Return to Transcripts main page
CNN Newsroom
Deadly Meningitis Outbreak Grows; Endeavour's Final Journey; Wounded Teen Activist Moves Her Limbs
Aired October 13, 2012 - 19:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: Hello, everyone. I'm Don Lemon. You are in the CNN NEWSROOM.
We're going to get you up to speed for some of the stories that are making headlines this hour.
New developments in the deadly meningitis outbreak. The CDC is reporting more than a dozen new cases of fungal meningitis and another fatality. The death toll now stands at 15. Overall, 198 cases of fungal meningitis are confirmed across 13 states.
The outbreak is linked to contaminated steroid injections used to relieve back and neck pain. Fourteen people have gotten the tainted injections.
The Free Syrian Army says it shot down a military jet that was unleashing attacks from the air. Rebels in the video chanted "God is great" as they celebrated.
But there was no let-up today in the violence. The opposition says at least 110 people were killed across the country.
Republican Mitt Romney is mixing political rallies with debate prep this weekend. He held an event just a short time ago in Lebanon, Ohio, and he spent the morning getting ready for Tuesday's second presidential debate.
During the rally, he criticized the president's policies toward China.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MITT ROMNEY (R), PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE: This president on Friday -- on Friday, the administration was to put out the answer to the question has China manipulated their currency or not? And they were supposed to designate that on Friday. They came out and said, well, we're not going to do that, actually. We're going to wait until after the election to have that.
You see, they've gone seven times so far and they passed the buck on that. I'm not going to pass that off. On day one, I will label China a currency manipulator. We're going to get serious about making sure people don't cheat when it comes to trade.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: Mitt Romney sounding a little tired there. These guys are keeping relentless schedules.
President Obama is off the campaign trail. He's doing some serious debate prep today at a resort in Williamsburg, Virginia.
Scary moments for volunteers working to reelect President Obama to tell you about. Police in Denver say someone fired a single shot yesterday into an Obama campaign office. Well, luckily no one was hurt, but people were inside the office at the time. No one got a look at the suspect. But police say they do have a possible lead on a vehicle.
A big security breach at the TD Bank. The company confirms to CNN that data tapes containing the personal information of 260,000 customers have been, quote, "misplaced."
Most of the people affected by this incident live in New England. A TD Bank spokesman says there's no evidence the information has been accessed or is being misused in any way. Affected customers have been offered free credit monitoring and identity theft protection.
Thieves stole a whole bunch of new Benjamins from the Federal Reserve. The FBI says thieves took a large amount of $100 bills that were headed for a federal facility in New Jersey. The $100 bills have a special design not due out until next year. So the bills are very distinct.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KYW, JOHN COSENZA: Like to get a call from, you know, a store or consumer that has seen these hundred dollar bills or had access to them.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: The money was transported Thursday from Dallas with a stopover in Philadelphia.
Former television host and actor Gary Collins died today in Biloxi, Mississippi. Collins was known for starring roles in the television series "The Sixth Sense" and "Born Free." He was also the longtime host of the syndicated TV show "Our Magazine," and a former master of ceremonies for the Miss America pageant. He was married to former Miss America Mary Ann Mobley.
Gary Collins died of natural causes at the age of 74.
It is the slowest parade ever and there's only one float in it. But I want you to take a look at this. Thousands of people are lined up along Los Angeles streets for a very surreal and historic close view of the space shuttle Endeavor.
And some people didn't even have to leave their homes to see it. You know, the shuttle cruised right past their windows. Endeavor is on the home stretch of a final 12-mile journey, carefully making its way to its retirement home at a California Science Center. Casey Wian on the streets right now slowly alongside Endeavour and John Zarrella is there, as well, with gaggle of onlookers on the rooftop in downtown Los Angeles.
John, where is this shuttle now?
JOHN ZARRELLA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It's getting here slowly. It's probably still -- you know, Don, people have been asking me all along the route. And you can see here, you know, there are thousands of people who have gathered here. This is a shopping mall and right outside the shopping mall is an area where the shuttle was going to make a second stop for a ceremony. The first one was earlier this morning.
But it hasn't gotten here yet. It is already two hours behind schedule and the problem was they ran into some -- I'm going to bring in Stephanie Stilson from NASA.
And, Stephanie, run into some issues here. You knew those things were out there. But, you know, a little more problematic than probably first thought.
STEPHANIE STILSON, NASA: Yes, they knew they were going to have to -- I call it -- crab between the trees. You can do a lot of motion to get back forward very precise movement along the way. Also crowd control, people wanted to get close, so police force is having to back people up. That slowed things down.
And once again, want to get here safely, but it's taking longer than we expected.
ZARRELLA: And even right at the 11th hour, trimming trees back, right?
STILSON: Yes, in some cases, we had a group with us who would take of any of trimming trees. They didn't have to cut any initial trees down, but they had to trim some back once again.
The outside of the vehicle is made of tile and blankets. If you were to scrape those against a tree branch, it's going to tear it up. And we don't want to that along the route. We want to get there in perfect condition. That's what we're trying to do.
ZARRELLA: And I know this is a spectacular outpouring of support has got to be pleasing to the heart to you.
STILSON: Actually, I'm amazed people continue to show up. Here we are two hours late, people are still showing up. So, I've heard from the guys walking with it that the crowds along the way are cheering and screaming chanting America. So great experience for the team that's moving it, as well.
ZARRELLA: Great, Step. Thanks so much for being with us and spending the entire day out here with us.
And, Don, yes, the amazing thing you see out here are people carrying American flags, with space shuttle t-shirts on, you know, folks with their kids out here. A lot of these people have been gathered at this spot for more than five hours now waiting on the shuttle.
And, you know, quite frankly, very few of them have given up. They're not going home because for so many of these people here, it is a once- in-a-lifetime opportunity to see a space shuttle so close up that they can almost touch it -- Don.
LEMON: All right. Hey, John, standby.
I want to get to Casey Wian who's -- Casey is on the street right now with Endeavor."
And joining us by phone because this is -- everything is moving and so we can't get -- we can't see him.
So, Casey, tell us where you are. You're down on the streets with this thing. Look at the beautiful pictures.
CASEY WIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (via telephone): Yes, I'm on Crenshaw Boulevard, Don. And we've got a huge crowd here as the shuttle is passing the intersection of Crenshaw and 60th Street as John Zarrella was mentioning it, way behind schedule. They told us it's going to be moving along at two miles an hour. Well, if this is moving at two miles an hour, I'm Carl Lewis. It has been crawling throughout most of the day.
Some of the reasons -- John and his guests alluded to in terms of the obstacles, but also these crowds out here have surprised people. One of the organizers told me that he believes as many as a million folks will come out over these two days to look at the shuttle in person.
So, it's really an incredible spectacle seeing everyone out here with their cameras, cheering, chanting USA, USA, the children with just awe in their eyes. You know, it's one of the things that the folks who are organizing this say they hope the shuttle will eventually do and that will be to attract young kids to pursue careers and education in math and science as the space program continues.
And judging by the sparkle in some of their eyes, that's very likely to happen, Don.
LEMON: Thank you very much. We're going to continue to follow this.
Also John Zarrella there, live here 10:00 as it moves closer to that museum, Endeavor, live going through the streets of Los Angeles.
Other news now -- more trouble for Lance Armstrong. London's "Sunday Times" is considering a lawsuit against the seven-time Tour de France winner. "The Times" settled a libel case with Armstrong back in 2004, but the newspaper might pursue him for fraud because of the evidence released by the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency this week.
CNN's Anderson Cooper spoke with a former teammate who said the team's doping program was all about Lance.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TYLER HAMILTON, FORMER PROFESSIONAL CYCLIST: The first time I ever blood doped was with Lance and it was certainly for Lance, basically. You know, it was -- I blood doped myself, you know. It was done by the team, but it was done for the Tour de France. So I could be a good teammate for Lance Armstrong.
Yes, I mean, a lot of the -- you know, he wanted you to be riding at your best when in the biggest races and for Lance, it was all about winning the Tour de France.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: The fallout from that report isn't over yet. Former pro- cyclist Matt White stepping down from his job as sports director for an Australian team after admitting to doping while riding with Armstrong's U.S. Postal team.
You have seen protests before, but probably not many like this.
Children in the streets shouting, carrying signs after a young hero is shot. Her story, her condition, next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: New developments tonight about a 14-year-old Pakistani girl who survived an assassination attack by the Taliban. Malala Yousufzai moved her limbs today according to a Pakistani military spokesman. Children in Pakistan and beyond are praying for her swift recovery.
Malala is well known for blogging about how girls should have rights in Pakistan. She defended the rights of girls to go to school where she lives in the Taliban-heavy Swat Valley. Her writing earned her Pakistan's first National Peace Prize. Malala was riding home in a school van Tuesday when gunmen shot her in the neck.
Doctors say Malala is in stable but critical condition. She is unconscious and on a ventilator. Her family is terrified to give away the location, fearing that Taliban members who would gun down a teenager wouldn't hesitate to come after them.
CNN's Reza Sayah has the latest on the efforts to track down the suspects.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
REZA SAYAH, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Pakistani authorities say they have made another set of arrests in connection with the shooting of 14-year-old Malala Yousufzai, a police chief in a district one hour south of where Malala was shot saying three people are in custody, calling them suspects, but it's not clear how they were linked to this incident.
In the meantime, Malala still in critical condition in a leading military hospital. Doctors say they're still monitoring the swelling in her brain. The good news, they say, is her vitals, her pulse, her blood pressure remains stable.
In the meantime, the top military spokesperson is telling CNN in graphic detail where exactly Malala was shot.
MAJ. GEN. ASIM SALEEM BAJWA, PAKISTANI ARMY SPOKESMAN: She got hit on the left side behind the forehead and then --
SAYAH: So she got hit directly in the head?
BAJWA: Yes. She got hit in the head and then it traveled through here through the neck and went behind the shoulder and rested next to the backbone.
SAYAH: Was this a point-blank shot?
BAJWA: It was a point-blank shot, yes.
SAYAH: Are you surprised she's even alive today?
BAJWA: Yes, everyone is surprised. That she's alive today.
SAYAH: So, was it a small caliber gun?
BAJWA: Yes. I think it was .9 millimeter probably.
SAYAH: Have you ever seen someone get shot in the head with a .9 millimeter and survive?
BAJWA: Such cases are very rare you get hit directly in the head and you still survive.
SAYAH: It's incredible. Are you shocked that she's alive today?
BAJWA: Yes. I was surprised, too.
SAYAH: Doctors continue to say the coming days are going to be crucial in Malala's recovery. In the meantime, the outpouring of support continues, more prayer vigils, more rallies scheduled on Sunday in Pakistan -- the biggest one in Karachi where tens of thousands of people are expected to turn out.
Reza Sayah, CNN, Islamabad.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON: He's trying to do something no man has ever done before, sky dive from nearly 23 miles up in space. He'll plummet to Earth at the speed of sound. That's next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: Felix Baumgartner is really determined to be the first skydiver to break the sound barrier. The former Austrian paratrooper will try his hot air balloon jump tomorrow. Remember, he had top cancel his mission on Tuesday due to high winds.
CNN's Max Foster has more on the extreme athlete with extreme determination.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MAX FOSTER, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Set to do what no man has ever done before. Jump from a capsule attached to a giant balloon from 120,000 feet with a view that looks like this.
FELIX BAUMGARTNER, SKY DIVER: I'm going to slide the door open, and I'm going to be the first human person in freefall to break the speed of sound.
FOSTER: He makes it sound simple enough, but Felix Baumgartner's attempt to jump from the edge of space comes after five years of exhaustive testing, development, and even a legal hitch.
(on camera): What's the biggest challenge here? Why has no one tried it before, and what's the challenge that you have managed to overcome, to make it possible?
BAUMGARTNER: It needs a lot of research. It's not just you lock yourself in a pressure capsule and go up. You need a lot of research. You need to find the right people to work with.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: OK. Now we're going to get serious. We're going to depressurize the cabin pit at 120,000 feet. So, hit the dump valveand let's have a ride.
FOSTER (voice-over): Among those on his Red Bull Stratos team, Colonel Joe Kissinger who holds the 52-year-old record Baumgartner is attempting to break. The former U.S. Air Force test pilot helped develop the NASA astronaut program.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Beautiful. Beautiful.
FOSTER: Baumgartner is no stranger to death-defying stunts. He has base jumped from the world's tallest buildings. Set a record for the lowest such jump off Rio's Christ the Redeemer statue, and completed the first crossing of the English Channel with a specially made fiber wing.
But freefalling from the edge of space is a whole new ballgame.
(on camera): I guess the people imagine someone diving off a diving board, have you to keep that position, don't you, because it would be very easy to spin out of control.
BAUMGARTNER: So the first 30 seconds you cannot use the air. And that requires really stable exit. That's the reason where we practice a lot of bungee jumps.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Perfect.
BAUMGARTNER: Just to get the right motion into my mind.
FOSTER: Are you not scared in any way? BAUMGARTNER: Well, I am scared because you go up to 120,000 feet, which is a really hostile environment, and no matter how much you have prepared yourself, you never know how it turns out until you do it for real.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON: Just 24 days, 24 days until Election Day, and your right to vote may be at stake. Democrats say Republican-controlled state legislatures are on a mission to toughen election laws with the goal of suppressing the Democratic vote.
In Florida, the legislature which is controlled by the GOP decided to eliminate the Sunday before Election Day as an early voting day. It's a day known as "Souls to the Polls" when African-Americans typically leave church to vote.
Here now is our Joe Johns with a preview of his documentary "Voters in America: Who Counts" -- Joe.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DENNIS BAXLEY (R), FLORIDA STATE HOUSE: You want your country back? I want mine back. Don't have an election if they don't come, right?
JOE JOHNS, CNN CRIME AND JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): For Dennis Baxley, the GOP primary marks the maiden voyage of the election law he crafted.
BAXLEY: Election is all about turnout. For the primary on Tuesday, we're working right now to get around Saturday morning. This is the grassroots. Precinct walking.
We are going right on the street. You know what the number is, I'll just go house-to-house.
Good morning. I'm Dennis Baxley. Can I give you a little brochure from Mr. Romney?
This is supervisor of election's office in Marion County, Florida, and this is the last early voting day.
JOHNS: It was Baxley who agreed to change the last day of early voting from Sunday to Saturday.
PROF. DANIEL SMITH, UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA: What the data from 2008 showed quite clearly is that African-Americans preferred to vote on the Sundays and did so in proportions much greater than their overall numbers.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: On the Sunday prior to Election Day, after church services, people got on buses and they rolled to the supervisor of election's office and they voted.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We may take 200 or 300 people to vote.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Take your souls to the polls.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No longer is that day available.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: How does eliminating that day affect voter fraud?
JOHNS (on camera): Why take away that last Sunday?
BAXLEY: Why? It's a scheduling issue. You can still vote on Sunday. It's just a different Sunday.
Knock yourself out, load a bus, go vote the Sunday before.
JOHNS: But that Sunday was the big Sunday where so many people went straight from church to the polls.
BAXLEY: Well, I felt like we had too narrow of a window. There was only 24 hours to change hour over from early voting format to the general election format.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON: And you can see the entire Joe Johns documentary, "Voters in America," who counts, tomorrow 8:00 p.m. Eastern and Pacific right here on CNN.
Billions of dollars of your money being spent to refurbish these. Rows upon rows of Bradley tanks, but the Army says, listen, we don't need you to do this. So why is this happening? That's next.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: You don't have to be in front of a television to watch CNN. You can do what I do. You can stay connected. You can do it on your cell phone or do it from your computer at work. Just go to CNN.com/TV.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: Taxpayers on the hook to refurbish more than 2,000 tanks that the Army admits we don't need. We're talking about weapons built back in the 1980s, collecting dust in a parking lot.
So who's telling the Army it needs to update these tanks when it says we can save billions if we don't?
Drew Griffin investigates now.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DREW GRIFFIN, CNN SPECIAL INVESTIGATIONS UNIT (voice-over): It's a remarkable sight parked in the California desert, more than 2,000 of them, row upon row of M1 Abrams tanks, built by General Dynamics beginning in the 1980s. Most of them are still ready to roll. So when the U.S. Army's budget folks sat down to make some tough decisions about what to cut, they saw a great opportunity. Postpone what they said would be a $3 billion expense, the refurbishing of hundreds of these tanks at this General Dynamics plant in Lima, Ohio.
U.S. Army's chief of staff marched up to Capitol Hill with a great idea.
GENERAL RAYMOND T. ODIERNO, CHIEF OF STAFF, U.S. ARMY: In Lima, it would cost us $2.8 billion just to keep that open. And we -- our tank fleet is in good shape. We don't need to -- because of the great support we've gotten over the last few years --
GRIFFIN: And he had support.
Travis Sharp, who studies defense spending at Center for a New American Security, says the proposed cuts of tanks were a no-brainer.
TRAVIS SHARP, CENTER FOR A NEW AMERICAN SECURITY: When you relatively conservative institution like the U.S. military, which does not like to take risks, because risks get people killed, says that it has enough tanks -- I think, generally, civilians should be inclined to believe them.
GRIFFIN: But while the defense bill isn't finished yet, you, the taxpayer, are still likely to be on the hook -- for fixing up tanks the Army doesn't want.
(on camera): So who decided the general was wrong, that he actually does need more tanks? I'll give you one word: Congress.
SHARP: I think that there are better things that they could be doing with that $3 billion. But the fact that the military is having such a hard time getting this relatively small amount of money to be saved, I think is an indication of the huge uphill fight that the military faces when it comes to Congress. Congress is going to fight tooth and nail to protect defense investments that benefit their constituents and the people that live in their states.
GRIFFIN (voice-over): Congressman Buck McKeon is chairman of the House Armed Services Committee.
(on camera): Why refurbish tanks the Army doesn't want?
REP. BUCK MCKEON (R-CA), CHAIRMAN OF THE ARMED SERVICES COMMITTEE: You know, the Army has a job to do and we have a job to do. And they have tough choices because they have been having their budget cut, you know, with the first cuts, the half a trillion dollars and now sequestration on top of that.
But we have to look long range. If somebody could guarantee us that we'll never need tanks in the future, that would be good. I don't see that guarantee.
GRIFFIN (voice-over): McKeon is a Republican. But in this divided Congress, Democrats and Republicans agree on one thing -- 173 congressmen signed this letter calling for the tanks to keep rolling off the refurbishing line.
REP. SILVESTRE REYES (D), TEXAS: Listen, we don't want to play Russian roulette with the national security of this country.
GRIFFIN: Why such bipartisan harmony on what should be an easy spending cut? Is it national security or is it congressional job security? Like almost everything up here on Capitol Hill, what's on the surface may not be the whole story.
AARON MEHTA, THE CENTER FOR PUBLIC INTEGRITY: We're not saying there's buying votes, we're saying it isn't true in pretty much every aspect of politics especially in the defense industry. It's almost impossible to separate out the money that is going into elections and the special interest. And what we found was the direct spike in the giving around certain important dates that were tied to these votes.
GRIFFIN: It turns out when the Army asked Congress to cut the tanks, the company that has the tank refurbishing contract, General Dynamics began to spend some cash. Aaron Mehta and the Center for Public Integrity began tracking the money, the votes, and the lobbyists hired by General Dynamics to try to keep rebuilding the tanks the Army doesn't want. What they found, campaign contributions given at key times.
Congress did cut much of the tank refurbishing but not all. Leaving $181 million in the budget for next year. A spokesman for General Dynamics says there's nothing surprising about the dates the firm gave its money. It's when Congress was in town and fundraisers were being held. "Our money is bipartisan" said General Dynamics' Kendell Pease.
Congressman McKeon says he didn't even know General Dynamics had given him $56,000 since becoming chairman of the House Arms Services Committee.
GRIFFIN (on camera): Since you've been chairman, people associate with General Dynamics have sent $56,000 into your campaign.
REP. BUCK MCKEON (R), ARMED SERVICES CHAIRMAN: I'm taking your word for that because I don't go to my reports and see that.
GRIFFIN: Well, I'm telling you.
MCKEON: Oh. OK.
GRIFFIN: Isn't this corporate welfare year after year after year for General Dynamics?
MCKEON: This isn't about General Dynamics, it's about keeping a workforce to provide for the defense of our nation.
GRIFFIN (voice-over): Congressman Reyes who has received $64,000 from general dynamics SINCE 2001 says he too is worried about the workforce. And we contacted general Dynamics about this, the company told us the same thing. It's about the ability in the future to make new tanks when the Army is ready. General Dynamics argues it's cheaper to keep this plant going now than to shut it down entirely and then have to pay for it to come back up in the future. It wants to protect the industrial base.
A theme echoed by McKeon and Reyes, which brings us to one final thought. The army does want to upgrade the M-1 tank beginning in 2017, who do you think will get that contract? Ask Congressman Buck McKeon.
MCKEON: It's General Dynamics would probably get the contract for it anyway because they're kind of the ones out there leading the way on this.
GRIFFIN: For General Dynamics, the future in tanks looks pretty good.
Drew Griffin, CNN, Furlong (ph), California.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: Bottom of the hour now. I want to get you caught up on the headlines.
There are some new developments to tell you about in that deadly meningitis outbreak. CDC reports more than a dozen new cases of fungal meningitis. And it's also reporting another fatality. The death toll now 15. Overall 198 cases of meningitis confirmed across 13 states. The outbreak, linked to contaminated steroid injections used to relieve back and neck pain. 14,000 people may have gotten those tainted injections.
Big security breach at the New Jersey based TD Bank. The company confirms to CNN that data tapes containing personal information, 260,000 customers have been "misplaced." Most of the people affected by this incident live in New England. A TD Bank spokesman says there's no evidence the information has been assessed or is being misused in any way. Affected customers have been offered free credit monitoring and identity theft protection.
Republican Mitt Romney mixing political rallies with debate prep. He held two events today in Ohio and he spent several hours this morning getting ready for Tuesday's second presidential showdown. President Obama also getting prepared for the town hall-style debate. He headed to a resort in Williamsburg, Virginia today for some distraction-free practice sessions with his top advisers.
Thieves stole a whole bunch of brand new Benjamin's from the Federal Reserve. The FBI says they took a large amount of $100 bills that were headed for a federal facility in New Jersey. The $100 bills have a special design not due out until next year so the bills are very distinct.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We like to get a call from a store or a consumer that has seen these $100 bills or has had access to them.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: The money was transported Thursday from Dallas with a stopover in Philadelphia.
A scary moment for a young man running a triathlon when his prosthetic limb breaks. But tears make the way for cheers. His story is next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: It is an inspiring story of someone making their mark and getting hundreds and thousands of views on CNN ireport. It happened during the Sea Turtle Kids Triathlon in Pensacola, Florida just last weekend. An 11-year-old boy's prosthetic limb broke in half. A local marine who had volunteered to help monitor the course picked him up and ran with him the rest of the way. HLN's Kyra Phillips talked with the pair.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MATT MORGAN, U.S. MARINE CORPS: I asked him, "Hey, do you need some help?" He looked at me and was like, "No, I'm going to finish." And after another moment he was continuing to try to fix his prosthetic and knew that, you know, he couldn't fix it. So looked at me again and I said, "You know, hop on, buddy." And so, we finished the race that way.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: Well, the group finally crossed the finish line to a roar of cheers.
You could say residents of the tiny town of Kennebunk, Maine, are a little on edge. They're awaiting the release of the names of more than 100 men, many believed to be prominent members of the community who police alleged are part of a prostitution ring. The woman at the center of the allegations, a local fitness instructor.
CNN's Susan Candiotti has the latest.
SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Don, it's a scandal that has the folks in Kennebunk, Maine, buzzing. A lot of people want to know who is on the list of alleged johns. Customers of a woman accused of running a sex ring with Zumba classes on the side. The accused clients can breathe a sigh of relief for now until Maine's Supreme Court rules on an appeal to keep those names under wraps. But their lawyers admit, it's an uphill battle.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
STEVEN SCHWARZ, ATTORNEY: These people are presumed innocent. Once these names are released, they're going to all have a mark of a scarlet letter, if you will. Just for the charge itself and just for their name getting out there. Let alone the fact that this is a class E misdemeanor, a least serous crime in the state of Maine for which there is likely to be a fine.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CANDIOTTI: Lawyers for accused John Doe one and John Doe number two argue that outing the men would be humiliating and shameful for their families, especially awful for their children. In court documents obtained by CNN affiliate WGME, one man describes himself as disabled, another as a businessman.
Fitness instructor Alexis Wright has pleaded not guilty, so has her business partner, Mark Strong. He is charged with being her pimp. His lawyer says some of the alleged customers include a lawyer and a local TV personality. Wright is accused of having sex with customers right there in the exercise studio and videotaping some of her liaisons.
A local judge ruled the name should be revealed just like the Zumba instructors, but the Kennebunk police chief is keeping the names secret a bit longer until the Maine Supreme Court has a chance to rule. Local newspaper editor says she's ready to publish the names of the accused Johns. In her view, it's only fair since they're also accused of a crime. Don?
LEMON: Susan, thank you very much.
Up next, she's an accomplished singer, song writer, Jewel takes questions from CNN I-reporters and gives us some insight into how she became such a superstar.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: Her haunting melodies filled coffee houses around the country for years becoming the personal soundtrack for millions of her fans. Now singer/songwriter Jewel takes questions from CNN's ireporters.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JEWEL, SINGER/SONGWRITER: I didn't think I was that unique. I was writing songs, but I didn't think they were that good. The fact that somebody ever believed in me or thought my life was valuable or special, meant a lot to me. Because I really didn't know how to value it.
Hi, this is Jewel, and I'm answering your I-report questions.
CHRIS SORIANO, CNN I-REPORTER: Hey, Jewel, I'm here in downtown San Diego where there's dozens of coffee houses here behind me. Could you talk about the importance of coffee houses and how they helped you early in your career?
JEWEL: Chris, I like you, you did some research, you're from my little home stomping ground of San Diego. So, yes, coffee houses, they really helped break me, actually. Got discovered singing at a coffee house in San Diego.
I think it gives young singer/songwriters an outlet and a place to sing. And to me, the most important thing if you wanted to get discovered isn't rubbing elbows with celebrities, it's being great. So you need to cut your teeth and you need to sing live and you need to be great. And if you're great, people will start to listen, you'll build a buzz and then these people will find you. ANDY CLINTON, CNN I-REPORTER: Hi, Jewel. I really like the video you made where you gave yourself a secret identity to go sing your songs in a karaoke bar. But if you weren't singing your own songs, whose songs would you sing on karaoke night? Thanks.
JEWEL: Well, thank you, Andy. You have a lot of action figures in your house. Well, whose songs would I sing if I didn't sing my own? Many of them, I'm a fan of so many songwriters. Gosh, Tracy Chapman growing up. Oh, my gosh, Odetta, I could name so many, I wouldn't even know where to begin. There's so many great talents out there.
MELISSA FAZLI, CNN I-REPORTER: Hi, Jewel. What personally inspired you to become part of Child Hunger Ends Here? Thank you.
JEWEL: One in five kids in America don't know where the next meal is coming from, and that's 16 million kids in our country alone, that's in our backyard. So it's really every where, every race, creed, color, every economic background. So it's good to help.
All right. Rummel, big fan of the name rummel.
RUMMEL PINERA, CNN I-REPORTER: Jewel, which of the songs have you written and recorded so far that you consider as your most favorite? Why were you named Jewel by your parents?
JEWEL: Rummel, I like that you snuck two questions in and I'm going to answer them. My favorite song is "Who Will Save Your Soul." It's the first song I ever wrote. I wrote it when I was 16 and it became my first hit, which is really amazing. I never thought something like that would happen to me and it's always had a real special place in my heart.
My parents named me Jewel because it's a family name. It's my mother's middle name, it's my grandfather's middle name on my mother's side. And my paternal grandfather's name was (INAUDIBLE) which, you know, it's pretty similar. So there you have it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: You can see more great ireporter interviews, just go to cnn.com/interview and catch them on CNN every Saturday at 7:00 Eastern.
Still ahead, traffic jams in Los Angeles are not uncommon, but the space shuttle "Endeavor," you know, is taking speeds to a new slow.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: All right. We're going to go back out to downtown Los Angeles right now. Look at these people out there. It's not Hollywood special effects, folks, that you're going to look at. It's the real deal. Because the space shuttle "Endeavour," 25 times launched into space, 25 times landed safely. This spacecraft has traveled 123 million miles and now it is less than two miles from where it will rest permanently, where it will teach future generations about America's shuttle program. Look at that. You see people on rooftops there, you see people lined up on the streets.
CNN's John Zarrella has a really great perspective. He's up on one of those roofs. And you know, John, NASA is taking no chances here, going really slowly, they're being careful. They're close so -- they're pretty close, about two hours away?
JOHN ZARRELLA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, they're about 2 1/2 to three hours coming up now behind schedule. So, you know, they were supposed to reach the California Science Center at about 11:00 p.m. Eastern time, and it's likely, you know, not going to happen that early. It's going to be a late before they actually get to the California Science Center. But we can see a lot of activity here now, Don.
As we were saying, we're on this rooftop and we've got at least 15,000 people around this mall area, which was one of the designated areas where they're going to do this major celebration. And one of the other things, Don, is that we just saw three of the space shuttle astronauts, astronauts who flew on "Endeavour," walk down the street past us here to meet the vehicle as it comes up the street.
And Stephanie Stillson who, you know, has been with NASA and prepared all these vehicles to make them ready for museums, you know, Stephanie, a lot of snags along the way today.
STEPHANIE STILLSON, NASA: Yes, slower than we wanted - slower than we wanted but once again, we got to make sure we do it right. That's what the (INAUDIBLE) company is in charge of doing, is getting the vehicle moved. It's going to be great when it gets there. That's all I can keep saying. It's going to be great when it gets there.
ZARRELLA: And you know, there were trees that had to be still trimmed along the way and different things like that, but, again, as you said, you don't want to see any nicks in it. Do you?
STILLSON: That's right. We don't want any damage to the vehicle whatsoever. So as long as they can do that, I don't really care how long it takes them.
ZARRELLA: So Don, you can see the blimp is overhead now, and we got helicopters in sight. You could really start to feel the energy from the crowd, really starting to pick up. And people keep asking us, how much longer? How much longer is it going to be? And we're, like, it's coming. Just be patient. It's coming. And it should be here now in - I've been saying that for five hours.
LEMON: I did the same thing. That was my first question to you, it's coming, it's coming. You know, it's like a procession, really like a parade. People are coming out to kind of salute it. I'm looking here at the bigger monitor, actually at the picture - can we get the picture - the one that's in now of the folks who are there now, of the shuttle guys?
ZARRELLA: And you know, Don, just as you were saying, I had said that earlier in the day, that this is like a parade of one, you know. A parade of one and you're absolutely right.
LEMON: Yes, it's just really cool to look at. We can understand why people are coming out. You know, we said once in a lifetime, kind of like the torch coming to your town. You want to see it. You know what? You said it best. It's not once in a lifetime. It's just once. A once thing that happens.
ZARRELLA: Once. That's it. Just once.
LEMON: John Zarrella.
ZARRELLA: Yes.
LEMON: Stay tuned.
ZARRELLA: And for these people, you know, Don -
LEMON: Go ahead. Finish your thought.
ZARRELLA: No, I was just going to say, you know, it really does go to show that the space program, the shuttle program, which was so much maligned over the years, you know, you can just see the tremendous love that people still have in this country for the pursuit of humans going to space and this incredible flying machine that, you know, we will never see another one like it in our lifetime.
LEMON: Absolutely. We're going to see more of it tonight and we'll see more of you because we'll have it live at 10:00 tonight, its final moments. We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: It is one part race, one part obstacle course in the mud. Here's CNN's Jeanne Moos.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JEANNE MOOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): In case of emergency, could you carry your spouse? How about carrying her over a log and up a hill, through a mud hole and over a sand hill? It's the North American wife carrying championship held at the Sunday River Ski Resort in Maine. And though there are a couple of newlyweds, you don't even have to be married. You can pretty much carry, or drop, anyone. Though there's always a piggybacker or two, almost will everyone uses what's called the Estonian carry.
A woman wraps her legs around the guy's neck.
(on camera): Apart from hanging on upside down, the woman being carried doesn't really do much of anything.
(voice-over): At the world championships in Finland, the water obstacle is deeper and the women sometimes have to hold their breath. Here at the North American competition, it's the mud that's the enemy. They call the mud pond, the widow maker. Wife carrying originated in Finland. Look how gracefully this Finnish pair navigates the widow maker. Surprise, surprise. The Finns had the fastest time to the finish, just under 53 seconds to complete the almost three-football-of field-long course.
Yes, we won, but it was very tough.
MOOS: (INAUDIBLE) were already the four-time world champs of wife carrying and, no, she's not his wife. He's a lawyer. She's a nanny. First place prize? Five times the female's weight in beer and five times her weight in cash. Which means Christina weighs in at 106 pounds. But the one who got squished was the second place finisher, the Portland Press Herald's camera caught this victory snuggle. These wife carriers sure know how to carry on.
Jeanne Moos, CNN.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You can se the love with these competitors out here. They're so excited.
MOOS: New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON: Wife?
I'm Don Lemon, CNN World Headquarters in Atlanta. See you back here at 10:00 Eastern. "LATINO IN AMERICA: COURTING THEIR VOTE" begins right now.
