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U.S. Pulls Special Forces out of Yemen; New Orleans Airport Personnel Attacked; U.S.-Iran Negotiations on Nuclear Deal Continue; FBI Asking Local Police Departments Nationwide to Reopen Cold Case Murder Files to Investigate Possible Connection to Robert Durst; Seven Children Perish by Fire in Bedrooms in Brooklyn; Penn State Frat Posts Provocative Pictures of Unconscious Women on Facebook Page; President Discusses Mandatory Voting in America; Fourth Grade Students Visit New Hampshire State Legislature to Watch Their Own Proposed Bill be Voted Down. Aired 2-3p ET

Aired March 21, 2015 - 14:00   ET

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


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[14:00:34]

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Happening right now in the Newsroom, the U.S. pulling special ops out of Yemen over fears of deteriorating security. We take a look at the impact of not having any American forces in that country.

Then a man with a machete and wasp spray terrorizes a busy airport, targeting TSA agents, details on the chaos inside New Orleans Airport.

Plus, the strange story of millionaire Robert Durst was thrown into the public spotlight with the HBO documentary "The Jinx." Now he has been charged with murder and the accusations against him could grow.

The Newsroom starts right now.

Hello again, everyone. Thanks so much for joining me. I'm Fredricka Whitfield. Sources tell CNN the U.S. is now in the process of evacuating its last troops out of Yemen. About 100 special operations forces are leaving the Al Anad Air Base. The evacuation was triggered by concerns that the security situation in Yemen is deteriorating. CNN correspondent Jomana Karadsheh joins us now from Baghdad. So troops are leaving the embassy. It was emptied out. What's left in terms of U.S. representation in Yemen?

JOMANA KARADSHEH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, that's the big question here, Fred. Now, we do believe from these sources that these are the last of U.S. forces that were present in that country, but, of course, with counterterrorism operations, especially in Yemen, it has been surrounded with a lot of mystery, so it is unclear what is left yet.

But we have heard concerns over the past month. You mentioned the evacuation of the U.S. embassy and staff there last month, and this is not only with the U.S. has lost that presence on the ground. It also lost an ally, the government that was in Sana'a, the government of President Hadi, a U.S. ally that helped the U.S. in its fight against terrorism in that country has also been pushed out in recent months by the Houthi rebels who not necessarily are an American ally either. One of their main slogans is "Death to America."

This in a country where the United States has been targeting the leadership of Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, AQAP, that has used Yemen as a base. So there's been a lot of concern about the political instability in the country, that security vacuum we're seeing, and the concerns about Al Qaeda there. Ane of the strongest Al Qaeda franchises in the world really exploiting this security situation and instability in the country to really consolidate its presence and become a greater threat not only to the region, but also worldwide.

And, of course, we are hearing this news of the evacuation, Fred, after that devastating attack, a number of attacks yesterday. We saw in Sana's on a number of Shia mosques that really sparked concerns and fears of a possible new dark chapter in that country beginning now with the possibility of a sectarian conflict there between the Sunnis and Shias.

Now, those attacks in Sana'a yesterday were claimed by ISIS reportedly. Now, it's unclear, we cannot confirm, but if that is the case, there is a lot of concern about what this means, the emergence possibly here of ISIS, too, in Yemen.

WHITFIELD: All right, Jomana Karadsheh, thank you so much there in Baghdad.

So what does it mean for U.S. operations in the region? I want to bring in Lieutenant Colonel Tony Shaffer. He's a former army intelligence officer and may be best known for his criticism of intelligence failures leading up to the 9/11 attack. So you actually say you saw this kind of thing coming in Yemen just weeks ago, including the mosque attacks. What were the signs to you?

LT. COLONEL TONY SHAFFER, FORMER ARMY INTELLIGENCE OFFICER: Well, clearly the ungoverned spaces, Fredricka, are the magnet for any terrorist organizations. Remember, before 9/11 essentially ungoverned spaces in Afghanistan and Somalia were all being used by terrorist organization for essentially training, operational planning, and support. So this is where we've seen the slippage very rapidly occur over the past six months.

And I think it was four weeks August here on the show with you, we talked about the fact that I felt that ISIS would very quickly move into the space, and sure enough here we are four weeks later, and there they are.

[14:05:02] WHITFIELD: And most thought it would to be AQAP that would dominate there in Yemen, but now it appears ISIS might be giving it a little competition, or should we even be thinking of them as separate entities? They do share ideologies even though they are different names.

SHAFFER: I think what we can consider is ISIS is a very effective virus who, essentially anything it touches it takes over, especially regarding radical Muslims. We see now Boko Haram pledging allegiance to it. We've seen other elements of Al Qaeda essentially switching over.

ISIS is also in Afghanistan. I've been told by some very senior Pentagon officials that their biggest concern in Afghanistan is not the Taliban. It's actually ISIS because ISIS is not there trying to recruit and radicalize the elements there.

So let's be very clear here. I think ISIS is out for itself. It essentially is trying to emulate the Ottoman empire. That's what they are trying to do. So what you see here is a very effective strategy being executed by ISIS to essentially subsume the effective elements of Al Qaeda. And as your reporter said in the run-up to our interview, Al Qaeda on the Arabian Peninsula has been known as one of the most effective if not the most effective element of Al Qaeda being able to launch operations, expeditionary operations overseas. So this should be a great concern to everyone.

WHITFIELD: And you heard our reporter Jomana talk about how the U.S. has lost an ally in Yemen now.

SHAFFER: Right.

WHITFIELD: How much a setback, how devastating is that as the U.S. tries to participate in stabilizing that region?

SHAFFER: This is hugely bad. President Obama sited in last September in his speech about the end state of Iraq how he wanted to see, you know, stated how successful the Yemen model is. And I can't fully blame President Obama. He has a completely ineffective staff. Ambassador Susan Rice and Ben Rhodes have been horrible national security advisers. I'm sure they wrote that speech for him, not understanding what was going on in these regions.

And it's not that we don't have, Fredricka, it's not that we don't have professionals who understand what's going on. It's just you have people at the top, at the National Security Council, who are not letting the Pentagon, CIA, and other elements of the U.S. government to do its job to advise the president correctly on this.

WHITFIELD: At the same time that ISIS is growing, Al Qaeda may be growing in some places, Boko Haram and all that you just mentioned in terms of this shared ideology, is that the U.S.'s fault?

SHAFFER: It is not the U.S.'s fault, not at all. But I think what we have to be clear is that, again, as I mentioned in the beginning, ungoverned spaces are the key. Anywhere that ISIS can find haven, Syria, Iraq, anywhere there's ungoverned spaces, that's where we need to be concerned about.

And we talked about here also the idea that we put forth, the London Center has put forth, about putting together an Arab NATO, a Red Sea Treaty Organization, which can help reestablish governance in these ungoverned spaces.

It's not simply necessary -- let me rephrase that. It's necessary that we do defeat ISIS militarily. With that said, you must go forward with an idea of how to settle the victory, and that must be by bringing in good, effective governance in those spaces that we push them out. The way to do that is through a NATO type organization using the Sunni or Shia, primarily Sunni at this point, trying to basically reestablish good order. That's the real critical issue. We didn't create the problem, but I think we can work with our allies to solve it.

WHITFIELD: Very complicated. All right, Lieutenant Colonel Tony Shaffer, thanks so much.

SCHAFFER: Thank you.

WHITFIELD: All right, and then here on U.S. soil, an incredible story out of New Orleans where officials say all concourses at the Louis Armstrong International Airport are now open after last night's violent attack. Police shooting a man who threatening TSA agents with a machete and bud spray. Travelers were sent scrambling as 62-year- old Richard White stormed a security check point. And at one point an agent fought back with a piece of luggage. And that's when a police officer opened fire, shooting White in the leg, chest, and face.

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WHITFIELD: A chaotic scene at New Orleans Armstrong International Airport. An injured TSA officer is wheeled away way on a stretcher after police say a machete wielding man who also using wasp spray attacked security staff at a concourse check point.

SHERRIFF NEWELL NORMAND, JEFFERSON PARISH: He walked down the TSA pr- eline, encountered the TSA officer who was checking the boarding passes with the scanning machine to be scanned. He was challenged at that point in time by the TSA officer. The response was he pulled a can of wasp spray and sprayed the officer in the face.

WHITFIELD: Police say the suspect, identified as 62-year-old Richard White, then encountered two more TSA agents and started swinging a machete. The incident apparently continued through the security area until the suspect was shot three times by a Jefferson Parish sheriff's deputy. White was taken to the hospital for surgery. Police say a shot from that sheriff's deputy also hit a TSA officer who was being chased by the suspect. Her injury was not life-threatening.

[14:10:01] The incident sent passengers and airport workers scrambling to safety and closed the airport for a short time. Police do not have a motive in the attack.

NORMAND: We don't know whether or not this individual was a member of the traveling public. We suspect not. He has been a taxi driver. He's recently received a chauffeur's license, has little or no criminal history.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: All right, still ahead --

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Complainant advised white SUV ran her off the road, and shot at her, complainant advised she's bleeding from the head, think she's in shock.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Road rage in Texas, a woman shot in the head after honking her horn.

And overseas, could a nuclear deal be close between the U.S. and Iran? Erin McPike will bring us the latest from the White House.

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WHITFIELD: Iran's president says a nuclear deal is within reach, and U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry says substantial progress has been made. The potential deal has hit several obstacles along the way, including opposition on Capitol Hill and from the Israeli prime minister. Erin McPike is at the White House. So the deadline is 10 days away now. Are the sides any closer to an agreement?

ERIN MCPIKE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Fred, right now, John Kerry is in London. He just landed. He's meeting with his British, German, and French counterparts and briefing them on the progress that he made after intensive talks with Iran this past week. He's, of course, also briefing them on those significant gaps that do remain.

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JOHN KERRY, SECRETARY OF STATE: We recognize that fundamental decisions have to be made now. And they don't get any easier as time goes by. It is time to make hard decisions.

MCPIKE: With the U.S. and Iran planning on resuming negotiations next week, John Kerry says they have made progress as they try to put the finishing touches on the outlines of a potential nuclear deal.

[14:15:03] KERRY: In the days ahead, we will stay at this. We have not yet reached the finish line. But make no mistake -- we have the opportunity to try to get this right. It's a matter of political will.

MCPIKE: With the deadline just 10 days away, Iran's foreign minister assessed that progress.

MOHAMMAD JAVAD ZARIF, IRANIAN FOREIGN MINISTER: It is possible any time. It depends on the political will, whether there is political will for each one.

MCPIKE: He warned on Twitter "It's time for the U.S. and its allies to give a little to get a deal done." Major differences remain. In a last ditch effort President Obama made his own appeal to the Iranian people, warning no deal would make their conditions under western sanctions even worse.

BARACK OBAMA, (D) PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Iran's leaders have a choice between two paths. If they cannot agree to a reasonable deal, they will keep Iran on the path it's on today, a path that has isolated Iran and the Iranian people from so much of the world, causing so much hardship for the Iranian families, and deprived so many young Iranians the jobs and opportunities they deserve.

MCPIKE: The allies and Iran are still working on such issues as how long a deal would lass, a system for verifying Iran is complying with the measures put in place and not secretly developing a nuclear weapon, and when tough sanctions against them would end.

JOSH EARNEST, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: The president believes, and I think with some justification, that we need to see the Iranians demonstrate some sustained commitment to implementing the agreement before we talk about removing all the sanctions.

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MCPIKE: There is still significant opposition on Capitol Hill from many Republicans and some Democrats who believe that this is a bad deal. But the White House did get a little relief from Congress this week because the Senate kicked back a vote until mid-April on requiring the president to get Congressional approval on any deal he reaches, Fred.

WHITFIELD: All right, Erin McPike at White House, thank you so much.

Still ahead, millionaire murder suspect Robert Durst, he was featured in HBO true crime documentary series "The Jinx." He's charged with murder. Now the FBI is calling on all local police departments nationwide to reopen their cold case murder files.

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[14:20:59] WHITFIELD: All right, checking your top stories, police in Texas are searching for the driver who opened fire on a woman during a rush hour road rage incident.

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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Complainant advised white SUV ran her off the road, and shot at her, complainant advised she's bleeding from the head, think she's in shock.

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WHITFIELD: Kay Hafford was shot in the head by a man in a white SUV after she honked her horn at him. And after she was shot, she pulled over and was able to call for help. Harrord is in the hospital where doctors say she is expected to be OK despite some head trauma.

But Bobbi Kristina Brown has been moved to a medical rehab facility. That's according to a source close to the family. The 22 -year-old daughter of Whitney Houston and Bobby Brown is still in a medically induced coma after being found unresponsive in her Atlanta home last January. The extent of the injuries is still unknown and the police continue to treat her case as a criminal investigation. And doctors in Pennsylvania are calling it a miracle after a toddler

managed to come back to life after not having a pulse for more than 101 minutes. And 22 month old Gardell Martin was in his backyard playing with his brothers when he somehow fell in an icy stream near his home and was swept away. A neighbor found the boy a half-an-hour later, lifeless, face down in 34 degree water. He was rushed to the hospital and doctors say he had no signs of life and was in a hypothermic state. The boy's body was slowly warmed and his pulse and heart rate eventually returned.

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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I knew there was help on the way. And, yes, I just gathered the rest of the children around me and we prayed. I just can't thank him enough. We feel very unworthy and very grateful.

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WHITFIELD: Wow, amazing. Doctors will monitor the toddler, but at this point there is every indication that Martin will make a full recovery.

All right, in yet another twist in the case of millionaire murder suspect Robert Durst, subject of the HBO true crime documentary series "The Jinx," well, the FBI is telling all local police departments to dust off their cold cases to see if Durst might be connected. He is already in custody charged with the 2000 murder of a friend and facing a bail hearing on Monday. And now his attorneys tell CNN's Jean Casarez that their client isn't well and needs medical attention.

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JEAN CASAREZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Robert Durst sits behind bars this at the Hunt correctional facility. That's about an hour outside of New Orleans. He's in their mental facility there, and his attorney Dick Deguerin tells me it is not because he's a suicide risk. He is not. He does say he has a medical condition, that he needs to be in a hospital setting, but it's because of what we heard in open court that recently he had neurosurgery or brain surgery because of a condition called hydrocephalus.

Now, attorney Dick Deguerin tells me that during the surgery they inserted a stint or a shunt which is like a tube, and, when necessary, for fluid drainage. Attorney Dick Deguerin tells me also in recent years that his client had cancer of the esophagus and cervical surgery of his neck. And while Robert Durst stays behind bars, the FBI is asking local law enforcement to search all their cold cases, their murder cases that are unsolved in areas frequented by or lived in by Robert Durst. They are asking to see if there are time periods when Durst was in town living there or visiting, and murders that are yet unsolved.

The one that all eyes are focused on at this point is in northern California, a young woman by the name of Karen Mitchell who went missing in 1997 when she was 16-years-old. There was a sketch artist that actually did a rendering of what a witness said was the last person who was seen with her. As you can see, a striking resemblance to Robert Durst. In looking through property records, however, though, what I see is that although he purchased property in the area, it was not until two years later.

[14:25:07] The defenses response to all of that is that law enforcement is just trying to pin something on their client because they just don't have a case in Los Angeles. And that is the issue on Monday. It is a bail hearing in Louisiana for local state charges, but the big question after that hearing, will Robert Durst be extradited here to Los Angeles to face first degree murder charges?

Jean Casarez, CNN, Los Angeles.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: And a Penn State fraternity being investigated by police after accusations members posted nude pictures of passed out women on a private Facebook page. But what charges could the brothers really face? We ask our legal expert next.

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WHITFIELD: Happening right now in the Newsroom, a devastating house fire climbs the lives of seven children. We're on the scene with details about what caused that deadly fire.

Plus, a Penn State fraternity under investigation, accused of posting nude pictures of passed out and sleeping women on a private Facebook page. We take a look at what charges the members could face.

Then --

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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If we keep bringing more of these bills and bills and bills forward that really, I feel, we shouldn't have in front of us, we'll be making a state hotdog next.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: All right, that's the civics lesson a group of fourth graders get when they see the state legislature vote on the bill they proposed. The Newsroom continues right now.

Hello, again, everyone, and thanks so much for joining me. I'm Fredricka Whitfield.

[14:30:00] A developing story in Brooklyn, a ferocious fire this morning took the lives of seven children. They were all siblings ranging ages five to 15. The children's mother and her 14-year-old daughter survived, but only after jumping out of the window to escape the flames.

New York Mayor Bill de Blasio addressed reporters after he toured the burnt out home.

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BILL DE BLASIO, (D) NEW YORK CITY MAYOR: So this is a tragedy that has very few examples for us to look at. It's so painful. It's so difficult. It is unimaginable what you see in there. You can literally see what was a home for a large and strong family, and now it is wiped out. Every room empty and burned and charred, and you can only imagine that this beautiful, vibrant family 24 hours ago intact, and now so many lost.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: CNN correspondent Shasta Darlington is in Brooklyn with more. Shasta?

SHASTA DARLINGTON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Fredricka, the fire started in the kitchen. There was a malfunctioning hot plate, which are widely used here in this orthodox Jewish community in Brooklyn to heat food on the Sabbath. We know the flames rose quickly. According to the commissioner, there weren't any functioning smoke detectors on the first or the second floor. We believe when the flames reached that second floor that that is when the neighbors who live behind them noticed this, the blaze. And this is what one of the neighbors had to say.

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KAREN ROSENBLATT, NEIGHBOR: I just heard somebody say, "Mommy, mommy, help me!" Through a window we saw everything through the back of our house. The house is in flames, very heavy, thick, thick smoke, so thick. You saw the flames just shooting out all over the place.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DARLINGTON: There were two survivors, the mother and her 14-year-old daughter who jumped out the second-story windows. They did survive. They're in critical condition in the hospital. But the rest of her children, all seven between the ages of five and 15 were killed by the blaze. One girl was killed right here on the spot, and the others were declared dead at different regional hospitals.

And what the commissioner has said is this is a tragedy for the community, but also just devastating for the firefighters who were on scene trying to save the lives of these children. There were some 100 firefighters here. He also said the mother herself made a valiant effort to save the children, but the flames were just too fast.

Another detail we've just heard, and that's that the NYPD has found the father. We knew he was away on a conference and didn't even know about this tragedy. So he's been found, and we can only imagine how devastating this will be for him.

WHITFIELD: All right, Shasta Darlington, thank you so much.

All right, the future of the entire fraternity system at Penn State University is now in question after one of the university's frats Kappa Delta Rho, allegedly posted photos of nude and partially nude women on a private Facebook page. Some of the women appear to be asleep or passed out. The school has suspended the local chapter of Kappa Delta Rho for a year and an investigation is now underway.

And Penn State's president says the university is considering whether fraternities even have a place on campus. Police say they have not been able to identify any current and former students that were involved because all of the Facebook accounts on the page were wiped clean.

But one frat member who spoke anonymously to Philadelphia magazine defended the page, saying, quote, "It was a satirical group. It wasn't malicious whatsoever. It wasn't intended to hurt begin. It wasn't intended to demean anyone. It was an entirely satire group, and it was funny to some extent. Some of the stuff, yes, it's raunchy stuff, as you would expect from a bunch of college age guys. But, I mean, you can go on any one of hundreds of thousands of different sites to access the same kind of stuff and obviously a lot worse and a lot more explicit." That according to that Kappa Delta Rho member, that interview in a Philadelphia magazine.

So police say so far they haven't determined if any crimes were committed. Let's bring in HLN legal analyst Joey Jackson. So Joey, if women are clearly unconscious or asleep and in various stages of undress, being photographed without their knowledge, and then those photos are posted online, how is that not illegal?

JOEY JACKSON, HLN LEGAL ANALYST: Good afternoon, Fredricka. OK, unpacking this big story, first things first. On the issue of administrative action that the school can take, that's rather clear. There's a student code. The student code addresses the dissemination of material like this without the consent of those who you are photographing. And so certainly the school and the event that they are able to identify the people who did this, and presumably they will, there is certainly, you know, software that can restore different types of computers. So the administrative side of it I think they certainly can be disciplined under the code.

[14:35:07] Now, it gets dicey when you move into the area of criminal charges. Pennsylvania is one of 16 states that does specifically have a law dealing with the issue of posting photos like this. But here is the problem, Fredricka. That law is very limited in the following respect. It's a law really that deals with the issue of revenge porn, that is you're in a relationship, and thereafter because you possess material, you know, that may not be flattering of your -- the person you dated before, you post that. If you are the ex-partner or the current partner, the law criminalized it.

However, if you are not the ex-partner or current partner, the law is silent as to its applicability to the person who is posting, therefore not applying. And then the other issue that has to be considered, Fredricka, is they have to be posted with the intent to harass, annoy, alarm, disturb, humiliate, degrade. And so those are the issues that certainly defense attorneys will be looking at --

WHITFIELD: But that latter one -- wouldn't it easy to argue that there is intent to harm, to embarrass? I mean, nobody would want their photographs, their bodies photographed like this and posted on some public site.

JACKSON: It's a beautiful question, Fredricka, but here's the defense attorney's argument to potential charges that could be filed. It's a private site. Certainly, it should not exist, and we certainly know that there was one site that was similar --

WHITFIELD: Private site on a public domain.

JACKSON: Exactly, but you had to be invited onto the page. So the concern that the defense attorney will raise, there's a couple issues to be raised. The first thing is there was a site like this before. That was shut down. Another site, 2.0, that we are speaking about was created, and in order to have access to these pictures you need to be invited to assess it.

And so in the extent that wanted to be embarrass -- again, this the defense, the argument that will be posed in the event that charges are presented, they will say it's a private site. If we intended to harass, embarrass, humiliate, et cetera, we would have done it publicly. But since it was amongst our brotherhood, we did not do so. That will be the argument.

WHITFIELD: OK. And how about the means in which to get these photographs, essentially apparently there was a former member of Kappa Delta Rho who told police about the page and then went on to say that apparently there was drugs allegedly involved here, quoting now, "marijuana and edibles, concentrates, medications, and cocaine" according to the affidavit in order to get these women to participate unknowingly in these kinds of images.

JACKSON: Yes, sure, absolutely. That makes it a little more difficult because certainly whenever you're dealing with issues concerning any types of drugs, there needs to be some type of toxicology, which substantiates the drug use.

Now, certainly, you can identify a drug -- a police officer can subjectively. Watery, bloodshot eyes, slurred speech, odor of alcohol on the breath, or if it's not alcohol, some type of intoxicant or drug. But without demonstrating that there was such drugs, it may be problematic.

But, certainly, the beat will go on. I think that if they don't prosecute under this statute, if they prosecute at all, they certainly could intend not under revenge porn statute but under general harassment statutes.

But again, the applicability of that statute and that law here, whether there's drugs involved or not, and we don't know, it could be highly problematic. And that's why, again, Pennsylvania, one of 16 states. I think we'll see a number of other states, Fredricka, as we move forward. And as technology just burgeons, you know, we're using it in such a different way, and the law is not keeping pace with the level of technology. I think we're going to see that in 50 states.

WHITFIELD: Wow. All right, Joey Jackson, thanks so much, very comprehensive, appreciate it. JACKSON: Thank you, Fredricka. Have a great day.

WHITFIELD: All right, you too.

JACKSON: All right, coming up, how would you feel if you were forced to vote? President Obama thinks it's time for mandatory voting in America. We'll talk about that next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[14:42:53] WHITFIELD: In just minutes New Orleans' mayor Mitch Landrieu will hold a press conference on last night's violent airport rampage. Chaos unfolded when a machete wielding attacking stormed a security area at the Louis Armstrong International Airport, and officials say 62-year-old Richard White also sprayed TSA officers with a can of wasp poison. A police officer opened fire, hitting White in the chest, face, and thigh. He was rushed to the hospital for surgery. One TSA officer was injured by a stray bullet, and several bystanders suffered minor injuries.

All right, now, what would be the outcome of next year's presidential race, perhaps, if everyone had to vote? President Obama says it would be dramatic and suggested mandatory voting just might be a good thing.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

OBAMA: In Australia and some other countries, there's mandatory voting. It would be transformative if everybody voted. That would counteract money more than anything. If everybody voted, then it would completely change the political map in the country.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Right now, joining me right now, Larry Sabato, director of the Center for Politics at the University of Virginia, and in Washington CNN politics senior reporter Stephen Collinson. All right, good to see you both.

So Larry, you first. According to the international idea, about two dozen countries already have mandatory voting. Some even enact a fine if you fail to vote. The president says it would be transformative, you heard him, if everybody voted. To what degree in your view?

LARRY SABATO, DIRECTOR, UNIVERSITY OF VIRGINIA'S CENTER FOR POLITICS: Well, it would be transformative. Frankly, Fred, in the United States in the context of our emphasis on individual liberty, I think it's scheduled to be enacted on the 12th of never.

But nonetheless it would be transformative. I think it would help Democrats because the people most likely not to vote are Democratic voters. They are younger voters, members of minority groups, people who, if they showed up at the polls, would be more likely in most years in most elections to vote Democratic. But as I say, I just don't think it's going to happen.

[14:45:15] WHITFIELD: Yes, did you hear the president actually say he wants it to happen, that he's pushing for it to happen, or was he just speaking in terms of hypotheticals, it would be a transformative idea? Larry?

SABATO: Well, I think it was more hypothetical -- I'm sorry, go ahead.

WHITFIELD: No, go ahead, Larry, I should have addressed you first.

SABATO: I think it's hypothetical, essentially. Look, it's not totally alien to the American tradition. In the late 1800s, you -- late 1700s, rather, you had both Georgia and Virginia having some form of compulsory voting. Massachusetts and North Dakota at one point had it in their constitutions, but their legislatures never implemented it. So it isn't totally alien. And 26 other countries have it. But I don't think it would transform the system as much as it would help Democrats. The president said it would reduce the amount of money spent. I think it increases the amount of money spent.

WHITFIELD: You do?

All right, so Steven, I guess to underscore the point the president's making, more people would be compelled to be involved. Just look at stat from the Pew Charitable Trust saying that last year in the 2014 midterm elections less than 37 percent of eligible voters took part. That means about 144 million Americans, more than the population of Russia, actually skipped out. So if not for making voting mandatory, how does the U.S. get more people to vote?

STEPHEN COLLINSON, CNN POLITICS SENIOR REPORTER: Well, it was interesting you mentioned the midterm elections because Democrats have had a real trouble getting their voters out to vote in midterm elections, and that's one of the reasons during President Obama's presidency that he lost both midterm elections, you know. And we saw last year what happened in the midterm elections when the Democrats lost control of the Senate.

I find it quite interesting that President Obama was the person to bring it up because in 2008, you remember, he pulled off one of the more remarkable feats in recent electoral history. He said he was going to get young people to vote who were traditionally loathe to come out to the poll, and he actually did that. He inspired a lot of young people.

So, you know, in my opinion, it's more the onus is on the politicians to inspire people to get them out to vote, to give them a reason to vote, and to be engaged in the political process rather than the state just coming and saying, well, you got to vote, and, you know, otherwise you're going to pay a fine.

WHITFIELD: All right, Steven Collinson, Larry Sabato, thanks so much.

SABATO: Thank you.

WHITFIELD: All right, still ahead, fourth graders heading to a state house to see lawmakers vote on their bill. Instead, this is what they got -- (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If we keep bringing more of these bills and bills forward that really, I feel, we shouldn't have in front of us, we will be picking a state hotdog next.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Oh, boy, the hard lesson in politics New Hampshire lawmakers gave them, next.

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[14:52:02] (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Doctors told Dan Cummings he would never walk again. With each step, the 34-year-old proves them wrong.

DAN CUMMINGS, WALKING QUADRIPLEGIC: You want to motivate me, tell me I can't do something, then I do it.

GUPTA: At 19 Dan was left paralyzed from the chest down after he dove into shallow water.

CUMMINGS: I truly believed as long as I took one day at a time that there was going to come a day that I got up and walked again.

GUPTA: He got frustrated after doing three years of traditional physical therapy.

CUMMINGS: I felt that I was being taught how to live in my wheelchair, and I wanted to be taught how to get out of the wheelchair.

GUPTA: Dan moved from Boston to San Diego. He wanted to take part in an intense exercise program for people who suffered spinal cord injuries. Four years later he walked out the door.

CUMMINGS: I wanted to bring that program to Boston.

GUPTA: He did just that with the opening of Journey Forward. It's a nonprofit dedicated to helping paralyzed people become mobile.

CUMMINGS: You're retraining the nervous system, and hundreds of thousands if not millions of repetitions, it clicks, and you build from that. We give clients the proper tools necessary to get independence, giving people their life back, quality of life.

GUPTA: Dan's next challenge now is to get insurance company to covered $100 an hour cost of therapy. That would allow more patients access to the treatment. He would also like to open even more facilities around the country.

CUMMINGS: It took me seven years before I took my first steps. It's a game of inches. Give it everything you have. GUPTA: Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN, reporting.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: All right, we're also keeping an eye on a news conference that will start very soon out of New Orleans. New Orleans mayor Mitch Landrieu will address last night's violent rampage at the airport where a machete wielding attacker stormed a security area at the Louis Armstrong international operate. Official say 62-year-old Richard White also sprayed TSA officers with a can of wasp poison.

A police officer opened fire, hitting White in the, chest, face, and thigh, and he was rushed to the hospital for surgery. One TSA officer was also injured by a stray bullet. Several bystanders suffered minor injuries, and that news conference again will take place momentarily, and when it does we'll of course monitor for you.

And we'll be right back.

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[14:58:03] WHITFIELD: All right, it's like "House of Cards" but for fourth graders. A group of young students go to watch democracy in all of its vicious glory recently on a trip to the New Hampshire state legislature, all to learn how a bill becomes law. And they had actually proposed making the red-tailed hawk the state raptor. The kids proposed it, and they were there when the bill was debated.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We already have a state bird, but now do we need a state raptor? Isn't that a bird? Isn't that an animal?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So are we going to have, you know, flightless birds, waterfowl, pet birds, garden birds, wild birds? How many of these bills do we need to have?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Only one other state has a state raptor. Why do we need a state raptor?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If we keep bringing more of these bills and bills and bills forward that really, I feel, we shouldn't have in front of us, we'll be picking a state hot dog next.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Must we designate one state raptor? Does a raptor that's found everywhere in the country symbolize New Hampshire?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And it's known for its extremely strong and sharp talons with which it grasps its prey. But it grasps them with its talons, and then uses its razor-sharp beak to rip its victim to shreds and to basically tear it apart limb by limb. And I guess the shame about making this a state bird is it would serve as a better mascot for Planned Parenthood.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Oh, boy, that was just brutal. And of course, here's the reaction from one student and the faculty member.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We were really, like, really excited, and we wanted them to vote yes. And it was OK that they didn't.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We were all shocked by the behavior of the individuals that spoke the way they did.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It was really exciting to do something like this because not everyone gets to do it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[15:00:02] WHITFIELD: All right, so that bill, well, it never took flight. The lawmakers killed it.