Mubarak in "Critical Condition"; Stopping Europe's Ripple Effects
ASHLEIGH BANFIELD, CNN HOST: Anger and confusion in Egypt. Protests overnight over the military's power grab in that country, and then conflicting reports about former President Hosni Mubarak's health.</s>ZORAIDA SAMBOLIN, CNN HOST: Change of course in the North Sea of a Russian ship thought to be carrying attack helicopters to Syria may have already turned around, and it is headed home.</s>BANFIELD: The Heat in the driver's seat of the NBA Finals. LeBron James now just one win away from his first championship. I'm very excited.</s>SAMBOLIN: LeBron James. The whole team, LeBron James.</s>BANFIELD: I know, but doesn't everyone just think LeBron James is the Heat? The Heat is on, folks. Good morning, everyone. Nice to have you with us on this very, very EARLY START. I'm Ashleigh Banfield.</s>SAMBOLIN: And I'm Zoraida Sambolin. We're bringing you the news from A to Z. It's 5:00 a.m. here in the East. Let's get --</s>BANFIELD: Yes, right?</s>SAMBOLIN: Yes, Ashleigh and Zoraida. It's 5:00 a.m. in the East. Let's started here.</s>BANFIELD: It never gets old, never gets old.</s>SAMBOLIN: All right. So, let's start with the developing news this morning out of Egypt about the health of former President Hosni Mubarak. We're getting conflicting reports about his actual condition. A state news agency is reporting the 84-year-old is clinically dead. But his lawyer says that he is in a coma. And the military says Mubarak's condition is critical. But that he is, indeed, still alive. All this confusion coming at a very critical time for Egypt. Thousands gathering overnight in Cairo's Tahrir Square to protest the military leaders who were supposed to oversee the transition to democracy. Instead, they are grabbing more power. Ivan Watson is live in Cairo. Ivan, what is the latest on Mubarak's condition?</s>IVAN WATSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: The latest is that his wife Suzanne, we're told, has been able to visit his bedside at the military prison that he was -- military hospital, rather, that he was transferred to. He appears to be on life support after suffering a heart attack, being revived, and also possibly suffering a stroke as well. We're not getting much more information, though. No press conferences, nothing like that. And some of the Egyptians I'm talking to are expressing frustration about that. They're saying, Jesus, this guy may be on the verge of dying and no doctor coming out to give us more information just as one statement that's been disputed from the official news agency of Egypt, MENA, saying he's clinically dead. A bit of frustration from Egyptians at the lack of information about their former president.</s>SAMBOLIN: So, do you think his death will have any impact there?</s>WATSON: You know, I'm sure that Egyptians will be fascinated and transfixed by images of a funeral of the man who governed their country for nearly 30 years. But I think that for the most part, they're very concerned about the hit the economy has taken over the past year and a half, about who's going to run this country next. I mean, this news of Mubarak suffering a health emergency is coming as the entire country waits to find out who won the presidential elections last weekend, and also amid concerns about where the country's going. It doesn't even have a constitution right now. And the parliament was just dissolved last week. So there's a constitutional and legislative vacuum right now while the country waits to find out who's the next president. They're not too worried right now about their former president who was ungraciously kicked out of power.</s>SAMBOLIN: So, let's talk about all of those protesters that showed up at Tahrir Square and what exactly it is that they are protesting and what it is that their expectation is.</s>WATSON: Well, for the most part, these people last night, and they were there until about 3:00 in the morning, thousands of them, were supporters of the Muslim Brotherhood's candidate for president. His name is Mohammed Morsi. His camp has claimed victory in the election with 52 percent of the vote, even though his opponent, Hosni Mubarak's former handpicked prime minister, Ahmed Shafik, is also claiming victory. State media is reflecting Mohammed Morsi's numbers for a victory. These people were out there to celebrate what they think is their candidate's victory, but also to say no to military rule. Because it has been a power grab by the ruling military council in the past couple days, assuming wide ranging legislative and executive powers and also inserting itself in the process of writing a new constitution -- Zoraida.</s>COSTELLO: We see a repeat of the deadly clashes? Do you think that could potentially be the outcome here?</s>WATSON: I think there's concern about that, but also some of that energy, the street protests that have convulsed Egypt for more than a year and a half now, has dissipated some. A lot of those initial revolutionaries that we saw in January and February in Tahrir Square are deeply disillusioned and angry at the political process here -- angry at horse trading in the back rooms between the Muslim Brotherhood and the military, angry at the recent power grab by the military as well. And I think some of them have conceded that street protests are not the only answer to Egypt. But there is a lot of concern that the power grab by the military council is killing the revolutionary fervor and enthusiasm of a year and a half ago.</s>SAMBOLIN: Ivan Watson live in Cairo for us -- thank you very much. And coming up at 7:00 Eastern on "STARTING POINT," former ambassador to Egypt, Daniel Kurtzer, will weigh in on the possible death of a dictator, whether democracy there is in danger as Ivan Watson was alluding, and what failure could mean for the United States.</s>BANFIELD: It's five minutes now past 5:00. And President Obama is back here in the U.S. and back in Washington this morning. This after the G-20 summit that was being held in Mexico. World leaders were meeting to discuss, what else, Europe's financial problems. The president said that he is confident Europe can get back on track with the U.S. economy and his election hopes in mind. Our foreign affairs correspondent Jill Dougherty has been following this summit. She joins me live now from Washington. So no big consensus. The president holding this news conference last night live on TV. And not with anything terrific to report in terms of how the leaders came out of this.</s>JILL DOUGHERTY, CNN FOREIGN AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: Yes. I think that's pretty accurate, unfortunately, Ashleigh. Not a lot of specifics. They talked generalities. And essentially what they're saying is, you know, we're for European integration. That means some things that are good, namely, making a coordinated banking union. And also creating kind of an idea of creating an FDIC, the type we have here in the United States that's a guarantee for money you put into banks. But, overall they were saying, look, we're not going to spend to help our economies unless things really go south. Here's how President Obama explained it.</s>BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: What I've encouraged them to do is to lay out a framework for where they want to go in increasing European integration, in resolving the financial pressures that are on sovereign countries. Even if they can't achieve all of it in one fell swoop, I think if people have a sense of where they're going, that can provide confidence and break the fever.</s>DOUGHERTY: Break the fever. That sounds pretty serious. It really is, because, you know, Ashleigh, there are different philosophies in Europe. You know, Germany's pretty tough. Other countries want more spending. So at least you have an overall view, but not a lot of really nitty-gritty.</s>BANFIELD: Yes. And there's fame. And you know, you listen to Ali Velshi, Christine Romans talking about the weakest links in the chain and how that chain stretches across the Atlantic to us, that the press corps was tough on the president last night. And they pushed him on the situation in the United States, particularly jobs. Every one of us probably has some kind of a Spanish bond in our 401(k) in some way. But when it translates to this economy here and jobs here, what was his answer?</s>DOUGHERTY: Had to admit that there's a direct connection. You know, he was asked, would his election go down because of Europe? He didn't quite get there. But he did make that connection. Here's what he said.</s>OBAMA: Slower growth in Europe means slower growth in American jobs. If we take the right policy steps, if we're doing the right thing, then the politics will follow. And my mind hasn't changed on that.</s>DOUGHERTY: You know, Ashleigh, really it's kind of the debate that's here, that's going on in Europe as well. Do you spend your way out of a big problem or do you get tough and look for austerity? And that debate is there. It's here. And we'll see how they -- how they move forward.</s>BANFIELD: The world is flat. We were all having the same exact debate. There's no right answer if you ask. Jill Dougherty, thank you. Good work.</s>SAMBOLIN: It is nine minutes past the hour. New information about a Russian ship reportedly carrying military helicopters to Syria. It appears to have turned back for home this morning. But another ship loaded with weapons may be on the way. British officials reporting the original ship has changed course after word of its controversial cargo made international headlines. Russian officials are not commenting. Pentagon officials have also told CNN that the Russians may be sending another ship carrying weapons, ammunition and a small number of Russian troops to Syria to help fortify its naval base there as the situation spirals out of control.</s>BANFIELD: CNN has learned that Jerry Sandusky is prepped and ready to go, ready to testify today in his child sex abuse trial. The defense is expected to rest its case this afternoon. But before that happens, the lawyers for the former Penn State assistant football coach have to make that big decision: do they or don't they put him on the stand? Closing arguments could be heard as early as tomorrow. The case then going to the jury shortly after that.</s>SAMBOLIN: Attorney General Eric Holder could find himself on the business end of a contempt of Congress citation today. A meeting between Holder and the House Oversight Committee, the chairman there, Darrell Issa, failed to resolve a dispute over the botched Fast and Furious sting operation. Issa says he asked for more documents related to Fast and Furious, which is linked to the death of a border patrol agent. But Holder did not deliver it. So they are going forward with the planned contempt vote.</s>BANFIELD: And this just in. Gas prices falling overnight -- don't you just love hearing that over and over again? This time a big fall, too. A full cent. Right now, the national average for a gallon of unleaded regular, $3.49. It marks the eighth consecutive decrease. There were a whole bunch of decreases before that. We just had one increase split up the chunk. So, the average is down about 63 cents. More than 15 percent from the high record in July '08, which was $4.11. So, that ain't half bad.</s>SAMBOLIN: Normally this time of year we're talking about much more expensive. She claims she was groped at an airport check point. Coming up, how one woman's idea of turning the tables on the TSA gets her in big trouble with the law.