American Morning
More people smiling for mug shots
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From CNN's Bob Ruff
There was a time when a mug shot was, well, just a mug shot.
Remember the Watergate arrestees? H.R. Haldeman was Richard Nixon’s chief of staff. He was arrested for, and later convicted of, conspiracy and obstruction of justice. Haldeman’s mug shot was typical of the times. His pose was expressionless and the photo was fairly grainy and totally unremarkable.
The chances of anyone actually seeing a mug shot back then were pretty slim, unless the arrested person was famous, or infamous, and authorities passed on the photo to the newspapers or TV.
And today? Welcome to the wide world of mug shots.
Topping the list may well be tampabay.com, the web site of the St. Petersburg Times. At any given moment they show online the mug shots of latest three people booked in the four counties in the Tampa Bay area. “As this technology has emerged,” says Hillsborough County, Florida Lieutenant Jim Previtera, “when a crime occurs they’re pretty quick to want to get the mug shot and they’ve been able to do it off our public web site.”
John Edwards faces campaign fund investigation
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A sex scandal helped ruin his reputation and now former presidential candidate John Edwards could be in serious legal hot water. Federal investigators want to know more about over $100,000 his campaign paid to his former mistress’s company.
CNN Senior Legal Analyst Jeffrey Toobin joined John Roberts on CNN’s “American Morning” Tuesday to talk about the investigation.
John Roberts: $114,000 was paid by Edwards’ campaign to Rielle Hunter, his mistress, for video production services. If that's what the money was going toward, is there a problem here?
Jeffrey Toobin: There is no scandal if that's the case. The good news for John Edwards legally is that Rielle Hunter did in fact work for the campaign. So payments to her might have a legitimate explanation. There is a certain pattern in the payments and the amount is such that there are certain suspicions, but, if it's simply payment for video services, there's no scandal.
Rubin: Huge stumbling blocks to Mideast peace
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President Obama is meeting with Israeli President Shimon Peres today. Yesterday, Peres attended a meeting of the pro-Israeli lobbyist group AIPAC (American Israel Public Affairs Committee). Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke to the committee last night via satellite, saying it's time to talk peace again.
“We're prepared to resume peace negotiations without any delay and without any preconditions. The sooner the better. “
James Rubin, former assistant secretary of state and Columbia University professor, joined Kiran Chetry on CNN’s “American Morning” Tuesday. He says despite Washington’s efforts for peace between Israel and the Palestinians, the prospect of success any time soon is very low.
Kiran Chetry: Analysts are noting that we did not hear either Peres or Netanyahu say they support a Palestinian state. What's going on in the Israeli side right now?
James Rubin: Well it looks like the new government there, Prime Minister Netanyahu, is trying to avoid committing to a Palestinian state and trying to get something for himself when he does commit it. So he's a real bargainer. He bargains with the United States, he bargains with his allies, just as much as he bargains with - with his adversaries, the Palestinians. So he's trying to come over to the United States, meet with President Obama, and get something for saying the obvious, what everybody agrees to, which is there needs to be a two-state solution. He's seeing if he can get something out of America for doing that.
What’s on Tap – Tuesday May 5th 2009
Here are the big stories on the agenda today:
- Glimmers of hope for the economy. Wall Street seeing a pulse. It's something you may have noticed in your 410-k's. the Dow was up 214 points, its highest point of the Obama Administration. Today, the nation’s 19 biggest banks get results of their stress tests, and we’ll soon find out whether more taxpayer dollars could be headed their way.
- Middle East peace will be the focus at the White House today – when President Obama meets with Israeli President Shimon Peres. The administration is pressing for a two-state solution between Israel and the Palestinians. Israel is also expected to emphasize the threat from Iran.
- What started out in the tabloids could now play out in court. John Edwards is now denying wrongdoing, as federal investigators look at the cash his campaign paid to a production company owned by his former mistress. Elizabeth Edwards taped an interview with Oprah that will air on Thursday. She's opening up about her husband's affair that he had during her battle with cancer.
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