Return to Transcripts main page

NEW DAY

Edward Snowden Charged; Paula Deen Admits Past Racist Language

Aired June 22, 2013 - 09:00   ET

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


ALISON KOSIK, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning. I'm Alison Kosik.

VICTOR BLACKWELL, CNN ANCHOR: I'm Victor Blackwell. It's 9:00 now on the East Coast; 6:00 out West. This is NEW DAY SATURDAY.

And we're starting this hour with new developments about Edward Snowden. He admitted to leaking secret information on the NSA's surveillance program and now the government has leveled formal charges.

KOSIK: And they are theft of government property, willfully communicating classified intelligence information to an unauthorized person and communicating national defense information without permission.

CNN White House correspondent, Dan Lothian is live for us this morning.

Dan, now that these charges are in, does this begin the extradition process?

DAN LOTHIAN, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, it really does begin, first legal step to get Edward Snowden back into this country and into court. Remember, you have to have the charges filed, then you have an arrest warrant and then you begin that complicated process of extradition.

A U.S. official telling CNN that the State Department has sent some of that legal paperwork to its consulate in Hong Kong, then consulate officials are supposed to send that information to authorities in Hong Kong, eventually that information should get in the hands of a judge to issue an arrest warrant. But remember, this was all - this complaint was filed a week ago in district court, federal court in Alexandria, Virginia. So it's unclear where we are in that whole process.

Has it already played through? Has the judge issued that arrest warrant? Or is it just now getting started? Again, this is all very tricky because the United States does have an extradition treaty with Hong Kong but there are exceptions for political offenses. This could potentially fall under that. Then you add what complicates this even further is that Hong Kong is a territory of China and so China at some point could potentially step in and prevent an extradition. So we know that this legal process is now under way. But how each step plays out, unknown at this time. VICTOR BLACKWELL, CNN ANCHOR: So Dan, Edward Snowden came out and said "It was me, I'm the source of the leak here." Is the federal government satisfied with that? Are they searching for another possible player?

LOTHIAN: As far as we know, he remains the focus of this investigation. No word that anyone else is being brought into this. Remember, this first became public when Edward Snowden leaked these documents to the media. That's when the Justice Department launched its investigation. Snowden saying that the reason that he did this, is essentially he wanted to make a point that the Obama administration was not being transparent and that President Obama had expanded some of these surveillance programs, which again, he thinks are wrong.

KOSIK: OK. Dan Lothian at the White House, thanks.

BLACKWELL: The Food Network says it is dropping Paula Deen. This comes after the queen of southern cooking admitted in a lawsuit deposition that she has used the n word in the past. Deen and her brother are being sued for sexual and racial harassment by a former manager at their restaurants in Savannah, Georgia. Deen apologized in two on-line statements. The first, that professionally produced video on the left, but apparently that was not enough. That's not what she wanted to say. So she removed the one on the left and then posted the video on the right. Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PAULA DEEN, FOOD NETWORK HOST: I want people to understand that my family and I are not the kind of people that the press is wanting to say we are. I've spent the best of 24 years to help myself and others. Your color of your skin, your religion, your sexual preference does not matter to me, but it's what in the heart, what's in the heart, and my family and I try to live by that. And I am here to say I am so sorry.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: CNN's Nick Valencia joins us now. Nick, once those depositions were released this moved quickly. There was the social media flush and then mainstream media and then her apologies and then Food Network dropping the three shows.

NICK VALENCIA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It's full-fledged damage control for Camp Deen right now. For her, she's trying to come out and just sort of hold on to the supporters that she has left. Some people are standing up for her. Majority of people that have come out and spoken out against Paula Deen just very critical of her usage of the word. But I want to play you sound from a local pastor in Georgia who says there's no way that Paula Deen can be racist.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PASTOR GREGORY A. TYSON, SR., FIRST JERUSALEM MISSIONARY BAPTIST CHURCH: People want to jump on it and believe what they want to believe and they're going to add what they want to add. But one thing I can sit here today and look you in the face and tell you, that woman can't be a racist. She can't have a heart against black people with all that she's done and all that she continues to do. And that's why I'm here today with you, just to be a character witness for Miss Paula Deen because she's a beautiful person.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VALENCIA: So you see there, there are still people that do support her. But a lot of reaction on social media coming out just blasting Paula Deen for using this language. However how long it was in this 150-page deposition she talks about how this was a word that was condoned when she grew up in the south. This is a time, a woman who comes from a time when she went to segregated schools and now, you know, a lot has changed. Our society has evolved where this is a very ugly word with ugly connotation. But it's not just her usage of the word. This deposition really goes into her mentality and mind-set and she incriminates herself in a very big way, Victor.

BLACKWELL: You know, going beyond just the word and its usage, there are other things in this deposition that have created some headlines. Talk about, if you would, the plantation-style wedding and the service at that the wedding that she was planning.

VALENCIA: I think this is the most weird thing. When you go through each page of this deposition, she talks about wanting to have a traditional southern plantation-style wedding for her brother. The plaintiff's attorney says, "What do you mean by that? What do you mean by this southern plantation wedding? You can bring up the graphic here.

The plaintiff's attorney says, "Right, back in an era where there are middle age black men waiting on white people, you know, this is before the civil war, during the civil war, after the civil war." She says, "Well, you know, sure before the civil war, before the civil war there was black men and women waiting on white people and asked, were they slaves? You know, help me understand this here." She says, "Yes, I would say that they are slaves."

So, you know, it's really hard to understand. Also another part of the deposition, you know the plaintiff's attorney asked her pointblank, "Is your brother, who is a co-defendant in this civil lawsuit, is your brother racist against African-Americans?" And Victor, she takes a really long time to answer that question. She says, "I - I don't know. The answer to that is no." You know, rather than just coming out straightforward and saying no, a lot of people really critical of how she's handling this.

You know, very bizarre, pulling off that YouTube video that was put forward by her PR team and then putting up another video, you know, canceling on a "Today Show" appearance because she's saying she wasn't physically able to show up. So it's not just the usage of the word, it's also the mind-set and mentality that's exposed in the deposition and also her reaction to the fallout. Victor.

BLACKWELL: All right. Nick Valencia on this story for us. Thank you, Nick. VALENCIA: You bet.

BLACKWELL: It's the first full weekend of summer, enjoying it?

KOSIK: I am.

BLACKWELL: And the super moon is in the forecast.

KOSIK: CNN meteorologist Alexandria Steel joins us with all of the details. Tell us all about it.

ALEXANDRIA STEELE, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Astronomically, right? It's a big weekend. So it is the supermoon Sunday. What does that mean? Well, this is what it's going to look like. Incredibly beautiful, especially late tonight into early tomorrow, the moon will be bright and full. In essence, it's a combination of two things - one, the moon will be at a perigee, meaning, in its orbit around the earth it will be at its closest and also in conjunction there will be a full moon. So the two together makes it incredibly bright and incredibly big. So it will be 14 percent bigger than a normal full moon, 30 percent brighter. And it will be especially brilliant early tomorrow morning, right at the horizon line. If you get a chance and you're up early, certainly take a peek.

So where will you be able to see it weather wise, right? Where will the weather accommodate it? Well, in Boston and New York, the first summer weekend in the northeast will be beautiful. Right about seasonable averages. Really we're going to see dry skies and comfortable temperatures. In the southeast we're going to see where we should be, seasonable temperatures as well. The chance for some storms, though, in Atlanta, not today, sunny and 85. But tomorrow there is the potential. And in Florida, on both Saturday and Sunday, today and tomorrow, a chance for those afternoon showers and storms we typically see.

In Minneapolis, about 300,000 without power because of the storms that moved through last night. Today, tomorrow, you have the chance for strong storms, hail and gusty winds kind of the biggest scenario. Omaha, of course, College World Series is there and it will be warm. Some are the warmest temperatures we've seen thus far this year. Rain chance predominantly on Sunday with temperatures dropping off a few degrees into the upper 80s but well above average.

Los Angeles, cooler than average. Denver though, again, the fire danger continues there. Dry skies and some strong winds. Temperatures in the 80s. A lot going on weather wise around the weekend, guys. We are going to see really on the whole very warm temperatures and pretty nice for viewing the supermoon early tomorrow morning.

BLACKWELL: Yes.

KOSIK: I'm ready for it. Can't wait to see the supermoon.

BLACKWELL: You're going to get up and take a look?

KOSIK: I'll be up, I'll have to work. So I'll be up. BLACKWELL: Oh, yes. That's right. OK. CNN's Alexandria Steel, thank you so much.

Coming up - a computer glitch kept hundreds of Southwest passengers on the ground, still some of them waiting to get back home. We'll tell you what happened.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLACKWELL: Twelve minutes after the hour. Southwest flights are back in the air. That's after a late-night computer glitch grounded 250 flights late last flight and canceled several others.

KOSIK: What Southwest is saying is a bug was interrupting the system there that is used to schedule take-offs. The problem has been identified and is now in the process of being fixed.

BLACKWELL: All right. so let's go from problems on the ground to problems in the air. Near-collision over the skies of New York City last night. Two large jets got way too close for comfort.

KOSIK; One plane was trying to land at JFK, the other taking off from La Guardia. And now the FAA wants answers. Rene Marsh is following the story from Washington. Good morning, Renee.

RENE MARSH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Alison, Victor, it is not what you want to hear when you're a passenger on a plane and now we know how it happened.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MARSH (voice-over): Two thousand feet above Queens, New York a dangerously close call in one of the country's busiest airspaces.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Delta 172 heavy, turn left now.

MARSH: A Delta jumbo jet nearly collides with a Delta regional air craft. The plane's a half a mile apart horizontally. They're required to be at least three miles apart. Windy conditions set off the chain reaction of problems last Thursday, when an American Airlines 737 and Delta 747 were coming in for a landing at JFK on parallel runways. The wind forced both planes to abort landing.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Tower, American 1786 going around.

MARSH: American went right, Delta left. But the traffic controllers' order to turn left put Delta straight in the path of a different plane taking off from nearby La Guardia.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Delta 172 are you turning?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, sir. We're almost at 040 now.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Delta 172, heavy traffic, 12:00, 1400 feet. Embraer, 1600 feet. MARSH (on camera): So it seems like they were focused on the event happening in front of them that they didn't foresee what was going to happen as a result of diverting this Delta plane to the left.

Stress causes tunnel vision.

MARSH (voice-over): Mark (INAUDIBLE), a former airline pilot of more than 20 years says the instructions the pilot received, which put him in the path of another plane, shows an FAA system breakdown. But in the end, the system corrected itself.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The training kicked in. The safety net was there. And that's what prevented the accident from happening.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MARSH: The FAA tells us this was a rare event where you have two planes simultaneously aborting landing. The FAA also says they are investigating and looking at what they can do to prevent another close call like this from happening again. They're calling this a teachable moment. Alison, Victor?

KOSIK: OK. Rene Marsh, thanks.

BLACKWELL: As I say oh, barracuda.

KOSIK: I know that phrase.

BLACKWELL: Yes. Who is it?

KOSIK: Heart.

BLACKWELL: Heart. The first ladies of rock 'n' roll, Ann and Nancy Wilson, they've been thrilling audiences in the '70s, '80s, '90s, last decade, this decade. But it was not easy. Coming up, their take on the rock 'n' roll lifestyle and what one of their biggest hits is really about.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(MUSIC PLAYING)

BLACKWELL: All I need.

KOSIK: You're dancing and I know what you want to sing.

BLACKWELL: It's a lighter and a headband. All I need.

KOSIK: This year's rock and roll hall of fame class has something for everybody, from Donna Summer and Quincy Jones to public enemy and Rush.

BLACKWELL: There is also Heart, the rock 'n' roll sisters who are going strong after about 40 years. I got the chance to sit down with the Wilson sisters. It was so much fun. We talked about everything. We talked about the wild times on the road and their struggle as women in the business.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BLACKWELL (on camera): Ann and Nancy Wilson. Let's start with big honor this year. Rock and roll hall of fame inductees, how does it feel?

ANN WILSON, SINGER, HEART: It feels good.

NANCY WILSON, SINGER, HEART: Yes.

ANN WILSON: It feels like more than like a trophy or just an award, it feels like something we've kind of earned like a lifetime achievement thing from, you know, 35-plus years of doing this in the public eye.

BLACKWELL: I want to get one to the excerpts from your portion of the speech. You said "I had the wrong gender, looks, DNA and hometown for music business success in the era we grew up in." Where did that come from? Where did you get that impression that you were just the wrong person to be successful?

ANN WILSON: Well when I was first starting out, back in high school, you know, I just kind of would tag along with guys that were in bands, you know, guys in school that were in bands and I would go, "Hey, I can sing, I can sing," and many times they would just go, "Ah, you know, you don't have what it takes, you know?" And they would mean you're not tall, blond, size zero or they would mean any number of things I was not that would fit the stereotype of what they needed in bands. When I finally did get to be in a band, it wasn't based on any one of those stereotypes for me.

BLACKWELL: Was that a struggle just in the beginning or was it a struggle over the decades?

ANN WILSON: Over the decades. And when - when you ask what about women today, you know, what do they have to go through, well, they have to go through a lot of the same thing.

NANCY WILSON: A lot of women try to trade on their looks and trade on their sexuality instead of trading on talent. And you know, that's probably short-lived usually.

BLACKWELL: Can we talk about the book? "Kicking and Dreaming," I mean, when you say tell all, "Kicking and Dreaming" tells a lot. I can't though because only you know if it's all. But I want to start with "Crazy on You," one of the early hits. And the inspiration for those lyrics.

(MUSIC PLAYING)

ANN WILSON: You know, that was back in the '70s when - during the Vietnam war. Needless to say we were worried about the world situation, everything just seemed like it was just going to hell in a hand basket and the stress of it is what caused me to write the lyrics to "Crazy on You."

(MUSIC PLAYING)

ANN WILSON: And crazy on you, meaning we can talk it out, we can deal it out, we can let off steam.

BLACKWELL: Let out a little bit of crazy?

ANN WILSON: Yes.

(MUSIC PLAYING)

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLACKWELL: I got to tell you, they were really, really fun to sit and talk with. There's an extended conversation. We played a portion in the early hour. But the '70s, '80s, '90s, last decade, this decade, and now they're on tour with the Led Zeppelin experience.

KOSIK: They still got it.

BLACKWELL: And yes, they still have it And Ann Wilson's version of "Stairway to Heaven" out of this world.

KOSIK: Really?

BLACKWELL: Out of his world. Find it somewhere on YouTube. It's great.

KOSIK: OK.

BLACKWELL: All right.

KOSIK: He's back. After two months off social media, basketball's MVP Lebron James made his big return to Twitter last night. Was it worth the wait? We're going to tell you what the newly crowned champ had to say.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLACKWELL: Lebron James.

KOSIK: I love him. I know what you think.

BLACKWELL: On top of the world this week. Winning his second NBA championship Thursday night in Miami.

KOSIK: And love this, to celebrate, what did he do? He logged back on to social media for the first time in two months. Joe Carter joins me now with this morning's "Bleacher Report." What did he do?

JOE CARTER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Guys, Lebron and Twitter, anytime he's on social media sort of makes news because he's got 8.7 million followers. Before yesterday he hadn't tweeted for a while. Last tweet April 20th. He said he gave up Twitter for two months to focus on winning an NBA championship. And well mission accomplished Thursday night. So as promised, he broke his Twitter silence and he actually did it with a video lying on his couch and he really directed a message to all the haters out there. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LEBRON JAMES, TWO-TIME NBA CHAMPION: Man, I don't know what to say. I'm a champion, two-time, two rings. I doubt it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CARTER: I know. It's a little pompous. But I think he's earned the right to gloat for a few seconds. I mean, he's on top of the NBA world right now, two titles, two finals MVPs, two Olympic gold medals and the guy is only 28 years old.

It's incredible how social media can connect sports stars with fans. Check this out. Russell Westbrook, star player for Oklahoma City was recently contacted by a fan named Charlie on his Facebook. Charlie asked Westbrook if he would help him propose to his girlfriend, Rachel. Westbrook said, "I'll do it via Twitter. He uses this tweet right her, Rachel, Chuck loves you. He wants to know if you would spend the rest of his life watching thunder games with him. Rachel, one hour later, responded with this picture, obviously she said yes. Nice cute connection there.

San Francisco quarterback Colin Kaepernick, he was invited to Giants game, threw out the first pitch. When the dude did it, let's just say the Giants were like, "Man, I wish we would have drafted this guy." He's incredible. Kaepernick clocked his pitch at 87 miles per hour it wasn't a strike. It was mad heat. This guy could actually have played professional baseball. The cubs drafted him back in 2009. He said "You know what? I don't want to play baseball, I want to play football." Obviously, after playing in the Super Bowl last year, it looks like he has a bright future ahead in the NFL. But wouldn't that be nice? Multi-talented, multi-offers. That's your "Bleacher Report" guys. Back to you.

BLACKWELL: All right. Thanks Joe.

I just can't with the Lebron, I just can't - with the Lebron video.

KOSIK: All right. Well, next hour, we're going to be talking about how Paula Deen is recovering from or is going to try to recover from the controversy she finds herself in right now. Hear why one expert says her brand isn't toast but it's definitely been burned.

Thanks for watching today. I'm going to see you back here at the top of the hour. So don't go too far away for too long.

BLACKWELL: Listen, just thank your fans, work hard. Don't keep coming out and saying - just say thanks fans for supporting us. We'll try to do it again next year. Thanks for watching CNN this weekend.