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Casey Anthony Trial Wrapping Up; Oil Spill into Yellowstone River; GOP Presidential Hopefuls Taking No Holiday; Monaco's Royal Wedding; Annual Hot Dog Eating Contest; Will & Kate Touring Canada; Buy Vs. Rent; Bomb Squad Officer Survives Blast; Space Camp, After the Shuttle
Aired July 04, 2011 - 09:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: 9:00 a.m. on the East Coast; 6:00 a.m. out West. I'm Kyra Phillips. Here are some of the stories that have us talking this morning.
A boat full of tourists capsizes off Baja, Mexico, tossing dozens of people into the water. Six are still missing. All 27 American passengers are accounted for.
Thailand has its first ever female prime minister, Yingluck Shinawatra's party dominated yesterday's elections. She's the sister of ousted Thai leader, Thaksin Shinawatra.
And hackers hit a Fox News Twitter feed posting fake tweets that President Obama had been assassinated. Fox News said, the hack is being investigated and the company regrets any distress caused.
After seven weeks of testimony, some dull, some dramatic, the Casey Anthony trial is wrapping up. The jury is expected to get the case today.
CNN's David Mattingly joining us live from Orlando.
So, David, what's happening right now?
DAVID MATTINGLY, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Kyra, yesterday we listened to the defense hour after hour after hour, picking apart all the expert testimony for the prosecution.
Today, the prosecution has the final word. It is their burden to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Casey Anthony murdered her child.
And now we're listening to prosecutor Jeff Ashton in front of the jury going back through the witnesses they produced to bolster up their credibility to make sure that they have their case front and center in the minds of the jury before they start to deliberate.
The jury is expected to get their instructions and to begin deliberating sometime later today.
PHILLIPS: So do we have any idea how long the jury might be out?
MATTINGLY: That is the question that everyone keeps speculating on. There's no way we can know. We won't know what this jury finds important in this case. And we won't know what sort of conflict might occur in that room, as they go through everything.
This is a circumstantial case. There is no clear evidence directly linking Casey Anthony to the murder of her child. The prosecution is arguing it's all these bits and pieces that point at her and her alone as the one responsible. The defense, of course, trying to poke holes in that, when they were up yesterday, they were very thorough in going through everything to show the jury just how many blind spots there are in the prosecution's case.
So they have a lot to consider when they go back there. And they're going to -- definitely going to have a lot to talk about and discuss. And you can bet, there's going to be some arguing going on in that room.
PHILLIPS: All right. David Mattingly, let us know as soon as you hear if anything is happening.
In Montana, cleanup crews are hoping to make some progress today. An oil pipeline that runs under the Yellowstone River broke. About 42,000 gallons of crude actually got into the water.
Our Reynolds Wolf is monitoring the spill for us.
Reynolds, how bad is it?
REYNOLDS WOLF, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Well, in comparison with, say, the oil spill -- of oil spills that we dealt with last summer, no comparison whatsoever. This is a much smaller event. However it still is very detrimental to, again, a lot of things up in this part of the world.
First and foremost, let's give you an idea of where it's taking place. Now Yellowstone National Park is right in this location. The place that we have the spill is between these two points. The bit of good news that we have is that it is actually flowing away from Yellowstone National Park.
As we zoom in on this key location, let's show you. It's right between Laurel and the community of Billings, Montana. The river, just about right here, very hard to see. And the spill actually took place on July 1st, during 11:30 in the evening, anywhere from 750 to 1,000 barrels of oil leaked right into the river. Again caused quite a bit of damage. A lot of oil and some of the -- a lot of the grass that we have along the side of the river.
One of the big issues that you have in this area is that you have a wonderful fish called the cutthroat trout. And that is the problem with that, is it happens to be a surface feeder. So when they actually go up to the higher surface of the water, it interacts with that oil and that can actually cause quite a bit of damage to fish, obviously.
One bit of good news that is a very swift moving river. And it is believed that the swift moving river will help break up the oil, which will then make it much easier to disperse. So a little bit of bad and good news mixed in.
Kyra, back to you.
PHILLIPS: All right. Reynolds, thank you so much.
WOLF: You bet.
PHILLIPS: Well, there's no holiday if you're running for the White House.
CNN's deputy political director Paul Steinhauser joining us.
So Paul, where are all the candidates heading today?
PAUL STEINHAUSER, CNN DEPUTY POLITICAL DIRECTOR: Kyra, you're working, I'm working, so are many of the presidential candidates.
PHILLIPS: They might as well work.
(LAUGHTER)
STEINHAUSER: Yes, you know and it's a good day to do it, too, because there are a lot of parades, a lot of events. And they're going to all those important early voting states.
I have a little map I made up. Take a look at Michele Bachmann, Newt Gingrich, Rick Santorum, where are they going to they be? Iowa. Well, Iowa, of course that's the state that holds the first caucus, leads the presidential primary caucus calendar.
And look over there in New Hampshire, you got Mitt Romney and Jon Huntsman. They're going to be marching in the same parade in Amherst, New Hampshire. And there are going to be some other events.
Herman Cain, he started down in Pennsylvania. He's going at a Tea Party event in Independence Hall in Philadelphia. But he's going to end the day in New Hampshire. He's going to be throwing out the first pitch in a Minor League baseball game up there.
So, yes, no holiday at all, as you said, for the presidential candidates -- Kyra.
PHILLIPS: Well, speaking of the Fourth of July, it seems a lot of Americans need to go back to school.
STEINHAUSER: Yes, yes. Check this out. This is Marist poll, national poll. And they asked well, what year did the U.S. declare its independence? Look at that. Fifty-eight percent got it right, OK? So nearly six in 10 got it right. It was 1776 of course.
But about one in four -- just over one in four said they were unsure which year it was and 16 percent, well, they got it wrong.
And Kyra, when you break down those numbers, essentially, older Americans did better than younger Americans when it comes to getting the date right, the year right -- Kyra. PHILLIPS: No surprise. It happens all the time, right? We talk about days in history, all of us make those mistakes a number of times.
All right, Paul. Thanks.
Well, we'll have our next political update in an hour. And a reminder, for all the latest political news you can just go to our Web site CNNPolitics.com.
Well, it has all the intrigue for a holiday script. A multi-million dollar wedding, rumors of a runaway bride, even a family curse.
CNN's Monita Rajpal, joining us from London this morning.
Of course, we are talking about Monaco's royal wedding, Prince Albert, a bachelor no more, Monita.
MONITA RAJPAL, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR/CORRESPONDENT: Bachelor no more, or then again, it was so close down to the wire that people were wondering will this marriage actually -- will this wedding actually take place?
There had been word and rumors, reports that his -- well, now bride had attempted to run away almost three times. She had her passport reportedly confiscated at the Niece airport and even at the Monaco helipad which she was trying to leave.
There have been so many rumors that -- you know that there could be yet another illegitimate child out in -- coming out of the woodwork right now. But of course I guess all of this was the undertone of a very lavish ceremony on Saturday. This is a part of a two-day wedding ceremony that was taking place. Friday was the civil service. And then on Saturday, the pictures that we're seeing right now, are of the religious ceremony.
And it was at the -- as we saw, about 3500 guests who were invited, the who's who of European royalty and international celebrities.
The bride looking beautiful in Armani. She wore Armani on both days. But again, you know, there are some newspapers around that are saying that, you know, they were wondering if the tears that she was crying were actually tears of joy or just sadness.
However, the "Northern Territory News" in Australia said -- with the headline, "love child rumors can't reign on parade," with the headline, "Monaco hopes the wedding will bring a new dawn for the principality that has lost its luster and suffered three decades of family misfortunes since the car crash that killed Princess Grace."
That's what you were talking about there in terms of the -- what is being called the curse of the Gramaldis -- Kyra.
PHILLIPS: Yes, the family curse that we have studied, that's created to such an interesting legacy behind this family. I tell you what, Monita, we will talk more about that because that is an intriguing part of this. But real quickly, I want to take live pictures. The other story that you've been talking about a lot there in London and, of course, all of us here in the United States, is Will and Kate.
We're getting these live pictures in now. As you know, you could probably say they have charmed Canada by everything they have done. Just a few examples. Well, cooking at one of the top culinary schools, meeting with homeless youth, even playing a little foosball. Also visiting a cancer ward and children there.
So right now they are getting ready -- actually, they are arriving at a legislature building in -- is that right? Is this the legislature building -- OK, great. Perfect. Thank you. In Prince Edward Island. And this is the Province House, second oldest active legislature building in Canada, and of course this is highlighting the importance role in Great George Street played in the Confederation.
We will have more as we continue to file these live pictures of Will and Kate as they continue to tour Canada.
All right. It's finally here. Today is Nathan's famous Fourth of July hot dog eating contest. Is the U.S. at risk of losing the title one last year by Joey Chestnut? Who knows? We'll investigate. We're live from Coney Island.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LT. COL. INGRID MOERTL, U.S. ARMY: Hello, everybody. This is Lieutenant Colonel Ingrid Moertl at Joint Base Balad in Iraq right close to Baghdad, I might say. But anyhow, I just want to say hi to everybody back at home in the United States and happy Fourth of July.
Seth, happy birthday, buddy. Take care. Bye-bye.
(END OF VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
PHILLIPS: Due to popular demand, we just can't get enough of the live pictures of Will and Kate, as they continue to tour all across Canada. Right now, you're seeing live pictures from the Province House there. The royal highness -- highnesses, shall we say, visiting the second oldest active legislature building in Canada. And we will continue to follow them at Prince Edward Island on today as they make all types of historic stops.
All right. Let's check stories making news "Cross Country" here.
A police officer and father of two shot to death in a hotel in Memphis last night. Police Officer Timothy Warren was responding to a report of shots fired at a hotel. Well, responders had already found the body of one victim when shots started flying again. Warren was fatally shot and the shooting suspect is now in custody. And take a look at this video. A speedboat crashes into another boat during a race that happened at a regatta on the Ohio River. It happened after another speedboat hit a rescue boat in the same area. Three people were injured in that crash, two of them seriously hurt.
The last American drafted to fight in the Vietnam War about to retire. This is Command Sergeant Major Jeff Mellinger. He's returning to civilian life after 39 years in the Army. Shortly after he was drafted in 1972, the U.S. went to an all-volunteer force.
Yes, it's become as American as apple pie. And today is Nathan's famous Fourth of July hot dog eating contest.
Senior correspondent Allan Chernoff joining us from the festivities.
Now we understand you're going to actually show us the dunk, right? This is the secret to the hot dog eating supremacy?
ALLAN CHERNOFF, CNN SENIOR CORRESPONDENT: Absolutely, Kyra. I'll tell you the mystery of exactly how Joey Chestnut was able to consume 68 of these in only 10 minutes two years ago to set a world championship record. That secret may never be unraveled. It's beyond man's comprehension.
But I can tell you the secret to competitive eating of hot dogs, OK? It's dry, right? The bun is really dry. That's the problem. How do you resolve that? You dunk it in water. And then it goes right down. It's very, very easy.
So you'll see these competitors dunking their buns, eating the buns separately from the hot dogs in many cases. In some cases -- pardon me -- in some cases, dunking them all together. But it's all in the dunk. That's the secret.
(LAUGHTER)
PHILLIPS: Allan, nothing like seeing you dunk your bun.
OK, now big thing to talk about today, of course, the women finally getting their own table, right? They have broken the hot dog glass ceiling. This is serious stuff for the females now.
CHERNOFF: Kyra, precisely. This is a great day for female equality. Finally a women's-only table. And not -- that's the plate for Sonia Thomas to actually get her own belt. It's pink as opposed to the men's mustard yellow belt.
She's expected to do it, she holds the world record for women. It's right up there, 41 dogs. So doesn't have that much competition. We expect her to win it. And by the way, guess what Sonia Thomas does for a living? You'll never guess. She's a Burger King manager. But she's a champion hot dog eater.
PHILLIPS: I remember interviewing her years ago and she said that it was really tough going on a date because, you know, she would always out-do the guy at the all-you-can-eat buffet. All right, Allan, we will be talking to you obviously --
(CROSSTALK)
PHILLIPS: Yes, exactly -- the next couple of hours, we'll be checking in with you.
And, also, we're going to talk to competitive eating top dog George Shea. He's going to be with us -- in addition to one of the female competitors today. That's coming up at 9:45.
Well, nothing says Fourth of July like fireworks, right? But many cities will be celebrating without them due to unusually dry conditions, which would make it just too dangerous.
Reynolds Wolf is explaining that to us.
OK, explain the science here.
WOLF: The key thing is this, a great part of the country, especially parts of the desert southwest and into Texas, where we have very, very low humidity and the same time, very dry conditions. That is a perfect recipe for bad things to happen when it comes to fireworks. So, unfortunately, there are many places, especially across Texas , especially along parts of the Gulf Coast and desert southwest where this year, no fireworks, and that is simply due to the possibility of fire itself.
Very hot conditions as you might imagine. In parts of the Southeast, the situation is going to be a little different. The humidity is going to be higher. Yes, it's going to be warm, but the humidity mixed in with the heat will give you chance of thunderstorms into the afternoon.
Possibly, severe storms in the Northern Plains and in through the Great Lakes should be just picture perfect. I don't like that. Same story for you up in parts of the Pacific Northwest. Nice, sunny, dry for you, and a chance of showers across parts of southern California.
Meanwhile, take a look of what you can expect temperature wise. My goodness -- 82 in Chicago. It's going to be great up by Wrigley Field. Eighty-eight in New York, 92 in Washington, D.C., 101 in Dallas. San Francisco with 73, 76 in Los Angeles. But New York into the 80s.
I don't know what is better, Kyra, when you think about it. You know, having temperatures close to 90 degrees with a stomach full of reconstituted pork products, hotdogs and whatnot.
PHILLIPS: You're just fascinated by Nathan's competition in Coney Island.
WOLF: Are you kidding me? I'm in therapy after watching that. It's the freakiest thing in the whole world. It's an absolute freak show.
PHILLIP: Here, it's just for you then. Live pictures as they get ready for the big competition. That doesn't impress you that a woman can eat 70 hot dogs in less than 10 minutes?
WOLF: Trust me, anyone can eat that.
PHILLIPS: It's just gross?
WOLF: It is what it is. It's an event.
PHILLIPS: Reynolds, thank you.
Well, good news if you're shopping for a home, buying a house has never been more affordable. But is it the right financial decision for you right now, and are you better off renting? We'll talk about it.
Also, Canada can't get enough of the royal couple. Yes, they have charmed Canada. We're going to take you to the latest stop, Prince Edward Island, and tell you what they're doing there.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
PHILLIPS: OK. Some showbiz headlines for you.
A shakeup at McKinley High. One student will not be returning to FOX's hit show "Glee." "Us Weekly" is reporting that show creators have decided not to renew Chord Overstreet's contract as a series regular. The classmates Darren Criss and Harry Shum, Jr., who play Blaine Mike, will be back in the fall as series regulars.
And Taiwan showing Lady Gaga some love. A city there declared Sunday Lady Gaga Day to honor her first performance on the island. The mayor gave her the key to the city and school kids performed for her.
And "Transformers: Dark of the Moon" blew the competition away this weekend and set a July 4th box office record. It made more than $97 million here in the U.S. this weekend. But it's huge overseas, too. The third installment in the action movie made actually $372 million globally. That was in only five days.
And a love letter from Michael Jordan shows that he was a real player, even back in high school. He wrote the note to a prom date at the age of 18. Sold at auction for $5,000 and was recently made public.
One thing we learned about the basketball legend? Well, he was full of compliments for his lady.
Duke and duchess of Cambridge spent the night on a warship, visited kids in a cancer ward, met with homeless youth, they even push ball and cooked lobster souffle. It's fair to say, Will and Kate have definitely charmed Canada. The royals are now in Charleston, on Prince Edward Island.
And that's where our CNN's Max Foster is.
So, Max, you actually met the duke and duchess for an off-the-record chat. What were your impressions? MAX FOSTER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, the impression really was that they're really enjoying the trip, looking forward to the rest of it. Both look really well. It's a big, grueling schedule they're on. They seemed in really good form and they're really enjoying it.
And, certainly, if you look at the crowds here at Prince Edward Island, can you sort of see why. There's a huge response for them in this country. Thousands of people are turning out in every stop. And in that crowd, there's a couple of Columbia, Missouri, would you believe? They travelled all the way up here. Very excited.
The couple are due to arrive here any moment now. And the crowds are going to see them in an open-top carriage -- Province House here, which was kind of confederated.
Later on, you're going see them taking to the water, each in a dragon boat, racing each other. That's going to be very pretty good because they're both very competitive.
And also, a bit of a risky maneuver for William. He's going to take to the skies with the search and rescue teams. He's a search and rescue pilots. And the Canadians do this very unusual maneuver, which is an emergency landing on water. So, I know that the palace aides are slightly concerned that that's going to happen.
It's going to be a great day here for the couple. They've had a great trip so far.
PHILLIPS: And, Max, there doesn't seem to be any there where you are right now. But not all Canadians are celebrating this trip. There have been some small protests.
FOSTER: That's right. Over the weekend, they're in Quebec, which is an anti-monarchy stronghold and there were some protests there. But actually, what's interesting -- we speak to the crowds there. They might be anti-monarchy in that part of the world but they're very pro- Will and Kate as they call them.
So, they an impromptu walk about, that wasn't really expected, and that went extremely well. So, it's very interesting to see them, the Quebecers even, taking to them on this, a bit of an investment. I know that the couple, when I talked to them last night, were very pleased with that.
PHILLIPS: All right. Max, we'll be dipping in with live pictures following them during their day today. Keep us posted. Max Foster there in Charleston -- thanks so much.
Is it better to buy a home or rent? Housing bust has made more homes affordable and it's revived the real estate question.
Alison Kosik at the New York Stock Exchange.
So, Alison, what's the real deal today.
ALISON KOSIK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, this is coming, Kyra, from the real estate Web site called Trolley (ph) and what it did, it looked at the 50 biggest cities in the U.S. And you know what it found? It found that at 80 percent of those cities, it's cheaper to buy, because the fact is home prices right now are falling and rents they're going up.
Home prices are actually down 5 percent in the first three months of the year, versus rents going up about 2.5 percent. Rents are rising because of this higher demand as more people are losing their homes and they're being forced to rent.
But, really, where it comes down to sometimes is on where you live -- Kyra.
PHILLIPS: Alison, now, overall it's cheaper to buy, but it varies by city, right? So, how do you figure out, based on where you live?
KOSIK: Yes. So, the rule of thumb, Kyra, is you can buy the home if the home costs no more than 15 times the annual rent. Let me give you an example. Let's say the home price is $140,000, but the annual rent price on a similar property is at $14,000. That's almost 1,200 a month.
So, what you do is you take that home price divided by rent. That's what's considered the price to rent ratio and you get 10. So, what you would want to buy in this city because anything 15 or below, you would want to buy.
Now, most places to rent are in coastal cities. Now, this is what we found, places like San Francisco, Portland, Boston, and New York. These are big cities, mostly on the coast. What we're finding in these cities is home prices are still really high. So, you'll be better off renting on those -- Kyra.
PHILLIPS: And it's not all about the numbers. I mean, there's other factors we should take a look at as well.
KOSIK: Oh, definitely there are. I mean, think about how long you're going to be in the home. If you're less than five years, it's probably not worth it to buy it because, you know what? You put up a lot of money upfront when you buy. There are those thousands of dollars of closing costs, sales commissions. Sometimes you do improvements and you do those right away.
Also, you have to consider how much cash you have available. You're going to be tying up a lot of money in your homes. If you're going to need cash, don't count on selling that home on a dime.
But also, don't forget about the tax breaks here. If you're at a higher tax bracket, owning may make more sense because you can deduct mortgage interest and property taxes. But with all this, Kyra, the bottom line, a real good starting point is that price to rent ratio that I mentioned earlier, where that home price is divided by the rent and you get those hard and fast numbers as a starting point to make that decision, Kyra.
PHILLIPS: Alison, thanks. Celebrating our troops on the Fourth of July. We'll go live to Afghanistan to find out what U.S. troops are thinking about this Independence Day so far away from home.
And she's just been named Military Spouse of the Year. And that's saying a lot. The military community is so full of dedicated spouses and families. We're going to talk to her live right after the break.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CW2 CHRISTOPHER HOLADAY, U.S. ARMY RESERVE: This is CW2 Holaday coming from Joint Base Balad in Iraq. I just want to say hello to my family and friends back in Wenatchee, Washington. And I hope you have a wonderful Fourth of July.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
PHILLIPS: Checking top stories now:
A tourist boat capsized off Mexico's Baja California peninsula. The coast guard says all Americans have been accounted for.
Prosecutors in the Casey Anthony murder trial giving their closing arguments battle. Jurors are expected to begin deliberations.
And a hacker group has gone on Twitter to say it targeted Apple. The group Anonymous has released a list of 27 user names and passwords. The hackers suggested they did it to point out Apple's security flaws.
For every one of those U.S. troops on the front lines, there's a military family back home that's doing everything possible to stay strong. The military community knows how to look after its own. They have each other's back, volunteering, supporting each other, reaching out.
It's hard to stand out. But one woman has.
Bianca Strzalkowski was named Military Spouse of the Year. She's in Raleigh, North Carolina, along with her husband, of course. Marine Corps Gunnery Sergeant Ron Strzalkowski.
Great to have you both.
GUNNERY SGT. RONALD STRZALKOWSKI, U.S. MARINE CORPS: Thank you.
BIANCA STRZALKOWSKI, MILITARY SPOUSE OF THE YEAR: Thank you. Happy Fourth of July.
PHILLIPS: Well, Happy Fourth of July to you, and I bet nothing feels better than to have your husband right there next to you, hand in hand, correct?
RONALD STRZALKOWSKI: Yes, ma'am.
BIANCA STRZALKOWSKI: Yes, it's wonderful to spend today with him, home, safe.
PHILLIPS: Well, Ron, I'm actually going to start with you and talk about the fact that your wife received this reward. And as we see her, actually, receive it, brag for a minute about what makes your wife so fantastic.
RONALD STRZALKOWSKI: I'll tell you what. It's one of those things that I tend to get complacent with her around the house. I almost like depend on her to be superwoman. And it had taken her getting the reward and me actually hearing her write-up of all the things she did. And I was like, oh, wow. She really does do a lot of things.
(LAUGHTER)
PHILLIPS: It helps you appreciate your marriage more, yes?
RONALD STRZALKOWSKI: It does. It does. It actually makes me start to look at myself and find self-worth. Like, if she's doing everything around the house and take care of everything, what am I doing on a daily basis?
(LAUGHTER)
PHILLIPS: And not only that. Bianca I'm going to brag about you, too. You're a mother of three, you're a full-time student, you volunteer within a number of activities. How the heck do you get it all done? And, at the same time, remain such a dedicated wife?
BIANCA STRZALKOWSKI: Honestly, I feel so privileged that I get to be married to somebody who is serving our country. And it is my everyday heroes that I know about. I know how wonderful military families are. They get me up every day. They make me want to be a better person and work on their behalf.
PHILLIPS: So, Bianca, to all the other -- I mean, we could have you just give marriage advice, period, but to other military spouses, you know, how should they prioritize? What do you think is the number one thing that you should stay focused on when you are married to someone in the military?
BIANCA STRZALKOWSKI: It should always be your family. Under people who fall under that roof of your home, take care of them and take care of your fellow military family. We have each other's back. And that is why this life is so easy for us to live. We know all around the country we are never alone. And if you feel alone, contact me, because I'm here to listen to you.
PHILLIPS: Wow! Yes, with all the kids, your husband, your charity work, your volunteer work. Oh, my goodness. Well, let me ask you, Bianca. You know, you actually wrote here that you set goals as a military wife. You wrote that you saw it as your responsibility. What do you mean by that?
BIANCA STRZALKOWSKI: It is my responsibility to represent all five branches of the military for the next year. And with that, I want to help be a voice for them. I want to hear their concerns and do something productive with them. These women and men who support our service members keep the home front strong so they can do that job, so they can defend our freedom, and they deserve opportunities as well to pursue those goals. So, over the next year, I'm going to use my very loud jersey voice and help get some things done for them.
PHILLIPS: John -- Ron, just final question before we go. I mean, when you're out there on the front lines, how often do you think about your wife and what she's doing for you back home? Does it inspire you?
RONALD STRZALKOWSKI: Oh, it happens daily. I mean, obviously, you focus on the mission and keep yourself moving on the task, but when you got a little bit of down time, your always thinking about, you know, that warrior at home that's taking care of the hard work and that's raising the kids, taking care of the house and doing things for herself so she can be successful as well.
PHILLIPS: There you go. Spoken like a true marine. Bianca and Ron, so wonderful to talk to you today, especially on the Fourth of July. Blessing to you both.
RONALD STRZALKOWSKI: Thank you.
BIANCA STRZALKOWSKI: Thank you very much. Have a great holiday.
PHILLIPS: You too. I know you both will.
Well, Ron is lucky enough to be home this Fourth of July, but we also want to remember the U.S. soldiers who are fighting overseas right now. CNN's Jason Carroll is joining us live from Afghanistan. Jason, great to see you and great to see you in this venue.
JASON CARROLL, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes. It's great to be here, Kyra, with these guys. As you know, we've been following some of them as part of our series, our year-long series. some Familiar faces like Sgt. Randy Shorter. He's actually received a promotion since the last time we spoke. He's now First Sgt. Randy Shorter.
We also have Sgt. Anthony Cook. So, these are two familiar faces. You probably remember them from our series, but we also have a newer member, as well, who has just joined the platoon. We want to introduce you here and just sort of give us a sense of what it's been like for you to be here in the platoon joining these guys, joining these band of brothers.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: From the moment I came in, you know, the guys kind of gave me that feeling out period, what kind of leader is he? And after a while, they kind of accepted me into the platoon. It's just like being part of a family.
CARROLL: You know, we talk so much about family, and on holidays like today, you guys, obviously, cannot be with family, but you're with each other. How does that feel?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It helps, because, you know, we're here together, thick and thin. You know, we go through the toughest of times, but you know, we always pull each other. You know, in times like today, especially the Fourth of July, we can reflect and think about the moments we had back home and the moments we're getting ready to have when we go back home.
CARROLL: Do you agree with that?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, Jason. Like you said earlier today, we've just been hanging out as one big family, had a quick poker game going on, and everybody getting nice haircuts.
CARROLL: you cleaned up in that poker game.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's just good to have all these guys around with us and can't say enough about them.
CARROLL: Very quickly, I want to give everyone a chance to say something. So, first, let me start with Lt. George Cain. I want you to give an opportunity to speak to your family back in Seattle. Here's your chance. Give them a shout out.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Everyone back home, mom, dad, my brother, Will, my sister, Sarah, family and friends in Seattle, Houston, Texas, St. Louis.
CARROLL: All right. Also a shout out? I know you got early. (INAUDIBLE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: My wife, Cheryl, my daughters Lani (ph) and Arianna (ph) back in Ft. Campbell. Hello, I love you. Can't wait to see you. Also to my sister, Amy, and my mother and brother, Robert, in California.
CARROLL: And I know your wife is already here. So, you don't have to give a shout out to her, but you can if you want.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Just like to say hi to my family back home, Adrian, Minerva Cook (ph) Cathy (INAUDIBLE) and my aunt and my cousin, Kimberly and Jessica, I love all y'all. Can't wait to see you.
CARROLL: All right. I wish we could give all the guys back here an opportunity to speak to their families, but if any of you out there watching, you see a familiar face, you're here right now, they're safe, they're doing a great job and Happy Fourth of July to all. Back to you, Kyra.
PHILLIPS: And Jason, I remember you telling me months ago that you wanted to follow these guys all the way to Afghanistan, and you did it. What's the biggest change you've seen in the gentlemen to your right from the very beginning when they were getting ready to go to Afghanistan to right now, boots on the ground?
CARROLL: You know, that's a great question, Kyra. You know, with Randy Shorter and his family, I think, the biggest change that I have seen is just you do see how it wears on them, but you also just see this resilience. And to me, it's incredible to see how they are out there. We've just been with them for a few days and up, you know, early hours, we're going to go on a mission later on after all done with all this.
It's amazing to me to see how tough these guys really are and how they do it and just taken all in stride. You know, they see the losses. They see the good. They see the bad, but it's interesting to see how some of them lost weight, some of them put on a little bit more muscle, depending who (ph) we were talking to, but you do see how it's worn on them, being here during this time.
But you also see the camaraderie and the closeness that these guys have. So, it's just been an honor to be able to do this series and to see these guys for the past year or so and see how they've developed. It's been incredible. An incredible experience.
PHILLIPS: All right. Jason Carroll live in Afghanistan there with the troops. Jason, thank you so much.
Coming up, what the space campers think about the last shuttle mission ever?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Disappointing.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PHILLIPS: Aspiring astronauts try to adapt to NASA's new vision. We're going to talk to them from space camp.
Surveillance video shows a bomb squad officer at work. Car bomb explodes, sending him flying, but he survives. His story, next.
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PHILLIPS: All right. If you have any doubt about how dangerous it is to be a bomb tech. You're going to want to watch this. CNNs Monita Rajpal joining us from London with the incredible pictures. Almost hard to believe this guy survives, Monita.
MONITA RAJPAL, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: It's absolutely unbelievable, Kyra. When you look at these images. This photo shot was caught on CCTV in a city in the southern of Thailand. The bomb squads, the police were called to after a tip off that a car maybe late (ph) with explosive. You got to take a look at this. Absolutely amazing.
This police officer, a member of the bomb squad, I should say, they're standing next to this car, and (INAUDIBLE) explodes, and he's blown away. But get this, he actually gets up and walks away as if nothing happen. Now, he is being treated for some injuries. They're not saying, you know, the --what extensive of his injuries are, but absolutely amazing.
Police believe -- the authorities believe that the bomb was made and planted by separatist militant in that part of the country. But absolutely, amazing. I can't even believe just watching it.
PHILLIPS: Yes. And do we know anything, any details about the tip on this car or who might have been involved or terrorist activity?
RAJPAL: Not much is known about in terms of the tip off, but according to this -- that was seen that police were saying that they were able to see a man leaving the scene just hours before, leaving the car, and walking away from it. Now, this is an area that has seen an uptick in separatist violence. It is mainly a move in nation -- it's a move from nation, but it also has Buddhist followers there as well. So, there have been clashes in that part of the country, but again, there's been no other information in terms of who is behind it. they're calling it, perhaps, separatist attack.
PHILLIPS: OK. We'll follow it, and it is remarkable to see how this guy survived that moment. Monita, thanks so much.
All right. With "Atlantis" about to lift off for the shuttle program's last mission. CNN is going in depth on space week, and NASA re-thinks its future, aspiring astronauts are having to reshape theirs, too. CNN's Brooke Baldwin talked to some of them at space camp.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BROOKE BALDWIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): They're at the top of their class.
Who really is good at science and math?
Even though, the space shuttle program is coming to an end, the desire of these space campers to be astronauts is as strong as ever.
What do you want to do when you grow up?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I hope to become an astronaut.
BALDWIN: It's that heroic quality so appealing to children from all eras that pushes these youngsters toward space.
What do you guys think of astronauts?
UNIDENTIFIED KID: Brave, determined, talented. All that stuff.
BALDWIN: About 30,000 elementary through high school students come through space camp each and every year at the U.S. Space and Rocket Center in Huntsville, Alabama. Their week of astronaut training culminates in a mock shuttle mission.
How do you feel about it, the last space shuttle going up?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Disappointing.
BALDWIN: Disappointing? Deborah Barnhart is the chief here at space camp.
So, what do you say then, because the space shuttle program is ending with the "Atlantis," and all these kids right here are prepping for mission on a space shuttle, but that's going to end this year? So, then what for space camp?
DEBORAH BARNHART, CEO, U.S. SPACE & ROCKER CTR. SPACE CAMP: The end of the space shuttle is just like a graduation to me. We're moving on in our national space program to something else.
BALDWIN: And these campers have lots of ideas for that something else.
What do you want to do when you go to space?
AVERY DALFREY, SPACE CAMP TRAINEE: Go to Mars.
BALDWIN: Mars?
DALFREY: I'm going to be the first woman on Mars.
BALDWIN: High five, sister.
DALFREY: I know one day we're going to live on other planets.
BALDWIN: You think so?
DALFREY: Yes, definitely.
BALDWIN: How are we going to breathe?
DALFREY: Well, I mean, there are going to be oxygen generators.
BALDWIN (voice-over): As far-fetched as it sounds, these whiz kids are right on target. Barnhart says they are already planning that next phase of space camp to include inflatable space habitats.
BALDWIN (on camera): What's an inflatable?
BARNHART: Where you can launch a structure, collapsed inside of a rocket. And then, once you get it into space, pressurize it, like -- like an inflatable balloon. But they're inflatable structures that can be used on the surface of the moon or in lower orbit or anywhere in space.
BALDWIN (voice-over): Perhaps pushing the next generation of astronauts further into the next frontier.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
PHILLIPS: Now, how old are these whiz kids?
BALDWIN: They are -- I'm telling you one of those kids you just saw, wearing his little NASA flight suit, he was explaining, Kyra Phillips, nuclear propulsion to me. He is 12 years of age which was so awesome.
But basically if you're parents out there and here we are in the summer months. You can go to Space Camp, its fourth graders through high school. I might have been going into high school when I went. So, I got to fulfill my dream, getting my own flight suit. Space nerd alert. But anyway, it's 50 weeks a year, 30,000 kids. And it's just an awesome program to instill just a sense of awe of what is space, even space shuttle, beyond -- beyond the shuttle.
PHILLIPS: Well, now that our space program is going away, what happens to the camp?
BALDWIN: Well, that's an excellent question. I think that's really the challenge they face. Deborah Barnhart, who is the CEO, essentially told me, look, it -- it will reflect what -- what our space exploration will reflect.
We heard Charlie Boulden last week saying, look it's the end of the shuttle but it's the next phase of exploration. So then, they'll have to have you know, opportunities for kids to learn how to go to Mars and to go to other planets. So it's -- they'll have to change. They won't be going up in a space shuttle but will be hopping , you know, picking rides and other vehicles with other countries to get out to the ISS.
PHILLIPS: Or they're will be building their own space shuttle and figuring out how to do it without the program.
BALDWIN: Exactly. Exactly.
PHILLIPS: You just need some money from Richard Branson to do that.
BALDWIN: Yes ma'am.
PHILLIPS: All right, thanks.
BALDWIN: They'll figure it out.
PHILLIPS: Thank you.
All right, we're going to get some more insight with this huge change for NASA from retired astronaut Jeff Ashby (ph), he's actually going to talk about his three shuttle missions on "Columbia", "Endeavour" and "Atlantis." He's a good friend and let me tell you, he will get you excited about what we've learned with regard to our space travels. He's going to join us Thursday morning.
And don't forget CNN is your place to watch the final shuttle launch; it's set for a week from Friday. Our coverage begins 10:00 a.m. Eastern Time.
And in just over an hour, America's son, Joey Chestnut is trying to repeat last year's victory at, yes, Nathan's famous Fourth of July hotdog-eating contest. We will talk to the top dog of this competitive eating federation and possibly one of the new contestants.
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PHILLIPS: Checking stories making news across country, wildfires have burned through entire forests in New Mexico. But police are letting at least 10,000 evacuees back in their homes. That's pretty much the entire population of Los Alamos right near where this is happening.
Just in time for the busy holiday, the Minnesota Zoo is back open this morning despite the state government shutdown. A judge ruled that the zoo could use money from other sources like membership and parking to keep it running. Minnesota's government shut down Friday when lawmakers failed to reach agreement on a new budget.
The apartment where James "Whitey" Bulger was arrested a hot property right now. Bulger is the reputed Boston mob boss who was on the lam for 16 years until his arrest two weeks ago. The apartment's owner in Santa Monica says, he's getting all kinds of phone calls. One reason could be those callers are looking for money that could be stashed away hidden in the walls where the feds found more than $800,000.
Well, we're following lots of developments in the next hour of the CNN NEWSROOM.
Let's check in first with David Mattingly at the Casey Anthony trial in Orlando -- David.
DAVID MATTINGLY, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Kyra, the prosecution is wrapping up its closing arguments right now. And soon it will be on the hands of the jury. They will decide the fate of Casey Anthony. I'll have the latest for you at the top of the hour.
REYNOLDS WOLF, AMS METEOROLOGIST: And as the nation celebrates its birthday, a lot of people are going took be staying home but some people are going to be heading on to the coast. Happy holiday forecast coming up in a few moments. Plus, I'll let you know what kind of weather you can expect as you head home.
BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: I'm Brianna Keilar at the White House where we have quite a mixed bag. A big Fourth of July party, that impasse between the White House and Congress over raising the debt ceiling that continues. And yes, its official there's now a teenager living in the White House. I'll have details at the top of the hour.
PHILLIPS: All right, thanks guys.
Now, capturing that moment for military families when someone they love comes home from war. Coming up next hour, we're going to talk to the man who's come up with an amazingly powerful way to share that joy with the rest of the world.
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PHILLIPS: The stories developing later today, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge take part in a dragon boat race while visiting Prince Edward Island. That's at 12:45 Eastern.
The crew of Space Shuttle "Atlantis" which lifts off Friday arrives at the Kennedy Space Center at about 2:45 Eastern today.
And at 8:00 Eastern, CBS stations will broadcast the Fourth of July Independence Day concert on the National Mall in Washington. Well, it's July 4th. Biggest day of the year for competitive eaters. We're just about two hours away from Nathan's famous hotdog-eating contest. In just minutes, we're going to talk to the competitive eating top dog, George Shay.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
PHILLIPS: Well, in just over an hour, people from places like Las Vegas, Queens and Cleveland will vie for the Mustard Yellow Belt. Of course, I'm talking about Nathan's famous Fourth of July hotdog-eating contest. George Shay, the top dog of competitive eating joins me live.
And at the last minute. Our fearless competitor. Fantastic. George, tell me who is next to you.
This is Larelle Marie (ph) "The Real Meal Melee". She's one of the top rising rookies in the sport on the female division.
PHILLIPS: You know throughout time, we're going to talk Larelle in a second here but you know it's the right time. Women have achieved the number of equal rights, George; we know that. Voting, running for president; Now they're going to have their own hot dog table.
Just put into perspective for me, for all Americans pivotal this moment is in history.
GEORGE SHEA, INTERNATIONAL FEDERATION OF COMPETITIVE EATING: Well, let me just tell you something. I mean not since Betty Ferdann, not since Billie Jean King, Joan of Arc has there been such a forward step in the effort to achieve gender equality.
But you know, these are a (INAUDIBLE) of the stomach. And what I saw this year was, of course, Sonia Thomas -- 40 hot dogs and buns to get here. But we had four women consume more than 20 hotdogs, to earn a spot at the table which is really impressive.
PHILLIPS: Now, Larelle, you have equal rights. You have broken the hot-dog glass ceiling. This is historic. Tell me what it means to you and what's the message to the boys?
SHEA: What does it mean to you?
LARELLE: There's no stopping us now. I mean for this -- this is a dream come true. I have to say, this is probably the second most exciting that's ever happened to me, other than my wedding.
PHILLIPS: Ask her if she's got a message for the boys.
SHEA: Do you have a message for the boys today?
LARELLE: Look out. There's nothing we can't do now. We're going to take some of you down.
PHILLIPS: I love it. Larelle, we will be watching you. George Shea, it's always fun to talk to you. This is one of our favorite traditions on the Fourth of July.
Have fun, guys. We'll be following it.
SHEA: Thank you for being here. Happy Fourth of July.
PHILLIPS: Happy fourth to you and good luck to Larelle.
