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CNN Saturday Morning News
Father Pleads for Son's Return; A Tradition of Hats and Horses; Bin Laden Raid Raises Legal Questions; Missouri Farmers File Lawsuit; Race for the Cure
Aired May 07, 2011 - 08:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
T.J. ANCHOR, SATURDAY MORNING: Hello, everybody. From the CNN center in Atlanta, Georgia, this is your CNN SATURDAY MORNING. I'm T.J. Holmes.
We are keeping a close eye on the mighty, mighty Mississippi. You can see from some of these pictures that water is rising, some homes are already under water. Would you believe this is all expected to get worse? We will take you there live.
Also we are getting so many more new details coming out about the killing of Osama bin Laden, including what the agents, what they knew about his trusted courier. Also would you believe, weather played a major part in the operation. We're live as well in Pakistan.
Also, little kids, they want to get as close to the animals as possible at the zoo, don't they? Well one little seven-year-old got too close and ended up in the hospital. Details about that straight ahead.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is your home. Any time, something could go bad and I could be sitting in water. All this work has gone. It's faith testing at times. I mean, it builds faith and you question your faith sometimes, but, you know, you just got to believe.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: Faith testing, that's one way to put it. Believing, seeing is believing really in a lot of this video that you're seeing right now. The Mississippi River is overflowing. It is forcing folks, tributaries there are spilling into streets and backyards, some areas under evacuation orders right now.
Not a lot of mandatory evacuations in place, but evacuations have been put in place in some cases but a lot of people opting to just ride it out and try to survive this thing but this is not advisable. Take a look here at the map. You can see some of the areas being affected yes from north to south, the Mississippi cutting through the country's midsection.
Levees along the way are being counted on to save communities, but some are being overtopped. Most of this being caused by rain, in some places up to 20 inches of rain. We are covering the severe weather stories across the region.
Our David Mattingly is in Memphis where people are waking up to evacuation notices on their doors. Yes, we're also watching the tornado ravaged areas of Alabama. Our Reynolds Wolf is in Tuscaloosa where people are trying to piece their lives back together from that disaster that took place last week. We'll get to Reynolds here in just a couple of minutes.
But let's talk about this flooding, another disaster on our hands. You keep hearing people describe it as epic or historic. What exactly does that mean? Look, the Mississippi is expected to crest next week in Memphis, nearly 14 feet above flood stage.
1937 was the last time it was that high. Moving down river to Vicksburg, Mississippi, 10.5 feet above flood stage expected on the 20th. 1927 was the last time we saw it that high. Baton rouge, same story, two weeks away from a crest height that they last saw in 1927.
Baton Rouge, same story, two weeks away from a crest height that they last saw in 1927. And New Orleans, bad flooding history there. But when the river crests later this month, it will be close to a record set back in 1922.
Back to Memphis where they've already put half a million sandbags in place.
DAVID MATTINGLY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: T.J., as the flood makes its slow relentless rise into Memphis, people here are in a very nervous guessing game. Should I stay or should I go?
Four days from its projected peak and the mighty Mississippi is not done with Memphis by a long shot. A few houses already in the water. The owners apparently heeding evacuation warnings. But neighbors on a little higher ground, still not so sure.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KYLE CHESON, RESIDENT: It's 45 now, it's supposed to come to 48. If it goes over 48, we'll probably have to move.
MATTINGLY: How much faith do you have in those predictions?
CHESON: Goodness, I don't know.
MATTINGLY: All along the banks, water pushes into areas that haven't seen flooding in generations. Anything that isn't protected by a levee is in danger of being covered by the relentless waters.
But some of the worst damage so far is nowhere near the riverfront. What the water and the Mississippi continuing to rise, the water in the tributaries, other rivers around Memphis have nowhere to go. The result is what you see here. Widespread flooding and disruption, miles away from the Mississippi.
And as you look at all this damage, city officials say don't get the wrong idea. The city itself with all its tourism and night life, is high and dry and expected to stay that way.
MAYOR AC WHARTON, MEMPHIS, TENNESSEE: I do want to make one thing clear, as you know, tourism, entertainment is a big part of our economy. I want everybody to know that downtown is still open, everything that has been planned will go on.
MATTINGLY: Nevertheless, engineers keep a watchful eye on a decade's old levee system that has never been tested like this before. Volunteers fill sand bags hoping they will not be needed and road crews shore up escape routes just in case of any last-minute evacuations.
David Mattingly, CNN, Memphis.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HOLMES: Another part of the story is that the flooding has been especially tough on Mississippi's gaming industry. Casinos in Tunica, Mississippi are taking a big hit. Close the doors there. The tables, slot machines are all quiet. A lot of money is not being made right now and a lot of tourists have to find somewhere else to go.
One city's misery, would you believe, is a benefit for another city. Some of those gamblers are heading to my hometown, west Memphis, Arkansas where there is a southland greyhound park and they are seeing an uptick in business there.
Tunica, just one of many cities being affected by the floods. You've seen that Louisiana may be next on the list. They are preparing.
Let me bring in meteorologist Alexandra Steele. She's here with me this weekend.
Good to have you here. We know this is all caused by a lot of rain that took place. But is it still raining in some places?
ALEXANDRA STEELE, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Yes, it actually is. The breadth and depth of this, financial and otherwise is really just outlandish.
So let's talk about what's happening, kind of the big picture, what we're seeing those pictures we're showing, really just indicative of what we're seeing all the way, believe it or not, from Illinois down to Mississippi.
This is the Mississippi and Ohio, the confluences where we've seen that in southern Illinois. We've seen the devastation of course, all the evacuations. So where is it raining now? Is anyone getting relief?
The good news is, the areas hardest hit are going to see a break today, but you can see this swath moving from St. Louis south and east to Nashville. But Memphis may see a shower or two. The balance of the wet weather staying north of really the biggest issues tonight. So it is all moving east. So we'll talk about more what we're going to see, quieter weather and of course the full forecast for the entire country all coming up in just a bit. Back to you, T.J.
HOLMES: Alexandria, we appreciate you. We'll check in again with you here shortly.
Move now to the other severe weather story, we have been following, the devastating tornados that swept through the south a little more than a week ago. Communities have been coming together, trying to help the victims out.
That's the story in Tuscaloosa, Alabama where our Reynolds Wolf is right now. He's at a Red Cross relief center there.
Reynolds, what's going on?
REYNOLDS WOLF, AMS METEOROLOGIST: It is a busy morning. People that have been calling this place home since the tornado struck, are now eating. Also people in the community that are living other places, but still need a nice warm meal, they're stopping by also.
So obviously the kitchen is very busy. We got Netty back here breaking eggs, scrambled eggs back here on the stove, stuff smells great.
Although you have things repairing here, at least people building their lives back together, you still have a lot of devastation around the state of Alabama including Birmingham, to be more specific, in Pratt City.
Now as we show you this video that you're going to see in mere seconds, Mayor William Bell of Birmingham, Alabama, actually went out with Bill Cosby, flew in from Philadelphia yesterday, Bill Cosby in town, to actually serve the commencement address at Miles College, but the two had a chance to get out, meet a lot of the people in Pratt City, see the damage firsthand.
And I'll tell you, Mr. Cosby, not only did he help people in I guess a humorous level, but also on a spiritual one.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I just want to say thank you. Thank you.
BILL COSBY, ENTERTAINER: Don't forget, I think the mayor knows the line, the Lord helps those who help -- say it.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Themselves.
COSBY: And that's what you've got to do because the spirit is in you.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.
COSBY: You're thanking and you're supposed to. And now you want the Lord to thank you for your work because that's all that's left.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Thank you.
COSBY: Us.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's us.
COSBY: And our strength. So head up before I knock you down.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WOLF: T.J., I got to tell you on a personal level seriously, it was a great thing to see, many of the people in Pratt City certainly got a lift out of Mr. Cosby's visit. Certainly a very inspirational thing for many people. But still there's a lot of damage around the state. Lot of people with heavy hearts and only time is going to help them.
HOLMES: All right. Reynolds Wolf keeping an eye on our friends in the south, Reynolds thank you. We'll check in with Reynolds again.
To our viewers just a reminder here to you that a lot has happened since this historic outbreak of tornadoes. It happened last week, overnight on Wednesday. Then there was a royal wedding on Friday, then two days later, Osama bin Laden was killed, so a lot of these things have been taking a lot of the headlines, but don't forget, over 300 people were killed last week in one of the biggest outbreaks of tornadoes this country has ever seen.
They are going to need your help and they're going to need our attention for quite some time. If you are looking to help some of these victims in the south, you can go to CNN.com/impact. You will find more information on charities helping both flood and tornado victims.
And again, what was no doubt, one of the biggest stories in the world, one of the biggest stories the world will ever see, the killing of Osama bin Laden. What did agents know about his trusted courier? We're getting some answers to a lot of questions.
Also finding out how weather actually played a major part in the operation. We're going live to Pakistan.
Also, can you imagine this? Being kicked off a plane because other people aren't comfortable with you and your religion. That happened. That story in 60 seconds when I come back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: Osama bin Laden is dead. We got that news at the beginning of this week. A lot of people still wondering a lot about the details of the operation and some more starting to trickle out.
It is believed the CIA had a house in Abbottabad and was watching the compound where bin Laden was believed to be hiding. Bin laden rarely came out, maybe once a day, for a brief walk in the compound, even satellite images of the compound failed to absolutely confirm that the tall man was the world's most wanted terrorist.
Joining us now, from Abbottabad, is CNN's Nick Paton Walsh. He is there for us. Nick, we are learning a lot and one of the details coming out is that one phone call may have really started this whole thing off that led to Osama bin Laden being killed early this week.
NICK PATON WALSH, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Absolutely. One fascinating detail we've learned today from a senior Pakistani intelligence official, saying that basically what began the American operation and kind of, I think, technical bids to try and locate this compound with a single phone call made by a courier working for Osama bin Laden.
We don't know when it was made or to who, but what it seems to have done is stood out in the massive detail and data which was apparently according to Pakistani officials being passed by the Pakistanis to the Americans on a regular basis. The Americans found this and that seems to have begun the process of tracking which led them to that compound just behind me over there -- T.J.
HOLMES: Nick, another thing, we know others were in the house at the time. Are Pakistanis right now have those folks in custody, are they learning something from them?
WALSH: Well, I mean I think one key individual has been giving some information, we heard yesterday from a Pakistani military spokesman saying that the wife of Osama bin Laden believed to be a 29- year-old Yemeni citizen, she said that actually been there for about five years, which is I think important really if you're trying to gauge how feasible that the Pakistanis had an option to find Mr. Bin laden there.
There was a suggestion at the start that he had been there for a matter of months (INAUDIBLE), we're not sure that he was physically there the whole time, just that his family resident for that period. That does, perhaps, further embarrass Pakistani officials who already accept a little humiliating that he was here (INAUDIBLE) and not located by them, T.J.
HOLMES: Our Nick Paton Walsh, again, Abbottabad there in Pakistan where bin Laden was found and killed earlier this week. Nick, we appreciate you as always.
And to our viewers, in our next hour, we'll look back at this incredible week in world history.
Plus we'll look beyond the killing of Osama bin Laden. Where do we go now in this war against terror? We'll hear from Bob McGinnis (ph), a Pentagon consultant and internationally known security and foreign affairs analyst.
That is coming your way in about 45 minutes.
Well, two Muslim men kicked off of a plane and now Atlantic Southeast Airlines is apologizing. But they're not exactly saying why the two men were removed from the flight. This happened Friday on a route from Memphis to North Carolina.
A spokesman now for the Council on Islamic-American relations says the two men contacted their office and said they were told that other passengers were uncomfortable with them being on the plane. Both men were wearing traditional Muslim garb.
Coincidentally, they were headed to a conference on prejudice against Muslims. The airline says the event is now under investigation.
Also this morning, a first grader on a school field trip had to be rushed to the hospital after he was mauled by a leopard. Witnesses say the boy jumped a railing trying to get closer to the animal. More details and how the boy is doing today in just a moment.
Also, we have a cemetery in California to tell you about. It has grave stones that some find and maybe you'll find quite offensive. But it's been this way more than 50 years and no one has done anything about it maybe until now.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: All right, 17 minutes past the hour on this CNN SATURDAY MORNING.
They are trying to possibly finally right a wrong. This is a story that got our attention out of el Dorado, California. It's about blatant racism literally etched in stone. Some of this language you are going to find offensive in this story and why not, you should.
For more than 50 years now, a forgotten cemetery has disgraced the bodies buried beneath with offensive gravestones. These are graves moved from a town called Negro Hill, but the word "negro" was changed when the Army Corps of Engineers 50 years ago moved them. They don't say "Negro Hill" anymore on them. The "N" word is used in place and it's carved in stone and it's been that way for half a century now. Listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CHARLES PATILLO, CALIF. PRISON INDUSTRY AUTHORITY: Kind of unbelievable why this hasn't been done long before now and I appreciate the way the Army Corps of Engineers stepped up and said yes there has been a wrong committed and we need to fix this. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think the common reaction was that's pretty degrading what they did on the tombstone. It's not a good show of class to us and we're going to try to make it better.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: Inmates at the Folsom prison are trying to help out. They say this is a wrong that needs to be right and maybe they're the ones to make it right. They're experienced in concrete work and the prison says they'll even do the $30,000 job for free.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It would be a real pleasure and honor to be able to help the situation out. Like I said it's always good to change a wrong into a right.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: I'm sure you have a lot of questions now. Why hasn't this been corrected already? The Army Corps of Engineers say they are not responsible for the cemetery anymore. They say talk to the local county office. The El Dorado County, you talk to them, they toss it right back to the Corps. They also say they need to do a legal study.
A little history here. Negro Hill was located near Folsom, California. It was named after an African immigrant who struck gold there in the 1800s. But in the 1950's the town's heyday had passed and it was pretty much abandoned.
Then comes the Folsom dam. It was built in 1955 and now, what once was "Negro Hill" the town sits at the bottom of a lake. That is why the graves were moved originally by the corps.
A local newspaper checked the records for the time and the town and found an interesting fact as well. You'll find this interesting too. The graves that are now marked by that offensive "N" word, are mostly filled with white men and women.
Here's another story that caught our attention today. This one in Wichita, Kansas, where a first grader on a field trip to the zoo gets mauled by a leopard. Witnesses say this happened after the seven-year-old climbed over a rail and tried to get closer to the animal.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The cat just really reached out and grabbed him by his head and then clawed him. Two -- a man and woman who were sitting there watching jumped up through there and kicked him in his head and he released the child and they just grabbed him and put pressure on the -- on the side of his face where he clawed him.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: Now the boy is in fair condition with injuries to his head, neck and face. School officials have set up a crisis team to speak with children who witnessed or heard about that attack.
The father of the only U.S. soldier missing in Afghanistan sends out a message this morning, a plea to his son's captors, two years after he disappeared. You will hear what he is saying directly to the Taliban.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: Well, 24 minutes past the hour now.
We are following this story of two Muslims who were kicked off of an airplane last night that was leaving Memphis. They say that they were told that other passengers were uncomfortable with them being on the plane. These two Muslim-Americans were dressed in traditional Muslim garb and that's all we know up until now.
Starting to get more details including from Ibrahim Hooper who is on the line with me now. He is with the Council on American Islamic Relations or CARE. The two men reached out to CARE after this incident. Ibrahim, I appreciate you jumping on the line with me now. From what these men told you, what happened last night?
IBRAHIM HOOPER, COMM. DIR., COUNCIL ON AMERICAN ISLAMIC RELATIONS (via telephone): First of all, excuse me. I've got bronchitis so my voice is a bit off.
We got the call from them. They said they were taking a flight to a religious conference in Charlotte from Memphis. They went through security, even went through secondary security and got on the plane, were taxiing out. They were taxied back, TSA came on and pulled them off and said the pilot was refusing to fly with them because passengers were uncomfortable with them.
Now they -- the Delta officials on-site re-screened them, re- screened everything, assured they were no threat and were trying to get the pilot to put them back on the plane and the pilot absolutely refused and ultimately took off.
HOLMES: Sir, was there anything, at least these men say, I assume maybe they have flown before, they might fly all the time for all we know, but was there anything in particular looking back that they think they did to cause any kind of alarm to their fellow passengers?
HOOPER: No. They weren't told that any passenger made any accusation against them. All that was mentioned was that some passengers were uncomfortable with them.
And I'm assuming that that would stem from their -- what you could regard as Islamic attire, a robe and skull cap, that kind of thing. And I think what you got here is kind of a -- one of these (INAUDIBLE) scenarios where people are just uncomfortable, being on a plane with somebody who looks like they're Muslim.
HOLMES: I do want to share, you stand by here with me, I did want to share for our viewers, these two were on an Atlantic Southeast Airlines flight. They did put out a statement Ibrahim. I'll read it to you and share it with our viewers.
And they say, "We take security and safety very seriously and the event is currently under investigation." They go on to say, "We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience that this may have caused."
Ibrahim, from what you understand -- go ahead.
HOOPER: The (INAUDIBLE) actually praised Delta, Delta is the governing body of that airline, they actually praised the Delta officials on the scene for trying to negotiate with the pilot to get them back on the plane, but it seemed to have been the pilot's problem.
HOLMES: Did the -- any passenger at all, you said they weren't told that passengers were uncomfortable, but as they were on that plane, did they get a sense, did anyone say anything to them on the plane, any of their fellow passengers that made it seem like they were uncomfortable?
HOOPER: No. They said no one said anything and Delta officials went on the plane and actually asked people if they were uncomfortable and offered to put them on another flight if they were uncomfortable and nobody raised their hand.
HOLMES: And I do understand these gentlemen were able to get on another flight with the same airline, is that correct? They were able to make it to their destination without incident?
HOOPER: Yes. That's true.
HOLMES: It sounds like ironically, where were they headed? There's a conference going on in Charlotte right now that ironically deals with supposed to be dealing with kind of topics such as this?
HOOPER: Yes. Exactly. It's dealing a lot with Islamophobia. It's a conference of the North American imams federation.
HOLMES: Ibrahim Hooper for us, giving us a few more answers. These gentlemen from what you know, were they upset, I'll ask you this as well. It sounds like you said they were praising Delta, but from your conversations with them, were they really upset by this?
HOOPER: I think they were, you know, obviously upset to the extent that they were inconvenienced, but, you know, they understand what's going on in the world and particularly in the heightened sensitivities after the death of Osama bin Laden.
HOLMES: You mentioned as well these two were imams. Where are they based? They were flying out of Memphis, but is that home to both of them?
HOOPER: Yes. They're imams in Memphis.
HOLMES: To ask as well, not that it quite frankly should make a difference if they are flying, but are these two Muslim-Americans?
HOOPER: You know, I didn't ask them that. That's one question I'll ask them.
HOLMES: Ibrahim Hooper, again with CARE, the Council on American Islamic Relations, you take care of your health there. Appreciate you hopping on and being willing to talk to us. Thanks so much this morning, again to our viewers, following a story, just an unfortunate one for a lot of folks and maybe trying to get some answers to why these two Muslim men were not allowed to fly.
But again, the airline apologizing for the incident, but not saying exactly why the men were not allowed to fly. We will work to get more answers to that for you.
Meanwhile, turn back to the story I was telling you about here a short time ago. The father of the only missing U.S. soldier in Afghanistan, he is hoping the death of Osama bin laden won't complicate the release of his son who has been held captive by the Taliban for almost two years now.
Here's our Ed Lavandera.
ED LAVANDERA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The family of Army Specialist Bowe Bergdahl is making a dramatic video appeal for their son's safe return. Bergdahl was captured by the Afghan Taliban almost two years ago. His family has a kept quiet silent vigil in Idaho, never speaking out about their son's capture in hopes that he would be returned safely.
But now the family is speaking out and making a direct appeal to the head of the Pakistani military and to the head of the Pakistani intelligence agency, asking for their son's safe turn. This is significant because it comes just days after the death of Osama bin Laden and on the same day that al Qaeda is vowing revenge for bin Laden's death.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BOB BERGDAHL, FATHER OF CAPTURED U.S. ARMY SOLDIER: We know our son is a prisoner and at the same time, a guest in your home. We understand the rationale the Islamic emirate has made through its videos. No family in the United States understands the detainee issue like ours.
Our son's safe return will only heighten public awareness of this. That said our son is being exploited. It's past time for Bowe and the others to come home.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LAVANDERA: You heard in Robert Bergdahl's statement that he alluded to Mullah Sangeen and the group called Haqqani that is a group that is in Pakistan, loosely believed to be affiliated with the Afghan Taliban. The belief here possibly is that Bowe Bergdahl was moved around between these groups and could now be in Pakistan and that's why the family is making the direct appeal to the head of the Pakistani military and its intelligence agency.
Robert Bergdahl ends the video statement by speaking directly to his son saying we have been quiet in public, but we have not been quiet behind the scenes. Continue to be patient and kind to those around you.
That was a message from Robert Bergdahl to his son who has been missing and captured for almost two years.
Ed Lavandera, CNN, Dallas.
HOLMES: Well, we're at the bottom of the hour here. Coming up next, we are watching the Mississippi River now and as bad as all this flooding is, would you believe it's about to get worse?
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: All right, 35 minutes past the hour.
There's a little -- a little event going on today, right, Alexandra. A little event we say, but today is the one day no matter what, everybody is a horse racing fan. This is the one day.
STEELE: That's right.
HOLMES: This is the one day.
STEELE: Are you "Dialed In" or are you "Mucho Macho Man"? The latter I think.
HOLMES: "Dialed In. I'll go with "Mucho Macho". I'm not dialed in too well this morning.
STEELE: All right, "Long Pants on Fire", maybe that female jockey wouldn't that be exciting.
HOLMES: OK, you -- you better explain that, Alexandra.
STEELE: Well, I got you. We're talking about you know it, right of course. The race for the running of the roses, we're going to see. Of course we're talking about the Kentucky Derby and the forecast. There is the potential for a shower to come right overhead and if it does it could be a very fast and wet track so we'll talk about that.
But the big picture of course, flooding our main concern of historic proportions all the way from Illinois to the Gulf Coast; so, we're going to certainly be monitoring that and will continue to do so.
Here in the southeast: Atlanta, Chattanooga, Charlotte, temperatures right around 80 degrees, beautiful. Southwest Texas, believe it or not with this onslaught of rain, we're talking about a drought in Texas, 92 degrees for many. Pacific Northwest if you're watching us there, a little rain coming in for you.
So here you go, the run for the roses temperatures at post time, 6:24 tonight, that's the high for the day. The temperature at that point should be at about 67. But again we could see one thunderstorm overhead of Churchill Down and then it certainly could change the playing field, no pun intended -- T.J.
HOLMES: All right. Pants on Fire.
STEELE: Yes.
HOLMES: This will be the -- I think there are several women who have -- (CROSSTALK)
STEELE: Six.
HOLMES: -- there have been six, but none have won it.
STEELE: No winners.
HOLMES: None as winner.
STEELE: She's our girl. I think she could do it.
HOLMES: All right, we will talk about this again in the morning, there. Alexandra Steele, thank you so much.
Well, here we go. If you were all here with me last weekend you saw me uncomfortably have to talk about hats and I was talking about it at that time because, of course, the royal wedding taking place over in London.
Well I've got to talk about hats again today, folks, because of the Kentucky Derby. But Nadia Bilchik will be here to walk me through it and take me back to this tradition.
Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: All right, 38 minutes past the hour.
Nadia Bilchik always here to educate us in some way form or fashion for the "Morning Passport"; you might know that Louisville, Kentucky today, the big race. It's one of the most prestigious horse races in the world, the Kentucky Derby. Are you a horse fan normally?
NADIA BILCHIK, CNN EDITORIAL PRODUCER: I am and you are wearing your Kentucky Derby tie.
HOLMES: What makes this a Kentucky Derby tie?
BILCHIK: Well it does because, you know, the whole thing about Kentucky Derby is fashion.
(CROSSTALK)
HOLMES: OK.
BILCHIK: And it the most British-inspired sporting event in the U.S.
HOLMES: The most British-inspired.
BILCHIK: Yes. It does.
HOLMES: OK now this -- this kicks off the Triple Crown. You see the tie here, I had no idea. The race doesn't get its legendary reputation just because of the horses. You're talking about how far back this goes.
BILCHIK: Right 18 --
(CROSSTALK)
HOLMES: But what is the bigger deal --
(CROSSTALK)
BILCHIK: The bigger deal is 1875, Louis Clark goes to England and he's inspired by the Epson Derby.
HOLMES: OK.
BILCHIK: And he brings that back to Churchill Downs.
HOLMES: OK.
BILCHIK: And if you think it's just a horse race, it's more about the socializing and the fashion.
HOLMES: It is. OK.
Now, we see this year after year and every day it becomes more of a celebrity field event. Some would tell you that maybe takes away from it. But this is a -- is a fun day and I can't remember how many people get together there, but why -- OK, the hats I'm looking at here, why?
BILCHIK: Well, inspired by Ascot.
HOLMES: OK.
BILCHIK: Now, if you think the fashions at the derby are weird and wonderful, let's look at Ascot. The Royal Ascot is the British race that takes place at the beginning of June.
HOLMES: OK.
BILCHIK: And take a look at this. This is the Ascot race courses, about six miles from Windsor Castle. The Queen herself in a horse drawn carriage --
(CROSSTALK)
HOLMES: Oh wow.
BILCHIK: -- opens Ascot looking lovely and royal. And wait until you see the hats that are worn on -- in Ascot. Now Ascot was founded in around 1711 by Queen Anne and this is the most prestigious British racing event. But people really dress up and they drink a wonderful mint julep.
HOLMES: Yes.
BILCHIK: So I thought that's what we should be trying for our morning coffee. Bourbon, mint, sugar and syrup and you probably need that when looking at these extravaganzas.
HOLMES: OK. OK, we talked about this last week. We were talking about the royal wedding and the hats and the fashion and why. This is -- these are making statements. These are not meant to serve a purpose necessarily, other than to shock and awe in some ways.
BILCHIK: These are fashion statements. These are individualized ways of showing your personality. Now, you're seeing brimmed hats, you also see brimless hats. But think about this, it doesn't matter how your hair looks. You can have hair windblown but you put on a hat and automatically it gives you stature and height.
HOLMES: Oh, my goodness. Nadia, back-to-back weekends with the hats now.
Now what am I seeing here? What is this?
BILCHIK: Yes, that is "My Fair Lady". And remember "My Fair Lady" and that wonderful scene where she says to the horse, and I'm not saying what -- I'm saying she said move your bloody arse --
HOLMES: Nadia, let's cut you off before this gets out of hand.
BILCHIK: I think we need some mint juleps.
HOLMES: All right, quick break here folks. And we're right back. Stay with me.
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HOLMES: Well, we're just about 18 minutes to the top of the hour here.
The mighty Mississippi River rising to historical levels; flooding communities, threatening others all the way from Minnesota down to Louisiana. To help fight the flood the Army Corps of Engineers blasted more holes in the Missouri levee at least three times have done this, this week.
The Corps began intentionally breaching the levee Monday night; they are trying to ease pressure on levees along the Mississippi River and Ohio River Valleys. The water from the Mississippi River is still pouring across hundreds of square miles of farmland and creating massive flooding in several states and all that water is surging downstream.
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REBECCA MARTIN, HOME FLOODED: I want to get the things above my closet, which is old pictures of the family and stuff. And that means a lot to me. It just breaks my heart. And I'll provide (ph) for anybody who's in this situation because I know how you feel.
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HOLMES: Well, Missouri farmers are not happy and now they have filed a class-action lawsuit against the federal government after the government blew up that levee and then allowed thousands upon thousands of acres of farmland to just flood.
Let me bring in a friend of our show here on CNN SATURDAY, and SUNDAY MORNING, Sunny Hostin, legal analyst, and also of "In Session" over at our sister network TruTV.
Good to see you as always Sunny. We're going to get into this levee situation and see if these farmers have a good case. We're going to get to that in a second.
But first let's start with what was no doubt the news of the week, the killing of Osama bin Laden. A lot of details coming out and a lot of questions, one of the questions surprisingly to some even was whether or not this was legal?
Let's take one part of that. Was it legal for the U.S. to go into a sovereign country unannounced and go after this guy?
SUNNY HOSTIN, CNN LEGAL CONTRIBUTOR: Well, some people certainly are saying that it was legal, some people are saying that it was illegal. Under international law, in order for a country to do something like the United States did, they have to show that Pakistan either was unwilling to intervene or incapable of intervening.
And in support of that there were reports that bin Laden was living there from five to six years and there was a military base right down the road. So I think that they are certainly, the United States, is on solid legal ground when it comes to landing in Pakistan to conduct this operation.
HOLMES: Now, how much of this falls on this idea of whether or not this was a law enforcement action versus an actual military action against fighting terrorism? And this also plays into whether or not it was legal for them to shoot Osama bin Laden who they say or some reports say was unarmed at the time.
HOSTIN: Those are the questions, T.J. Those are the really good questions, was this sort of under international law or the rules of war? This was a military operation and the military has really brought discretion when they are conducting a military operation to determine whether or not they can use lethal force.
You know, people are saying, he was unarmed but that really isn't the legal question. The question is, whether or not he surrendered, whether or not he was willing to surrender and whether or not they had to make that sort of crack judgment at that time.
I think under the rules of war, laws of war certainly sound basis; international law, also sound basis. Remember, right after September 11th, the United States passed a law; it's called the Authorization to Use Military Force Act. It was passed September 18, 2001 and it allows the President to use lethal force and to adopt lethal force against an enemy combatant even on foreign soil. And so in that sense that's just another legal ground. I mean you know, the attorney general certainly spoke about this and he said, we planned this, it was solid legal ground on all basis. Everything was covered.
HOLMES: One last thing on bin Laden quickly, the pictures, a lot of people want to see those death pictures, if you will. Is there any legal basis or do Americans or news organizations have any legal right to those photographs?
HOSTIN: I don't think so. I mean this is really a matter of national security and that trumps everything. I think our President said it the best. We don't have to show this. This is not good for our national security. I just don't think that's going to happen. The White House certainly has made what I believe is a very good decision not to release those photographs.
HOLMES: Let's turn now to that historic flooding and what do you do here? The Corps of Engineers blows up a levee to try to save one town, but in the meantime they say or some will tell you they just destroyed the livelihood of another community. We're talking about the Missouri farmers now who have filed this class-action lawsuit. Do they have a case?
HOSTIN: You know, my heart goes out to the farmers. I think all of our heart go out to the farmers, their livelihood destroyed, 130,000 acres destroyed by the Army going in -- the Army Corps of Engineers and sort of blowing this -- I think it's a two-mile radius breach in the levee. I don't think they have a case, though. They're arguing that the government took their land without just compensation and adequate compensation.
What the army is saying is that there were these things called flowage easements on the property giving the army the right to do this sort of for the greater good. As you mentioned, Cairo, Illinois was further down the road and 2,800 inhabitants as opposed to people losing about 100 homes.
I don't think they're on solid legal ground here, especially T.J. because this Supreme Court even though it's not in support of federal action, a lot of government action, it has sided with the Army in cases like this and sort of allowing this greater good kind of argument. So I don't think they're on sound legal footing here unfortunately.
But our hearts, of course, go out to the farmers that lost their livelihood and their homes.
HOLMES: Such a tough, tough situation there. What do you do, do you save a town, do you save farmland?
HOSTIN: Yes.
HOLMES: But still it's almost like you're destroying those people's livelihoods by taking away that land.
Sunny Hostin, it's always good to have you; again, a friend of our show on here CNN SATURDAY and SUNDAY MORNING. Thanks so much. We'll see you again soon.
HOSTIN: Thanks T.J.
HOLMES: And I want you to take a look at this live picture, this is happening in Atlanta, Georgia right now. You're looking at the finish line at the Race for the Cure event taking place this morning. Some 14,000 people playing a part and many of those people who are -- you're seeing crossing that finish line right now, some of them breast cancer survivors, others have family members dealing with breast cancer, others have lost family members to breast cancer, but they're racing for a cure.
I will take you back live there in just a moment.
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HOLMES: Why don't we take a moment here now as we get close to the top of the hour to check in with Christine Romans for a look at what's coming up on "YOUR BOTTOM LINE" at the bottom of the hour.
Hey there, Christine.
CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: T.J., the images are everywhere: on TV, in newspapers and magazines of bin Laden, the Twin Towers and celebrations at the White House and Ground Zero. But while we as adults may understand what we're seeing, our kids may not. With many children too young to remember 9/11 or really know who bin Laden was, how do you and should you talk about bin Laden's death with your kid?
Also we've got for you a revolutionary approach to education starting to take root in some schools around the country. We're going to take you t a gradeless grade school, a place where age doesn't matter, and you have to prove yourself before you can move on to the next level.
All that and more coming up on "YOUR BOTTOM LINE" at 9:30 a.m. Eastern.
HOLMES: All right. Thanks to our Christine Romans. We'll see her back her in just a moment.
I showed you a picture a short time ago of people crossing the finish line here in Atlanta, the race for The Cure taking place. We have about 14,000 people participating. A lot of these folks breast cancer survivors themselves, they have family members dealing with breast cancer or maybe they've lost someone to breast cancer.
Our Bonny Schneider is down there live for me this morning. And Bonnie, I think I do have it right, you're there at the finish line, some people crossing it already.
BONNIE SCHNEIDER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right. It really just started minutes behind me. And you can see some of the runners now are coming in. These are the faster runners that's for sure. They're flying by, the race for the cure. 14,000 people here in Atlanta, but around the world, 1.6 million people participate in over 140 races that span worldwide across four continents. Atlanta is one of the largest races and earliest races in the year. We have a lot of people here we want to introduce you to.
But first Jeremy Hutchinson; Jeremy, I'm so pleased that you joined us. You're not actually running in the race but you're here in honor of your wife Sheena who unfortunately passed away two years ago.
JEREMY HUTCHINSON, LOST WIFE TO BREAST CANCER: That's right.
SCHNEIDER: She was diagnosed four years ago with breast cancer. Can you tell us how that started?
HUTCHINSON: Yes. She found a lump in her breast herself, made her own diagnosis. And it was right before Christmas. It was two days before Christmas 2006; just turned our lives upside down.
SCHNEIDER: You have two children. How old were they at the time?
HUTCHINSON: At the time, my daughter Abby was 7 and my son Alex was 5. We had to figure out how we were going to tell them. How much we were going to tell them. But we did. We felt they needed to know what was going on.
SCHNEIDER: You were telling me earlier that Sheena was a real fighter and she was very compassionate towards other people.
HUTCHINSON: She was. She never gave up fighting and she was putting on a brave face to everybody else. She would be more concerned about other people's problems and asking them how things were with them and really not wanting people to make a fuss about her. She was a wonderful person.
SCHNEIDER: Sounds like it. You're wearing your shirt, Team Sheena in honor of Sheena Hutchinson. Thank you so much for joining us.
HUTCHINSON: You're welcome.
SCHNEIDER: And we also have Cindy Simmons here. You may recognize Cindy if you're watching from Atlanta. She's a famous radio personality from Show 94.
But Cindy, you've had a really rough year. Can you tell me about that?
CINDY SIMMONS, BREAST CANCER SURVIVOR: Yes. It's been a long year. I was diagnosed a year ago actually last month, and found it myself in a routine self-monthly breast exam. Got diagnosed, had a mastectomy, did chemo, did radiation, and I have two more treatments left and I'm a survivor now. So it's very exciting.
SCHNEIDER: You look great. SIMMONS: Thank you. I feel really great. And it's awesome too because, you know, we've talked about the whole journey on our Star 94 Cindy and Ray Morning Show, so the whole Star 94 staff is out here supporting and my parents have been such a huge support. My mom is a three-time survivor. So, yes, it's been great. Just family support and radio station support. It's been a hard year but a difficult year when you have your family and friends behind you.
SCHNEIDER: Cindy, thank you so much for joining us. I know you're going to --are you going to walk the race?
SIMMONS: Yes, I'm doing the walk as soon as I can get going then.
SCHNEIDER: As soon as I stop talking to you.
SIMMONS: I'll let you go.
SCHNEIDER: I'm actually to run it myself today. So there's a lot of people here. We have great weather.
And you know, it's really interesting, despite the somber message, most of the people I've been speaking to are in good spirits and they're very optimistic about their future and getting the message out about breast cancer for the Susan G. Komen Foundation -- T.J.
HOLMES: Yes. And well, good luck to you down there, Bonnie. We appreciate you being there and we appreciate you bringing those stories to us. Thanks so much.
We'll check in with Bonnie a little later to see how she does.
But to our viewers, coming up in just a few minutes, it was the story of the week, the story of the year; maybe the story -- I don't know -- of the decade? How far back can you go here with this? We saw this incredible story unfold.
We're going to go behind the killing now of Osama bin Laden to look at where we go now in this war against terror. Pentagon consulted an internationally known security and foreign affairs analyst. Bob McGinnis is with us live.
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