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CNN NEWSROOM

Massive MBL Suspensions; Second Levee Fails in Missouri; El Reno Twister Strongest on Scale; Model Murder Verdict

Aired June 5, 2013 - 09:00   ET

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


(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Happening now in the newsroom, steroids and suspensions. A possible blockbuster move by major league baseball.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm not answering any further questions regarding the whole situation.

COSTELLO: Among the big names on the list? Ryan Braun, A-Rod, 18 other players and their possible use of performance-enhancing drugs.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think we all hoped we had kind of got through it.

COSTELLO: It could be the largest wave of suspensions in sport history. This morning, we're at the Miami clinic swirling at the center of the steroid storm.

Also, fire threat on four-wheel drive. Jeep defying the government request to recall hundreds of thousands of cars, saying they are safe.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Chrysler contends their gas tanks on these vehicles were built according to government safety standards.

COSTELLO: Then why are some advocates saying Jeep Grand Cherokees are 20 times more likely to catch fire?

Plus, a billboard bust. The woman Miguel kicked in the head during a show may now have brain damage. This morning, she is awaiting a doctor's report will Miguel be sued?

And delivery by drone? Domino's taking to the sky with your pie. We're live in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: And good morning to you. And thank you so much for being with me, we'll get to the bombshell in baseball in just a min minute. But first, late breaking developments at the White House. In what some call a slap in the face for Republicans, Tom Donilon is resigning as President Obama's national security adviser, and guess who his replacement will be: the highly controversial U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, Susan Rice. Chief Washington Correspondent Jake Tapper joins me now. Wow. Surprised by this? JAKE TAPPER, CHIEF WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT: No, not at all. Susan Rice, even though she was very controversial especially among Republicans pursuing more information about the attacks in Benghazi, has remained a close friend of President Obama's. Someone he trusts, and I think that the way she handled herself during the withdraw of her name for consideration as secretary of state, really rose her stock at the White House.

People at the White House with whom I spoke at the time were impressed that she took her name out of consideration it seemed like the stars were aligning for John Kerry anyway, but she handled herself in the view of White House officials can class and dignity. Ultimately her stock went up, so it does not surprise me they would name this position, which doesn't require Senate confirmation, we should underline, for her. The president relies on her, trusts her and this is a reward for being a good soldier in many ways.

COSTELLO: Well, that's not exactly in the spirit of bipartisanship because any Republicans think Susan Rice lied about the talking point on Benghazi and now she's being rewarded.

TAPPER: She repeated what was on the talking points, that's true, and the talking points were inaccurate, but the question is, how much of a role did she play in that? If you look at the e-mails that we report the on several weeks ago, about those talking points, there are a lot of questions about the role played by the State Department and the CIA, the White House, et cetera, and yet if you look at the U.N. role in this, what Dr. Susan Rice, the ambassador to the U.N., she and her staff come on at the end and say can we use these talking point for the Sunday shows?

And, remember, it was because people like Tom Donilon and Hillary Clinton did not want to go on the Sunday shows that Sunday after the attacks at the compound in Benghazi, and I was substituting for George Stephanopoulos, so I was hosting one of those five Sunday shows, it was actually because Donilon and Hillary did not want to do the Sunday shows, that Susan Rice raised their hand, and she went and did them even though ultimately the U.N. ambassador has very little to do with deciding any controversies in Benghazi including, especially in my view, why there was so little security there.

But, yes, ultimately, she's being rewarded for being a good soldier, no question.

COSTELLO: Jake Tapper, I know you will talk more about this later this afternoon. Thank you for joining us this morning. We appreciate it.

TAPPER: Thank you.

COSTELLO: You're welcome.

Now, to the bombshell in the baseball world. Performance-enhancing drugs have a long and documented history in our national pastime. This morning, a new and potentially explosive chapter being written. Some of Major League Baseball's biggest stars, players like Alex Rodriguez and Ryan Braun, now facing massive suspensions in a doping scandal. That's according to ESPN.

Some 20 baseball players in all supposedly have ties to a south Florida anti-aging clinic. ESPN says the man who ran it all is about to start talking and he could blow the lid off what is reportedly the worst drug abuse case in baseball history. Rachel Nichols in Miami, miles away from the clinic. These possible suspensions could be upwards of 100 games. That would be double the usual amount.

RACHEL NICHOLS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes this is something that could be the largest drug scandal in U.S. sports history. "Could be" is the key part of that phrase though. Just because Major League Baseball is seeking these suspensions doesn't mean they will happen. But it is a huge, huge step that the founder of this clinic has decided to work with them, come forward, tell them what he knows.

The key is going to be how much proof he can provide, whether this turns into a he said/he said situation or whether he really has some more of the records, receipts, phone records, maybe even DNA evidence, that can back this up. Major League Baseball scheduled to meet with him by the end of the week, but the big hurdle cleared for them is that he finally agreed to participate in the investigation. And what it could mean for players involved, what it could mean for the sport of baseball, is huge. Yankee Skipper Joe Girardi addressed that just last night.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOE GIRARDI, YANKEES' MANAGER: I think we all had hoped we had kind of got through it. But obviously, we're not through it yet.

You know what I worry about? I worry about baseball being affected as a game, the whole thing, and what it's been through in the last 15 years, and that's my concern. But I always worry about my players, always. Because I think, you know, one thing you never want to forget is they're human beings.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NICHOLS: This is a huge impact. Not just on baseball and baseball fans and players, but, really when you look at sports, such a huge part of American culture, the number one rated TV show every year is The Super Bowl. We like to think sports are a fun release. We don't like to think at the highest levels of the game it's being rigged that people are cheating and just parents out there, you don't have to be a baseball fan, but you can be toting your kids at soccer practice and swim meets and little league, and if your child is getting the message to get the college scholarship, to compete at the highest levels, you have to take drugs that could hurt your body, that's a huge concern.

COSTELLO: You think baseball would have taken care of this problem. It's been working to take care of the problem supposedly, but nothing seems to matter.

NICHOLS: Yes, you know, baseball got criticized for a long time for being behind on this issue. They've certainly taken steps, not only to catch up, but put some of the strongest policies in place in American sports league and they've spent more than a million dollars on this investigation of loan (ph). They've had teams of people here in Miami, trying to track the founder of this clinic down, get him to cooperate.

So they definitely have taken a more aggressive stance, it will be interesting to see what the fallout will be, because once they meet with him, once they decide what they can move forward on in terms of issuing suspensions, that's not going to be some big public thing. Major League Baseball doesn't do it that way. They're going to notify the players in private and then those players will have a chance to appeal. If they appeal that will be in private and it could take months.

Don't expect to see Ryan Braun, the former MVP, just pulled off the field in the next couple of days. If the suspension is issued, it will be in a couple of weeks, it will be privately and he will have that chance to appeal. He certainly will. We may not hear much about this for months. But Major League Baseball certainly is being aggressive in taking action. We'll have to see what happens.

COSTELLO: Rachel Nichols, thank you. Let's talk more about A-Rod because he's another player's name on the list. Joe Carter is here to talk more about that. A-Rod has been hurt, hasn't played yet, he's on a contract that the Yankees want to dump. What does this mean for him?

JOE CARTER, HOST, BLEACHER REPORT: When you talk about another play in the list, I mean this is the highest paid player in Major League Baseball. This is the biggest player on this sport's biggest team. For him -- for Major League Baseball to say they've got a guy that's going to bring them the closest they have ever come to the needle, if you will, is pretty damaging for Alex Rodriguez as well as Ryan Braun, and these 18 other players.

Think of it when you look at baseball as a whole, and related to Alex Rodriguez, back in the late '90s to early 2000s, you know the Maguires the Sosas, the Bonds, these guys saved baseball, and you could say each of them was associated with steroids one way or another.

Then baseball steps in, cleans up the sport and now here we are ten years later, back again. It's like getting punched in the eye, heals, and then getting punched in the eye again. Baseball carries with it a huge black eye and has its marquee player, the guy who's supposed to be the greatest player ever, I nean six, seven years ago, he was on pace to beat the man and then he came forward and said he did steroids -- not steroids, performance-enhancing drugs. And when there is smoke, there is fire one has to think that if Tony Bosch can bring forth the evidence that they say he has and connect him directly to performanc enhancing drugs, I think that Alex Rodriguez' and his state (ph) with the Yankees and the big contracts and all that comes to an end.

COSTELLO: All right, Joe Carter, many thanks to you.

Chrysler has now refused to recall nearly 3 million jeeps because of a fire risk despite accident like the one you're seeing now. A fiery crash on a Houston highway. This burned out wreck belongs to a Jeep Cherokee, or the owner of the Jeep Cherokee.

The fire started when the car was hit from behind and then burst into flames. The driver died. And he is now one of the more than 50 people who have died after jeeps caught on fire following a rear end collision. CNN business anchor Christine Romans is in New York with more on the Jeep recall. Christine, why is Chrysler refusing to recall these vehicles?

CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Chrysler does not agree with the U.S. government that this gas tank is a problem. They say the design of the gas tank behind the rear axle is a commonly accepted design. They also say Chrysler says almost all of the fatal accidents were the result of a high-speed accident, for example, like a tractor- trailer going 65 miles an hour, slamming into a stationary Cherokee. It's the accident that causes the problem, not the fuel tank.

Chrysler, in a statement, says we believe NHTSA's initial conclusions are based on an incomplete analysis of under lying data. And we are committed to continue working with the agency to resolve this disagreement.

The Center For Auto Safety, which asked NHTSA to look into this says hundreds of fires have occurred in Cherokees Liberys, and they really have been pushing for a recall of these vehicles. Chrysler says all of those numbers are overstated. But here are the vehicles in question, Carol. The 1993 to 2004 Jeep Grand Cherokees, 2002 to 2007 Libertys. Now, we have no estimate from Chrysler on what a recall would cost, but the Center for Auto Safety says likely $300 million to address all these problems. And it could cost a lot more in future sales if the recall backfires.

I mean remember Toyota lost its title as number one automaker after its big recall. This is a very big rebuff of the American government, quite frankly and of regulators in this country by Chrysler. It's very, very rare for a car company not to be able to negotiate with the government and figure out a way to get this done quickly and get it done to the benefit of government. Auto drivers and automaker itself, Carol.

COSTELLO: Christine Romans reporting live for us from New York.

She may be more popular than her husband, actually she is, but Mrs. Obama proved she is not impervious to hecklers. The first lady was reading prepared remarks last night when she was interrupted by a heckler.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MICHELLE OBAMA, FIRST LADY OF THE UNITED STATES: We have an obligation to stand up for those kids, and I don't care what you believe in.

(CROSSTALK)

M. OBAMA: Wait, wait. One of the things that I don't do well is this. One of the things --

(APPLAUSE)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: According to the pool report, Mrs. Obama then approached the heckler and said, quote, "listen to me or you can take the mike, but I'm leaving, you all decide. You have you one choice." The heckler was from a gay rights group. She was escorted out of the building. Mrs. Obama stayed.

Just ahead in the NEWSROOM, the swollen Missouri River has busted through yet another levee. Hundreds of people now evacuating.

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COSTELLO: Sixteen minutes past the hour. Time to check our top stories.

Mississippi Governor Phil Bryant finding himself in the middle of a great big old controversy after giving this response to a question why American schools have fallen behind other countries.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GOV. PHIL BRYANT (R), MISSISSIPPI: I think parents became -- both parents started working, and the mom is in the workplace. It's not a bad thing, I'm going to get in trouble, I can just see -- I can see the e-mails tomorrow.

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COSTELLO: Well, he's already in trouble, because, yes, mothers all across the country are e-mailing him. Bryant was speaking at a "Washington Post" forum on education. He went on to say that both parents being pulled away for home for a long period of time has contributed to the reading problem in this country.

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COSTELLO: FBI agents have now raided the office of California State Senator Ron Calderon. The FBI says no arrests are planned, but declined to comment further on the investigation. Calderon's spokesperson declined comment.

Delta says it will end hub operations at Memphis International Airport right after Labor Day weekend. The Atlanta-based airline will cut service to the airport from 92 flights to about 60 daily. Some 3,200 customer service jobs will be lost as a result.

COSTELLO: A second levee along the swollen Missouri River has failed and now, floodwaters are creeping up to people's homes. This is near West Alton, Missouri.

The river is nearly nine feet over its banks. Authorities forced people who lived in 43 homes nearby to evacuate.

CNN's Martin Savidge in live in West Alton, Missouri. Good morning, Martin.

MARTIN SAVIDGE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol. Take a look at all of this.

What's interesting was when we were here yesterday morning, none of this water was here. This all came up overnight, and you are right. It came from that second levee breach. That levee breach, by the way, is two miles in that direction, this water has slowly been making its way overnight. A lot of people woke up and saw in this morning and were a little surprised to hear about it.

The levee breach is so large, they cannot plug it, at least not until floodwaters recede and that's really what's interesting here, is that the crest has gone by. The floodwaters are actually going down, yet the flooding in West Alton in some areas like this, is getting worse.

There are homes here and there are businesses, and, unfortunately, not much authorities can do about those flooded so far, because they actually are worried about another levee breach. This one is some distance away, about four miles, on the Mississippi River. It's what they call a slide.

It's where part of the levee has actually, like, a landslide, given way and they fear that levee is greatly weakened. The problem is, it's right next to a power plant and right beside a major roadway that is used for people to evacuate. They are focused on that area today, I should say, Carroll, hoping it would not give way.

Last night, we were there as they constructed an emergency levee of stone, they are keeping their fingers crossed.

But again, it's all happening as the water is supposedly going away, but not the threats say authorities, Carol.

COSTELLO: It's just ironic because wasn't it just last year, you were reporting on drought conditions in that area?

SAVIDGE: Right. Not even -- not even last year so much. Five months ago -- well, it is last year. But five months ago, they were talking about the Mississippi River being closed as a result of the fact that the water level so was low. The river is closed now, but it's because the river is so high, it is considered dangerous for navigation.

So the swing like that, to go from almost record lows to now, well, nine feet above flood stage is something that is rarely seen in this part of the world. And it certainly has the hydrologists studying it very carefully.

COSTELLO: Unbelievable. Martin Savidge, reporting live from Missouri this morning.

Let's talk about that humongous tornado that hit El Reno, Oklahoma. We now know it is -- or it was the widest tornado in history. It was huge.

Chad Myers is standing by live in El Reno.

What, more than two miles wide this thing was?

CHAD MYERS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Yes, we talked about this yesterday, Carol and the day before, how I just have never seen a damage path like this damage path. Where we had tornado damage two miles to the north and another half mile to the south of this Interstate, I-40, and it was just -- I thought there is no possible way that this could be an EF-3 tornado.

They are going to upgrade this, and yesterday they did. They upgraded it to an EF-5 with wind speeds approaching 295 miles per hour.

Carol?

COSTELLO: Sorry, Chad. I'm just looking at that damage, it's incredible.

But because this thing was upgraded to an EF-5 and because it is so wide, if it hit a more populated area, it would have been even more devastating.

MYERS: It would have been unbelievable. You know, there is no EF-5 damage here. No house completely removed from foundation.

What happened here is that there's Doppler on wheels, scientists, storm chasers, the ones we are talking about for so long. These men and women drive trucks with Doppler radars going around on the back. Literally a pickup truck with Doppler radar on the back spinning around and two separate trucks found 295 mile per hour winds or better.

What we had here is think -- I used this analogy before but I can't do any better than this. Thinks of a carousel, a merry-go-round with horses on it. Now, this horse merry-go-round is two miles wide, and this thing is going 185 miles an hour around, and the horses are also spinning at 110 miles per hour as it goes around and rolls right through here south of El Reno. That's how they got to the 295 mile per hour winds.

The good news is, where those winds were, were just an empty field. So, we don't have damage like we see in Moore, not the extensive damage is widespread, but there's only a couple houses every mile compared to, could you imagine a neighborhood, a residential area, getting winds like that, where Moore was 210, this was 295. The damage would have been astronomical.

COSTELLO: Chad Myers, reporting live from El Reno, Oklahoma.

Still ahead in THE NEWSROOM, a jury arrives at a verdict, but a family still searching for answers. Details in the shocking trial of a woman called the "Female James Bond".

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: In California, a stunning end to the trial of a woman prosecutors called the "Female James Bond".

Forty-seven-year-old Kelly Soo Park shed tears as the jury declared her not guilty in the murder of aspiring model Julianna Redding. But for Redding's family, the verdict left waiting for closure.

CNN's Kyung Lah has their emotional reaction.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Find the defendant Kelly Soo Park not guilty.

KYUNG LAH, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Minutes after the stunning freeing Kelly Soo Park acquittal --

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Go to hell, whore!

LAH: An outburst by the murder victim's friend and family.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Murder!

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Quiet!

LAH: Without speaking to reporters, the distraught family of Julianna Redding left court.

Redding came to Hollywood to pursue a modeling and acting career. She appeared in a music video, landed small acting roles. She was just 21 when strangled in her rented condo in 2008/

And then investigators announced a stunning twist to the case. The suspected killer Kelly Soo Park, prosecutors called her quote, "the female James Bond." She was the muscle they contended, hired to kill Redding by Dr. Munir Uwaydah. Uwaydah say police dated Redding briefly and Redding's father pulled out a business deal with Uwaydah five days before her death.

Prosecutors say Uwaydah left the country after Park's arrest. Park was nabbed after her DNA found at the murder scene.

Park's attorneys shortly after the verdict told us that the DNA evidence was inconclusive, and the 47-year-old park wasn't strong enough to strangle a 21-year-old victim with her bare hands.

MARK KASABIAN, ATTORNEY FOR KELLY SOO PARK: There's nothing to be happy about here. It's perfectly understandable what the victim's family was going through. This was a dreadful murder. Our client didn't do it.

LAH: The L.A. distinct attorney's office did not speak on camera, but said in a statement, "We fought hard and fair in a court of law to obtain justice. Although, we disagree with the verdict, we respect our system of justice."

(on camera): Legal analysts say that jurors have a harder time convicting women in murder cases, Jodi Arias being the high profile exemption. That is of little comfort to the family of Julianna Redding, the victim in this case.

Kyung Lah, CNN, Los Angeles.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: Coming up next in THE NEWSROOM, sexual assaults in the military and confusion about exactly what constitutes rape.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. SAXBY CHAMBLISS (R), GEORGIA: The young folks that are coming into each of your services are anywhere from 17 to 22 or 23. Gee whiz, the level -- hormone level created by nature, sets in place the possibility for these types of things to occur.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: The senator's comments drawing fire from both sides of the aisle this morning.

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