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Rick's List

Interview With Florida Senator Bill Nelson; More U.S. Troops Heading to Southern Border?; History Teacher Allows Students to Dress as KKK Members; NFL Announces 2014 Super Bowl at New Jersey Meadowlands; Burning and Looting in Kingston; Immigration Backlash Costs Arizona; Drug Recall

Aired May 25, 2010 - 16:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

RICK SANCHEZ, CNN ANCHOR: You know, we don't know if it was Korea and the tensions there or the situation in Europe, but we do have someone who might be able to at least tell us what happened as a result of whatever it was that started these problems all over the world.

From the moment we woke up today, we heard that the markets are just down. I mean, name a place. The markets were down. And now the question is, what's it going to do here in the States?

Poppy Harlow, by golly, joining us now to let us know what's going on over there.

What do you got, Poppy?

POPPY HARLOW, CNNMONEY.COM: Rick, you know, it's so interesting. I woke up about 5:30 this morning, looked at European markets, looked at Asian markets, down severely across the board, and I thought oh, boy, is it going to be a day here in the U.S. for the markets?

But I got to tell you, let's pull up the Big Board, because the improvement we have seen is dramatic. The Dow started the day down about 292 points. It is now off just 22 points. There you see it --

SANCHEZ: Not bad.

HARLOW: -- the Dow off just about 20 points.

Rick, the S&P 500, which is even more important to watch, because it's a gauge of many more stocks --

SANCHEZ: Yes.

HARLOW: -- 500 stocks, just crossed the line into positive territory. So, that's in the green, and the Nasdaq is down slightly.

I just talked to about 10 different traders on the floor. What they told me was -- you're right, Rick -- a lot of concerns about Europe. We usually don't pay attention to Spanish banks, but we are right now, because one of their main banks was just taken over by the Spanish Central Bank today, the concern, debt problem, how can they deal with it. It's not just Greece anymore. But it's very interesting to see all the major averages in the U.S. really, really recovering, Rick, today.

(BELL RINGING)

(CROSSTALK)

HARLOW: The closing bell just ringing on Wall Street. This is a phenomenal ending to what started out as an abysmal day across global markets. Let's watch and see what happens when Asia's markets open here in just a few hours, but a pretty good ending to --

SANCHEZ: Yes.

HARLOW: -- to just an insane day on Wall Street.

SANCHEZ: It's what I always say about conventional wisdom.

(LAUGHTER)

SANCHEZ: Everybody was saying all day long --

HARLOW: All day.

SANCHEZ: -- oh, the big story's going to be the market. It's going to be so far down. It's between to be unbelievably bad.

HARLOW: Right.

(LAUGHTER)

SANCHEZ: Look at this. What, 20? Down 20? That's -- that's not abysmal.

Good job, Poppy.

HARLOW: We will take it.

SANCHEZ: Thanks for staying on top of this all day.

And as we hear the bell on Wall Street, that means it's time for hour two.

Hit it, Rog.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SANCHEZ (voice-over): And here's what's making today's LIST.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm not seeing BP coming to help me save my heritage yet. You are not going to replace me being able to teach my kid how to fish. How can you replace that?

SANCHEZ: Angry Louisianans getting angrier still.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And it is not just money. It's more than money.

SANCHEZ: Twenty-four hours from trying to plug the leak with a top kill, but has the damage been done? Is this now an institutional crisis? I'm asking.

Students allowed to dress as Klansmen for a school project, and their teacher says this:

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And I don't cover it up. You can't discuss racism and not include the Klan.

SANCHEZ: Arizona down at least $90 million and counting in tourism because of the new immigration laws. One hotel alone gets 4,000 cancellations. Is that fair?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: A dark moment in our history.

SANCHEZ: Phoenix's mayor goes public on CNN.

The lists you need to know about. Who's today's most intriguing? Who's landed on the list you don't want to be on? Who's making news on Twitter? It's why I keep a list.

Pioneering tomorrow's cutting-edge news right now.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SANCHEZ: And welcome back.

We are, as you probably know, less than 24 hours now from top kill. That's the idea of trying to somehow finally plug that situation that we have been following in the Gulf of Mexico, which is turning into an environmental catastrophe, according to many of the experts that we have interviewed.

One of the things we want to do is continue to see this picture. You see this right here? For those of you joining us now, that is a live streaming video of what it looks like 5,000 feet below the surface of the Gulf of Mexico. That's the leak as it continues now on its 36th or 37th day. I don't know.

Chad, do you know? Thirty-six -- 36, I think, yes. Tomorrow's 37.

So, as we look at this, I want you to know that there's a new controversy that has erupted. And it is this. Should we, tomorrow, when BP starts this operation, which could last as long as 10 hours, to get that giant apparatus in place, should you, as an American, be able to see it as it happens? Should you be able to continue to watch that streaming video?

There is the suggestion, the intimation today that BP's going to cut that video while they're doing this operation, that they're just going to take it off, black screen, you're not going to be able to see it. We understand Ed Markey from Massachusetts is pressuring them to try and get them to continue it, to not stop it. We just learned the White House is doing the same.

And the guy who has been leading the charge from the very beginning on this is Florida's own Senator Bill Nelson. And he's joining us by phone to bring us up to date on what's going on.

Senator Nelson, thanks for being with us, sir.

SEN. BILL NELSON (D), FLORIDA (via telephone): Hey, Rick. Good afternoon.

SANCHEZ: What have you learned? What do you know? What can you tell us?

NELSON: Well, we understand BP is saying that they are reconsidering going dark. And we certainly hope so.

They said they want to be accountable, they want to be responsible, and we certainly want them to be transparent. And there has been a lot of question about whether or not they have been transparent in the past five weeks.

And, so, if they pulled the plug on this video during this operation, which we are prayerfully hopeful that they are going to be successful, but, if they pull the plug, then, again, it just -- it works against them on the transparency and accountability. And -- and we simply have got to demand that they do more.

SANCHEZ: Well, we can't, but -- well, I was about to say, maybe you can. You're a U.S. senator, but, you know, I'm sitting here thinking, they're a corporation in a country where free trade exists, and, really, you know, they can do whatever they want to do.

I'm not sure, really, constitutionally speaking here -- and I'm not a lawyer -- that neither you, nor Ed Markey, nor Barack Obama can really tell them what to do. I suppose the best you can do is try and convince them or ask them to. Am I wrong?

NELSON: This is not a constitutional matter. This is a matter of whether or not they're going to have any credibility left, Rick.

And if they were to pull the plug, and then this thing not work tomorrow, you can imagine they may as well pack up and go home. And, of course, lord knows they can't do that, because they are the ones that seem to have the technology to get this thing stopped, but if it doesn't work tomorrow, then we're looking at this thing continuing to gush until August. And you know what kind of damage that will do. It will cover up the Gulf.

SANCHEZ: Yes, and my home state.

Do you know if, definitively, they have come out and said they're going to cut the signal or is there -- because it seems to me, from our reporting and from our sources, that they're perhaps suggesting they might do it, but they have not definitively said that they're going to do it.

Where are they?

NELSON: I will give them the benefit the doubt.

The most recent message is that they are considering what they're going to do. That shouldn't be a question. As much as they have been damaged, in the eyes of the world -- and -- and look at it this -- you know how they drug their feet, that they never wanted to give us the video live in the first place. Well, we see why. Because, once we saw it, we knew that there's a lot more oil gushing into the Gulf than what they were saying when they were minimizing.

SANCHEZ: Senator, I have got one more question for you. And this one has to do with what is starting to look and certainly being suggested as being an institutional problem, not just a problem of this leak, but moving forward.

I mean, I have written, myself, a series of questions that -- that I have seen asked by myself and others, like, why -- why is this industry allowed to drill so deep? Where was the regulation to check them? Where were the safeguards? Where were the controls? Why does it seem like, as in this case, they're allowed to call their own shots on something that ends up affecting all of us?

So, my question to you is, moving forward, have we realized as a result of this example, have you realized as a U.S. senator, that the way we have dealt with this -- these type of industries may be an institutional problem that we are going to need to fix with the help of people like you?

NELSON: Absolutely.

Your questions are all extremely legitimate and timely, but, Rick, I was asking these questions back in 2006 to 2008. And we know -- with the inspector general's report that was just released this morning, we know that it was sex and drugs and trips and gifts and all of that going on in this Minerals Management Service, which is the regulator of big oil drilling deep. And we see the result of the lack of that regulation.

SANCHEZ: Yes, you're talk --

NELSON: And we're paying the consequence.

SANCHEZ: You're talking about the Minerals Management agency, a part of the -- the Interior Department --

NELSON: That's correct.

SANCHEZ: -- which has had to face and deal with those allegations that you just mentioned.

Senator, always good to talk to you, sir. Thanks for hustling and getting on the phone and getting that information to us. We appreciate it. NELSON: Thanks, Rick.

SANCHEZ: All right.

NELSON: See you.

SANCHEZ: Senator Bill Nelson from the Sunshine State, from the state of Florida.

Chad joining me now.

Chad, do me a favor. We were talking about scope. And scope is important to this story, because a lot of people are asking me and asking you, well, you guys keep showing us these pictures of a little oil here, and a little pelican over here, and a turtle over there. How big is this thing? What's the scope of it?

Can you get us to understand that?

CHAD MYERS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: I'm going to take you to Monroe County, Florida.

SANCHEZ: All right.

MYERS: I know very well. I know you know it -- I know you very well.

SANCHEZ: That's Key West, the Florida Keys.

MYERS: To me, it's Marathon, but I do get down to Key West, but I get down to Marathon a lot more.

(CROSSTALK)

MYERS: Here's your oil slick that was taken by the satellite today. You see the sheen on the water. Here's the end of the Mississippi Delta. There's the Mississippi River right there.

SANCHEZ: Uh-huh.

(CROSSTALK)

MYERS: -- still here.

Can't see it as well because it's a little bit browner and it's older oil, but that oil is also over here. This would be Grand Isle. So, now I'm going to take this off and I'm going to take what Google Earth did today. And they said, OK, you can take this and the put it over any location you want to, and you can show your viewers where it goes.

There are the Dry Tortugas. That's what, a 60-mile boat ride. Here's -- here's -- from (INAUDIBLE) all the way over to Vaca Key, which would be Marathon, right on up into Plantation and into Biscayne Bay. Now, this is not where the water is. If we would take this oil and plop it on top, this is how much of area it would cover. This would be the kill zone. This isn't the sheen. This is the kill zone. All of Florida Bay, all the way back through Cudjoe Key and through Key West as well and then out into the reef.

Now, luckily, Rick, it's not here yet. It isn't into the reef. And if -- you know, I know, I think, why BP doesn't want us to see the video of this happening, when it's possibly going to make matters worse, if it goes wrong.

SANCHEZ: That's big, though. What you're showing us, that's the first time I have been able to see an overlay of the spill over a place that I know. And you can do this for Schenectady. You can do this for Los Angeles County.

MYERS: Absolutely, yes.

SANCHEZ: You can do this in Cleveland or Pittsburgh, right?

MYERS: It's online. We did it. We plopped it right over the big island of Hawaii. We plopped it over all of Seattle, and it covered all the Puget Sound. Right -- we had it over Cleveland earlier, almost filling up most of Lake Erie. That's how big the kill zone is, not just the sheen zone. This is -- things are dead in here because there's so much oil in this much area.

SANCHEZ: We will see -- we will try and see if we can put that on my blog as well --

MYERS: OK.

SANCHEZ: -- because I know, like, people like to go to the blog after a while to see what's going on --

MYERS: Yes, it's a good link. It's easy.

SANCHEZ: -- to see our TwitVid as well. And we will see if we can get you that there.

Dave Johnson (ph), if you're -- if you're hearing me on that, let's see if we can put that up there, so people can put it wherever they live, as a matter of fact.

And you know what else, speaking of TwitVids, that I love to do, I want to know what your information is. You know, I'm following Twitter. And I know you guys have a lot to say between now and tomorrow morning, when they stop this -- start this top kill. Let me know when where you are as an American on what's going on in the Gulf of Mexico right now and my conversation that I just had with a very inspired Senator Bill Nelson.

Did you see what -- what -- what he seemed to be showing there? We will take you through that. Meanwhile, I also want you to take a look at this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This is a film about racism. And we have to discuss racism in our society, because, if we don't, we are condoning it. And I don't cover it up.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANCHEZ: Well, she doesn't cover it up, but how would you teach racism? Would you let your students roam the halls, eat in the cafeteria in Klan hoods and robes? Because that's what she did. It happened at a Georgia school. That's ahead.

Also, Detroit's former Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick in trouble again. The big guy's in trouble again. That's next right here on the LIST.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SANCHEZ: Welcome back.

And guess what we have now? Breaking news on immigration. This has to do with Arizona. The Obama administration seems to be responding to what Arizonans or at least officials in Arizona have been saying they want.

They said part of the reason they did the immigration laws that have been not received well by some around the country, but not all, obviously, is because they're swamped with problems having to do with people coming over the border.

So, just within the last hour, the Obama administration has decided to request for $500,000 dollars to send 1,200 additional National Guard members to the border with Mexico. That means that those National Guard members will be used in the interim until we can train even more specialized Border Patrol agents to go down there and do the job on not a temporary basis, but certainly on a permanent basis.

Now, this is brand-new information coming to the White House. Two things have happened since the president and the White House put out this information. A, we heard from Senator John McCain on the House floor, and, B, I reached out to the attorney general of Arizona, who told me in no uncertain terms, finally, the federal government is listening to us.

Here's a cut from both.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. JOHN MCCAIN (R), ARIZONA: Since I put this amendment together, we have been informed that the president will be asking for an additional $500 million to support border security, and up to 1,200 National Guard to the border.

I appreciate that. I think that it is a recognition of the violence on the border, which has been, really, beyond description in some respects, particularly on the Mexico side. I appreciate the additional 1,200 being sent of the Guard, as well as additional $500 million. But it is simply not enough. We need 6,000. We need 3,000 across the border, an additional 3,000 -- 3,000 National Guard troops to the Arizona/Mexico border.

And, Madam President, I say that because of my many visits to the border, my conversations with the Border Patrol, and the time it will take to train an additional 3,000 troops just for the Arizona/Mexico border.

TERRY GODDARD, ARIZONA ATTORNEY GENERAL: Senator McCain seems to be late to this party. We have been working from local law enforcement for the last 10 years on this problem of the cartel incursions in Mexico. They are highly sophisticated, highly organized, highly violent. And, yes, they are bringing lots of people and lots of drugs into the United States. We need to focus on them. And that's what the administration is doing with this -- this increase.

SANCHEZ: You just said Senator McCain is late to this party. He seemed to be very critical even of this initiative. Most people would look at that and say, well, he's Republican and this is politics. He is criticizing a Democratic president. Do you think there is more to it than that?

GODDARD: More than -- well, A, I have been beating the bushes for a long time in the last administration and now in this one, saying that we have a criminal problem on the border. Let's get serious about it. Let's go after the cartels, wherever they happen to be, both in the United States and Mexico.

There have been some efforts. The Merida Initiative is a significant piece. And this last announcement by the administration I think adds tremendous firepower to that effort to put boots on the ground at the border.

And, you know, if the senator is supportive of that, great. It's just he has been around a long time and we are now hearing new level of rhetoric from him.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANCHEZ: All right.

So, I also asked Goddard, the attorney general, whether he believes that this new federal help means that Arizona's law, the new immigration law they passed to make police officers do what many believe only federal agents and federal officers should do, do you need that law, now that the federal government is sending you so many more troops?

It's an interesting question. He handled it in an interesting way as well, didn't go as far as to say so. He certainly said it's a very important first start, but he told me that he didn't think that Arizona could even consider rescinding the new law that they put on the books until the second part of the equation comes in from the feds.

And that is some kind of comprehensive immigration reform to deal with the problem as a whole. So, in the meantime, the new Arizona law, the controversial law that we will talk about more during this newscast, stays.

Take a look at this. In Arizona, people are already talking about this. That's a tweet that we just got. And, obviously, all the representatives and all the congressmen and senators are dealing with this.

This is Harry Mitchell. He's a congressman from Arizona. He says: "The president to send 1,200 National Guard to border," as I just reported. "I asked last week for 3,000. It's a start."

He's a Democrat, by the way.

Hey, one other quick thing. I misspoke a little while ago. Obviously, it's $500 million that the president is requesting for these troops to be sent to the border. I think I mistakenly said $500,000 -- $500,000 would probably get you two cops.

A former mayor is making my roundup list of stories today. As a matter of fact, he's been in the news before. A judge has sentenced former Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick to a maximum of five years in prison. He violated probation for failing to report his assets. He's been in a lot of hot water over the last year. Kilpatrick pleaded guilty in 2008 to obstruction charges., a scandal most memorable for sexually explicit text messages that incriminated him.

All right, let me tell you what else we're going to be following for you over the course of this newscast. Some bloody and deadly clashes have escalated in Jamaica, as police have tried to take down an alleged drug lord there.

In fact, it's gotten so bad that a hospital has shut down as well. They say it's too dangerous to be even taking patients. We're going to have a live report on this from Rafael Romo. He just flew into Kingston, and he's live and he's ready to go for us. So, he's going to fill us in on what is going on there.

Also, take a look at this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You can't discuss racism and not include the Klan.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANCHEZ: A teacher's defense for students wearing Klan outfits in class. That's what she said. You can't discuss racism and not include the Klan. The problem is, they also wore their costumes in the hallways and in the cafeteria without telling African-American students who happened to be there eating what they were doing. Now, how far should she go to make a point and teach her lesson? I'm going to bring you the very latest on that, and also an important recall on -- recall -- pardon me -- on some Tylenol products. That's next. I'm Rick Sanchez. We're going to be right back.

What do you think of our new digs?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SANCHEZ: You're not going to believe what they just did. You're just not go to believe this.

(LAUGHTER)

SANCHEZ: The NFL -- no, don't put it up. Take that banner down. Take the banner down.

All right. Let me at least have some fun here and give this information. The NFL has just decided that the 2014 Super Bowl will be played in -- What do you think? Usually New Orleans, right? No. Tampa, right? No. Could it possibly be Miami? No. Are you ready? New York/New Jersey. They're going to play the NFL Super Bowl in the Meadowlands, as in possibly 10 feet of snow? What is this here?

Let's -- let's listen in to some of this. Maybe we will get a little bit of the reaction coming in now.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And now you have to actually put it into place?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You've got 20 people in this room toasting each other, deservedly so. They put in a lot of work to get us to this point. And we're -- our team is together. And, yes, there's a lot of work ahead of us, but to think about the possibilities gives us all the vision for the next three-and-a-half years, until February, 2014, when the greatest game in the world will be played on the greatest stage in the world.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Congratulations -- Rich, back to you.

SANCHEZ: There you go, New York City.

(LAUGHTER)

SANCHEZ: Who would have thunk it? New York City. I mean, these games are always played either in cold weather locales that have domes, or they're played in -- in warm places, you know, Miami; Phoenix, Arizona.

Look at this. They're cel -- this is the committee of New Yorkers who got together to try and pitch the NFL on holding it in New York City. And they're obviously high-fiving each other and congratulating each other.

Now, here's the problem, folks. I mean, new York is a great site. It's a great city. The Meadowlands is a wonderful stadium. All things considered, though, do you want to have a Super Bowl week that's filled with events, food festivals, gathering, galas, everything you could possibly -- in the United States Super Bowl week and all the events that come with it is like a giant festival. It may be one of the giant -- the most important festivals we have in the United States.

Do you want to do that if it's 20 below, or even 20 above --

(LAUGHTER)

SANCHEZ: -- and there's snow on the ground? That's the question that was asked. Obviously, the fans in the Northeast love it. Players, not so crazy about the idea, at least not the ones that I have heard who have been writing about this. They're saying they're excited about the possibility of playing in such a big place, obviously the biggest locale in the United States.

But do they want to deal with being in the snow for such an important game? And the final question is that's also been asked, which is an astute question, does it make it a different game? Does it make it a totally different game perhaps for one team that is used to playing in the snow, unlike the other team?

These are questions that everybody's going to work out. The fact is, it's official. The 2014 Super Bowl is going to be played in the Meadowlands in New York/New Jersey, coming as a surprise to most, but, nonetheless, the reality of the situation, and they are whooping and hollering.

All right, here's the announcement as it came in just a little while ago. Let's turn that around.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ROGER GOODELL, NATIONAL FOOTBALL LEAGUE COMMISSIONER: -- in February of 2014 will be played in New York/New Jersey.

(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANCHEZ: And there you have some of the Tampa officials who lost. I think it came down to the final two, Tampa and the New York/New Jersey area. And that's the decision. We will stay on top of it. If there's any more reaction, certainly, we will bring to you. What a story.

Obviously, I -- I played football in college. I love football. I'm surprised that they went with this decision. And I think a lot of people are going to be.

All right. A history lesson now that some North Georgia students will never forget. The problem is, it may be the wrong students who won't forget the lesson.

What's it time for now? It is time for the list that you don't want to be on.

Here's the deal. Catherine Ariemma is a history teacher at Lumpkin County High School in Georgia. She assigned her class a video project on historical mistakes. Four students decided to wear KKK outfit, yes, white sheets and pointy hoods and all.

Reports are, the kids dressed as Klansmen and then walked the hallways, even went in the lunchroom while some African-American students were eating -- some of the rare African-American students at that school, by the way. Those students had no idea what was going on.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, we were sitting in the lunchroom. And my little cousin taps me on the shoulder. He's also African-American, you know, and he was scared. Like, there was fear in his eyes. And I was like, what is it? And I looked up. And they just walked into the lunchroom in white sheets.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANCHEZ: No one in Mrs. Ariemma's class objected to the outfits, but it's important to note that no one in Mrs. Ariemma's class is African-American.

She is defending the project that her students' chose, and she tells us -- quote -- "As educators, it is important that we cover our history accurately. And, sometimes, that means we have to cover controversial subjects, because, if we don't do that, we condone them. As a society, we should be discussing this. It was never my intention to make anyone feel uncomfortable or threatened. And I'm sorry that this has occurred, but the discussion of racism needs to continue."

OK, activists say the teacher did not exhibit common sense, not because of the assignment itself, but because she didn't tell anyone in the school that kids were going to be walking around in KKK outfits in the hallways, and coming up to African-American kids who were eating in the cafeteria that didn't know what was going on, who complained to their parents.

That is why Catherine Ariemma today is on the list you don't want to be on.

Jamaican police are so far losing the fight against supporters of a suspected drug lord. Now, the standoff, we understand, has already killed dozens since we reported on this yesterday. A hospital has been shut down. More information is coming in on this compelling story every hour.

So, we have sent one of our best correspondents down there to know the area. He's going to be reporting from Kingston, flew in today, and will bring you the very latest.

Also, Jamaica's not the first country to be terrorized by drug kingpins. In fact, the man at the center of these riots wouldn't even make our list of the top five drug lords. Can you think of who they are?

Yes, Pablo Escobar is on the list. But who else? Who are the top five drug kingpins on our list today?

We'll scroll it for you in just a bit.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SANCHEZ: Hey, welcome back. I'm Rick Sanchez.

Have you seen what's going on in Kingston, Jamaica? I mean, you think of Jamaica as a tourist paradise, right? Well, you can probably still say that about a bunch of -- most of Jamaica, but not Kingston. Not on this day, not yesterday.

Let me show you some pictures of what's going on over there.

We can now confirm 27 deaths in clashes between government forces and armed gangs loyal to a an alleged drug thug. The guy's name is Christopher Coke. Yes, Coke, as in cocaine.

Coke has been indicted by a United States federal court. And since he was indicted, these clashes erupted amid reports of his impending extradition.

All right. Let's do this. I want to take you to Kingston, because Rafael Romo is standing by now, and he's going to bring us an update on what's been going on.

Is this thing under control yet, or is there still a melee in the streets?

RAFAEL ROMO, CNN LATIN AMERICA AFFAIRS EDITOR: Not necessarily, Rick.

Overnight, there was a massive operation against peoples, supporters of Christopher Coke, and this attack, once again, his compound in one of the most violent neighborhoods here in Kingston, Tivoli Gardens. He was not arrested, but as a result of this clash, about 30 people died, another 30 were injured.

Police telling us that more than 200 people were arrested, as far as the operation, but the main target who is this man, Christopher -- also known as Dudus -- Christopher Coke, has so far eluded authorities. It's a very volatile situation with many of his supporters blocking the streets.

Today, schools are closed here in Kingston. The American Embassy is not operating today because of the threat of violence. And it's definitely a very chaotic situation in some of the neighborhoods here in the capital of Kingston -- Rick.

SANCHEZ: That's unbelievable. I'll tell you, when you think -- the good news, though, if there can be good news in a situation like this, is it really does appear -- and you can confirm this for us, if you would -- that the rest of the country is not affected by this type of violence.

Correct, Rafael?

ROMO: That's right, Rick. In order to get to Kingston, we had to fly into Montego Bay last night. And as you know, that's one of the probably tourist destinations when it comes to Jamaica. It's completely safe as far as we saw.

The problem is here in Kingston, and it's isolated to two neighborhoods, Tivoli Gardens and Benim (ph), where most of the people are concentrated. They have barricaded themselves, and police are trying to get in. But these are people who are heavily armed, who are fiercely loyal to Christopher Coke, and who would do anything to really avoid the extradition of Coke to the United States.

SANCHEZ: It's amazing to think that that many people would risk their lives and be that loyal to an alleged drug dealer, but that's exactly what seems to be going on with people there taking to the street.

Rafael Romo, thanks so much for hustling down there and filing these reports for us today.

We've been drilling down deeper on breaking news out of the FDA. It's a recall of some Tylenol products. We'll break that down for you when we come back.

And I just add, my good friend Chad Myers, what exactly is the mean temperature? What's the average temperature in New Jersey and New York around Super Bowl time? Like, say, February 20th or something like that?

And he's got the numbers. And I can't wait to share them with you.

Enjoy the game, folks, if you go.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(WEATHER REPORT)

SANCHEZ: Here. Take a look at this video.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MAYOR PHIL GORDON (D), PHOENIX, ARIZONA: Unfortunately, the small businesses now have started to question whether they should be hiring. Large hotels are now starting to look at layoffs. The travel industry -- but it's way beyond the travel and the convention now.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANCHEZ: That's the mayor of Phoenix, Arizona.

You know, since they passed the controversial immigration law, they have paid the price -- he has paid the price. He says, look, we're losing millions and millions of dollars in tourism, we're dealing with boycotts. One hotel alone -- one hotel alone says it had 4,000 cancellations.

Doesn't seem deserved, but it's happening. We'll show what you he's saying.

Here's Brooke.

This is one of those trending topics that we follow, and she's got the facts on it.

You ready?

BROOKE BALDWIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I need to put a little something more in my hot chocolate in the Meadowlands, friend.

SANCHEZ: Fifteen degrees?

BALDWIN: I can't get over that.

SANCHEZ: Oh my goodness.

BALDWIN: That's crazy. Crazy.

SANCHEZ: Hey, they wanted it, they got it.

We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SANCHEZ: "Trending Topics" is what we call it. It's important because it's trending. It's what people are talking about. It's on blogs, it's from Twitter. It is what is on e-mails.

And Brooke follows it and then brings you up to date on it.

BALDWIN: Right. So both of my stories trending today have to do with Arizona, and maybe those 1,2000 National Guardsmen can help out the Phoenix mayor.

But he was talking on CNN this morning.

SANCHEZ: You feel for the guy.

BALDWIN: Yes, you kind of do. I mean, given this controversial illegal immigration law, Phoenix Mayor Phil Gordon, he's been speaking out about how this new law is really affecting his city in term of dollars and cents.

And here's what he told CNN this morning. His state has lost 12 conventions already, many of them in Phoenix. A whole lot of hotel reservations being cancelled. In fact, yesterday, 4,000 rooms gone at just one resort.

I want you to listen to what he told our John Roberts on "AMERICAN MORNING." (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GORDON: Most of our revenue, about 60 percent, comes from the sales tax from the hotel rooms and the car rentals and the stores. So it's -- you know, certainly for a city that had the most job losses and the biggest foreclosures, this is just an economic disaster in the happening.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: So, this double whammy, he was estimating, could cost the state of Arizona about $90 million.

SANCHEZ: And you've got another Arizona story, by the way.

BALDWIN: Yes. Did you see this? This University of Arizona professor booed while giving a commencement speech.

Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PROF. SANDRA SOTO, UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA COMMENCEMENT SPEAKER: The new Arizona law generally known at SB-1070 is considered the strictest anti-immigrant legislation in the country and is explicitly intended to drive --

(BOOING)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: Wow.

SANCHEZ: She got called some nasty stuff.

BALDWIN: She did. She's gotten a whole lot of e-mails, Sandra Soto. And she is an associate professor of Gender and Women's Studies and the scholar of Latino literally theories. She said that she thought it was her responsibility to use her 10-minute speech to critique two recently passed laws. That being immigration.

And we've talked about the ethnic studies, right? So, since her speech, you mentioned she's gotten this barrage of e-mail, hateful, even some death threats.

I did reach out to her. I never got a call back. But this is what Professor Soto told Inside Higher Education about her speech. I want to read it to you.

She said, "My work is in Chicana cultural studies, so it is my obligation if I'm going to be up on stage. I feel it is my absolute responsibility to address these issues."

But in reading some of the criticism, a lot of people are saying, hang on, she hijacked this commencement speech, she should not be talking politics at graduation. SANCHEZ: Good arguments on both sides. And they'll continue to be said, and we'll continue to hear these things on all of this.

BALDWIN: They will. Yes.

SANCHEZ: And the latest, as you heard, is the Obama administration is now going to come forward and come up with the money for 1,200 National Guardsmen --

BALDWIN: Twelve hundred National Guardsmen.

SANCHEZ: -- on the border. We'll see if that alleviates things or not.

Thanks so much. Good stuff.

BALDWIN: Thanks.

SANCHEZ: The oil mess in the Gulf has been trending more than a month, and all over social media. We're going to bring you some of the most impassioned, intriguing reactions, some of which are coming from you. That's what we do.

This is RICK'S LIST, your list.

We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SANCHEZ: I have spent such a huge portion of my career chasing cocaine cowboys, living in south Florida during the cocaine years, that when I saw this story out of Jamaica, I started thinking to myself, oh, my God, all the names from the past, the people that I covered. So we've put a list together.

The very first one is Ricky Ross, who most of you know from here in the United States, and Carlos Lehder, who had his own island built in the Bahamas just so he could shuttle drugs into the United States. And we've shortened the list to three so I can bring you the big three.

Number three -- you ready? Number three is Griselda Blanco, known as "La Madrina," "The Godmother," which means she was a ruthless trafficker for the Medellin cartel linked to ordering more than 200 assassinations, this woman, amassing a personal fortune close to half a billion dollars.

Her whereabouts, still unknown.

Number two on this list, Khun Sa, "The Opium King." In the mid '60s, the Burmese drug lord was responsible for nearly three-fourths of the world's heroin supply. We know where his whereabouts are. He's dead.

Number one on the list of the top drug lords, you guessed it. Controlled four-fifths of the world's cocaine market, Pablo Escobar, the brutal head of the Medellin cartel in Colombia responsible for the assassination of 30 judges, 400 police officers, and the bombing of the Avianca Flight 2003. He was killed in 1993.

There you have it, the drug dudes and one dudette.

Staying with the story that tops our list, President Obama's upcoming visit to the Gulf, it also tops Wolf Blitzer's list. And we'll check in with him in just a little bit. He's standing by.

THE LIST scrolls on.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SANCHEZ: Welcome back. Wolf Blitzer's joining us now.

I'm from south Florida, so I've been telling you guys, I think it's crazy that they're going to have a Super Bowl in 2014 in, you know, New York/New Jersey, where the temperature could be with the wind-chill something like 15 degrees.

Wolf Blitzer's from Buffalo. To him -- well, he would show up in a T-shirt and Hooters shorts, probably.

Right, Wolf?

WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: When I was a kid growing up in Buffalo, we used to go to the old War Memorial Stadium to watch the Buffalo Bills. It was 10, 20, 30 degrees below zero, snowing. It was the best time you could have.

SANCHEZ: Were you one of those guys who took off your shirt and wrote "B" for Buffalo?

BLITZER: No. No, I was not one of those. I was one of those guys who came fully dressed with a lot of layers of clothes.

SANCHEZ: I'm going to look for video. I'm going to see if I can find you as a little kid out there.

BLITZER: You know, I gave the commencement address at Niagara University just outside of Buffalo, but it was in Buffalo this weekend. And Marv Levy, the old coach of the Buffalo Bills --

SANCHEZ: Oh, great coach.

BLITZER: -- he was getting an honorary degree from Niagara University also. And he's one of my heroes. He was there. It was just exciting to talk about all the great old days. I've got to tell you, it was a lot fun.

SANCHEZ: He's a genius. The man had a doctorate in football.

BLITZER: Yes.

SANCHEZ: Hey, I've got to get to what you're going to be doing on a more serious side. You've been talking to the White House as well. Give us a quick briefing on what we might be able to hear during "THE SITUATION ROOM" about them and putting pressure on BP and what's going on in the Gulf.

BLITZER: I spoke to Carol Browner, who's the president's special assistant for energy, climate change. She's a former administrator of the EPA.

She says right now, they really don't have a whole lot of choice. They've got to rely on BP. They hope they know that BP is doing the right thing. All options are on the table down the road.

She did say that BP should allow all of us to see live what's going to happen with this top kill operation tomorrow morning, the world has a right to see what's going on. She hopes that BP certainly doesn't shut down the cameras, shut down our access to those live feeds coming from a mile beneath the water. We should be watching and we will be watching, and hopefully BP will let us watch.

SANCHEZ: Yes, you're right. And that's what everybody seems to be wanting.

Look forward to "THE SITUATION ROOM." As usual, Wolf, good to see you. Just kidding about the Hooter's shorts, by the way.

BLITZER: Thanks.

SANCHEZ: We're going to be right back with Elizabeth Cohen. She's going to bring us the very latest on that Tylenol recall. What's it really mean?

Here comes Elizabeth as we speak. We'll look forward to it.

Be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SANCHEZ: We just reported this a little while ago. And literally, I came away as confused as anyone else trying to understand if this is really a recall and what's being affected. And as a dad with four kids, what do I need to know?

ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN SENIOR MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Right. There definitely was a recall of certain Tylenol products, and Benadryl and Motrin. And there have been complaints about those products. But here's the latest. This is from CNNMoney.com reporter Parisia Cavalance (ph).

She said to the FDA, "How many reports have you had of adverse events" -- that's a fancy way of saying bad side-effects -- "from these products?"

SANCHEZ: Right. And the products are?

COHEN: And the products Tylenol, Motrin and Benadryl.

SANCHEZ: OK.

COHEN: And that's the main chunk of them. And both pediatric, both kids and adult formulations of those products. And what the FDA told her is that they've had more than 775 complaints, reports, of serious side-effects, including --

SANCHEZ: Is that a lot?

COHEN: Well, that's a chunk. You know, that's a --

SANCHEZ: OK. Well, I mean, I don't know. Maybe a billion (ph) people are taking them.

COHEN: No, that is. No, absolutely. Absolutely.

And so -- but what that says is that a lot of people are calling in. Doctors, pharmacists, patients themselves, calling in and saying, hey, something bad happened here. And here's the important part -- reports of more than 30 deaths.

SANCHEZ: Oh.

COHEN: OK. So here's what the FDA did. The FDA said --

SANCHEZ: Down to about 20 seconds.

COHEN: Right. OK. The FDA said not all of these deaths are because of the drugs, we think the vast majority of these deaths had nothing to do with the drugs. But they're still investigating nine deaths.

SANCHEZ: That's important to know.

COHEN: That is important to know.

SANCHEZ: Nine deaths.

COHEN: Nine deaths.

SANCHEZ: Yes. It's not just a slight or unimportant stuff. It's serious stuff.

COHEN: No. It's important to know.

SANCHEZ: All right. Thanks for clearing that up for us.

COHEN: Thanks.

SANCHEZ: Wolf Blitzer standing by now. He is in your "SITUATION ROOM."