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CNN Sunday Morning
Presidents Obama and Lee Hold Press Conference; Seoul Nuclear Security Summit; Cheney Gets Heart Transplant
Aired March 25, 2012 - 05:44 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
NATALIE ALLEN: And hello, I'm Natalie Allen at CNN Center. We want to welcome viewers in the United States and around the world. We're going to go now live to Seoul, South Korea where U.S. President Barack Obama and South Korean President Lee Myung-bak are speaking.
Of course the president is there for a nuclear security summit in Seoul to begin tomorrow with 54 other countries. Let's listen in to the news conference.
PRESIDENT LEE MYUNG-BAK, SOUTH KOREA (through translator): And we talked about the serious situation (inaudible) and agreed to continue working closely together in implementing our North Korea policy.
Both countries agreed that North Korea's announcement to test fire its long range missile is a violation of UN Security Council resolutions, not to mention the latest agreement between the U.S. and North Korea.
Therefore President Obama and I both agree that North Korea must immediately repeal its decision and abide by its international obligations. President Obama and I agreed that we will continue to enhance and strengthen our combined defense capabilities and at the same time firmly respond to any threats or provocations from the North.
If North Korea gives up its pursuit of nuclear weapons and missile development and instead chooses a path towards peace and cooperation, our two countries will work together along with the international community to help improve the lives of the people in North Korea and provide necessary assistance that will help North Korea open up a new era.
And we reaffirm the value and importance of our enduring alliance and discussed the future vision of our partnership following the adoption of the future vision of the alliance which was adopted in June, 2009. Our alliance is evolving into a truly global partnership where we are working shoulder-to-shoulder to resolve global challenges.
Furthermore, we reviewed the progress being made in our alliance such as the transfer of (Okun) two plus two security consultations and agreed that we will strengthen our deterrence capabilities that have been enhanced policy coordination and strive towards a future oriented alliance.
Ladies and gentlemen, we will also work together so that the course FTA that came into effect last March 15th will fulfill its goal, and that is creating jobs for our workers, expand trade and investments and overall improve the lives of our peoples.
And accordingly in order to ensure the faithful implementation of the course FTA we will establish a ministerial level joint committee as previously agreed and check upon the progress.
President Obama and I also exchanged views on the state of the global economy and shared our concern regarding the uncertainties that still remain. In particular, we share the concern that rising oil prices is an obstacle to speedy recovery with the global economy and agree that international cooperation needed to be further strengthened to bring about stability in the world oil market.
And of course we also talked about recent issues, issues in the Middle East, Afghanistan and other issues including Iran and how we can strengthen international cooperation to bring about a resolution to these issues.
I welcome President Obama once again on his visit. The Nuclear Security Summit was President Obama's initiative borne out of his vision to leave behind a safer more prosperous world for the future generation, and we will continue to strike together to achieve a world without nuclear weapons.
I thank him and his team for all the help in ensuring a successful Nuclear Security meeting. Thank you.
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT, UNITED STATES: Well, good evening everyone. Thank you to my good friend and partner, President Lee for your very kind words and thank you to the people of Korea for your gracious welcome.
This is my third visit to the Republic of Korea as president. It is wonderful to be back and once again I'm grateful for the hospitality.
This visit reflects the extraordinary friendship between our two people. My wife and I were proud to help strengthen those ties when we had the honor of hosting President Lee and First Lady Kim for a state visit at the White House last fall.
And during that visit I learned a Korean word that I believe captures the deep affection between our people, (inaudible), and I feel that spirit again today.
My visits to Korea reflect the leadership role that South Korea is playing in this region around the world, a global Korea. I was last here for the G20, which was a success under President Lee's leadership. Now we're back along with more than 50 world leaders for the second Nuclear Security Summit.
In fact, just today we saw another important step forward. We learned that Ukraine completed the removal of highly enriched uranium from its territory. This fulfills a commitment Ukraine made at our last Nuclear Security Summit in Washington.
And I believe it's a preview of the kind of progress we're going to see over the next two days in confronting one of the most urgent challenges of global security, securing the world's nuclear weapons and preventing nuclear terrorism.
My visit to Korea also reflects the enduring strength of our alliance. My last visit to Seoul came as we marked both the 60th anniversary of the Korean War and Veterans' Day. And today I travelled, as President Lee mentioned to the DMZ to thank our men and women in uniform, American and Korean, who served shoulder-to-shoulder.
They're the reason that we can stand here free today and prosperous here today. And we salute them all.
My visit to Korea reflects the fact that the United States is leading again in the Asia Pacific, a region that will affect American security and prosperity in the 21st Century like no other.
As I declared in Australia last year, the United States as a Pacific nation will play a larger and long-term role in shaping this region and its future. And the cornerstone of our efforts is our strong alliances including our alliance with the Republic of Korea.
This is the context for our meeting today. And as President Lee indicated, we had a very good discussion on a wide range of issues. We reviewed our ongoing efforts to modernize our security alliance.
We agreed to have our foreign and defense ministers meet in June to discuss concrete measures we can take to continue strengthening that alliance. We're on track for South Korea to assume operational control for the alliance in 2015.
I reaffirmed, as I said in Australia, that reductions in U.S. defense spending will not come at the expense of the Asia Pacific, and that includes South Korea.
America's Armed Forces are going to stay ready for the full range of contingencies and threats. And the alliance between the United States and the Republic of Korea remains unshakeable.
We reviewed out great progress in bringing our economies even closer. During my last visit to Seoul we pledged to get our landmark trade agreement done. On President Lee's visit to Washington it passed our Congress. On this visit we can say that our trade agreement is now in force. We got it done.
This is a win for both of our countries. More jobs and opportunities for our workers and businesses on both sides of the Pacific. That includes supporting some 70,000 American jobs and keeping us on track to meet my goal of doubling American exports.
We discussed regional security and that obviously includes the issue of North Korea. Last month North Korea agreed to a series of steps including moratorium on long range missile launches. This month North Korea announced its intention to conduct a missile launch.
As President Lee mentioned, this would constitute a direct violation of Kim Jong's own commitments and its international obligations.
Moreover, it would only deepen North Korea's isolation, damage further its relations with its neighbors and seriously undermine the prospects of future negotiations. I'll have more to say in my speech tomorrow about our commitment to security and peace on the Korean peninsula and the choice Kim Jong must make.
Today I'll simply say that North Korea will achieve nothing by threats or by provocations. North Korea knows its obligations and it must take irreversible steps to meet those obligations on this the United States and the Republic of Korea are absolutely united.
(Inaudible) is one of our key global partners we discussed a range of challenges to international security. I again want to thank South Korea for its important contributions to reconstruction in Afghanistan and I updated the president on our preparations for the NATO Summit in Chicago where we will chart the next phase of the transition to Afghan lead.
And I also thank the President of South Korea's strong support of sanctions on Iran because its failure to meet its international obligations.
I know this decision does not come without costs both to the Republic of Korea as well as our own country, but the prospects of an Iran with nuclear weapons would be a threat to the world. And this is one more example of South Korea stepping and playing a leadership role on the world stage.
And, finally, we're deepening the ties between our people. We agreed to expand educational exchanges which will give more Korean students the opportunity to study in the United States which benefits both of our countries.
So, once again, President Lee, I thank you for your hospitality, for your leadership, our alliance is strong, our commitment to the security and prosperity of our people is unwavering, and I'm confident that under South Korea's leadership the Nuclear Security Summit is going to be a great success.
LEE (through translator): We'll now take questions from the press.
QUESTION: The question going on to President Lee. As predicted you just explained that you and President Obama discussed the issue of North Korea (inaudible). But despite the international community's warnings, how will you respond if North Korea goes ahead and test fires its long range missile?
What will Korea do and what kind of sanctions are you planning to impose on North Korea? And could you explain the status of the negotiations regarding what extending the missile range of South Korea.
In a recent press interview you spoke about the fact that discussions are proceeding between the U.S. and Korea regarding extending the missile range of South Korea. Can you explain the status of the negotiations?
LEE (through translator): Thank you, Mr. (inaudible). You asked about North Korea's impending launch of its long range missile. Let me just reiterate once and again, ladies and gentlemen. If North Korea goes ahead with its plan to test launch its long range missile, this is a clear violation of U.N. Security Council Resolution 1874.
North Korea, if it goes ahead with its plan, will be going straight against its pledges that it made with the international community. The international community is urging the North Koreans to repeal its announcement to test file its long range missile.
Now your question was what -- how are we going to respond? I just want to answer that question by saying that if North Korea goes ahead with it, North Korea must be the sole country to bear the entire responsibility.
As President Obama just mentioned, if it goes ahead with its plan it will open deepen its isolation and all the consequences North Korea will have to face. And from the perspective of the people of North Korea, they will understand that the leaders spending hundreds of millions of dollars just to test long range missile and watching their leader do so, they're not going to feel proud that their country was able to launch a long range missile.
Rather, they will get -- surely understand the nature of their leaders. And understand why they have to go through such hardships today. So domestically I'm sure the North Korean leaders are hoping to achieve some sort of an objective by test launching its long range missile.
But they must clearly understand that if they go ahead with the plan, that they will put themselves in a very difficult position. I urge the North Koreans to come out as a responsible member of the international community and that is the surest way to ensure a better life for the people of North Korea.
In this regard, there is no difference of opinions between the U.S. and South Korea, we'll remain very calm and rational and we will be wise in dealing with the North Koreans if, in fact, they do go ahead with their announcement.
You asked about extending the missile range of South Korea. We did not discuss that issue. Of course working level officials have been discussing this issue, but you have to look at this from a more holistic framework in that extending the missile range is part of increasing and enhancing our defense capabilities, vis-a-vis North Korea.
QUESTION: Good evening President Obama, President Lee, thank you for the question.
I'd like to follow up on the North Korean threat on two fronts. The first is to follow up on the question my colleague had. Could you be more specific from your perspective what the consequences would be that you would bring to bear on North Korea should there be a rocket launch in terms of the overall relationship but also specifics such as food aid and negotiations. And also, I'm wondering, sir, if you could give us some insights about whether you've developed an impression of North Korea's new leader and whether you've been able to yet take a measure of the man?
And to President Lee, good to see you again. I wanted to ask you about the Nuclear Security Summit. Can you explain how it would have any true and lasting credibility when the two major antagonists of North Korea and Iran are on the sidelines?
OBAMA: Well, first of all, with respect to the consequences should there be a launch by the North Korean. As President Lee indicated, North Korea is already under an extraordinary battery of sanctions. They are the most isolated country in the world. They are cut off from basic commerce and exchanges beyond their borders that every other country -- almost every other country takes for granted. Their people are extraordinarily impoverished. The contrast between living standards in the North and living standards in the South could not be greater. And couldn't be a greater testimony to the benefits of living in a free society.
And so the real consequence, should they go forward with a launch, is they will have missed an opportunity because what we presented to them and what we've consistently presented to them is an opportunity for them to take a different path than the one they've been taking, which is resulting in not simply hardship for their people, but a state that is decades behind their counterparts in the region in terms of development, in terms of economic strength, in terms of influence in world affairs. And so immediate, concrete, tangible effects we had offered them, the possibility as part of a series of confidence building measures to move forward with a nutritional aid package, for example. We've indicated to them very directly, because this was part of discussions that had taken place among negotiators, that it would be difficult to move forward with that package if they show themselves unable to make commitments that they've made even a month earlier. Because part of the challenge of any nutrition aid package, for example, is that you make sure it actually gets to the people who need it and it doesn't go to serve elites in that country or their military. That requires monitors. It's very difficult to have monitors during (ph) a period of tension and friction. And it is difficult to provide aid if you don't think that it's going to get to the people who actually need it. So that's just one example of the kinds of consequences that will take place.
I'll also note that every time North Korea has violated international resolution, the Security Council resolution, it's resulted in further isolation, tightening of sanction, stronger enforcement, greater support on the part of the international community for a stronger enforcement. I suspect that will happen this time, as well.
So they need to understand that bad behavior will not be rewarded. There had been a pattern, I think, for decades in which North Korea thought that if they acted provocatively, then somehow they would be bribed into ceasing and desisting acting provocatively. And President Lee and I have agreed, from the start of our relationship, that we're going to break that pattern. And I suspect that it will ultimately end up having the impact intended. But in the meantime, it's the people of North Korea that are most likely to suffer.
I do want to comment on the issue you raised with respect to the Nuclear Security Summit. Understand that the concept of the Nuclear Security Summit that we set up was not directed at the specific issue of Iran or North Korea, but was directed at one leg of a multi-legged stool when it comes to our nuclear security. Specifically, if you've got a lot of loose nuclear material, if countries, either historically because of old nuclear programs or currently in terms of how they operate their nuclear energy facilities, are leaving a bunch of material out there that could potentially fall in the hands of terrorists. That poses an extraordinary threat to the United States, to South Korea and to countries all around the world.
And so our goal with this Nuclear Security Summit has always been to be very specific, concrete around a set of issues that if we act with some deliberateness can actually enhance everybody's security and should not be controversial. And it's a testament I think, to that well-defined agenda that two years later we're seeing all these deliverables take place that are taking a whole bunch of nuclear material out of vulnerable positions that could fall into the wrong hands.
It doesn't solve every problem. It doesn't address every issue that I raised in my Prague speech three and a half years ago. We still have issues of, how can we reduce nuclear weapons among those countries that currently have nuclear weapons. Consistent with the long-term obligations of the MPT. We still have outliers, like Iran and North Korea, that are potentially pursuing nuclear weapons and that pose a significant danger and are engaging in potential nonproliferation activities. But that doesn't diminish in any way the concrete work that's gotten done here, that is significantly reducing the risk that an al Qaeda or a terrorist organization could get a dirty bomb and explode it in Seoul or New York City. And that's always been the objective of the Nuclear Security Summit and I think that because of the fine leadership that's been shown by President Lee and his delegation, we're going to see a whole bunch of concrete stuff get done over the next two days.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (INAUDIBLE)
OBAMA: Oh. You know, I think it's hard to have an impression of Kim Jong-un in part because the situation in North Korea still appears unsettled. It's not clear exactly who is calling the shots and what their long-term objectives are. But regardless of the North Korean leadership, what is clear is that they have not yet made that strategic pivot where they say to themselves, what we're doing isn't working. It's leaving our country and our people down a dead end.
And, you know, Ben (ph), you were there at the DMZ and it's like you're in a time warp. It's like you're looking across 50 years into a country that has missed 40 years or 50 years of progress. And, you know, if a country can't feed its people effectively, if it can't make anything of any use to anybody, if it has no exports other than weapons, and even those aren't ones that in any way would be considered state-of-the-art, if it can't deliver on any indicators of well-being for its people, then you'd think you'd want to try something different.
I don't get a sense that they've made that decision yet. But my suspicion is, is that at some point that's what the North Korean people are going to be looking for. And they do have that opportunity. And when they make that decision, I know I speak for President Lee, no one will welcome it more than we do because, you know, it is in our interests to see every country provide opportunity and prosperity for its people. But there's certain things that just don't work. And what they're doing doesn't work.
LEE (through translator): Regarding the Nuclear Security Summit, President Obama just explained what kind of objectives that we want to achieve by holding the second Nuclear Security Summit. So I just want to add to what President Obama said and say that during the Seoul Summit, which begins tomorrow, first of all, we're going to review the kind of progress that we made back in Washington, D.C. And then what we're going to do is we're going to make more pledges to reduce and eliminate nuclear materials. We are going to set up more concrete benchmarks. And as a result of the Seoul Summit, we will be able to reduce and eliminate about 20,000 nuclear weapons that we still have about 100,000 nuclear weapons left. This is a tremendous amount of nuclear weapons, but I have hoped that as we continue to engage in this -- with this problem, that we will be able to achieve and obtain our goal of a world without nuclear weapons.
And another important point that President Obama also mentioned is that 50 plus leaders gathered here in Seoul are going to be discussing how we can prevent nuclear materials and weapons from falling into the wrong hands. We are going to discuss how we can share intelligence and information so that we can prevent individuals and organizations from acquiring nuclear weapons. You can just only imagine the kind of work that will go into coming up with an agreement between 50 plus states. But nonetheless, we share a common vision and a commitment. And I'm confident that following the meeting in Washington, D.C., the meeting that will start tomorrow, will contribute to enhancing our safety and security.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): Mr. Choy (ph) from (INAUDIBLE).
A question going out to President Obama.
Mr. President, you just visited the DMZ, the (INAUDIBLE), this morning. And today the North Koreans are commemorating the 100th anniversary of the birth of Kim Il-sung and so they were having this big parade in North Korea. Also celebrating the new leadership of Kim Jung-un. If you can share with us your thoughts in visiting the DMZ and what you think about the leaders in North Korea.
And second question has to do with extending the missile range of South Korea. The South Korean government's position is that since North Korea has a capability of more than 3,000 kilometers in its missile range, that is one reason why you hope to extend the missile range of -- here in South Korea. What are your thoughts on this? And what are some of the preconditions in order to resume the six-party talks? The last question was also going out to both President Obama and President Lee.
LEE (through translator): You just asked three questions.
OBAMA: It's hard to remember them all.
Well, the first question, I think, I basically answered, my impressions with respect to the DMX and the North Korean leadership.
With respect to the issue of extending missile ranges, I think President Lee got it exactly right. We have this incredibly powerful alliance that is multidimensional and involves a whole range of coordination, training activities, making sure that there's interoperability with respect to various weapons systems and our defensive capabilities. And so all these issues are being discussed as we move forward to implementing the 2015 plan.
And so there are no specific preconditions around or specific obstacles around the missile range issue. Rather it's a broader question of, what are the needs in order for us to fulfill our enduring goals around the alliance. And a lot of that is technical. A lot of it takes place not at the presidential level, but rather at the military level. And, you know, we will continue to instruct our teams that they work closely together to ensure what is the ultimate outcome, which is not any particular weapons system or any particular missile range, but rather, can we protect our people? Can we make sure that the objectives of the alliance are achieved?
With respect to the six-party talk. Look, we've been very clear about this again and again. It's not that complicated. If the North Koreans are serious about entering into six-party talks, they have to show that they are operating in good faith. At minimum that requires them suspending activities that right now clearly are contrary to previous obligations that they've made and international law. And when they do that, then we'll be able to sit down and resolve hopefully some of these longer-term issues. In the absence of that, it's hard to figure out how these discussions would be productive. And, frankly, you know, President Lee and I both have a lot of things to do and so we try not to have our teams sit around tables talking in circles without actually getting anything done. And my hope is, is that at some point the North Koreans make the decision that it is in their interests to try to figure out how to feed their people and improve their economy rather than have big parades where they show off weapons.
Mark Liner (ph)?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (INAUDIBLE).
OBAMA: You can use them both, Mark.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Exactly (ph). Thank you both.
A question first for President Obama. Mr. President, in the past you've been, particularly when frustrated with China on the issue of North Korea, not shy about telling President Hu that the U.S. will do what's necessary to protect its national security interests. As you're meeting President Hu tomorrow, I wondering what message will you give him regarding North Korea? Are you satisfied with the pressure that China has brought to bear on North Korea? Is there more they could be doing? And is it realistic to think that if they pushed hard enough, they might persuade the North Koreans not to go ahead with the satellite launch.
And a question for President Lee. As long as my colleague asked President Obama for his views on Kim Jung-un, I'd like to ask you your views. You live here. Your -- you've paid attention to North Korea for longer than our president has, I dare say, and I just wonder whether you think he is, as the president suggested, still in a very tenuous situation, or whether you see him as really establishing quite some control?
OBAMA: Well, first of all, I look forward to my meeting with President Hu tomorrow. Obviously this -- the issue of North Korea will be one among a number of topics that we discuss. My communications with the Chinese have been very consistent on this issue. It is my firm belief that it is in none of our interests to see either tension and instability on the peninsula and it's not in anybody's interest to see a nuclearized peninsula. The Chinese say they agree with that.
The question then is, given that they have more influence and closer diplomatic relations with North Korea than any other country on earth, what are they doing to help guide or encourage North Korea to take a more constructive approach? And that certainly will be a topic of conversation.
Now, I am sympathetic to the fact that they share a border with North Korea. They are deeply concerned about potential instability in that country and what ramifications it might have on China. And, you know, it is important to recognize that they have a broad range of equities when it comes to how they operate with North Korea given that they're neighbors. But what I've said to them consistently is, rewarding bad behavior, turning a blind eye to deliberate provocations, trying to paper over these not just provocative words, but extraordinarily provocative acts that violate international norms, that that's not obviously working. So in the same way that North Korea needs to do something new, if it actually wants to do right by its people, my suggestion to China is, it that how they communicate their concerns to North Korea should probably reflect the fact that the approach they've taken over the last several decades hasn't led to a fundamental shift in North Korea's behavior.
And the irony, of course, is, is that during the last 20 years, China has leapt into the 21st century, in part by abandoning some of the practices that North Korea still clings to. You couldn't ask for a better model of the difference at least on the economic front that different policies have made. And, again, I believe China is very sincere that it does not want to see North Korea with a nuclear weapon. But it is going to have to -- it is going to have to act on that interest in a sustained way. And if it does, I think together, between the South Koreans, the Japanese, the Russians, the Chinese and ourselves, I think we can have a real impact.
LEE (through translator): With regards to your question on Kim Jung-un and my impression on him, it's a difficult question. I think it's safe to say that it's rather premature for anyone to make any initial assessment or analysis of Kim Jung-un or have an accurate impression on Kim Jung-un. And I think it's safe to say that the majority of North Korean people themselves are probably having a difficult time trying to assess their own leader because it hasn't been very long since he assumed the leadership role. So I don't think any leader around the world is going to give you a definitive impression or an answer to your question.
But having said that, I initially did have a bit of an expectation that he will take a different path. But his recent announcement was a source of disappointment. Nonetheless, I will wait and see and give you a more definitive answer of my impression on Kim Jung-un and I think that will be more accurate.
Any new leader in North Korea will have to understand that he cannot survive alone in this world. In this day and age, no country or people or leader, for that matter, cannot stand alone. It is imperative that all leaders in countries work together as a responsible member of the international community. And this is the surest way to ensure a better life for the people of that country. And if they do so, of course including the Republic of Korea and the United States and many other members of the international community, will help the North Koreans realize a better life for their people.
Thank you very much.
OBAMA: Thank you very much.
RANDI KAYE, CNN ANCHOR: Hello, everyone. I'm Randi Kaye.
You've just been watching President Obama making remarks during his stop there in South Korea. He is there for a summit, as you have learned there, on the world's nuclear future and threats in the region.
A couple of highlights from the president's remarks. He told North Korea it will achieve nothing by threats and provocation. The president said that if North Korea goes ahead with the missile launch, it will deepen their isolation and damage relations, as well. Mr. Obama said South Korea and the U.S. will deal sternly with any North Korean provocations. He said bad behavior will not be rewarded.
We'll have much more on this when CNN Weekend Early Starts returns in just one minute.
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KAYE: From CNN Center, this is CNN WEEKEND EARLY START. It is Sunday, March 25th. Good morning, everyone. I'm Randi Kaye.
President Obama has just finished his remarks in South Korea, where he joined South Korean President Lee for the Nuclear Security Summit. We'll have a live report from Seoul coming up.
And explosive new developments in the Trayvon Martin story as one group puts out a bounty on Trayvon's killer. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (voice-over): When we get him, they can come get him from us. And at that point they need to charge him.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KAYE: We'll tell you what the new Black Panthers are demanding and how much they are offering for Zimmerman's quote "capture."
Plus, the future of your health care goes to the Supreme Court this week. In our main bar/sidebar story today, we'll look at what's at stake. You're watching WEEKEND EARLY START, where news doesn't take the weekend off.
In other news now, Dick Cheney is in a Virginia hospital this morning where he is recovering from heart transplant surgery. The 71-year-old former vice president had been on a transplant list for more than 20 months. Let's bring in Athena Jones. She's outside Cheney's hospital.
Athena, good morning to you. Give us an update, if you can. What is his condition right now?
ATHENA JONES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning.
Well, the latest we have is from the statement that his office put out last night saying that -- talking about this donor. That he waited more than 20 months for this heart, as you mentioned. And the statement said that although the former vice president and his family don't know the identity of the donor, they will be forever grateful for this life-saving gift.
I should also mention that presidential candidate Newt Gingrich, who is friends with Cheney and who lives not far away, also put out a statement last night saying, in part, "Vice President Cheney is in our thoughts and prayers tonight as he recovers from surgery. Callista and I hope that his recovery is peaceful. And we wish him and his family all of the best."
Now, I've spoken with the hospital spokespeople this morning. As of right now, there are no briefings scheduled, but that could change at any minute, Randi. We'll let you know once we hear about that.
KAYE: And, Athena, we've heard now for years about Dick Cheney's heart troubles. Can you just give us a brief history of what he's been through and why he needed this?
JONES: Absolutely. Cheney has a long history of heart problems. He's had five heart attacks starting back in 1978 when he was just 37 years old. We know that back in 2001 he had a pacemaker implanted. And he was also hospitalized more recently in June of 2010 when he had what's called a left ventricular assist device implanted. These LVADs, as they're called, are common precursors to a heart transplant. They help the heart pump. But they're meant as a temporary sort of bridge fix. So those are just two of the many surgeries and issues that he's had over the year, Randi. KAYE: And any word on when he might leave the hospital?
JONES: Unclear at this point. From what we can tell in terms of our research on heart transplants and the recovery time, it takes up to several weeks, of course. You know, according to the International Heart and Lung Transplant Association, Cheney, at 71, is on the upper end of heart transplant recipient. The vast majority of people who get transplant all over the world are in their 50s. And so certainly his age could be a factor in the recovery time, Randi.
KAYE: All right, Athena Jones for us there. Thank you very much.
Rick Santorum's campaign is walking with a little swagger today. Louisiana marks the eleventh state won by Santorum and the third southern state this month. GOP Presidential front-runner, Mitt Romney, leaves Louisiana with a consolation prize, a handful of delegates. Joe Johns has more from New Orleans.
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JOE JOHNS, SENIOR CNN CORRESPONDENT: Randy, Rick Santorum in first place, Mitt Romney in second in the Louisiana primary. Louisiana is one of those states that really hasn't mattered much in Republican primary politics in decades, so it was a novelty to many of the voters here to have all four candidates on the ground, in their state, courting them and asking for their votes. We saw unusual things as we moved across this state. Very small venues with just a dozen or a couple dozen seats and a row of television cameras.
But one of the things that was pretty common in this state, as in many of the other states, was the robo-calls. The calls from people asking for votes as we moved toward the primary vote. In this case, the most interesting robo-call we heard about was the one from Hank Williams, the recording artist, in favor of, in support of Rick Santorum.
Turn out here was thought to be low because the voters really were not able to have the time with these candidates to develop a strong connection. And connection, perhaps, the most important word of the night. Mitt Romney, the national front runner, unable to develop that connection, once again, with Southern voters that has denied him a win in southern states, except for Florida.
The most important thing of all really, is the delegate count. Louisiana has 46 delegates, 20 of those to be awarded after primary night, the rest to be awarded between now and June in a caucus and a convention. Randy, back to you.
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KAYE: Thank you, Joe. And as Joe said, the delegates still have to be sorted out. Based on last night's results, Santorum gets 8, Romney gets 5, the rest will stay uncommitted until the State's Republican convention.
Another big story we're following today, President Obama's visit to a major U.S. ally, South Korea. You saw the President speak live right here on CNN just minutes ago. He underscored the U.S. stands shoulder- to-shoulder with Seoul, against any aggression by North Korea. This hour, he's attending a dinner with South Korean President, Lee Myung- bak.
Mr. Obama also made his first ever visit to the heavily fortified demilitarized zone that divides the Korean peninsula; meeting with U.S. troops there. Another big focus of his trip, an international nuclear summit.
CNN's Paula Hancocks joins us now from South Korea's capital, Seoul. Paula, what were some of the highlights from the remarks that President Obama made, as well as the South Korean President?
PAULA HANCOCKS: Well Randy, what we saw and what we were actually expecting was the fact that they both stood next to each other and said there was a consensus between them that North Korea was in direct violation of UN security counsel resolutions, of promises that it had already made to the United States just a few weeks ago, that it wouldn't carry out nuclear tests or missile tests. It was also going against it's - it's own commitment. So, this is what we were expecting, both sides condemning North Korea, saying that this missile launch, this satellite launch, should not go ahead.
Now, one interesting thing was many of the questions were asking, "What will you do if they do go ahead with this missile launch? What are the consequences?" They didn't have an exact answer for that. There was a suggestion there could be further security counsel resolutions for the sanctions, but neither President was willing to go that far. Mr. Obama said it would deepen the isolation of North Korea; it would also damage further relationships and seriously undermine its relations with its neighbors. But there was no specifics at this point.
Mr. Obama also said it was a missed opportunity. He was hoping that North Korea would take a different path. The fact that they were talking to the United States, the fact there was a deal, they hoped they would be taking a different path. But it is a missed opportunity according to Mr. Obama.
Another interesting thing I heard was that obviously, all of the world wants to get these UN weapons inspectors into North Korea, but Mr. Obama said it would be difficult at this time of friction, Randy.
KAYE: Paula Hancocks, thank you very much for the latest on that. And coming up in our main bar story, the health care bill is going to Supreme Court tomorrow. We'll explain what's at stake for you. We'll be right back.
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KAYE: Welcome back, everyone. Now for the main bar, our big story that we investigate from all angles to give you some context and some analysis. Today it is the health care reform law that goes to the Supreme Court tomorrow. Senior Medical Correspondent, Elizabeth Cohen breaks down the law and tells us what could go away if it is struck down? (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ELIZABETH COHEN, SENIOR MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: In 2009, when this law was being debated, pretty much everyone agreed that this country had a problem. There were way too many uninsured people, by some accounts, 49 million uninsured Americans. So everyone agreed something had to be done, but everyone disagreed about what had to be done.
What Obama came up with is a rule that says, everyone has to have insurance and you can get it through your employer, you can get it through the private market, you can get it in a variety of ways, but everyone has to have insurance.
When people don't have insurance, they're really in a terrible pickle when they get sick. I mean, imagine you don't have insurance and God forbid you get hit by a car or you get cancer, how are you going to pay for that? Not only are you in trouble, but the rest of us are in trouble because if you don't have insurance and you get hit by a car, the rest of us are paying for you to get care. It comes out of our tax money; it comes out of our insurance premiums. We all end up taking care of the uninsured.
The health care plan was passed two years ago and it's implemented in a series of stages. Some things happen very quickly and other parts of it don't happen for a couple of years. The health care reform has already made it illegal for insurance companies to say no to a child with a preexisting condition.
Before health care reform, insurance companies would often tell children with preexisting conditions, "No, sorry, we don't want to insure you because it's expensive to insure someone who already has a serious condition." Insurance companies have already been told, no more lifetime limits on benefits. What used to happen is that insurance companies would say, "You have," let's say, "5 million dollars of benefits and that's it. And when you hit that 5 million dollar cap, you can't have anymore care." Health care reform law said, "You can't do that anymore, there are no more lifetime limits."
Now most people never even meet this cap, but if you've got a serious illness, you could actually need a 5 million dollar cap relatively easily.
Health care reform also allows children to stay on their parent's insurance until they're 26.
One of the things that will happen in the future because of health care reform, is insurance companies will have to accept adults with preexisting conditions. They can't say no to you because, let's say you have asthma, or you have cancer or heart disease.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KAYE: And throughout the morning we'll have sidebars that dig deeper into this week's hearings. I'll talk to one State Attorney General who will be front and center tomorrow at the Supreme Court as the hearings kick off. He'll explain why he thinks the Federal Government is overstepping its goal in reforming health care.
Anger in the Trayvon Martin case. Now one group wants George Zimmerman taken into custody, no matter what and they are actually offering a pretty big cash incentive. We've got that coming up.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAYE: Now for the latest on the Trayvon Martin investigation. This morning, members of the radical New Black Panther Party are offering a $10,000 bounty for the "capture" of Martin's shooter, George Zimmerman. Zimmerman is staying out of sight. His attorney and his father both say Zimmerman may be fearing for his life. But the national spokesman for the New Black Panther Party told us that this isn't a call to violence.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
HASHIM NZINGA, NEW BLACK PANTHER PARTY SPOKESMAN: George Zimmerman should have followed the police instruction and stayed in his car. And he shouldn't have taken Trayvon's life. No, we're not inciting violence, we're doing what American citizens have been doing for many, many years, we're doing a citizen's arrest.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KAYE: The City of Sanford is calling for calm. Officials issuing this statement, it reads in part, "Attempts by civilians to take any person into custody may result in criminal charges or unnecessary violence."
George Zimmerman has not been arrested or charged. Meanwhile, an attorney for Trayvon Martin's family says they will file a civil lawsuit against the homeowners association. Lawyer Daryl Parks claims there is evidence that he neighborhood association in Twin Lakes, the community where Martin was killed, told it's residents to call Zimmerman if they could not contact police but say suspicious activity.
Parks also believes it will be difficult to bring federal hate crimes charges against Zimmerman saying prosecution at the State level is more likely.
Voters in Louisiana have spoken, but is their message clear? We'll delve into a little presidential politics comings up next with Patricia Murphy.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAYE: To politics now and Louisiana is in the books. Rick Santorum won last night's primary. Mitt Romney came in second. So Romney's win in Florida is his lone bright spot in the south, while Santorum adds to his win total.
Joining me now is Patricia Murphy, Founder and Editor of Citizen Jane Politics and contributor to The Daily Beast. Good morning to you.
PATRICIA MURPHY, FOUNDER, CITIZEN JAN POLITICS: Good morning.
KAYE: So let's talk about what happened in Louisiana. Do the results; do you think tell us anything that we didn't know before?
MURPHY: I think it just; it confirms what we already knew before. That Rick Santorum does very well in southern states, he does very well in conservative states and states with very high evangelical population. 71 percent of Louisiana is considered conservative or very conservative. That's a state tailor made for Rick Santorum.
What it tells us also though is that he's consistently winning only in the places we expect him to. He needs desperately to change the dynamic. He needs to expand his base relative - his donors; his supporters (will) start to hop of (his) bandwagon.
KAYE: When you look at Louisiana, will it go GOP regardless of who the nominee is, do you think?
MURPHY: Yes. I would say most of the south is going to go GOP no matter who it is and most republican voters I've talked to, even if they're out for Newt Gingrich or Rick Santorum, the second question (you) ask, well, "Would you vote for Mitt Romney if he was on the ticket? If he was the nominee?" And they said, "Oh sure. Yeah, I'd vote for him. I like these other guys, I'd vote for Romney. I really don't like Barack Obama."
So, and no republican has really lost the Deep South since 1976 with Jimmy Carter. So, really no matter how well Santorum does in the deep south, it kind of doesn't matter as much because we know any republican nominee is going to do very well down there regardless.
KAYE: How do you think he'll do when he goes to States that aren't in the south? I mean, he's going to be out of his comfort zone a little bit. Will this work to his advantage do you think? Can he pull it off? I mean, he's already talking about the brokered convention. He hinted at that last night.
MURPHY: Yes, yes. His goal is to stop Romney from winning, basically, at this point. But what he needs to do - I mean, when you go to a convention, you still have to convince those delegates, "I can win this thing, I can be the best nominee." So again, he has to start winning states that we don't expect him to.
We have Wisconsin coming up, that would be a big opportunity for him. Pennsylvania, his own state, is coming up. And then a big (swath) in the Northeast. If Romney dominates the Northeast the way we expect him to, he's really going to start to walk away from this. He basically already has. He wasn't even in Louisiana last night. He was in California watching a movie. So, you know, Romney's acting like he's already got this thing wrapped up and Rick Santorum is trying to convince the world it's not over yet.
KAYE: Yeah, well, he's working pretty hard at that.
Let's talk about health care, because the hearings start tomorrow.
MURPHY: Yes.
KAYE: In D.C., the Supreme Court is going to take a look at whether or not a mandate should stand and the whole health care law should stand. The president's out of town.
MURPHY: Yes.
KAYE: Is that a good move to be out of town during such a critical hearing on his major piece of legislation?
MURPHY: I actually think it is a good move. First of all, he wants to show that he is going about his business. He wants to show, I've already taken care of health care, I already achieved that. (He said that), now I'm moving on and continuing to be Presidential.
He's on a nuclear summit, meeting with world leaders. We just saw him conducting a press conference. I think that's an important visual for people to see. He also does not want to appear to be trying to influence the Supreme Court's decision. If he were in Washington, the only question he would get right now would be about the Supreme Court decision. So he wants to take himself out of this, look as if the Supreme Court is doing its business by itself.
So I think it's very smart for him to be far away from the health care debate.
KAYE: He's about as far away as you can get.
MURPHY: Yeah, exactly. Not a bad move.
KAYE: Alright Patricia, thank you (for being here).
MURPHY: Great, thank you so much.
KAYE: Thank you.
The Pope brings a message of peace to Mexico. Tens of thousands of the faithful expected at a huge open air mass, but will controversy overshadow it? We'll take you live to Mexico next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAYE: Many people in Mexico have waited years for what will happen today. At noon, Pope Benedict XV will preside over a huge open air mass in North Central, Mexico. Crowds have been pouring into the streets to greet him during his visit.
Look at that there.
Today's mass will take place in the shadow of a towering Christ the King monument. CNN's Rafeal Romo joins us now from the Mexican city of Leon. Rafeal, today's mass expected to be a highlight, certainly, of the Pope's visit.
RAFEAL ROMO: This is definitely the main event of this visit by Pope Benedict XV, Randy. The church has distributed 350,000 tickets for this mass; however, many more people are expected to attend. As many as half a million people, according to some estimates. This is the first time Pope Benedict XV visits Latin America, Spanish-speaking Latin America. He was in Brazil in 2007 and then in the United States in 2008.
A bit of a controversy here in Mexico yesterday when three Mexican authors presented a book that speaks about alleged cases of cover up of sexual abuse of minors, but the Vatican. The authors of the book say they obtained documents leaked by the Vatican and they're basing the book on that. The main subject of the book is a Mexican Priest who was influential at the Vatican and so, of course, that was the same day that the pope spoke to a group of children here in the City of Leon and many people were really not expecting something like this to happen.
But again, the main focus is today's mass for hundreds of thousands of people here in this state of (_________), Mexico, Randy.
KAYE: Rafeal Romo, thank you very much, appreciate that.
Dick Cheney admitted to a Virginia Hospital this weekend. We'll tell you why and we'll have an update on the former Vice President's condition.
Plus, Roland Martin is demanding justice for Trayvon Martin. He is not holding anything back, either. That very candid conversation, next.
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KAYE: Outrage continues this morning over Trayvon Martin's shooting. More demonstrations and protests are expected today. In a candid conversation I had with CNN Contributor Roland Martin, he told me that he still feels that people, even himself, continue to be victims of racial injustice. He's been very vocal, even wearing a hoodie himself, demanding justice for Trayvon Martin.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ROLAND MARTIN, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: Here was a young man, 17 years old, wants to be an airplane pilot, on the phone with his girlfriend, living in a gated community, doing the right thing, not in trouble and he ends up dead. And what it says is that, "Wait a minute. How in the world can you do all the right things, how can you raise your child the right way, how can you stay out of trouble and someone still casts a suspicious eye on you and you end up dead?" And this is - this is the concern that we all have in terms of being black. Driving while black. Walking while black. That somebody can have a stereotype in their mind and still take you out and that's really what was driving this whole issue.
KAYE: You tweeted about this plenty this week. But you tweeted out this, to Miami's NBA team saying, "Until George Zimmerman is arrested, every NBA player should wear a hoodie during player introductions to stand up for Trayvon Martin." And Roland, you got some attention here because Miami Heat's team responded. LeBron James tweeted this picture that we have of his teammates paying their respects and he also actually tweeted in response to your tweet saying, "We are Trayvon Martins." And then he also wrote, "Stereotype, we want justice." (As some) hash tags on Twitter.
Why have you been so vocal about this personally?
MARTIN: Because, when we talk about - cause here's the - at the end of the day, Randy, here's the problem, black people are tired of having to accommodate bigotry. Accommodate racism. Accommodate stereotypes. And so, when Geraldo made his comment, it was, "Don't do it because of what somebody else thinks." And frankly, we're tired of it.
In Corporate America, Randy, there are Trayvon Martin stories. Where we have to act a certain way and dress a certain way because of what somebody else may think. African Americans don't get to have the benefit of the doubt. All we get is the doubt. And so, I've seen it in my own life, where somebody will say something and they'll say, "Oh, that's suspicious." And so we did with the code words in the workplace. And so, just like when George Zimmerman called 911 and called him, "suspicious." The same thing happens in Corporate America. And so, at some point, black folks said, "We are sick and tired of being sick and tired." And this is exactly what this speaks to.
Now, I've been speaking out for years on black on black violence. I've been speaking out on this issue as well and that's what we're simply saying. Enough with saying, "It was the hoodie." Enough with saying, "It was your pair of pants." No, we have to deal with the mindset of people who have stereotypes.
KAYE: Roland Martin, great to have you on this morning.
MARTIN: Thanks a bunch.
KAYE: Thank you.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
From CNN Center, this is CNN Sunday morning. Hello everyone, I'm Randy Kaye. Explosive new developments in the Trayvon Martin story.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
HASHIM NZINGA, NEW BLACK PANTHER PARTY SPOKESMAN: When we get him, they can come get him from us and then at that point, they need to charge him.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
