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Rick's List

Operation New Dawn; Tiger Woods' Ex Speaks Out; Massive Egg Recall: Different Views on Same Story; Operation New Dawn

Aired August 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: Boy, I have been getting a lot of tweets from you guys on this one.

I want to take you behind the LIST today. I want to tell you something most media outlets don't. Take a look at this video. This is courtesy of one of our iReporters, interestingly enough. This is one of those go-topless day protests that were held in cities all over the country in favor of women's equality -- women's equality, meaning women's right to go, if they choose to, topless in public, just like men do.

You might have seen one of these protests on your local TV news or in your newspaper over the weekend because they have been in different parts of the country. What you probably weren't told is what was behind them.

Now, look at this guy.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: -- all you perverts.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANCHEZ: Did you hear that guy there? He said that they're all a bunch of perverts. And then they said, hey, Adam and Eve, they were naked. So, then he yells back at them, no, they were sinners.

So, this thing, I mean, look, it got nasty. There was a lot of reporters there. And that's this iReporter who shot this for us and did a pretty good job with it, by the way.

All right. We have checked to find out who is really behind this movement. And guess what? It's the Raelian Movement. That's right. You know who they are? You've probably heard of them, right? Some call them a UFO religion, but the Raelians are considered a cult by people who follow cults.

Their founder is a former sports car journalist who calls himself Rael. Raelians believe that we are all created by aliens who came to earth in a UFO. In 2002, the Raelian Movement claimed to have created the very first human clone, a baby girl named Eve.

And this past weekend, they staged the ultimate adult version of, made you look. And, yes, we all looked. Just thought you would want to know.

As we begin this next hour, I want to welcome all the men and women that are watching us on Armed Forces Network. We are honored that you have chosen us as your news of record for this hour.

Here is your national conversation.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SANCHEZ (voice-over): Here is what is making your LIST today.

Bloodshed in Baghdad. As U.S. troops leave, militants pounce. Death, destruction, is this what the future of Iraq will look like?

Sex, lies, and Elin Nordegren. Tiger Woods' ex-wife is now speaking out after nine months of complete silence and wait until you hear what she reveals.

John McCain, winner.

SEN. JOHN MCCAIN (R), ARIZONA: I'm very grateful.

SANCHEZ: Kendrick Meek, winner.

(APPLAUSE)

REP. KENDRICK MEEK (D-FL), SENATORIAL CANDIDATE: I want to thank President Clinton.

SANCHEZ: In Alaska, looks like a draw. So, who's the real winner? Sarah Palin?

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 --

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANCHEZ: Oh, my goodness. What happened there? It looked like the tape just dropped out. Sorry about that.

Nonetheless we're here. We're ready to go. At the very top of the LIST, primaries were held across the nation. Florida is where the surprise of the night happened. Political newcomer Rick Scott won the GOP primary for governor of the state of Florida.

He came from behind in the final days to beat the establishment Republican candidate, Attorney General Bill McCollum, spent $50 million of his own money on the race, and the race got nasty. Let me show you some video. This was then Senator Obama with then Senator Clinton.

They had a heated battle for the Democratic nomination. At this point, they came together for party unity. They even did this appearance in Unity, New Hampshire, right? They wanted to say, look, it's all behind us now. Now, I use that as an example of what may not be happening here. I mentioned earlier how the GOP preferred McCollum, right? Republicans wanted their guy, Bill McCollum. Well, just how disappointed are they?

Yesterday, before the results were even in, a party unity event that was planned for today was scrapped, right? Ain't going to do it. Won't do it. The official reason? Scheduling problems. Hmm. Sounds fishy.

Peter Hamby has been all over this story. You heard him with me here last night. And he's following this race and is joining us now once again. He's in Orlando, Florida.

It sounds to me like there is some serious bad blood here between McCollum and Scott. Am I wrong?

PETER HAMBY, CNN POLITICAL PRODUCER: You're not wrong. McCollum would not concede when he took the stage last night. And he and Rick Scott still haven't talked on the phone. There's a good chance they won't talk on the phone. They don't have to talk on the phone.

But the negativity of this race really left some ill will between the two candidates. Now, there are other McCollum supporters who are talking to the Scott campaign, but as far as we know, the McCollum -- or McCollum himself has not spoken to Scott. And we're not even sure that -- he is -- he is saying that he might not even endorse Rick Scott. So, no party unity.

SANCHEZ: Well, that's weird. Usually -- so -- so, I mean, if -- if that's the case, then is Bill McCollum just going to drop out or is he going to choose a Dem, or what -- what -- and, by the way, what is it about Rick Scott that is making the Republicans run away from him, if he won fair and square?

HAMBY: Well, that's a good point. I mean, he -- he almost doesn't need the Republican establishment. I mean, the establishment especially on the Republican side in this cycle has proven to be really nothing but a liability, so, you know, Rick Scott doesn't necessarily need to reach out to those guys.

But he is making amends with members of the House and Senate leadership here in Florida to make sure that they're on the same page. Even the chairman of the state Republican Party, who was actively backing Bill McCollum -- and those two traded some nasty words -- they have talked on the phone.

So, you know, we will see. He -- I talked to the former state chairman of the party Al Cardenas today. He said that -- you know, he admitted that Rick Scott probably enters the race as a five- or six- point underdog just because of the sheer negative back and forth between the two Republican campaigns. You know, Democrat Alex Sink, she is their nominee.

SANCHEZ: Well, and a guy who's tainted, a guy who's tainted. And I say that as someone who researched him and questioned him. He was nice enough to come on my show. And I asked him some very tough questions. But, in the end, I mean, this is a guy who, as I suggested that day, may very well be the poster child for everything that was wrong with the health care system in the United States.

The biggest fraud charge in the history of the country was leveled against the country -- the -- the company that he ran. And, look, there is no way of getting around that.

HAMBY: Right.

SANCHEZ: Is there?

HAMBY: I mean, there -- there's serious upside and serious downside to Rick Scott, and national Republicans know this. He's got the baggage, like you said, Columbia/HCA and that Medicare fraud suit, another health care company that faced lawsuits that he ran.

But he has an unlimited well of money that he can spend on this campaign.

SANCHEZ: Hmm.

HAMBY: And I'm actually at one of our affiliates, WFTV in Orlando, and they talked to Rick Scott in Fort Lauderdale earlier. And he told these guys he reserves the right to defend himself again on TV.

So, this issue is not going to go away. Democrats see an opening there. But, still, Democrats are going to have to spend a lot of money to keep up with Rick Scott.

(CROSSTALK)

HAMBY: You know, politically, he's a damaged candidate. But, practically, there is a lot of upside there.

SANCHEZ: What does that say? Don't answer that.

(LAUGHTER)

SANCHEZ: Peter Hamby, following the story for us, we thank you for being so diligent and getting back to us on both days.

By the way, I have got a caveat here for you, programming note, a couple -- a couple of them. Rick Scott, I understand, is likely going to be able to John -- join John King tonight during "JOHN KING, USA." As you know, that is at 7:00 p. We come back with RICK'S LIST prime time. That's at 8:00 p.m.

And one of the most interesting characters in this all -- in this race was Jeff Greene. He's the one who, as you know, lost against Kendrick Meek. We just confirmed that he's coming on here in just a little bit. He's going to join me to take my questions about his -- his candidacy and his yacht and Mike Tyson and everything else that you may suggest I ask him on Twitter.

Let me know. And we will be talking to Jeff Greene in just a little bit.

Also, take a look at this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I still feel it was premeditated murder, because they planned it. They got medicine together, mixed the cocktail, put it in the syringes, and gave it to the patients.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANCHEZ: Did doctors really kill patients who weren't evacuated during Hurricane Katrina? This is an explosive story. And we have got the facts for you. That's ahead.

Also, have you heard that Tiger Woods' ex-wife is saying what she is saying? After nine months of complete silence, she is talking about the divorce, the sex scandal, and what she is going to be doing now. I know a lot of you guys on Twitter are telling me -- look, I didn't write that tease. We are going to be right back with the very latest on the news here on RICK'S LIST.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SANCHEZ: Hey, welcome back.

Look who's joining us now.

Jeff Greene is in West Palm Beach, who went up against Kendrick Meek. And for a while, he really had him on the ropes.

But it turns out that you weren't able to pull it out last night.

Mr. Greene, thanks so much for joining us, sir, here on RICK'S LIST.

JEFF GREENE (D), FLORIDA SENATORIAL CANDIDATE: Thanks for having me, Rick.

SANCHEZ: You know, first of all, how big is your yacht?

(LAUGHTER)

GREENE: Hah, hah, hah.

(LAUGHTER)

GREENE: You know, I guess they still want to talk about my yacht, unfortunately.

(LAUGHTER)

(CROSSTALK)

GREENE: And with all the problems that our country is facing today. (CROSSTALK)

SANCHEZ: Well, I'm kidding you, but it -- it -- it's interesting, because it seemed like, throughout the entire race, the thing that stuck to you the most -- and, you know, I'm asking you what it was like to go through with -- this -- you know, was your relationship with Mike Tyson, your yacht, some of the parties you had, and the fact that you are so wealthy and so rich.

How -- how -- tell me what it was like going through that and then tell me whether it was ever an upside or always a downside for you?

GREENE: Well, no, it does -- look, it was very frustrating, because I got into this campaign for all the right reasons. I mean, I -- you know, I have had enormous success. Look, I started with nothing as a kid in Massachusetts. I graduated John Hopkins in economics, got my M.D. at Harvard Business School.

I worked hard my whole life to -- you know, to live the American dream. And I decided, you know what? I want to get back in and try to give something back to my country, because I really have a very different perspective on, you know, what we should be doing to move our economy into the new global economy and be competitive.

And the -- the whole campaign was a big sideshow about yachts and friends and silliness. And it was really about --

(CROSSTALK)

GREENE: As far as I'm concerned, I was just under attack by the local newspapers for nothing.

SANCHEZ: Who did that to you? Was it the party or was it the paper -- was it the media?

GREENE: I mean, I don't know where it comes from. The media was clearly at fault. "The Saint Petersburg Times" printed a front-page correction of some of those -- the libelous things they wrote. And so did "The Miami Herald."

I mean, look, we still have some real serious issues with both those newspapers, because it was an absolute pattern of character assassination. And, you know, look, the big losers are not me. The losers are the people of Florida, who rely on these newspapers to be honest and fair. And what they got was just, you know, a bunch of gossip columns.

SANCHEZ: Well, but the -- the -- the part that I think most likely got the most attention from people was the fact that you did make a lot of your money during the subprime meltdown.

Put on the record for us once and for all how you would respond to that charge or that accusation that you made your money on the backs of people who may have lost some of their homes. GREENE: You know, it's just -- it's just -- again, it's just silliness, because, look, I worked hard all -- every day of my life to achieve enormous success, much greater success than I had ever dreamt of.

And when I saw the housing market imploding, I went up against the Wall Street banks. I didn't go against Florida homeowners. I -- my trades are with the biggest banks on Wall Street. And if I had lost, I would have written checks to them. And, if I won, which I did, I got checks from them.

(CROSSTALK)

GREENE: No Florida homeowner lost a penny. And I think it was just a sideshow, because, look, the ultimate thing is this. Here -- we're all Americans here. Would we rather have people in Congress and in the Senate who know what's going to happen and do something about it or guys there sitting there not knowing what's going on and just watching our -- the housing market go down the tubes?

SANCHEZ: Well, there is something else that I need to ask you.

GREENE: Sure.

SANCHEZ: I don't know what it's like to be as wealthy as you are. I -- I wish I did.

But --

(LAUGHTER)

SANCHEZ: But I'm fascinated by the idea that, given our politics right now are so tied to contributions and money and campaign finances and special interests, that along comes a guy like you who says, you know what? I got so much -- I mean, you said this -- I got so much money, I can't be bought.

What -- what -- what's -- what's the selling point there? And how would you -- how would you amplify that thought for people who are watching right now about a rich guy like you getting into Congress and being better than a guy who has to ask for money?

GREENE: Well, I mean, look, I mean, there is no secret that we are right now facing some of the greatest challenges our country has ever faced.

I mean, look at -- you know, the economy is not recovering. The housing market is -- is getting worse. I mean, obviously, things aren't working in Washington. And I think it's because of the stranglehold that the special interests have on our government and our career politicians.

And so I'm saying -- look, I'm saying I'm willing to take my money and invest in a political campaign. I'm willing to put myself out there and -- and go --

(LAUGHTER)

GREENE: -- with these character -- and put up with these character assassinations, because I just care about my country.

But I think the message is, look, everyone has to take ownership of the problems we have, and we can't all sit in the bleachers and let these guys sit on the stage, because we -- everyone knows the special interests are corrupting our politicians. And this is why we're in the mess we're in today.

SANCHEZ: How much did you spend, by the way? How much -- how much of your own money did you --

(CROSSTALK)

GREENE: Well, I mean, look, I don't know exactly what.

(CROSSTALK)

GREENE: But it's kind of -- it's kind of public record.

(CROSSTALK)

SANCHEZ: Oh, come on.

(CROSSTALK)

SANCHEZ: I want -- I want -- I want -- I want it -- I want it to the penny, Mr. Greene.

GREENE: Now, I don't -- you know, we don't -- they're still figuring it out. We're paying our bills, unfortunately, but --

SANCHEZ: Ball -- ball -- ballpark?

GREENE: -- a lot more than I wish I -- I wish I had spent a lot less.

(LAUGHTER)

SANCHEZ: Well, you know what?

(LAUGHTER)

SANCHEZ: You lost, but you're here. You're talking about it, and are you -- will you run again?

GREENE: Look, I have no plans. I mean, I was never -- this was never meant to be the beginning of a career as a politician. It was meant to -- the only reason I did this is because I care passionately about the direction our country was heading --

SANCHEZ: OK.

GREENE: -- and I wanted to do something about it.

SANCHEZ: All right.

GREENE: You know, so --

SANCHEZ: Fair -- fair -- fair answer.

GREENE: -- I just hope we can get recoveries.

(CROSSTALK)

SANCHEZ: Hey, listen, we -- we asked you to come on today. And I know, look, asking the guy who didn't win the race to come on is always interesting. We thought it would be kind of a contrarian way of doing things.

And you have been very forthright and very honest with us. We will see you again very soon. Thanks for being with us, sir.

GREENE: OK, Rick. Thank you very much for having me.

SANCHEZ: All right.

There are now more states affected by the massive egg recall, did you know? We're going to tell you what you need to know and some new questions about the government's role in this whole thing. That's coming up in just a little bit.

And then dozens are dead in a wave of attacks in Iraq, and this comes as the U.S. begins a huge drawdown. So, are the militants all of a sudden saying, aha, they're leaving, let's move in, let's do more damage?

This is the reason I'm going to be asking one of the guys whose opinions I trust the most on this, Jim Clancy. He's coming into the studio right now. He and I are going to be taking this up coming up in just a little bit.

Stay with us. This is RICK'S LIST. We will be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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

Militants are starting to ramp up the violence in Iraq as the U.S. combat mission there comes to an end. Dozens of people died after a series of attacks exploded across Iraq -- all this as President Obama is preparing to speak to the nation next Tuesday night, 8:00 Eastern, after he visits troops at Fort Bliss, Texas.

So, what is the president going to do? He's going to talk about the war on terror. He's going to talk about America's changing role in Iraq called Operation New Dawn henceforth, and it begins in less than a week.

Now, we know that American troops are going to train, assist and advise Iraqi troops, but could their role change to a combat status at some point? I'm going to be taking that up with Jim here, Jim Clancy, who is going to be talking about that, the president's speech, and what -- what happens moving forward with New Dawn.

But, before -- before I go to you, I want to bring in CNN's Arwa Damon. She's been doing yeoman's work out there in Iraq. She's a CNN International correspondent.

And we -- we hear today, Arwa, that the -- I mean, Iraq just lit up. I mean, those actually were the words that are being used here. All over the country, there were -- there were attacks of some form or another. How -- how significant were they? And were they really any different from what happens there on any given day or any given week in Iraq?

ARWA DAMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Rick, the violence that we saw taking place here earlier this morning is significant, in that attacks happened in 13 cities across the entire country. Some of these cities were areas that were previously considered to be relatively safe.

The main target of the attacks was largely the Iraqi security forces. And the insurgents used suicide bombers. They used car bombs. They used roadside bombs. Now, there's -- there hasn't been a claim of responsibility in the case of what happened this morning.

But the last time that we saw attacks of this nature was back in May. And back then, al Qaeda took responsibility. And, remember, this comes at a time when the Iraqi people really need to be able to trust their own forces. We were out on the street just a few hours ago speaking with some of them. And they're saying, look, if the Iraqis can't protect themselves, how are they ever going to protect us?

SANCHEZ: Hmm.

Arwa Damon following that up for us there in -- in Iraq.

And we -- we thank you for bringing us up to date on what happened today.

Now, for the big picture, let's bring in Jim Clancy.

In light of what happened today, as the United States is getting ready to go --

JIM CLANCY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes.

SANCHEZ: -- how do we look -- how do Americans look at the situation and see it as a -- a win, a victory, or even a tie?

CLANCY: Well, you know, I don't know that you do look at it as a -- as victory.

I think you see the only victory here -- and I think the president will certainly point this out -- is that he's kept his word. The troops are getting out. No one is going to argue that it isn't a mess, I mean, by any -- any way that you look at it.

SANCHEZ: Hmm.

CLANCY: I think the president is going to be telling Americans, you know, first and foremost, paying tribute to the sacrifice that was laid down by the troops. He's going to be talking to the troops.

SANCHEZ: Let me ask you a question about what he needs to do this Tuesday. We understand that, last week, I went on the air last week and I began reporting that the troops were heading out. And I can understand why the White House didn't cue us -- let us know that this was going to happen. The president couldn't have come on and told the American people, OK, I'm bringing the troops home and they're coming out at such and such a time, because then al Qaeda would have had a field day with it.

So, finally, Tuesday, he is going to talk specifically about this drawdown. What does he need to say?

CLANCY: Well, what he really needs to -- to do is to reassure the public about the American strategy here. All right. He's a president. Yes, he -- he inherited this war from George W. Bush.

SANCHEZ: Yes.

CLANCY: But, you know -- and one of the things he won't say is, he didn't back the surge in 2007 that's really making all of this possible.

SANCHEZ: So he was wrong then?

CLANCY: He was -- he was wrong.

SANCHEZ: Yes.

CLANCY: But he's not going to admit that. He is a politician. We don't expect them to do that.

(LAUGHTER)

CLANCY: At the same time, he has got to sell the American public on -- on the vital nature of the Middle East to the U.S. national interests, particularly at a time when it's fighting a war, ongoing war in Afghanistan, and the work isn't done in Iraq.

SANCHEZ: What do you -- wait, wait, wait, wait. Wait, wait.

(CROSSTALK)

CLANCY: Nobody thinks it is.

(CROSSTALK)

SANCHEZ: Well, fine, but what do you mean by that?

What in the world can we satisfy ourselves with in Iraq that will somehow spread to the rest of the Middle East? And what is the -- what is the potential problem that you're -- that you're referring to here?

CLANCY: Well, in some ways, we're back to square one, because what are we taking out of Iraq? What did we learn there? We learned that we can't -- democracy doesn't march into the Middle East with a gun in one hand and a duffel bag full of hundred dollar bills in the other.

SANCHEZ: And push democracy on people.

CLANCY: It doesn't work.

SANCHEZ: Yes.

CLANCY: Didn't work at all.

SANCHEZ: Right.

(CROSSTALK)

SANCHEZ: Despite what Paul Wolfowitz said would work.

(CROSSTALK)

CLANCY: Yes.

SANCHEZ: OK.

CLANCY: Wolfowitz told us that this would work. It apparently hasn't.

SANCHEZ: With good intentions.

CLANCY: Six months later almost, we don't even have an Iraqi government. They don't know how to deal with this -- this thing called democracy.

And, you know, by any measure -- look at the electricity. Seven years, Rick, the United States of America couldn't even turn on the lights.

SANCHEZ: But here's what I'm getting at. Look, we have got a dicey situation now between Israel and Iran and Saudi Arabia. We don't have a stable Iraq as we finally leave.

Speaking from a regional standpoint -- and no -- there's nobody who has spent as much time over there as you have as a correspondent -- what do you foresee moving forward for the region vis-a-vis what's happened now in Iraq?

CLANCY: Well, what's happening in Iraq -- and, make no mistake, these two events, you know, the stars have aligned. Tuesday, the president gives a speech about Iraq, the national purpose there, U.S. national security, keeping his promises.

SANCHEZ: Right.

CLANCY: Thursday, he's welcoming Mahmoud Abbas, Benjamin Netanyahu --

SANCHEZ: Aha.

CLANCY: -- to Washington to talk Middle East peace.

SANCHEZ: No small coincidence.

SANCHEZ: Well, you know, the stars have aligned here, but we're back to square one. How do you bring democracy to the Middle East? You can't tell the Iraqis you have got to stand up and fight for democracy and tell the Palestinians you have got to enjoy the occupation.

Somehow, the U.S. has to end the double standard. That's what he is going to try to do. It is a very tall order, Rick.

SANCHEZ: It certainly is.

CLANCY: Very tall order.

SANCHEZ: It's a good thing you were here to take us through this, though. This is an interesting conversation.

CLANCY: Thanks, Rick.

(CROSSTALK)

CLANCY: Good to see you.

SANCHEZ: Always good to see you.

You have got to go do your show, right? You're --

(CROSSTALK)

CLANCY: I have got -- I have got to do -- I have got more work to do, Rick.

SANCHEZ: You're up at 5:00.

(LAUGHTER)

SANCHEZ: Thanks, Jim.

All right, I want to make a list that you don't want to be on. Try being nude and drunk and ready to tackle a police officer in a football stance, you know, like a three-point stance. We're going to take you through that one.

Also, why is the demand for eggs on the rise in the midst of the salmonella crisis? Some farmers are seeing a booming business from scared customers. That's coming up.

The LIST, your LIST, scrolls on.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SANCHEZ: We do lists for you every day. And this one is the one we call the roundup list.

Numero uno, more documents the U.S. government would prefer you not see. The Web site WikiLeaks has posted reports today it says is an internal CIA document addressing the image of the United States abroad. The document is labeled secret. The CIA is saying no big deal, that the paper is not what they consider a blockbuster.

WikiLeaks regularly releases classified documents without revealing how they got them.

Number two, Gulf of Mexico, where is the oil? Some encouraging science news. A Berkeley Lab study finds that the spilled oil degraded faster than expected, thanks to natural microbes in the water. The study says chemicals sprayed on the spill broke down the oil into chunks small enough for the microbes to eat -- details in the upcoming issue of the journal "Science."

An ex-wife tells her side. Elin Nordegren, formerly Elin Woods, she tells "People" magazine that she never suspected that her golf star husband was fooling around with multiple mistresses. She says she is embarrassed and felt stupid when she found out.

She also denied reports that she had stuck -- struck Tiger Woods with a golf club or anything else that could have been seen as violent the night of his car crash that started this entire scandal rolling. Nordegren also says she is working on forgiving -- working on forgiving -- her ex-husband.

All right. The troop pullout from Iraq has meant hugs and tears and reunions, all of which we have been showing you. Well, guess what? There are more.

There is one that's just happened, and we are minutes away from showing you this hug between dads coming home from war and their kids.

And the parachute drop that unexpectedly stopped? What happens here? That's next, "Fotos."

We will be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SANCHEZ: Country singer and sausage king Jimmy Dean once said, "I can't change the direction of the wind, but I can adjust my sails to always reach my destination." Words to live by. Also good words to start "Fotos" with.

(MUSIC PLAYING)

SANCHEZ: What was that about wind in your sails? Watch as this Army parachuter hit a bit of a snag last night at a Texas Rangers game. Windy weather left him hanging from a flag pole. By the way, the Rangers beat the Twins by one run again. Ehh! The soldier was able to detach himself from the chute and walked away unharmed across the scoreboard. By the way, Mister, nice recovery.

Also, check out this free falling show off as he solves a Rubics Cube in the air. He claims he did it only in 31.5 seconds. That's pretty good. He did it from the comfort of an inflatable raft and was filmed by five skydiving buddies on the way down. Yes.

This next video has animal rights activists and others up in arms. Watch this woman throw her neighbor's cat in a dumpster and then just walk away. Watch. There you go. The amazing thing is she is petting it. Acting like "Oh, here kitty, you're so cute." Then she grabs the thing and just throws it in that giant dumpster there, right?

It was trapped for 15 hours, the cat was. The woman told a British newspaper she put the cat in there as a joke. Nobody was laughing. She reportedly received death threats after the video went viral. Police questioned her. She has since apologized for her behavior.

That's "Fotos." You can see them for yourself whenever you want. Just go to my blog at CNN.com/ricksanchez.

We have been telling you how U.S. combat brigades have left Iraq, but many soldiers are now heading to the war zone. Okay. Who are these guys? We'll be live on an emotional farewell ceremony coming up in just a little bit. That's ahead right here on the "LIST."

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SANCHEZ: Welcome back. I'm Rick Sanchez. This is RICK'S LIST. On our list of long running mysteries, nine patients in one hospital all die on the same day. In the same way, no less. This is an interesting report. I want you to watch it, brought to you now by my colleague, Drew Griffin, who has been putting this investigation together for us.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DREW GRIFFIN, CNN SPECIAL INVESTIGATIONS UNIT (voice-over): There is no mystery for Lou Ann Jacobs. She knows what happened to her 90-year-old mother, Rose Savoy on the 7th floor of the New Orleans Memorial Hospital.

LOU ANN JACOBS, MOTHER DIED: She was definitely murdered.

GRIFFIN: Her mother, one of nine patients found dead in the hospital that were part of an extensive attorney general investigation concluding they were literally sedated to death by the last remaining hospital staff and a doctor named Anna Pou.

JACOBS: I still feel that it was premeditated murder because they planned it. They got medicine together, mixed the cocktail, put it in the syringes and gave it to the patients.

GRIFFIN: It's not just Jacobs' feelings that point to premeditation. CNN was the first to obtain this report from the Louisiana State Attorney General's investigation revealing on September 1st, the day the hospital was to be evacuated, Dr. Anna Pou told staff lethal doses were going to be administered to the nine patients who could not be evacuated.

The pharmacists told investigators he was instructed to bring morphine and others told investigators they witnessed Dr. Pou administering drugs through IVs and a tray of syringes and within just a few hours every single one of the nine patients died.

One patient awake and alert when given the lethal dose openly complained. Jacobs said that patient was her mom.

JACOBS: But I know in my heart that woman that got the shot that said, wow, that burned, that was my mom.

GRIFFIN (on camera): Is that no killing a person? That is homicide.

ART CAPLAN, BIOETHICIST: That is homicide.

GRIFFIN (voice-over): Art Caplan is director of the Center for Bioethics at the University of Pennsylvania. He is also one of five forensic and ethical experts consulted on the memorial hospital deaths by New Orleans coroner. All five concluded the hospital staff euthanized the nine patients.

(on camera): Is this the case where doctors did their best and failed?

CAPLAN: We don't know whether doctors did their best in the field. All I can say in reading the record is that I think they assisted the death involuntarily of these patients. They didn't ask them. They didn't talk about it. They just said we better put these people to sleep.

GRIFFIN (voice-over): A grand jury was convened to investigate but neither Caplan nor the other four experts were asked to testify. That grand jury failed to indict anyone.

Five years later, despite all of the evidence, the New Orleans coroner still classifies the deaths as unknown.

JACOBS: I want justice.

GRIFFIN (on camera): Relatives of these victims have good reason to be frustrated with the law enforcement community here in New Orleans. Their cases, the cases of their loved ones remain unsolved homicides, and guess what else, nobody seems to want to solve them, including the district attorney. In open court last month, Leon Cannizzaro, the new district attorney of New Orleans called what happened at Memorial Hospital a homicide.

"I do believe human beings were killed as a result of actions of doctors." That's what he said in court, and then he went on to say that he has no intention of pursuing the case unless new evidence shows up at his door. (voice-over): Like the coroner, Cannizzaro said in court, he "just doesn't feel he has enough evidence,"

(on camera): And get this, the new district attorney Leon Cannizzaro, he won't even come out and tell us why.

(voice-over): After weeks of asking and one day of waiting, the district attorney we were told slipped out a side door. Through her attorney, Dr. Anna Pou has consistently refused requests for interviews with CNN but she has told other media outlets that while she did inject some patients with the potent drug combination, it was for palliative care, comfort, not murder.

In the ensuing years, the state, which employs Dr. Pou, has paid out hundreds of thousands in legal fees to settle cases against her.

Drew Griffin, CNN, New Orleans.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SANCHEZ: All right. We have new information I need to share with you. Remember when Chad a couple days ago gave us new information about a storm, hurricane, doing one of niece the Atlantic and then going straight up, thank goodness? Problem! There is another one, and it has a name. And it became such just two minutes ago. Maybe three by now, according to Chad.

So, you going to be ready to go when we get a break in?

CHAD MYERS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Yes, sir.

SANCHEZ: When we come back, you're going to do it with us. OK?

MYERS: Earl.

SANCEZ: Earl? There's a show called Earl. My Cousin Earl? Something like that. "My Name Is Earl." Thank you, Andreas. By the way, there is my book. Penguin publishes it. In book stores soon.

MYERS: Should have worn a tuxedo.

(LAUGHTER)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SANCHEZ: Okey-dokey. Here we go. Chad Myers is standing by with Earl. Funny, you know what I did, right?

MYERS: What's that?

SANCHEZ: I confused "My Cousin Vinny" with "My Name Is Earl" and came up with "My Cousin Earl."

MYERS: Now, there is a commercial on our show that has the guy talking in the old commercial on a telephone and his name is Earl, too. He drives that Gremlin or that Pacer, and he never updates his stuff. So, that's what I'm thinking. This is just some old guy out there, but he has a mind to go to the West, not to the north as Danielle has been going.

SANCHEZ: Oh, no.

MYERS: Danielle, 85 miles an hour, so it's a pretty decent storm, but Earl will eventually get in the way here of the islands, I believe. This is Sunday, 2:00, 85 miles per hour. Notice this is what Danielle is doing. This is behind Danielle enough that the high pressure that gets here begins to slide the winds and storm a little bit further to the west. If it gets too far to the west, even when it does turn, that sometimes the Carolinas can get involved or get in the way.

We don't know it's going to turn yet. So far still tracking off to the west. One more thing I want to tell you about while we're here. We do have some flooding going on, Riverside, California, near Hemmick. We've had this storm kind of over Hemmick. Here's San Diego, here's L.A., here's Riverside, you could see some heavy rain up toward the Hemmick area in the next hour.

SANCHEZ: Well, that's good because they've got fire problems out there.

MYERS: You bet. Just don't want lightning starting more of them.

SANCHEZ: Yes. Exactly. So, Earl is an old man's name? is that what you're saying?

MYERS: In that commercial, he is that guy. He's that guy that just won't update himself.

SANCHEZ: All the young guys who are named Earl who are watching you right now -

MYERS: That one guy?

SANCHEZ: -- it's Chad.Myers -

(LAUGHTER)

SANCHEZ: Thanks, Chad.

MYERS: And Rick.com.

SANCHEZ: A lot of kids dream about playing college football. You've got to love this story, by the way. One guy who was living the dream could be wearing a different uniform this fall.

Time now for "The List U Don't Want 2 Be On."

Yep, this guy does not want to be on this list on this day. His name is Tyler Patrick Thomas. He is an offensive lineman for Oregon State University and, yes, that appears to be a mullet you know? Bidness in the front, party in the back, right? Now, hangovers in college football -- in colleges, period -- are apparently nothing new. Not that that's a good thing. But something tells me this guy really regrets what he did the night before.

You ready? Here's how it went down.

A woman calls 911. She tells police there's a strange man upstairs. When police arrive, they find Thomas in his birthday suit. And when they ask him to get on the ground, he refuses.

Instead, he gets into a three-point stance -- you know, like players do on the line of scrimmage, offensive line, et cetera? Can you imagine? Naked man in a three-point stance in front of some woman who has no idea who he is.

He's 300 pounds. He's naked. He's dropped down in a three-point stance. And it gets worse. Then he starts charging the officer -- you know, firing out of his three-point stance -- who has to take out his stun gun and pull a Rick Sanchez on him before putting him in cuffs.

Well, it's no surprise. The team has given Thomas the boot. He now faces a laundry list of charges, including trespassing and resisting arrest, and not to mention trying to figure out, why in the world did I do that?

Listen to this. When asked if Thomas had digested one too many brews, police said, "Absolutely."

Tyler Patrick Thomas and his hangover top "The List U Don't Want 2 Be On."

Tiger Woods now ex-wife Elin broke her silence to "People" magazine. It's her very first interview. She talks about some of the things that everyone has been asking about, like did she know anything? Did it all just all of a sudden dawn on her that this was going on?

She explains her perspective. That is coming up. Stay with us.

I'm Rick Sanchez. We're going to be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SANCHEZ: It has been a very rough year for Tiger Woods, to put it mildly. Right?

Extramarital affairs, he made headlines around the world, less than stellar performances lately on the golf course. And just Monday, his divorce from wife Elin was finalized. She finalized it. She did not want to get back together with him.

Has it hurt his bottom line? Well, Tiger Woods is used to being at the very top of the "Sports Illustrated" list of highest paid athletes. But did he make it this year?

You know what I've got? I've got the top three right here. Let's find out who they are.

They don't call him "Money Mayweather" for nothing. The boxing superstar made $60 million last year, $60 million boxing, earning him that number three spot.

Green is a good color for number two on the list. The green jacket he won at this year's Masters goes nicely with the $61 million he raked in. It's Phil Mickelson.

It's the moment of truth. We are down to the number one spot on the list.

Who do you think it is?

You're darn tooting, still there. Even after losing endorsements from Gatorade, AT&T, Accenture, Tiger Woods is still head and shoulders above the rest as American athletes go with $90.5 million. That ain't too bad, is it?

Now to the What's Safe to Eat List. A couple of new developments in the egg recall story that we've been covering for weeks now.

Today, California's Health Department announced the very first illnesses from bad eggs may have occurred there after a May 8th prom and graduation party.

Now, more than three months later, another state joins the egg recall list. Michigan becomes the 23rd state where the suspected eggs have been distributed. And Michigan hasn't had any salmonella illnesses linked to the eggs reported yet. But so far, there have been 1,300 salmonella cases reported across the country that are linked to the tainted eggs. And health officials say they warned there will be more people that will be getting sick.

Now, this story has you wondering about the eggs in your fridge. So we checked in with our affiliates to see how they're covering this egg recall. We found two very different stories. One is from our affiliate in Boston, and we also got one from our affiliate in Dallas.

From Boston, the demand for eggs from small local farms exploding. In Dallas, the report focuses on how people are avoiding eggs altogether.

Let's go to the one from Texas first.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Some customers are keeping eggs out of their shopping carts.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Just not going to get them until they come out saying that everywhere across the board they aren't affected.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: In Texas, health officials started seeing a spike in salmonella cases three months ago. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Here's the issue in terms of salmonella outbreak -- it's twelve-fold (ph) in the state of Texas, a large number of increases.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: State investigators are now taking a look at 165 cases. Thirty-five are in north Texas -- five in Denton County, 13 in Tarrant, 10 in Collin and seven in Dallas County.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANCHEZ: And there is no surprise that some people are turning to small farms. Right?

All right. I told you about the piece out of Boston. Let's look at that one together now. Here it is.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Even before the salmonella outbreak forced a massive recall of 500 million eggs, demand spiked for fresh eggs.

Co-owner Neil Couve (ph).

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We are always short of eggs.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Its farm stand a popular spot for local families.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I feel sort of relieved that I know that I can just come here and get my eggs and I know that they're OK. Or I trust that they are.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They want a safe, local product that they can trust. And they know the farm, they know the farmer. And if they have a problem, it's my problem.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANCHEZ: Same story. Interestingly enough though, two different ways of covering it.

I'm glad we at CNN have the power of so many affiliates all over the country, and we thank them for their diligent work.

Up next, something you can't see too much of. U.S. soldiers about to head off for Iraq. Their spirits, their families, their (INAUDIBLE).

We're going to be there for you. In fact, there's a portion.

We're coming right back with this. Ed Lavandera standing by. These are live pictures you're looking at right there, by the way.

We'll be right back with more on RICK'S LIST.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) SANCHEZ: I am committed to following this story for you here on RICK'S LIST. And as I've told you before, we know that we are the news of record at this hour. So we're being watched right now by troops all over the world, and parts of Iraq and Afghanistan and Korea and Germany. So they need to know that they're getting some reinforcements coming their way.

If they're in, for example, Iraq, the drawdown of American troops in Iraq continues, but others are now deploying there. This new mission, I've told you what this is, right? It's called New Dawn. That's the train, the assist, the advisory role that these U.S. military folks are going to take.

Let me show you a picture.

Can we take the live picture of some of these troops where they are right now?

This is the area we're talking about. Right? This is in Fort Hood, Texas, and that's Ed Lavandera. He's right in the middle of it, where about some 200 soldiers are getting ready to say to say good-bye to their loved ones.

You know, I covered one of these things once, Ed, and I'll just be honest with you. OK? I figure you and I have that kind of relationship, and I kind of have a relationship with my viewers. I had a real tough time keeping tears inside while I was talking on TV when I was doing one of these. I bet you, you have that problem, too.

ED LAVANDERA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, it's only going to get tougher here in the next couple of hours, Rick. We're still a couple hours away from these soldiers officially deploying.

We're inside a gymnasium here in Fort Hood, Texas, and this is where the soldiers are going through the final preparations to board their flight over to Iraq. A lot of these soldiers have made multiple deployments to Iraq already, many of them also going for the very first time.

And I've got to tell you, Rick, it's really interesting to watch all of these guys get ready to make this deployment. They have got to go through more trouble than the average Joe to get on an airplane.

They're going through all sorts of security checks, K-9 units will be brought in to sniff out their backpacks and their duffle bags that they'll be carrying. They've been shoving their backpacks into boxes to make sure that they can carry them onto the plane. A lot of paperwork, a lot of effort to get to all of these soldiers moving in the right direction.

At the same time, they're balancing all of that with their family members and their loved ones sitting here in this gymnasium, taking a last look at them for the next year or so that they expect to be deployed. So it's a very difficult time for many of them, and a lot of that will continue here over the next couple of hours.

We've got here with us 1st Lieutenant Jesse Meyer.

You're making your first deployment.

And I've got to tell you, Rick, this guy is fired up to go actually.

Aren't you?

SGT. JESSE MEYER, U.S. ARMY 3RD ARMORED CAVALRY: Yes. It's about time, man.

LAVANDERA: Why is that?

MEYER: Part of the reason I joined was to go do my part. So the time has finally come.

LAVANDERA: There's been a lot of talk. It's a new operation there. It's Operation New Dawn. There's an advise and assist role now for your -- kind of changing out from combat unit.

How has that changed how you prepared for this deployment?

MEYER: Instead of -- we're used to just doing our thing, go out and run our missions. Now we have to kind of work in the Iraqi Army counterparts so that they pretty much take the lead. So it's kind of by, with and through every mission. They take the lead. We're there to advise, assist, and kind of security, make sure everything goes good.

LAVANDERA: And what most everyone in this room cares about the most is that you guys come home safely.

MEYER: Absolutely.

LAVANDERA: Do you guys view this as a safer mission, an equally as dangerous mission? How do you guys view that?

MEYER: I don't want anybody to get too complacent, but it should be a lot more tame than the last rotation this unit went through. From '07 to '09, it was a lot more wild and crazy back then. But it should be a lot more laid back.

LAVANDERA: All right, my man. Hang in there. Come back safe.

MEYER: All right. You bet.

LAVANDERA: And this unit will deploy in the next couple hours. This is this unit's fourth deployment since the war in Iraq started back in 2003, so they've been through quite a bit -- Rick.

SANCHEZ: Yes. It's always that one moment though when it finally hits the wives and the mothers and the dads and the kids, that their father or their mother is getting ready to take off. That final moment when you just see the tears streaming down their eyes and you know that, you know what? You're not going to see this guy for at least another year. It's a heck of a thing. Do me a favor. Make sure you get some good tape of this stuff for us tonight. I want to share this with our viewers a little bit later on. All right?

LAVANDERA: You bet. Take care.

SANCHEZ: Thanks, Ed. Look forward to seeing that report.

Meanwhile, here now is Suzanne Malveaux.

That's it for us. I'll see you again, by the way at "PRIMETIME," 8:00 p.m., right after John King.

Here is Suzanne Malveaux.