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Rick's List
Search Continues for Missing Miners; Tiger Woods' New Ad Sparks Controversy
Aired April 08, 2010 - 16:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: Well, we have something new for you this hour on RICK'S LIST, the latest on a diplomat who sparked a bomb scare by trying to smoke in an airplane bathroom.
Authorities were concerned enough they scrambled military jets and they detained passengers for hours to talk to them to get information. We now know where he is heading, that man.
Plus, there is this.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON (voice-over): Here's what's making THE LIST.
Snatched in a war zone. He hasn't been seen in months.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The family is dealing with a very, very difficult situation about as well as anybody could possibly expect them to.
LEMON: What does this video reveal about the only known American captured in Afghanistan?
PRIVATE 1ST CLASS BOWE BERGDAHL, U.S. ARMY: Release me.
LEMON: He's accused of threatening the speaker of the House.
ELEANOR GIUSTI, MOTHER OF SUSPECT: Greg has -- frequently gets in with a group of people that have really radical ideas.
LEMON: Has the anti-Pelosi fanaticism reached a dangerous pitch?
And Tiger tees off at the Masters, the ghost of his father hovering in this soft-spoken new Nike ad.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP, AD)
EARL WOODS, FATHER OF TIGER WOODS: I want to find out what your thinking was.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: Plenty of you have something to say about this particular brand of marketing.
The lists you want to know about. Who's most intriguing? Who's making news on Twitter? Your national conversation starts now.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON: Hello, everyone, Don Lemon, in for Rick Sanchez.
Breaking news here on CNN. And, again, this is according to the Associated Press. This update on this breaking news was about this story that developed last night. We now know where Mohammed Al-Madadi was headed, right? That's the man who was on the airline, was detained, and all the passengers had to be detained. They said that he was smoking in the bathroom, the diplomat from Qatar who was picked up for smoking on a United Airlines flight. It was breaking news last night.
Air marshals turned him over. And the Associated Press, again, is now reporting that Al-Madadi was en route to visit an al Qaeda detainee. Let me just read the very latest for you that we're getting in here to CNN. This is according to a State Department official. Again, this is from the Associated Press, from Qatar says that the man he was going to visit was serving eight years in prison after pleading guilty last year to conspiring to support terrorism.
According to this State Department official, which I should say, again, is according to the Associated Press, it says that the man was visiting -- here's his name. He was going to meet Ali Al-Marri in prison. The consular officials say that officials there frequently foreigners held in the United States to make sure that they are being treated well.
So, again, he was going to visit someone who was in prison, this diplomat. And so I'm not exactly sure what that means for the charges for him, because they said there were going to be no federal charges, that they didn't believe that he was doing anything that was, you know, terrorist related.
Now it's coming out again that he was going to visit someone who is in prison and that he was an imprisoned al Qaeda agent, I should say.
So, listen, this is all just developing. We're just getting the information in. We have our sources there and our reporters checking on the information about this. And we will get you more right here on CNN on RICK'S LIST.
In the meantime, we have much, much more to talk about. It is hour two right now. It's time to pick up the pace of today's LIST.
For those of you who are now just checking in, number one, besides our breaking news, have you seen this commercial? Roll it.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP, NIKE AD)
EARL WOODS, FATHER OF TIGER WOODS: Tiger, I am more prone to be inquisitive to promote discussion. I want to find out what your thinking was. I want to find out what your feelings are. And did you learn anything? (END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: OK. So, I have to be honest with you. I was getting up this morning, getting dressed for work, and that commercial sort of stopped me in my tracks. I was like, wait, what is this? I wasn't sure if it was a commercial. Wasn't sure what it was.
So, what do you make of that, the voice of the late Earl Woods, Tiger Woods' father and mentor? It is a -- a stark black-and-white commercial put out by Nike on the eve of the Masters. It came out last night.
Peter Shankman has joined us before to talk about the effort to rebuild the Woods brand. He's with us today from New York. And he is branding and social media consultant -- a branding and social media consultant.
And, of course, here he is. He's our sports business analyst, Rick Horrow. He's going to join us live from Augusta National Golf Course.
Hello to both of you.
Rick, you're right?
RICK HORROW, CNN SPORTS AND BUSINESS ANALYST: Yes, sir. I'm here.
LEMON: OK. OK.
Rick, hey, listen, before we go to this ad, give us a quick update. Do you have an update on Tiger, how he's playing?
HORROW: Yes. He's one under after five, and he's being blown away by the wind, like everybody else. And Phil Mickelson, Tom Watson, Y.E. Yang, three big names, five under. I know we're not supposed to talk only about scores.
But this is huge. And then maybe your weather guys can tell us, but we have major storms coming. It is ironic that Tiger's round may be halted because of a lightning bolt from above.
(LAUGHTER)
HORROW: What do you think of that?
(LAUGHTER)
LEMON: Yes. We will see.
(LAUGHTER)
LEMON: Hey, I want to get back to you. I want you to hold that thought, because something happened that was -- that's making -- picking up a lot of juice, I should say, on the social networking sites, something that blew over Tiger while he's playing. All right, so let's get back. Let's talk about this commercial.
Mr. Shankman, this commercial, some people like it. A lot of people don't. They think it's sort of taking Tiger's father's words out of context, not only to rebuild his image, but to make money, not only for him, but for Nike. What do you say to that?
PETER SHANKMAN, BRANDING AND SOCIAL MEDIA CONSULTANT: Well, the overwhelming -- the overwhelming response to the ad on my Twitter stream this morning when I posed the question was, creepy. That's what a lot of people said.
But, you know, two things -- two things really struck me about this ad. The first one is that Nike -- Nike has tons of different sports. They have baseball, soccer, football. But, when it comes to golf, it's only Tiger. All they have is Tiger. They have no other way to go in the golf world except for Tiger.
So, I think, somebody -- somebody -- I don't think anyone's brought this up. This was more an apology on Nike's behalf. Tiger Woods can't come out and do a new fist-pump ad for Nike until they clear the air.
LEMON: Well, wait.
(CROSSTALK)
LEMON: What do you mean?
(CROSSTALK)
SHANKMAN: Now, was it -- was it a --
LEMON: What do you mean this was an apology for --
SHANKMAN: Well, meaning -- meaning that -- meaning that if -- if -- if Nike -- Nike can't go anywhere. Nike -- you know, Gillette can dump Tiger Woods. You can find another person to shave, OK?
But Nike -- everything Nike has in their -- in their golf world surrounds Tiger Woods. And -- and they can't just go and say we're going to get rid of this or we're going to do this. This was an ad, it was designed to shock, which it did. It was designed to get everyone talking about it, which it did.
But it was also designed to say, hey, you know what? Tiger did something wrong. He's going to come on and we're going to -- and we're going to show him that, you know, we're his sponsor. We pay him. We're not going to let him off the hook easy either.
And they came up with this. And I would have loved to have been a fly on the wall when they brought this to his -- they brought this to his staff for -- their idea. Hey, I have got a great idea. What do you say we bring the voice of your deceased father? I mean, it would have been ridiculous. But it's this ad that shows, hey, everyone remembers getting rebuked by their father. I -- as soon as I saw this ad, I remembered when I was 6 years old and my dad caught me doing something and told me how disappointed he was in me. It was the worst feeling in the world.
(CROSSTALK)
LEMON: So, you're -- are you telling us that Tiger had to sign on to this, that he had to say, OK, yes, you can use my father's words, in order for them to do this?
SHANKMAN: I think -- I think, if he wanted to push back, he could have. But I think that it was more along the lines of someone at Nike said, hey, you know what? Get this out there. It will bring a ton of publicity.
Think about it. They can't go on and they can't do publicity about, we love Tiger, and he's awesome, and he's playing. But they can do this, which gets everyone talking about what? Nike and Tiger Woods.
(CROSSTALK)
LEMON: All right, I'm going to ask you this question.
(CROSSTALK)
LEMON: Hey, hang on, Rick.
(CROSSTALK)
LEMON: I'm going to ask you this question now, Peter. And then I will ask you again after I talk to Rick. So, do you think it will be effective, effective enough to help him or to, I don't know, save him in some sense or elevate him back to close to the level he was?
SHANKMAN: I have said this before. What's going to elevate Tiger back to the level he was is what elevated him in the first place. He needs to win golf games.
LEMON: All right. So, but --
SHANKMAN: At the end of the day, if he's winning golf games, it won't matter. It won't matter. The people who care about the sex scandal --
LEMON: Does this help or hurt at all, though?
SHANKMAN: I don't think it's going to hurt him. People are going to think it's creepy, but they're going to get over it. It aired for one day. We're talking about it more than it ever aired before.
LEMON: OK.
(CROSSTALK)
SHANKMAN: The media is talking about it a lot more than it ever aired before.
LEMON: Yes, I know. So, I said most people probably have not seen this, especially people who are out on the golf course.
SHANKMAN: Yes.
LEMON: And I just happened to run across it this morning just --
(CROSSTALK)
SHANKMAN: And we saw the kind of reception he got on the field today, so -- on the green today.
LEMON: I have witnessed it myself just two days ago.
So, stand by, Peter.
OK, Rick, you're itching to get in here. What do you want to say?
HORROW: Well, what I was going to say is that I must have talked to 20 or 30 players around the practice area today. And a lot of their agents and a lot of the key people at the PGA Tour, there's a special area. You were there two days ago. You saw it. There's kind of an oak tree where everybody congregates.
Every single person was talking about that ad. And you're right, designed to shock, designed for awareness. The cynics in us would say that Nike, like EA, because they are partners with Tiger, not just endorsers, you know, they're -- they're stuck with him, good or bad.
And you only get one opportunity to start repairing your image. And they went for the brass ring. This is a controlled environment inside the ropes and outside. But now it's a fairly controlled environment on your TV set.
LEMON: OK, Rick, hey, can -- let's talk about this, Rick and Peter.
Rick, I'm sure you may have seen this, because a lot of our crews saw it. Let's take a look at this picture.
(LAUGHTER)
HORROW: Yes, I saw it.
(CROSSTALK)
LEMON: -- this morning. Let me -- let me show it real quickly. And then we can talk about it.
So, you know Tiger's a Buddhist. And he said, you know, he fell away from his Buddhism and that's what happened. (LAUGHTER)
LEMON: So, this thing flies over. It says, "Tiger, did you mean bootyism?"
So, Rick, reaction from the folks on the ground there?
HORROW: Well, reaction -- and let me give you the context of it.
So, this is about 1:40. He tees off at 1:42. This is probably the most pristine temple of golf.
LEMON: Yes.
HORROW: And every single news person, including all the big executives, some stuffy, some not, PGA Tour, are looking up at this small plane with this phrase.
And it was quite amazing, because, in all of the efforts that -- the 365 guards on the ground, the security here, the double-checking of the credentials -- I got hit with that, too -- everybody, they must have let a small plane in with a sign that sparked a lot of fun, I will tell you.
LEMON: Yes.
HORROW: I should -- probably shouldn't laugh at it, but it was -- it was very interesting.
LEMON: OK. Hold that thought. And maybe they should -- you know, the people at Augusta should start talking about air rights, if they haven't already.
(LAUGHTER)
(CROSSTALK)
LEMON: So, listen, Peter, you know, you can do it -- as big an ad as you want, spend as much, bring back Tiger Woods' dad, whatever you want. But now it's a different game with social media, because this is all over social media.
And you can bet everyone is going to play it tonight. Does it counter what this ad was intended to do?
SHANKMAN: You know, it depends on who did the ad -- or -- I'm sorry. The Tiger ad, yes. I mean, it's not going to counter it, per se. People are going to talk about it.
But, again, in a day-and-a-half after the Masters are over, the people who like golf are going to continue to follow Tiger. And the people who are interested in it for the scandal are going to fade away.
LEMON: All right. SHANKMAN: So, what they -- what they did was, they brought this up. Now it's going to go away. Let's see how Tiger performs on the -- on the -- on the grass.
LEMON: This is just one ad, but I would assume -- you know, I would assume that there's going to be more of this to come. That was my way of asking you the question again of what I asked, do you think it will work?
Peter Shankman, thank you very much.
Enjoy yourself. Get one of those big Masters or Augusta umbrellas, the green and white ones, and keep yourself dry, OK, Rick Horrow?
HORROW: Yes. I will see you soon.
LEMON: All right.
HORROW: I will see you on the weekend.
LEMON: Thank you, guys.
(CROSSTALK)
HORROW: All right.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOHN ROBERTS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Is it just one of those things that, when you're in a coal mining family, you have to deal with?
PAM NAPPER, SON KILLED IN MINING DISASTER: You just deal with it. I have been in a coal mining family all my life. It's just something that West Virginia's all about.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: At this hour, West Virginia is all about hope. And we're still waiting for word on the fate of the four men trapped underground. Well, we know there has been a setback in that search. We're going to have details straight ahead.
And look at that, powerful pictures -- pictures coming in from Brazil today, epic mudslides rolling right through neighborhoods in Rio. It's just -- look at all that. We're going to get a bit of a closer look in a bit. There is historic flooding, too. And we will bring you those pictures. That is straight ahead.
Plus, our breaking news on that smoking diplomat. THE LIST scrolls on.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)
CALLER: Hey, Rick, this is Rodney (ph) from Florida.
With all that's going on with Tiger, you will see, this weekend, he will pull off a Masters win, and Tiger mania will be right back where it was.
(END AUDIO CLIP)
LEMON: All right.
Resetting the nuclear relationship, it happened today in Prague, when President Obama and Russian President Dmitry Medvedev signed the new START treaty. It will leave each side with 1,550 nuclear warheads after seven years, levels not seen since the early 1960s.
But it's not quite a done deal, not just yet. The treaty has to be ratified by lawmakers in both countries before it takes effect. Not sure of the timing of that.
So, why don't we check in now with our senior White House correspondent, Ed Henry. He is in Prague following this story.
Ed, how big of victory is this for President Barack Obama?
ED HENRY, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, it's pretty big, because I remember a year ago this week being right here in Prague, when the president gave that big speech, you know, laying out his vision for a nuclear-free world down the road. A lot of people scoffed around the world. And, a few months later, he won the Nobel Peace Prize. And critics again said, well, wait a second, why is he winning that? He hasn't accomplished anything yet, especially on foreign policy.
And then here he is, after sort of sticking with it doggedly, month after month, negotiating with his Russian counterpart. He finally did get a victory here. So, in private and in public, White House aides are -- are not being shy about saying they think this is a big victory. And I think it's significant as well that you noted that, even after these reductions, they're still going to have significant stockpiles on each side.
And the president addressed that today. He basically suggested this may just -- just be the first of several treaties.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: It is just one step on a longer journey. As I said last year in Prague, this treaty will set the stage for further cuts. And going forward, we hope to pursue discussions with Russia on reducing both our strategic and tactical weapons, including non-deployed weapons.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HENRY: First, though, they have got to get -- they obviously have to get this treaty ratified first. It needs 67 votes in the U.S. Senate. That means you can't just do it with Democrats, like they largely did on health care. You need 67 votes. You need a lot of Republican votes.
White House aides, in private, are saying that they don't have the votes right now, but they're feeling pretty good. They know it's going to take a lot of hard work. But a lot of these treaties over the years have had bipartisan support, well over 90 votes out of 100 in the U.S. Senate. They're confident, after a few weeks, a few months down the road here, they're going to get this -- Don.
LEMON: All right, so, a few weeks, a few months, that answers the timing part of it.
So, let's talk about the substance of the start and what did it really accomplish, Ed?
HENRY: Well, I think, when you talk about those reductions, clearly, each side will still have large stockpiles. But if you -- if you rewind just a couple of days, when the White House came out with this new policy, a lot of people were scratching their heads -- what's this new document about, their nuclear posture?
And the White House was basically saying the new policy was that if other nations sign a non-proliferation agreement and say that they won't start building nuclear weapons, the U.S. will agree in advance not to use nuclear weapons on those nations, even if they use biological and chemical weapons against the U.S.
Some conservatives were criticizing the president. Bottom line is, the answer from the White House is, look, if you want to reduce nuclear weapons around the world, you have got to set a good example.
And I think that's the most important message from this, is the White House trying to say, we're not just going to tell other people what to do. We're going to start right in the U.S. and start reducing these stockpiles big time -- Don.
LEMON: Thank you, Ed Henry. Certainly is a beautiful setting behind you. We appreciate it.
HENRY: It is.
LEMON: We will see you soon back here stateside.
HENRY: Thanks, Don.
LEMON: The House speaker has become a target of a lot of rage, a whole lot of rage. What motivated the latest threat, though? Who allegedly made it? And who has come out as the voice of the calm? That's straight ahead.
And heartbreak for the family of Olympic skater Nancy Kerrigan. Her brother is now charged in connection with the death of her father. We will tell you about it next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: Let's get you caught up on some other stories here on RICK'S LIST.
Former figure skater Nancy Kerrigan's brother indicted today on manslaughter charges in his own father's death. Mark Kerrigan has been charged with assault and battery. Prosecutors say Mark Kerrigan was intoxicated when he got into a fight with his father in late January.
They say he grabbed his father around the neck, causing a compression fracture in the older man's larynx. Kerrigan is set to be arraigned tomorrow. An attorney for the family says they don't think Kerrigan is responsible for his father's death and they disagree with the decision to indict him.
And there is this. He's the only known American soldier missing from the war in Afghanistan. A recording was posted on a radical Islamic Web site. We don't know when it was made. We see a man purported to be Private 1st Class Bowe Bergdahl.
On the one hand, it is a comfort, a sign that this American soldier might still be alive. He was captured last June. But it is also heartbreaking and it's infuriating as well. Private 1st Class Bowe Bergdahl is clearly under duress as he speaks about his family and pleads for his release. He's clearly being coached and being used for propaganda.
A man accused of threatening Speaker Nancy Pelosi makes a court appearance, but still a lightning rod for a whole lot of anger. We're going to dig much deeper. And there she is with that person right there. She knows her stuff, Gloria Borger.
(LAUGHTER)
LEMON: Don't go anywhere.
After the break, there's Gloria.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: You know, it has happened again. Another person is accused of threatening a member of Congress in the wake of the health care fight.
This time, it is a San Francisco man accused of threatening House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. Forty-year-old Gregory Giusti is accused of making harassing and threatening calls to Pelosi's home and office, and even her husband's office.
Now, we -- he wept, I should say, in a court hearing today. Magistrate has ordered interviews to see if he is mentally competent and can be released to a halfway house. So, we will be following that.
So, whatever the motivation, Pelosi has certainly become an even bigger political lightning rod since the health care debate. Now, I want you to look at the extra security just yesterday in San Francisco as Pelosi gave a speech there. Since the health care bill passed, three people have been arrested for threats against lawmakers. But the House speaker says, it's nothing new to her.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. NANCY PELOSI (D-CA), SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE: It's as old as our country itself. These arguments go back hundreds of years. The -- I would not say that any actions on the part of my colleagues in Congress have exacerbated that situation.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: All right. So, let's bring in our senior political analyst, Gloria Borger.
Hello, Gloria.
GLORIA BORGER, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: How are you, Don?
(CROSSTALK)
LEMON: I'm doing great. I hope you are as well, a little bit of allergies.
BORGER: Yes.
LEMON: I should say a lot, but, you know, I'm fine.
(LAUGHTER)
LEMON: Fair to middling.
So, listen --
BORGER: Me, too.
LEMON: Pelosi says that this has been around as long as government. But, clearly, this seems to be a nastier climate, doesn't it? Or are we just paying more attention to it?
BORGER: Yes. It -- you know, it's a different kind of nasty.
I was thinking about this today and talking to some folks about it. If you go back to the early to mid-'90s, remember when the feds went into Waco, the Branch Davidian compound? And, of course, we can't forget the bombing in Oklahoma City.
And those were times when people became really anti-government and were suspicious of the government. I think the difference here, though, Don, is that it's become incredibly personal. Yes, people remain anti-government. And, yes, they're cynical about government, very often with good reason, I might add.
But now what we're seeing are things directed towards individual members of Congress and leaders of Congress, like Nancy Pelosi. So, that -- you know, that's something that I really don't recollect happening before.
LEMON: So, then why is she such a target then?
BORGER: Well, she's such a target, first of all, because she's a partisan. She's a liberal Democrat from San Francisco, the most liberal of Democratic places, the bluest of blues.
She's also somebody who's been outspoken. And, also, don't forget that Republicans have made her a target. They have done this for, you know, quite good political reasons, which is that she's quite unpopular.
LEMON: They're using her in campaign ads, right?
BORGER: Sure. They're using her in campaign ads. They have raised $1.5 million on their Web site. The Republican National Committee has a thing called "Fire Nancy Pelosi." They raised $1.5 million in small donations to do that.
Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid, the Democratic leader in the Senate, are both very unpopular. Now, I remember back when Republicans used this against former House Speaker Tip O'Neill. It didn't work for them. It eventually backfired.
But, you know, right now, she's a very ripe political target for Republicans, who don't want to go after Barack Obama as much, because, of course, he remains more personally popular in the country.
LEMON: Oh, OK.
BORGER: So, she becomes a little easier target.
LEMON: Yes. So, there's always a strategy behind it.
BORGER: Sure.
LEMON: So, an interesting moment I want you to listen to, Gloria. It's from Senator Tom Coburn. And it was -- it happened last weekend. A conservative Republican in the middle of the health care fight, he is.
BORGER: He defended Nancy Pelosi during a town hall meeting in Oklahoma. Listen to it. And then we will chat.
(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)
SEN. TOM COBURN (R), OKLAHOMA: I'm 180 degrees in opposition to the speaker. She's a nice lady. I don't think we can wait --
(LAUGHTER)
COBURN: Wait. Come on now.
She is a nice -- how many of you all have met her? She's a nice person. She's a nice person. You know, what -- let me give you a little lesson here. And I hope you will listen to me. Just because somebody disagrees with you doesn't mean they're not a good person.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: At first, I thought, is he being sincere or is it sarcasm? But it sounds -- at the end --
BORGER: No.
LEMON: -- it sounds like he was sincere.
Here's my question -- two -- real quickly. Are you surprised that he's the one saying turn down Nancy Pelosi? And with the midterms coming, do you think we're going to see more people saying, hey, stick to politics and not personal issues?
BORGER: You know, I'm not surprised he's saying turn down the heat, number one, because I know him. And it's somebody who I'm sure abhors people threatening other people.
And also, you know, once these members of Congress get together and actually don't demonize each other, but get to know each other, you know how that works. They actually begin to understand that people are humans.
And yes, is it going to get nastier? You bet. There's going to be lots of campaign money out there because of the recent Supreme Court decision, and lots of corporations will be spending money in congressional races. So you can expect an awful lot of negative advertising, sad to say.
LEMON: It's such a turnoff. I mean, in -- just, everything is about politics. But I've never seen it so partisan. That's a conversation for another day.
BORGER: It is. It is.
LEMON: Thank you, Gloria. Always good to see you.
BORGER: Sure. Thanks, Don. Good to see you.
LEMON: So, listen, there's some gunfire going on there. You can see. So you can add sporadic gunfire to the outbreak of violence in Kyrgyzstan. The U.S. has a big stake in the political meltdown over there.
We're going to drill down on that. That's just ahead.
And we'll catch up on the breaking news. That diplomat we have been telling you about, detained for trying to smoke on a plane, apparently headed to meet an imprisoned terrorist.
That's the latest update. We're working on new information for you. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: Breaking news here on CNN. And we want to update you.
We told you about this at the top of the hour. According to The Associated Press, you know that diplomat that was detained last night for allegedly smoking in a bathroom. His name is Mohammed Al-Madadi. He was headed from Washington, D.C., to Denver. The Associated Press is reporting that this diplomat from Qatar was on his way to visit a prisoner, an al Qaeda prisoner, when he was stopped by air marshals, when they had to scramble military jets, military fighters. Again, this is according to The Associated Press.
Al-Madadi was en route to visit an al Qaeda detainee. It was breaking news last night.
And then this morning came word that there wouldn't be any charges because he was a diplomat. People were outraged.
A new twist now. He was on his way to visit an al Qaeda prisoner.
Details to come. That's from The Associated Press. CNN is working on it as well.
In the meantime, let's show you this.
Can we hear this?
Nothing to hear here, but we want to show you that there are -- these are powerful pictures. It's coming from Brazil today. Epic mudslides rolling right through neighborhoods in Rio.
I want you to take a look at this. There is historic flooding, too. And we'll bring you those pictures straight ahead here on CNN.
Plus this --
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOHN ROBERTS, CNN ANCHOR: There were a couple of times where there was bad ventilation --
PAM NAPPER, SON KILLED IN MINING DISASTER: They sent him home early.
ROBERTS: -- not enough oxygen, buildup of gas, whatever it might have been, and they sent him home.
NAPPER: They sent the whole crew home.
ROBERTS: And what was your response when you heard that?
NAPPER: It scared me, because I've been raised all my life with coal mines. But, you know, we've never heard of explosions and things like this that's going on in the mines now. (END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: A miner's mother questions what happened in the days before the blast in West Virginia that killed her brother and her nephew. She's lost two people, not to mention a whole host of friends, I'm sure. It is an interview that will touch you, make you think, and give you insight to the life in coal mining country.
We'll have that and a live update on the rescue effort, next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: Let's get straight to the ground now in West Virginia and get an update on those trapped miners now. Families are waiting.
Brooke Baldwin, what's the update?
BROOKE BALDWIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: We're getting word now, Don, from the White House. President Obama officially putting some pressure on some of these federal mining officials, essentially tasking them like MSHA to produce an early assessment as to the cause of this blast out here at the Upper Big Branch mine. He wants that next week. Also wants to look into some of the safety violations that seem to be plaguing this mine owned by Massey Energy.
But, you know, we stand out here and we talk a whole lot also about the mining community. And I'd like to just share some pictures from a very silent procession down the main drag here in Naoma.
This is Coal River Road. There are about 200-plus people walking tearfully, wearing proudly their miner stripes, really in solidarity.
And I met a woman, actually, today who is part of what she calls the mining family. Her husband's a miner. Her great-granddaddy died in a mine.
She is Andrea Cook. Here's just part of her story.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANDREA COOK, HUSBAND WORKS FOR MASSEY: Whether we are related or we're not, we're all a mining family. We support each other. We're there for each other.
BALDWIN: Why is this emotional for you? You don't have a family member in there, a blood family member.
COOK: No. I have friends that are there. And, you know, we're close knit around here. You know, you see for yourself the area. We're bringing food to you, we support you. If you're good us to, we're good to you.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BALDWIN: And just a final update, Don. As far as the timeline, everyone is asking when will this rescue crew be able to re-enter this massive mine. We're hoping that will happen in about three hours. We'll find out definitively during the next press conference, happening at 7:30 Eastern Time -- Don.
LEMON: Brooke, thank you. Not only are people thinking about the men trapped in that mine, they're thinking about the families. So thank you so much for showing us that.
And as you can imagine, any family member -- this mother right here, her pain is still raw. But she wanted us to know about the son she lost in the mine explosion. Her heartbreak and fears in her own words, that is still ahead.
Plus, in Brazil, no relief from the flood of the century. Rio's been swamped with water and now mudslides. Incredible pictures, that's next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: Well, let's talk about our international list, shall we?
Search and recovery teams are trying to help victims right now after the worst floods to hit Brazil in several decades. More than 150 people are dead, and the mayor of Rio de Janeiro says 5,000 people are homeless.
Rio got slammed with a record amount of rain, more than 11 inches in 24 hours. And that's caused another disaster -- mudslides.
Look at this. It's a river of mud. Imagine what it's like to be living right there.
Emergency officials say about 200 people could be buried or trapped in that mud. Firefighters, military personnel, everybody is out helping. And they're using heavy machinery and they're trying to get to all the victims there.
We're going to keep watching this one for you. And you better believe we're going to update you.
The question right now: Who is in charge in Kyrgyzstan? The country is in turmoil, violently spinning out of control. You better believe the U.S. is keeping a close eye on this one.
That's next as THE LIST keeps scrolling on.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: All right. Listen, who's in charge in Kyrgyzstan? That answer is still not clear after bloody day of street fighting on Wednesday.
It's an important country to the U.S. because it's home to an American air base at the center of the Afghanistan effort. The president in Kyrgyzstan is hiding after the violent protests left 75 people dead. Did you hear that? Seventy-five people dead. He declared today he is still running the country and won't surrender. But opposition leaders said they were in control. And more gunfire broke out in the capital shortly after the president posted his comments.
The United States has closed the embassy there amid all of this fighting, and the State Department says dependants could be moved to the U.S. base because of concern for their safety. The White House has issued a statement urging calm to be restored and deploring the use of deadly force.
Listen, I have an update for you on that diplomat.
Remember the diplomat who was detained last night, accused of smoking in the bathroom? We told you what the report was from The Associated Press.
Guess what? CNN has confirmed even more. And we must say that this is according to our very own John King, and also his producer, Elise Labott.
They tell CNN that the Qatari diplomat involved in the incident on Wednesday aboard the flight to Denver -- it was from Washington, D.C., to Denver -- was on his way to visit a convicted terrorist.
The terrorist's name is Ali al-Marri. He's a Qatari citizen who pleaded guilty to providing material support for al Qaeda.
Now, the State Department official says that Mohammed Al-Madadi -- that is the diplomat -- at Qatar's embassy in Washington was on a routine consular visit to see al-Marri. Now, listen, here's the important thing.
And I want to know what that means. Does that mean -- some people are saying on social media that he should be expelled, this diplomat.
The source and another senior State Department official said that the State Department and the Qatari government agreed the best way to handle the matter was for the diplomat to be sent home. Sent home.
Is that to Qatar? I don't know. Maybe we can clear that up.
So, listen, sent home. I'm not sure if that means he was expelled, if he lives in D.C., if he was sent back there. But most likely, it means that he was sent back to Qatar. So we shall check on that again.
That's according to CNN John King and also a producer here at CNN, Elise Labott, exactly what happened on that flight and what's going to go on now.
Breaking news here on CNN.
Much, much more ahead coming up. Don't go away.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: Wolf Blitzer joins us now from Washington, what we call "The Wolf Pack."
Wolf, ,let's talk about that breaking news. You have information about this, that diplomat. They're saying he's being sent home. That's according to our John King here. He's being sent home.
What does that mean?
WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: That means that the government of Qatar decided he's probably not going to be a very effective diplomat serving here in the United States much longer, if any longer at all. And as a result, they're going to recall him to Doha, the capital of Qatar. And presumably, he'll continue his diplomatic career elsewhere.
But this was not very diplomatic, what he did aboard this United flight from Washington Reagan, into Denver. So, apparently, they decided his tenure here in Washington and the United States is going to be over and he's going to go back home.
LEMON: You know, a lot of people find it -- they're upset because at first it was announced there were no federal charges. And that's because he's a diplomat. He may be immune to that. They figured the best way to do it was to just let him go.
But then the parking tickets -- you know, there are other issues with diplomats. So you can understand the outrage from the American people a bit.
BLITZER: You can, but here's the problem. And it's a very sensitive issue.
There are thousands of American diplomats serving around the world in all sorts of governments, in all sorts of countries. Let's say 150 or 200 countries out there. There are embassies and consulates.
And, you know, some of those governments are not very good. They're pretty bad.
And so they have this notion that, you know, if the U.S. starts arresting diplomats who have diplomatic immunity and sends them to jail, they're going to do the same thing to our diplomats serving around the world. As a result, diplomatic immunity grew up over these decades, over these years, as a tradition, because you don't want our diplomats, whether serving in Europe or Africa or Asia or South America, to simply be picked up on some trumped-up charge and go to jail. They want to have diplomatic immunity as well.
That's why this has resulted. I know it's obnoxious and it generates a lot of concern. But it's designed to protect American foreign service officers serving around the world.
LEMON: Hey, Wolf, let's go to New Orleans now. And I know you're going to be talking about this, because there's a big southern conference down there. And it's not only who will possibly run in 2012. Michael Steele may find out how they actually really feel about him.
BLITZER: Yes, there's a real split among rank-and-file Republicans, the leadership of the Republican Party, about the Republican Party chairman. I heard Rudy Giulianni on my show this week give him a strong vote of confidence. Alex Castellanos, one of our CNN contributors, a Republican strategist, basically saying it's time for Michael Steele to go.
LEMON: Sarah Palin is supporting him though, Wolf.
BLITZER: Yes. Well, you know, Sarah Palin's a very, very influential Republican out there. And certainly looking ahead to 2012, her name is out there, very, very much out there. So what she says influences a lot of conservatives, a lot of Republicans. And if she says Michael Steele should stay, that's going to be significant.
LEMON: Wolf Blitzer, thank you. We'll see you right at the top of the hour, just in a few minutes.
BLITZER: All right, Don.
LEMON: Hey, listen, we want to go now -- we're talking about a miner's mother. She believes her son knew what was going to happen.
Her name is Pam Napper. She lost three loved ones in the blast -- 25-year-old son, Joshua, his cousin, Cory Davis (ph), and his uncle, Timmy Davis (ph).
CNN's John Roberts talked with Pam Napper about her son's premonition, her mother's intuition, and who she blames for the mine blast.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ROBERTS: What were your feelings when he came to you and said, mom, I want to be a miner?
PAM NAPPER, SON KILLED IN MINING DISASTER: Honestly, at first, I said, no. I didn't want him to come. My brothers were there. My brothers have been hurt several times in the mines. And I begged him not to, but he said, "Please, mom."
And then, I said, "OK, you're 25. I have to let you go. I have to let you make your own decisions in life."
And so I gave my brother my blessing. My brother had to have blessings from me first before he would hire him. And I gave him my blessings. He come home that weekend and --
ROBERTS: At Easter?
NAPPER: At Easter. He wanted to come home and be with his family. He went to church with us and he kind of fought things in church.
He actually got up and left church and come back in. And they called on us just to bow our heads and whoever needed Jesus in their lives, raise their arms, and he did. And for some reason, they called an altar call, which they don't do that all the days.
Josh just jumped up out of there and he went and got saved and really, really got saved. He grabbed my hand and he says, "Mom, I love you." I said, "I love you too, Josh. I always love you."
And I told him -- I said, "Don't let loose of God." He said, "Oh, mom, I'm not. I'm going to hold on to God like I've never held on to him before." And then when he went home, he loaded up and went home. He left Jennifer a letter.
ROBERTS: Jennifer?
NAPPER: His girlfriend and Jenna.
ROBERTS: His daughter.
NAPPER: Yes. I can't tell you everything in it. I can't remember. It was his long writing of his little handwriting.
He said, "If anything happens to me, I'll be looking down from heaven at you all. I love you. Take care of my baby. Tell her that daddy loves her. She is beautiful. She is funny and just take care of my baby girl," and said, "Jennifer, I love you."
ROBERTS: Did he have a sense about things?
NAPPER: I really feel that he did. I was just sitting on the coach that morning, Monday. And I just felt in my heart and my stomach that something was definitely wrong.
ROBERTS: There were a couple of incidents at the mine where he was sent home?
NAPPER: Yes.
ROBERTS: What happened?
NAPPER: He got to come home early last week. I can't remember exactly what day it was, but he calls me every day when he gets off of work.
I said, "What did you call me? It's just 3:30. What are you calling me for? You are supposed to be working." He said, "Mom, bad ventilation in the mines."
ROBERTS: Bad ventilation in the mines?
NAPPER: Yes. They sent us home early. I think happened again, the best I can remember. And I know they have worked up in some water and things. But I just feel in my heart, because this was last week when Josh said bad ventilation, and I just think he knew what was going to happen.
ROBERTS: So there were a couple of times where there was bad ventilation?
NAPPER: They sent him home early.
ROBERTS: Not enough oxygen, buildup of gas, whatever it might have been, and they sent him home.
NAPPER: They sent the whole crew home.
ROBERTS: What was your response when you heard that?
NAPPER: It scared me, because I have been raised all my life with coal mines. We never heard of explosions and things like this that are going on in the mines now. It scared me.
ROBERTS: Do you have any questions for the operators of the mines?
NAPPER: No, no. I just know there were things there that wasn't right. But I know my brother would never endanger my son or his brother or his own son there.
I think it was just a freak accident. I think something just happened. I don't really know. I don't know if someone didn't do their job testing, because, you know, you can't smell it. You can't taste it.
I think when they shift -- the next shift, Josh and them was getting ready to come out. When they changed shifts, the spark off of that wheel just blew it.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON: I'm Don Lemon.
Time now for "THE SITUATION ROOM" and Wolf Blitzer.
