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Is 72 The New 30?; MacFarlane Swears He Will Never Host Oscars Again; Reports Say Comet Is Heading Toward Mars; Three Days Before Sequestration Takes Effect; Justin Bieber's Mother To Raise Funds For Pregnancy Centers Through New Film; Unexpected Job Opportunity For Indianapolis Teen; New Video Of Hot Air Balloon Crash

Aired February 26, 2013 - 15:30   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


ZAIN ASHER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Now, there have been software updates since then that require users to re-enter passwords when making in-app purchases and there are adjustments that can be made in the iOS system that give parents more control.

Now, as part of the settlement, Apple will give iTunes credit for people who were charged $30 in virtual goods or less. Those claiming more than $30 can ask for cash.

Brooke?

BROOKE BALDWIN, CNN ANCHOR: Zain Asher, thank you.

And, now, did you hear, 72 is the new 30? That's the word from German scientists who studied men in Japan and Sweden.

I know, you're like, what? Hang on. They found that advances in medicine and health care mean we're now healthier in our 70s than our early ancestors were back in their 30s.

That means a 30-year-old hunter/gather faces the same risk of dying as a 72-year-old. The researchers say medical advances have come so fast life expectancy has risen more in last century than it did over the previous 200,000 years.

If you plan to watch Morrissey on "Jimmy Kimmel Live" tonight, sorry, make other plans. The singer has canceled in a case of principle over promotion.

Morrissey is refusing to appear on the same evening as stars of "Duck Dynasty." You heard about this show, this anti-reality show about a family that makes duck calls.

The former front man of The Smiths is a well known animal rights activist. Here is what he says, quote, "As far as my reputation is concerned, I can't take the risk of being on a show alongside people who in effect amount to serial animal killers."

The Jimmy Kimmel show will go on with "Duck Dynasty" and without Morrissey. If you enjoyed Seth MacFarlane's turn as an Oscar host, hope you kept it on your DVR, because MacFarlane swears he's never doing it again.

Carlos Greer is a reporter for "People Magazine." Carlos Greer, why not? I heard ratings were huge.

CARLOS GREER, REPORTER, "PEOPLE MAGAZINE": Well, keep this in mind. Seth, he said this we even before he hosted the Oscars. He was asked this question.

He said he has a lot on his plate, it is a very long and grueling job, and he said he probably wouldn't want to do it. It was going to be a one-time thing.

So, it's not because of all of the criticism.

BALDWIN: Apparently, let me tray this tweet. Let's throw the tweet up on the screen.

He was tweeting back and forth with a fan, and so he's back with a fan. Would you host the Oscars again if asked?

Says, no way, a lot of fun to have done it, though.

I want to move on, though, and talk about this big reveal today, the cast of the next season of "Dancing With the Stars." Who will be dancing?

GREER: Well, I think it is interesting. We're not going to see some people there. Chelsea Hightower, she's a familiar face. She's not going to be on the show anymore.

One of the biggest shake-ups is that we're not going to see bad boy Maks Chmerkovskiy, sorry. He's not going to be returning.

BALDWIN: Say that five times fast.

GREER: I'm sorry?

BALDWIN: Oh, Chmerkovskiy, yes.

GREER: Exactly.

BALDWIN: What about Andy Dick? That's a recipe for surprise.

GREER: Andy Dick may be -- exactly, he may be the new bad boy. You know, he has a very controversial history, so we'll see if he'll be able to tame himself on the dance floor.

Some other people are going to be there. It's your typical mix of athletes, singers, and reality stars. Wynonna Judd, she's -- I'm sorry.

BALDWIN: Yeah, I was about to say, who else? GREER: Wynonna Judd, she's going to battle it out with fellow country star Kellie Pickler. Reality of "Real Housewives of Beverly Hills" star, Lisa Vanderpump, she's also going to be on the show.

We mentioned Andy Dick. Boxer Victor Ortiz, and comedian D.L. Hughley.

BALDWIN: Would you do it if asked?

GREER: Would I? You know what, I don't know. It seems like -- you know, it's a pretty fun show.

BALDWIN: Have you seen their abs once they're finished with the season. I'd be like, yes, sign me up. Sign me up, Carlos Greer. Thank you so much. Good to talk to you today.

And we want to continue geeking out over space as we like to do on the show. Just when we're all sort of getting over the meteor that slammed into Russia, we're -- walk with me in the cube -- we're hearing now that a comet is actually heading toward Mars.

Chad Myers?

CHAD MYERS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Oh, we find a comet, we find an asteroid every day ...

BALDWIN: We find it all.

MYERS: ... and think it's going to hit something.

BALDWIN: Is that what we think about -- we don't think that about the comet, do we?

MYERS: Mars ...

BALDWIN: OK.

MYERS: ... hitting directly, plus or minus 650,000 miles.

BALDWIN: Not odds that I'd want to go to Vegas with.

MYERS: My truck's not going to go that far ever before this. So, if it does impact, obviously, it would be a big deal. It would probably put some water back on to Mars, not enough to make lakes or oceans, like that, but this thing is moving at 35-miles-a-second.

It would be a pretty big impact. Wouldn't break the planet. This happens all the time, and it's happened millions of times over the cosmos.

Comets are just out there floating around. They're just this primordial soup that's out there, flying around.

BALDWIN: Primordial soup?

MYERS: It's the stuff that's billions of years old, that never became a comet, a planet, a star. It's just out there flying around, just kind of stuff. And eventually, 3-D space, this stuff interacts once in a while.

They found this 74 days ago. They don't know its exact track. They don't even know, if it gets close to the sun, will the track change a little bit because of the gravitational force, but it's cool to look at.

BALDWIN: OK, it is cool. We like looking at Mars, talking comets.

Chad Myers, thank you very much.

And, now, my friend Ali Velshi is up next. Talk to me about "Your Money," Ali.

ALI VELSHI, CNN CHIEF BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Hey, Brooke, a lot of discussion about whether these forced budget cuts that go into effect this weekend are actually going to hurt people.

I'm going to talk to the mayor of Philadelphia who's going to tell us how this is going to affect people living in cities across the country.

We'll be right back with more of that.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

VELSHI: From the CNNMoney Newsroom in New York, I'm Ali Velshi. This is "Your Money."

Three days to go, forced budget cuts are more likely to happen than not. An estimated 2.1 million federal workers face furloughs. Forty-six-thousand temporary or contract workers with good-paying jobs and benefits could lose their jobs. Three-point-eight million Americans collecting jobless benefits will see those slashed.

Fed chair Ben Bernanke weighed in today. He said the U.S. economy will drop six-tenths of one percent as a result of the forced spending cuts.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BEN BERNANKE, FEDERAL RESERVE CHAIRMAN: Given the still moderate underlying pace of economic growth, this additional near-term burden on the recovery is significant.

Moreover, besides having adverse effects on jobs and incomes, a lower recovery will lead to less actual deficit reduction in the short run for any given set of fiscal actions.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VELSHI: I know he sort of doesn't say it in the easiest way possible, but he thinks it is bad if those forced budget cuts go through. According to new figures put out by the White House, states reliant on defense spending will be hit especially hard. In California, 64,000 civilian defense employees will face furloughs. In Virginia, 90,000 civilian defense employees will face furloughs. In Oklahoma, 24,000 civilian military workers will be put out of work. Pennsylvania will see 26,000 civilian defense employees furloughed.

But in states like Pennsylvania, non-defense programs will see cuts, too. $26 million in primary and secondary education funding will be cut, $21 million in funding for children with disabilities.

Across the Delaware River in New Jersey, that state will see funds cut for education, $29 million, $12 million for primary education, $17 million for special education.

And we'll see cuts to defense-related funding of $59 million in New Jersey to Army and Air Force operations in the state.

Joining me now is mayor -- Philadelphia mayor, Michael Nutter. His city sits right on the Delaware River, separating Pennsylvania from New Jersey, so the economy of Philadelphia is affected by the fates and the cuts in both of those states.

Mayor, good to see you.

I tweeted that you were coming on, I got some interesting tweets from people.

Let me ask you this one. Somebody says, if only cities could figure out how to work without federal money. Is that possible? I mean, you're going to see those hits kick in. Could you just live without federal money?

MAYOR MICHAEL NUTTER (D), PHILADELPHIA: If they would let us to have our own printing press, that would -- we could just print the money ourselves.

Ali, this is astoundingly irresponsible. Here we are, as you laid out, three days before whatever this is, this sequester, hits us, almost impossible at the ground level to truly determine what the impact will be, although you laid out the larger figures in terms of the state.

But there are children in Head Start or Early Head Start who may not have slots very soon, seniors who will be hurt, those with mental illness not getting service, college students not able to get served with work-study jobs. Public safety and police and fire services could be affected. And our military families not getting their health care. Civilian workers at the Department of Defense ...

VELSHI: So, what do you say to this?

NUTTER: ... getting furloughed. What is the point of all this?

VELSHI: You are the mayor of a city that's had budget problems for some years. You don't -- you know, it's hard to get as much money as you need to run the city, so you had to make cuts already.

What do you say to those people out there, you know, who say, hey, look, we got to cut this. The deficit is too high. We spend too much money. The debt is too big. Everybody has just got to face these cuts.

NUTTER: I get that. I understand that, and we made those tough decisions in '08, '09, and '10 and continue to make them today.

But we do them in a balanced fashion, a combination of responsible cuts, targeted, strategic, and we put additional revenues on the table, as tough as that is, but these are tough jobs.

People ran for these jobs. No one asked us, generally, to take these jobs. If you want to make tough decisions and be in these kinds of jobs, then that's what goes with the deal.

Mayors could never get away with the kind of stuff that's going on in Congress right now.

VELSHI: Right.

NUTTER: You know this town as well as I do. If I had said to my citizens, well, maybe we'll have trash pickup next week or, you know, maybe this service or maybe that service, people would go insane.

VELSHI: Yeah.

NUTTER: And the same thing is happening coming down to the states and local governments. It's irresponsible.

VELSHI: You know I love Philly. I spend half my time there, but here is something that is going to affect a major city.

As these federal jobless benefits get cut by as much as 10 percent, how is that going to play out in a city like Philadelphia or, for that matter, cities similar to Philadelphia across the country?

NUTTER: Well, first of all, our unemployment rate is still much too high. But, you know, the money that people are getting through unemployment, they're spending in the economy. As the fed chair said in his own way, it's going to slow things down.

We're coming out of the recession. Why is the Congress irresponsibly almost pushing the nation, our cities, our great generators of the gross domestic product, why are they pushing us back into a double-dip or a second kind of recession?

They need to get together, do their job, so that everyone else can get a job. And we just implore the Congress to work with President Obama on strengthening the middle class, strengthening our economy, and getting people back to work, not throwing them off into unemployment.

VELSHI: Mayor Michael Nutter, always a pleasure to talk to you from Philadelphia. Thanks very much. And from the CNNMoney newsroom, that's it from me. Same time tomorrow. I'm out.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: A pregnant teenager, alone, scared, she feels like there is nowhere to turn. That's actually the story behind a famous name most of us would link to success, and not strife.

Justin Bieber, seen here in his latest hit video, "Beauty and the Beat," the pop star's mom was a teenager when she gave birth to Justin. She is Pattie Mallette. She has a new book. It's called "Nowhere But Up," about her life as a young, single mom and how she overcame sex abuse, addiction, even a suicide attempt.

And, now, this Thursday, Mallette is launching a new initiative using this film. It's called "Crescendo" about a mother considering abortion. She hopes to raise money through screenings for pregnancy centers nationwide.

And Pattie Mallette joins me live from New York. Pattie, welcome.

PATTIE MALLETTE, JUSTIN BIEBER'S MOTHER: Thank you. Hi.

BALDWIN: Hi. So, you were 18 when you had Justin and I want to get to your story in a moment, but I'm just interested to hear, when it comes to, you know, pro-life, pro-choice, you're not taking a stand either way. I'm just curious as to why.

MALLETTE: You know, when I came out as executive producer on this film, a lot of people were saying it was an anti-abortion film, and it is really just a historical piece on Beethoven's mom.

It's a true story, and I'm just not here to make a political stance either way. I'm just here to support and raise money for pregnancy centers.

BALDWIN: Let's talk about you and the pregnancy centers because I read you said, without pregnancy centers, you would not have made it.

What do you mean by that?

MALLETTE: You know, I don't know where I would be without that pregnancy center

It took -- they took me in, they gave me a place to stay, you know, they fed us and educated me, and really gave me the confidence I needed to be the mom that I am today. And I just really don't know where I would be without that place.

BALDWIN: Let me ask you, Pattie, just about these -- I know you've heard of these, these teen pregnancy shows, shows like "16 and Pregnant" and these "Teen Mom" spin-offs and then you look at you and your success and your book and this film, I'm curious if you're at all concerned that these success stories sort of glorify the hardships of being a teen mom.

MALLETTE: You know, sure, that's always a concern of, you know, you don't want teen pregnancy being glorified in any fashion.

But, you know, I don't know if it is correct, but I've heard the statistics have actually gone down for teen pregnancy with all the attention being on them.

BALDWIN: This Thursday, you are starting your campaign. You're hoping to raise $10 million. What is your message to teen girls?

MALLETTE: Well, the pregnancy center, instead of having their regular fund-raiser, they're actually host in hosting events all over, showing the film, "Crescendo," at theaters all across the country. And using it to raise money for these pregnancy centers.

And "Crescendo" is the story of Beethoven's mom. And she tried to take her own life during the pregnancy, so, as you know with my book and things like that that I've shared of my story, I tried to take my life and, having a musical son, there were just a lot of similarities.

BALDWIN: We talk so much about, obviously, teen moms and we're talking about girls, right? But as you point out, you have a son. We know of this son of yours.

What would you say to teen boys?

MALLETTE: What would I say to teen boys?

BALDWIN: Yeah.

MALLETTE: As far as what?

BALDWIN: Just as far as, I don't know, if we're talking teen pregnancy, what kind of advice would you give them?

MALLETTE: Oh, you know, for me personally, I recommitted myself to wait until I was married when I was 21, so my advice is to always wait until you're married.

But I know that's not always the case. I know that people are going to make their own decisions and I'm just here to hopefully help provide a place and some hope, regardless of the situation.

I know for me the pregnancy center that I lived in has its doors closed now because of lack of funds, so our goal so to raise $10 million for pregnancy centers using this film.

BALDWIN: Pattie Mallette your book is "Nowhere But Up." Thank you so much. Best luck of you.

MALLETTE: Thank you.

BALDWIN: A teenager walking 10 miles in the snow to interview for a job at a thrift store. The teenager asked for directions, gets an unexpected opportunity. We're going to tell you this person's story, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: Question. In this economy how far would you go for a job interview? An 18-year-old boy in Indianapolis was willing to walk for miles in the ice and the snow and, when he stopped a restaurant owner for directions, got something he wasn't exactly expecting.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ART BOUVIER, RESTAURANT OWNER: I said, buddy, that's about six or seven miles to (INAUDIBLE). And I fully expected the next question was, can you give me some money for the bus? And it wasn't. He just kept walking.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: Art Bouvier was out clearing his restaurant's parking lot from ice and snow when he crossed paths with Jhaqueil Reagan.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BOUVIER: It was destiny. He said, well, I have an interview at a thrift store. I said, an interview at a thrift store? You're walking 10 miles in ice and snow to an interview at thrift store?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: Bouvier was so impressed with his work ethic he gave him a job at his restaurant, on-the-spot. He starts Monday.

And take a look at this. Cheerleader Ashlee Arnau, remember this? Became the Internet sensation when she hit this amazing -- boom, and in it goes, half-court shot during her time-out.

This was a college in Mississippi. So, slow mo. You could so do that, right? Right.

Well, since Ashlee is now such the star, it makes sense that she would practice with the Harlem Globetrotters. She actually tried to teach these guys -- is that a cartwheel? Yeah, I don't know. Let's see if he makes it in.

Oh, nice. And, so, not too bad, Harlem Globetrotters. Ashlee, nice work.

Take a look at this house. This is in Midland, Texas. You know what those are? Those are tumbleweeds, lots and lots of tumbleweeds. It's normally pretty windy out in West Texas, but the winds were really strong yesterday and this is what they did to Josh Pitman's house.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOSH PITMAN, TUMBLEWEEDS COVERED HOME: ... text message with a picture of the entire left side of our house here, and it's just completely covered in tumbleweeds. It's the most ridiculous thing I've ever seen.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: Pitman has started pushing the tangle of tumbleweeds into a ditch behind his house.

Look at this. Look how high it goes. He says it will probably take the rest week to finish the job. I think so.

Just in to us here at CNN, we are getting chilly new video of this hot air balloon crash we've been reporting on that killed more than a dozen tourists.

New video here after the break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: Absolutely frightening. You could hear the bangs.

What your looking at? This is terrifying new video. This is actually showing this hot air balloon, this explosion as it's exploding here mid-air. This is a thousand feet above ground. This is Luxor, Egypt.

All these people were packed into this basket high above Luxor. Two people that we know of have survived. Nineteen tourists from different parts of Asia and Europe were killed.

And this is the world's deadliest hot hair balloon accident in more than two decades.

Let's take a quick look at the Dow before we head to Washington. The Dow finishing so far -- knock on wood -- in positive territory, right under the 14,000 market, 13,900.

You can always check this latest numbers on the Dow and all things Wall Street. Go to CNNMoney.com.

And that does it for me. I'm Brooke Baldwin here at the CNN World Headquarters in Atlanta. Same time tomorrow, I'll be back and I hope to see you then.

In the meantime, to my friend, Wolf Blitzer. Hey, Wolf.