phone of 9/11 victims and their families. And the "Daily Mirror" in London is reporting that the now defunct "News of the World" hired an investigator to attempt the phone taps.
History is repeating itself in Egypt. Cairo's Tahrir Square packed with thousands of protesters again. Demonstrators toppled President Mubarak there over the weekend, and now, they're back demanding the change that they were promised.
The White House asking to lift the ban on "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" once again. The justice department filing a motion asking a federal appeals court in California to leave the military's ban on gays in place while it's being challenged in the courts.
Casey Anthony gets out of jail on Sunday after being acquitted in the killing of her two-year-old daughter, Caylee. Not clear, though, where she's going to go when she's released. She's received a number of death threats, but she might have a few supporters as well.
Carmageddon is just hours away in Los Angeles. The ten-mile stretch of interstate 405, which is one of the busiest highways in the United States, is going to be closed for 53 hours this weekend for a bridge demolition project. Starting this afternoon, highway officers will block access to on ramps and off ramps and close freeway lanes one by one until they reach a full shutdown at midnight.
Long lines and anticipation building for the final "Harry Potter" film. "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows part 2" premiers in theaters today. The film has already made over $25 million in advanced sales alone.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
O'BRIEN (on-camera): You're caught up now on the day's headlines. AMERICAN MORNING is back right after this. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
VELSHI: You know, one good thing about these debt talks, it's a lot of fodder for Jeanne Moos.
O'BRIEN: Yes.
VELSHI: She has a lot of stuff. Welcome back to AMERICAN MORNING. Lawmakers will say the darnfest things when the debt clock is clicking.
O'BRIEN: Yes. And tempers have flared during the debt ceiling which, at times, have been intense, unproductive, nasty, mean spirited. The list kind of goes on and on.
VELSHI: Yes.
O'BRIEN: Jeanne Moos has the low lights for us this morning.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JEANNE MOOS, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): We are indebted to the debt ceiling for making our politicians testy, testy.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: President Obama quit lying.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think Mitch MCconnell, frankly, has lost his mind.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And you think this mess started 18 months ago? No, it did not. MOOS: A democrat gets fiery. A republican mocks her back.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think we're going to have to extend the space shuttle for an extra day to retrieve that thought process. It got so far out there in orbit.
MOOS: But these politicians aren't even the ones stuck in the room where the debt talks are taking place.
MOOS (on-camera): Now since cameras aren't allowed in the negotiating room, we can only imagine the annoyance, the exasperation, the tension.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Temperatures began rising.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Debt negotiations turning nasty.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And angry president shoves his chair back and walks out.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It seems like the president had a, well, hissy fit.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: When it almost came to blows between Eric Cantor and the president.
MOOS (voice-over): Almost came to blows? That's almost as overblown as comparing the debt talks to the "Real Housewives of New Jersey."
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Nineteen times (EXPLETIVE DELETED).
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Teresa, completely, certifiably, crazy out of her mind.
MOOS: Remind you of anything is?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think Mitch McConnell, frankly, has lost his mind.
MOOS: Mitch McConnell's raise the debt ceiling plan got bashed by both sides.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's called el foldo.
MOOS: And the president got compared to a "Popeye" character.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And he reminds me of the cartoon character, Wimpy, where Wimpy said --
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I gladly pay you Tuesday for a hamburger today.
MOOS: This is literally become a food fight.
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We might as well do it now. Eat our peas.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Tell us to eat our peas like bratty little kids.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And by the way, did you see I got a big plate of peas, and I ate all my peas. And so now, it's the president's turn, cut federal spending.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Speaker Boehner reportedly said that dealing with the Democrats is a lot like dealing with jell-o.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Jell-O is slippery, slimy.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I love jell-o personally. If you mix peas in it, you can get --
MOOS: Never mind the debt ceiling. Just be glad there's no blood on the ceiling. Unlike Al Capone in "The Untouchables".
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I get nowhere, unless, the team wins.
MOOS: May the politicians of the debt talks take a bat to the budget.
Jeanne Moos, Cnn. New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
O'BRIEN: Hard core.
VELSHI: Yeah. Let's see what comes of it today. I think they're all taking a breather today. There's no formal negotiations going on.
O'BRIEN: Right.
VELSHI: There are going to be a lot of talks one hopes or it's summer Friday in Washington. I don't know. The president has a press conference this morning at 11:00 a.m. eastern. We'll be covering that.
Coming up in the next hour, Republican presidential candidate, Tim Pawlenty, is here. What would he do if he were in the oval office? Would he risk an economic meltdown by refusing to budge on the debt ceiling? You are watching AMERICAN MORNING. It is 56 minutes after the hour.
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