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Rick's List
Israel Under Fire; BP's Next Move?; BP Stock Plunges After Most Recent Failed Attempt
Aired June 01, 2010 - 15:03 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
RICK SANCHEZ, CNN ANCHOR: And there's the situation right now with Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
A lot of news coming to us just as we were getting ready to go on the air here.
There is another story that we're following having more to do with someone who is a dear friend of the secretary of state -- secretary of state, Hillary Clinton, Tipper Gore, news breaking just several hours ago that the marriage that Al and Tipper Gore have long had, considered by most to be rock solid, seems to be breaking up, word of a separation between former Vice President Al Gore and Tipper Gore.
We have the details. It's just one of the many stories that we're going to be bringing you over the next couple hours on your national conversation.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SANCHEZ (voice-over): Here is what is making your LIST on this day.
Violent protests around the world, as Israel deals with the fallout from the deadly raid on a ship carrying food and supplies to Gaza.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): Shedding blood and massacring is an open and (INAUDIBLE) terror.
SANCHEZ: But while some world leaders line up against Israel, Israel releases video showing its soldiers were attacked and were defending themselves. We will break down the video and ask the questions you want asked.
Plan B is under way to use these robot subs to cut off the wellhead. Will it work? Or could it make the oil leak worse?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The flow rate increase could be anywhere from zero to 20.
SANCHEZ: You will see it live as it happens.
One of the terrorists who founded al Qaeda is taken out by the Obama administration. Are the drones turning the war on terror around?
The earth opens up and swallows an entire building. How does something like this even happen?
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 hello again, everybody. I'm Rick Sanchez. We would like to welcome you to RICK'S LIST.
As we begin this newscast, there are several developing stories. You know, of course, that we're going to be following the very latest on what's going on with Israel and the back and forth that that involves, as well as the very latest news that's making a lot of Americans sad whenever a prominent couple like the Gores indicate that their marriage is breaking up. We have got a lot of angles covered on that story as well.
But the number-one story on our LIST today continues to be BP, because the next step to try and somehow stop this oil leak is now under way.
All right, these are the pictures. We're monitoring anywhere between six and seven different pieces of video throughout these next couple of hours. And from time to time, I'll be calling on Roger and Angie and the folks you usually hear me talking to in the control room to take different shots.
This is an important shot right now, because it shows the very top of the wellhead. And that is where the pipe, if you will, will be cut. And after it is cut, it will be sealed with a pipe.
Now, let me show you the animation. We will look at the animation. Then we will go back to the real thing. And come on back out here, if you get a chance, Chad, so we can talk about this a little while ago. OK, that's what it looks like, obviously, in a perfect world and a perfect scenario.
Now, there's the cap. And there's that tube that will hopefully be able to suck the oil back up to the very top. Now let's go back to the actual shot and -- of what it looks like 5,000 feet below the surface of the Gulf, and there you see what's going on now.
We are told they're making some kind of progress on the cutting part, certainly not the capping part, because if this thing had been capped, we would be able to tell right now that we wouldn't see that much oil coming out.
I mean, that's a pretty reasonable conclusion, right, Chad Myers?
CHAD MYERS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Absolutely. That's a -- that's a reasonable conclusion that -- if the cap was on. It's not. There, right there, on the little thing that kind of looks yellow above the words next step, that's the machine that has the diamond blade that's going to be cutting this off.
SANCHEZ: A diamond blade to essentially just shear that thing off.
(CROSSTALK)
MYERS: They have already -- they have already cut off the other end, so that insertion tube now is worthless because the oil is not getting to the insertion tube. They made these two cuts so that now it would be another mechanical arm to come in there and take away this broken riser.
And this is the -- look at the kink, Rick. This is what I was talking about yesterday. People were saying that this kink is not significant, that the oil is only going to come out at 20 percent more. I believe that kink is significant and that that restriction that is made by the kink is more than 20 percent.
SANCHEZ: Let me bring you up -- let me bring up some of the other items that we have learned today. We always like to catch you up on the latest news of the day with this story and then you and I and one of our experts are going to go through this process of understanding what this video is actually showing you.
First of all, 798,000 gallons have been spilling every single day. That's pretty much the figure that we're going with, although it could be argued it could be a little less and a little more. Now, this could increase by much as 20 percent, possibly more, once this cutting actually takes place.
And if this happens -- and this is why that's interesting. If this happens during this newscast, you will actually see the difference in the flow.
MYERS: Oh, no question about it.
SANCHEZ: You will see what's going on now and what might be going on when they actually cap this thing off, and then it's a gusher, as opposed to a leak.
We're now learning 31 percent of the Gulf of Mexico is closed to fishing. That number's gone up significantly today. And, finally, the president has named a commission, a presidential commission tasked with finding out what happened, how it happened, and making sure that it doesn't happen again.
The members of that commission, you remember former Senator Bob Graham, former Governor Bob Graham as well, from the state of Florida, and William Reilly, administrator of the EPA under President George H.W. Bush. So, there you have it.
Joining us now, Chad, is Steve Wereley. He joins me via Skype. He's a professor of mechanical engineering at Purdue University. And I want to bring him in just to show him the picture that many of you have been seeing and to get his reaction on how he feels this process is coming along and if there's anything we need to know that you see that is going on right now.
Professor?
STEVEN WERELEY, ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR OF MECHANICAL ENGINEERING, PURDUE UNIVERSITY: Thanks for having me.
Yes, so I guess what we can see right now is that the -- as you pointed out just a minute ago, that the leak is still coming out of the kink point. At the point where the riser kinked over, you see a lot of the oil coming out.
If the diamond saw had been cutting through the riser, you know, if they had gotten to that point yet, what we would start to see is the oil coming around -- coming out around the ROV that you see in the shot.
MYERS: Yes.
SANCHEZ: The ROV.
Hey, Rog, let's lose the professor -- and I don't mean that in a mean way. I want to continue to hear him. But take the shot full so our viewers can see exactly what's he's talking about here.
And, Chad, you can come into this as well. Let's make sure we don't have this language lost on those of us who aren't experts. We're -- we're looking at the plume right now right there. He's saying, if this diamond cutter would actually have gone through it already, the image would be different.
How would it be different, gentlemen? What would we see, Professor?
(CROSSTALK)
WERELEY: Well, so, I think what you would start to see, as the -- as the cut progresses through the riser, is, from a point below the kink point, below where the oil's coming out now, you would start to see oil shooting out sideways from the riser.
SANCHEZ: I see. OK.
MYERS: You would see a cloud.
SANCHEZ: So, where's the --
(CROSSTALK)
WERELEY: Yes, a much bigger cloud.
SANCHEZ: Where's that sheering diamond cutter right now, Chad? Is there any way you can pinpoint that for us?
MYERS: It's above the word step.
(CROSSTALK)
SANCHEZ: Just above the word step.
MYERS: Yes. That's it.
SANCHEZ: It's kind of hard to make it out on that shot, isn't it? I'm trying to figure out where it actually is.
(CROSSTALK)
MYERS: Professor, do you agree? That's the cutter that's attached to it, correct?
SANCHEZ: Professor?
WERELEY: Yes, the -- you see the yellow -- the yellow box with the -- I think it says T.W. on the side.
SANCHEZ: Yes.
WERELEY: That's an ROV that's clamped on to the side of the top of the blowout preventer. And on -- one of the tools on that ROV is the diamond cutter. And that will be, you know, cutting through. It's like a band saw. It's basically a band saw cutting through that -- that riser pipe.
SANCHEZ: Well, here's what we're going to do, Professor. We might be bringing you in from time to time as we continue this newscast. What's your availability, by the way. Even if we lose you on Skype, could we still reach out to you on phone?
WERELEY: Yes, sure.
SANCHEZ: Because, you know, we're thinking if there's a -- do you -- by the way, let me ask you before I let you go and go into our next segment, do you believe there's a probability or even a possibility that over the next couple of hours we will see them cut all the way through this wellhead, this pipe?
WERELEY: You know, that's hard to say.
I mean, I think the operation of cutting through the pipe isn't going to take long. Once they start it, it's going to be over in 10 or 15 minutes. But the question is, you know, when are they going to start it? And that's all determined by -- by BP, when they pull the switch.
SANCHEZ: Well said. We appreciate it, sir. And we will be coming back to you from time to time, trying to keep our viewers as informed as possible, as this ongoing process is being videotaped there underwater, Chad.
MYERS: Rick, you may not know that professor's name, but you know his work. He's the one that testified in front of Congress that said 70,000 barrels, no way 5,000.
SANCHEZ: As opposed to 5,000.
MYERS: Right.
SANCHEZ: Yes.
MYERS: He's the one who brought that to the attention, said, my volume scans, I'm looking at this. I know the size of the pipe. I see how fast this oil's coming out. There's no way that's 5,000 barrels. And he was right. There was no way that was 5,000 barrels.
SANCHEZ: Yes, he's the one who nailed it, professor of mechanical engineering from a Big 10 school. I hail from a Big 10 school. I hail from a Big 10 school. I went to Minnesota. He happens to come from Purdue.
My thanks to both of you.
By the way, Israel is now offering up brand-new video they say proves their soldiers were attacked. We are going to break this down for you in just a little bit.
And then there are more protests over this raid that are breaking out around the world.
And look at that. Remember that kiss? The marriage that most Americans thought was rock-solid is not. New information. Just a couple of hours ago, we learned in the newsroom that Al and Tipper Gore are breaking up their marriage. That's next on the LIST. Stay right there. We will be right back.
This is your national conversation.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SANCHEZ: And we welcome you back. I'm Rick Sanchez.
Remember this moment? Look at that behind me from the 2000 Democratic National Convention. That's Al and Tipper Gore surprising everybody with this cozy, if not somewhat clumsy, public display of affection.
They did surprise everybody again today, but this time it wasn't a display of affection. They announced that they are breaking up their marriage. This word came in an e-mail to family and friends. It says -- here, let me read it to you -- "After a great deal of thought and discussion, we have decided to separate. This is very much a mutual and mutually supportive decision."
Gloria Borger is our senior political analyst.
And, you know, you can't be someone like myself or yourself, I would imagine, who's covered the Gores for quite some time, and not really be taken aback, almost feeling a little sad for the end of this relationship, right? GLORIA BORGER, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: Absolutely.
Well, this is a genuine couple. That kiss that we all thought was probably one of the most memorable moments of Al Gore's presidential campaign during the convention was something that was very real, heartfelt, as you see, and quite surprising and stunning, because he was not known for being particularly emotive.
But they have always been a real team. They have always been a real couple. She spent a lot of her time taking photographs -- she's quite an accomplished photographer -- of their years when he served as vice president.
And I think, so, for lots of their friends with whom I have been communicating today, the words I'm hearing are sad, but one of their friends also wrote me an e-mail saying, look, you know, people grow in separate ways, and that may very well be the case here.
SANCHEZ: Hmm. Was there any -- I mean, I know some of you guys in Washington who have your ears to all the different hallways sometimes hear things the rest of us out here don't.
BORGER: No.
SANCHEZ: Was there any indication, was there any signs that this might possibly be coming? Have there been any other reports prior to this? Or is this --
BORGER: No.
SANCHEZ: -- as surprising to you and most of Washington as it is to the rest of us out here in America?
BORGER: It was. You know, it was. And don't forget, Al Gore is not living in Washington anymore. They're not they're not under the klieg lights the way they always were.
SANCHEZ: Yes.
BORGER: But, you know, again, I have watched a lot of political couples come and go, and Al and Tipper Gore have always seemed to be -- particularly, remember in the middle of the Lewinsky affair, remember that, when he was working for Bill Clinton, they -- they were always a genuine couple. And I think --
(CROSSTALK)
SANCHEZ: In fact, there's a -- there's -- I can't -- you just said that and my mind immediately snapped to the thought that there's a real irony here. I'm just going to go ahead and say it on television. The Clintons are still together, and the Gores are about to break up.
BORGER: Right, they are.
SANCHEZ: Think -- think about that. BORGER: That -- I -- I have thought about that.
(LAUGHTER)
BORGER: But, you know, the thing about this Gore statement, though, Rick, that -- is that this is something that they have clearly thought a great deal about. I mean, we have no idea whether they have gone to counseling or whatever, but these are two very thoughtful people with a wonderful family, grown children.
SANCHEZ: Yes.
BORGER: And these are people who don't do things without deliberation.
We know Al Gore's a politician. We know that he deliberates and that he's deliberative, right? So, I think that the way they seem to be separating -- and, again, we only know that it's a separation -- is very much in keeping with their relationship, which -- which has always been -- which has always been a real relationship.
You know, sometimes, people do grow in different directions, even though it's after 40 years, and that's what kind of makes a lot of their friends wistful about this, I would say.
SANCHEZ: Yes.
Gloria Borger, good stuff. My thanks for your perspective on this.
BORGER: Thanks, Rick.
SANCHEZ: And a lot of this -- I guarantee you, of all the stories we tell today, this is one most Americans will be probably talking about over their dinner on this night.
Thanks so much. We appreciate it.
BORGER: I bet.
SANCHEZ: Meanwhile, take a look at this. Why is Germany's president resigning? Was it because he told the truth? That's ahead on the LIST.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BENJAMIN NETANYAHU, ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER: And, regrettably, in this exchange, at least 10 people died. We regret this loss of life.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: Israel offers up new video they say proves their soldiers were attacked. But protesters around the world don't seem to be buying it. Many of them are taking to the streets. They're protesting against Israel. I'm going to be taking you through both of those. In fact, coming up next, right here, I'm going to be talking to Prime Minister Netanyahu's former chief of staff. In fact, I'm looking at him. He's standing by right over here to my right. And he's going to be joining me in just a little bit.
My thanks to you. In fact, come on out. I'm looking forward to this. I think it's a very important discussion that a lot of Americans need to hear, so we will do this in just a minute.
Mr. Birnbaum, good to see you.
Let's take a break and we will be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SANCHEZ: All right. Here we go.
I promised you this segment on Israel. We have someone here who's going to help take us through this. As a matter of fact, he used to work for Bibi Netanyahu, the prime minister, the current prime minister, but we have got some breaking news taking place right now.
We just learned moments ago that there is some measure of oil that's being found now in a place that it hasn't been seen before. This is on Dauphin Island, Alabama.
And Patrick Oppmann is one of our correspondents who is watching this for us. He's joining us now by phone.
Patrick, tell us what you see and tell us why this is significant.
PATRICK OPPMANN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Rick, I came here because we were told that ocean currents might move -- a change in the wind might move the oil closer to shore over the next couple of days, arrived here a few hours ago and found that the oil was actually already reaching the shores.
We're seeing the oil blobs, and also really just puddles of oil in certain parts of this beach. On one side, there are about 20 to 30 workers trying to clean up the oil, but, frankly, the oil coming in is outpacing those efforts.
SANCHEZ: Really?
OPPMANN: And, on the other side, strikingly, you have a normal beach with people swimming in the water, sitting in the beach, sometimes feet away from blobs of oil, and just going about their usual business.
So, there's no boom on this beach. There are workers trying to clean it up and residents and some Louisiana State University scientists I spoke with who were taking samples of the oil said that this is the first oil that they have seen on this part of the Gulf Coast. So the oil has begun to come in here.
(CROSSTALK)
SANCHEZ: So, this is the first time we have seen remnants of this spill in Alabama proper or just that one beach where -- where you are? By the way, I haven't heard of anything in Alabama either.
(CROSSTALK)
OPPMANN: I have not heard of anything. Thad Allen had said today that there was some reports of oil spill reaching the shore in Alabama, unconfirmed reports.
I'm on the beach here, and I can confirm that there is quite a bit of oil on this beach and the Louisiana State University scientists I spoke with said they believe this is oil from this spill. This is not just one or two blobs of oil. This is a significant amount of oil throughout this beach.
SANCHEZ: How soon before you get some pictures to RICK'S LIST?
OPPMANN: I'm working on that as we speak, looking at the video, and just getting into the process of sending that in.
SANCHEZ: OK.
OPPMANN: But, you know, residents here really don't know what they're supposed to do. I talked to one mother letting her three kids swim in the water. And I said, don't you see the oil? And she said, yes, but I'm just telling them to keep their mouths shut.
(LAUGHTER)
SANCHEZ: Well, I'm not sure if that's the advice experts would have.
But, Patrick, good job hustling to the phone and getting this information to us right away. Just work with Angie. And as soon as she tells me that we have got your pictures, we're going to turn those around right away.
So, for those of you viewing now, stay tuned. As soon as we get these brand-new pictures coming in from Alabama, the first signs, as we understand, that there are parts or remnants of this oil slick now reaching the shores of Alabama, we will bring those to you and then obviously we will try and give you some perspective on what it actually means.
Patrick, once again, thanks for joining us.
SANCHEZ: All right, I want to show you something now, moving on to another story, something that's a lot more important than it looks.
Now, to the casual eye, this is a small-scale traffic jam and a bunch of folks just milling around. But what it looks a like to me is actually a gaping hole in the Israeli embargo of Gaza. Now, barely a day since Israel's attack on the Gaza aid flotilla at sea that left at least nine people dead, what we're now looking at here is the only border crossing in or out of Gaza that Israelis don't control.
It's controlled by Egypt. And today they said, you know what? We're opening the gates. So apparently goods are now flowing into Gaza. And that's precisely what the Israelis were trying to prevent when they boarded that ship in international water and opened fire. Here it is again.
These are the pictures that have now been shown around the world. Well, now, Israel's put out some video of their own. And watch this, because it is does support what the Israeli ambassador to the United States was on this show yesterday telling me yesterday.
He said, Rick, we weren't firing at them. We were using paintball guns and they attacked us. Well, you know what? When you look at this video, he appears to be right. Now, granted some of this video is -- look at that right there. That's an Israeli soldier being thrown overboard. We also saw video of Israeli soldiers, look at them being hit with pipes there.
So, was this a situation where these soldiers ended up doing what it seems they had to do to save their own lives, that they were, in fact, in this situation being attacked? I will tell you, there's so many sides to this story and it's so interesting and it's being told all over the world.
With me now is George Birnbaum. He's a former chief of staff to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Thanks for being here.
GEORGE BIRNBAUM, FORMER CHIEF OF STAFF TO BENJAMIN NETANYAHU: My pleasure.
SANCHEZ: Let me just start with this question.
Has Israel and Prime Minister Netanyahu put himself in a situation now where, as a result of this action, Israel may have lost the moral ground in their argument over Gaza, for example?
BIRNBAUM: Well, Israel is usually in a lose/lose situation when it comes to these kind of things.
The Israeli intelligence had clear information as to the sponsorship of some of these boats within the flotilla, of which there are organizations that even appear on the Obama administration Treasury Department's watch list as terrorist organizations, in fact, are designated as SDGTs, specially designated global terrorists.
So one had to assume that the potential was that these activists were being used as shields or decoys for smuggling arms into Gaza. That's the whole point of the blockade. It's not to keep humanitarian aid from Gaza, but to keep arms from Gaza.
SANCHEZ: But the question is, did you, Mr. Birnbaum -- speaking on behalf of Israel, did Israel overreach? Could they have done this in such a way so that they wouldn't have brought so much negative attention upon themselves?
And, listen, I understand that if you're a soldier and someone's coming at you with a pipe, you have the right to defend yourself. But these guys came in, in helicopters, commando style. Should Israel now be looking this and saying maybe we should rethink the way we did this; maybe we should have kept a little more distance and warned these ships, this sixth ship in particular?
Hold your answer to that question, because we have got to get a break in.
BIRNBAUM: OK.
SANCHEZ: But -- but I'm very interested in how you would respond to that, because it's a question, frankly, that's being asked by a lot of people on this day.
Stay -- stay right there. More with George -- George Birnbaum on this very important question about Israel in just a moment. This is RICK'S LIST, your national conversation. We will be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SANCHEZ: George Birnbaum is good to join us now. He's a former representative of Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu.
And the last question I think you heard many of you who were staying with us put this question on the table is, is there a possibility that if not in intent in procedure Israel was wrong in the way they went about this, because a commando-style raid on this sixth ship looks to the rest of the world like it was overreaching, over the top?
BIRNBAUM: You know, going in with commandos armed with paintball guns I don't think could be qualified as overreaching. I was in Israel all last week, and the leading story in this the news was this pending flotilla. The Israeli had issued numerous warnings not to try the blockade. Come to the port, let us inspect the cargo. If indeed it is humanitarian, we will let all the goods enter into Gaza.
SANCHEZ: Are you dealing -- is the Israeli government going to deal with the fact that there are people now being detained, some of which are civilians, some of which may have every single right in the world to have been on that ship?
BIRNBAUM: I think there's a history of terrorist organizations using civilian as decoys, if, in fact, most of the people are, and I think they were, were innocent civilians, they should be released and led on their way.
SANCHEZ: Do you think it was a clear provocation?
BIRNBAUM: Absolutely.
SANCHEZ: Do you think they wanted to get a propaganda leg up on Israel? BIRNBAUM: Had they run the blockade successfully or been allowed to get to Gaza it would have been a success. Had the ship been sunk, it would have been a success. This was a success in their minds, any outcome was a success.
SANCHEZ: But didn't Israel play into their hand? I know we're getting into a public relations argument here and these are matters that are more important than public relations.
BIRNBAUM: Absolutely.
SANCHEZ: But there's a right way to handle things and a wrong way, but can you go back and scratch your head and say, you know, we got used?
BIRNBAUM: Again, Israel's is in a very unfortunate position. They have to make sure weapons are not being brought into Gaza.
SANCHEZ: Weapons weren't on the ship.
BIRNBAUM: Sure. But the people that sponsored this particular ship are designated terrorist organizations.
SANCHEZ: You say Israel has a right to know after all they are going to Gaza and they are led by Hamas and Hamas is an organization that still says it wants Israel destroyed and doesn't want Israel to exist.
BIRNBAUM: Exactly right.
SANCHEZ: So that's the argument you use to say anything going over there, we want to know what it is.
BIRNBAUM: To make sure it's not used as weapons of terror against Israeli citizens.
SANCHEZ: Is Israel doing everything it needs to do to make sure there's some kind of peace solution or are both sides so stalemated on this thing it will never come? We're getting into a macro- conversation.
BIRNBAUM: The problem is the bifurcation between the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. On the West Bank with Mahmoud Abbas and the Palestinian Authority there's been a lot of progress made.
SANCHEZ: Correct.
BIRNBAUM: The problem in Gaza you have an organization that wants the destruction of the state of Israel as part of their mandate. They are a terrorist organization recognized by the world as a terrorist organization.
SANCHEZ: You won't play with them.
BIRNBAUM: We can't play with them. SANCHEZ: One thing. Here's the United Nations council measure they put out last night. We'll go over a couple things before I let you go here.
"The Security Council deeply regrets the loss of life that resulted from this use of force." It says "The council in this context condemns those acts which resulted in the loss of at least ten civilians." It goes on to say there should be an independent commission to study this.
Speaking on behalf of Israel, if you are, is this a castigation? Do you see it as a castigation? Because, by the way, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton just came on before we went on the air and said she agrees with this that the U.N. put out.
BIRNBAUM: Israel is used to castigation by the United Nations. This is pretty --
SANCHEZ: Tame?
BIRNBAUM: -- pretty tame for U.N. resolutions against Israel. I think the state of Israel will welcome the investigation. It will be shown that the commandos entered peacefully. Five of the six ships no incidents. This ship we went in with paintball guns without any intent of harm and the soldiers were brutally attacked.
I think an independent investigation will prove Israel was correct.
SANCHEZ: George Birnbaum, thanks for your time.
BIRNBAUM: Thank you.
SANCHEZ: We've got a lot more to talk about in just a little bit regarding this story. We'll be talking to a former adviser from Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. So obviously you just heard one side of the story there. I'm sure I'll hear a very different version of events from the other source that we'll be talking to here.
Meanwhile, today would have been Marilyn Monroe's 84th birthday, and you will see a picture of her and Jack and Bobby that has never been seen before because it's the only one that the FBI didn't confiscate.
And then what the hell is this guy trying to do? I mean, you can't make this stuff up. Wait until you see this video. It's next on "RICK'S LIST."
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SANCHEZ: Let's do a segment most of you enjoy, something that gets you a little bit off the couch at times, or maybe you do a little bit foot tapping. Dumb criminals sometimes make police officers' jobs easier. It's time for the video list, something we call "Fotos."
Things did not go as planned for one man when he tried to pry his way into a convenience store. Some crooks get caught in the act. This one got stuck. And he got caught with his pants down to boot. You might say he detained himself. Neighbors called 911. Police came and freed him and then cuffed him and then they took him away, somewhat pantless.
Remember Marilyn Monroe's sultry rendition of "Happy Birthday" for President John F. Kennedy in 1962. Well, a never before seen picture taken after the musical number has just been released. That's JFK on the right with his brother Bobby and Marilyn Monroe.
Now, here's the interesting part. This is the only known surviving photograph of Monroe with JFK and Bobby. Plenty more were taken, but all were confiscated by the JFK library and secret service. This one survived only because agents missed it in their search of the photographer's studio.
Professional in-line skater set a new world record Saturday in Paris, made history at a historic landmark plummeting from the Eiffel tower's first floor. On his first try he dropped fast, but fell short.
Undaunted he made a second attempt and set a new world record for dropping, that's jumping off a destructive -- a structure, pardon me, and free falling onto a landing. Not bad, huh? You guys could do that, right? I see all the guys in the studio looking at it saying, yes, that don't look so hard. Sure.
You can see all of our fotos on my blog, by the way. That's CNN.com/ricksanchez.
This is what it looks like now, capping after cutting. The question is, will they finish the cutting over the next couple of hours while we're here on the air? We are told that they are well into it. We're going to bringing you into this photography -- into these videos.
We have experts standing by which can give us a play by play and explain to us what is going on 5,000 feet below the surface in the Gulf of Mexico.
Also, as you heard, Israel raids an aid ship, and it has sparked protests across the global. You heard my conversation moments ago with an Israeli representative. When I come back, a Palestinian representative -- Gite al-Amari is a Palestinian activist and he's going to join us to give us his perspective on what you heard moments ago from Mr. Birnbaum.
Stay right there. RICK'S LIST continues.
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SANCHEZ: Welcome back. I'm Rick Sanchez.
We heard just a short time ago from the former chief of staff of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, you heard my conversation with him. I want to turn now to Ghaith al-Omari, a former adviser to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. The Free Gaza movement said it's sending more ships to challenge the Israeli blockade.
I can't help but wonder, is that -- is that a smart move? Is that a wise or safe move?
GHAITH AL-OMARI, FORMER ADVISER TO PALESTINIAN PRESIDENT MAHMOUD ABBAS: I don't think that it's a wise move. I think it's an attempt by some organizers to score political points.
But you can be sure that as long as the siege continues attempts like this and political repercussions like this will continue and people will use them. Hamas has used what happened a couple of days ago with the flotilla. You see Iran using it is, you see the Turkish Islamists using it.
So as long as the siege continues and you will continue to have these kinds of actions, and it results in the tragic situation that we had recently.
SANCHEZ: There is something interesting about this story, and I think you heard my conversation moments ago with Mr. Birnbaum. It seems like Israel was played in this situation. They were provoked in such a way so that they would respond. Many are arguing they overreached in their response and now they're getting an awful lot of bad press, not to mention people protesting against them all over the world.
But were they unfairly provoked? And as the video today shows, what is your reaction to the fact that many of those soldiers did seem to be coming under attack when they fired?
OMARI: All right, first of all, I think it will be a mistake to blame the soldiers. I think what is needed right now is an extensive, credible, independent investigation, which has been called for by the U.N. but also by President Obama and others to look in to the facts of this issue. That's the only way to lay this story to rest.
But once we do that, we have to go back to dealing with the root causes with the issues of the blockade. How do we ease the life for Gaza civilians, reconstruct the Gazan middle-class without be benefiting ha Hamas to do that?
SANCHEZ: Isn't one of the ways to do that is to get responsible people like yourself to try and convince Hamas to stop saying that Israel doesn't have a right to exist?
OMARI: Hamas has to do two things, first of all accept Israel as a state that will be there in the region, but also to stop using violent terrorism. And this has been the position of President Abbas, Prime Minister Fayyad, and the international community.
Right now Hamas is holding 1.5 million civilians in Gaza hostage to its policies, and I must say Israel has been playing in to Hamas' hands and strengthening its argument by this blockade, which has economically benefited Hamas, which has militarily benefitted Hamas.
SANCHEZ: Why is that, though? Explain. I think it happens in this country as well. You go out there, you talk tough, you become a real hard-liner and you get real popular, even if what you're saying doesn't make sense.
Is that to a certain extent going on in Gaza with Hamas? Is that why they were elected democratically and why they're still liked by so many people there?
OMARI: First of all, their popularity ratings have diminished after people have seen their style of government. But I think the main reason for Hamas' success is the failure of the peace process. As long as there's no peace and as long as negotiations fail to deliver to the public, those who talk about violent terrorism, what they call resistance, will have a -- will have some traction.
Ultimately occupation is an untenable situation. It's an unfair situation, and it lends itself to manipulation of groups like Hamas and their sponsors in Iran and elsewhere.
SANCHEZ: And the peace process or lack thereof is the fault of not just the Palestinians and the Israelis but this country, the United States of America, correct, and not just this administration, but all the others that came before it?
OMARI: There is a lot of blame to go around. The question is what do we do with this? Do we look backwards and start trying to point fingers, and everyone has their stories, or do we look forward?
What I see now is an administration that is vigorously attempting to solve the issues, like previous administrations. Maybe some mistakes were made. But the only way we can avoid things like this happening in the future is to move forward in the peace process. It will be hard for Hamas and others to continue advocating for violence and terrorism.
SANCHEZ: Mr. al-Amari, you state your case and defend your cause well. My thanks to you sir for taking us through this and giving us your side of the story in this case, as well. Thank you, sir.
OMARI: Thank you, Rick, for having me.
SANCHEZ: All right, take a look at this. It's like a bottomless hole in the middle of a city. I mean, the earth literally opening up and swallowing a building. What's with that? What caused this? I'm going to take you through it.
Also who's today's most intriguing person in the news? A president, that's who. I'll have the answer for you. You're watching RICK'S LIST.
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SANCHEZ: Welcome back. A lot of stories that we're following for you right now, including brand new news from one of our own correspondents that there is possibly some oil washing up on the shores of Alabama. First time we've heard of such a thing. We're talking about Dolphin Island off the coast, almost like a barrier island off Mobile, Alabama. But we've got crews there. We hope to get video in a little bit, and then Chad's going to show us exactly where to break down this area, what it looks like and what effect and significance it could have.
Meantime, it is now time to check the list of the most intriguing people in the news on this day.
This man has no job today. Yesterday, he resigned as president. Here's what happened. He essentially told a reporter on May 22nd that sometimes deploying soldiers to war zones is good for a country's economic interests.
Cue the outrage. I guess you're not supposed to say that? Lots of people say he's talking about Afghanistan where his nation has thousands of troops in harm's way. He says he was misunderstood.
Whatever the case, he surprised everyone when he resigned under public pressure and criticism. This is what he looks like. He is Horst Colore, former head of the International Monetary Fund and until yesterday was Germany's president.
His comments and the fallout saying essentially the reason they did what they did sending troops into Afghanistan was for economic interests may be, according to many people around the world, the truth, but sometimes it's the kind of truth that people don't want to hear. It makes him today's most intriguing person in the news.
They are trying to cap this spill right now. Will the robot subs do their job or will it spin it into an even bigger problem? Remember, this is about cutting and then capping and then sucking the oil out and up to the surface. It's a process going on right now. We're going to be taking you through it as it happens live.
This is RICK'S LIST, your national conversation. We'll be right back.
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SANCHEZ: We've just got brand new and very important information about this oil spill that may -- that may involve criminal proceedings against some of these companies like Halliburton, BP and Transocean. We're going to take you to that in just a minute.
But before I go to that, let's go to Poppy Harlow. She is standing by with the very latest on her money list. Poppy, what have you got?
POPPY HARLOW, CNNMONEY.COM: It's BP right there at the top. I'll be interested to hear the new news you're talking about Rick, because BP has had a horrendous day.
I'm looking at shares of BP as the market is about to close here in New York. It is down 15 percent. Here's the drop-off we saw today alone, Rick. Why is this? It's because of the big news that came on Saturday evening that BP failed in its top kill attempt, so two tries, two misses for BP to cap that well. This morning, today was the first day investors could react to that. They sold off shares.
And not just BP. Halliburton shares are down 15 percent, Transocean shares down about 12 percent. They're all involved in that rig. And investors shying away from that saying we want to get out of here.
And BP also saying, Rick, it's cost them so far about $1 billion to try to repair the wreckage of that will spill. And this is just the beginning. The analysts say $4 billion to $25 billion, that's what this spill is going to cost BP, Rick.
SANCHEZ: If those investors did not want to hear more bad news about those three companies, they should either leave the room or cover their ears, because here it comes.
