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CNN Saturday Morning News
Zimmerman May Get Out Today; Potential VP Candidates for Romney; Secret Service Scandal; Etan Perez Case Focuses on Neighbor; Cyber Security Job Market Wide Open; Blood Test Linked to Depression Detection in Teens
Aired April 21, 2012 - 11:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
ANNOUNCER; From CNN's World Headquarters bringing you news analysis from across the nation and around the globe. Live from Studio 7, this is CNN SATURDAY MORNING.
RANDI KAYE, CNN ANCHOR: From the CNN Center this is CNN SATURDAY MORNING it's Saturday, April 21st. Good morning everyone, I'm Randi Kaye. Glad you're with us.
We're watching developments in the Trayvon Martin case including the possible release of George Zimmerman from jail today.
Also a cold case is reopened after 33 years. Are we any closer to knowing what happened to missing New York boy Etan Patz?
And more fallout, more resignations in the wake of the Secret Service prostitution scandal.
We are waiting to see at this hour if George Zimmerman will get out of jail; it could happen as early as today. A Florida judge granting his release on a $150,000 bond as he awaits trial for the killing of 17- year-old Trayvon Martin killing.
Martin Savidge is following the developments from Sanford, Florida. Martin, do we have any idea if and when his bond will be met?
MARTIN SAVIDGE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: No, we don't. We brought you to a different location here, Randi, to show you right behind us here is the area the way in that George Zimmerman took ten days ago. It's anticipated that also it's going to be the way he comes out.
Although there's no guarantee of that because of security concerns and we don't know the timing. And that's the real issue at this particular point. His attorney yesterday Mark O'Mara said that it could take a few days to arrange one for financial reasons. The family has to get the money together for the bond.
And then the other has to do with those security concerns. There has to be a monitoring, electronic monitoring that's going to take place of George Zimmerman. So that has to be worked out. And then the attorney is going to work out where George Zimmerman is going to go and -- and that part he's keeping very close to the vest because there are fears that once George Zimmerman is out on the street, some people may want to target him for one reason or another. KAYE: Right and we also heard yesterday from Zimmerman himself on the stand at this hearing. A pretty unusual move, right?
SAVIDGE: Very unusual. In fact, most of the legal experts I've talked to down here say it was downright rare and actually could have been potentially risky for him. Nonetheless, it was a powerful moment. Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GEORGE ZIMMERMAN, FACING 2ND DEGREE MURDER CHARGE: I felt sorry that they lost their child, yes.
BERNIE DE LA RIONDA, PROSECUTOR: And so you told detectives that you wanted them to convey that to the parents?
ZIMMERMAN: I don't know if they were detectives or not.
RIONDA: Officers, I apologize.
ZIMMERMAN: I didn't know if they were going to convey it or not. I just made the statement.
RIONDA: Ok. And then you said that you called them up or you left a message for them to tell them that?
ZIMMERMAN: No, sir.
RIONDA: Why did you wait 50-something days to tell them, that is, the parents?
ZIMMERMAN: I don't understand the question, I'm sorry.
RIONDA: Why did you wait so long to tell Mr. Martin and the victim's mother, the father and mother, why did you wait so long to tell them?
ZIMMERMAN: I was told not to communicate with them.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SAVIDGE: That was the exchange that took place just after George Zimmerman had made the apology to the family and the man who was doing the grilling there is Bernie De La Rionda. He is the prosecutor in this case. And clearly he was not happy with George Zimmerman getting up on the stand.
And many people say that yesterday was not a good day for the statement it didn't look like they were prepared, it didn't look like the investigators were prepared, it didn't looked like they had much of a case against George Zimmerman, but of course, it is extremely early to be making a judgment like that -- Randi.
KAYE: And Martin, we also heard yesterday from Zimmerman's wife and his parents I mean, his family. But what about Trayvon's parents? Are they responding at all to -- to all of this? I mean how did they react to -- to Zimmerman's apology as well? SAVIDGE: I think the biggest statement was the fact that they've made no statement at all. This has been a family that's been extremely vocal and has spoken to the media almost at every opportunity. But yesterday they did not. They came out of the courthouse; they immediately made a beeline away from all of microphones and the cameras and they left. And that's a clear indication that they aren't happy.
And their attorney said so; Ben Crump said that the family was devastated. They were one feeling they have been sort of emotionally ambushed as a result of this -- what they thought was a disingenuous tactic on the part of George Zimmerman to apologize they are clearly weren't happy that the state didn't appear prepared -- Randi.
KAYE: Martin Savidge for us with the very latest. Martin, thank you.
And now to the latest in the exhaustive 33-year search for missing boy Etan Patz. The FBI is back in the Manhattan basement today searching for any sign of the missing six year old. Through his attorney, a carpenter who used to have a workshop there said he had nothing to do with the boy's disappearance.
Etan Patz disappeared the first time he walked to a school bus stop back in 1979. His disappearance raised awareness for missing children to a national level. He was one of the first kids to appear on a milk carton.
Susan Candiotti will have more on this search later this hour.
In Afghanistan, security forces have detained five suspected insurgents with over 22,000 pounds of explosives in a truck. They say the group was planning to attack crowded areas of the capital Kabul and that two of the men detained are Pakistani citizens and two are Afghans.
The BBC is reporting the suspects confessed that a major attack last weekend was planned by two Taliban commanders with links to Pakistan's intelligence organization.
The first group of U.N. monitors arrived in Homs today. It's happening as the U.N. Security Council is expected to vote down a draft resolution to send more monitors to Syria.
New explosions rocks Homs this morning. The opposition says at least five people were killed. All of this in clear violation of the peace plan laid out by envoy, Kofi Annan. The new U.N. resolution would have asked the Syrian government to authorize that 300 unarmed military observers to monitor ceasefire imposed last week.
A tense situation in Bahrain. The opposition is accusing the government of clamping down on demonstrators just before the Grand Prix. The car race is scheduled to start tomorrow but the Crown Prince insists everything is under control and security measures are in place.
Some protestors are calling for the release of a human rights activist. He has been on a hunger strike for more than two months. Four U.S. senators have sent a letter to the Crown Prince urging his release. He was arrested last spring for his role in anti-government protest.
Three more Secret Service employees have stepped down over a prostitution scandal that has rocked the agency. So far six Secret Service members have lost their jobs and the agency says a total of 12 are under investigation.
Secret Service chief Mark Sullivan is under fire over the controversy but Homeland Security Chairman Peter King told our Wolf Blitzer he is satisfied with Sullivan's work so far.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. PETER KING (R), CHAIRMAN, HOMELAND SECURITY: Everything I've seen, he's doing the right thing. He moved effectively and quickly right at the start. He's continued to do that. From all I know and have heard and seen, this is a very tough and thorough investigation. They're following every lead, pursuing every lead and so, yes, he's -- it's the only way to judge him is how did he react when he first learned about it. And from the moment he learned about it, he has moved quickly and swiftly and effectively.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KAYE: The Secret Service workers are facing allegations of partying with prostitutes in Colombia before the President arrived for a summit.
Just ahead we'll take a closer look at the culture of the 150-year-old Secret Service agency.
Mitt Romney is on his way to becoming the Republican presidential nominee and he needs to start looking for a VP candidate. So who do Republicans think that he should choose? We have that after the break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAYE: Mitt Romney is pushing forward to November. He took a sort of victory lap while speaking at the Republican National Committee gathering in Arizona yesterday. Romney split his message between a call for party unity, attacks on President Obama and a word for his past and present Republican rivals.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MITT ROMNEY (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Let me also commend the people who had the courage to run for president on our side of the aisle this year. Some still running; some have gotten out of the race but each contributed to the process. Each of them campaigned in an aggressive and dynamic way to spread our message of conservatism and -- and each is going to play a vital role in making sure that we -- we win in November.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KAYE: On Monday Romney will be campaigning in Philadelphia with Florida Senator Marco Rubio. He's been mentioned as a possible running mate. But before Rubio makes that campaign stop you can catch him on "State of the Union" with Candy Crowley tomorrow at 9:00 a.m. Eastern.
So what are Republicans saying about possible vice presidential choices? Senior CNN political editor Paul Steinhauser is here with some answers.
PAUL STEINHAUSER, CNN POLITICAL EDITOR: Good morning, Randi.
It's the biggest guessing game in politics. Who's on Mitt Romney's list as the all but certain Republican presidential nominee searches for a running mate.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ROMNEY: Everybody is on my list. And I'm not -- I'm not taking anybody off my list, all right. Actually I don't -- I don't have a list yet.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
STEINHAUSER: Romney has until the convention in August to decide and since he's not giving anything away, we thought we'd asked Republicans across country who they'd like to see as their Party's vice presidential nominee.
We asked people to choose from eight possible candidates who Romney may be considering. And according to our CNN/ORC poll, Condoleezza Rice tops the list with 26 percent saying they like to see President George W. Bush's secretary of state. She says she's not interested.
Second on the list, former senator Rick Santorum who just last week suspended his bid for the GOP presidential nomination and who hasn't even endorsed Romney yet.
Let's be honest. This is basically a name recognition question right. You need more proof? Senator Rob Portman from the crucial battleground state of Ohio who many insiders think could be on any Romney short list, well, he didn't even crack one percent in our poll.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. ROB PORTMAN (R), OHIO: I'll help him in Ohio as we did in the primary. I think he's going to win Ohio.
STEINHAUSER: Popular freshman, Senator Marco Rubio of Florida and tough talking New Jersey governor, Chris Christie, were tied for third in our poll.
Rubio, like many people possibly being considered says "no thanks".
SEN. MARCO RUBIO (R), FLORIDA: I don't want to be the vice president right now.
(CROSSTALK)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
STEINHAUSER: But then a slip.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RUBIO: Three, four, five, six, seven from now, if I do a good job as vice president -- I'm sorry.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You guys all got that, right?
RUBIO: As a senator --
(END VIDEO CLIP)
STEINHAUSER: As for Christie, he's pushing back against the tabloid report that he fell asleep during a Bruce Springsteen concert which would be heresy in New Jersey.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GOV. CHRIS CHRISTIE (R), NEW JERSEY: I put my head back, closed my eye and listened to the song. You know when I was fist pumping during "Badlands", nobody -- you know, no one took pictures of that.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
STEINHAUSER: And Portman, he's saying all the right things right now.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PORTMAN: I think there are a lot of good choices this time around. Frankly people vote for the person at the top of the ticket.
JOHN KING, CNN HOST: Is there a book? Is there a book on what people who are being considered for vice president are supposed to say? "I think a lot of good choices" --
PORTMAN: I wish there were.
KING: You wish there were.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
STEINHAUSER: Romney's named a trusted advisor to lead the search. As for what he's looking for in a running mate --
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ROMNEY: The criteria, I think, has to be first and foremost, is this a person who could be president of the United States if that were needed?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
STEINHAUSER: Yes, I know, kind of obvious but that's all he's saying right now -- Randi.
KAYE: Thank you very much -- Paul.
The prostitution scandal that has the Secret Service in disgrace started in a hotel in Colombia. But is this the first time the agency has come under this kind of controversy? We'll explore that after the break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAYE: We've been focusing this morning on the Secret Service. In light of last week's scandal in Colombia, the agency has come under question. Our Brian Todd takes a closer look at the agency and whether there's a permissiveness that may have led to the prostitution scandal.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It's the sheer number of Secret Service personnel involved in the alleged incident with prostitutes that's raising serious questions in Washington.
SEN. SUSAN COLLINS (R), HOMELAND SECURITY & GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS COMMITTEE: It's hard for me to believe that was the first and only time. There were just too many people involved.
TODD: In fact, 11 total. Sources say two supervisors among them leading law enforcement experts to be concerned about potentially a larger problem within the Secret Service. A comfort level with this kind of conduct.
(on camera): Is this incident part of a pattern in that agency? We spoke off camera with several former Secret Service agents and supervisors who say it's not. That they never witnessed or heard of anything like this.
(voice-over): They did tell us of so-called "wheels up parties" when Secret Service officers, White House staffers, members of the media get together after the President has left a city and have drinks at a bar or a hotel room. They say those get-togethers are comparatively tame.
Jeffrey Robinson who wrote a book on the Secret Service with a former top agent says this about those parties.
JEFFREY ROBINSON, AUTHOR, "STANDING NEXT TO HISTORY": Do married guys take off their rings at these parties? They often wheels up, rings off. Ok, that's a problem for these married guys and their families.
Do people get drunk? Gee, there's a news story.
TODD: Robinson says those are isolated incidents, not part of a broader culture at the Secret Service. There was an incident in 2006 when a Secret Service agent was tasered, charged with public intoxication after an altercation at a bar in Waco, Texas.
In 2002 "U.S. News" and "World Report" published an investigative piece detailing incidents of agents having raucous parties, barroom brawls, sex with underage girls. Some of that information came from disgruntled former agents who had grievances with the agency.
(on camera): There is real concern that this is a cultural problem within the agency. Is it?
BARBARA RIGGS, FORMER DEPUTY DIRECTOR, SECRET SERVICES: No, it is not. I mean I can tell you unequivocally, it is not. And I have lived it for 31 years.
TODD: Serving under six presidents, Barbara Riggs was the first woman to become a supervisor in the Presidential Protective Division, the first woman to become Deputy Secret Service Director. She also supervised advance teams.
RIGGS: Yes, we have had people who have been found in inappropriate behavior. I mean after duty can you go out and have a beer? Absolutely. Can sometimes there be an incident? Yes, there has been. But is it systemic? No.
TODD: A current Secret Service official mirrored that telling us in an agency of 7,000 people, yes, there have been incidents of misconduct and criminal behavior. This official would not respond to the concerns about a broader cultural problem at the Secret Service but did say with regard to this incident and others, they've responded decisively and appropriately.
Brian Todd, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KAYE: And late yesterday the Secret Service announced a 12th employee has been implicated in the scandals.
What do Secret Service agents from the years past think about the scandal? I ask Clint Hill, the first man to reach President John F. Kennedy the day he was shot. Hear what he had to say next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAYE: The Secret Service prostitution scandal has sullied the agency's reputation but many heroes have also worked for the service. Earlier I spoke with former agent Clint Hill about the scandal. Hill was the first to reach President John F. Kennedy when shots rang out over Dealey Plaza that fateful day in 1963.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CLINT HILL, FORMER SECRET SERVICE AGENT: Well, because of the way the situation developed in Dallas that day, I was in the car right behind the President's car. And when the shots rang out from the right rear, I scanned to my right toward the shots and so I saw what happened in the presidential vehicle. The other agents scanned toward the noise so they didn't -- their eyes went away from the presidential vehicle. They didn't see what happened. And so I reacted. I was the only one who had a chance to react. And I always had a sense of responsibility and felt a sense of guilt that I wasn't able do more.
I thought I should have been able to get up on that car and shield President and Mrs. Kennedy from any further damage, but I was unable to get there in time.
KAYE: You were in the follow-up car, correct?
HILL: It ate at me over the years. Yes. I was in the follow-up car on the running boarded on the left-hand side and the front. My responsibility that day was Mrs. Kennedy.
KAYE: I want to play you a clip now from an interview that you did with "60 Minutes" back in 1975. Let's listen to this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MIKE WALLACE, FORMER "60 MINUTES" CORRESPONDENT: Was there any way, anything that the Secret Service or that Clint Hill could have done to keep that from happening?
HILL: Clint Hill, yes.
WALLACE: "Clint Hill, yes"? What do you mean?
HILL: If he had reacted about five-tenths of a second faster, maybe a second faster, I wouldn't be here today.
WALLACE: You mean you would have gotten there and you would have taken the shot.
HILL: The third shot, yes, sir.
WALLACE: And that would have been all right with you.
HILL: That would have been fine with me.
WALLACE: But you couldn't. You got there in less than two seconds, Clint. You couldn't have gotten there. You surely don't have any sense of guilt about that.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KAYE: Do you still think today looking back that you could have done more?
HILL: The guilt will always be there, but, yes, the writing of the book, "Mrs. Kennedy and Me" has helped me a great deal because I've relived the situation and have gone through it again and have talked to people about it and it's been very cathartic to go through that process. KAYE: Are you at all surprised by the current scandal unfolding in Colombia with the Secret Service members allegedly involved with prostitutes there?
HILL: I was shocked to hear it and I don't know any more about it than what I've heard in the media, but I was shocked.
I have great confidence in the director, Director Sullivan, because I know he's a no-nonsense kind of guy. After the investigation is concluded he'll take the appropriate action and the situation will be clarified.
KAYE: How do you think this is being handled within the Secret Service right. I mean what do you think some of the conversations are that are going on?
HILL: Well, I'm sure that everyone is extremely disappointed if what the allegations are proven to be true. But I do know that the top management from Director Sullivan on down, they're going to take charge of the situation and it will be -- those people who are involved or allegedly involved will be dealt with probably, very severely more than likely.
KAYE: Clint Hill, it has been a great pleasure speaking with you this morning. Thank you so much for your heroic efforts all those years ago. And congratulations on your new book, "Mrs. Kennedy and Me". I look forward to it.
HILL: Thank you very much for allowing me to be here.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KAYE: A renewed search 33 years later for any sign of Etan Patz -- the focus of the latest search of the six-year-old is an Manhattan basement. Investigators are at the scene right now and we'll take you there.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KAYE: Some U.N. military observers are on the ground in Homs; 300 more will head there soon for three months, but sounds of explosions can still be heard in the city despite a cease-fire plan in place. Opposition groups say at least five people were killed by snipers today.
In Bahrain, the opposition is accusing the government of clamping down on demonstrators just before the grand prix. The car race is scheduled to start tomorrow. But the crown prince insists everything is under control and security measures are in place.
We are waiting to see if George Zimmerman will get out of jail. It could happen as early as today. Yesterday a Florida judge granted his release on $150,000 bond. That means his family needs to post $15,000 to get him out while he awaits trial for the killing of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin. Zimmerman has called it self defense.
In a surprise move at yesterday's bond hearing Zimmerman took the stand, apologized, and explained why he didn't reach out to Martin's family earlier.
GEORGE ZIMMERMAN, SUSPECT: I felt sorry that they lost their child, yes.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And so you told detectives that you wanted them to convey that to the parents.
ZIMMERMAN: I don't know if they were detectives or not.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Officers, I apologize.
ZIMMERMAN: I didn't know if they were going to convey it or not. I just made the statement.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Okay. And then you said that you called them up or you left a message for them to tell them that?
ZIMMERMAN: No, sir.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Why did you wait 50 something days to tell them. That is, the parents.
ZIMMERMAN: I don't understand the question. I'm sorry.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Why did you wait so long to tell Mr. Martin and the victim's mother, the father and mother. Why did you wait so long to tell them?
ZIMMERMAN: I was told not to communicate with them.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KAYE: Attorneys for Trayvon Martin's parents calls his apology, quote, self-serving and disappointing.
Now to the 33-year search for missing boy Etan Patz. The FBI's renewed focus centers on a Manhattan basement and a carpenter who used to have a workshop there is once again saying that he had nothing to do with the boy's disappearance. National Correspondent Susan Candiotti is following that search in New York City for us this morning. Susan, investigators -- are they back at the basement digging it up again this morning?
SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: They are, Randi. And you know, this search, when it began on Thursday really took everyone by surprise because authorities had been very low-key about this. When the district attorney reopened this case in 2010, you didn't hear much more than that. And suddenly the FBI, assisted by the NYPD showed up here on Thursday morning, and have been digging up a basement ever since, plan on working through Monday.
At this point, they're literally sifting through dirt with rakes and shovels, looking to see it whether there is any difference in the color or texture as far as six feet below the basement -- cement surface to find any indication of any human remains or any personal effects, clothing that might have belonged to Etan Patz. And they said that if there is something down there, they intend to find it. Randy?
KAYE: And Etan, as we know, Susan, he was declared dead in 2001. A judge found this drifter Jose Antonio Ramos responsible for the death but he was never charged. And so is there renewed focus now on him or are they actually looking beyond him.
CANDIOTTI: Well, it's hard to say what's going to happen with Mr. Ramos who, as you rightly said, isn't charged in this case. But certainly, for years he was considered the prime suspect. Clearly, when authorities began looking at this case, they were looking at it, they told me, with a fresh eye, looking over old and new evidence.
So then they came upon some people that they have actually looked at in the past, including a carpenter by the name of Othniel Miller. He used to work in his basement. The family has acknowledged that he made friends with the little boy.
They knew him, they knew each other, and he was in the basement, according to sources, the day before Etan disappeared. In turn, all of this led to a search of this basement. They brought in cadaver dogs, and they made a hit, and that's what set the wheels in motion in part, along with other interviews they had been doing with other people as well. So we'll wait and see what happens with this latest excavation to see whether it turns up anything and moves the case forward.
KAYE: And, Susan, what about Etan's parents? Have they said anything about this? I mean, it's been so many years and so much pain.
CANDIOTTI: Yeah, and that's exactly what they are experiencing. You know, Randy, they live literally maybe a hundred feet away from where I'm standing in the very same apartment they were living in in 1979 when their son disappeared. This has, indeed, been very tough on them. They hung a little poster, piece of paper up at their door, saying please give us our privacy. We don't want to comment right now. People who know them say that they've been through this, highs and lows over these past 33 years and they're just waiting to see what happens next. It's tough on them.
KAYE: Yeah, I'm sure. None of us can really imagine just how tough. Susan Candiotti, appreciate that. Thank you.
KAYE: Three American Airlines unions are supporting a potential merger with U.S. Airways according to a document filed Friday with the FCC.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
U.S. Airways says they still need the support of management, creditors, and the board of directors at American's parent company AMR. American Airlines went into bankruptcy, you may recall last year.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
Rich Ross, chairman of Walt Disney is stepping down after the epic failure of epic adventure film "John Carter." The film cost $250 million to make, but box office sales were dismal. Ross' resignation came soon as low figures were announced. No successor has been named.
They protect the nation's networks from attacks, but cyber security experts are in short supply, and the consequences could be serious. We'll tell you what's being done next
KAYE: Welcome back. So Reynolds, it's pretty wet and dreary on the East coast, right?
REYNOLDS WOLF, CNN METEOROLOGIST: It really is. And we're expecting rain from places like Bangor, Maine as far south as, well, even Miami, Florida. In fact, take a look right now. We've got a shot for you of Miami where you can see a lot of cloud cover with that. You see the waves in the background, a little bit of that pier, and you're going to see something else. In fact, as you take a look at radar, you'll see exactly what you can expect in parts of Florida.
Heavy rainfall, in fact, all the way from the everglades clear down to the keys. (Inaudible?) Yeah, that rain's going to stick around for the salt water flats all the way into Southern Miami on A1A. You can expect it also for I4 at 5:00 this afternoon.
We've got this big impulse that you have down the Gulf of Mexico, this area of low pressure. Everything driving to the east, northeast as it does so, the sunshine state not exactly living up to its billing today. We are going to see that rain.
Also, rain forming from Montreal and neighbors to the north, clear down to east of Cincinnati, northeast of Nashville, al driving off through these as we speak. Twin cities, you've got plenty of cloud cover. Look out the windows and kind of venture out to your west. You're going to se this band of shower activity.
Farther north towards Thunder Bay, snow is certainly in the forecast for you today. Just light to moderate precipitation. Big weather maker that we have is going to affect, really, a lot of people along the Eastern third of the country, is going to be that low into the Gulf of Mexico, in fact, as we put it into motion, you'll notice into Sunday, even into early Monday, that's going to accelerate it's way right up the Eastern seaboard.
Heavy rain can be expected especially along the upper East coast where south of Philadelphia, north of our nation's capitol. You could see anywhere from four, even 5 inches of rainfall, but it's going to be South Florida where you're going to see the heaviest rain, especially just south of Alligator Alley, in the everglades, anywhere from four to six will be possible.
Something else is going to be possible -- plenty of sunshine. At least for you in Texas. Great day to check out the blue bonnets in places like Marble Falls. With the West coast, nice and warm for you. Some Low clouds in places like the bay area into portions of the San Fernando Valley but by afternoon, it's going to be just picture perfect.
Your temperatures pretty nice out there, too. Well above normal in terms of highs in San Francisco going to 79. Easy for me to say; 78 in salt lake city; 66 in Seattle; 50 in Minneapolis is your high. Your high in Chicago 51; 69 in Kansas City; 70s from Dallas to Houston; 76 in Atlanta; 77 in Tampa; and 71 in New York, Boston, your high expected to be 72. All right. That is a quick snapshot on your travel, and Randi, let's send it right back to you.
KAYE: OK, Reynolds, thank you very much.
WOLF: You bet.
KAYE: So there is a huge job market for cyber security warriors to protect the nations' networks from an attack. So why are so many jobs are going unfilled and what are the consequences? Rene marsh reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
RENE MARSH, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): They're on the front lines defending America from cyber attacks.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Just looking for signs that attackers are trying to gain access.
MARSH (voice over): Government and industry insiders say you're practically guaranteed a job in cyber security if you've got the right stuff.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: There is the lack of expertise, and there are a lot of people clamoring for people who know the internet world, can work in this area.
MARSH (on camera): Last year the Department of Homeland Security's cyber unit responded to more than 106,000 cyber attacks. DHS Secretary Janet Napolitano says, unless we train more cyber experts, our economy could be the biggest casualty. She adds, thousands of experts already work in the Federal Government, but there's a desperate need for more.
JANET NAPOLITANO, SECRETARY, DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY: We need people who are analysts, we need people who are engineers, people who are experienced in intelligence as it relates to the cyber universe.
MARSH (voice over): George Washington University is on a short list of institutions answering that need. The university will launch a master's program in cyber security this fall.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We get calls tall time from the industry and government wanting to hire students and to find students who have this expertise and training. There are not enough people. We're educating them as fast as we can. MARSH (voice over): And design systems hackers can't easily penetrate. Logic and a solid math and science background are pluses. Kevin Mandia in this security form responds to corporate breaches, but with only 220 people on staff, their response is normally reactive.
They can't match the current demand, and he says stopping attacks before they happen is impossible without more qualified people in place
KEVIN MANDIA, CYBER SECURITY EXPERT, MANDIANT CORPORATION: It takes a long time to learn how to be a cyber security expert.
MARSH (voice over): He believes the six to eight-year grooming process in the challenging field may be keeping people away.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KAYE: And, Rene Marsh joins us now live from Washington. Good morning, Rene. So how is the government working to recruit new talent?
MARSH (on camera) Good morning, Randi. In that sit-down with Janet Napolitano, he was very blunt in saying that this is her top concern right now. So what is she doing? She's actually getting on planes, she's traveling to universities to speak to students about the types of opportunities that are out there, and she's also working with universities to try to and set a curriculum that will actually meet the needs that they have there at the Department of Homeland Security. But, remember, it's not just the need at DHS, but it is a big need also in corporate America. Randi?
KAYE: Yeah, and from what those in the industry are saying, it's pretty clear the U.S. is vulnerable. What are lawmakers' biggest concerns? What's the worst-case scenario?
MARSH (on camera): You know, I sat down with one security expert and he put it like this. He said the U.S. economy could suffer a loss in the billions. He went on to give one example. He says if another country's able to pull off a successful cyber attack, they could get access to stealing some of our intellectual property.
We're talking about technology secrets, trade secrets, research secrets. And he says, we, the U.S., would essentially lose that advantage we have, and it would dwindle among other countries. We just would not be as competitive anymore.
Again, he estimates that loss in the billions. One other thing to note though, Randi, in Congress, they're supposed to be looking at cyber security legislation this week, but some say that this legislation that they're looking at does not go far enough.
MARSH (on camera) All right. Rene Marsh, appreciate that. Thank you.
KAYE: Is your teenager suffering from depression or normal adolescent moodiness? The answer could be in a simple blood test. That story's next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAYE: Walgreens has settled a prescription kick-back investigation. It will now pay the Federal Government and two whistle blowers a total of almost $8 million. The investigation found some workers ignored the fine print on $25 gift card promotions for prescription transfers.
The gift cards weren't supposed to apply to people on Medicaid, Medicare and the military's Tricare Program but were often given anyway. The justice department says that violates federal law.
According to a new study, a blood test may be able to detect depression in teens. Parents who aren't sure if their child is experiencing normal moodiness or a more serious form of depression could get answers with a simple prick to the finger. Earlier I sat down with Chief Medical Correspondent, Sanjay Gupta, and asked him how it worked.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT, CNN: You have this idea that other certain markets for depression in the blood, and you basically draw blood, test the blood, and you're specifically trying to answer two questions. One, does the person, in fact, have depression, and two is if they have sort of early onset depression, can we predict that they may develop what's known as a major depressive disorder
It's the holy grail, really because their is, you know, anyone would love that -- to be able to predict and diagnose more conclusively. It's very early stuff. I mean, what they did was they stressed animals for a couple of weeks, then drew blood from them and created a profile.
This is what depressed blood may look like and tried to find some of those same markers at this point in young people, teenagers for the most part. It seems to have some correlation, but, again, this is early stuff.
KAYE (on camera): It is important, though, because it is so hard to identify depression, for sure.
GUPTA: No question about it, and identifying it still is mainly a clinical -- it's a clinical diagnosis, meaning someone -- a psychiatrist may interview you, ask a bunch of questions, ask about your mood, your habits, and come to this conclusion. Everyone's been saying can we objectify this in some way with with a brain scan or blood test. So that's why people are focusing on things like this.
KAYE: What's next? Where do we go from here?
GUPTA: You know, one of the exciting areas, I think, and I'm fascinated by this, is this idea that if we could somehow find a depression center in the brain -- a place where depression lives-- and and there's this doctor -- Dr. Helen Neighbor (ph), who started her work in Toronto and is now at Emery -- who believes she's discovered that area. It's called area 25, and she literally in these patients, Randi, who had no options -- medications have not worked, electro convulsive therapy, and it had stopped working -- she decided to just to stimulate that part of the brain and got some pretty astonishing results.
I'll just show you what it looks like. This is a battery pack for a deep brain stimulator that would sit under the collar bone underneath the skin. And then, this here is actually, in fact, what goes into the brain.
Electric convulsion therapy, she decided to similar that part of the brain and got startling is a battery pack for a brain stimulator that would sit under the collar bone on the skin. This here is what goes into the brain.
KAYE: So she's putting that into patients.
GUPTA: She is -- with the help of a neurosurgeon, she's putting these into the brains. And you can see, there's several different electrodes on here. She would stimulate, different amounts of electricity at different electrodes, and try and get some benefit in the patient. She saw that several times. It's pretty remarkable.
KAYE: So there's a real difference. Once you put that in, I mean, she can say it's been successful.
GUPTA: She can, and I saw some of this myself and it was pretty profound. You know, this one woman who you'll get to see more this weekend, but she really had been in a profound state of depression for a long time, had no connection with family, people around her.
Even while in the operating room, while the stimulator was turned on she suddenly started to smile, and people said, what are you smiling at, and they were rating these things. And she said, I suddenly have a great affection for the grand-niece of mine. I want to see her and hold her. She hadn't felt that way since the child was born. So it was very quick and it was very profound.
KAYE: Wow, that is fascinating. Area 25.
GUPTA: Area 25.
KAYE: I'm going to keep an eye on that one. All right, Sanjay, thanks.
GUPTA: Thank you.
KAYE: And for more of the week's medical stories, you can catch Sanjay Gupta M.D., tomorrow at 7:30 a.m., Eastern time.
Newsroom continues at the top of the hour with Rob Marciano, who's in for Fredricka Whitfield. Hello to you.
ROB MARCIANO, CNN ANCHOR: Hi, it's a nice spring afternoon, so Freddie is off doing some business. Actually, she's with her dad, so I'm happy to be here.
KAYE: Oh, that's nice. What do you have for us?
MARCIANO: Well, listen, of course, Zimmerman scheduled to get out on bail today, so we're going to talk about Trayvon Martin's shooting case. What factors went into the decision, when is he going to be released. We're going to have our legal guys touch on that.
And a Georgia police officer's decision to handcuff a kindergartener -- well there's been outrage among the family and the community, as you can imagine. Stay tuned for that. Legal guys will tackle that topic as well.
And in West Africa, Ivory Coast, our Writer/Producer Brenda Bush recently visited chimpanzees in neighboring Liberia. She takes us to a remote sanctuary where the former lab animals now face an uncertain future. So we've got that, plus John Zarrella has a piece on chimpanzees as well, so we're heavy on chimps.
And a rare sight tonight. I know you're a sky watcher.
KAYE: Oh, yes.
MARCIANO: Who doesn't like a shooting star, right?. Well the Lyrid Meteor Shower -- you know, this was kind of off my radar, you know. I'm kind of a space guy, and well, the Lyrids are typically one of the faint meteor showers, not like the Leonids, for instance. But this year there's a new moon. So there's no big full moon to brighten the sky to where you can't see it. You can see it. This going to be the best viewing of the Lyrid meteor showers in decades.
KAYE: And about what time might we see that happening?
MARCIANO: Well, dark is a good time. No, after --
KAYE: I figured that.
MARCIANO: After midnight, between midnight and dawn, basically. And, of course, you need clear skies. So Reynolds and Bonnie will be in the Weather Center discussing who's going to have the best viewing as far as clouds go.
KAYE: Yeah, because I'm going to have to be here at 3:30 in the morning -- tomorrow morning -- for the show.
MARCIANO: Well, you catch it on the way in.
KAYE: There you go.
MARCIANO: Just start the show atop the CNN Center in a lounge chair.
KAYE: Set the alarm real early. All right, Rob. We'll you then. Thank you very much.
It is not easy being a French politician. Voters don't just shake their hands, some also pull them down by the collar. Woah! We have more of the dangers on the campaign trail right after the break.
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KAYE: Welcome back. Time to check out some of the stories making news around the nation. In Oregon, this scene. A school bus flies off a wet road and teeters on the edge of an embankment. You see it there. Inside, nearly two dozen students returning from a week at camp.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: All of a sudden, I see, like, people screaming and some people, like, clinging to their seats, and it was all very scary.
KAYE: So scary, the students cling to each other, and then they move to high seats to steady the bus. The sheriff's deputies were able to evacuate everyone from that bus. Amazingly, no one was hurt.
And just 30 miles west in Portland
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Let's say, 1-2-3-4-5, so 1-2-3-4-5-6--
KAYE: A swarm of honey bees decided to ne state not in a hive or even in a building, but on the rear window of a Lexus SUV. Yikes.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I went to go pick up my daughter from school and didn't realize they were there. And then, when we got back out, there they were.
Lucky for bees, the driver plans to leave them alone until they are ready to move out.
speaking of luck, this is definitely one lucky pig in Iowa. Believe it or not, this piggy was headed to the slaughterhouse, but on the way, bounced off the rig.
Anyway, she survived the fall and a local animal rescue league is now helping her heal from a broken leg. And they've named her Olivia. Now she's getting a second shot at life, thanks to a twist of fate and a little water therapy there, it looks like.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KAYE: Presidential elections in France are set for tomorrow. The first round vote is expected to send President Nicolas Sarkozy and his challenger, Francois Hollande to a runoff next month. But when French politicians sign up to lead their country, they sometimes get more than they bargained for on the campaign trail. Jim Bittermann finds out why.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JIM BITTERMANN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): It can be a wonderful thing being a French politician running for office, standing out there in front of the thousands, letting crowds massage your ego with cheers and applause, getting in touch with your roots on the campaign trail, and enjoying a taste of the nation's treasures.
Yes, it's not so bad as long as you don't run into someone who disagrees with you. Fact is, France is a country which likes to get up front and personal with politicians. As many have found out, sometimes the hard way, the French make a close connection between the person and the politics. Take Marie Le Pen, for example. She always talks a tough line on immigrants. So you'd think she'd want to take care when visiting places where there are some. You might get sprayed with water or worse.
