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NEW DAY

Loud Music Prosecutor Talks To New Day; At Least 20 Protesters Killed In Ukraine; New Plane Shoe Bomb Threats; Timetable Set For Iran Nuke Talks; NTSB Hearing On UPS Plane Crash; Texas Governor Candidate Under Fire; Loneliness Has Dangerous Health Risks; Kate Upton in Zero G

Aired February 20, 2014 - 07:30   ET

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


(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHRIS CUOMO, CNN ANCHOR: No, that's not true. That's what the Michael Dunn case just showed. He was wrong. He used his weapon, and he's not going to jail. Who's stopping this law from being changed to reflect what most of the states have, which is, you have to think before you kill somebody? You have to think about getting out of a situation before you think about taking lethal action.

ANGELA COREY, PROSECUTED MICHAEL DUNN, GEORGE ZIMMERMAN: Chris, Michael Dunn is going to jail. He's still in jail. He went back to jail where he has been and he's still in jail, and he is going to be sentenced. Mr. Dunn is looking at 90 years in Florida state prison with 60 years of minimum mandatory.

How anyone could be unhappy with these verdicts knowing we intend to retry count one is beyond me, but we're going to keep going into the courtroom and fighting for justice for our victims without regard to what people are saying even though what they saying is completely uninformed and ill informed.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CUOMO: We covered a lot of topics. We'll have more of this interview for you on CNN, but really important for people. I mean, we've all been following this, Don, especially you're so passionate after the verdict. When you hear a prosecutor says that the law needs to change. That there needs to be a duty to retreat, you have to remember what that does in the law.

Is it gives responsibility to wrong actions that if you just decide to engage with force let alone lethal force and you could have done something else to avoid a situation, you can't claim self defense. That's not the case in Florida. Whether stand your ground is used as defense or not because stand your ground is in the actual self defense law.

DON LEMON, CNN GUEST ANCHOR: And this goes beyond the castle doctrine.

CUOMO: Much. George Zimmerman, he wasn't in his house. He was on a public street, but because it says in this self defense law, you have the right to stand your ground. It means that you don't have to think. That when you and I get into an altercations, God forbid, you don't have to think, can I get out of this before I take him on. Once you do that, you start rewarding bad choices.

LEMON: Even if you start it and all of a sudden you find yourself in a situation where, my gosh, now I can't handle what I've started, I feel like my life is in danger, you can use more force than necessary.

KATE BOLDUAN, CNN ANCHOR: Going beyond the verdict in the Michael Dunn case and even the George Zimmerman case, she makes I think an important and interesting point that there are more cases that they try that kind of involved these laws than we cover in the media. There are more cases beyond this. This should be taken into account.

CUOMO: They have a good record down there. She says I punish black on black crime, white on white crime, white on black crime, I punish all of it.

BOLDUAN: But every case impacts a family. We are -- I'm not trying to diminish what happened to Jordan Davis and what happened to his family at all. That's for sure.

LEMON: The high-profile ones are the ones that get attention and those are the ones that can make the change.

CUOMO: Right, and when (inaudible) to the prosecutor and she didn't disagree is, it's good we're focusing on these cases because this is the discussion we need to have. You may take exception with I don't want to hear about Dunn anymore. I don't want to hear about Zimmerman, but you need to because that's what keeps the discussion going.

BOLDUAN: And she agrees that there's a problem with the law.

CUOMO: That's right. And you know, who else does, and you know who else really matters here, maybe more than anybody else, the parents of Jordan Davis. They're going to be with us next hour. They're going to talk with us about what the verdict means to them as a family, how they feel about retrying those charges against Michael Dunn, that respect Jordan Davis' death, their son, and a what they think of the law and what they want you to know coming up.

BOLDUAN: We're going to take another break. But coming up next on NEW DAY, we all have opinions about this one. I say we don't even need to cover this guy, but we are. The Texas governor's race is getting heated. Why, because rocker, Ted Nugent who doesn't have any impact on public policy joined Attorney General Greg Abbott on the campaign trail. Was Abbott outraged by Nugent's slur about President Obama? We're going to talk about it and going to find out what he says when our correspondent confronts him? But I maintain not news.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CUOMO: Welcome back to NEW DAY. A lot of news. Let's get straight to Don Lemon in for Michaela with the top stories. LEMON: Good morning to you, guys. Good morning, everyone. Breaking news, a truce in name only in Ukraine, fresh street battles breaking out overnight between riot police and protesters in Kiev's Independence Square. I want you to take a live look at that building. It's just burned out there. The square has been ground zero for anti- government demonstrations.

At least 20 protesters have died in what might be the city's worst violence yet. Ukraine's president is blaming protesters for breaking the truce. Meantime, the Ukrainian Olympic Committee says its athletes at the Sochi Olympics held a moment of silence for their countrymen killed in Kiev violence.

The U.S. government warning airlines that terrorists are once again trying to hide explosives in shoes, in cosmetics and in liquids, and there's evidence that they're deploying new ways to do it. The advisory reportedly mentions over two dozen cities overseas, but the threat is not tied to any known plot and it's unrelated to recent warnings about toothpaste on flights to Russia.

A hint of progress entering the final day of nuclear talks with Iran in Vienna, six world powers have worked out a timetable and a framework for the next round of negotiations with Iranians in March. The two sides are trying to forge a long-term agreement to end the military threat posed by Iran's nuclear programs in exchange for an easing of sanctions.

Well, today a hearing will be held to examine last year's crash of a UPS plane on approach in the Birmingham-Alabama Airport. The NTSB wants to get a clear picture of what went wrong in the crash that left two crew members dead. Testimony is expected from the FAA, UPS, and other organizations. The exact cause of the crash has yet to be released.

BOLDUAN: New questions this morning for Texas gubernatorial candidate, Greg Abbott who's been sharing the stage with rocker, Ted Nugent. The outspoken rocker is under fire once again for inflammatory comments this time calling the president of the United States a quote, "subhuman mongrel."

CNN's Ed Lavandera caught up with Greg Abbott to ask him why is he campaigning with this guy? Take a look.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ED LAVANDERA, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Texas Republican Greg Abbott is in a high-profile race for governor against Democrat, Wendy Davis. On Wednesday, Abbott found a friendly crowd inside this Tyler Texas restaurant owned by the grandparents of college football star, Johnny Manzel. When we asked about his campaigning with right wing rocker, Ted Nugent, things got tense.

(on camera): Why did you think it was a good idea to campaign with Ted Nugent?

GREG ABBOTT (R), TEXAS GUBERNATORIAL CANDIDATE: You know, it's funny how reactive the Davis campaign is to this. It shows that he's driven a wedge and exposed the fraud that they have displayed on second amendment based issues. So Ted Nugent was a way to expose Wendy Davis for her flip-flopping on gun-related issues.

LAVANDERA: But this is Texas. Finding someone who is pro guns is not that hard. Why is it had to be Ted Nugent?

(voice-over): Neither Abbott nor his campaign would answer the question. Abbott wants voters to see him as a crusader for gun rights. Abbott's credentials aren't really in question. This picture greeting voters at this campaign stop showing the candidate next to his hunting trophy says it all. When we tried to follow up on the Ted Nugent question, a campaign aide stepped in.

(on camera): You could have found a lot of people to talk about gun rights.

ABBOTT: Thank you. Appreciate it.

LAVANDERA: You could have found a lot of people to talk about gun rights.

ABBOTT: I'll be happy to.

LAVANDERA: That's not a press conference. One question is not a press conference. Who told you -- we said specifically we wanted to talk.

(voice-over): We tried one more time to ask if Greg Abbott would appear again with Ted Nugent.

(on camera): Mr. Abbott, would you give us a chance to clarify on Ted Nugent? Why would you associate yourself with someone who describes the sitting president as a subhuman mongrel? Will you use him again in a campaign?

(voice-over): Greg Abbott didn't answer the question that time either and headed back out on the campaign trail. Ed Lavandera, CNN, Tyler, Texas.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BOLDUAN: This is why I get so wound up about this a little bit because there is an element of -- we get to pick what we put in the newscast. There is a limited amount of time. When the guy isn't relevant, Ted Nugent I don't think impacts anyone's life beyond whoever --

LEMON: He's a flame thrower.

BOLDUAN: He can talk about whatever he wants. Thank goodness for the first amendment. Doesn't mean we have to listen. I just think when he is not relevant we shouldn't be giving him a louder mega phone. There are legitimate questions why someone who wants to run a state wants to associate with his comments.

CUOMO: You just answered your own questions.

BOLDUAN: I know, but still.

CUOMO: You answered your own question.

LEMON: But you know, it's the same thing that we're saying --

BOLDUAN: This is not new, you guys. He came to the "State of the Union." He came with Congressman Stockman.

CUOMO: You're going to get judged by who you put around you. When Obama was running as senator and Reverend Jeremiah Wright was there, it became an issue. You know, who do you have around you? Chris Christie, the investigation, OK, you had nothing to do with it. We think so far, but who do you put around you?

LEMON: We cover Ted Nugent because he's a spectacle and it's not necessarily news worthy all the time. If you want to associate yourself with that and you're running for office, it's a big deal. It's the same conversation we are having about Zimmerman. I told you I was up two minds. I want the guy to go away, but journalistically, I want to hear from him.

CUOMO: You have to think about the relevance and context. Do you keep saying what Nugent says? Do you spread his message to the extent that it's offensive? No. Do you judge the man who is putting him out there as a representative for him, especially when too often politicians use extremists as proxies on both sides. What's the main answer? When you hear it from them or from their pundits, you know, their proxies on cable or wherever. They say, well, the other guys do it too. Not good enough.

BOLDUAN: Right. Civility in politics has to start with someone.

CUOMO: Sure. People on the left have said crazy stuff too. They're extreme and wrong and I think you got to call out all of it.

BOLDUAN: But I'm picking this one to be upset about.

CUOMO: Sure. You can be upset. I like it. Just don't hit me in the break. We're going to take a break now. Coming up on NEW DAY, one sometimes is the loneliest number. You know the song, but it's much more than that. It's a reality for 60 million people who have to deal with feeling alone. Overcoming it could be as easy as saying hello, really? Yes. Dr. Sanjay Gupta is teaming up with Oprah to explain.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CUOMO: That's how I feel on the set sometimes.

BOLDUAN: So lonely. Welcome back. A surprising epidemic affecting some 60 million Americans, loneliness, and new research shows it can have a major impact on your health. CNN's Dr. Sanjay Gupta has teamed up with "O" magazine in a new campaign to try and combat it. It's called the "Just Say Hello Campaign." Listen to this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: When was the last time you said hello to a stranger passing you on the street or a friend you hadn't seen in years?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Hi.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hi.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: How you doing?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hello.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Hello there. Look at you. Girl, looking good.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BOLDUAN: Thanks, Ellen. It's going to come back on me. Thanks, Ellen. Dr. Sanjay Gupta. Hello, Sanjay. Let's start with that. It seems simple. You say it's going to have a big impact.

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Power of a single word, yes. We're lonelier as a society than we've been in a long time about one in five people, you just heard that. What sort of struck me from a physical standpoint if someone's having a heart problem for example, you might know to go over there and pump on their chest.

If someone is suffering from loneliness, we tend to avoid those people. This was part of this campaign was to try and address that particular issue. Recognizing that loneliness by itself is a risk factor for so many different things. It increases your risk of premature death almost twice as much as obesity does, 45 percent relative risk.

CUOMO: What is loneliness? Are you saying it as another word for depression?

GUPTA: They define it as perceived social isolation. You believe you've been socially isolated for some reason. Not necessarily self imposed, but you become part of the social periphery. What is interesting is that we used to think that the reason that they didn't have as good health was that no one was checking on them, whatever it might be.

But we now know there's something much more fundamental happening in their brains. We know evolutionarily, when we evolved as a species, we did it together. In order to survive and thrive, we needed to be together. People who weren't part of the center, ended up not getting food and water and stuff like that. So they sort of relegated to the social periphery and that's part of the reason they probably die young even now.

LEMON: Are there places where people are lonelier because even though I'm in a big city with about 8 million people in New York City. I find myself being more alone than when I lived in Atlanta, which has fewer people. I don't know what that is actually. GUPTA: You can be surrounded by people and be lonely still. That is absolutely true. We know there are certain demographics of people who are more lonely. It's usually people in their 40s, much more so than people in their 60s or 70s or younger than that.

We don't know why that is. We don't know the impact how social media has changed all this either, but one in five people have periods of deep melancholy and this perceived social isolation. I am alone and I don't necessarily want to be this way.

BOLDUAN: So how do you fix it? Is it as simple as just starting with a hello?

GUPTA: The reason the "Just Say Hello" campaign sort of started because you need an inroad into those people. You need to be sort of empowered as a greeter to reach out to that person in some way. The hello is the beginning of that. It's not the end. Hopefully that will lead to more meaningful relationships. But right now, again, as opposed to avoiding people who you think may be these loners or whatever, actually reaching out to them could start something that's much more profound.

LEMON: When you say hello to people in Manhattan, coming from Atlanta, they are like --

(CROSSTALK)

BOLDUAN: Breaking the ice.

CUOMO: That's part of the problem, right? Culture created a problem, is that we have become more isolated, we have become more fearful of each other. And it's a problem. Especially here. We're supposed to all be about blending.

BOLDUAN: Small thing with a huge impact. When you think, if it's just as simple as starting with a hello and it has that big of an impact, you might as well.

GUPTA: It's good for the greeter, too. If you go out and do this, you're going to feel better about it as well. And, look, this problem is growing, Chris, as you say. But if -- you guys deal with so many tough problems on this show. I was watching the show. This is a fixable issue -- if we all change the culture in this way, then five years from now it's going to be a different culture where people are much more embracing of each other, much more willing to accept things and saying hello to each other in some way or another.

BOLDUAN: I like that. I like that a lot.

LEMON: What about the curmudgeons like me who actually really like --

BOLDUAN: You are a lost cause.

CUOMO: I have to shoot pages for the special after this show but now I'm going to find you, we'll get something to eat.

BOLDUAN: Hello, Don.

(CROSSTALK)

LEMON: I've got two more shows today after.

(CROSSTALK)

BOLDUAN: We can only do so much.

CUOMO: He doesn't have two more shows.

BOLDUAN: Why am I the only one that doesn't --

CUOMO: He doesn't have shows. He just doesn't want to hang out with you.

BOLDUAN: Well, that's tru.e

CUOMO: Now I'm lonely.

Coming up on NEW DAY, supermodel Kate Upton is defying gravity. Wait until you see her zero-g photo shoot. She ain't lonely.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CUOMO: Angel is a centerfold, it applies very well. And Don Lemon has a better voice than I do. Surprise.

Welcome back to NEW DAY. When it comes to the swimsuit issue, Sports Illustrated always goes above and beyond, right? This year's shoot, though, with stunner with Kate Upton is literally out of this world, literally. CNN's Jeanne Moos has that.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEANNE MOOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voiceover): We've seen everything from toothbrushes to tortillas in zero gravity. But gravity turns to levity when it's a Sports Illustrated swimsuit model floating by.

That's Kate Upton -- up, up and thankfully not upchucking away. Kate and the Sports Illustrated crew boarded G-Force 1 in Florida for their top secret photo shoot. Talk about manual labor, the plane climbs steeply then dives. At the top of the hump, passengers experience weightlessness for about 30 seconds. And pay 5,000 bucks to fly up and down about 15 times.

But now it was Kate Upton's turn. Zero-G or bust.

KATE UPTON, SUPERMODEL: Twirling. I was upside down. It was one of my favorite experiences so far in my life.

MOOS: Zero gravity flights have a reputation for being so-called vomit comets. But the company Zero-G says only 4 percent of their passengers actually get sick and Kate Upton wasn't one of them.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Kate was a dream up there. MOOS: Company president Therese Brewster notes the fuselage is padded so when gravity returns you don't get hurt. In her teeny weeny $35 bikinis from target, Kate was wearing less than Sandra Bullock did in "Gravity". Kate's Sports Illustrated shoot seemed to be channeling the famous opening credit scene from "Barbarella." not only did Jane Fonda do a spacy striptease, but the credits maintained Fonda's modesty.

Last year, Jimmy Fallon was interviewing Kate about her last swimsuit edition shoot in Antarctica when he mused about a final frontier for her next shoot.

JIMMY FALLON, HOST: Space.

UPTON: Next year.

FALLON: Think about this. Think about this. There's no gravity.

UPTON: It's incredible.

MOOS: We know what Jimmy and the audience were imagining.

(on camera): How does the lack of gravity affect the positioning of your bosom? Honey, do things float?

UPTON: Well, no, I think they just don't move, really.

MOOS (voiceover); America's first female astronaut, Sally Ride, was once asked if you need to wear a bra in space. Her reply -- there is no sag in zero-g.

Guys, don't bother hoping the bikini will just --

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Lift off.

MOOS: Jeanne Moos, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CUOMO: What? What? It's a legitimate news story. The swimsuit issue is a big deal. Being in zero g is very important. We have to prepare for what the next level of space travel is. I've been on the vomit comet, that's what they call that zero-g plane.

BOLDUAN: I see you kind of grabbing some time. So that was a really good grab at legitimacy.

CUOMO: Please, tweet us what you think about that. But I thought it was a very cool photo shoot.

BOLDUAN: I thought it was cool. And I like Kate Upton.

LEMON: They just need to put a rocket at the end of it.

BOLDUAN: Don, it's 7:58 in the morning.

LEMON: Nobody got that.

(CROSSTALK)

BOLDUAN: I mean, go get a coffee, please, and please come back. We'll start anew.

Coming up next on NEW DAY, we're going to get back to our major headlines of the day. And this is one of them -- we're going to be talking to the parents of Florida teenager Jordan Davis. Jordan, you know, was killed in the loud music shooting. We're going to talk with them about the trial and whether they believe Michael Dunn got away with murder and what they want to see done about it now.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)