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Former IMF Chief to be Arraigned; Reducing U.S. Troops in Afghanistan; Israeli Kills Protesters in Clash; Santorum Enters 2012 Race; Apple Unveils New Software; Tracking the Deadly E. Coli Strain

Aired June 06, 2011 - 09:00   ET

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

MARTIN SAVIDGE, CNN ANCHOR: Larry, thank you so much. And it's wonderful to see you. Good morning to all of you.

It is 9:00 a.m. on the East Coast, 6:00 a.m. on the west coast. I'm Martin Savidge sitting in for Kyra Phillips.

This hour, the former head of the International Monetary Fund appears before a judge in New York. Dominique Strauss-Kahn is expected to plead not guilty to charges that he sexually assaulted a hotel maid.

Apple's CEO Steve Jobs returns to public view after being on medical leave. Jobs has battled through pancreatic cancer and a subsequent liver transplant. Today, he'll help unveil Apple's next generation of software.

A fast-moving wildfire in northern Arizona has chased more than 2,000 people from their homes. Strong winds, dry weather, they have pushed the flames across more than 190,000 acres.

Right now outside of a New York courthouse, an eye-catching protest and a headline-grabbing case. A group of hotel workers who's calling attention to this hour's arraignment of Dominique Strauss-Kahn, a man who was once one of the most important bankers in the world.

He is accused of preying on someone relatively powerless, a hotel maid, who says he sexually assaulted her.

CNN's Deborah Feyerick is there.

And, Deb, what's going on today?

DEBORAH FEYERICK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Martin, we can tell you that Dominique Strauss-Kahn is inside the courtroom. He arrived about an hour before that formal arraignment on attempted rape and sexual misconduct. He stepped from a black SUV, and hopefully we've got those pictures.

He looked around and appeared almost startled upon hearing booing from a crowd of hotel employees who had gathered in support of the housekeeper who was allegedly assaulted. Now those hotel housekeepers then began to chant, "Shame on you, shame on you."

Dozens of cameras lined the route into the courthouse, about 100 feet. He walked with his wife, arm in arm, with TV journalist, Ann Sinclair. She's the one who's bankrolling the $200,000 a month security detail that he must have to remain out on bail.

We are told that he did go through the security detectors. Of course, he's wearing that ankle bracelet, so that was part of the consideration when he entered the courthouse. His lawyers, they were not with him at the time. They're meeting him inside the courthouse.

But they've already fired the first salvo, accusing the NYPD of misconduct, saying that they've been leaking information, including the possibility of forensic material that was found on the clothing of the housekeeper who has filed these charges against Dominique Strauss- Kahn.

The arraignment is scheduled to take just a couple of minutes. He's expected to enter a plea of not guilty. That's what his lawyers have been saying all along. They are suggesting that, in fact, the evidence will not show conclusively that this was, in fact, a forced encounter -- Martin.

SAVIDGE: Deb, this is a huge case, of course, but it is pretty much a he said/she said. And I'm wondering, what happens if the maid chooses not to testify?

FEYERICK: Well, exactly. Because so much of this case really relies on what she has said and what she has told investigators about what happened in that hotel room. If she decides not to testify, for example, they could still use the testimony from her deposition. They could still use things from other statements she has made.

But it would be much more difficult. And of course, what the defense is counting on is that they're going to be able to cross-examine this witness. It's one thing for her to give a statement, it's a totally different story for her then to face very skilled, very experienced lawyers about what happened, how it happened, how did it play out. How did he, Dominique Strauss-Kahn, force her, allegedly, to do something that she was unwilling to do?

So all of that is going to come into play, but if she doesn't testify, it's certainly going to be devastating to the district attorney's case -- Martin.

SAVIDGE: CNN's Deborah Feyerick, outside the courthouse. We'll continue to stay in touch. Thanks.

We go now to Iraq where a mortar attack has killed at least five U.S. service members. It is the deadliest such strikes since 2009. And maybe most chilling, it comes amid warnings that American forces are now facing a growing threat of attack.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JACK HEALY, NEW YORK TIMES REPORTER: Some Iraqi security officials are telling us that the attack occurred on an American military base, in the east part of town, and that somewhere between three and six mortars or rockets, you know, were fired into the base.

(END OF VIDEO CLIP) SAVIDGE: So far the U.S. is giving few details of the attack, and as you heard next hour, Jack Healy, right there on the phone, will be one of those who will join us again to give us the very latest information.

Well, this morning at the White House, President Obama looks to the future of U.S. troops in Afghanistan.

On his last visit there as defense secretary, Robert Gates says that the drawdown could begin next month.

CNN's Dan Lothian is at the White House.

And Dan, what are the options that they are talking about at a meeting that is taking place today?

DAN LOTHIAN, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, first of all, you know, these are private discussions that happen monthly, but this one of course taking on a bit more significance, because it comes in the wake of the killing of Osama bin Laden.

White House officials publicly have said that the killing of bin Laden does not in any way change the strategy. In fact, spokesman Jay Carney here always points out that the president's policy and strategy remains on track.

But the ongoing cost of this war, and also the killing of bin Laden is definitely leading to the debate, as to whether or not that process should be speeded up. And as you pointed out, Secretary Gates was in Afghanistan over the weekend. He talked about the progress that has been made there, and he cautioned that withdrawing too quickly could undermine some of the gains.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ROBERT GATES, DEFENSE SECRETARY: Nobody wants to give up the gains that have been won at such a hard cost, and nobody wants to give our allies the excuse to run for the exits. So I think that we'll -- I have confidence that we'll strike the right balance.

(END OF VIDEO CLIP)

LOTHIAN: And so who is on what side of this debate? Well, we know that Vice President Biden earlier on had favored a smaller footprint in Afghanistan and that Secretary Gates and Secretary Clinton had been behind this troop buildup there in Afghanistan. It's unclear how opinions may have changed over the last few weeks.

And also, what we have to factor into all of this is that the president recently reshuffled his national security team, so it's certain that that will also impact the strategy going forward -- Martin.

SAVIDGE: Well, Dan, we also know, of course, that the majority of the public would like to see a drawdown, a faster drawdown, as would members of the president's own party. So with an election coming up, do you think that that increases the pressure to perhaps make a dramatic drawdown?

LOTHIAN: Well, certainly, those who pay attention to these kinds of things from outside the White House say that everything always plays -- or politics always plays into everything.

The White House will say that the president's moves, his decisions that he makes, whether domestically or internationally, focus on what he believes is the -- is the best possible thing for that policy. And it has nothing to do with the 2012 elections.

But I think that anytime you're so close to an election cycle, it's very difficult to peel out politics from decision making.

SAVIDGE: Agreed. All right. Dan Lothian at the White House. Thanks very much.

Yemen's embattled president is in Saudi Arabia today for treatment of wounds he suffered in last week's attack. A rocket struck a mosque inside the presidential compound. President Ali Abdullah Saleh and several members of his government were inside that mosque for Friday prayers.

Celebrations erupted Saturday when word leaked out that the wounded president was flown to Saudi Arabia. Saudi's state run television says Saleh has undergone two operations and will return to Yemen after he recovers.

And this morning, tensions are high in and around Israeli. Yesterday, Israeli soldiers opened fire on protesters who tried to cross the fortified border between Syria and the occupied Golan Heights. At least 23 people are reported dead.

The United Nations has now condemned the violence and much of the world is watching.

Max Foster is in London with some of the international headlines.

But first, Max, explain to us briefly what with each side wants here.

Max foster, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Well, a war of words breaking out after these clashes yesterday, Martin. The Israeli say they did warn these pro-Palestinian protesters to stay away from that border in the Golan Heights. They didn't heed, and that there were shots fired as a result, and disputed figures on both sides about how many injured there were.

But the debate really playing into wider events there in the Middle East. And we've got the Israeli military accusing Syria now of trying to use these protests to create a diversion, in quote, "from the bloodshed that's taking place inside Syria."

Let's have a look at what those headlines are saying around the world then. The "International Herald Tribune," their headline, "Israelis Fire on Protesters," writing, "Taking a cue from the so-called Arab spring movement, organizers in multiple countries and territories called for coordinated action against Israel and huge crowds of Palestinians responded."

This was on the anniversary, by the way, of the 1967 Middle East war.

"The Guardian" newspaper here in the UK writing, "Israel opens fire as protesters mark six-day war." In the article saying, "Analysts in Damascus say that while Israeli may be culpable for opening fire, they view events on both days as deliberate antagonism of Israel by the Syrian regime." Martin?

SAVIDGE: And it's interesting to note, Max, that Syria itself, over the weekend, at least 38 people were killed internally as a result of Syrian actions there. So you talk of 23 killed by Israelis, but again it does seem to show that the Syrians are trying to hide what's going on in their own country.

Max, thanks very much.

Well, he lost his race in '06, but former Pennsylvania Republican Senator Rick Santorum believes that he can do a lot better and he's announcing his 2012 bid for the White House this morning.

CNN's Jim Acosta is following that story from Washington.

And Jim, I guess no surprise since in 2009 Santorum had racked up a lot of miles going into Iowa, right?

JIM ACOSTA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right. Yes, Martin, you know, he is really banking this one-shot bid on winning Iowa and it's not a bad route to take for Rick Santorum. He is very much tied in with the social conservative community.

I was out in Iowa a few weeks ago and I was talking to some evangelical conservatives, and they were saying that they were taking a hard look at Rick Santorum. He is expected to make his announcement in just a couple of hours from now.

In Somerset, Pennsylvania, as you mentioned, this is going to be a tough shot for Rick Santorum. You know he is a former senator from Pennsylvania. He lost his seat to Bob Casey, who is now the sitting senator in that seat from Pennsylvania.

And Santorum lost big in that race. It was by double-digit margins. So you know he's got to convince Republicans that he can win nationally. And, you know, the fact that he is going after social conservatives is going to be a problem, mainly because of another person that we're still waiting to decide whether or not she is going to get into the race.

Sarah Palin, the former Alaska governor, is still undecided, she says, about whether or not she's going to get into the race. She said over the weekend on "FOX News Sunday" that she's still somewhere in the middle on whether or not she's going to run for president.

But some new details are starting to emerge about this pro-Palin biopic that a conservative filmmaker has put together and is going to release in Iowa later this month. The movie shows Palin as sort of a heroine of Alaska politics, highlighting her accomplishments when she was governor of that state.

It does not delve into some of the more controversial aspects of her tenure as governor of Alaska, and there was a pretty scathing review of that movie in the "New York Post" this morning, comparing it to the film that the main character on "The Clockwork Orange" had to watch with his eyelids popped open with toothpicks, only that this reviewer with the "New York Post" said nobody came along with eye drops to keep his eyes watered.

So a pretty scathing review of that Palin biopic that is set to be released this month.

And also I want to mention Martin as we are heading towards our CNN debate next Monday up in New Hampshire, we're going to have some CNN correspondents fanning across several battleground states between now and then talking to voters about some of the issues that they care about.

Time and time again, Martin, the number one issue that comes up is the economy. People are very worried about the job situation out there -- Martin.

SAVIDGE: That's what directly affects most of us. Jim Acosta, thanks very much.

ACOSTA: You bet.

SAVIDGE: Well, we'll have your next political update in one hour. And a reminder, for all the latest political news, go to our Web site, CNNPolitics.com.

The royal newlyweds, they've have come out to support the queen and her horse. Prince William and Duchess Kate dressed up for the derby. We'll tell you about that plus details on their new digs coming up.

And Steve Jobs is leaving his medical leave, again. This time he's introducing the world to Apple's new technology. Just about four more hours until we know exactly what iCloud is.

More on that story coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SAVIDGE: Here's a look at some news from across the country.

Rain in the forecast in South Dakota, and that is about the last thing that area needs right now. The Missouri River is already bloated. More rain could send it out of its banks and into hundreds of homes.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I was getting hot dogs and I just happened to turn around and I saw the side blowing in the wind. And I just -- I couldn't believe it. It was like something out of a movie.

(END VIDEO CLIP) SAVIDGE: Look at what a gust of wind on Long Island at a youth soccer tournament did. It picked up three inflatable bouncy houses with kids inside and tossed them around. Thirteen children were hurt, but the good news is none of them were hurt seriously.

Tents are popping up in Madison, Wisconsin. Organizers try to keep alive the spirit of those huge protests we saw during the winter. The tent city is called Walkerville, in honor, or dishonor, of Governor Scott Walker. His collective bargaining law inspired the protests.

And Plaxico Burress, the NFL star who spent the last two years in prison on a weapons charge, is now a free man. He got into trouble back in 2008 when he took a gun into a New York nightclub and accidentally shot himself in the leg. He reportedly wants to play football again.

If you are a die-hard Apple fan, you only have to wait about four more hours to learn what iCloud is all about. Steve Jobs will deliver the news. And that's noteworthy unto itself. The Apple CEO has been on indefinite medical leave for months.

CNN's Dan Simon's in San Francisco.

And, Dan, this is jobs' second public appearance this year, right?

DAN SIMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's exactly right, M. And just mention that Steve Jobs is showing up, and you'll get hundreds of people waiting in line. I'm going to step out of frame for a moment, and you can see these people in front of the Moscone Convention Center here in San Francisco. I'm told that the first guy in line actually showed up at 1:00 in the afternoon yesterday to get a good seat for Steve Jobs' keynote.

Let's talk a little bit about what iCloud is. If what the analysts are saying is true, it will fundamentally change the way we listen to music and possibly watch videos. As you mentioned, Steve Jobs is going to be doing this presentation and it's noteworthy, because as you said, he's been on indefinite medical leave, he had that liver transplant in 2009. So, people are going to be watching closely and gauge how he looks.

But in terms of iCloud, the way it's going to work, according to the analysts, is you'll be able to access all of your content on iTunes without having to manually sync them to all your different devices. If you're like most people, you have a computer, may have an iPhone.

And the way it works now you have to manually take out a cable and sync all of your content from your computer, to your iPhone or to your iPad. What iCloud will do, if the rumors are true, you'll be able to get all that content without doing the manual syncing, it will just come down from the cloud, if you will -- Marty.

SAVIDGE: Admittedly, that is good, but how is this software or iCloud different from what competitors are already offering?

SIMON: You know, it's a good question, because Google and Amazon both released competing products about a month ago. And the way those products work in terms of getting your music, is you have to manually upload all of your music to the cloud. And with the iTunes content or with the iCloud concept that's going to be released today, you won't have to do that. In essence, the Cloud, or iCloud, will mirror exactly what is in your iTunes library, so it's an extra step.

It's believed that Apple secured deals with the major music record labels to get this going -- and that's something that is also, we believe, is going to be announced today.

SAVIDGE: All right, Dan Simon. We'll look forward to hearing more. Thanks very much.

Coming up: it made wedding watchers sigh and dress designers scramble. Now, the royal wedding gown is going on public display. Where and why -- next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SAVIDGE: Prince William and Duchess Kate, they head to the races, but pick a loser.

Max Foster is here with the royal roundup.

Max, tell us about the derby over the weekend.

MAX FOSTER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Let's take you to the Epsom races, a race that's very popular amongst the royal family, and they all turned out in force on Sunday -- Epsom because the queen had a horse running, came in third, rather, disappointingly for her. But everyone focused on the duchess of Cambridge. It's all about her these days -- on what she was wearing, and the fashion press, not particularly kind, I have to say.

Liz Jones writing in "The Daily Mail" today, "What was this, a nightie? I normally love nude shoes but she really needed an injection of color."

I don't normally read these pages, Martin, but I'm expert now.

A bit of a disappointment, because, of course, after the royal wedding, where she got her fashion just right, everyone talking about the dress, hoping she'd be a great white hope of British fashion, but I can tell you that the dress is actually going on display for everyone to enjoy at Buckingham Palace, during the summer opening from, I think, it's mid-July. So, if you want to hop over, Martin, (INAUDIBLE) see, along with a wedding cake. There were three and they only managed to eat two. That's going to be available for people to see as well.

SAVIDGE: I'll look forward to that. I'll make a reservation. Are they giving out samples or the wedding cake, or is that just to look at?

FOSTER: I don't know. Everyone's still very surprised it's still available. There you go. We also had some news as well today on where they'll be living. And they're actually -- the duke and duchess are going to be living at Kensington Palace, which is where Prince William grew up in Princess Diana's apartment. But it's not going to be the very same one, they're very clear to say. It's just a temporary arrangement, but that's going to be their new home.

SAVIDGE: Cozy -- very cozy-looking place and very, very beautiful. Thanks very much. We appreciate the update, and thanks for reading those fashion pages for us. I know it must be torture.

FOSTER: Anything for you.

MARTIN: College is a waste of time -- that according to our guest. We'll make his case, coming up.

Also ahead, tracking a silent killer in the food supply. Today, test results could pinpoint the source of that mysterious new strain of E. coli. We'll have that and the very latest of that story right after this break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SAVIDGE: Well, today there could be a breakthrough in the deadliest ever outbreak of E. coli. Test results are expected to determine if bean sprouts are the source of that mysterious strain that has killed 22 people. More than 2,000 people have gotten sick, including several here in the United States.

Frederik Pleitgen is in the German town where the sprouts are grown.

And, Frederik, they know so far -- what do they do, I guess, about the source of the E. coli?

FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, what they're doing right now, Martin, is they are testing several samples of sprouts that were grown here. Of course, the German authorities are saying is that they believe this could be the possible source of the E. coli outbreak. However, they just got back the first test results, literally a couple of minutes ago, and they say that of the first 40 samples they have taken, 23 have come back negative for E. coli.

Now, the other thing that they also say is that it doesn't mean that this is not the source for the E. coli. They think that because a lot of these sprouts that could possibly be involved in this E. coli outbreak were bred about four weeks ago, that possibly all the traces would be gone, because most of the sprouts would be sold off to things like cafeterias and restaurants.

But, so far, the results here are negative. But, again, the German authorities say they've traced back the food chain from where people got sick all the way to this food company in the northern part of Germany, Martin.

SAVIDGE: And, Fred, didn't the Germans already come out and blame cucumbers originally? PLEITGEN: Well, yes, absolutely. I mean, what they say in the beginning is they thought cucumbers from Spain were the possible culprits. And, indeed, there is still a warning in place from German health authorities not to eat things like lettuce, tomatoes and cucumbers as well, especially in their raw form.

Now, German authorities have come out and they're saying don't eat sprouts at this point in time. They have not taken back any of the other warnings, simply because they don't know what the exact cause of the outbreak is.

Now, the good news for consumers in America is, obviously, America doesn't really export any of these foods from Germany. However, we do that there have been some people who have gotten sick in America as well. But so far, those are people who actually visited the northern region of Germany before coming back to the U.S

So, again, this health scare here in Germany persists, it's still going on. However, the German authorities think that they might be a step closer to finding the source of this outbreak, and therefore, also, potentially cutting it off -- Martin.

SAVIDGE: Which is why we'll stay in touch. Frederik Pleitgen, thanks very much for the update.

The former head of the International Monetary Fund has pleaded not guilty in a New York courtroom. Dominique Strauss-Khan, that is, is charged with sexually assaulting a hotel maid.

CNN's Deborah Feyerick is outside the courthouse.

And, what do we know, Deborah?

FEYERICK: Well, Martin, we can tell you, they certainly wasted no time -- the arraignment actually taking place about 10 minutes earlier than expected. Not really a big deal, but clearly, the judge understanding the importance and the high level of interest.

We kind of want to show you the scene outside of the courthouse, all of those cameras there. And it was interesting, because when Dominique Strauss-Kahn walked out of his SUV to enter the courthouse, he was almost surprised by the line of cameras that were waiting for him. He was equally startled when a number of hotel employees who had gathered began to boo him, and then chant, "Shame on you, shame on you."

He entered the courthouse, went through the security detector. By 9:17 he was in the court. Five minutes later, it was over.

So, we're just waiting for him to leave the courthouse. He is with his wife, Anne Sinclair. We're also told a daughter was in the courtroom as well. They are expected to leave any moment now, and then return to the luxury town house that's really just a matter of blocks from here.

So, all in all, a very quick morning. But, certainly, a lot of international interest because of the fact many people thought he would become the next president of France, Martin.

SAVIDGE: And, Deborah, do we know what comes next in this saga and when?

FEYERICK: They're going to set a number of key dates. The defense team is asking for proper discovery. They had initially asked for it from prosecutors saying, look, it's been leaked out there. We're certainly entitled to have it. Prosecutors said, whoa, file the right papers and we'll get it to you.

So, now, we begin some of the arduous process of getting all the documents, and, of course, Dominique Strauss-Kahn has hired a very high -powered league team, they've got investigators -- as is the case in these kind of incidents involving men of his stature, there's going to be a lot of due diligence when it comes to finding out exactly who this woman is and what is her background, Martin.

SAVIDGE: All right. Deb Feyerick, thanks very much for the update.

Checking more of our top stories right now:

A mortar attack in Iraq has killed at least five U.S. service members. It happened at a forward operating base that is known as Loyalty in Baghdad. Iraqi officials say that the Americans were asleep in their trailers. The attack was one of several explosions across Iraq.

Saudi state-run television, meanwhile, says that Yemen's embattled president, Saleh, has decided to or has had two operations and will return to his country after he recovers. Saleh was wounded last week when a rocket hit a mosque inside the presidential compound. Two leaders in Yemen have expressed cautious support for his vice president.

The Miami Heat dousing water on the Dallas Mavericks and Dirk Nowitzki. The Heat behind another standout performance by Dwayne Wade beat the Mavs, 88-86, last night in game three of the NBA championship series. And that is despite Nowitzki taking the Mavs on his shoulders and scoring the last 12 Dallas points. The big guy went for 34 points, but failed to hit his last shot when the Heat -- Udonis Haslem, excuse me, was all over him.

We'll have more sports in about 20 minutes, including a look at one racing fan's great leap of faith. That's still to come.

She grew up in a wheelchair, and has never walked. But a high school student in Michigan took her first steps to get her diploma. That story is just ahead.

And also ahead, the job market could soon suffer with another major blow. A new study says that state and local governments are preparing to slash jobs as early as next month. We'll go to the New York Stock Exchange for details, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SAVIDGE: Extremely weak jobs report shocked all of us on Friday. Now, there's a new study that says we should gear up for another big blow. State and local governments are preparing to slash and burn. We will be talking later to Felicia Taylor, who will fill us in from the New York Stock Exchange.

Meanwhile, let's take a look at the opening bell. As you can see, the Dow Jones Industrials down about four at the open of trade today on a Monday morning.

Take a look at stories now, news across country:

Firefighters in Arizona battling one of the worst wildfires in that state's history. Nearly 193,000 acres have burned. And it is still uncontained. About 2,200 people have been forced to evacuate.

The plane immortalized in the "Miracle on the Hudson" is headed to an aviation museum in Charlotte, North Carolina. Over the weekend, it had a bit of a hard time negotiating some narrow freeway interchanges in New Jersey. Look at that.

James Tate, the Connecticut teen who's larger than life prom invitation got him banned from his high school's prom finally got the big dance. School administrators have a change of heart after a lot of media attention, allowing Tate and his date the dance. He was even voted prom king.

And then this story -- a dream came true for high school grad in Michigan. That is Angeline Lavasseur was born with spina bifida and grew up in a wheelchair. But as you can see, she took her first steps yesterday, walked across the stage to grab her diploma. How very, very nice.

Spanish tennis player, Rafael Nadal, is ready to claim the title as king of clay. That's coming up in our "Big Play" segment. That's just 15 minutes from now.

And then, Rick Santorum enters the race for president today. But is anybody really paying attention? Well, we know one person who is. Our Candy Crowley, CNN's chief political correspondent, has a look ahead at the week in politics in about three minutes.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SAVIDGE: All right. You can add another candidate to the growing list of Republicans that are seeking the White House. Rick Santorum throws his proverbial hat in the ring today, and that makes seven so far.

CNN chief political correspondent Candy Crowley has a look at the busy week ahead in politics.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CANDY CROWLEY, CNN CHIEF POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Sarah Palin capped off the first week of her "this is not a campaign tour" aboard "this is not a campaign bus" with a "this is not a campaign" appearance. SARAH PALIN (R), FORMER ALASKA GOVERNOR: What President Palin would do is cut the federal budget.

CROWLEY: Unclear whether Palin's hide and seek tease tour will continue this week or not. Somewhere in Pennsylvania, Rick Santorum is hoping not. Making his bid official Monday, Santorum could use some oxygen for his campaign.

RICK SANTORUM (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: It's been great to be out on the hustings -- been to New Hampshire, I think it's my 15th time.

CROWLEY: Who knew, not many, a recent research by Pew Research found fewer than half of voters who lean Republicans have ever heard of the former senator from Pennsylvania. Counting Santorum, there are seven people known and not-so-much known now officially running for the Republican nomination for president.

Former Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty will outline his cure for what ails the economy this week in Chicago, Illinois -- need we say more?

TIM PAWLENTY (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: President Obama's policies have failed.

CROWLEY: In the cycle of presidential elections, this is big dream season.

REP. RON PAUL (R), TEXAS: I am so delighted to see you involved in our revolution!

CROWLEY: And Texas Congressman Ron Paul is on round three. He first ran for president as a libertarian 23 years ago, preaching lower taxes and less spending.

PAUL: Mainstream is moving in the direction that I have been talking about for a long time. And therefore, nobody knows what the outcome will be in this election. During the last campaign, I knew what was happening. You know, they mocked me for my foreign policy and they laughed at my monetary policy. No more.

CROWLEY: And finally, on Capitol Hill, where the campaign runs through it -- this may be big miracle season.

REP. NANCY PELOSI (D-CA), MINORITY LEADER: There is a bipartisan discussion going on that is civil and constructive, and that they've come to some areas where they can possibly reach agreement. But that nothing is agreed to until everything is agreed to.

CROWLEY: What the White House Democratic leader will not agree to is cuts in Medicare, which sounds like square one. Except Nancy Pelosi is not known for her sunny outlook on bipartisan deals, time is running out to raise the debt ceiling, and throughout Capitol Hill history, deadline pressure has always outperformed miracles.

This could be the week, or not.

Candy Crowley, CNN, Washington. (END VIDEOTAPE)

SAVIDGE: Firefighters in Arizona, they are battling one of the worst wildfires in that state's history. Nearly 193,000 acres have burned, and it is still uncontained. Strong winds now fanning fire.

Our Reynolds Wolf is monitoring the fires and he's closely telling us what is going on.

REYNOLDS WOLF, AMS METEOROLOGIST: It's bad news. It really is, Martin.

At this time, we have red flag warnings all across much of the four corners, and we mention red flag warnings -- what that means, we have very low humidity, and unfortunately, very strong winds. Everything that you happen to see on the map which is indicated by the reds or the pinkish colors, that includes the four corners, but also parts of Kansas, back into Oklahoma, and even portions of Texas -- that's where there's the threat of fires.

But the worst of it happens to be in Oklahoma, what they could -- or rather, in parts of Arizona. What they could use in Arizona would be some heavy rainfall.

The problem is, we've got a storm system that went right through part of California, bringing some heavy rainfall to the San Joaquin Valley. Although we're not going to see rains in parts of the four corners, what Arizona will see will be strong winds, winds going from 30 to 40, perhaps some gusts as high as 50, 55 miles per hour, and that will help fan the flames.

Something else that's very unfortunate is the topography itself. Unlike some of the fires that we have seen in places like Oklahoma and Texas which were red flag, just the opposite over portions of Arizona. In fact, as you take a look at this, and we activate our Google Earth animation, we're going to zoom in and show you what the firefighters are dealing with. Not only battling the blaze, but also a lot of ravines, high mountains.

As we zoom in a bit more, you can see just how things are carved out. You've got, of course, a couple ravines here and there, and then you have winds that fan right through part of these mountain passes. The winds accelerate -- also it causes that dry chaparral, that pine really to dry up quite a bit.

So that's going to really act like a (INAUDIBLE), if you have happen to be a blacksmith if you think about them forming horseshoes; basically the same situation in something like this.

That's the latest we've got for you. Martin, let's pitch it back to you.

MARTIN SAVIDGE, CNN GUEST ANCHOR: All right, Reynolds, thanks very much.

WOLF: You bet. SAVIDGE: Well, you've heard of home schooling, what about un- schooling? A teenage entrepreneur and college dropout has made the movement his mission. I'll ask him about it, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SAVIDGE: "College is a waste of time." That's a pretty provocative headline on CNN.com's opinion page right now. The writer is a 19- year-old entrepreneur who left college two months ago, not long after he won a Teal Fellowship (ph) and $100,000. The only requirements innovate and stay out of school.

Dale Stephens joins us now from San Francisco. And -- and this is perfect for me, Dale, because I have a high school graduate who just finished high school. So tell me first off, why is college a waste of time?

DALE STEPHENS, FOUNDER, UNCOLLEGE.ORG: We've seen talk about higher education being a bubble. "The New York Times" reported earlier this year that college debt is on track to top $1 trillion in 2011; and actually, outpace the amount of credit card debt that we have in this country.

But the economics of the side of our college conundrum with the price of tuition increasing at about twice the rate of inflation is not the only problem. Richard Aaron and (INAUDIBLE), two sociologists at NYU found in a report academically addressed that 36 percent of college students showed no increase in critical thinking, complex reasoning, or writing over four years of college.

So the quality of undergraduate learning is plummeting, at the same time that costs are skyrocketing.

SAVIDGE: Ok. So it cost too much and you learn too little.

You have founded what is called "UnCollege." So tell us about the project and how it advances your message.

STEPHENS: So UnCollege is a social movement supporting self-directed higher education that's about motivation and validation. I'm writing a book about the opportunity costs of going to college, to help individuals gain the skills requisite for success in the 21st century, irrespective of whether you have letters after your name.

Together with the team in New York that they gave permission connecting me to the Web, we're building a platform called Rad Matter (ph) to credential life-long learning experiences. The beauty of the Internet is that we can dynamically represent what we've done, and tell about it instead of statically show it on our resume.

And we've seen the rise of creative and professional social networks for jobs, like BeeHams (ph), Stock Overflowed Gate Hub but traditionally, non-traditional routes into the job force have been served for those creative and technical professions. And what we want to do is enable everybody to connect life wide learning opportunities with jobs. (CROSSTALK)

SAVIDGE: All right, let me just stop you there and ask. I mean is -- is the idea here then you go into some sort of apprenticeship, I mean, or do you just go right from high school into some sort of -- working at the law firm? I mean what sort of training are you anticipating that people get before they enter the professional job market, beyond a high school degree?

STEPHENS: UnCollege is about leveraging the resources of the world around you. So I imagine that there will be elements of internships, apprenticeships and perhaps even jobs, probably even elements of college education. There are many types of learning that happen, whether it's mentorship, whether it's group living, whether it's independent study that happen outside the classroom.

And ultimately, those teach different skill sets. And if we can go out and learn in different ways, we come out as individuals who have a broader skill set, that are able to apply what we've learned to the world.

SAVIDGE: Dale Stephens, thanks very much for joining us. I imagine, though, you're getting a lot of heat from a lot of colleges. Thank you.

STEPHENS: Thank you, Martin.

SAVIDGE: We're taking a quick look now at some of the headlines that will be making news later today.

President Obama meets with his national security team in the situation room to talk about Afghanistan and Pakistan. In July, the military is scheduled to start withdrawing U.S. troops from Afghanistan.

Former Pennsylvania Senator Rick Santorum will officially announce he is running for the GOP presidential nomination.

Air France will inaugurate daily Airbus 380 service between Washington-Dulles and Paris' Charles de Gaulle airports. And the Airbus 380, by the way, if you didn't know, is the world's largest passenger jet with seating for 516 of your fellow passengers.

We are following lots of developments in the next hour of the CNN NEWSROOM. Let's check in first, though, with Deb Feyerick -- Deb.

DEBORAH FEYERICK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well Martin, with hundreds of cameras waiting outside the courtroom, it took just a matter of moments for Dominique Strauss-Kahn to enter a plea of not guilty -- Martin.

DAN SIMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Dan Simon in San Francisco. Thousands of people lining up to see their hero, Apple CEO Steve Jobs; this morning he'll be unveiling a new product called iCloud. We'll have that in the next hour.

CHRIS LAWRENCE, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: And I'm Chris Lawrence at the Pentagon. Where we're following the deadliest day for U.S. troops in Iraq in two year. Hear what happened to these troops while they were sleeping, coming up in the next hour.

SAVIDGE: And also coming up next hour I'll be talking with astronaut Sandra Magmus (ph). She is a member of the crew at the space shuttle "Atlantis". Its mission next month will be the last in the shuttle program's 30-year history.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SAVIDGE: The former head of the International Monetary Fund has pleaded not guilty in a New York courtroom. Dominique Strauss-Kahn is charged with sexually assaulting a hotel maid. His attorney spoke. So let's just listen in.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BENJAMIN BRAFMAN, STRAUSS-KAHN'S DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Mr. Strauss-Kahn entered a plea of not guilty. That is a very eloquent, powerful statement that he made that he denies these charges, and the only thing we will say is something we said, during the first appearance in this case and our judgment once the evidence is reviewed it will be clear that there was no element of forcible compulsion in this case whatsoever. Any suggestion to the contrary is simply not credible.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SAVIDGE: By the way after those attorney -- the attorney representing the victim is this case also came out and said that his client will in fact be testifying when that court case begins.

The Miami Heat have taken the lead in the NBA finals. And if you heard me stammering while doing the NBA story this morning, it's because I'm a diehard Cleveland Cavaliers fan.

JEFF FISCHEL, HLN SPORTS ANCHOR: And nothing hurts more.

SAVIDGE: It does.

FISCHEL: Than seeing the Miami Heat there and Lebron James is getting closer and closer to an NBA title. I know, he's now half way there. Two wins right after last night.

And last night proved even if you're hurt, this is the NBA final as, you have to play and play well. Game three in Dallas. First quarter, watch Chris Bosh of the Miami Heat. Gets poked in the eye, by Jason Kidd. It was an accident but it still hurt a whole lot. Bosh was down for a while. These teams battle back and forth.

Under a minute left. Who takes the clutch shot? Not Lebron, not Dwyane Wade, it was Bosh, probably wincing his way through it. Hits the game winner, Miami takes the game and afterwards, he was asked about the eye poke.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) UNIDENTIFIED MALE: When you were raked in the face, what exactly did that feel like?

CHRIS BOSH, MIAMI HEAT: Open your eye like this, and I'll poke you in it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FISCHEL: Ok. He was joking. He was joking. Miami leads the series two games to one. Game four is tomorrow night.

The king of clay still reigns, Rafael Nadal making his case for being called the greatest clay court player ever. He beat Roger Federer in Paris to win his sixth French Open title yesterday. That ties him now with Bjorn Borg for the most French Open titles ever. He's only 25. Looks like he could certainly win more. Ten grand slam titles in all for Nadal.

Albert Pujols had a weekend. This was Saturday, bottom of the 12th against the Cubs, gone. A walk-off home run. Cards win 5-4. Pujols feeling good. Yesterday, again he comes up in extra innings, and he does it again. Just ten other players ever, game winning home runs in back-to-back games. In the last seven games, three-time national league MVP has five home runs.

Ok. Here's a lesson what not to do when you go to a Formula One race. Yes, check that out. A course marshal apparently thought he could get past the racer, not happening. Still hurts when you watch in slow-mo, doesn't it?

This was in a Red Bull exhibition race in Japan on Saturday. Fortunately for the marshal, the driver was not going that fast. Emergency team checked him out. No injuries though his ego and his backside are a bit bruised. I'm sure.

SAVIDGE: Wow, he is a lucky man.

FISCHEL: Not wise. There has to be really special safety conditions for me to run out on a race track like that.

SAVIDGE: You know -- and I should say I still wish the very best for the Heat, Jeff.

FISCHEL: That's nice of you to say.

SAVIDGE: Just, don't hold me to it.

Thanks very much.

FISCHEL: All right.