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Rick's List
New Orleans Celebrates Super Bowl Victory; Explosion Kills Five in Connecticut
Aired February 08, 2010 - 15:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
RICK SANCHEZ, CNN ANCHOR: Here's what making the LIST right now.
Today's the day. The doctor who police say gave Michael Jackson a combination of drugs that killed him will turn himself in. You will see it as it happens.
Sarah Palin's tea party speech. She points out that Obama uses a teleprompter.
SARAH PALIN (R), FORMER ALASKA GOVERNOR: How's that hopey, changey stuff working out for you?
(LAUGHTER)
SANCHEZ: Then she's caught reading off her hand.
After nearly five years of recovering from this, New Orleans has a reason to party.
CROWD: Who dat?
SANCHEZ: And party they do, after one of the most watched events in history, big money for the NFL. But how about for these guys?
In Connecticut, search dogs are brought in after a massive power plant explosion, at least five dead, dozens injured.
The lists you need to know about. Who's today's most intriguing person? Who's on list you don't want to be on? You will find out as our national conversation on Twitter, on the air continues.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SANCHEZ: Hello again everybody. I'm Rick Sanchez.
Making the list right now, about four major stories that we're following for you, but, first, let's begin with the death of John Murtha.
This came as shocking news to us when it was announced just behind me a little while ago by microphone. Since then, we have been looking into what possibly could have caused this. Obviously it's a big day on Capitol Hill as a result of the Pennsylvania Democrat's death.
First, let me catch you up on what I'm reading, what I'm hearing. I just want to share this with you, because I find it odd in part because of my own personal experience with this. Murtha's congressional office has confirmed that he underwent scheduled surgery to remove his gallbladder, surgery to remove his gallbladder.
The reason I bring that up is because millions of us Americans have had our gallbladders removed. It's usually a very -- as at least it was explained to me, it's usually just a simple procedure, rarely resulting in complications.
Let's go to Elizabeth Cohen, our medical specialist. She's joining us now.
Are you surprised? Could the fact that he had his gallbladder removed have caused his death? Or what are you thinking?
ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Sure. That could possibly be part of it. Who knows. It could have been the original illness that led to his death or it could have been in part the procedure. You can have bleeding complications when they remove your gallbladder.
SANCHEZ: But you don't need your gallbladder to live.
COHEN: Right, but you don't know what was going on with him before they removed the gallbladder. We don't know everything about his medical condition.
But you asked about the surgery in particular. You can have bleeding complications. You can have infection complications. The surgeon might have nicked something they shouldn't have in your gastrointestinal system.
SANCHEZ: Wow.
COHEN: And what I find interesting about this, Rick, is that he was discharged from the hospital.
SANCHEZ: Right.
COHEN: And they -- been readmitted about a week later. That is a huge red flag for folks who cover this kind of thing.
SANCHEZ: Why? What...
COHEN: It's called a 30-day hospital readmission.
SANCHEZ: What does that mean?
COHEN: Because it means that there was something perhaps they didn't catch when they discharged him.
SANCHEZ: I see. COHEN: Because it doesn't look good to discharge someone and then have to readmit them and then they end up in intensive care and then they die. You sort of wonder what did they not catch...
(CROSSTALK)
SANCHEZ: Over something as I stated which is usually a simple procedure.
COHEN: Right. Exactly. It is a simple procedure.
SANCHEZ: All right. Thanks so much.
Let us know if you get anything on that.
COHEN: Absolutely.
SANCHEZ: And stand by because we have got another story I want to ask you about.
First of all, look, is it possible that Sarah Palin is suggesting that President Obama should attack Iran if he wants to be reelected? Look, that's a heck of a thing to say, folks. Is she suggesting politicizing a war? You're going to hear it for yourself. You decide.
Now, a power plant in Connecticut -- there's a power plant explosion in Connecticut. I don't know if you have been following this. This explosion is so deadly, it's already killed several people. A couple dozen are injured. And police have dogs there. Threat searching for the possibility that there may be victims under the rubble that they still haven't even found. This is going on right now in Connecticut.
But our top story is you are going to watch play out right here. In fact, here come some of the very first pictures at least related to this story. You recognize that man. That's Joe Jackson, the father of Michael Jackson. I think you might be able to see Katherine Jackson coming up here as well.
And I think you will see Jermaine in the shot. There he is there. There he is there. There he is in the background. This is video that we received just minutes ago, as the family was arriving at the courthouse.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
QUESTION: Jermaine, your reaction...
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: They're asking him for an interview. Let's see if we can pop the sound up.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JERMAINE JACKSON, BROTHER OF MICHAEL JACKSON: It's not enough.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: You heard what he said. "It's not enough."
There's Katherine now arriving as well. And there's Joe Jackson. I'm being told that they were asked lots of questions, but they didn't make any comments.
Now, let me tell you why this is an important day. The doctor that police say gave Michael Jackson the drug combination of propofol, especially, that killed him is about to turn himself in. And you are going to watch that unfold here during these next couple of hours.
You heard our report just a little while ago from Los Angeles that in fact -- that in fact he has now officially been charged.
Let me look over my notes. Yes, Ted Rowlands reporting a little while ago -- I think you may have heard him with Ali -- that the charges are now official.
Let's -- in fact, do we have Ted Rowlands?
Ted Rowlands, if you're standing by in L.A., bring us up to date on what is going on with the story right now. Where is it?
TED ROWLANDS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Rick, as you mentioned, the family just came in -- you see the convoy of their cars here -- within the last few minutes. And they didn't say anything, except Jermaine.
He did say one thing. When I asked him what he thought about the charges, he turned and came over to our microphone and said, not enough. You may have heard that, obviously, referring to the charges that just came down within the hour from the Los Angeles County District Attorney's office.
And that is one count of involuntary manslaughter against Conrad Murray in the death of Michael Jackson. The family was hoping that it would be higher, maybe a murder two charge, but the Los Angeles district attorney, after six months of investigating this, has come up with the strategy of charging Dr. Murray with just this one count of involuntary manslaughter.
We're expecting Murray at this courthouse. This is the L.A. Airport courthouse. We're expecting him within the next hour to answer to that single charge at his scheduled 1:30 Pacific time arraignment. If Dr. Murray is convicted of that charge, he's facing a maximum sentence of four years in jail.
Outside the courthouse, as you might imagine, a zoo-like atmosphere, with media on both sides of the courthouse, media from around the world. Also, Jackson fans have gathered here in mass around the other side of the courthouse, as we wait for Dr. Murray's arrival. SANCHEZ: Well, let's stay with this real quick. I'm just wondering, that comment that you said you heard from Jermaine, those words, not enough, was there an expectation here that police could charge him with more? What else could they have hit him with, especially given the fact that a lot of people would look at this case and think that -- presume, I imagine, that if Michael hadn't used Dr. Murray, he would have found another doctor to do what he wanted.
ROWLANDS: Absolutely. But you're talking about a family member. And in any case, in any case when they talking about a family member, things are inherently different because of the emotion surrounding it.
Now, right now, I don't know who we have coming up behind us, but we're going to figure that out for you. Walking up here, I'm not sure who this individual is coming up.
SANCHEZ: All right, we're with you. We're staying with you as well.
ROWLANDS: Oh, OK.
SANCHEZ: You -- I will tell you what.
ROWLANDS: More Jackson family members coming through is what it is.
SANCHEZ: Is that Randy Jackson?
ROWLANDS: Reaction to the charge, Randy?
No -- no comment walking in there.
(CROSSTALK)
SANCHEZ: Hey, Ted, Ted, stay right there.
(CROSSTALK)
ROWLANDS: But Randy Jackson coming in now.
SANCHEZ: Ted, stay right there. Just go ahead and do your reporting. Gather as much information as you can.
ROWLANDS: Yes.
SANCHEZ: I want to bring in Elizabeth Cohen as you're doing that. Just call out our names. We will leave your mike up. And let us know if you have got somebody else coming in.
Remind viewers of why these charges are being brought. What did he specifically do, Elizabeth, to Michael Jackson on a concrete level?
COHEN: All right. Simply put, the most serious allegation out there is that he used an anesthetic that you usually use for surgery patients, he used it to get Michael Jackson to go to sleep every night. It's called propofol. You get it when you have surgery. You get it when you have a colonoscopy. It is in no way, shape, or form..
SANCHEZ: Is it an injection, an I.V.?
COHEN: Yes, it's an I.V. It's an I.V.
SANCHEZ: An I.V.
COHEN: And you do not take it to go to sleep. It is a wild misuse, as doctors have explained it to me. Doctors in this situation will often try to argue that they were practicing within the accepted norms of medicine. If this is what he did, there is no way that he could argue that.
SANCHEZ: This is totally abnormal?
COHEN: Beyond the pale was how one doctor explained it to me.
SANCHEZ: Beyond the pale.
COHEN: Beyond the pale.
SANCHEZ: In other words, you would never do this.
COHEN: Never, never.
SANCHEZ: You're giving him an I.V. essentially to go to sleep. Why in the world would you ever do that?
COHEN: Right. It's to be used for surgery in a hospital where you can be monitored because bad things, as we saw, can happen. And so you want to have that person in a hospital, not in a home.
SANCHEZ: Got it. Stand by.
And did we get anything else from Ted? Give me that shot out in L.A. once again, if you would, Roger. See if you can get that shot out in L.A.
All right, there's the shot in L.A. now. A lot of stuff's going to be going on there, folks, over the next couple of hours.
Ted, I don't know if you can hear me. You got anything else?
ROWLANDS: Yes.
SANCHEZ: Go ahead.
ROWLANDS: It was just Randy Jackson just was the last member walking in, didn't say anything, as you saw there. Now we're just waiting for either more family members or Dr. Conrad Murray to show up. We don't really expect him for another half-hour or so, but...
SANCHEZ: Right.
ROWLANDS: ... we're standing by.
SANCHEZ: All right, hey, that's great. We appreciate it.
In the meantime, we're going to be following another developing story for you. As soon as we get some of those pictures turned around, I'm going to share those with you of what is going on right now in New Orleans. It is crazy.
As a matter of fact, we understand the team has just arrived. Angie, Pam, is that right? Help me out. OK. We're waiting. This is Kenner, Louisiana. This is obviously Louis Armstrong Airport there, I imagine, is what we're looking at, right, unless they may be using an executive airport.
The plane with the players is about to arrive and we're told by our correspondents there on the ground -- folks, this transcends a sports story. We're told by our correspondents there on the ground there may be tens of thousands of people waiting for them. That's how special this is for this town, this Super Bowl win last night.
You know what? It's going to be cool to watch and we're going to take you through it.
Meanwhile, here's what else we're going to have for you during this newscast. Is Sarah Palin suggesting -- is Sarah Palin suggesting that invading Iran is what President Obama should do to get reelected? If you missed her Tea Party Convention speech, we're going to be playing it for you.
Also, one of the highest ranking members of our national security team tells Republicans to stop political games with the Christmas Day bomber incident, flat-out. And now there's a response to that. Stay with us. We're on the LIST and you are going to be scrolling along with us, folks. Stay right there.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SANCHEZ: Boy, a lot of news to get to you.
First, let's go to Los Angeles. Look at these pictures we got just a little while ago that were coming in. You're going to see Joe Jackson and Katherine Jackson and Jermaine Jackson as they arrive at the Los Angeles County courthouse where Dr. Murray has now been officially charged and will be showing up sometime over the next half- hour, 45 minutes. He will be showing up to cop a deal, essentially, surrender to police on these charges of manslaughter.
Police are saying he was the last person who was with Michael Jackson and he's the one who gave him the propofol and that's why they're charging him with involuntary manslaughter. There's Jermaine Jackson.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JACKSON: Not enough.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: Listen here. Not enough. Did you hear that? Not enough.
And there's Katherine. There's Katherine. And there is Joe Jackson as well. All right, we're expecting that to happen. Stay with us. As soon as it does, we will bring it to you.
There's another breaking story, one that puts a smile on all of our collective faces.
Let's take you to Los Angeles (sic). Folks are lining the streets, getting ready in New Orleans for their team to come back victorious after beating the Indianapolis Colts last night in the Super Bowl. Boy, if there's a town in this country that's been waiting for something to be excited about, if there's a town in this country that's been waiting for something to cheer about, a story that truly transcends sports, the New Orleans Saints have never been to a Super Bowl.
Last night, they went against a team that was supposed to beat them and instead, they're coming out as the champions of the world. And there's the fans. We're told there's some 10,000 to 20,000 people that are lining the streets right now. The plane is going to arrive in about five minutes. And we're going to have it for you as that happens.
Meanwhile, as we watch both of those stories for you, we're going to play some of Sarah Palin's speech for you. Before we play the entire thing, I want you to listen to her now strategizing out loud on President Obama and his chances for reelection by going after Iran.
The interviewer here, because this is not during the Tea Party speech. This is afterward, when she was on FOX News. The interviewer is Chris Wallace. He seems, by the way -- in fairness, he seems taken aback by her proposition. Let's hear it.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SARAH PALIN (R), FORMER ALASKA GOVERNOR: Say he played the war card. Say he decided to declare war on Iran or decided really come out and do whatever he could to support Israel, which I would like him to do.
But that changes the dynamics in what we can assume is going to happen between now and three years, because I think if the election were today I do not think Obama would be re-elected. But three years from now, things could change if -- on the national security front.
CHRIS WALLACE, HOST, "FOX NEWS SUNDAY": Are you -- but you're not suggesting that he would cynically play the war card...
PALIN: I'm not suggesting that. I'm saying if he did, things would dramatically change.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: Did it seem to you that she was saying what she said? I'm not sure. That's why I wanted you to hear it for yourself. Is she suggesting that war could, should, may be politicized at some point? Mind you, this type of criticism, this type of game plan has been explored before.
At the outset of the Iraq war, Karl Rove told a Republican Party meeting that talk of war and terror themes plays to the GOP's advantage. One of his computer disks was found at that time that he had left behind. He said the strategy is to in fact focus on war as a way of maintaining a positive issue environment. Those were his exact words back then.
And Bush's White House chief of staff, Andrew Card, around that same time was heard to say that action in Iraq should not be promoted until the start of the election. Why?
Here's another direct quote. We found these and thought we would share them with you. "Because, from a marketing point of view, from a marketing point of view, you don't introduce new products in August." He's talking about the war. We're going to look into this with Gloria Borger. She's going to join me in just a little bit. Stay right there, a lot of news coming your way.
Also, this. Who dat? Who dat? Who dat saying the Saints ain't going to win a Super Bowl? Well, they did, for the first time ever. And, as I showed you moments ago, yes, those are the parties that started last night and there's another one about to start right about now. We're going to have it for you. The folks are lining the streets, waiting for the team to get back. We're going to show you that picture.
Stay right there. We're coming right back. You will see it as it happens.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SANCHEZ: Sarah Palin spoke on Saturday night. And we're going to play for you a big chunk of that. And you're going to able to see it for yourself.
Welcome back, by the way. I'm Rick Sanchez. This RICK'S LIST. We're in the world headquarters of CNN.
I want to bring in Gloria Borger now, one of my colleagues, to talk about Sarah Palin. For those of you who missed that again, I played that sound bite just a little while ago. Let me read you back Sarah Palin's words here.
She says: "Say we played the war card. Say we decided to declare war on Iran or really come out, did whatever he could to support Israel, which I would like him to do. That would change the dynamics in what we can assume is going to happen between now and three years, because I think if the election were held today, I do not think Obama would be reelected."
Gloria Borger, is Sarah Palin saying that the invasion of Iran would be a clever or politically beneficial move for President Obama? GLORIA BORGER, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: I think she is.
I think what you're seeing there in that response is a woman who's clearly talking to people about the possibility of running for the presidency. And what she's doing is kind of gaming this out, if you will.
And she was doing that in kind of her stream of consciousness way at this event over the weekend. And she's saying, look, things might not look good for Barack Obama now, but say he decided to invade Iran. Well, then the public would no doubt rally around him.
The public does rally around presidents in times like these. And so, I don't think she was advocating -- saying that he would do it one way or another for political reasons, but she was making a cold, political calculation as somebody who is thinking about the presidency would do if she was talking to a group of advisers about running.
SANCHEZ: Right.
But the spirit of that, if not the letter of that, is an awful reminder of mistakes that this country and perhaps others have made in the past.
BORGER: Yes.
SANCHEZ: Wars should not be about politics.
BORGER: Of course not.
SANCHEZ: They should not be about politics. And Americans are sick and tired of this kind of stuff, aren't they?
BORGER: Well, yes, and it's kind of interesting to me that this was at a Tea Party Convention, where the whole notion of the Tea Party Convention is, we don't like politicians who think like politicians. We don't like politicians who do business as usual.
And when you listen to Sarah Palin game this out, you're thinking to yourself, gee, isn't that exactly the way a politician would think about the possibility of running for the presidency in 2012? The answer to that question is, of course, yes, it is.
SANCHEZ: Well, you know what's interesting? What's interesting is I don't think -- well, Sarah Palin seems to be telling them -- in fact, here, let's listen to her together. It sounds like Sarah Palin is saying that she's not interested in being the Tea Party candidate. Here, let's listen to it.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PALIN: I caution against allowing this movement by be defined by any one leader or politician. The Tea Party movement is not a top- down operation. It's a ground-up call to action that is forcing both parties to change the way they are doing business, and that's beautiful. (CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
PALIN: This is about the people! This is about the people, and it's bigger than any king or queen of a Tea Party. And it's a lot bigger than any charismatic guy with a teleprompter.
(LAUGHTER)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: By the way, I was just listening to her there say a lot better than some charismatic guy with a teleprompter.
But did you see the reports about her?
BORGER: Yes, I did.
SANCHEZ: She -- I -- she was -- do we have that? She was reading off her hand.
BORGER: Yes.
SANCHEZ: Watch. Right there. See it? She wrote a bunch of notes on her hand. And, apparently, the stuff that -- do you know what she had on her hand? What were the note -- energy or something like that?
BORGER: Yes, energy, budget cuts, crossed out budget, and made it tax, and then lift the American spirits. It was apparently an answer to a question about what three things a conservative majority in the Congress should strive for.
SANCHEZ: Does that -- given the fact that she couldn't tell Katie Couric what magazines or newspapers she reads, which I think most people would be able to do, given the fact there are reports out there, we will take them or we will leave them, whatever, reports out there she didn't know Africa was a continent, all these things we have heard in the past, and now you have her reading notes off her hand about things like Republicans should lower taxes. What does that do to her stereotype?
(CROSSTALK)
BORGER: Well, here's the interesting thing. She had just come off a speech in which she criticized the president for reading off the teleprompter.
SANCHEZ: Yes.
BORGER: She's reading off her hands. Now, look, we're all human. When we give public speeches, we all need help. We all need notes. The president uses a teleprompter.
But it does seem a bit odd to write it on your hand on a Q&A session that it's clear was probably she knew the questions in advance, and right after she criticized the president for using a prompter. So, you know...
(CROSSTALK)
SANCHEZ: By the way...
BORGER: ... make of it what you will, yes.
SANCHEZ: And she's right. The president has used a teleprompter.
BORGER: Sure.
SANCHEZ: And, at times, I think he looks almost stilted when he uses a Teleprompter.
Last week, when he went and he spoke with the Republicans at their retreat, he was just shooting it with them. He wasn't using a teleprompter.
BORGER: Right.
SANCHEZ: I think he should take Palin's advice. He's better when he doesn't, actually.
BORGER: The problem that happens with these politicians -- and you can understand it, Rick -- is that they're afraid to go off script.
SANCHEZ: Not me.
(CROSSTALK)
BORGER: But I didn't -- you're not a politician, right? They're afraid to go off script. So the moment Barack Obama goes off script at his press conference and talks about the police in Cambridge invading Skip Gates' house, he ends up with a beer summit, right?
SANCHEZ: Right. Right.
BORGER: And, so, Sarah Palin is afraid right now of going off script.
SANCHEZ: Yes.
BORGER: She's got an image she wants to portray. And she is, whether she wants to be or not, the de facto leader of the Tea Party movement, which if she were to decide to run for the presidency, could help her from the ground up.
SANCHEZ: Right. By the way -- no, actually, I meant that comment about it. I think too many of us in this business, as well as politics, are scripted. I think too many anchors rely on their scripts too much as well. But that's another point.
Listen, before I let you go, I got to ask you this. The death of John Murtha, this is a guy who in many ways represented part of a generation.
BORGER: Yes. He was.
SANCHEZ: These are the guys who came back from the war and served our country, and served our country well. I'm still surprised, by the way. They're saying -- well, they're not saying what the cause of death is, but, last week, he had his gallbladder taken out, which is a pretty simple procedure. I had it done myself. I'm told it's not a big deal.
(CROSSTALK)
SANCHEZ: We don't know what killed him, though.
BORGER: It's kind of -- you know, the cliche is the end of an era, but John Murtha was one of those so-called Watergate babies who was swept into Congress in 1974, after Richard Nixon.
I believe he was the first Vietnam war combat veteran elected to Congress. He served on the Appropriations Committee that deals with defense. He's always been a very, very close friend to the boots on the ground. And he was very, very important, because, in 2003, he supported the war effort in Iraq.
And, in 2005, when he turned around and said, I can no longer support the war, and this is a man who was so close to the generals on the ground, it was a voice that lots of people had to listen to, including at the Bush White House. He was a very, very important voice in that sense.
SANCHEZ: Yes. It was like the counselor who stood up against McCarthy at one point and suddenly everybody looked or Cronkite deciding that the war was over.
BORGER: Because he had a great deal of credibility with the generals, absolutely.
SANCHEZ: Right. He was a soldier, exactly.
BORGER: Absolutely.
(CROSSTALK)
SANCHEZ: Good stuff, Gloria.
Hey, are you a football fan?
BORGER: I watched.
SANCHEZ: Look at this. Look at this. You know what this is?
BORGER: I do.
SANCHEZ: That's the plane. That's Delta Air Lines plane number whatever it is.
BORGER: I know it's not in Washington, D.C. I can tell you that.
SANCHEZ: No. This is -- I believe this is Louis Armstrong International Airport there.
BORGER: Right. Exactly.
SANCHEZ: Isn't this great? Look at the people in the background.
BORGER: Yes.
SANCHEZ: Are these guys -- hey, are these guys heroes or what?
BORGER: They're fabulous.
SANCHEZ: Look, any other team, we wouldn't be doing this. I mean, it was a football game.
This was more than a football game.
BORGER: Yes.
SANCHEZ: This is something that transcended sports. We were there. I mean, I'm sure you spent some time in New Orleans after the floods, too.
BORGER: Yes. I did not, but...
SANCHEZ: That town -- that town was -- that town was amazing.
Look at this. I just got a tweet from one of the guys inside that plane. Shoot this, Robert, if you would. Reggie Bush is on that plane. He has not come out yet, but he's already wanting to let his fans know something.
"Here it is, baby, who dat -- New Orleans, I got you, San Diego, I got you." I guess he's going back there. There's the trophy. It's a twit pic. Move it over, guys. I can't see it. Move that shot over. It's a twit pic sent by Reggie Bush. He's kissing the Vince Lombardi trophy.
What's he wearing? Did he just wake up?
(LAUGHTER)
This is great. Go back to the shot of the picture. Look at that plane.
I'll tell you what, let's get a quick break and maybe when we come back we'll start to have them deplaning and we'll be able to share that with you. Let's go right to break as soon as we can. Let's get out of here, go.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SANCHEZ: Welcome back. There's the shots. These are pictures coming in now from -- we were showing you pictures of Los Angeles a little while ago. That's where the guy police say may be responsible for the death of Michael Jackson is going to be brought in.
Now we're showing you live pictures coming in from WDSU, our affiliate. We thank them. This is that Delta Airlines jet bringing in the players, the Super bowl winning New Orleans Saints. The fans are lined up and they're going to be waiting to cheer on their players. Apparently, they're lined up along the street route, too. This is great.
Here's what we're going to do. There you see some of the reporters getting ready to do interviews. As soon as the players start deplaning, you'll see it here live.
In the meantime, let me tell you about something else. She is an astronaut and she has made today's "most intriguing." We keep lists we like to share every day. Let me tell you about this woman. She was the first woman assigned to a combat crew. She's also one of the last women to ride the space shuttle.
In between, she's racked up almost 400 hours in space. One of today's most intriguing people is mission specialist Kathryn Hire who was aboard "Endeavour" early today for the shuttle's last nighttime launch. Isn't that beautiful?
NASA, as you know, will stop the shuttle program this fall. Hire will spend two weeks on the International Space Station. Astronaut Kathryn Hire, one of today's most intriguing.
There's more coming up on that list. All right, this is a story we're following out of L.A., live. Michael Jackson's personal doctor, he was with him in the final moments. He is now officially being charged. He's expected to surrender himself, will do so possibly around the next half hour or so.
We're going to be checking in with our crews in Los Angeles. We're following his story, and we're going to bring you that live and as it happens.
Also, look at this, cars stuck, and it's not in the snow. What's going on in California? We're going to let you know.
Of course, we'll be taking you back to New Orleans as well. Stay with us. This is "The List." I'm Rick Sanchez and we are in the world headquarters of CNN, the most trusted name in news.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SANCHEZ: We're working two developing stories, one in Los Angeles and one in New Orleans. This is the happy one. This is the one that makes a whole lot of people that have been sad for so many years suddenly have smiles on their faces.
Their team that no one expected to win the Super bowl -- I won't say no one -- most expected would lose the Super bowl, actually won the Super bowl, and it is a team representing a town that has been beaten down in many ways by mother nature and by other forces that you've seen described on this show.
But this is a day of celebration. This is the day the team returns to a happy crowd. And we showed you shots of that plane just a little while ago, that Delta jet there you saw. That's where the New Orleans Saints football team is. They're going to be turning around and deplaning and you'll see it as it happens right here on CNN.
In the meantime, you heard the word "snow-mageddon" a lot this weekend. You heard it probably more times than you wanted to hear it. Oh, we're so quick to label things, aren't we? Let's do "Fotos."
What do you call this? Maybe "mud-geddon"? Houses encased in mud and sludge. After all the rain in Los Angeles, one county official said it's as if you were in Universal Studios on the tour seeing the war zone. Guess what, Hollywood, you're going to get more rain tomorrow.
Miami now -- ouch. Good lord, what is that? That's going to leave a mark. A police cruiser was damaged, the officer behind the wheel pinned under the dashboard but later rescued. Another driver ran a red light and pounded the officer's car right into that cement post. A surveillance camera at a beauty parlor caught the entire thing.
On to Pensacola, Florida, now. That's the panhandle. That's a deer. Hey, you go, little buddy. It jumps right through the door of a hotel, then runs across the lobby and leaps over the counter. There he goes.
Can you imagine? No check-in needed. The deer ran down the hall and crashed right through a window and then escaped. And, oh, dear, no hotel staff were hurt in the making of this surveillance video, no one. That's it.
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What's the situation?
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SANCHEZ: This is tough. These are those ten American missionaries accused of kidnapping Haitian children. They're going before a judge today. Now, there's some new information that -- it's so loud, let's just hear her out.
Let's bring her down just a little bit so we're not talking at the same time. We'll bring you that sound. There's information they may have got permission from the Dominican Republic after all, that those folks in there may have gotten permission after all.
Also, this -- Who dat? That's right, who dat say they going to be them Saints? Nearly five years after hurricane Katrina, New Orleans has a reason to celebrate.
Have you seen these pictures from last night? They went nuts. Good for them. They're still going nuts. That's right. They're celebrating and waiting for the team now, and you'll see it live here as it happens.
Plus, one of my favorite parts of the Super bowl, the ads. The pics are next.
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SANCHEZ: Look what the Miami-Dade Fire Department did today for the New Orleans Saints. Now, that's the plane. It just arrived now in New Orleans. Guess what, this is the plane as it was leaving Miami International Airport.
And they took water cannons and shot a -- I don't know, what would you call this, Robert? A salute? A salute to the -- a water salute, there you go, to the team as it gets ready to take off. That's wonderful.
And here's the fans that just saw that same plane arrive there in New Orleans. This is great.
By the way, best thing I've ever seen in a Super bowl or an Orange bowl or Rose bowl, period, the halftime show last night with The Who. I'm no rocker, but this was sensational. Watch a little bit of this.
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(SINGING)
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SANCHEZ: And look at that. That's what I was talking about. Those two old rockers, they're good enough, but it was the light show and the way it was handled. It was just amazing to watch, especially if you had a plasma.
Let me take you to Bourbon Street now. These are the parties that were taking place afterward. There was not room for one single person to squeeze in there. People were on top of each other's shoulders, they were climbing walls, they were obviously having lots of adult beverages.
Parties went through the night in the French Quarter. Some people got really, really rowdy, but, hey, that happens in celebrations from time to time. For the most part, things were friendly enough, no burning, no looting, no craziness as we've seen in the past in other places.
That's the situation in New Orleans, and of course, you saw what is going on now. And look at this. Let's hear a little of this. "Who dat," that's right.
All right, let's go back to the airport now. This is where the team is about to come out of the plane, and you'll see the scene there. Folks are showing up to congratulate their heroes, really, in this case. The team is making the city feel good about itself once again.
We're going to have that for you. You're going to hear the sounds, you're going to hear the players, and you'll see it.
Do we have time for a Doritos ad? We do. My favorite ads last night were the Doritos ads. I thought they were really funny. Let's watch one.
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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Oh, thank you. Have a seat. Kyle, Jaylyn, Jaylyn, Kyle. Jaylyn, you play nice. I'll be right back.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What's going on, little man? I see you got your game skills down pat. You might have your hands full once I pick up the controller, though.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Put it back. Keep your hands off my ma. Keep your hands off my Doritos.
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(LAUGHTER)
SANCHEZ: "Keep your hands off my mama. Keep your hands off my Doritos." Are we showing another? Sorry.
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(SCREAMING)
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SANCHEZ: How many of these we got? Are we supposed to watch this one? No? I'll tell you what. Robert, give me a shot of this tweet. Are we watching or not watching it? All right, let's get on one page.
"To commemorate the first Super bowl win ever for our New Orleans Saints, I've declared this week Saint's week." That's Bobby Jindal. He's the governor. Yes, even the politicians want to get in on the act when there's winners involved.
Let me ask you this. This game last night made a ton of money, right? In fact, 48.4 was the rating, I think. That makes it the second highest rated Super bowl in the history of the NFL, one of the highest rated events ever watched, period, right? That means the NFL is doing really well.
What's the NFL doing for some of its older players? The guys who played when maybe they weren't making that much money, the guys who founded the league? I want to talk about that in a little while. I'm going to talk with one of the most famous football players ever, one of the meanest guys who's ever played the game. Stay right there. I'll do that for you.
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SANCHEZ: We've been talking about football and the grandeur of football throughout this hour, but let me show you another side of football, all right.
Talk about one tough football player, take a look at that guy right there. "Sports Illustrated" 1977, that's the cover story. That guy's name, he was a bit a hero of I mine when I was a kid, that's Conrad Dobler. He was called "Pro football's dirtiest player." This guy was meaner than a snake.
That's a tough-looking guy right there, wouldn't you say? But things have changed in this guy's life -- 32 surgeries, so he says, short-term memory loss, crushing medical bills. It's all in miss book called "Pride and Perseverance," Conrad Dobler.
And what I want to know is, where is the NFL in all of this? Where is the Players' Association? Is there help out there for the Conrad Doblers of professional football? I have my buddy Mercury Morris joining me as well. Talk about a superstar from my heyday -- well, his heyday, my childhood. I grew up watching you, as people say to you.
EUGENE "MERCURY" MORRIS, RETIRED NFL PLAYER: No, you didn't.
SANCHEZ: And as I showed you before, there's Conrad Dobler. Also joining me now by telephone is Alan Schwarz of the "New York Times" who covers this beat.
Gentlemen, thanks to all of you for being here. Great game last night. Wasn't that fun to watch?
MORRIS: It was great.
DOBLER: Certainly was.
SANCHEZ: Conrad, I have to ask you. Just take us through your story. Last time most people looked up they were watching you play on Sundays and just being so good at what you did -- mean, but good at what you did. And since then you've had troubles. What are they?
CONRAD DOBLER, RETIRED NFL PLAYER: Well, you know, the first thing I want to say, a big old shout out, Who dat, to New Orleans. My wife is from Louisiana and I spend two years down there. In fact, when we went eight and eight it was the first time they had had a 500 season, you would have thought we had won the Super bowl.
(LAUGHTER)
So I can just imagine what's going on right now down in New Orleans. And they have Mardi Gras coming up, so this party is going to go on for the next 30 days. And god bless them.
It was a heck of a game, and I know the people of New Orleans and all the Saints fans for so many years have been waiting for something like this, and it was a beautiful thing to watch. You know, I've had a lot of knee surgeries, things of that nature, and when I applied for disability at the very beginning, they kept tabling it. And then when they finally got me a chance to get before the board, and they said, well, it's past 12 years. It took two years for me to get to the board, and they said you can't file anymore because you've expended your time that you were supposed to file.
So, I've had like nine knee replacements. My wife had a spinal cord injury and she's in a wheelchair. So we've had people outside of football, like Phil Mickelson, step forward where football wouldn't.
SANCHEZ: You guys created the environment, including the contracts that are being enjoyed by the players there now. Merc, you never made a lot of money. You never made $1 million, did you?
MORRIS: Are you out of your mind? I made $135,000, which is the highest I made back in the mid-70s. When I went to San Diego in 1976, I was the highest paid player on the team at $135,000. So that tells you there was no money back then.
You know what the problem here is, man, is that in 1993, they made a deal -- Upshaw made a deal with Tagliabue in that the players would receive a certain amount of money, but out of that money would come the retirement money.
So you have these young players making money now making the decision on how much retired players get, if anything. So the problem lies not in so much this guy they just fired for dealing with the disability in a way that prevented the players from getting benefits.
All you have to do is look at the owners here, because the owners are the ones who passed this responsibility onto the players, and that was the worst thing that they ever could have done.
SANCHEZ: So you're saying the players of today are screwing over the players of the past?
MORRIS: I'm saying that the NFL PA and who it is, they are the one who have the money.
SANCHEZ: Those are the players.
MORRIS: Yes, it's the players, but the NFL PA, they run the situation.
SANCHEZ: That's the union.
MORRIS: Exactly, the union. And the union did exactly what the owners were doing.
Now, these guys being in charge of our retirement is like the Klan being in charge of civil rights. Fundamentally it won't work simply because of who they are. So these guys don't realize that one day they'll be in the same position, but because they're making so much money, they fail to realize the retired players are the ones who built this thing.
SANCHEZ: Alan Schwarz, what's got to change here?
ALAN SCHWARZ, SPORTS COLUMNIST, "NEW YORK TIMES" (via telephone): I don't think anything has to change. The question is what will change and why. I think that obviously the situation is one that is a black eye for the NFL and for the NFL PA.
That being said, there are two major things that I think need to be untwined here. You have the legal responsibility that the disability and pension plan has for the taking care of players and the issues that are all wrapped up in that.
And then you also have the moral issue, where a lot of people say, and in fact you did on the lead-in, that these are the guys who are partly responsible for the current windfall that is the NFL. Those are two very different things. They have very different considerations. And let's not forget these guys signed the contract.
SANCHEZ: Alan, let me let you go. Gentlemen, I'm going to have to end the conversation here. Thanks so much for joining us. We have breaking news -- Alan Schwartz and Mercury Morris and Conrad Dobler, real legends, the two.
All right, these are pictures -- we'll flip these around for you. This is breaking news coming to us from Los Angeles right now. The man who police suspect of giving the lethal dosage of propofol to Michael Jackson has just entered the courtroom there in Los Angeles. Let's see if we can turn that picture around, if we possibly can.
Also we'll see if we can get Elizabeth Cohen back here. We'll also see if we can get Ted Rowlands on the air. Roger, there any way we can recue that video? I know we were in the middle of that conversation. How long would it take to do that, Roger? Should we get a break in?
Let's do this. Stay right there. We're going to get a break in. In that time period we'll recue a video and watch Dr. Conrad Murray, another Conrad, walking into this building, and we'll see what else unfolds out here.
In the meantime I'm going to cue up Elizabeth Cohen and Ted Rowlands. Stay right there, news as it happens. This is "RICK'S LIST," I'm Rick Sanchez.
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SANCHEZ: News as it happens. Welcome back, I'm Rick Sanchez. I'm showing you two pictures here, right. The one on the right is the New Orleans Saints. They just won the Super bowl. They're coming home to a town that, by golly, needed something to do something that would make them feel really happy.
Picture on the left, Dr. Conrad Murray, happening now, in Los Angeles, has officially been charged. Just walked into the building to surrender himself. Ted Rowlands has been following this story. These are the folks outside the courtroom now. We showed you a little while ago. Roger, cue up, if you could, those are pictures of -- there he is. There's Dr. Conrad Murray walking into the courthouse in Los Angeles ready to surrender himself.
