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CNN Saturday Morning News
Mass Killing in Norway; Debt Ceiling Deadline Looming; New Arrests in Dodgers Game Fan Beating; Desperate Fight to Get Food to Starving in Somalia
Aired July 23, 2011 - 06:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
T.J. HOLMES, CNN ANCHOR: Good Saturday morning.
We are following several developing stories for you this morning, including in Norway, where at least 91 people are dead in two attacks and police think that one man may have done them both. In one attack, a bomb blast in the capital targeting a government complex. The other attack and the most gruesome part of this story, the shooting at a youth camp, more than 80 people dead. Many of them teenagers, gunned down by a man who was dressed as a police officer.
Also developing today in Washington, D.C., we have now just over a week until the government wouldn't be able to pay all of its bills, and President Obama says he's been left at the altar. Yesterday was an extraordinary day of events in Washington D.C. The President and the House Speaker end the day by calling each other out in dueling news conferences.
And also in Washington, D.C., Congress failed to authorize funding for the Federal Aviation Administration. You know the FAA? The agency in charge of keeping you and me safe when we fly? Thousands of people could now be out of work. But officials say this will not threaten your safety if you fly.
We will get into all of that from the CNN Center. This is your CNN SATURDAY MORNING for this July 23rd, 6:00 A.M. in Atlanta, noon in Oslo, Norway. Wherever you may be, we're glad you're right here. I'm T.J. Holmes.
We do need to start with that breaking news out of Norway. As I mentioned, at least 91 people are dead at the hands of what may have been a lone gunman. Look at some of these pictures and when I describe this, this may bring to mind memories as it does for a lot of people, memories of Timothy McVeigh in Oklahoma City. But, again, we're talking Norway here.
Now, first off in this whole series of events, there was a massive explosion in Oslo, the capital. Those are the pictures you're seeing right now, destruction from that blast. But then came an attack a short time later on a youth camp on an island that was about 20 miles away from Oslo.
And witnesses say this is the man responsible. His name is Anders Behring Breivik. They say he open fire on a crowd that had gathered to hear more about the initial bombing. And they say he fired into the crowd. He then fired into the water as people tried to swim to get away. Listen to one survivor.
(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)
ADRIAN PRACON, SURVIVED ATTACK AT YOUTH CAMP (via telephone): He was yelling he was going to kill you all and - and we'll also die. So he pointed then his gun at me, but he didn't pull the trigger. He left and returned maybe an hour later when few other people have found me and gathered around me. And then the people started running around because they did not know where to run. He suddenly showed up and he shot almost everyone.
(END AUDIO CLIP)
HOLMES: All right. Our Diana Magnay is near Utoya, that island we're talking about here. Diana joins me now.
Diana, can you tell us, first of all, it seems incredible that one person could carry out this attack and certainly also plan both of these events? So are police still sticking to the theory that they believe one man carried out both of these attacks?
DIANA MAGNAY, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (via telephone): Well, they're not ruling out the possibility, T.J., that he could have had other people helping him. But for now, he is the only suspect that they have in custody. They say that the two events are related and that he will be charged both for the shootings on the Utoya Island and for the bombing in Oslo.
And if you think about it, this must have been a series of attacks that he had long in the planning. First of all, that huge explosion in the center of Oslo at the time when a lot of people were leaving mid-afternoon for the weekend. A huge pass (ph) there which essentially gave him a kind of decoy to come on to the island dressed up as a policeman with heavy guns on him, saying that he wanted to come and do a security check on the island. And that's how he managed to get the boat over without arousing suspicion.
And when, of course, he landed on the island, it was then that he open fired, and as we know from that eyewitness testimony we just heard. He was shooting for a long time. He was on that island for longer than an hour before police got to him in that time shooting for most of it.
That eyewitness said there was a sort of lull of 15 minutes. People running desperately to try and get away from him. Swimming as fast as they could to get away and the gunman shooting into the water at him and screaming as he shot. You know, it's impossible to imagine the horror of what took place on that island, T.J.
HOLMES: Yes. And Diana, it's important for us to remind our viewers, this was a youth camp, something that a political organization puts on there we're told for decades. This youth camp has been going on, so a lot of young people there.
But Diana, do we know any - do we have any idea right now about a motive and how much do we know about this suspect and his background?
MAGNAY: We know that he is a 32-year-old ethnic Norwegian he was described by police. Some of that - some of his workings on the blogosphere from his writings we know that he subscribed to a fairly, sort of mainstream but right-wing ideas, anti-immigration nationalist ideas.
We know that he owned a farm where he could - there's a lot of speculation - could have caused, have accumulated a lot of fertilizers, which he could have used to plant this - the targets for the explosives, of course.
But, of course, there are still many questions as to what specific motive might have led him to target the government so directly. First of all, by targeting the government's quarters, the Prime Minister's Office, the building that housed it in Central Oslo. And then this youth camp, you know, the Prime Minister Party is the Labor Party. This is the summer camp of the Labor Party for the youth. And the prime minister in a press conference today always described it as having been his paradise. And that it had now been turned into an absolute nightmare for the entire country - T.J.
HOLMES: All right. Diana Magnay on this still breaking story. We'll have much more on it throughout the morning. Diana, we appreciate you as always.
But it's six minutes past the hour now. Let's turn back to the U.S. Then you may not believe what was going on in Washington, D.C. last night. Maybe you were out last night at the movies. Maybe you're out having dinner, doing something with the family.
Well, let me tell you what the leaders of the free world were up to. They were bickering back and forth in dueling news conferences, both sides blaming the other for no deal right now on the debt ceiling, just a week before we actually have some problems and wouldn't be able to pay our bills.
You're looking at a live picture of the White House. And it is going to be another extraordinary day of events there. Because the president has now called Congressional leaders back to the White House at 11:00 A.M. this morning to try to hammer out a deal or at least to explain to him how they plan on raising the debt ceiling and keeping the country from defaulting.
Now, both sides keep saying they're confident they will get a deal done before August 2nd, but they seem to be waiting for the other guy to blink. Nobody is blinking right now. Take a listen to both sides from last night.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: My expectation was that Speaker Boehner was going to be willing to go to his caucus and ask them to do the tough thing, but the right thing. I think it has proven difficult for Speaker Boehner to do that. I've been left at the altar now a couple of times. REP. JOHN BOEHNER (R), HOUSE SPEAKER: Dealing with the White House is like dealing with a bowl of Jell-O. And let me just say that the White House moved the goal post. They've refused to get serious about cutting spending and making the tough choices that are facing our country on entitlement reform. So that's the bottom line.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HOLMES: All right. I want to go ahead and bring in our White House Correspondent Brianna Keilar joining us on this CNN SATURDAY MORNING. Brianna, I described it as an extraordinary day of events. And some of the details here about what was going down will just blow your mind. Including the fact that President Obama says he couldn't even get a call back from the House Speaker yesterday. A lot was made of that point.
But a lot of these details, are we getting too much into the weeds? Do we need to read something into that? That maybe we have taken another turn to the wrong - in the wrong direction in these debate talks - in these debt talks, I should say?
BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: You know, should we read into the phone call, is your question? I think, you know, President Obama says he tried to call the Speaker and that it took several hours before the call was returned, T.J. That's obviously pretty unusual that that tells you there is a lot of things going on behind the scenes with Speaker Boehner.
But the President was clearly very irked on this point, because some of our sources say the Speaker was actually talking to reporters or briefing reporters before he made the call to the president. So we've seen here over the last couple of months, we've seen them play golf. We've seen them get together in private meetings. Someone I heard kind of joked that maybe the bro-mance is over, right? So the fact that they've been kind of getting along, the personalities obviously there is very much a collapse here.
But what's - what I think is also very important in the big picture here to notice is it was kind of Groundhog's Day over what the collapse was even though yesterday was a very dramatic day. And that is tax increases. When you heard there in that sound bite, the Speaker saying that the President had moved the goal post, he was talking about an insistence on $400 billion in tax increases that he said essentially the White House put there on the table at the last minute.
And then you heard from President Obama yesterday, a very frustrated President Obama, that he didn't understand why the Speaker was walking away from really what the White House sees as a sweet deal considering how wrinkled - how much it's really wrinkled the democratic rank and file. And then you heard the President say that kind of felt like he'd been left at the altar by - by Speaker Boehner. Let's listen to both sides.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) OBAMA: I just got a call about a half hour ago from the Speaker himself. Is - can they say yes to anything? We've now put forward a package that would significantly cut deficits and debt. It would be the biggest debt reduction package that we've seen in a very long time. It is hard to understand why Speaker Boehner would walk away from this kind of deal.
BOEHNER: The discussions we've had with the White House have broken down for two reasons. First, they insisted on raising taxes. We had an agreement on a revenue number. A revenue number that we thought we could reach based on a flatter tax code with lower rates and a broader base. But secondly, they refused to get serious about cutting spending and making the tough choices that are facing our country on entitlement reform. So that's the bottom line.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KEILAR: So where do things go from here? The Speaker said that essentially he is kind of cutting the White House out and he's walking away from these talks with the White House. And now he's going to be looking for a solution with Congress, T.J. So the White House basically kind of sidelined here as the Speaker is going to be working something out with Congress.
But at the same time, we have this meeting at 11:00 A.M. where the president is going to stress the importance of increasing the debt ceiling because this is getting so nerve-racking as we get closer and closer, T.J., to this date without any sort of resolution to the situation.
HOLMES: OK. And for clarity here, Brianna, he - he's walked away. Everyone - this whole story yesterday was that Boehner had walked away from the talks. But then the President, like we're mentioning here, says, no, you get your tail back over to the White House today. So exactly what are they hoping to accomplish today?
KEILAR: You know, I think more than anything, this is sort of stressing the importance of coming to an agreement and even though a lot of the details are going to have to be worked out by Congress, I think the president is going to be certainly kind of pushing them to do something and to do something quickly. Because the sense is that something needs to be done over the weekend.
And so I think that's really - the president has kind of taken this role. And it's no mistake. He's sort of taken this role, T.J., showing himself to be the compromiser, the one kind of managing almost the - the kids who are maybe having an argument. And I wouldn't be surprised if we see more of that today.
HOLMES: Brianna Keilar, we're going to be seeing you plenty throughout the morning. Good to have you as always with us on this CNN SATURDAY MORNING. Talk to you again here soon.
KEILAR: OK.
HOLMES: Well, we're at 13 minutes past the hour now. Other big news out of Washington, D.C. is that the FAA is getting no money. Congress took off last night, left without re-authorizing funding for the Federal Aviation Administration, the FAA.
What exactly does this mean? Well, it means, according to the Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, he says that air safety is going to be fine, because air traffic controllers will stay on the job, but another 4,000 FAA employees will not be getting paychecks and a lot of airport construction projects are going to have to stop.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RAY LAHOOD, TRANSPORTATION SECRETARY: One of the highest unemployments is in the construction trades. And why - why do we want to layoff or suspend more construction workers and our 4,000 employees who do a lot of good work are also going to be suspended. And they're - look, they live - they live on a paycheck and they have budgets to meet. We have the best aviation system in the world. This is not the way to run it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: Well, the problem? Why didn't they approve the funding? Well, House Republicans want to make it harder for transportation employees to unionize. They also want to cut subsidies to some rural airports.
Well, 14 minutes past the hour. Let us say good morning to Reynolds Wolf. Reynolds, hello to you sir. Reynolds, always sending us an e-mail, gives us an update about what the story is going to be today weather-wise. And your note today said, quote, "It's simple. Heat."
REYNOLDS WOLF, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Pretty simple. Pretty simple. And I'll tell you, one of the places where it has been this worse is out of Washington, D.C. The first couple of stories you talked about this morning, many of them have to deal with D.C. D.C. is - it's going to be warm there. It has one thing to do with politics, it's due to triple digit temperatures. And on top of the high humidity it will make it feel like it's anywhere from 100 to 120 degrees.
But there might be a little bit of cooler weather ahead. We're going to talk about that coming up in a few moments. You are watching CNN SATURDAY MORNING. Stay cool.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: Well, hey there, Atlanta. Good morning to you. A gorgeous shot of Atlanta, Georgia this morning. I'm not sure - are we one of the worst places with the heat today, Reynolds?
WOLF: Believe it or not, you would think so because we're in the southeast and obviously the southeast tends to be a very, very hot place, very humid, but it isn't the worst. I would say the worst is right along the Eastern Seaboard. But, T.J., we're talking about millions and millions of people who have been dealing with this prolonged heat, and that's one of the big problems. It's not that it's been warm, because obviously it's warm because it's the summer. It's really the length of this (INAUDIBLE).
HOLMES: Lingering. And we've had several deaths around the country associated with the heat now. This is serious stuff. We've been talking about it for a week now.
WOLF: It really is. And now we may see more of these problems take place today. In fact, take a look at some of these numbers, T.J. These are your highs today. So you'll see that bad, Hartford with 98 degrees; 98 in Boston; 100 in New York.
But then you have to kind of refocus your mind and realize, again, we're talking about the northeast here. This isn't the southeast. And then it's going to be very humid in many of these spots. Atlantic City at 104; 103 in Baltimore. So it's going to feel much warmer. No question about it. Back across parts of the Midwest, 96 in Springfield; Chicago 88, a bit cooler; 95 in Cincinnati; 91 in Cleveland.
Now, we do have a little bit of good news. And the good news that we have is that we do expect a few changes to take place in our forecast. The big changes are going come in terms of a high pressure actually moving a little bit more to the southeast. So we expand this, you're going to see the reason for the heat. It's what we refer to as the heat dome or rather just an area of high pressure with its compressing effect on the atmosphere. You might have some heat driven thunderstorms to cool things down for a little bit.
But in terms of a front coming to really transform the atmosphere in that area, not going to happen. Unless that area of high pressure moves and we are actually forecasting that over the next several hours and certainly over the next day or so. We expect that hot mass of air to drift a little more to the south. And when that occurs, that's going to allow this frontal boundary to drift a bit more to the southeast. So Sunday looks like it's going to be much cooler for Boston, New York and Washington. We're going to give you more specific numbers coming up here really soon.
But I have to tell you, T.J., with all of this heat as you might imagine, many people are trying to - to really deal with this massive heat in the northeast. And they're doing so in some fairly creative ways.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh, here we go. Oh.
WOLF (voice-over): You've got to like that. Just plain and simple. A fire hydrant and a wrench will go a long way to cool a lot of people down. A lot of smiles out there despite the heat. It's been so hot in Columbus, Ohio, that the southbound lanes of US-23 actually closed earlier this week when parts of the roadway buckled. That's right - it buckled under the scorching temperatures.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WOLF: Now, in New York, the situation is bad there, too. And health advisories are in effect for four area beaches. So where places - if people want to go to cool off, they've had to stay away because of waste water contamination. The advisories are going to last through Monday on those beaches. And with the heat soaring past the triple digits, cooling centers are being opened, as you might imagine, to help people deal with this. This certainly is some good news.
Something else we need to remember. We often think about people, T.J. But we have to remember those animals, too. Take a look at this amazing horse. This is actually sent in from our iReporter from Kim Miller (ph) of Ontario, Canada. This is King Joseph (ph). That's the name of the horse. He's 23 years old, who's smart enough to actually stand in the sprinkler in his (INAUDIBLE), making the most of it. Animals like people have got to deal with the heat.
HOLMES: Oh, that's old school with the - with the fire hydrant.
WOLF: That's (INAUDIBLE).
HOLMES: That's - that's old school.
WOLF: Yes. Yes, it is.
HOLMES: Is that legal? Can you tamper with a fire hydrant? Are you supposed to?
WOLF: I'm not going to say anything.
HOLMES: I mean - I mean, I was not going to say anything. But, are you supposed to mess with it?
WOLF: To tell you the truth, in some states, it really does depend on some of the - the jurisdictions. And I know that - I think in some places, the heat is oppressive and you live in an area where a lot of people don't have -
HOLMES: Do what you've got to do.
WOLF: Got to do.
HOLMES: I was just curious, actually. I don't want to get anybody in trouble.
WOLF: Pinning the man down.
HOLMES: OK. I'm sorry. Reynolds, thank you buddy.
WOLF: You bet.
HOLMES: We'll see Reynolds plenty throughout this morning.
But we are 20 minutes past the hour now.
Can you imagine your state making millions and millions of dollars by selling your personal information? You want to make a fuss about it? They say there's actually nothing wrong with it. That's coming up.
Also, police in Los Angeles make new arrests in the beating of a San Francisco Giants fan. And a man already behind bars turns out he didn't do it. Stay here. The details coming up for you on this CNN SATURDAY MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: Well, 22 minutes past the hour now.
Police in Los Angeles have arrested three new suspects in the beating of a San Francisco Giants fan outside Dodgers Stadium. The man they thought was the suspect turns out really is not.
You remember the story. It's a Giants fan. There he is. Brian Stow, he was nearly beaten to death in March. Well, in May, police nabbed 31-year-old Giovanni Ramirez and blamed him.
Now, they've made new arrests. Police (ph) arrest a 29-year-old Luis Sanchez and 30-year-old Marvin Norwood. They've been charged with mayhem and assault. A woman also in custody.
Listen to L.A. officials as they gave us an update about the case.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MAYOR ANTONIO VILLARAIGOSA (D), LOS ANGELES: We come here to answer to the public. To be transparent in everything we do both when in - as we did initially and now. And let me be absolutely clear that we said then that the investigation was ongoing.
CHIEF CHARLIE BECK, LOS ANGELES POLICE DEPARTMENT: This is about character. This is about the character of this police department and our ability even when it reflects badly on us to do the right thing. And that's what we did in this case.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: Now, Brian Stow, the victim, is still in the hospital in San Francisco. He has extensive brain damage.
Well, 91 people, including many teenagers, massacred in Norway. Police say one man may have been responsible. We are taking another look at what Norway's prime minister is calling the worst violence his country has seen since the Second World War.
It's 24 minutes past the hour on this CNN SATURDAY MORNING. Stay with me.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: All right. Twenty-six minutes past the hour on this CNN SATURDAY MORNING, joined now by Nadia Bilchik without "Morning Passport."
And, you know, oftentimes you bring us some stuff - things we can smile about in the international world -
NADIA BILCHIK, CNN EDITORIAL PRODUCER: Not today.
HOLMES: -- but this is not today, this horrible story out of Norway. The attack is one thing and then the other part of it people here, he attacked a youth camp.
BILCHIK: A youth camp.
HOLMES: Why would someone go after a youth camp?
BILCHIK: A youth camp. And it's so interesting, because it is run by the Labor Party.
HOLMES: Yes.
BILCHIK: Now, the Labor Party the ruling party in a coalition government. So we have a coalition government of the Socialist Left Party and the Center Party, but the majority is Labor. And actually, Utoya Island is owned by the Youth League.
And where we're saying, do we have anything like this in the United States? Well, the Boys and Girls Clubs of America and certainly the Girl and Boy Scouts, but they're non-partisan. This is partisan and this is where they will train youth from as young as 13 to 18 obviously with the philosophy and clearly that became a target. But as young as 13.
It's also interesting to note that in Norway, there is compulsory military service for young men after school and it's between 6 and 12 months. Not women, but men. And actually, South Africa used to be like that. When I grew up in South Africa, there was compulsory military service. But here in Norway, it's compulsory. So one assumes that that's where he learned - the gunman, the alleged gunman became such a proficient shooter.
HOLMES: Now, they said this camp has been going on for decades here on this island. Now, is it fair to assume, say, you have a fair amount of adults and whatnot there, and we don't know the ages yet of the victims. But you're talking about 80 plus people killed at a youth camp. Is it fair for us to assume, you say early as young as 13, but all of these are maybe teenagers, the victims that we're talking about?
BILCHIK: And, yes, teenagers. And we just heard from a member of Parliament just came on to CNN and to talk about the fact that he escaped. So if you think about it, at this youth camp, there would be people from the Labor Party who would be lecturing and talking and advising and guiding, so we don't know the exact description. But, yes, all parents who are watching today, imagine sending your child away to summer camp in a safe place.
HOLMES: Safe place.
BILCHIK: Utoya Island, as you say, nothing like this has happened since World War II. And one man disguised as a policeman walks in and they aren't as suspicious as we are in America. There isn't that sense of security because nothing like this has ever happened before.
HOLMES: That's a very good point. That's a good point.
BILCHIK: So a man walks in and wreaks absolute havoc.
HOLMES: Do we have this right? The man actually was trying to or gather people around. People were trying to get some kind of an update about the bombing that had just taken place minutes early over in Oslo. So they thought he was a safe guy and actually gathered people around. And he was there for a while, shooting, say, up to an hour on this island.
BILCHIK: That's what they say. And, again, nobody else appears in the region to be armed. If you think about it here when we had the horrific incident when the congresswoman was shot immediately people with weapons were there, but nothing like that in a peaceful place, Utoya Island and it remains an unfolding story of just enormous tragedy.
HOLMES: All right. Nadia Bilchik with our "Morning Passport," giving us a little more insight into what may have been a motive there and why a youth camp was targeted.
Nadia, we appreciate you as always. We'll see Nadia again plenty throughout this morning.
And with that, coming up at the bottom of the hour now. This back and forth in Washington, D.C., we see it a lot in Washington and it's hard to surprise you probably about what happens in D.C., but yesterday was extraordinary.
The House Speaker, John Boehner, likening the White House to a bowl of Jell-O. The President, meanwhile saying, he couldn't even get a phone call back from the House Speaker.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: Coming up at the bottom of the hour.
This back and forth in Washington D.C.; we see it a lot in Washington. It is hard to surprise you, probably, about what happens in D.C., but yesterday was extraordinary. The House Speaker John Boehner, once again, likening the White House to the bowl of Jell-O. The president, meanwhile, saying he could not even get a call back from the House Speaker. We are hearing from both sides. Today promises, as well, to be another extraordinary day in D.C. A meeting coming up in just a few hours, details about that. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: We are 33 minutes past the hour on this CNN SATURDAY MORNING. Thank you for spending part of your day here with us. I'm T.J. Holmes.
Maybe you missed a few things on your Friday night. Maybe you weren't close to the television. Let me tell you what you missed: A wild day in Washington that wrapped with a wild night last night. This was all a big back and forth between President Obama and the House Speaker John Boehner. The two kind of got off the usual script and basically called each other out last night on this debt ceiling. Then it resulted in Boehner walking away from the debt talks.
That was really what got this whole thing going. He said he did not want to negotiate with the White House anymore. He would turn to leaders on Capitol Hill. But even though he walked away from the talks with the White House, President Obama called him right back to the White House with other congressional leaders today. That meeting will be taking place at the White House here in just a few hours.
But let me now let you listen to the back and forth, the tit-for- tat that you missed last night. (BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: That is what the American people are looking for, is some compromise.
REP. JOHN BOEHNER (R-OH), HOUSE SPEAKER: They refuse to get serious about cutting spending and making the tough choices that are facing our country on entitlement reform. Listen, that is the bottom line.
OBAMA: The only bottom line that I have is that we have to extend this debt ceiling through the next election, into 2013.
BOEHNER: I just want to tell you what I said several weeks ago. Dealing with the White House is like dealing with a bowl of Jell-O.
OBAMA: It is hard to understand why Speaker Boehner would walk away from this kind of deal.
BOEHNER: When you get into the negotiations, sometimes it is good to back away from the tree and take a look at the forest.
OBAMA: I think that one of the questions that the Republican Party will have to ask itself is, can they say yes to anything?
BOEHNER: I think we can work together here on Capitol Hill to forge an agreement. I'm hopeful that the president will work with us on that agreement. OBAMA: So, here is what we will do. We have now run out of time. I told speaker Boehner. I have told Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi. I have told Harry Reid and I have told Mitch McConnell that I want them here at 11:00 o'clock tomorrow. We have run out of time. They will have to explain to me how it is we will avoid default.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HOLMES: All right. You heard the president say it. After the two men called each other out in these press conferences, still, the president says get back over here to the White House today at 11:00 a.m. That is what is happening today. The House Speaker John Boehner, says he will, in fact, be there. Let me bring in our White House Correspondent Brianna Keilar.
Brianna, it sounded like the president was giving them a homework assignment--almost. You come here and you explain this and you break this down to me. Is that what he wants to see?
BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN White House CORRESPONDENT: It kind of me. I would go with the school analogy and I would say this was sort of the principal saying you get your butt in here, in a way. Right?
This is an emergency meeting after these talks have collapsed. You heard president Obama there say, I want these leaders to come and explain to me, essentially, say how we will not going to default on come August 2nd. Because when House Speaker Boehner decided that he wasn't going to pursue these discussions anymore with the White House, he said he will be pursuing discussions with the Congress, the congressional leaders in the Senate. He will work toward an agreement with them.
Certainly, President Obama is not just going to abdicate all responsibility for that. And say OK, sure, just go work that out. T.J., we are 11 days out. And this is him bringing these members together and we saw a very frustrated President Obama last night. I would not be surprised if we hear about that again today in the back door meetings.
HOLMES: It is kind of strange there, Brianna, he is essentially saying, I mean, John Boehner is saying, you know what president, you step out of this. We have got it. It is strange to kick the president out of these negotiations. At the same time, some would argue maybe all of the talking should have been going on, on Capitol Hill in the first place, with the House and the Senate, where the deal making really needs to get done.
KEILAR: I think they were trying to work towards something bigger, obviously the House Speaker and the president. And ultimately were not able to do that. I think you sensed a lot of frustration on both of their parts. John Boehner saying that working with the White House is like dealing with a bowl of Jell-O. He was saying they changed the goal post. They kind of came to an agreement on tax cuts which, as you know, T.J., has been a huge issue. At the last minute, the president came and said, OK, actually we need $400 billion more in tax increases. That is something that is very difficult for rank-and- file Republicans in the House that John Boehner has to corral. You know, he had a sense there is no way they will accept that.
On the other hand, you have President Obama saying that he has been left at the altar. You have seen the speaker walk away from meetings twice now. Walk away from these negotiations twice. We also saw the number two Republican in the House, Eric Cantor. He was the one who walked away from those Biden talks. There is a lot of frustration on both sides here.
HOLMES: Yes, there is a lot of walking away being done. Everybody going back to the White House. We will see you plenty throughout the morning. We will try to get into it more, Brianna, this number, this $400 billion. Because relatively speaking that is a small amount to keep a deal from happening and get the U.S. into default, but it is a matter of principle for a lot of those folks signing pledges not to raise taxes. So, Brianna, always good to see you. We'll see you again shortly. All right?
KEILAR: See you in a bit, T.J.
HOLMES: All right. We are 38 minutes past the hour.
Let me turn now to the story of Norway. Still a breaking story for us this morning where many people still in shock after yesterday's horrible attacks. There were two of them. You are looking at the first one here.
This is the aftermath of it. It was in the capital of Oslo. A bomb rocked that city, badly damaging a government building and shattering windows in several others. Seven people killed there. At least 70-- 90 more were injured.
That was actually just the beginning. The horror then turned to teenagers. Police believe this man you are seeing, Anders Bearing Breivik, went to an island about 20 miles away dressed as a police officer. There was a youth camp going on there that was sponsored by the ruling political party. Witnesses say he just opened fire on the people at the camp.
Listen to one survivor.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ADRIAN PRACON, SURVIVED ATTACK AT YOUTH CAMP: People approached him as he was actually shooting because they thought maybe this was a drill, or maybe this was a test, or maybe something. But nobody expected this to be for real because, come on, how can this happen in a summer camp in Norway?
He was yelling out to these people. I was maybe five or seven meters away from him, as he was yelling he was going to kill all, and we all should die.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: Well, 84 people were killed on that island. Some had tried to swim away, but the gunman was actually shooting into the water at them. Now the suspect will be charged in both attacks. Right now, police are saying he is responsible for both, but they are not ruling out the possibility that he did have help.
Listen to this story. We are getting out of Washington State. A seven-term congressman is now being accused of an unwanted sexual encounter. We are talking about that man. A 56-year-old congressman, his name is David Wu. According to the state newspaper there, "The Oregonian" they are reporting that he has been accused of an unwanted sexual encounter by a recent high school graduate. This alleged incident reportedly happened around Thanksgiving. It involved a daughter of a long-time friend and campaign donor.
"The Oregonian" reporting that Wu has been ducking their questions about the accusations for days. But late last night, a spokesman for the congressman issued this response. And it says, quote, "This is a very serious situation"-excuse me-"this is very serious, and I have no desire to bring unwanted publicity, attention, or stress to a young woman and her family", end quote, that was all to the statement. So not a lot of questions, necessarily, answered in that statement. Probably raised a few more questions.
It is 42 minutes past the hour now. One state is making a lot of money by selling your personal information. The state we are talking about is the good folks of Florida. The state's department of motor vehicles made $63 million last year selling names and addresses. Also for sale? Dates of birth, and what kind of car you drive. No Social Security numbers, they say. Here is who can buy access: car companies for recalls, government agencies, private investigators, insurance companies. But the state says some people can opt out. Listen to this now.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANN HOWARD, SPOKESPERSON, FLORIDA DMV: Depending on who you are, there are some professions that do have the opportunity to opt out. When they decide to do that, the department does let them know what it is they may be doing. Which is taking themselves out of any notification of a vehicle recall, or things like that; we do let them know it could be to their detriment to opt out.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: Now, Ann Howard, who you were hearing there, also says the state could have just given away the information for free, but decided to make money off it. They are charging 1 cent per record. That is 6.3 billion records sold last year.
We're 43 minutes past the hour now. Yes, it is summer time. It is hot. It is brutally hot right now. The heat has been around for a while. It is dangerous. We have deaths to report in this latest heat wave. Reynolds Wolf will be along in a second for that.
And also, what might be great along the Jersey Shore is a far different story in neighboring New York. Stay with us on this CNN SATURDAY MORNING. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: We are quarter to the top of the morning on this CNN SATURDAY MORNING.
Good morning to you folks in New York City.
Just about every friend and colleague I have in New York has complained, Reynolds, to me this week about the heat in New York. It looks like they have good reason to do so.
WOLF: Yes, it has just been crazy. It is more than just an inconvenience. It is truly dangerous. It really is. We are at that point where the heat and humidity, the combination of both, it really can take a toll on people. So, you have to really take it easy on a day like today.
If you have to get outside, if you have to do some exercise, you are dedicated in running, get out in the early morning hours. Even when the sun goes down, I know it seem like, well, in some circumstances it can be cooler, but if you happen to live in the city, an urban area, a lot of times the concrete, a lot of that steel will trap that heat so it will stay warm even long after the sun descends over the horizon.
Meanwhile, here is what we got. Highs of the day are 93 in Minneapolis. 100 in Kansas City, 101 in Dallas. Check this out, in New York City, your high is expected to be 100, 103 in Boston-or rather 103 in Washington, rather, 98 in Boston. That doesn't factor in the high humidity which is going to make it feel much warmer.
Changes may be on the horizon. Here is the reason why. We have that big dome of high pressure. See how well it works? Sometimes it gets so warm, it cannot make it expand. Let's wrap this up. This is what we are expecting as the area of high pressure is dropping to the South. When it does, it will allow cooler air to move in to parts of the Northeast, including the Mid-Atlantic states. For the nation's capital, check it out, the temperatures cooling from the 100s and back into the 80s and lower 90s on Monday and Tuesday.
Speaking of Washington D.C., right across the Potomac, they have the Manassas Junction. Manassas Junction, also known, if you happen to be a Civil War fan, as Bull Run. The 150th anniversary of the Civil War battle that took place there. You know, a lot of people are going to see that and think, my gosh, what an amazing thing. It is amazing, but when the battle first took place it was only 80 degrees.
You have re-enactors out there that are going to do these living histories wearing these wool uniforms that were typical for both sides, the Union and Confederate forces to wear. And these guys are dedicated to going out there. They are going to be doing with the extreme heat, but just brutal conditions out there, no question about it. Make sure we are in the right position with plenty of water and taking it easy. It could be a fun time if you are going out there as a spectator. Same rules apply. Take it easy out there.
HOLMES: Wow. What is the temperature in D.C.?
WOLF: It will be about 100 degrees. But where they happen to be, I'd say about 102, maybe 103.
HOLMES: Man!
WOLF: I know, and then you have the high humidity and then, of course, you're are wearing this wool, 100 percent wool. That is what they wore back then.
HOLMES: They are dedicated.
WOLF: They did not have synthetic stuff back then. Robert E. Lee was not a big fan of that stuff.
HOLMES: Reynolds, I appreciate it. He will keep you updated throughout the morning because this dangerous heat continues. Reynolds, we appreciate you. Thank you.
We are getting close to the top of the hour. NFL owners have approved a deal to get the league up and running again. That is great news. But players say hold on. We have been hoodwinked. They have not voted yet. So now what? Quick break, we're right back.
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HOLMES: 10 minutes to the top of the hour here on this CNN SATURDAY MORNING.
This was good news. It looked like we had good movement and the NFL would be up and running soon after the NFL owners sign off on a new collective bargaining agreement this week. But the players have just been talking over the deal but they have not voted to approve it yet. So, now what do we do, Joe Carter?
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JOE CARTER, CNN SPORTS CORRESPONDENT (on camera): Well, T.J., NFL football fans were hoping to hear something from the players side on Friday. Unfortunately, no one will take a vote and no one will know the next step because the NFL Players Association has decided not to speak on Friday out of respect to the Myra Kraft and the Kraft family.
CNN Sports didn't received a statement from NFL PA President Kevin Mawae, which says, "Player leadership is discussing the most recent written proposal with the NFL, which includes a settlement agreement, deal terms and the right process for addressing recertification. There will not be any further NFLPA statements today out of respect for the Kraft family while they mourn the loss of Myra Kraft."
Mrs. Kraft is the wife of Patriots owner Robert Kraft. She passed away earlier this week. Many of the team owners across the NFL attended her funeral on Friday. This means it will be a very busy, very critical weekend for the players. The owners have set out a specific time line. Agree to the new collective bargaining proposal by Tuesday and recertify, as a union, by Tuesday, and the football season will start on time. If they don't agree to it and don't recertify as a union, you could see more games canceled in addition to the Pro Football Hall of Fame game which is canceled on August 7th, T.J.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HOLMES: All right. Thanks, as always, Joe Carter.
Coming up in our 8:00 o'clock Eastern, our we are going to be talking about the lockout and possible vote from the players with the Atlanta Falcons player rep, Coy Wire. He will be here in studio, with me, you'll want to stick around for that conversation.
Also, coming up, it is a story that we are maybe not talking enough about but, you need to stick around and hear it. Somalia, it is suffering, once again, from a devastating famine. People are starving and now some of the groups in that country, that rule that country, are keeping some international aid groups out. Saying the help can't come to the people who desperately need it. I'll talk to an international aid worker about this problem. And also, very important this morning, we will tell you how you can help. Stick around for this important story right after the break.
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HOLMES: As we get close to the top of the hour, a very important story that you really need to pay attention to. It is a desperate fight to get food to people starving in Somalia. It is a story, quite frankly, that is familiar. Rains don't come. The crops die, famine is declared. Somalia's president right now begging for help.
SHEIKH SHARIF SHEIKH AHMED, PRESIDENT OF SOMALIA (through translator): The situation is very severe and the conditions are very harsh. We are requesting that the international community assist the Somalis, those within Somalia, and the borders. We urgently request quick help.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: So hundreds of thousands of starving people are right now on the move. Some inside Somalia, others to refugee camps in nearby Kenya and Ethiopia.
And listen to this, a group linked to Al Qaeda controls large areas of Southern Sudan (sic), that group saying that they will block famine aid. Well, answering the call to help is a complicated and risky job for international agencies. Joining me now from Nairobi, Kenya is Kellie Leeson. She is with the International Rescue Committee.
Ma'am, thank you so much for being with us and talking to us about what is no doubt an important story, that more and more people should know about and should be talking about. Tell me, it is a difficult enough task to deal with people who are starving. How much more difficult is it being made because you have this Al Qaeda group saying they are banning some aid agencies from coming in to help?
KELLIE LEESON, INTERNATIONAL RESCUE COMMITTEE: Well, the International Rescue Committee we work in Central Somalia. Currently we are able to access the populations that are target population through different livelihood and activities.
The issue of agencies being blocked from providing aid does mean that more discussions need to take place about how to be creative to get assistance to people who are in need of services and in need of food, desperately.
HOLMES: Ms. Leeson, I'm going to take this down to a very, I guess, simplified conversation. It may seem a little silly, but we know that hunger and food and security is an issue in many places around the world. Certainly in Somalia and this area of Africa, but then it goes up to another level when a famine is declared. Tell me the significance of a famine being declared and actually what that really means. What is a famine?
LEESON: Well, in terms of the work that we are doing, it doesn't matter what it is declared, because people are without food right now. That is what we are focusing on. A famine is typically declared when malnutrition rates exceed a certain level, and when mortality rates exceed a certain level. And that is why this has been declared a famine in certain parts of Somalia.
But as I said, right now, it doesn't matter to the person on the ground who doesn't have food, it if is declared a famine or not, they don't have food. We are trying to focus on the food crisis. We do want to get additional resources into Somalia, but also where I'm working in the Dajar (ph) refugee camp and making sure when people cross that border, they are able to get the services they need.
Also in addition to the need for food, it is also really important that it is coupled with the need for health care as well. We do find even when a big word like famine is thrown about, people are typically dying more of disease than actually starvation. So, it is important that those two things go together.
HOLMES: Ma'am, is money drying up as well? The U.K., some leaders there were complaining that other countries needed to more so step up. Also, you have a lot of countries that are in dire economic straits themselves. Is money becoming an issue?
LEESON: Actually, I want to highlight the fact that this is a situation that has -- the refugee situation, this drought was upcoming. We knew about this for the last number of months. We have been preparing ourselves for it. With the refugee influx, we had 30,000 people come into Kenya over the last-each year for the last couple of years.
In terms of money, I have to say all this media attention is at least getting people to pay attention to it. More governments to pay attention to it. We need more resources, but more resources are starting to come in now. And we do ask more governments to step up. I know it is dire circumstances in a number of countries with economic situations. But nothing compares to what you see on the ground in the Dajar (ph) refugee camp with people literally starving as they enter the camp. We have to be very aware of the need to give more funding for that so we can address the needs going forward.
HOLMES: Kellie Leeson, again, she is with the International Rescue Committee. Ma'am, we appreciate you taking out the time to speak with us. And thank you as well for the work that you're doing. It's work that, quite frankly, a lot of people wouldn't sign up for. But still, we appreciate you being here and hope to talk to you again in the future, ma'am. Thank you so much.
LESSON: Thank you.
HOLMES: All right. And to our viewers, I just want you to hear this, you can go to CNN.com, our Impact Your World page. You'll have links there, you can learn more about the story going on there and you will find out more about you can help out.
We're just at the top of the hour, we're going to reset for you after the break, give you the very latest on several developing stories this morning -- still developing stories, including in Washington D.C., also in Norway where as number of people killed, 90, after a youth camp was attacked.
Stay with me.
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