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CNN NEWSROOM

NFL Pries into Prospects' Personal Lives During Combine; Homosexuality in the Sporting World; Interview with Coy Wire; Big Companies Back Same-Sex Marriage

Aired February 27, 2013 - 09:30   ET

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


CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning. Thank you so much for being with me. I'm Carol Costello at 30 minutes past the hour. The stories we're watching right now in the NEWSROOM it is opening bell at the New York stock exchange. After two days of ups and downs, the stock market might see more stability today. Ringing the bell Wall Street Rocks, that's a charity group.

Today a slow steady recovery is under way from Texas to Illinois, I'm talking about the weather. A wicked combination of strong winds and up to 20 inches of snow knocked out power to thousands of homes and businesses. In many areas work crews scrambling to restore power had to be accompanied by snowplows. For millions of people those impassable roads left them stranded at home or work.

Air travel also ground to a halt in much of the nation's mid section. In Chicago alone, more than 1,000 flights were canceled yesterday, hundreds more likely today.

A sinking boat off Monterey, California, may have been a hoax. The coast guard called off its search for people that a distress call said they were on the boat. Officials say the search has already cost hundreds of thousands of dollars. We'll have a live report for you on this in the next hour.

Now to a story from the NFL combine rippling beyond the sports world. It seems scouts want to know more than just a player's time in the 40- yard dash. Prospect Nick Kasa teams asked some very personal questions.

(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)

NICK KASA, NFL PROSPECT: They ask you like do you have a girlfriend, are you married, do you like girls? Those kinds of things and it was just kind of weird but you know, they would ask you with a straight face. It's pretty weird experience all together.

(END AUDIO CLIP)

COSTELLO: Do you like girls? That's what they asked him. Could the NFL be prying into a player's sexual preference? It's a logical conclusion, right? Mike Florio of Profootballtalk.com brought up the case of Manti Te'o. Florio on Dan Patrick's radio show.

(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)

MIKE FLORIO, PROFOOTBALLTALK.COM: Here is the elephant in the room for the teams and it shouldn't matter but we have to step aside from the rest of reality and walk into the unique industry that is the NFL. Teams want to know whether or not Manti Te'o is gay. They just want to know. They want to know because in an NFL locker room, it's a different world. It shouldn't be that way --

(END AUDIO CLIP)

COSTELLO: So, let's get perspective now from someone who's been through the NFL combine, Coy Wire is a former Atlanta Falcon and Buffalo Bill. Hi Coy.

COY WIRE, FMR. NFL PLAYER: Hi, how are you? This is a good one, isn't it?

COSTELLO: Unbelievable. So, when they were asking you questions when you went through, did they ask you if you liked girls?

WIRE: I don't remember that specific question but I remember they were digging deep. They were prying because these are teams and organizations who are feasibly going to invest hundreds of thousands if not millions into a person, into a player. They want to know you who are, what you've been through and what you're all about.

COSTELLO: Did they try to find out if you were gay? I mean, do you remember?

WIRE: I don't remember that, I think I certainly would have remembered it. Here's the thing, that's illegal I think. Article seven of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, you're not allowed to ask questions or discriminate based on race, religion, sex, so this is a fascinating topic and I think we're going to hear a lot more about it especially with Obama is doing to fight for equality.

COSTELLO: Even the NFL, Chris Clouwe fighting for gay rights. Brian - and I have to look at his name to pronounce it.

WIRE: Yeah, it's a tough one, Brendan Ayenbadejo, they're doing a great job. There are current players who are fighting, who are joining the NoH8 Campaign, who are joining Athlete Ally, who they're for equality. This is just another form of discrimination.

I think that it's fascinating, there's never been a current NFL player who has come out and said you know what? I'm gay. They've never done it. All four major sports there's never been a current gay player. They waited until after their career to come out. That's fascinating to me. I think it's going to take, I think this will change. This is a time of evolution right now but I think it will take a difference- maker, it's going to take a Rosa Parks or a Jackie Robinson to say here is who I am, I'll stand up for what is right and once that ice is broken I think we start to see change.

COSTELLO: The other hypocrisy in all of this, the NFL actually penalized a player, you know, during the Super Bowl, right, because he said some anti-gay remarks. So the NFL is trying to promote this we don't do that, we want to pave the way for maybe gay players and during the combine, teams ask players if they like girls?

WIRE: Right, so there's that dichotomy there, doesn't make sense.

COSTELLO: What should we believe? Does the NFL, I mean there has to be a reason they're asking players that. I know it's an investment and all that, there are other reasons, they don't want gay players on their team and don't want to deal with that?

WIRE: Well, here's the thing. They don't want any ruffled feathers, they don't want any, any - I hate to use this word, but they don't want cancers in the locker room, things that eat up the team and chemistry within a group of men. They know that if there is a gay player there is mocking, scorning, scoffing, it's not going to be good vibes going on there because it's not readily accepted. That's why there's never been a current gay player. They know to stay hush and keep quiet because of what will happen. What will happen is they would probably have been cut because too many feathers would have been ruffled. You can't have a team focused on a goal, right, on a mission, and having dissension amongst the troops and that topic right there is a touchy one because it's a machismo environment. These guys are taught to be men. And that's not to say -

COSTELLO: I totally get it. I just don't like the appearance of hypocrisy, like if you have a problem with it, come out and say it but don't make people believe that oh we're trying to make things better and more comfortable if indeed we ever have a gay player on one of our NFL teams.

WIRE: There's no question that magnifying glass will be pulled out now on this topic and on all the players involved including the NFL, the teams, the players but I think we have to note there are players like you mentioned Chris Cluwe, Brendan Ayanbandejo, Scott Fujita who have come out and are supporting this cause and this push for equality in regards to this topic in the NFL.

COSTELLO: Coy, thank you so much for talking to us.

WIRE: Thanks for having me.

COSTELLO: Banning same-sex marriage bad for business? At least that's what more than 60 major U.S. companies are saying and they're taking their argument to the Supreme Court.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: "Political Buzz" is your rapid fire look at the best political topics of the day, three topics, 30 seconds on the clock. Playing with us today, Roland Martin, CNN political analyst, and John Avlon, CNN contributor and senior political columnist for "Newsweek" and "The Daily Beast." Welcome gentlemen.

ROLAND MARTIN, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: Glad to be here.

JOHN AVLON, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: Hey Carol. COSTELLO: You two are lucky because we have breaking news courtesy of our congressional correspondent Dana Bash, I'm going to read it to you right now and ask your take on it.

According to a senior GOP aide, a Republican aide, congressional leaders have been invited to the White House on Friday, the very day forced spending cuts are scheduled to take effect. We have Dana Bash on the phone right now so before you guys comment, let's get more from Dana Bash who broke this story. So these congressional leaders are going to the White House on Friday, should we jump for joy and say oh my gosh that means negotiations are under way?

DANA BASH, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT (via telephone): I would not bring out the confetti quite yet, no. This is something that let's be honest if the president didn't invite congressional leaders to talk to them on the day the cuts go in, we would be screaming from the rooftops that Congress is even more - that Washington is even more messed up than we thought.

Having said that when you have members of Congress the leaders in both parties in the room with the president, it would be hard to imagine that they don't at least have some kind of discussion, maybe not necessarily about what to do about these forced spending cuts that will be going to effect that very day, but about how you deal with the bigger picture of what will happen three weeks later which is the government's going to run out of money.

Most forces on Capitol Hill think it's all going to be incorporated together. That is definitely - it's no question it's a good thing they will be together. But I will tell you that as we're getting this information the Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell already released a statement saying he's looking forward to visiting with the president but said one thing Americans simply will not accept is another tax increase to replace spending reductions, we already agreed to. So they still have the fundamental philosophical divide that is keeping these spending cuts in place right now. Democrats want it to be tax increases and spending cuts and Republicans are saying no. They want it just to be a series of spending cuts, nothing to do with tax increases.

COSTELLO: Dana Bash thank you so much. The question I will pose to our two wonderful, fabulous analysts today, once that meeting takes place tomorrow and the congressional leaders head into the White House and they meet with the president, what do you think they'll say to each other, Roland Martin?

MARTIN: Well first, the problem is they're meeting on Friday. That's the day the cuts take place. Why can't it be tomorrow? In fact why cannot tea be this evening? This is what I don't quite understand. Why would you meet on the day the cuts are supposed to take place? This is - we tell all of our children, I have six nieces my wife and I are raising we tell them you don't do your homework at the absolute last second and then somehow think you're going to actually get it done. This is what Congress is doing. This is the problem that I say we continue to have a lack of adult leadership across the board because they can't solve problems before the crisis kicks in. COSTELLO: John?

AVLON: It shows how addicted they are to the game of chicken, Carol. We'll meet once we go over the cliff because then the sense of urgency will be real. It's ridiculous they're not doing that meeting today. We are two days away here and at the end of the day we need more leadership, we need them to be negotiating and there's an absence of negotiation. It's great they're getting together to talk about how to deal with the CR and the sequestration deadline but the fact they're doing it after the cuts begin shows how desperate they are to get that pressure, to actually start making a deal, the absence of leadership is stunning.

COSTELLO: It's mind-boggling isn't it? Oo we'll move on now.

Up next, Chris Christie, let's talk about Chris Christie, the New Jersey governor is wildly popular but not with some of his fellow Republicans. Christie not invited to this year's CPAC conference. The group reportedly says Christie has a limited future in the Republican party thanks to his stance on guns. And remember this? Christi's embrace of President Obama after Superstorm Sandy? That sparked outrage but commentator Charles Krauthammer says it's a mistake to dismiss the politician for cozying up to the president even though he called the event more of a, quote, "lap dance."

(LAUGHTER)

AVLON: Awkward.

COSTELLO: I know, awkward and the visual is just not good. The question though, should Republicans all Republicans even conservative Republicans embrace Chris Christie? John?

AVLON: Yes. The guy's got a 74 percent approval rating in a state where independents outnumber Democrats and Republicans. The entire GOP should be going to New Jersey to figure out what Chris Christie's doing right rather than trying to exclude him from the "Star Wars" bar conference. Chris Christie is one of the few examples the Republican party has of leadership that works in terms of fiscal responsibility and having success in reaching across the aisle and broad popularity. He is an example of what they should become more like, not what they should be distancing themselves from.

COSTELLO: Roland?

MARTIN: CPAC has a right to invite anybody they want to and who they choose not to invite. If you're Governor Chris Christie I wouldn't be sitting here sweating this. Last I checked this is 2013. The 2016 presidential campaign is three years off. If he is deciding to run for President frankly he can speak to any group later. At the end of the day, trust me, groups like this are not going to be the decider. He has the ability to put together a national campaign, put together a staff, put together his issues and his strategies. And so if I'm him I'm not losing any sleep because some group chose not to invite me.

COSTELLO: I don't think Chris Christie loses sleep over much actually. Roland Martin and John Avlon thanks so much for playing today.

MARTIN: Thanks so much.

COSTELLO: "Talk Back" question for you, "Is it right for Dennis Rodman to be in North Korea?" Your responses coming up next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: It's 48 minutes past the hour. Time to check our "Top Stories".

Pope Benedict prepares to leave his office tomorrow after getting his final public farewell earlier this morning. The Pope thanks the faithful in St. Peter's Square for their support and said he'll stay in the service of prayer.

A Senate panel drops its investigation into the movie "Zero Dark Thirty" after talking to the CIA. The film chronicles the hunt for Osama bin Laden. The Senate Intelligence Committee was worried CIA information might have misled filmmakers. Some lawmakers also said the film glorified torture but the investigation is over.

An Australian billionaire has unveiled plans for a full scale replica of the "Titanic" it's called "Titanic II" and it's set to sail in 2016. Take a look at the pictures, the cruise line says passenger will wear 1912 style clothing and notes there will be enough life boats for everyone, thank goodness, huh?

Dozens of U.S. companies including Facebook, Nike, eBay and Morgan Stanley are asking the U.S. Supreme Court to strike down California's ban on same-sex marriage and in a report from "Fortune" they're arguing the law is bad for business.

CNN's Christine Romans is in New York to explain more. Hi Christine.

CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, a progressive position for corporate America and a lot of companies according to "Fortune" some 60 have signed on to this Amicus Brief and they expect by the time it's filed tomorrow at the Supreme Court that there will be far more.

Let me tell you, take a look at the companies and then let me tell you what this is. Dozens of American corporations, including Apple, Alcoa, Facebook, eBay, Intel, Morgan Stanley will submit an Amicus Brief in this landmark Hollingsworth v. Perry case broadly arguing to the Supreme Court that laws banning same-sex marriage like California's Prop 8 are unconstitutional Carol under the due process of the equal protection clauses.

"Fortune" got a draft of this brief. And it's so interesting. It argues that, a, it's not fair or legal to have two separate classes of married citizens in America but also that it's not good for their business. For example retaining good talent if you are a company, do you want to lose good talent because they don't want to live in California, for example over New York, Massachusetts or Iowa where the state laws are different regarding same-sex marriage? So this is something where you're seeing a ground swell of support from some big well known American companies who are going to be banding together to file this brief with the Supreme Court, recognizing the right of same-sex couples to marry is more than a constitutional issue. It is a business imperative.

Again invoking that, recruiting and retaining top talent to a -- also earlier this week separately but also in the same vein, another report found some disparities with how people -- same-sex couples and their children receive Social Security benefits. Same-sex couples have denied Social Security in some cases according to this report. There's no monthly benefit if a spouse dies. There's no onetime payment for burial and in some states an adopted child who's been adopted by a second parent in the same-sex marriage they're denied monthly benefits if the parent dies. And that's something that many groups including the group that issued this is very concerned about.

So you're seeing the finances of same-sex marriage in the news this week -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Interesting. Christine Romans thanks so much.

ROMANS: You're welcome.

COSTELLO: This guy, he may be the most polarizing soccer player ever. Now he may have done something to tick people off even more.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: "Talk Back" question for you today. "Is it right for Dennis Rodman" -- what am I doing -- "Is it right for Dennis Rodman to be in North Korea?"

This from Marvin. "It's ok for him to be there as a basketball player but not as a statesman."

This from Testaya, "Not as an official diplomat. As a goodwill ambassador? Why not give it a try with the North Korean people?"

This from Paul. "It is fine for him to be in North Korea as long as he stays there."

And this from Michael. "Any interaction is good and sports is a non- political entity. Who cannot appreciate the Globetrotters?"

Keep the conversation going facebook.com/CarolCNN or tweet me @CarolCNN.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: The Pacers and Warriors get into a brawl on the court that spilled over into the crowded Indiana. Joe Carter has it all on this morning's Bleacher Report.

JOE CARTER, BLEACHER REPORT: Hey, good morning, Carol. You know obviously NBA Commissioner David Stern he hates when his players fight during games. It's embarrassing for the league, especially when it involves the league -- has become much more Stern over the years and now has a -- basically a zero tolerance for anything like this during games.

The Pacers Roy Hibbard and Warriors David Lee they are the two that starts the scuffle and Stephen Curry gets involved trying to stick up for a teammate, gets tossed aside two different times. The fans, who of course pay top dollar to sit courtside are put right in the middle of all this. When all is said and done, six technical fouls were handed out. Indiana's Roy Hibbard ejected from the game. And he should expect at least a one-game suspension.

Mario Balotelli is arguably the most polarizing soccer player in the world. This guy has been called an ego maniac for years. His latest stunt, far from humble, he's hired an artist to make a statue of himself. That statue is going to look like that pose, it's going to be platinum and bronze and will have eyes made of precious stones. And guess where he's going put that statue Carol?

COSTELLO: In his bedroom?

CARTER: Smack dab in the middle of his foyer for all of his guests to enjoy, of course.

Daytona 500 winner, Jimmie Johnson, he's a very happy winner. He's proud. He's making those talk show rounds, he was on Letterman last night. During his moment, his time to shine, of course, guess whose name came up.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DAVID LETTERMAN, TALK SHOW HOST: This, if you were racing this, then you'd have something, by God.

JIMMIE JOHNSON, RACE CAR DRIVER: I'd have a hard time turning that one.

LETTERMAN: What was it like with your buddy Danica Patrick there?

JOHNSON: She was in the race? I didn't hear about that. Really?

LETTERMAN: There you go. Good luck.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CARTER: Oh, somebody's slightly bitter. Slightly bitter. All right.

Peewee coach Martin Tremblay, this guy's been sentenced to 15 days in jail for tripping a 13-year-old hockey player. The video shows the coach sticking out his leg during the post-game handshake. The 13- year-old falls, breaks his wrist and takes out a 10-year-old in the process. This video went viral last fall. The 48-year-old coach pleaded guilty to assault back in November.

Of course, for all your entertaining sports news including more on the unranked Minnesota beating number one Indiana last night --