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New Cap for Leaking Well; New Mexico Shooting Spree

Aired July 12, 2010 - 15:00   ET

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

RICK SANCHEZ, HOST: We've got two developing stories that are happening right now, Richard. Thanks so much. We appreciate it.

I want to start with, first, what we expect might be happening during this hour. And this is important.

Hey, Chad, if you're over there, if you've got your ears up, come on over here. I think I might need your help on this, because we've got what we've been calling all day a 12-pack.

Go to this picture, if you would, Rog. It's a shot. That's the four-pack. We can actually take the 12-pack and turn it into a four-pack or just a single shot any time we want.

These are pictures from underneath the surface of the Gulf of Mexico. New pictures -- a new Web site that we're using today, furnished, credit due to BP. And it shows part of the process that we're going to be watching that might take place during the next couple of hours.

That is -- now, do we have a shot of the actual wellhead there?

CHAD MYERS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Yes, that's number two, top right.

SANCHEZ: Top right. OK.

MYERS: That is the new top of the leaking well.

SANCHEZ: Take them through what the news is here. Tell them what's going to be happening and why they need to do this if they pull it off, Chad.

MYERS: I'm going to assume that everyone watches this is show every day.

SANCHEZ: Right.

MYERS: OK? We used to have a riser pipe that came out of this blowout preventer that used to go to the top of the horizon, the digger, the driller, right?

SANCHEZ: Right.

MYERS: That broke off and collapsed and was a kink. It was kinked over. Remember, they cut this kink off? When they cut the kink off long time ago, it wasn't a perfect cut. It wasn't perfect, and this thing was cut (INAUDIBLE) just kind of over this way.

SANCHEZ: Right.

MYERS: They took that off altogether. That used to have that cap over the top, trying to suck the oil out. It didn't do very good. It wasn't a perfect seal. We saw oil coming out all the time.

SANCHEZ: All the time, both sides.

MYERS: Right? They took the cap off and said, all right, we're going to let it flow. Here's what we do -- they put another machine on top of the cap and they unscrewed the bolts. They unscrewed the bolts and took off that old bent, poorly cut off -- because they didn't have any wells --

SANCHEZ: Right.

MYERS: -- top of the blowout preventer. That is now gone. The top right picture now --

SANCHEZ: Top right.

MYERS: Now I'm looking.

SANCHEZ: It's hard, because this camera in our way and it's hard to see. But we're trying to look over here. We got a four shot over there, 12-pack. Go ahead and go over there, Chad, and help us out here.

MYERS: Well --

SANCHEZ: This is what we have on the air, the one in front of this camera.

MYERS: Yes, I know. And so, that bent, poorly cut top of the blowout preventer is gone. And they installed a new smoother with a nice big ring on top that they're going to clamp onto new top, new well top now. On top of this blowout preventer, we have a new solid --

SANCHEZ: With a better seal?

MYERS: They're not yet. But when they drop another basically blowout preventer on top of this new pipe that's on top of the old blowout preventer that didn't work, they are going to be able to clamp this down and shut the valves off and, theoretically, stop this oil --

SANCHEZ: Perfect.

MYERS: -- immediately, no more pumping to the surface --

SANCHEZ: Boy.

MYERS: -- no more burning off gas, no more losing any. Stop it at the source. Keep drilling -- keep drilling the new relief well --

SANCHEZ: The new relief well and then --

MYERS: -- and then fill it up with concrete and kill it altogether.

SANCHEZ: Let us hope from your mouth to God's ears that this thing is as definitive as it promises to be. We'll watch it during this newscast and you and I will be talking about it.

MYERS: Now, don't come to me and say, why didn't they do this 48 days ago? Because they've been working on this piece of equipment for 60 days. They knew this could be the last hope --

SANCHEZ: There you go again.

MYERS: They've been building it. They've been trying.

SANCHEZ: Thanks, Chad. We're going to get to this in just a minute. Boy, are you complainer today.

All right. Here's the big story that we're also following. I mentioned that there's two things that we're following. There has been a shooting in Albuquerque, New Mexico. And, really, the information or much of the information is still coming in.

So, let me take you through some of the information we have for you right now.

The authorities are saying there that a former employee shot and killed as many as five people in a business Monday in Albuquerque before finally turning the gun on himself.

Let's do this. We've got the pictures coming in. These are some of the preliminary shots that we've got. There we've got some of the authorities gathering in the area. As we take you through this story -- I want to bring in one of our correspondents who's following this.

This is Jeff Todd in one of our affiliates there, KRQE.

And, Jeff, take us through what you know, if you would.

JEFF TODD, KRQE TV REPORTER: Yes, it's still a very active scene here, Rick. I'm going to step out of the way while we fan down. There are about half a dozen agencies are here, including the FBI.

As you mentioned, so far, six people have died in what police are calling a domestic violence and workplace-related shooting. Two people died at the hospital after the 911 call went out about 9:30 Mountain Time this morning. Officers went into the building. They found four people dead inside the Emcore Corporation.

SANCHEZ: Yes.

TODD: Now, they make solar panel products and fiber optic lines. And they say that one of the people that they found dead inside the building did have a gunshot wound to his head and they believe that he is the shooter.

SANCHEZ: Ten people shot, though? Ten people, is that the number that you're getting?

TODD: No, no, no. Six people total, two people died at the hospital. Inside the company, there were four people dead, three people worked there.

One of the persons was the suspected shooter. He had a gunshot wound to head. Police have told us that he's a 37-year-old man. Other than that, they have not identified him.

But we do know that he used to work for this company and his wife still does work for this company, but they have not yet said if his wife is one of the victims.

SANCHEZ: That's interesting. Well, I was just looking at some of our own wire copy. And the reports that I'm getting is that a total of 10 people were shot, four of them were dead, including the woman believed to be the shooter, officials say. Two have died as a result of the gunshot wound.

So, look, obviously, in a case like this, these numbers go back and forth. Do we know if he said anything when he first entered the building that would reveal his motive?

TODD: We do not. I just talked to a public relations person who's representing this company. He said that to get into the building, you do need to be identified and badged. But other than that, they said they don't know how he got in or what happened.

Now, there are 85 people who work for this company. They were taken on to the nearby Kirtland Air Force Base. We have a crew there trying to track down some of those people. But, so far, we have not heard from anybody who was inside the building when this happened.

SANCHEZ: You know, what's interesting is, you know, you look at a case like this, and, you know, as horrible as domestic shootings are, we sometimes understand that people get mad at each other for all kinds of assorted reasons. But we don't know understand why someone in an effort to take on someone else would should other people who may not have anything at all to do with that.

But it's looking like there's a possibility that that might be the case here. I mean, is that correct or did he, as far as you know, have any tie to this particular business at all?

TODD: He did used to work for the company. Now, we were also told by police that there was a domestic violence case not in this city between the suspected shooter and his wife. They do have two kids together. Police said they checked on those kids and the kids are OK.

Now, the guy used to work for the company. We don't know how long ago he stopped working there. But we do know his wife still works at the company as well.

SANCHEZ: Jeff Todd, let me stop you real quick. I understand -- and this is important for many of our viewers, especially in the area around Washington Heights in New York City. There's Leonel Fernandez, he's the president of the Dominican Republic, meeting with the president of the United States.

Let's listen in.

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: -- as have our respective administrations in a whole host of issues. We had a wide- ranging discussion.

One of the first messages I wanted to deliver was my appreciation for the role that the Dominican Republic played in helping the international community respond to the crisis in Haiti after the devastating earthquake there. And I think that the Dominican Republic's role, President Fernandez's role in particular, in helping to facilitate a rapid response was extraordinarily important. It saved lives. And it continues as we look at how we can reconstruct and rebuild in Haiti in a way that is good, not only for the people of Haiti but also good for the region as a whole.

That was just one example of the leadership that President Fernandez has shown. He and his government have been extremely helpful in resolving the political crisis that existed in Honduras. And we discussed ways that we can manage that process so that Honduras can once again be fully integrated into the regional groupings and organizations. And in a way that is respectful of democracy. And we coordinated closely between our two countries on that issue.

We discussed the critical issue of drug trafficking and crime, and how that has the potential to be destabilizing throughout the region. And we have already seen great cooperation between our countries through the Caribbean Basin Security Initiative, but more needs to be done. And so, President Fernandez and I discussed how we can do a better job coordinating through multinational groupings to address what is a scourge on so many countries. And that involves us dealing with both the supply side of the equation but also the demand side.

And as I've said before in conversations, for example, with President Calderon of Mexico, we here in the United States have an important obligation to make sure that we are dealing with the demand of drugs. There are cross-border flows that involve guns and weapons and cash. So the problem involves all of us and if we're going to solve it, we're going to have to work coordinating together.

And we also talked about how working together, we can expand trade opportunities, commercial opportunities, business opportunities. One area that I expressed to the president that is of particular interest to me is clean energy.

You know, last year, when I met with the President Lula of Brazil, I noted that Brazil had made enormous progress around clean energy, sugarcane-based ethanol, the possibilities of real energy independence in the region -- I think, those same opportunities exist for the Dominican Republic. And President Fernandez and I discussed how we can work more closely together around energy security issues, something that my administration is very interested in partnering with Central American and Latin American countries to work on.

So, the main message I have to the people of the Dominican Republic is: thank you for your friendship. I think the American people appreciate greatly the bonds between our two countries -- bonds that express themselves in an extraordinary Dominican population -- Dominican-African population that we have here in this country. And, obviously, I've got a note that we've got some pretty good baseball players here from the Dominican Republic.

LEONEL FERNANDEZ, PRESIDENT OF THE DOMINICAN REPUBLIC: That's right.

OBAMA: But, for some reason, I've got a lot of Red Sox fans here, so I'm talking about Ortiz. But I'm a White Sox guy.

But, Mr. President, welcome, thank you for your friendship. And we look forward to a long and constructive relationship between not only our countries but our two governments.

FERNANDEZ: Thank you, Mr. President. Thank you so much.

Well, first of all, I would like to thank President Obama for his kind invitation to come here to the White House and speak on issues that are of mutual interest for the U.S. government and for the Dominican Republic. As the president has indicated, we have agreed on several issues, some bilateral issues between the U.S. and the Dominican Republic, and also on regional issues.

We do appreciate, Mr. President, that with all you have on your agenda, with all the international issues, with all the crises, with the economic situation that's affecting worldwide, you have put on your agenda the Caribbean, Latin America and the Dominican Republic. I think this is evidence that you do have an interest for the region and the problems that affect not only the Dominican Republic but the region as a whole.

As you have indicated, one of our major concerns has to do with drug trafficking, with transnational crime, with violence related to all these criminal activities. I think that the Caribbean Basin Security Initiative has been the right path forward. I commend you for that, Mr. President.

And I think now we should move into a more collaborative environment with the other Caribbean nations, Central America and Mexico. It is only by coordinating our efforts that we can really defeat this epidemic that has become overwhelming to all of our countries. Whatever we can do from the supply side, as you said, or the demand side, will be of great significance for the safety and security of our people.

Other issues, like you said, related to clean energy, we're working on that in the Dominican Republic, with wind energy and with the potential production of ethanol in our country.

We'll move on also with trade. We have a free trade agreement between both of our countries, of which we have not benefited fully because of the global financial crisis and how it has affected trade. But we can look into the future, hopefully and we will increase our trade activities and more investment coming from the U.S. into the Dominican Republic.

So, once again, Mr. President, I thank you for your friendship. I thank you for your vision, for your leadership, and for your commitment to the region of the Dominican Republic.

Thank you so much.

OBAMA: Thank you. Appreciate it.

Thank you, everybody.

SANCHEZ: There you go. Leonel Fernandez is -- look, this guy -- this guy's a superstar, all right? He's won with absolute majorities twice as president of the Dominican Republic. And has -- interestingly enough -- as you could probably tell by the way -- I mentioned this as we were going to him, and the fact that folks right now in Washington Heights were probably turning up the volume and listening to this, he's from Washington Heights.

I mean, this is a -- this is a president of a country that was raised in the United States in the New York City area. His parents were living with him there where he was growing up in Washington Heights, got a law degree, went back to the Dominican Republic and went on to become what is in many ways a historic president of the country. His term lasts until 2012. And obviously he, from time to time, touches base with the president of the United States, President Obama.

So, there you go. Joint news conference as it was explained to us, although we understand they did not take questions afterward. We'll follow it and see if there are any other developments.

Meanwhile, also this -- today is a six-month anniversary of the Haiti earthquake. Anderson Cooper is going to interview former President Bill Clinton who is in Haiti. We mention that because we heard that as part of the discussion between Presidents Obama and Fernandez. That will be airing tonight at 10:00 p.m.

Here's a question for you: Is Newt Gingrich a step closer to running for the presidency of the United States? Newt Gingrich, what he did this afternoon is the biggest sign of his intentions so far. That's ahead. That's coming up on "Yellin's List."

Also a reminder, that we're following BP's efforts to get a brand new and improved containment cap on that leaking oil well. You saw those shots that we've been showing you, right? Well, they change from time to time. We'll keep showing them, we'll keep watching.

Chad says his fingers are crossed and he's hoping that this thing is an absolute seal. Since we've never seen anything with the word "absolute" attached to it since we've been following this mess in the Gulf, we'll just hope he's right.

We'll be right back. I'm Rick Sanchez. This is your national conversation -- this is RICK'S LIST.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SANCHEZ (voice-over): Here's what's making your list today -- three bombs go off, more than 70 dead in the heart of Africa. And Islamic extremists are to blame, proving what the West has long said about them: they kill innocents. We're all over it.

Cuba finally releases some of its own innocents who did nothing more than criticize the government. And guess who we now see on TV? Hello, Fidel.

The bitter truth about America's debt crisis. How can we stop spending? But are these guys willing and able to do it? What happens, though, if they don't?

Mel Gibson's alleged rant is out. You will hear the tape. He's insulted Jews, women, blacks and is now under investigation for allegedly beating up his girlfriend. We're on it.

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: You know what I like so much about Chad Myers? He's very good at explaining things. So, I want to get him back over here.

And, Chad, come on over.

MYERS: Coming.

SANCHEZ: And I want you to explain this to folks.

All right. The story today is that they're going to literally put a new cap, a new top. That may not be the right nomenclature. But they're going to put a new top on the well that's been leaking in the Gulf of Mexico for umpteen weeks and months or whatever. So, Chad has put this graphic together that explains this thing as well as -- he gave me a preview during the commercial -- but explains it as well as any explanation I've seen so far.

So, here we go to you, sir. The floor is yours.

MYERS: I will say graphic artists are smarter than --

SANCHEZ: OK. We'll give them some of the credit, but you deserve -- you deserve some, too.

MYERS: Together.

OK. This is -- this is part of what's going on. And my director and producer, Shawn (ph), is going to take us through this.

This is what's happening now: oil is coming how of the blowout preventer around this cap -- this cap that they're using now isn't working very well. It's working -- it's just not very well. It's not working because that, the top of the blowout preventer, the old blowout preventer, the top of that thing they cut off because there used to be that kinked pipe right here, that was just a bad cut job because they couldn't do any better. They took that off. And now, a new transition pipe that they're calling it is on top of this blowout preventer.

Here's the bottom of the ocean. Here's now the new top. It's clean. It has a ring.

It has something to grab onto, to clamp onto -- down, down, down, down comes the new -- we'll call it a blowout preventer. It's not. They're calling it a triple stop cap. Three blow-out preventer- type valves kind of in a stack here. We'll move it around so.

Here's the old thing on the bottom. Here's the new thing that's attached to it. It's attached much better. There will be no more leaking here. The leak still will come out here.

The pipe is still perforated up here for now so that they don't lose it and get blown off because of all the pressure. As soon as they get it clamped and all right attached very well right here, then all of a sudden, they're going to, out of the deep, they're going to shut these valves off. There's one, there's two, and there's three.

SANCHEZ: Wow.

MYERS: They'll shut them one at a time. And that -- those three valves will stop the oil altogether and hold this in this column. And they'll say, that's it, you're done, no more.

If it leaks a little, they can put a hose up here, a piper, and still collect more. They hope they don't have to do that. This literally could be the end, and we could be 24, 48, 72 hours away. BP says three days.

SANCHEZ: Wow.

MYERS: Maybe three days.

SANCHEZ: So, it's a potential --

MYERS: Done.

SANCHEZ: -- potential absolute seal?

MYERS: Yes. Now, they're still going to keep drilling these relief wells and still going to cement this thing.

SANCHEZ: No, we get it. We get it.

MYERS: Get it, right?

SANCHEZ: Praise the Lord if you can make that happen, by the way. We got some shots from what it looks like right now.

MYERS: Yes.

SANCHEZ: Can you put those up, guys? Or do we have them up already?

MYERS: Let's do the 12 and the four, it doesn't matter.

SANCHEZ: All right. There you go, Chad.

MYERS: OK.

SANCHEZ: OK. There you see the submersible --

(CROSSTALK)

MYERS: That is the -- we're going to go upper left. Upper left is the brand-new triple stack --

SANCHEZ: Take upper left full, guys.

MYERS: I don't know if they can do that or that.

SANCHEZ: Yes. I know we can because we were doing it at my desk just -- there you go.

MYERS: OK.

SANCHEZ: You can actually do this on your computer at home, by the way.

MYERS: That's the new top that's going to go on the old bottom that didn't work.

SANCHEZ: That's it right there?

MYERS: That's it. It's going to be hydraulically used. The ram, the jets, boom, they're going to come together --

SANCHEZ: Cool.

MYERS: -- and going to cut the oil off together. No more oil, no more gas. That's the theory.

SANCHEZ: That picture you're looking at right there, folks, that's happening right now.

MYERS: Yes.

SANCHEZ: You're actually looking at what they're doing right now under the surface of the Gulf. And if they get to do it while we're on the air here in the next hour and 36 minutes, we will let you see it live.

That's great. Nice job. Good explanation.

MYERS: Thanks, dude.

SANCHEZ: They're yelling at me, though. We got to go.

MYERS: I know.

SANCHEZ: All right. Robert Gibbs sends the clearest signal yet that Democrats have reason to be worried about the midterm elections. That is to say, the GOP can take both houses. Well, what's he saying now?

Jessica Yellin's explaining this to us and taking us to its significance.

We'll be right back. This is your national conversation. I'm Rick Sanchez. She's Jessica Yellin.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SANCHEZ: It always seems like we've got a lot of news moving around this hour. And we do today and we're grateful for it. We'll be able to bring it to you as fast as we can.

Speaking of fast, let's fast forward. It's Wednesday, November 3rd. The midterm elections are over. Can you think that far ahead?

The Republican Party has mopped the floor with the Democrats. Ohio's John Boehner is poised to become the speaker of the House. Eric Cantor is going to be the new House minority leader.

For the Democrats, Nancy Pelosi and company, it's back to the wilderness. Could it happen?

I want you to hear now from no less an authority than Robert Gibbs, the president's press secretary.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ROBERT GIBBS, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: I think people are going to have a choice to make in the fall. But I think there's no doubt there are enough seats in play that could cause Republicans to gain control. There's no doubt about that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANCHEZ: Cause Republicans to gain control, key words there, folks. That's got some tongues wagging in Washington. The president's own spokesperson going on "Meet the Press" and admitting that Democrats could lose the House this fall.

Now we turn to Jessica Yellin. She's our national correspondent and she's joining us now to take us through some of this.

Before we do anything else, I want you to hear this sound, because right after Mr. Gibbs said that, I understand he was asked some questions. Did he walk it back? I think he did.

Let's listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GIBBS: Look, I think there's certainly enough seats in play to make the House interesting. I think, in the end, we'll keep the House and we'll keep the Senate.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANCHEZ: OK, which is it? Are they going to -- are the Republicans going to be able to win or are the Republicans not going to be able to win? Because I heard him on the same day say two different things.

JESSICA YELLIN, CNN NATIONAL POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: That's right.

SANCHEZ: Or maybe it's me, maybe I'm hearing things, I don't know.

YELLIN: No, the bottom line is the Republicans, Rick, could retake the House and Gibbs joked today in his briefing that he did on "Meet the Press" what few in D.C. rarely do, in his words, that he opened his mouth and spoke the truth. If you look at the transcript from "Meet the Press" --

SANCHEZ: He opened his mouth and spoke the truth.

YELLIN: Yes, it happens.

SANCHEZ: Oh, my God, what a rarity in Washington. Go on.

YELLIN: But it looks -- if you look at the whole transcript -- what he's trying to do is make the point that we talked about on this show, that the White House wants to say, if Republicans take over, John Boehner becomes speaker and the House would be run by Republican leaders who -- in the White House's view -- is unsympathetic to most working Americans' needs. So, in an effort to dramatize the contrast, maybe he stated the case more strongly than most Democrats would like.

SANCHEZ: Well let's really consider what could happen here. How big a collapse would it really take -- and I'm using the word "collapse," but you could walk it back for me if you want, because I'm not sure it would be a collapse, but maybe it would be. What would it take for the Democrats to lose the House right now?

YELLIN: Just look at the math. The Republicans would need to win 39 seats to take control. That is possible. Right now, we all watch these -- there are people who analyze these races on a daily basis. Charlie Cook is a nonpartisan race watcher. He says 64 Democratic seats are in play.

And Republicans have a lot of advantages -- more enthusiasm among their voters than among Democrats. Democratic candidates can't ride Obama's coattails because he's not on the ballot and independents are souring on him. So that is all in the plus margin for Republicans.

Thirty-nine seats thought is a really big list. It's been done before, but most election watchers are thinking 30 to 35 is more likely.

SANCHEZ: It's interesting.

And here's something else that's interesting I want to bring to your attention, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, he's out saying that he's considering running for president in 2012, expects to make a decision by early next year.

My words of warning to those who don't take Newt Gingrich seriously is, do so at your own peril. This is a smart guy with a big following, am I wrong?

YELLIN: You're not wrong. He has a very big following and an impassioned following. He's always out advising candidates and coming up with ideas.

But he's also been toying with running for president for years. And it's no secret he's considering a bid. You've also got Tim Pawlenty, Mike Huckabee, Mitt Romney, Ron Paul, Sarah Palin, the list goes on and on, a lot of people whose names are out there. It's still early days, and going to Iowa is a great way to get publicity and keep your name in the mix. So this is a wait-and-see.

SANCHEZ: Jessica Yellin, my thanks to you as always. Good segment, and I enjoyed talking to you.

We're less than three years from Fidel Castro's first major public appearance in years. I've been following this throughout the course of the last 48 hours, ever since some of this started to leak out.

He is expected, by the way, to talk about some dangerous developments in the Middle East. But more importantly, what Castro is really doing is putting himself back out there given the fact that he wants American lawmakers to consider ending the embargo against Cuba.

So we're going to talk about that and the political prisoners he recently had released. And yes, we'll talk about Castro's health and whether that's really him. All that is coming your way.

And then three bombs go off in the heart of Africa. Who is to blame, and what does that really say about America's anti-terror strategy? Specifically, what does it say about the people around the world who say they support Al Qaeda because they're the giant killers? These people who were killed were not giants. They were innocents. I want you to consider that as we go to break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SANCHEZ: I want to tell you a story now. Welcome back. I'm Rick Sanchez. This is "RICK'S LIST." This is a story about a guy named Nate Henn. This is important. Stay with me here.

By all accounts, American, Nate Henn, was a hell of a guy. This is a selfless individual who devoted his young life to helping others. Today, he's dead. Nate Henn is dead, killed by murderous terrorists in the faraway land of Uganda where Henn was working with children.

I'm telling you this for a reason. The reason is this -- we Americans know the depths to which Al Qaeda is willing to stoop. We've seen it happen before with our own. We know.

Today, the question is, though, does Africa get the message? I ask you to hold that thought for just a moment as I fill you in on what happened. Think about what I just asked, does Africa get the message?

Thousands of people had gathered in Uganda's capital to watch the final game of the World Cup. They're watching a soccer game. The game was in its 19th minute when the bombs began to explode, one at a restaurant, then two at a rugby field where they were watching on an outdoor screen.

Our latest tally of the number who died is 74 -- 74 innocent people are dead. And just several hours ago, we learned that responsibility is being claimed by a Somali-based affiliate of Al Qaeda.

The group is called Al-Shabab. I told you about these guys before. They're doing their damnedest, as we speak, to take over all of Somalia and spread their strict brand of Muslim -- no music, no dancing, no sports. You get the picture.

Here is the point I want you to understand. They are experts saying that Al-Shabab's reach is expanding, that there are growing numbers of people in Africa who believe that Al-Shabab has the answers, that they're maybe the good guys and we are the bad guys.

Here's my question -- what do you think now, Africa, now that Al- Shabab has bombed innocent people doing nothing more than viewing the World Cup?

Joining me now is Gary Berntsen, a former CIA officer currently running for the Senate as a Republican in the state of New York and a guy who's joined me many times in the past.

Do you know why I ask that question? I've recently read many stories which detail just how many people in Africa, especially the disaffected youth, goes around with t-shirts with Usama bin-Laden's picture plastered on it, thinking that that guy's a hero because he stood up to the United States.

I'm thinking they're probably, if they're smart, thinking something a little different today, right?

GARY BERNTSEN, (R) NEW YORK SENATE CANDIDATE: Without a doubt. It's a sad story, the death of that American. Al Qaeda has been working to infiltrate groups throughout Africa. You have the armed Islamic groups in Algeria that were taken over by them. You've had them seize control of -- before you had the Islamic courts movement in Somalia. Now you have Al-Shabab.

And it's outside Africa, too. If you look at the Philippines, you have the Moros who are now with Abu-Sayyaf. They look for places where there are insurgencies and instability, Africa is such a place, and then they move in to take over those organizations and create franchises for Al Qaeda.

SANCHEZ: What's interesting, Gary, nobody wants to see 74 people die, certainly innocents who just happened to be gathered watching a sporting event.

BERNTSEN: Heartbreaking.

SANCHEZ: It is heartbreaking. But you know what's interesting about this? In a strange way the event is helpful to the cause of those of us who know how sadistic these fundamental radical Islamic terrorists are. And if it helps get the message out there that these are not the good guys, then so be it.

BERNTSEN: They're targeting us worldwide. And if it's not Africa, it's the United States. They'll go for that mosque and they will attempt to infiltrate the mosque at the World Trade Center site at ground zero.

They will -- but they go after symbols. They go wherever they can go to infiltrate place, to convert people. It's part of their ideology. And it's something that we have to recognize that we're going to be struggling against them. This is not a sprint. This is going to be a marathon fight for the United States, and we have to recognize that we have to --

SANCHEZ: But maybe, Gary, that's the way we fight this, maybe by using the right moments like this one. If I was working --

BERNTSEN: Without a doubt.

SANCHEZ: -- in the White House, and I'm not -- I would not be involved in this White House or any other White House ever -- I would be having a meeting saying, this is the story we have to get out there. We Americans know this. We have to let the world know what these guys are capable of doing and that they're bad people. And sometimes it seems --

BERNTSEN: Al Qaeda murders innocents.

SANCHEZ: Either we're not getting the message out or the world is not wanting to understand the message. But there's a dysfunction, there's a detachment there. Am I wrong? BERNTSEN: You're correct. And I think years ago the United States used to have an organization that communicated these things for us and then we shifted.

It was -- I forgot the name of the organization we had back during the Reagan administration. Now it's diplomacy and the State Department. We need to do more in terms of public diplomacy, getting the word out and not counting on the news media to do it. The United States needs to do it on their own, not counting on the news media.

And paint these people for what they are. They are the murderers of innocents. And there are people, like Mr. Henn, I believe his name was, who have gone out into the world to do wonderful things, people in the Peace Corps and others -- Americans are generous -- and to have them killed abroad like this is heartbreaking. It's horrible.

SANCHEZ: Well said. I'm glad we that had this conversation. Gary Berntsen, appreciate your time.

You're going to get to hear some of the alleged infamous rants for yourself. I have to tell you -- you and I have been twittering back and forth now on this day. I thought Mel Gibson's words were bad when I heard them written -- when I saw them written, I should say. I had no idea how bad they were until I actually heard the rant for myself.

And many of agree with what I'm saying, and you'll get it as well when you hear it for yourself. We'll have that for you.

Also, next up, a train station that's filled with -- well, backsides. Yes, that's it backsides. "Fotos" is coming up next.

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SANCHEZ: Nothing like the open road. It's a wonderful thing, isn't it? Let's do "Fotos."

An open road is great unless it's so wide it swallows your car. It's not really a road, then, it's a parking lot. And it's not really open so much as it is gaping. This giant sinkhole in Tampa not only devoured a car but forced the evacuation of 11 families. The good news is no one was injured. Those things are amazing.

A full moon at high noon in Laguna Miguel, California. This is the 31st annual mooning Amtrak festival. About 100 pranksters lined up and dropped trough. Years past has seen as many as 10,000 of them do so. Two years ago police "cracked" down on the crowd two years ago and the city tweeted, "say no to crack." Supporters of the event were "bummed."

And get this -- one of them is named Rick Sanchez. That's right. Back then, that guy, that Rick Sanchez blamed the, quote, "stuffy yuppie mayor" for trying to stop them. You go, Rick.

Some things are the same all around the World, for example, the shenanigans that go on in celebration of sports. Take this guy in Germany, for example. He's all -- oh, no, don't go so fast, all of a sudden, I'm going to fall off the car, but I'm OK. I guess you could say that World Cup fever left him with a severe headache and backache.

By the way, if ever you want to see great pics, we pick them for you. You can watch them on my blog, and that is CNN.com/RickSanchez.

Very important question for you -- is it possible there's another financial calamity in America's future? Who is sounding the alarm and is anyone in Washington taking it seriously? They should be. This has to do with spending.

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SANCHEZ: Boy, have we got a lot of action going on with Mel Gibson. It seems that's what everybody wants to be talking about. Too bad Brooke Baldwin's not here. This is so trending, as they say.

Let's go to a couple of the tweets. I'm half serious about this. Thousands and thousands of these are coming in. "If everybody boycotted movies due to the poor behavior of actors in their private lives, I doubt any movies would be made."

Then there's these. I mean, people are so disgusted, especially those who have gone on the Internet and heard this entire rant. Here we go. "There is no excuse for Mel Gibson's stupidity. Once, maybe a mistake. Two or three times is a routine."

There's one more after that, I believe. Can we get the third one up? "I used to think he was smarter than this. Maybe he's too rich to care what people think."

Wow. The rant and addressed at a woman and the breathing. Well, listen to it for yourself and let me know what you think. Look at this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

AMBER LYON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: If this looks uncomfortable. It is. There is no technology to come down here and skim this out of here.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANCHEZ: She was our superstar last Friday. Many of you were tuned in watching as Amber Lyon went under the water to actually see what it was like at the place where the dispersants and the oils have become this almost jelly-like substance.

Well, she's going to be joining us in just a little bit to take us through her voyage, and Chad is going to be joining us as well to tell us what's going on with this new procedure where we hope to be able to see the situation in the Gulf maybe rectified once and for all.

Also, could he literally pick himself to replace the late Senator Byrd? Our most intriguing person in the news -- who is this? If you want to find out, you have to stick around until after the commercial.

By the way, we haven't reminded you of this because people are showing up in droves here, but if you want to come and be on this show, all you have to do is call this number. Ready? It is 1-877- 4CNN-tour. We'll gladly have you as part of our studio audience on "RICK'S LIST," your national conversation.

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SANCHEZ: You know, pretty soon we're going to have two things going on. A, we're going to be doing this newscast at 8:00 at night. We're excited about that. And my book is going to be coming out. We're going to use those two things as a wonderful way of rewarding you every time you send a tweet that is as creative as anything we see all day long.

If we were to choose one today, and it's too bad we're not, but if we were going to choose one today for writing style and creativity, it would be this one.

Look at this tweet we just got in a little while ago. It says -- can you see it there, Robert? Look at the very top, if you can get it. You want me to do anything at the top here? All right, I'll read it. "What is sad to me is Mel made a movie about Jesus, then he goes and acts like Satan." Interesting turn on a phrase.

All right, time now to check the list of the most intriguing people in the news on this day. This guy is, well, here. He's a governor, and there is a chance some day we might call him a senator. He is pushing to hold a special election this November to fill the remaining two-year term of the late Senator Byrd.

Interestingly, he has the power to name an immediate replacement and says he'd highly consider the Senate seat himself, but only with a special election and only after the legislature clarifies state election and succession laws.

By the way, he has been named chairman of the National Governors Association. Who is he? This is him. He's West Virginia governor Joe Manchin. He is -- one of his main initiatives in the national governors association is to complete -- Manchin is challenging all governors to increase the number of students who complete college degrees.

Governor Joe Manchin, one of today's most intriguing people in the news.

All right, just when you thought an image of an enraged Mel Gibson was as awful as you can get, another alleged audiotape has been released. We're going to play some of this for you in the next hour, and I'm telling you, it's hard to describe it as anything other than downright scary. It's ahead.

The list scrolls on. Stay with us. We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) SANCHEZ: I want to talk to you now about something which I think is probably as important as anything that we've talked about today or maybe will discuss for some time to come.

I want to talk to you about a quote. This is the quote. You ready? "It's a cancer that will destroy the country, our country, from within." No words have been heard for quite some time that may be as effective as those. And, no, those are not my words, by the way.

These are the words of an independent commission that was appointed by the president of the United States. What is that cancer that they're talking about that could destroy our country? Al Qaeda? No. Debt. Debt -- our own debt.

I want you to take a look at this. This is how fast our leaders have been piling on debt. We are more than $13 trillion in the hole, America. That's more than $42,000 for each and every American. And Congress keeps spending money like they don't have to pay it back.

Hey, as long as China is loaning us money, everything's OK, right? Well, that's some of the arguments that are made. Well, not according to these two men. These two men, one of them is a Democrat and the other is a Republican who head up the president's debt commission, right? They're calling the debt "a cancer that will destroy us."

They say there's no way the economy of the United States can grow fast enough to pay for it, and we can't just tax our way out of it either. Their likely answer -- you ready? Nobody wants to say these things. But let's say them. This is like cursing in front of my mom. Cut spending, raise taxes. One more time -- cut spending, raise taxes.