Return to Transcripts main page

CNN NEWSROOM

School Bus Beating Caught on Tape; George W. Bush Gets Stent Surgery; Chelsea Clinton's Rules for Running; Oprah's Comeback Creating Oscar Buzz; University of Iowa Ranked Top Party School

Aired August 6, 2013 - 09:30   ET

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


(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PAMELA BROWN, CNN CORRESPONDENT(voice-over): This disturbing cell phone video showing three teens brutally beating a 13-year-old boy in Pinellas, Florida, in July is just the latest example of bullying onboard school buses.

JOHN MOODY, BUS DRIVER DURING ATTACK: No, you got to get somebody here quick, quick, quick. They about to beat this boy to death.

BROWN: The driver behind the wheel in this case, 64-year-old John Moody. Instead of jumping in to break up the fight, he looked on in horror and called on for help.

MOODY: I did all I can. I was looking, it was like, I was in shock. I was petrified.

BROWN: Pinellas County school policy gives drivers the choice of whether they should physically intervene. In fact, there is no nationwide policy on how to deal with school bus violence. Every school district has its own.

KEN TRUMP, PRESIDENT, NATL. SCHOOL SAFETY & SECURITY SERVICES: The driver has to take the totality of the circumstances into consideration. If the driver leaves the front of the bus, does he put other children at risk?

BROWN: The U.S. Department of Education says nearly 10 percent of bullying incidents involving middle and high school students happen on the bus. It's not only students being bullied. Remember this grandmother who was mercilessly taunted by kids on the bus she was monitoring?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh, my God, you're so fat.

BROWN: And sometimes parents get involved.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Don't - don't touch my child.

BROWN: This mother pleaded no contest to slapping a student on her child's bus. And this dad marched onboard to confront his daughter's bully.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is my daughter, and I will kill the (EXPLETIVE DELETED) that fight her.

TRUMP: The school bus is an extension of the school and the same discipline applies. I think the kids believe that it's harder to get caught. And when they do do something, it's harder for one adult to intervene.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BROWN (on camera): And now some districts are trying to put the brakes on school bus bullying. Many states, including Ohio, Oregon, Iowa, and even Florida give anti-bullying training to drivers. But many think the responsibility ultimately lies with the parents. Experts suggest parents talk with their kids about bullying and meet with their child's school bus driver and talk to them about assigned seating if there is potential for bullying.

But this appears to be a growing problem, Brianna. There's no perfect fix, as we're seeing, but, you know, parents do have a reasonable expectation that when their child gets on the bus, they're going to be safe.

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN ANCHOR: Yes, certainly. Pamela Brown, thank you for that report.

ANNOUNCER: This is CNN breaking news.

KEILAR: OK, we have some breaking news coming into the NEWSROOM right now. This is about former President George W. Bush. We have just learned from his office that a blockage was discovered in an artery in his heart and he had a stent placed to open the blockage.

In a statement coming from his office, it says that during his annual physical examination, which he gets at the Cooper Clinic in Dallas, and this happened just yesterday, that this blockage was discovered then. His doctors recommended that he go ahead with this process. So it's a stent being placed in the artery it appears to open the blockage.

This is a procedure that was performed successfully this morning, without complication, according to this statement. This took place at Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital. He is, according to his office, in high spirits, eager to return home tomorrow. So he's still in the hospital. Eager to return home tomorrow and resume his normal schedule on Thursday. So certainly they're saying here that it does appear to be somewhat normal and he's trying to get back to work here already this week. According to this statement, he is grateful, of course, to the skilled medical professionals who have cared for him.

So, again, former President George W. Bush, who we most recently saw in April when his presidential library opened there at SMU in Dallas, he has had a stent placed in his heart to deal with the blockage. As we get more details, we will be bringing those to you.

But we'll be right back after a quick break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) ANNOUNCER: This is CNN breaking news.

KEILAR: All right, so we have breaking news coming in to CNN right now. We just learned former President George W. Bush underwent a procedure this morning where he had a stent put in his heart to open up a blockage that was discovered in an artery. He went in yesterday for just really a routine physical examination, which he gets every year at the Cooper Clinic in Dallas, and this is something that his doctors there discovered.

So, according to a statement that's come out from his office, the procedure was performed successfully this morning, without complication. And, as you know, he's someone who really does like to keep busy and his office says - basically they're saying here, no big deal. He's in the hospital, looking forward to getting out tomorrow and getting back to work.

So let's go ahead now and bring in Jason Johnson. He's a political science professor at Hiram College. We were going to talk about Chelsea Clinton, but I think this is what we're talking about now.

It's sort of surprising to me, because when I think of the Bush White House, George W. Bush is the last person whose heart I would have worried about.

JASON JOHNSON, HLN CONTRIBUTOR: Yes. Yes, we think more about Dick Cheney -

KEILAR: Yes.

JOHNSON: And various other sort of older people. But, you know, I think this is a reflection of what can often happen to anybody after they retire.

KEILAR: Yes.

JOHNSON: You know, your body sort of slows down a bit. Even though George Bush was a pretty healthy guy, this is not uncommon for a man his age.

KEILAR: Yes. And he's definitely sort of alluded to what it's like to get older. We know that he had back surgery, I think, in the last year, although that was sort of kept quiet. We sort of learned about it months after the fact. Why do you think politicians are so kind of, they don't really like to talk about their health? I mean you have to if you're president, but if you're not, you can kind of keep it sort of under wraps, talk about it after the fact?

JOHNSON: Because you want to be vigorous and you want people to see you as the man and maybe one day the woman that you were when you were actually in office. And so, you know, I'll tell you, all those times I saw George Bush carrying brush, I just thought it was for political reasons, but maybe it was hurting his back at the time. So that's actually really common. They like to stay out of the limelight once someone else is in office. KEILAR: Yes. And he was bizarre in that regard that he - I mean not to say that clearing brush is bizarre, but he really did enjoy kind of toiling, if you will.

JOHNSON: Yes.

KEILAR: We are going to talk about Chelsea Clinton, because that's why we had you here. She said to CNN in an exclusive interview that she did while she was in Africa, she was sort of asked about, hey, would you ever run? And she didn't shut the door on it. As you know in politics, it's not just about what you say, it is about what you do not say. What do you make of this? You think we could ever see her run?

JOHNSON: I mean haven't we heard her mother hem and haw for the last six or seven years as well? This is a Clinton thing. You know, I think if Chelsea found the right opportunity, the Clinton name is never going to not have cache in U.S. politics. It will be a Kennedy-type name. It will be an Obama-type name. So I'm not surprised that she's leaving the door open. And if the opportunity arises, she'll go for it.

KEILAR: OK, let's listen to exactly what she said, because we're going to parse every single word. Here it is.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHELSEA CLINTON, FORMER PRES. CLINTON'S DAUGHTER: I'm also grateful to live in a city and a state and a country where I really believe in my elected officials and their ethos and their competencies. You know if some day either of those weren't true and I thought I could make more of a difference in the public sector, or if I didn't like how my city or my state or my country were being run, you know, I'd have to ask and answer that question.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KEILAR: OK, so she's saying, I'd ask and answer that question sometime in the future maybe. Certainly, as a Clinton, she would have access to an amazing network of fundraisers. The name recognition would be huge for her. I think we can say that she's pretty likable.

JOHNSON: Right.

KEILAR: But is she the kind of dynamo that we - I think of her as reserved. Is she the dynamo sort of like that really sort of - that real retail politician that we see in, like, Hillary Clinton or Bill Clinton? They really get into this stuff. She doesn't seem to as much.

JOHNSON: Life can change you, you know.

KEILAR: Yes.

JOHNSON: And if you decide that you want to run for office, if there's something that motivates you - I mean Dan Quayle's son ran, OK? He got elected to office. So anybody can pull this off at some point if you find an issue that motivates you. And so maybe it will be health care or maybe it will be some other issue that occurs to her.

KEILAR: Yes.

JOHNSON: The door is open.

KEILAR: All right, we'll see. I've talked to some Clinton folks and they kind of say, hey, don't be thinking that she's running so fast. So we'll see, though. Time can change someone, as you say.

Jason Johnson, thank you for being here with us.

JOHNSON: Thank you.

KEILAR: Well, you know, it's been two years since Oprah said good-bye to daytime talk and even longer since she starred on the big screen, but now she's back.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

OPRAH WINFREY, MEDIA MOGUL: I don't know how many stories you're going to hear, because they done swore him to some kind of secret code.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KEILAR: Up next, Nischelle Turner joins us live from New York to talk about Oprah's comeback and why her new role is causing a lot of buzz.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KEILAR: Actress Lindsay Lohan is getting advice from an unlikely source. According to TMZ, the 27-year-old actress canceled a three- week trip to Europe because Oprah told her not to go. That's right, TMZ reporting Lohan called off the trip after the Queen of Daytime told her the risk of relapsing was too great. Lohan, who has struggled very publicly with substance abuse, is scheduled to sit down with Oprah for an exclusive interview later this month.

Now, speaking of Oprah, the media mogul is causing a whole lot of buzz in her new movie "The Butler," which we hear is quite good. Movie critics already talking about a possible Oscar win for her role. Let's take a quick look.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They say this new white boy's smooth.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I am thrilled to be working with all of you over the next four years.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Dr. King, what did your daddy do?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He's a butler.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Young brother, the black domestic (ph) play an important role in our history.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Something special is going on down here, dad.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (INAUDIBLE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I know your son is a Freedom Rider.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Turn the bus! Everybody out!

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You know, I never understood what you all really went through. You have changed my heart.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KEILAR: I don't know. Nischelle Turner joining me live from New York.

I think it could even get Best Score. I'm getting, like, goose bumps from the music.

NISCHELLE TURNER, CNN ENTERTAINMENT CORRESPONDENT: Well, I've seen it twice, Brianna, if that tells you anything. You know this definitely is one of the most anticipated movies of the year and it definitely featured one of the most anticipated acting comebacks in quite a while. We're talking about Lee Daniels' "The Butler", it's been buzzed about for months because it's based on the real event story of the White House butler Eugene Allen, who served eight U.S. presidents.

It has the civil rights backdrop to it the movie does and also a star- studded cast, which does include Ms. Oprah Winfrey herself in her first major movie role in 15 years. She plays the wife of Cecil Gaines who is the butler in the movie and that is played by Oscar winner Forest Whitaker. They definitely have some chemistry on screen.

You know the early chatter for this movie Brianna you were just talking about is somewhere between positive and effusive.

KEILAR: Yes.

TURNER: It really -- there are scenes in this movie that really stick with you, really stick with you.

KEILAR: And you actually had a chance to sit down and talk with Forest Whitaker. I mean he's, obviously, aware of all the Oscar buzz here. What did he say?

TURNER: Yes, I actually sat down with Forest Whitaker yesterday and then we also spoke with him last night at the premiere of this movie -- CNN did. You know their director, Lee Daniels, was also there at the premiere last night and Forest talked about just how excited he was for people to finally see this movie, a movie that he had been working on for so long. So take a look at this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

FOREST WHITAKER, ACTOR: No I haven't gone that far into it. I was just hoping that people would like the film. And luckily, it seems that a lot of the people who have seen it do. And so I'm excited to see how people respond tonight.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

TURNER: So you hear that there's a lot of excitement surrounding this movie, a lot of buzz surrounding this movie, and it does open on August 16th, so people don't have that long to wait until they see it.

But by the way, some of the other cast -- can I just kind of throw some out to you?

KEILAR: Yes.

TURNER: Robin Williams plays Dwight Eisenhower.

KEILAR: Oh interesting.

TURNER: Liev Schreiber plays Lyndon Johnson, I know you laugh, but when you see it -- you're going to say whoa.

KEILAR: I'll believe it all right.

TURNER: Yes and Liev Schreiber plays Lyndon Johnson, James Marsden plays John F. Kennedy. So it's really interesting; and of course, Jane Fonda plays Nancy Reagan, we've heard a lot about that, as well.

KEILAR: Well sorry, I think we actually -- do we have some Oprah sound, guys, is that right?

TURNER: Well I think --

KEILAR: We got to hear from Oprah.

TURNER: Well we're going to talk about that, because I actually sat down and did a one-on-one with Oprah yesterday and -- and we talked about a lot of things. You know it's going to be a good interview, Brianna, when Oprah comes in and gives you a high five.

KEILAR: All right.

TURNER: So let's take a little -- let's hear a little bit of what she had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TURNER: The conversation that is had in this film about race, race relations, racism, we're still having that conversation today.

WINFREY: I think we'll be having that conversation for a long time, because, you know, all of this, the conversations about race and the conversations about profiling, regardless of what race is being profiled, is really about our march to humanity. It's about our march to not fearing one another.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

TURNER: So we touched on race, we touched on race relations. I also asked her, Brianna, if she, as Oprah Winfrey, who we know larger than life today still experiences racism, and she gave a very interesting answer.

So the full interview with Oprah will be on tomorrow on "NEW DAY" and then, of course, it will be on here, as well. I will bring you guys the conversation I had with Ms. Winfrey tomorrow.

KEILAR: All right. We will -- I will definitely tune in for that I'm very curious. And you look lovely of course as always, with Oprah Winfrey there. Nischelle Turner in New York, thank you.

TURNER: I had to give you all that picture. I had to brag a little bit.

KEILAR: Yes. I mean come on. It's Oprah. All right, thanks, Nischelle.

TURNER: Exactly.

KEILAR: And just ahead in the NEWSROOM, buying a home. You've got the down payment, but don't forget about those closing costs. Oh, the dreaded closing costs. They are on the rise and home buyers are really feeling the pinch.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KEILAR: Welcome back to the NEWSROOM. I'm Brianna Keilar in for Carol Costello. And we're checking your "Top Stories" now.

First to southern California where authorities have issued an amber alert for a missing 16-year-old girl and her 8-year-old brother. Over the weekend their mother, a child and a dog were all found dead in a burned out home. San Diego Police have named James Lee DiMaggio a friend of the mother's as the suspect. And authorities say he may be driving a blue Nissan Versa.

Well take a look at this sinkhole in Miami Beach. It actually swallowed the car there or the end of it and apparently the driver was just sitting at the stop sign when his car started to sink. His car didn't make it. He got out ok, thank goodness and the sinkhole was caused we've now learned by a water main break, which has since been fixed.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: School was fun in those days -- the girls, the parties.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KEILAR: Oh, you've seen this. Universal Pictures classic "Animal House". That always talked about Princeton review list of top party schools is back out and the University of Iowa was given this year's top spot. The other schools on the list: the University of California, Santa Barbara, my mom's alma mater, actually; the University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign; West Virginia University; and Syracuse University.

Well, tough break for Tony Stewart. The three-time sprint cup champ is taken to the hospital after a dirt track crash. We have details ahead in Bleacher Report.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KEILAR: As expected, Major League Baseball suspended Alex Rodriguez for the rest of the season and all of next season, but he was out on the field, playing for the Yankees last night and Andy Scholes joining us now with more in this morning's "Bleacher Report". Hi, Andy.

ANDY SCHOLES, BLEACHER REPORT: Hi good morning, Brianna.

Major League Baseball hit A-Rod with the harshest steroid-related punishment the sport had ever seen, for his part in the Biogenesis drug scandal. But since he's appealing the decision, he gets to play while his case is heard. And that could take three or four months.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Alex Rodriguez.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCHOLES: And the fans in Chicago let A-Rod hear it when he came to the plate in the second inning last night. The Yankees third baseman able to bloop a single into left field in his first at bat -- that was A-Rod's only hit of the night. He finished 1 for 4. And after the game, A-Rod said he was happy to be back out there on the field with his teammates, but he just wants to concentrate on baseball for the rest of the season.

Bad news for Tony Stewart fans. The three-time sprint cup champion crashed while competing in a dirt track race last night in Iowa. He had to be taken out on a stretcher. Stewart suffered a broken tibia and fibula, which required surgery. No word yet on how long he's going to be out.

Remember, it was just last week that Stewart was involved in this rollover accident during a race in Ottawa. Now, he walked away from that wreck just fine, but Brianna, last night he was not as lucky.

KEILAR: that's awful. And you know, he's one of the Nascar drivers who actually does the dirt track stuff. Most of them don't do that anymore. So that's kind of like, you know, sort of his thing.

SCHOLES: Sticking to his roots out there.

KEILAR: Yes, such a shame.

All right. Thank you so much, Andy, we really appreciate it.

And the next hour of CNN newsroom begins right now.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)