time would be safe to break in. >> it was kind of sad that one i trusted enough to put on my page would take advantage of me like that. >> before it was over, the burglars had stolen about $11,000 worth of goods. carrie would have defriended sean south, she says, but after the burglary, he deleted his facebook profile. randi kaye, cnn, new albany, indiana. >> all right. that does it for me. but it is perfectly safe to friend the next person in the cnn "newsroom." tj holmes in for ali velshi. hey, tj. >> you might want to reject my friend request, as well. >> no one would do that. >> good to have you in atlanta, once again. hello, i'm the aforementioned tj holmes sitting in for ali velshi. what we have on the rundown. he started out as a dishwasher for al qaeda. but boy oh boy did he work his way up, now considered one of the terrorist group's top leaders. now more on the man who spent

much of his youth here in the u.s. also, hacking into an atm. would you think this would be easy? it might be easier than you think. coming up, a security expert who knows how to do it. he is going to give you a play by play on exactly how you too can break into an atm. of course i'm kidding. no, he's one of the good guys, actually, trying to keep your money safe. he'll be along here shortly to tell us how he did it and how you can protect yourself. also, he graduated the head of his class, and the recipient of more than $1 million in scholarships. but his life hasn't been without some tough challenges. you're going to meet a young man we are happy to introduce you to. that's all coming up in the "newsroom." but first, want to give you an update about a story that is important, going to be important for quite some time. even though the news we have been hearing about it lately is all positive. we're talking about the gulf oil disaster. yes, you have been hearing a lot of good news. got some more good news to report right now. but still, this needs to stay fresh in your mind, because we have to keep in mind, no matter what we hear about how well it's

going, this still is a massive disaster that is going to affect people for quite some time. so the update, the good news to tell you about today is that, in fact, the static kill method you have heard so much about, well, it's pretty much wrapped up. they pushed this mud down into that well to fill it up. well then they pushed down some cement, that cement now is hardening. so for all intents and purposes, the static kill step is done. and in effect, this well is dead. however, we still have one more step to go. that is the bottom kill method. that is the method where the relief well, as you have been hearing so much about over the past months are being drilled. they're going to pump this mud into the relief wells to clog the whole well up once and for all with the bottom-kill method. maybe going to happen the next couple weeks. but again, live picture. again, we are happy to see this picture now. nothing coming out. again, still that live picture. nothing coming out of that well. we are moving on to the next phase, of course, with capping this well and also killing this well. but also, bp moving on to a next

phase, as well. they are having a shift in leadership in their gulf response. you've been hearing the name, doug suttles a lot, and you've been seeing doug suttles' face in the response. there is another guy taking over for him in the gulf oil response, and both men spoke today, gave us an update. take a listen. >> it's a challenge that we continue to recognize with more than 20,000-plus people continuing to work with our vessels and our operations on the shores and in those marsh lands to ensure that we continue this response. we are here for the long-term. we are here to continue that. i look to bring my experiences from managing the responses for louisiana and off shore gulf of mexico into this effort and continue it as we go forward from response to recovery, and ultimately into restoration. >> clearly, some of the clean-up activities in certain areas have gotten to the point that they no longer require as many workers. in addition, in some places,

particularly along the florida and alabama clothesline, we have moved from manual clean-up to machine-based clean-up. so these beach-cleaning machines we're using quite frequently now, and we use those at night, have replaced many of the clean-up workers, which are doing that by hand. these machines are much more efficient. so i think we'll continue to see that. but we've got a lot of work to do out there. there is still oil to clean up, still tar balls coming ashore. we'll have to be there to pick those up. and i don't know when the numbers will shift. i think that will just be determined by what the operational requirements are. in addition, we have things like a lot of boom out there, as well. and i did mention the severe weather season. your question about what are we doing with the boom. we have a waste management plane in each state that's been approved by all of the parties, state, federal and ourselves. and most of the -- most, if not all of the boom goes into landfills. through these approved plans that have been approved by the

regulators. we're far from finished. clearly, we feel like it's moving to a new phase, because we have been three weeks without new oil flowing into the sea. and we don't have oil out on the open water anymore. but we still have a lot of work around the shoreline, and we have a large amount of equipment still deployed, as well. >> you hear the update there from the bp officials, and, of course, we saw the numbers from the government a little earlier this week saying that just about 26% of residual oil, although still out there, that's about all that's left. moving on here, it was 65 years to the day that an atomic bomb leveled the city. a peace bell now in heiroshima japan today. stark, solemn, and today's sound effect. [ bell chiming ] and a first for this annual ceremony. a u.s. representative was in

attendance. ambassador to japan, john rous, didn't speak, but said his presence proved president obama's commitment to nuclear disarmament. it's thought more than 140,000 people died from the bombing or effects from radiation. some people are criticizing the ambassador's aattendance today, including the son of the pilot who dropped the bomb. he says it seems like an unspoken apology that helped force japan surrender in world war ii. coming up, jobs are not bouncing back as quickly as some people would have hoped. but even when they do come back, your wallet could still feel the pinch. we'll be breaking down the latest jobs report numbers we've got today. that's just ahead. ♪ [ woman ] when i grow up, i want to take him on his first flight. i want to run a marathon. i'm going to work with kids. i'm going to own my own restaurant. when i grow up, i'm going to start a band.

[ female announcer ] at aarp we believe you're never done growing. thanks, mom. i just want to get my car back. [ female announcer ] together we can discover the best of what's next at aarp.org. [ female announcer ] together we can discover she starts at dawn and so does her back pain.om. that's two pills for drive. the drive is done. so it's a day of games and two more pills. the games are over, her pain is back, that's two more pills. and when she's finally home, but hang on, just two aleve can keep back pain away all day with fewer pills than tylenol. this is rachel, who chose aleve and two pills for a day free of pain. ♪ and get the all day pain relief of aleve in liquid gels. ♪

the job numbers for july are out today, and, well, i'll let alison kosik tell you how they came out. alison, hello to you once again. people are used to getting bad news when these numbers come out, so i guess just how bad is it? >> well, you know, i'll tell you what. there wasn't a whole lot of hiring going on last month, tj. the unemployment rate held

steady at 9.5%, but overall, we lost 131,000 jobs. that was worse than expected. take a look at this chart i'm going to show you here. government employment, it fell by 202,000 jobs, and that's because the bulk of those jobs were because of those temporary census jobs. those went away. but we really like to focus on the private sector. there we saw in addition of 71,000 jobs. if you want to look at that kind of -- that shining light. but it's really not. there is no good spin on this story, because if you think about it, you know, we're going to need to add -- at least economists say, at least 260,000 jobs a month, just to tick away at the unemployment number, by one percentage point. so eve got a long way to go, tj. >> well, what are businesses scared of? we have to focus on that private sector hiring, they're just not doing it. what's holding them back? >> they've got to have confidence. you know, that confidence has got to come, you know -- it's kind of like the chicken and the egg theory. we need to see improvement in the economy. they need to see strength of recovery. now, businesses are uncertain about the new health care

landscape. they're really -- they're reticent to hire people and give them benefits at this point. so they're really focusing on hiring freelancers or contract workers. they're worried that as we see our government stimulus run out, other temporary factors are fading. they're worried how the progression of the economy -- of the recovery is really going to go. they're also worried about taxes. they want to know what's going to happen if federal income taxes go up when those bush tax cuts are taken away at the end of the year. tj? >> all right. what are we supposed to do here? you just talked about confidence there. it takes confidence for companies to hire. but then at the same time, we've got to see that unemployment rate go down to give people confidence at the same time. what are we going to do about that number? >> nyou know, it's really the chicken or the egg theory. we need to see really month after month of really good economic data. we need to see growth in the economy, that gdp number needs to go up. right now we're at 2.4, 2.7 growth rate in the economy.

that's really, really anemic. we have got to see people start to spend. but people aren't going to be spending if they don't have jobs. you know, they're really being tight with their money right now. and even if you look at wall street right now, tj, a lot of money is sitting on the sidelines, even your common investor is really leery to put a lot of money into the market, because there is really no certainty, as where the economy is really going at this point, tj. >> all right. another jobs report, another dose of reallity. alison kosik, we appreciate you. also be sure to watch "your money," this weekend and every weekend, saturdays at 1:00 p.m. eastern and sundays at 3:00 eastern. we're standing by for a live event going to be happening at the white house here in the next hour or so. president obama throwing a little party. a party for the newest supreme court justice to be. we are keeping an eye on the white house ahead of today's reception for elena kagan. ng, we've been there for clients through good times and bad, when our clients' needs changed we changed to meet them.

through the years, when some lost their way, we led the way with new ideas for the financial challenges we knew would lie ahead. this rock has never stood still. and there's one thing that will never change. we are, the rock you can rely on. prudential. we are, the rock you can rely on. i'm a member of this hotel'sre loyalty program. well, how far away is it? okay, we take a train 40 miles to a dude ranch where we pick up a couple of horses that we ride to a nearby river. then we canoe upstream to a helicopter that takes us to the conference. or we could book with hotels.com and stay closer. see, with welcomerewards, no matter where you accumulate 10 nights, you get a free one. huh. smarter. [ male announcer ] accumulate 10 nights and get a night free. welcomerewards from hotels.com. smart. so smart.

all right, chad is schooling me about the stuff we've got to cover here. first we start with the heat. are we talking about record heat? >> again. but further south than we have been seeing. the heat has been here. it's been ugly. even across parts of the northeast, it's been very warm, and also across parts of arkansas and texas. now, this cold front, although it's not moving very fast, it's sliding enough farther to the south that some of this cold air, cooler air -- >> when you say cold front, that's a relative term. >> 92 and not 97, okay, you've got the idea. at least it's pushing some of that energy down south. but that's going to also increase the chances of severe weather all the way along that front, including georgia. you'll probably hear boomers on

top of this building, probably scr scramble manying. and then we know it's summer, so clearly in the summer, we know it's hot. but there's also the potential for tropical storms. colin, who was here last week, it went away for a while and said, wait, no, i'm still here, and now has a potential to be a hurricane in the middle of the atlantic, as it may be makes a run toward newfoundland, toward the tip. that's always the case. whenever you make a big turn, sometimes newfoundland can stick out far enough. >> certainly not a threat to us. >> certainly not. the storm is more organized now than it was. winds up to 45 miles per hour. but there's something way down here, can't see it, i'll have to move this out of the way and get you a bigger picture. there is something that could be maybe a danielle storm. it goes boy, girl, boy, girl. so colin is a boy, technically in weather terms, it's an it, but it's a boy name. and danielle is also here. danielle would be an it, but a girl name. but al of the forecasts take this thing right up into the middle of the atlantic ocean and

kill it. let's get another name out of the way, and nothing that hits the u.s., we're done. >> what would be the e? >> i didn't even look. >> oh, chad. i was going to take you through the whole alphabet. >> they recycle every six years. >> all right. well, hopefully we went won't get there, and it will stay ow there. chad, appreciate you as always. we'll be checking with him short low lowly. we want to look at headlines. a reaccepts getting under way in about an hour at the white house. this mark's elena kagan's confirmation to the supreme court. the senate okayed the nominee just yesterday. once she is sworn in tomorrow, though -- the swearing in is tomorrow, she will be the current court's youngest justice and also the third woman on the current court. the nts will be investigating yesterday's accident in missouri. that killed two teenagers. two school buses, a big rig and a pickup collided on interstate 44. this was outside of st. louis. we will bring you that live coverage here. ntsb says it will focus on human

factors and also road construction in the area to determine what happened in that accident. also, a lawyer for a woman sentenced to death in iran has just been released from custody in turkey. he fled iran after authorities hauled him in and interrogated him. and he says threatened his family. he was detained in turkey for failing to properly register as a refugee. testing the security of your bank accounts. there's an expert out there who is showing just how easy it is to get an atm to hand over your money to somebody else. he's going to explain this to us, coming up. stay here.

all right. hacking into an atm.

well, plenty of people, i'm sure, have tried it at some point. but we have a security expert who is now successful at doing so. but, again, he's -- works for the good side, not the dark side. so he's trying to help people out there, and protect your money. his name is barnaby jack. we know you put on this demonstration that wowed people at this black hat security conference not too long ago. but first of all, tell me how difficult it is. you're a security expert, you do this for a living and know what you're doing. but for a guy like you, just how difficult was it to do? >> yes, i've been researching atms for the last couple years now. i had two atms in my apartment. there's a story in that, as well, actually. but so i literally learned the ins and outs, everything i needed to know about the atms, tore them completely down, literally after a year i found one big bug, and then two years

later, i found a whole slew of vulnerabilities. >> so you tell me it took you a couple years to figure this out. >> it took a couple years in the off hours, though. i didn't spend all my time on it. >> all right. well, tell me now, for people out there listening and who could possibly be worried and even banks out there, how vulnerable are a lot of these atms out there? >> so we were really careful when we gave the demonstration to make sure that the vendors had mitigation remediation in place before we went up and did it. the goal was certainly not to give a cookbook recipe for everyone out there be able to go out there and loot atms. so we made sure the vendors had fixes in place, and directionally -- distributing those at the moment. >> what were you able to get this atm to do, literally spit out money? and were you also able to get some of these atms and hacking into them, also able to get people's personal information?

>> right. so i demonstrated two different attacks. one was a walk-up attack, where i would literally walk up to atm, within a couple minutes, it would spit out its entire dispenser. of course you had to be there for that to work. the other at that tack was completely remote so i could do it from a laptop in a bedroom, have it spit its entire dispenser. but i also had it harvesting people's credit cards and pin numbers which i could then retrieve remotely, as well. 100% anonymous, and by passing all auto then at this occasion. >> wow. you were doing this with the atms we see at our banks, or some we see outside at a grocery store or things like that? >> right. i demonstrated on the stand-alone variety, typically the ones you see in the bars and convenience stores. but the attack surface itself is valid across the board with some of these bigger machines, as well. the thing is, it's a lot easier

to get ahold of these stand-alone atms. like anything on the internet, you can get ahold of it, and it's quite funny, getting the atms delivered to your house is interesting. the guy literally rolls in the atm, and not surprisingly says, why do you need an atm in your house and i was being a bit cheeky, and i said "i don't like the transaction fees, mate." >> that's a pretty good one, barnaby. what do you hope companies will do and possibly banks will do with the information you're able to provide? you're showing them how they are possibly vulnerable. >> right. well, they -- i've been practically surprised with the reaction from the banks and the atm manufacturers. they have could have taken two approaches, basically tried to shut it down. instead, they worked with us. worked with my company, iio active. we got the fixes in place, and we're going to work with them to make sure everything is above board and work with them in the

future. >> were you surprised? and i know it wasn't easy, but were you surprised that you were able to pull it off? >> i was a little surprised. you know, when you look at an atm, it looks like a somewhat impennetable device. and you think about atm security, and you typically think about physical defenses, right? is the atm bolted down, are there cameras in place? this is the first time anyone had actually looked at the underlying software. and once i sore of dug in, ripped the software apart, i was really surprised at the amount of flaws hiding underneath there. >> all right, barnaby, two more things. maybe put some of our minds at ease. you worked on this for quite some time, but you know how difficult it is to pull this off. so in your estimation, are there very few guys out there? you know, people always try to get into an atm, hackers and what not, but in your estimation, are there very few who could possibly pull this off? >> yeah. and it would take a bit of time to replicate. of course, i'm not naive enough to think i'm the only person who could do it.

but you know, that's why i work with the manufacturers to make sure they have protection in place before we went ahead and released any details. >> all right, and last thing, bar barnaby. you can just tell me, man, just me and you. have you ever been tempted just a little bit to take what you have learned and go out there and go on a spree in town and hits up every atm you can find? >> i'm on the good side of the fence, mate. >> uh-huh. that was a pretty short answer there, barnaby. we do appreciate you. again, barnaby jack. it's quite impressive and fascinating. but like we say, you work for the good side, not the dark side. so we do appreciate you coming on. interesting stuff. thanks so much. and we will see you in the atms, if they disappear out there. thanks so much, buddy. coming up, 25 minutes past the hour, we're going to go globe trekking shortly. and the story of a wife who was allegedly beaten nearly to death.

heading to turkey for this. had been beaten since the day she put on her wedding dress. stay here. a fantastic opportunity to get 0% apr financing on every new 2010 cadillac model. like the cts sport sedan. the most acclaimed vehicle in its class and a "car and driver" 10 best, three years in a row. or the all new cadillac srx luxury crossover. and even the most acclaimed luxury suv ever, the cadillac escalade. summer brings out the best in all of us. hurry in to get 0% apr financing on every new 2010 cadillac during cadillac's "summer's best" sales event, going on now at your cadillac dealer. ♪ it doesn't look risky. i mean, phil, does this look risky to you? nancy? fred? no. well it is. in a high-risk area, there's a 1-in-4 chance homes like us will flood. i'm glad i got flood insurance. fred, you should look into it. i'm a risk-taker. [ female announcer ] only flood insurance covers floods.

visit floodsmart.gov/risk to learn your risk.

violence against women in the united states. the attorney general, eric holder, calls it an epidemic that affects communities across the country, regardless of age, race or social economic background. consider these statistics now from the justice department. 1.5 million women are raped and/or physically assaulted by an intimate partner every single

year. 1,640 females age 12 or older were killed by an intimate partner in 2007. that's the latest year that statistics were available. over that same period, 700 males were killed by an intimate partner. the female death rate twice the rate of males. and domestic violence, ever wonder just exactly what that means? well, here is the justice department's definition. domestic violence can be debafid as a pattern of abusive behavior in any relationship that is used by one partner to gain or maintain power or control over another intimate partner, end quote. and here is a list of the types of domestic violence. physical abuse, sexual abuse, emotional abuse, economic abuse, psychological abuse. you don't think it could ever happen to you, consider this, quote, domestic violence can happen to anyone regardless of race, age, sexual orientation, religion or gender. and children who grow up witnessing domestic violence are among those seriously affected

by the crime. to be clear here, department of justice says domestic violence against women in the u.s. declined by 53% between 1993 and 2008. for males, the decline was 54%. be that as it may, domestic violence in this country remains a very serious problem, and at times, it is a deadly problem. of course, we are talking about united states' statistics there. it's not just in the u.s., it is really a worldwide epidemic. at least according to amnesty international. that's one of a number of organizations who certainly feel that way. listen to this from amnesty international. one in at least every three women worldwide has been beaten, coerced into sex, or otherwise abused. there is a bill now being considered on capital hill that would actually have some bipartisan support. you don't hear that oftentimes, but on this one it does that would give u.s. aid, increase it to 20 countries that take concrete action to reduce brutality against women. and let me show you a picture now that so many people saw and

certainly stirred the emotion. that young woman there, an afghan woman. she ran away from an abusive husband. she was then caught, tried by the taliban, and her husband cut off her nose and ears. she survived. she is now in safe hands. she is going to have reconstructive surgery in the u.s. but her story, her picture certainly stirred emotions and really helped people understand maybe a little better than statistics can show just what happens in some places. unfortunately, the story doesn't really end there. i want to turn to turkey now of another example of a woman beaten to death by her husband. she wasn't protected by the law. our ivan watson has this story for us. ivan, hello to you. >> hi, tj. i've been looking at domestic violence against women here in turkey. it's a member of the nato military alliance. it's an applicant to join the european union, and it's a rising political and economic power in the region.

and despite some of the most progressive laws in the muslim world, to protect women, at least four out of ten women surveyed say they have experienced sexual or physical abuse from their partners. take a look at this report. >> hamadi yeni is on a hunt, pounding the roads in eastern turkey, looking for the man who turkish authorities say beat his wife and put her in the hospital twice in less than 12 months. have you seen faruk, she asks the village mayor's daughter, he disappeared with the woman's car. no one has seen him, she replies. the man is filmed here several months ago with his two children and his 30-year-old wife, sedika. this was sadika outside a hospital last september. almost unrecognizable, because of bruises and the bandages that doctors put on her ear after part of it was sliced off.

a court sentenced sadika's husband to 15 months in prison for assault, but officials say he did not serve any jail time, because he, quote, showed remorse. sadika also dropped the charges against him, so after two months at a state-run women's shelter, the prosecutors sent she and her children back to live with her husband. whip's rights activists like yemi say they watched helplessly as he took her back to his village. this kind of thing is happening in every village, she tells me. there are thousands of women like sadeka out there. in fact, according to a 2009 government report, 42% of turkish women surveyed say they have been victims of either physical or sexual abuse by their husband or partner. despite progressive laws to combat domestic violence, activists point out there are only 52 state-run shelters for

battered women in the entire country. >> because there's a lack of will on the part of the government to implement the laws. to have a program, a coordinated action program, to stop violence against women. and also, trainings. trainings for judges and prosecutors, which is missing. >> not long after sadeka moved back home, neighbors and one village official say there were fresh signs of trouble. social services workers, security forces and volunteers repeatedly came here to sadeka's house to answer reports that she was being repeatedly beaten and in nearly every case, her husband ordered them off his property, and frequently denied them access to his wife. it wasn't until she was hospitalized for the second time in two years that doctors found such extensive wounds across her body that they believe she was tortured. >> doctors say sadeka arrived in

the hospital on july 15th in a cat atonic state, covered with fresh breeuises and burns. sadeka's mother has little hope her daughter will recover. that man has been beating my daughter since the day she put on her wedding dress, she says. i wish he killed her long ago to save her all of the suffering. turkish police now have an arrest warrant out for sadeka's husband, but this activist says that just isn't good enough. >> the state is guilty, the system is guilty, she says. because it failed to protect the victim. >> tj, it's been more than three weeks since sadeka was hospitalized again. she is still not communicating verbally with visits from her children or from hamada, that activist. meanwhile, her husband is still at large. he is still walking free.

an important point to consider here. this is not violence confined to undeveloped, rural parts of the country. according to the government survey, the levels of domestic violence against women are roughly the same in some of the most developed, wealthy cities in the western of turkey, like istanbul, as they are in some of those rural farming communities in the east of the country. tj. >> all right. ivan watson, a tough story to hear. i'm sure a tough story for you to report on, but an important one for people to know about. ivan watson, we appreciate you as always. thanks so much. well, coming up here, even more concerns for those who are obese. they may face an increased chance of getting cancer. details of a new report. we're going to share that with you, coming up next. where there's magic. and you now understand what nature's been hiding. ♪ at dow we understand the difference between innovation and invention.

invention is important. it's the beginning. it's the spark. but innovation is where we actually create value for dow, for society, and for the world. ♪ at dow, we're constantly searching for how to use our fundamental knowledge of chemistry to solve these difficult problems. science is definitive. there is a right answer out there. [ male announcer ] the same 117 elements do the fundamental work of chemistry. ♪ the difference, the one element that is the catalyst for innovation, the one element that changes everything is the human element. ♪ my subaru saved my life.

i won't ever forget that. love. it's what makes a subaru, a subaru.

taking a look at some stories making headlines in maryland. the bodies of four people found in a home. this was in riverdale just outside of washington. the bodies of two women, a boy and a girl were discovered just after officials responded to an assault complaint early this morning. also, the gulf of mexico crews will determine today whether the cement pumped into the well has hardened. officials hope it will once and for all stop this oil leak. also, researchers warning that as americans get fatter, more and more will get cancer. almost 27% of the u.s. population is now considered obese. that's expected to mean more than 100,000 additional cancer diagnoses this year.

researchers can't fully explain the link, but it's been established again and again and again. also, something for you this weekend. dr. sanjay gupta, showing you the toxic chemicals our children are exposed to every single day. what he has found out is really eye-opening. don't miss, toxic america, part two, toxic childhood. special investigation with dr. sanjay gupta, saturday at 8:00 eastern. we've got a young man in the studio i'm going to introduce you to in a moment, but you might already know him because of his speech he gave has a high school valedictorian. the speech actually went viral. you're going to meet this young man and hear his story. he's here. [ woman ] nine iron, it's almost tee-time... time to face the pollen that used to make me sneeze... my eyes water. but now zyrtec®, the fastest 24-hour allergy relief, comes in a new liquid gel. new zyrtec® liquid gels work fast, so i can love the air®.

of some of the annoying symptoms menopause brings. go introducing one a day menopause formula. the only complete multivitamin with soy isoflavones to help address hot flashes and mild mood changes. new one a day menopause formula.

all right. our mission possible today. you know what? sometimes we don't bring enough good news. we've got some new. look at that, honored and humbled. i don't know about the humbled part. i've been talking to this man for a few minutes here. but that's dionte bridges, a high school student out of atlanta. comes from one of the tougher neighborhoods here in the atlanta area. booker t. washington high school. he is now the first black male valedictorian at booker t. in some ten years, at least. this is a school that is predominantly black. his internet -- he became an internet sensation, because you're seeing part of his speech there, really got some people going, and is he was telling his remarkable story. let me let you listen to a piece of that. >> i am the dream and the hope of the slaves.

i rise. to quote the words of the famous writer and poet, langston hughes, life for me ain't been no crystal. i have been negatively stereotyped by society. enticed with drugs. overwhelmed with my mother's diagnosis with leukemia. robbed at gunpoint, and experienced the death of my brother. despite the tax, splinters and totem boys, still, i rise. >> he does. and he's here. young fella, good to have you in with us, man. good to have you here. i'll start with that speech. did you know -- did you know when you were valedictorian, you knew you were going to have to give a speech, did you know

automatically you were going to do something inspirational? there are so many things young people do with those speeches, but that was some powerful stuff there. >> i was never comfortable sharing the details or story of my life. >> why is that? >> i didn't want anyone feeling sorry for me. so i pretty much wanted to do what i had to do inside the classroom or what not, or just school period. and you know, when the time came for me to write my graduation speech, i knew i had a story to tell, but i didn't expect for it to become like this. >> and what do you think now that it has become what it is and you're sitting here on cnn right now and talking about it on national tv? what do you think about this? >> it's all surreal. very surreal. sometimes i can't believe it. i know so many people would be inspired by my story. it's really -- it's a blessing. i mean, i'm at a loss of words when i think about it. >> who instilled it in you? it had to come from somewhere. because you had every reason to use a lot of stuff as an excuse. but you didn't. who instilled in you, you've got to get that education, you have

to excel? >> well, i could say my parents. my family. my parents' parents. my father, earnest bridges, he was there to support and encourage me along the way. but at the end of the day, i had self discipline, knew what i needed to do, always wanted to make a difference, and always wanted to show the youth of the country. and i just had it in me ever since day one. and right now, it's a very great feeling. >> well, we're going to continue our conversation with him right after a break. and get into some more of those details of what exactly dionte did have to overcome to get to this point. quick break. we are right back with our "mission possible." i really didn't see it coming. i didn't realize i was drifting into the other lane. [ kim ] i was literally falling asleep at the wheel. it got my attention, telling me that i wasn't paying attention. the car hit the brakes faster than i could. i had no idea the guy in front of me had stopped short. but my car did. my car did. thankfully, my mercedes did. [ male announcer ] a world you can't predict... demands a car you can trust.

the e-class. the best or nothing. that is what drives us.

the e-class. save you fifteen percent or more on car insurance?really is having a snowball fight with pitching great randy johnson a bad idea? randy: sorry man, you all right? man: yeah, im good. yeah you just winged me. randy: think anybodys going to notice that? man: yeah, probably. maybe we should just go sledding... vo: geico. fifteen minutes could save you fifteen percent or more.

had i given up, i would not stand here today, as a possessor of more than $1 million in scholarship funds. [ cheers and applause ] >> had i given in -- [ applause ] >> -- i would not stand before you today, honored, and humbled, to be the first african-american male valedictorian of booker t. washington high school in more than a decade! [ cheers and applause ] >> well, dionte bridges, the eyes are a little dryer today, but he's getting folks in our studio worked up. did you get overcome with emotion there? we're talking with dionte bridges, a man who overcame so much at booker t. washington high school, the first male

black did you find yourself getting overwhelmed up there? >> i became very caught up in the moment. but reality kicked in, but i had to take a second that realize that it was all real. >> that reality you're talking about and that reality has been your life and you talked about it some in your speech there. tell our viewers how much you've gone through from your brother, to your mother. >> when i was younger, my brother passed away under cardiac arrest. he was playing basketball. i really feel like he was the best brother anyone could have. losing him at a very young age was a reality check. i knew that it was real. when i was 13, my mother was diagnosed with leukemia. they told me she had -- the average life span was five years. so five years late e here i am graduating and i'm glad that she was here to witness it all. may 17th, 2008, very tragic day.

i was robbed at gunpoint on my way home. some people may not know it, but coming off graduation, three days later, my grandfather passed away. adversity causes some men to break, but for me, et helped me break records. >> how is your mom doing? >> she's doing very well. >> how is she holding up with everything you're going through? she was here to see it. how proud is she? >> she is extremely proud. my father's extremely proud. filled with joy. >> i'm told about how impressive your background is, pretty much a 4.0 grade point average in high school. you got $1 million worth of scholarship offers. where did you decide to go to school? >> i decided to attend the university of georgia in athens. headed to athens. >> you wanted to stay close by because of family at this point?

>> exactly. >> what do you want to do down the road? >> continue to do what i'm going now. help give back and inspire others. i really want to make a difference. whafr i was placed here to do, i want to do it. >> we are pulling for you and we look forward to you still being at the forefront here in several years. wish you would have been a razorback instead of a bulldog but -- deonte, it's a pleasure to have you in here. we do sometimes some hard news around here that can really wear on you. but it's good to see an inspirational story for you. look out for him, deonte bridges, you will find him later. stay here with us, straight ahead, we're going to meet a young man who grew up in america. he studied here in america as well. but look at that picture. even sold used cars in america. a fascinating story. he's allegedly one of the big

guns in al qaeda and his momma, though, says he's a scapegoat. lots of discounts on car insurance. can i get in on that? are you a safe driver? yes. discount! do you own a home? yes. discount! are you going to buy online? yes! discount! isn't getting discounts great? yes! there's no discount for agreeing with me. yeah, i got carried away. happens to me all the time. helping you save money -- now, that's progressive. call or click today.

[ but aleve can last 12 hours. tylenol 8 hour lasts 8 hours. and aleve was proven to work better on pain than tylenol 8 hour. so why am i still thinking about this? how are you? good, how are you? [ male announcer ] aleve. proven better on pain. when something's safe? you talk to these guys. they go through every car and truck we make with a big fat red pencil. because they know a family's going to be inside. a teenager. a guy on the way to the job. the engineers of chevrolet. just another reason why we can offer a 5-year 100,000 mile powertrain warranty. and another reason why a chevy's a chevy.

at legal zoom we'll help you incorporate your business, file a patent, make a will and more. at legalzoom.com we put the law on your side. you have probably never heard this name. he'd probably like to keep it that way. but you can't stay totally under the radar when you're calling the shots for al qaeda as he is believed to be doing. cnn's susan candiotti with the story. >> reporter: the fbi says that after he left america, he started off as an al qaeda dishwasher doing menial tasks at training camps but believes he's much more than a dishwasher now.

>> he would be equated with a chief of operations. >> reporter: investigators have revealed to cnn they believe he is now directing al qaeda's overseas operations. how dangerous is he? >> he may not be somebody that's going to come into the united states to conduct the attack. but what makes him more dangerous is that he is out there plotting the attacks and recruiting people to actively do that. >> reporter: the breakthrough came when brian leblanc linked him to the thwarted subway suicide mission last fall, the biggest post-9/11 terror investigation. prosecutors say it was him who called the shots probably from somewhere along the afghan/pakistani border. >> ahe convinced them to come

back to the united states. >> reporter: he told them, you go there and blow up the subways. >> yes. >> reporter: a lot of people are saying he's involved in evil things, planning attacks on the united states. can you imagine this? >> no. that is not my son. my son is not a violent person. he is very kind, generous. >> reporter: in her only televised interview, his mother insists he's incapable of doing harm. >> he's a scapegoat. >> reporter: he came to america as a young child. his mother shared exclusively this beloved photo of the two of them. they settled in brooklyn, new york. they lived at this house nearby before moving to florida in the mid '90s. his father, who is now dead,

opened a small mosque near ft. lauderdale. in the late '90s, he worked several odd jobs including selling used cars. his family says that's how he played for courses at this small college in south florida. he even took classes to speak better english. a few years later, his english professor remembered videotaping him at one of those classes and turned over the tape to the fbi. the fbi says that professor's actions proved crucial to their investigation some six years later. on a hunch, leblanc asked agents in new york to show that video to would-be bomber zazi. >> he was able to make an identification. >> reporter: the fbi has a more detailed profile of him, in part from 9/11 mastermind mohammed.

he went to trinidad and london, by june 2001, afghanistan. on 9/11, his mother, who doesn't want to be named, says he called home for the last time. >> he called me and he said, did you hear what happened? they said they're putting it on the muslims. i said to him, do not come because all the muslims -- and he was arguing with me, no, i didn't do nothing. i will come. >> reporter: and after that? >> after that, i didn't hear about him. >> reporter: his mother adamantly denies her son is directing al qaeda attacks. but when i asked about the admitted times square car bomber, she said this -- >> sometimes you have to do something very alarming for the people to wake up. it's not because you hate them

or you want to destroy them or you want to hurt them. >> reporter: is there anything that you would tell your son about what he should do or not do? >> no. i don't have nothing to tell him. he has his own guide in his own heart. >> reporter: for the fbi, it's all about staying one step ahead. where will al qaeda strike next? what do you think he's doing now? >> he's definitely focused on attacking the united states and other western countries. >> he is believed to be hiding in the lawless frontier of pakistan. two of hez predecessors were killed in u.s. drone attacks. coming up on the top of the hour here now and we are standing by for an event at the white house. we're expecting a little get-together, a reception for the newest or soon-to-be, i should say, the newest supreme court justice elena kagan. she was approved yesterday 63-37. it's going to be in the east

room in about 30 minutes, expecting it at the bottom of the hour, just essentially to say congratulations. just a little reception for her. she's going to be joining a court in which of course there's only four women ever -- she would be the fourth ever female to sit on the court. she'll join two other women on the court, ruth bader ginsburg and sonia sotomayor and now elena will join that group. we'll bring you that event live when it happens. in the meantime, we want to bring in former "new york times" supreme court reporter linda greenhouse. she's on the line from d.c. it's a pleasure to be talking to you today. we saw this 63-37 vote yesterday. are the days long gone of us ever seeing those big, overwhelming majorities of these justices being approved? is it always going to be some kind of partisan split from now on? >> it does seem that way because

the attack on elena kagan from the republicans, all but five of whom voted against her, lacked a certain coherence. they were struggling for something to articulate. and so i think that says to me, we're just in a partisan place. >> like you said, they were fishing for something to go after her with. why go after anything in the first place and oppose a justice that really doesn't change the balance of the court? >> well, i think the judicial wars is kind of politics by other means right now. so i think the republicans don't want to cut the obama administration any slack on anything. we've seen that across the entire domestic agenda. blocking a number of his nominees to the lower courts. and i think this is just all of a piece -- it's a strategy. and one thing that was very

interesting that emerged from the republican attack is quite ironic. elena kagan was being attacked as being too much in favor of judicial restraint. that is to say, not going out there with all guns blazing to overturn acts of congress that some of the republicans don't like, such as the health care law. pretty amusing to see republicans saying basically, you ought to be more of a judicial activist, and then we might like you better. >> and of course the other side of that, other judges or other nominees get attacked for being activist judges at the same time. >> exactly. >> what do make of and has not been made enough of the fact that she's going to be the third women on the current court? >> it's certainly a nice thing. i'm sitting here in my office and on my wall, i have a

photograph of the canadian supreme court which has 5 out of 9 female justices. i think the canadian public has come to accept that as just -- that's the way things are. so i think the fact that not a huge amount has been made of it tells us that at a time that women are half the students in the country's law schools and are making their way in the legal profession and almost half of the state court chief justices are women, people don't realize that. but it's something in the 20s out of the 50 states. so this has been happening. and it's really, i think, not so much a breakthrough as a ra

ratification. >> all the politics and the back and forth -- when it's not changing the balance of the court, what's going to happen when the day comes when there's a justice that could tilt the court one way or another? what kind of a fight can you imagine we see then? >> yeah, i think we have to understand what happened this time in light of everybody's expectation that at some time down the road and who knows when and who knows who will be in the white house at that time, one of the dominating conservatives justices will retire. and that would be -- if president obama or some other democrat is in the white house, that would be an occasion to actually change the balance. and i think the republican senators were kind of setting a marker saying, we're fighting you even on this occasion with this nominee who does not really have a potential to change the

balance. and take notice of the open warfare that's going to occur if there's a next time. >> last thing here, elena kagan is joining a court that's going to be taking up -- there's been so much attention to proposition 8. what do you see as possibly landmarks in this country? some would say that proposition 8 is coming down the pike in the next year or so. what do you see this court and elena kagan being a part of? >> it's pretty evident the court is going to weigh in on the health care law. there's something like 23 legal challenges, many of them brought by governors of various states, challenging the constitutionally of the mandate in that law -- we had a preliminary district court judgment just the other day on that. those cases are in the pipeline.

some of the republicans wanted a promise from elena kagan that she would recuse herself from any such cases because he was solicitor general at the time the bill was signed into law and she declined to make such a promise. >> linda greenhouse, it is a pleasure to talk to you. we'll let you go back to looking at pictures on the wall there in your office. we appreciate you hopping on the line with us. >> thank you. bottom of the hour, about 20 minutes or so, we're expecting to hear from the president and elena kagan going to have a little reception at the white house. we'll bring that to you live. also, a bp big wig giving a concrete answer on this week's progress in the gulf. it affects what happens next and it is this hour's "sound effect." >> the cement plug is very, very extensive. it comes up some 5,000 feet

inside the wellbore. this is a very large september plug in this well. we also displaced cement behind what we call overdisplaced -- we pumped it in, whichever path it was coming up. it was up through the casing. we pumped it through that path and it went back into any spaces that were behind the casing and out into the reservoir. the job went very, very well. then we left a large volume of cement inside the casing. >> they have to wait for all that cement to cure, to dry which will take probably most of the weekend. next week, that giant drill will work in 30-minute increments. when that happens, more cement gets killed in to kill this nightmare well completely. we're on day 109 of the oil disaster set off by that explosion on the deepwater horizon rig that killed 11 men, nearly 5 million barrels of oil have gotten into the waters of the gulf. but the end of this chapter possibly is in sight.

coming up, it's something called birth tourism. foreigners coming here to the u.s. to have a baby so that baby can become a u.s. citizen. some lawmakers want to put a stop to that. the big debate over it coming your way next. ♪ she spends her whole day tweeting ♪ ♪ and status updating ♪ but this girl should be friending free-credit-score-dot-com ♪ ♪ 'cause all that wireless spending ♪ ♪ has done her credit score wrong ♪ ♪ with their score alerts ♪ she'd have seen it coming ♪ she could have gone to work ♪ ♪on it, but now she's bumming! vo: offer applies with enrollment in triple advantage.

is it possibly another front in the immigration debate? we've been watching what's happening in arizona. and then you've been hearing about something called birthright citizenship. even if a child is born to illegal parents here illegally, that child is a u.s. citizen. that's according to the u.s. constitution. it says all persons born or naturalized in the united states and subject to the jurisdiction thereof are citizens of the united states and of the state wherein they reside. some people call these anger babies. you'll hear that term thrown around a bit. but there are some efforts in washington, d.c., also in arizona, to possibly change the constitution, do away with this birthright citizenship that we have in the constitution and now bring in something else on this front, something called birth tourism.

essentially people are coming here to have their babies. talking about people who may even enter the country legally just to have a child on u.s. soil. i want to bring in an immigration expert. thank you for being here. help people understand this. this might be the first time they're hearing about this to tourism thing. is it a big problem just out? >> not at all. out of millions of individuals to come to the united states, it is estimated approximately -- statistic ts show about 7,600 have children here. so we're talking about a very small percentage. it's not a problem. >> and explain for people as well how this works. the first part i need to get out, that there is nothing i illegal about this. >> they enter lawfully by the

u.s. government and they pay for their expenses. their medical expenses, if they have to stay in a hotel, they pay for everything. they're not receiving any public benefits to be able to have a child here. >> help people as well understand, what is so excising? what is the draw about -- no matter where a person might be from. we hear about these being set up in china and other place. but if a citizen living in china, what is still the draw? why is it so desirable to have your child have u.s. citizenship and that u.s. passport? >> well, many times -- it's my understanding that moms choose to have their children here because they think they are receiving better medical care. so usually that is the factor that they focus on when deciding to come here to have a child. but having a u.s. passport obviously is very advantageous because they don't have to request visas to be able to come

to the united states. and it allows them to be able to live here and study here and work here if they wish to do so during their lifetime. >> and for a lot of people who may not understand this, the way immigration works, if someone could get what's called a "b" visa, come here for a visit, as a visitor. when someone is trying to apply for a visa, a visitor visa and they see that person might be pregnant, are you they allowed to take that kind of stuff into conversation when deciding whether or not to let a person into the country? >> when somebody's questioning a tourist visa to come here, they have to establish that they do not have immigrant intent. and that they have means, they have the money to come here and visit and that they are going to leave the united states. those are the factors taken under consideration by the u.s. government when they issue the

visas. >> let me ask you as well, talking about birth tourism here, but at the same time, so many people believe if a child is born here in this country to illegal parents, that in some way, now that that child is here, that that could help the parents actually get citizenship or become legal status. that's not the case, is it? >> no, not really. for a child to petition a parent under our immigration laws, the child needs to be 21 years old, first of all. second of all, for waivers of inadmissible, there are circumstances, there are laws under which you cannot even consider hardship to a child to obtain a waiver of inadmissibility, for example, for unlawful presence. and to defend yourself from removal, in order to avoid having to leave the country, you need to establish exceptional and extremely unusual hardship to a citizen child. so it's not that simple to become a permanent resident and

eventually a citizen just because you have a child born in the united states. >> and last couple of things, back on the birth tourism, the people that do come here, what kind of people are we talking about who do -- because these things, frankly, aren't cheap. a lot of these services out there that do do birth tourism, it's not something cheap. what kind of folks are coming over for this? >> the cases that i'm familiar with and that i've known about and from reading also are individuals that have the means to come here. these are people that can afford -- it's about $30,000 in estimated cost to have a child in the united states. these are individuals that can afford to, first of all, be issued the visa by the u.s. government. they have to qualify. second of all, to be able to have the means to pay for the medical expenses and being able to stay here for that period of time that is necessary to have the child. we're talking about a lot of money. >> we appreciate you being here and appreciate your expertise.

and getting a lot of the facts out because we know there's a lot of disinformation and a lot of people just don't understand some parts of this front and the whole immigration debate. thank you so much for being here. enjoy the rest of your day. >> thank you for having me. coming up, we're going to be talking to one of our cnn heroes. and she did something that was remarkable. she helped shed 15,000 pounds. this was for her community, of course. but she's not going to stop there.

>> so, ah, your seat good? got the mirrors all adjusted? you can see everything ok? just stay off the freeways, all right? i don't want you going out on those yet. and leave your phone in your purse, i don't want you texting. >> daddy... ok! ok, here you go. be careful. >> thanks dad.

>> and call me--but not while you're driving. we knew this day was coming. that's why we bought a subaru. and it's the little things that you don't think about. people think of the food, they think of housing but no one thinks: "how are you going to wash your clothes?" i brought towels and blankets. socks. sheets and pillowcases. [ man ] you just don't feel human without clean clothes. [ female announcer ] with every bottle of yellow-cap tide purchased and registered online, one dollar goes towards loads of hope, a free laundry service that provides clean clothes to families affected by disasters. together, we can provide loads of hope.

welcome back. want to introduce once again to one of our cnn heroes. these are always great to do. what this cnn hero did is try to fight obesity in her particular state will state. that led to 15,000 pounds being dropped. take a listen. >> obesity affects us all. the only way that you combat it is to stand together and help each other. we need to make a commitment to change. >> and that is our cnn hero, linda, who joins me now live from her home state of mississippi. linda, good to have you here with us. you're in jackson. but your home town of vicksburg is where you were doing this good work. what got you going in the first place?

>> what got me doing was, as you know, our state, mississippi, has horrible statistics. we're number one in diabetes, high blood pressure and lack of physical activity. we've gotten an "f" for the fattest state in the nation. but we have so many other good things about our state. but this overshadows it all. so my concern and my love for my community got me to start this weight loss challenge. >> how did you put this challenge together? explain to our viewers exactly what you had people doing. >> well, first in order to get it going, you have to get the support of the business leaders, the local hospitals, the businesses that are there, the restaurants that are there. but also i took it to our elected officials. and i issued that challenge to them because they took an oath to serve our community. and so the support really came

through. the people that hold the businesses in our community and they jumped at the opportunity to help because they realize as well that we do have this problem. not only in our state, but our community was not immune to this. >> and how difficult was it -- or was it easy, i should say, to get the community on board? >> you know, when i issued this challenge, i had people calling me on the telephone wanting to know where can they sign up? people want to do better. and they just do not have the tools and opportunities to do this. and so that's what i wanted to provide. so was it difficult for people to come on board? absolutely not. people were ready. and they still are ready. >> i guess where do you take it from here? like we mentioned, you help people lose some 15,000 pounds. how much are you going to keep dropping there? what's the next step for you? >> i really want to keep going. there are so many people in the community that i did not reach. i've also found that because of

some of the disabilities that the people have -- don't forget, we are obese. so we have trouble with our limbs, standing too long. so one of the things that i came up with was the walking club after the 17,000-pound challenge ended. that walking club is easy. because it's something we do every day. it is the number one exercise. so i started a walking club and getting people involved, just getting out into your community. but you also get to learn to love your community. you see places you haven't seen before. so i think that loving your community makes you want to do better. so that's not all that's going on. we also have programs, health education programs because this is something that's very important. as you know, nutrition, proper eating and exercise go hand in hand. >> yes, ma'am. well, it is why you are one of our cnn heroes. it's an absolute pleasure to talk to you. we'll continue to follow and maybe get mississippi off the bottom of that list. nobody wants to be on it, one of

the fattest states, as they say. linda, it's a pleasure to talk to you. enjoy the rest of your day. >> thank you so much. >> for more information on linda's crusade, log on to you are website, cnn.com/heroes. also check out the upcoming "cnn heroes" special. that's "coming back from katrina." airs saturday, august 14th. and again sunday night. we are keeping a close eye at the white house. expecting an event to take place any moment. the president having a little reception today for his newest supreme court justice, justice-to-be, i should still say. this is in the east room at the white house. a live picture. just giving the heads-up that this was about to happen.

elena kagan, who was approved yesterday, 63-37 by the senate, she will be the fourth woman to ever sit on the high court and the third woman to sit on the current court joining the president's other nominee from last year, sotomayor, and ruth bader ginz besburg who's also o that court. family members just came in and took their place at the front of the room there. but always -- it was not a lot of drama about what was going to happen. a lot of people knew the vote that the democrats had the vote or the president had the vote, i should say, to get her approved. not a lot of drama there. but it's always such a big deal. there she is, the supreme court justice-to-be. it will be official tomorrow when she's sworn in. there she is, getting that reception and let's go ahead and listen in to the president as we call this just a little reception as they're calling it. let's listen in to the

president. >> everybody please sit down. have a seat. this is a good day. good afternoon, everybody. welcome to the white house. i am pleased that all of you could be here today as we celebrate the next member of our nation's highest court. while she may be feeling a twinge of sadness about giving up the title of "general," a cool title, i think we can all agree that justice elena kagan has a pretty nice ring to it. [ applause ]

we are very honored to be joined today by two of elena's new colleagues, justice ruth bader ginsburg and justice anthony kennedy. [ applause ] justice kennedy assured me that he would keep justice kagan out of trouble and justice ginsburg assured me that she would get justice kagan into trouble. so we'll see how that works out. we're also pleased to have several members of congress as well as our cabinet here today and of course members of elena's family. and thanks to all of you for your service and for taking time to be here today. i also want to express my

gratitude to our senate judiciary committee chairman, senator leahy, senator session, majority leader reid and republican leader mcconnell for making sure that elena got a full, fair and timely hearing. after more than 80 one-on-one meetings and 17 hours of testimony, i'd say that the senate got a pretty good look at elena kagan. they got a good sense of her judicial philosophy, her commitment to the rule of law, her rich understanding of our constitution and, of course, where she can be found on christmas day. the bipartisan support she received in yesterday's vote is another example of the highest es tatum teem she's held by folks across the aisle.

i don't know too many folks whose fans include president clinton and justice ginsburg as well as justice scalia. in fact, i understand that justice scalia came to relish their exchanges even though elena told him he was, quote, wrong, in his recent case. i'm sure that was refreshing for him to hear. these folks may not agree on much, but they've all been impressed as i have been by elena's intellect and path-breaking career. as the first woman to serve as dean of the harvard law school and most recently as solicitor general. they admire how while she could have easily settled into a

comfortable practice in corporate law, she chose instead to devote her life to public service, they appreciate her excellent and often irreverent sense of humor. these are traits that she happens to share with the last solicitor general who went on to become a supreme court justice, one for whom elena clerked and whom she considers one of her heroes, justice thurgood marshall. and we are very proud to have justice marshall's widow here today. [ applause ] in a tribute she wrote after justice marshall's death, elena recalled how she and her fellow clerks took turns standing guard when his casket lay in state at

the supreme court and how 20,000 people stood in a line that stretched around the block to pay their respects. there were people from every background and every walk of life, black, white, rich and poor, young and old. many brought their children hoping to impress upon them the lessons of justice marshall's extraordinary life. some left notes. some left flowers. one mourner left a worn slip opinion of brown versus board of education. it is a moving reminder that the work of our highest court shapes not just the character of our democracy but the most fundamental aspects of our daily lives, how we work, how we worship, whether we can speak freely and live fully, whether those words put to paper more than two centuries ago will truly mean something for each of us in our time. because as visionaries our founders were, they did not presume to know exactly how the times would change and what new

questions fate and history would set before us. instead, they sought to articulate principles that would be timeless, ones that would accommodate the changing circumstances of our lives while preserving the rights and freedoms on which this country was founded. today is one of those moments when you can't help but appreciate the extraordinary success of their efforts. for nearly two centuries, there wasn't a single woman on the supreme court. when elena was a clerk, there was just one. when she takes her seat on that bench for the first time in history, there will be three women serving on our nation's highest court. it is as justice ginsburg recently put it, one of the most exhilarating developments, a sign of progress that i relish

not just as a father who wants limitless possibilities for my daughter, but as an american proud that our supreme court will be a little more inclusive, a little more representative, more reflective of us as a people than ever before. and as yet another example of how our union has become more not less perfect over time, more open, more fair, more free. that's not just a matter of accident or chance. those founding truths about liberty and equality were not self-perpetuating. the members of our highest court do the vital and constant work of ensuring that they endure. and that's work that i'm confident elena will carry out with integrity, with humanity and an abiding commitment to the ideal inscribed above our courthouse door, equal justice under the law. so it is now my great pleasure to introduce as our next supreme

court justice, elena kagan. [ applause ] [ applause ] >> thank you. thank you. thank you so much, mr. president. thank you for the honor you've given me and the trust you've placed in me by nominating me to the supreme court. i am deeply grateful. thank you also for lending me

some of your marvelous staff since my nomination. it's a lot of work and preparation that goes into the confirmation process, and i very much appreciate their tireless efforts. and one person deserves a special shoutout for her incomparable energy, expertise and wisdom. and that's the head of your judicial nominations team, susan davies. [ applause ] i also want to thank the judiciary committee and the entire senate for giving me such respectful and expeditious consideration. chairman leahy gave me wonderful advice throughout this process

and both he and senator sessions ensured that my hearing was serious and courteous. i also very much enjoyed meeting with 83 senators, but really, who's counting? and enjoyed learning more about their concerns, their interests and their deep commitments to public service. i'm delighted that many of my former colleagues from the solicitor general's office here. it's the best law office in the country and i've learned every day from its members. now, once i put on that robe, i'm only going to vote with them when they have the better of the argument. which, let's be frank, is not in every case. but i will always appreciate

their integrity and professionalism and dedication. finally, i want to thank my family and friends. i have a lot of family here today. my brothers and sister-in-law, a nephew, a niece, aunts, uncles, cousins, and i have a great many friends here as well. you came from all over the country as soon as you heard the senate had approved my nomination and i'm moved and deeply grateful for your support. and all around me in this room, i feel the presence of my parents. i wouldn't be standing here today if not@ sacrifice and devotion. and although my parents didn't live to see this day, what i can almost hear them saying and i think i can hear justice marshall saying this to me right

now as well is the disappointment appointment is not just an honor, much more importantly, it is an obligation, an obligation to protect and preserve the rule of law in this country, an obligation to uphold the rights and liberties afforded by our remarkable constitution. and on obligation to provide what the inscription on the supreme court building promises -- equal justice under law. tomorrow i will take two oaths to uphold this solemn obligation. one to support and defend the constitution and the other to administer justice without respect to persons, to the rich and poor alike. today, mr. president, i will simply say to you and to everyone here and across the

nation that i will work my hardest and try my best to fulfill these commitments and to serve this country i love as well as i am able. thank you. [ applause ] >> i told elena to go ahead and soak it in because i'm not sure they're allowed to clap in the supreme court. but thank you very much for joining us and please enjoy the

reception. thank you. >> well, there it is. enjoy the reception. you see the room full of family and friends, people she's noun over the years, other invited guests in there in the room. but elena kagan looked like she was trying to hightail it out of there when she got done talking. she's about 5'1" stepping up to the podium there. but still as they often do, a big moment even though not a lot of drama about whether or not she was going to be approved by the senate. but still always a big moment when we see another supreme court justice, 63-37 was the vote. she'll be the third woman on the current court. just the 112th justice in the 200-something years of the court. we don't see this that often. this is always a big deal. she will be officially sworn in tomorrow. the oath she talked about she's going to take. that's happening around 2:00

eastern tomorrow. meanwhile, have you ever heard of a sprog? what about smushables? how about a quackmire? they're all words found in a secret vault that the oxford english dictionary rejected. we're unveiling the secret next. on your next business trip, pack your marriott rewards visa card. get triple points every time you use your card at marriott. apply now and earn 22,500 bonus points when you use your card and enjoy a free night stay. so, before you know it, work time becomes well-deserved downtime. apply now at marriott.com/freenightstay. you've got staying power. the world's first 100% custom, invisible, digital, and fully programmable hearing aid, loaded with today's most advanced hearing technologies, including our new sophisticated noise reduction system.

this amazing new invisible hearing aid is custom made, allows you to talk comfortably on the phone, sounds natural. - the quality of sound is excellent, and yet they're, you know, the size of a thumbtack. announcer: to learn more, call: today.

as we do go "off the radar" here with chad -- you went way off the radar yesterday. we got some rejects. >> we're out of the book. we're out of the oxford disk nair.

fumb, what do you think it should be? >> what's that? >> your big toe, it would have been. didn't make it. another one, a nonversation. completely useless conversation. >> have that all the time. >> especially in this building. optotoxical. >> has something to do with the eyes? >> of a look. >> that could kill. >> that could kill. >> i like that one. >> and pen a peppier. >> an animal. >> it's that little person that comes around that only does the pepper. he's not a -- >> are we out? we're done? >> scrax, that wax that comes

off a lottery ticket. that didn't make it either. >> chad "off the radar." difference between a super athlete and just some bum sitting on the bench? well, some people say it's all right here, it's in the belly button. don't laugh. we'll explain it. when i use expedia, my friends at work think there's more than one "me." ...because on our trips, i always get there faster. see, expedia lets me mix and match airlines.

so i can take one airline out... and another home. so with more flight options, i can find the combination that gets me there and back quickest. with a little help from expedia, my friends will think i can be everywhere at once. where you book matters. expedia.

you want to know what makes a great athlete? it's all in here, right here, the belly button. seriously. samantha hayes, do tell. >> reporter: we're simplifying physics here.

but the theory is if you have two athletes of the same height, the one with the higher belly button with the the faster runner. the one with the lower belly button, a faster swimmer. at 6'3", michael phelps dominates in the water. usain bolt is the fastest man on land. >> if we have extremely good runners of the same size and extremely good swimmers of the same size, then why is it that all the finalists in one sport are of one origin and all the finalists in the other sport are of a different origin. >> reporter: bejan says the fastest swimmers have a long waist, a characteristic of european origin. the fastest runners are of west africa origin.

there's been a mixed reaction to your research. >> every time physics is brought into the discussion of social dynamics, there is effervescence. you wouldn't say controversy, because i haven't seen it. >> reporter: this high school swimming coach says perseverance is more important. >> we've had incredible success over the years with a lot of different types of guys. some that could barically swim when they first got here. and over the years of working hard, we've been fairly successful. >> reporter: colin black nearly drowned as a child. but went on to help set a world record in 2008. bejan acknowledges the exceptions but says science shows the general trend. >> that goes without saying. individuals are individuals because they have the talent to

deviate from the pack. the law of physics is about the group. it is about the evolution of the populati population. >> reporter: which means even phelps and bolt are likely to see their own records broken by somebody else. bejan predicts that eventually track and swimming events will be divided by height, much like different classes for weightlifting. >> we're all checking our belly buttons right now. "wordplay" is coming up next. and it's elena kagan related. appraiser: well you rarely see them in this good of shape. appraiser: for example the fingers are perfect. appraiser: the bird is in mint condition. appraiser: and i would say if this were to go to auction today, appraiser: conservatively it would be worth 2 in the bush. woman: really? appraiser: it's just beautiful, thank you so much for bringing it in. woman: unbelievable

anncr: geico. 15 minutes could save you 15% or more.

the "wordplay" today is all about judicial power. that's how the supreme court is

described in article 3 of the constitution. there was no established court until 1789. the judicial act of 1789 set out the court's makeup and officially gave the president the power to nominate justices. the first court only had six chief justice, five associates. that judicial power went on the road in the early days. back then, the justices were required to preside in 13 separate judicial districts. the most popular name has been john. john paul stevens is making his way out of the court for elena kagan. coming up, got a bit of a dilemma. you want to be a pro athlete or a fighter pilot? that's my "xyz." ♪ band: if you were born with money coming out of your whoo-hoo ♪ ♪ then this song probably doesn't apply to you ♪ ♪ but if you're like most people i know ♪ ♪ you could use some help understanding your credit score so ♪

♪ 1-2-3-4 free-credit-score ♪ ♪ dot-com on, yeah dot-com on, sing it ! ♪ vo: offer applies with enrollment in triple advantage. you struggle to control your blood sugar. you exercise and eat right, but your blood sugar may still be high, and you need extra help. ask your doctor about onglyza, a once daily medicine used with diet and exercise to control high blood sugar in adults with type 2 diabetes. adding onglyza to your current oral medicine may help reduce after meal blood sugar spikes and may help reduce high morning blood sugar. [ male announcer ] onglyza should not be used to treat type 1 diabetes or diabetic ketoacidosis. tell your doctor if you have a history

or risk of diabetic ketoacidosis. onglyza has not been studied with insulin. using onglyza with medicines such as sulfonylureas may cause low blood sugar. some symptoms of low blood sugar are shaking, sweating and rapid heartbeat. call your doctor if you have an allergic reaction like rash, hives or swelling of the face, mouth or throat. ask your doctor if you also take a tzd as swelling in the hands, feet or ankles may worsen. blood tests will check for kidney problems. you may need a lower dose of onglyza if your kidneys are not working well or if you take certain medicines. [ male announcer ] ask your doctor about adding onglyza. extra help. extra control. you may be eligible to pay $10 a month with the onglyza value card program.

in my "xyz" today, ask little boys out there what they want to be when they grow up, and you'll hear a lot of different answers. but among them, likely you'll hear them say probably pro athletes or maybe a fighter pilot. there's a guy in denver that actually has the option of both. his name is ben garland. he's a rookie defensive lineman who signed a contract with the denver broncos. he's in training camp with the team now. but his nfl career might be over before he ever plays a regular season game. you see, ben is a graduate of the air force academy. that means he's obligated to do some active duty service in the military. that's going to start at the end of the month. this is where it gets tricky. he can choose to take a coveted spot in the pilot training program in the air force, but if

he does that, he'd have to commit about ten years to it, essentially killing any hopes of playing in the nfl. but if he doesn't opt for the pilot training program, he could possibly only do two years of active duty service and then return to the nfl. he has to decide right now if he has what it takes to have a long-term nfl program. earlier this week, i told you about a young man who was a harvard graduate who just signed a one-year contract with the golden state warriors. he's choosing to try out the nba. if it doesn't work out, he has something to fall back on. ben's story is different. he has to choose one or the other. what would you do? not that many jobs out there that a young man would take over being a professional athlete. but an air force pilot? that's hot. that's it for me today. don's list is coming up after the break.

my subaru saved my life. i won't ever forget that. love. it's what makes a subaru, a subaru. one way i can take care of my engine? take care of your engine and it'll go far. one a day men's -- a complete multivitamin for my overall health.

plus now it supports my heart health and helps maintain healthy blood pressure. [ engine revs ] whoa. kinda makes your heart race, huh? at legal zoom