Transcripts For CNN The Situation Room With Wolf Blitzer 20110427

they being forced to defend the regime in libya? i'm wolf blitzer and you're in "the situation room." take a good look at this. this is what skeptics of the president's citizenship have been talking about since his first white house campaign. now as we begin his re-election bid, he is releasing copies of the original long form of the president's birth certificate. let's go to ed henry. it was a dramatic move and a surprise coming earlier in the morning. >> reporter: it really was. white house aides have been working to try to get the birth certificate even though the president himself said this morning in the briefing room that he realized there are some people who will not believe him. he believes this is the best chance to get the focus back on the issues and not side shows. aides say president was finally fed up. >> i'm speaking to the vast majority of the american people as well as to the press. we do not have time for this kind of silliness. we've got better stuff to do. i've got better stuff to do. we've got big problems to solve and i'm confident we can solve them but we're going to have to focus on them. not on this. >> reporter: a reversal from the day before when the president's spokesman said there was no need to release the long form birth certificate since conspiracy theorists would always come up with more questions. >> is it because he thinks they will keep moving the gold post? what? >> what do you think, ed? >> you're the president's press secretary. i'm asking what you think. >> it is a distraction, obviously. >> reporter: what jay carney did not reveal was that early last week the president asked the hawaii officials to release the original certificate authorizing the private attorney to make any necessary arrangements for delivery of two certified copies. the copies quietly arrived at the white house wednesday evening where carney said it was a settled issue. aides say that carney was correct and it they decided to end the noise. >> we are not going to get anything solved. >> reporter: he did not name the barkers by name, the man leading the charge was gloating during a visit to new hampshire. >> because i've accomplished something that nobody else has been able to accomplish. >> reporter: sure enough, donald trump seemed to move the gold post a bit, immediately demanding that the president release academic records and wondering if the birther certificate was even real. >> well, i'm going to look at it and many other people are going to look at it. >> reporter: there are signs that big elected officials are done with this issue and are distancing themselves from trump and dana bash was told that he believes that this is a settled issue, this is the birth certificate, and it's time to move on to real issues like the economy, et cetera. >> the other certificate that they released was the official copy recognized by the state of hawaii. so it raises the question, why now? why today of all days? was it the pressure that he was getting as donald trump was gloating? pressure from donald trump that made him do it. >> reporter: interestingly, the white house aides said they didn't know that donald trump would be in new hampshire or rain on his parade. they say the bottom line is that the president made this call in private and felt like it was time to finally try and end this once and for all. the president believes that basically it was hard for him to conduct business with the republicans, try to tackle these big issues when a certain element in the country just flat out didn't believe that he was a legitimate president. they think it's the final nail in the coffin, that it's a done issue. >> as the president said, there are fringe skeptics now raising other questions. brianed to will have more on this story later in "the situation room." some skeptics will not go away. let's move on to other issues. pieces are falling into place for a major revamping of the president's security team. defense secretary robert gates is triggering a plan to reshuffle key figures, including leon panetta and david petraeus. let's bring in chris lawrence who is watching this shuffle going on. what's the latest, chris? >> reporter: well, tomorrow the president is going to nominate the head of the cia to take over the pentagon. and he's going to nominate the man running the war in afghanistan to take over the cia. this move comes as the military and intelligence agency are working together closer than ever before. you've got to hear what went on behind the scenes to get these two men to this point. six months ago robert gates recommended that panetta succeed in his position. >> we are involved at targeting al qaeda. >> reporter: one source said that he was happy running the cia and it took the president to persuade him to come to the pentagon. most say general petraeus didn't want to be chairman of the joints chief because the job is advisory, not command. >> i don't see this bringing major changes in afghan policy. >> reporter: john mclauglin said it would be different if the president went outside of his administration to redefine the war. general petraeus wants to give as many troops in afghanistan as long as he can to solidify gains. sources say he will stay in afghanistan through the summer. meaning he could speak up as the president decides how many troops to bring home in july. >> the one major change here is that the cia director does not typically make policy. general petraeus will be moving into a job that has somewhat of a less prominent policy role than the jobs that he's had in the past. >> reporter: admiral mike mullen is the point man with pakistan but that could change. >> i could see leon panetta taking on a more direct role by virtue of his contacts with the intelligence service. >> reporter: and when it comes to running the defense department under massive pressure to cut the budget, it's about as much of what you can save as who you can shoot. >> you need to have someone who understands the process and an entray to capitol hill, knows the players and how to negotiate with them. >> and that's leon panetta. besides their credential, who started his career as a republican and later served in the clinton white house. now, besides the credentials, both men bring one key quality to president obama. they are confirmable at a time when the last thing the president wants a another fight with senate republicans. in fact, wolf, senator lindsay graham called both selections outstanding. >> his big job is going to be cutting the defense department's budget. he's not going to be a very popular figure with the establishment, the contractors, the military. they have to cut hundreds of billions of dollars to deal with this budget crisis, the national debt. i assume he's going in with his eyes wide opened. >> that's right. secretary gates, by all accounts, has started to skim the surface of what is going to be called on in terms of defense cuts. but leon panetta at one time ran the office of management and budget. >> all right. chris, thank you. into meanwhile, high alert in afghanistan after the killing of nine americans. it happened at an air force compound attached to the airport in kabul. with what is in dispute right now is whether the taliban played a role in the attack or not. nick peyton walsh is joining us live from kabul with the latest. what a horrible attack. what do we know, nick? >> i think it's fair to say that this is the worst instance in american loss of life and involves a member of the afghan security forces going rogue. it's not clear whether he definitely was taliban or not or exceptionally angry with his nato trainers. but what is clear is the pressure upon nate to to seem to get on top of this issue. >> reporter: eight services and a contractor after an argument inside of a building close to nato's main operation center. >> translator: i'm here to ensure security but behind these barriers top officials were reeling from another case of an afghan in uniform turning on the nato personnel that they are meant to be working with. the gunman has been named as ahmad gul, 48, religious, a pilot for 20 years and taliban describes him as a sleeper agent. he had mental and financial problems. even so, there are security forces as priority and police and army uniforms like these ceased in raids in kabul last month. in just one raid alone, the police are telling us they have police and military uniforms that have been stolen. there are 185 afghan police with you only a third of the records are inaccurate. nato will help in the next eight months but with four attacks by men in afghan uniforms, it can't happen fast enough. >> reporter: not just in the day to day operations on the ground, it's really in terms of the largest strategic picture, nato wanting to build them up so they can hand over to the afghans as soon as possible and begin to go home. but really that plan is to a certain extent hamstrung as the clock tics loudly. wolf? >> nine americans killed on this day and as you say, in the last two weeks, there have been several incidents. do we know whether they are taliban or al qaeda? >> reporter: well, i think it's almost certainly going to be taliban if there's an element of infiltration. if you talk to nato officials about this, 44 personnel killed in this when afghan officials have taken over in the last two years. about eight of them are related to what they call combat stress. so that's a personal issue with the afghan security service member against the nato people he's working with. the taliban claim the majority of these really are a result of their sophisticated infiltration program and, to be honest, it's hard to believe that not a single one of those attacks have had some kind of -- not had any taliban involvement at all but really this issue is taking on a mental of its own, really. each time it happens, the taliban said that there is trust between nato soldiers who don't have a huge amount of trust or respect for their afghan colleagues and wolf we've got to see how it's going to play out in the next few months. >> certainly looking at it from washington, the whole situation in afghanistan is deteriorating on a day-to-day basis and raises questions about general david petraeus. we're going to have more on his role on what is going on in the decision to promote him now after what is going on in afghanistan. that's coming up later this hour. david and fred townsend will be here. thank you very much. be careful. the federal reserve chairman is trying something new to take mystery out on the fed and the influence. the tornado season is getting much worse. stand by for the latest. naomi pryce: i am. i'm in the name your own price division. i find empty hotel rooms and help people save - >> - up to 60% off. i am familiar. your name? 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[ major nutrition ] ensure. nutrition in charge! jack cafferty is looking ahead to the next presidential race. he's here with the cafferty file. >> the 2012 run for the white house will be upon us sooner than most of us would like. and when it gets here and goes full bore, it has the potential to be one ugly contest. as a nation we have seldom been more divided. our problems are huge. threatening our way of life. but there is no indication that things are going to change any time soon. pbs host says that the 2012 presidential race is going to be the ugliest, nastiest, most divisive and most racist in the history of this republic. she said it's because some members of the tea party are unwilling to do anything and say anything to make sure that president obama is not re-elected. he points to the renewed interest in the birther movement. all of the attention that donald trump has gotten for questioning the ability to get into college and law school and calling him the worst president ever, smily also points to the tea party events that were members showed up carrying guns. remember that? there's a general nastiness that didn't used to be there. at least i don't remember it being this bad. americans have to rediscover civility and, of course, he's right. we seem to be going, instead, in the opposite direction and when the stakes are as high as they are in a presidential election, there is a win at all costs mentality that seems to take over. so here's the question. he predicts that the 2012 will be the most ugliest and most racist in our history. is he right? go to cnn.com/caffertyfile. >> three fund-raisers from the president, so they will be a little traffic jammed. >> can't they just mail in the money? he comes up here and messes up my commute. >> i never go around jon corzine's house ever. stocks posted significant gains after an unprecedented news conference by the federal reserve chairman ben bernanke. the dow and s&p closed at the highest levels since 2008. nasdaq ended the day at a ten-year high. investors apparently were rather pleased with the fed's state. of course, strategy of the way ben bernanke spoke about it. let's bring in jessica yellin. you had a chance to watch and listen to that extraordinary news conference that never happened before. >> it was jaw-dropping to anyone that has covered the fed before. it never used to apply to the federal reserve. trying to get an answer about something that wasn't already in a press release they were about to put out was next to impossible. they set the monetary policy but were always loathe to answer our questions until now and it's changing. >> we are into a recovery. >> reporter: in public, a fed chairman is usually seen but not heard. >> fiscal policies and -- >> or heard but not questioned, certainly not by the media. >> it's an institution. >> chairman ben bernanke began changing that, granting the rare interview and now doing this -- >> good afternoon. welcome. >> he held the first ever news conference at the federal reserve after a monetary policy meeting. >> the federal reserve has been looking for ways to increase his transparency for many years and we've made a lot of progress. it used to be that central banking was all about not letting anybody know what you were doing. >> his team calls this an historic step. >> the economic recovery is proceeding at a moderate pace. >> the gas prices will not continue to rise at a central pace. every banger understands that it's essentially to an economy and we will do what is necessary to ensure that that happens. >> i've been a big believe in providing as much information as you can to help the public understand what you're doing, to help the markets understand what you're doing, and to be accountable to the public for what you're doing. >> the press conference went on an hour. some questions delved into very dense financial issues. it was not a press conference with a lot of questions. it's reporter who want to understand the decision making. >> it's hard to -- >> you need a translator sometimes. >> why did he do it now? >> there are a couple of reasons. congress voted to have an audit of the fed but also the fed took extraordinary unprecedented action to stem the crisis, the financial crisis. first opening money, cheap money to the banks and now pouring more money into the system to keep our interest rates low and setting extraordinary policy to keep our interest rates low. because they are taking all of these extraordinary steps, they want to be more transparent to the public so we understand what they are doing. >> ron paul, he's been calling for this for a long time. >> he's very pleased today. >> he's happy to be doing transparency. >> exactly. >> thank you very much. he's the architect of the u.s. strategy in afghanistan. some consider it a disaster. does david petraeus now deserve to be promoted to become the next director of the cia? we'll assess. and a string of deadly tornadoes sweeping across the southeast. it isn't over yet. that's the latest, next. ♪ when you're responsible for this much of the team, you need a car you can count on. [music playing] confidence available in color. depend® colors for women. looks and fits like underwear. protects like nothing else. depend®. good morning. great day. i don't have to leave my desk and get up and go to the post office anymore. the obama national security team is up against a major shake-up unfolding. wars in iraq and afghanistan, a military operation in libya and a violent crackdown on demonstrators in syria. sources now say that the current cia chief, leon panetta, is the president's choice he to replace robert gates. and the afghan war commander, david petraeus, is expected to fill panetta's job over at the ci. let's talk with fran townsend and david ignacious. fran is a member of the cia and homeland security external advisory boards. fran, let me start with you. leon moving. what do you think about this? is he ready to be the defense secretary of the united states? >> i actually think, assuming that he announces the panetta change, he's going to need somebody over at the department of defense that understands the impact of budget cuts that must be made are going to have. that means impact on congressional districts, on jobs in congressional districts and requires a change with the hill and his time at cia, he's developed relationships around the world from the many places that you point out he's going to have to deal. >> any downside to him moving? >> he leaves the cia open. he's won the loyalty and respect of the cia workforce. petraeus is an interesting provocative choice to succeed him at cia. what i find fascinating is that, first, in addition to things that fran mention, panetta had the trust of bob gates. gates really campaigned for panetta and saw him as the right successor. in choosing petraeus, obama showed us that he's not afraid of having strong personalities in his sinner circles. obama really is comfortable with aggressive personalities and sometimes petraeus can be that. the cia really does need strong, tough people to help it move into the 21st century and sole have the problems that it's got. >> but not only to double down but triple down the number of u.s. troops in afghanistan right now. the whole strategy, at least right now, looks like it's collapsing. why promote someone whose strategy, apparently at least as of now, looks like it's a failure? >> aum could of points here. you're talking about a moment in time. i remember in 2006 and 2007 when people said that iraq was a failure and that turned out not to be right. >> let me interrupt you about iraq. the jury is out about iraq. we don't know what is going to happen. the whole agreement that they have with the government of al maliki, they could collapse and become a close ally. it already is. >> that's right, wolf. what we know about petraeus, as david points out, is not only his strong leadership but he had developed a very strong relationship in terms of understanding the capability and the importance of the cia and the role it plays in supporting military -- the successful military -- >> let's go to david. the question is this. petraeus is an intelligent guide. he has a ph.d. from princeton. obviously a brilliant military tactician. but were his strategies a failure or a success? >> well, i think you'd have to say that the surge did turn things around in iraq, the long-term success or failure, as you say, is yet to be known. i think it's fair to say that he will leave afghanistan without having succeeded with his campaign plan. what fascinates me, wolf, if you think that the clean-up in afghanistan is going to require less uniformed military and more paramilitary, more counterterrorism plots, as people sometimes like to say, the key job may well be cia director. both in dealing with afghanistan and in dealing with an increasingly difficult pakistan. petraeus, the president has obviously decided, is the right man for that process. >> as we look ahead to the immediate crisis, libya, syria, these things are exploding in a breath taking way right now. is this a moment for a major of national security moment, fran? >> i don't think the president has much choice. the chairman of the joint chiefs job, the fbi director, and gates said he was leaving. there are a number of spots coming open beyond the president's control. when you fill those, you have to look at them because how they work together is incredibly important. >> final thought, david? >> i think we're at a hinge moment in history. in the arab world and in afghanistan and pakistan. the president is lucky to have people with experience that he trusts. david petraeus is one of the toughest, smartest general that i've every ever encountered. >> thank you, guys, very much. we're following breaking news across the southern part of the united states. deadly tornadoes destroying parts of the south and it's not over yet. chad myers is ahead with where these storms are headed. and children trained to use assault weapons. the lib yan government is boasting about it. well, i'm an avid catamaran sailor. i can my own homemade jam, apricot. and i really love my bank's raise your rate cd. i'm sorry, did you say you'd love a pay raise asap ? uh, actually, i said i love my bank's raise your rate cd. you spent 8 days lost at sea ? no, uh... you love watching your neighbors watch tv ? at ally, you'll love our raise your rate cd that offers a one-time rate increase if our current rates go up. ally. do you love your bank ? 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at t. rowe price, we understand the connections of a complex, global economy. it's just one reason 80% of our mutual funds beat their 10-year lipper average. t. rowe price. invest with confidence. request a prospectus or summary prospectus with investment information, risks, fees and expenses to read and consider carefully before investing. a fresh round of deadly violence across north africa. in syria, witnesses say nine people were killed in sniper fire. one group reports that more than 400 people have died since the beginning of the uprising. cnn has been denied access to report from inside the country and we cannot verify witness accounts. meanwhile, the united security council is holding a meeting to discuss the crisis in syria right now. in yemen, sources say 14 anti-government protesters were killed and more than 100 injured in clashes with security forces, making it the most deadliest days in weeks in demonstrations and the city of misrata rebels suffering the heaviest bombardment yet from pro gadhafi forces when shells detonated near a camp. an attempt to show support for the libyan government. children were put on display today from the regime as they got weapons training, the kids included. fred pleitgen was taken on the government tour. what did you see what was going on. >> reporter: well, what the government told us, some were teenagers, engineers shop keepers to fight for moammar gadhafi, they are showing these fighting forces in some towns, the place that we were taken to was about 50 miles southeast of tripoli. they get a month of training on things like assault rifles and grenades and then they say they are going to defend tripoli against the crusaders and willing to fight against the tribes in misrata. one of the disturbing things that we saw there, among these people getting trained, were teenagers and later we went to a school where we saw girls that we believed were around 12 to maybe 13 also getting training on assault rifles, learning to disassemble and reassemble those assault rifles. that was something that was quite disturbing. gadhafi says that these are regular people coming to defend him against nato. wolf? >> are these gadhafi elements so desperate that they need little kids, little children to help fight for them? >> reporter: well, obviously this comes at a time when there hasn't been a show of public support quite recently. you have pro gadhafi demos organized here in tripoli. one of the things going on is that many people are wondering, if there is uprising in places like misrata and the east, then where are the libyans standing up against them? gadhafi keeps saying that the tribes are going to go there and speak to the rebels there, so far that hasn't happened and some people are wondering where that public support actually is. so this seems to be somewhat of a show or a campaign to show that, yes, that public support is there and, yes, the people in some places are willing to take up arms for gadhafi and it seems as though there is a lot of support for moammar gadhafi as well as other places in western libya. however, so far, to many people here and around the world, people are not mobilizing in favor of moammar gadhafi. wolf? >> fred pleitgen, thank you. officials of hamas say the rival movements have announced a deal to form a unity government. the move comes to advance the cause of palestinians. donald trump claims to have a new weapon against president obama. the problem is, it doesn't exist. we'll talk about it in our strategy session. plus, the actor matt damon helping provide people around the world with clean water. in this impact your world segment, we travel with him to eat three yoep yeah. >> we're about 60 kilometers outside of ethiopia. >> they have come here to gather their water that they have been drinking. the dirty water. >> i am fact your world. cnn.com/impact. let's get to our strategy session. the interim co-chair woman, donna brazile, also a cnn contributor. thanks very much for coming in. what do you think, donna? why do you think the president decided today of all days to go ahead and release his original birth certificate. a lot of folks have been pressing him to do it for two years. >> well, as you know, he did release his birth certificate for two years, posted it on his campaign website. as you know, wolf, there's been new allegations that the first -- the short form was not enough. some people wanted to see the long form. the president had to request, since the 1980s the state of hawaii has an administration regulation that you have to request a live form, a longer form. he received it last night and showed it first thing this morning. i don't believe it's going to stop the rumors. it's not going to stop the distraction and it won't stop the birthers from going around making more things but at least the president has put it out there. if you want to know what his sign it, he's a leo and born at 7:24 p.m. thank you, mr. president. >> we learned that. should this now end this whole birther controversy, alex? is it over once and for all? >> you know, we certainly hope so because we certainly have enough issues confronting the united states. and questions about president obama's leadership. i mean, if we're going leadersh. if we're going to release the long form, it would be great to see the longer explanation about how the president wants to spend more in washington and reduce the deficit and how he'll stimulate the economy and taking tax money out of it and how he'll win a war in libya while trying to get out of the war in libya. there's a lot of other things we would talk about other than something the president has put to bed today. >> donald trump came out boasting he's responsible for getting the president to do this today. should donald trumping taken seriously as potential republican presidential candidate? >> you should take anyone serious who wants to toss their hat in the ring. with his money and celebrity i would take him seriously. i want to address what alex just said. it's the reason why the president wants to move this conversation out of the republican caucus and out of the mainstream media because he wants to talk about how to attack the deficit and the fair imbalanced way. he wants to talk about job creation and talk about giving small businesses the capital they need to produce jobs of the 21st century. you can't have that conversation if all we listen to is noise on the far right. >> alex, just quickly on the republican field, the presidential field out there, there are a lot of folks in your party, the republican party, aren't satisfied really with any of these candidates. they are looking for someone else from the outside, jeb bush, the former governor of florida, marco rubio, the current young senator and now paul ryan's name is being mentioned. is the current field that weak they need to find someone else who isn't even interested in running? >> not at all, wolf. this is generally the way the process works. one of the things i've learned in hundreds of campaigns over the years is that campaigns don't pick candidates. campaigns make candidates. they go through this tough process with presidential primaries just like senator barack obama did. nobody gave him a shot at the start. but they go through this tough process and it strengthens them. some get knocked out. we find out they don't have the strength of character or the vision to lead but others become presidential contenders right in front of our eyes. the republican field will look different six months from now because they are going to be tested. >> can't wait to see it unfold because i love presidential politics. guys, thank you very much. >> mr. trump needs to call alex because he could get good advice. >> maybe alex will go to work for donald trump if he becomes the republican candidate. >> are you interested? >> i just lost him. >> he just lost us. >> alex will take his call. >> we're studying the president's newly released birth certificate. we'll see the fine print and a cnn correspondent managed to get into misratah to report firsthand on the devastation unfolding by libyan forces. 201, building up our wireless network all across america. we're adding new cell sites... increasing network capacity, and investing billions of dollars to improve your wireless network experience. from a single phone call to the most advanced data download, we're covering more people in more places than ever before in an effort to give you the best network possible. at&t. rethink possible. in an effort to give you the best network possible. we share. shop from anywhere. and are always connected. we live in a social world. isn't it time we had a social currency to match? 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[ male announcer ] engine light on? come to meineke now for a free code scan read and you'll say... my money. my choice. my meineke. first glimpse of arizona congresswoman gabrielle giffords just months after being shot in the head in the deadly tucson massacre. lisa sylvester is monitoring that and other situations in "the situation room" right now. >> you can see her here boarding the plane for florida where she will attend friday's launch of the space shuttle "endeavour." her husband will command that mission. giffords has been recovering from her brain injury at a houston rehabilitation hospital. at the kennedy space center, the site of friday's scheduled launch, authorities were dealing with a brush fire that broke out three miles from the launch pad. "endeavour's" count down has not been impacted. it is suspected lightning may have sparked that blaze. prince william and kate middleton are gearing up for their big day with just two days to go until their wedding the royal couple headed to westminster abbey to rehearse. british military troops conducted a dry run of their own. many served on the front lines of the wars in iraq and afghanistan. british prime minister david cameron shared the mood of the country with cnn's richard quest. >> it's an exciting time. the british people don't always wear their heart on their sleeve but people are generally excited. it's not just that it's a good looking prince and a beautiful princess. it's much more than that. the monarchy is such an amazing institution. it's been through some incredible phases. if you like the team of the future. >> it's all very exciting. you'll want to stay with cnn for the full royal wedding experience. our special coverage begins friday at 4:00 a.m. eastern. will be up early to watch? >> no. no. that's why they created dvr. i don't think i'll get up at 4:00 in the morning. i'm sure millions and millions and hundreds of millions, billions will watch around the world. i have to be strong by 5:00 in the afternoon and be ready to go. all right. let's bring in jack cafferty. i know you are going to be up at 4:00 in the morning watching that wedding, right? >> if that wedding was going to be held in my living room, i wouldn't come out of the bedroom. okay? question this hour. pbs host travis smiley predicts the 2012 presidential race will be the ugliest and most racist election in our history. is he right? jamie in st. louis writes, it's a moronic statement to think the upcoming election will be the ugliest in our nation's history. the election between jackson and adams was incredibly personal and ugly. this is just another case of overexaggeration and overdra overdramatization of criticism of the person he supports. trump is hinting a black man could not be smart enough to get into columbia and harvard. he doesn't say black man but we all know what he means. and eleanor writes of course he's right. never before has a candidate's race been a factor in presidential election. never have there been threats against a president's life. the signs are everywhere. racism deep and dangerous in the american psyche. jason writes from hawaii, he's not even close. historically i would say every election within 25 years before or after the civil war will probably trump the 2012 election. judging by the obviously racist backlash of midterm where every southern state sent a conservative white male to congress, it will be more racially charged since the civil rights movement heated up 40 to 50 years ago. bill in illinois writes this. there will be those on the left that will vote for the president because of his race, which is also about racism. the pbs host left that part out. ron writes, i sure hope not. we have much larger issues to contend with other than turning the presidential race into a carnival side show. how will this look for the rest of the world? how can expect them to take the u.s. seriously anymore. it's time for us to think and grow up. if you want to read more on this go to the blog, cnn.com/caffertyfile. it's 6:00, wolf. >> exactly. thank you, jack. to our viewers, you're in "the situation room." happening now, an extraordinary development in an ongoing controversy. president obama puts out his birth certificate for all the world to see. we'll get reaction from the man leading the so-called birther charge, donald trump. he's talking to cnn first. stand by. also, two wars under way and now the biggest national security shake-up of the obama administration. some well known faces are taking on some top new positions. and libya's third largest city, laid to waste in more than seven weeks of brutal fighting. we have dramatic new images of the destruction of misratah by gadhafi's forces. breaking news, political headlines, jeanne moos all straight ahead. i'm wolf blitzer. you're in "the situation room." first, an extraordinary move more than two years into office. the sitting president of the united states tries to prove his legitimacy. president obama released copies of his long form original birth certificate today showing he was in fact born in hawaii and confronting head-on a conspiracy theory that has dogged him since his days as a candidate. the so-called birther controversy questioning whether the president was actually born in the united states has revved up in recent weeks thanks in part to potential republican presidential candidate donald trump. he's been pressing the issue despite previous proof, hard proof debunking all of those birther allegations. mr. obama compared the issue to a carnival side show. >> now, this issue has been going on for two, two and a half years now. i think it started during the campaign. i have to say that over the last two and a half years, i have watched with bemusement, i've been puzzled at the degree to which this thing just kept on going. we're not going to be able to solve our problems if we get distracted by side shows and carnival barkers. we live in a serious time right now, and we have the potential to deal with the issues that we confront in a way that will make our kids and our grandkids and our great grandkids proud. i know that there's going to be a segment of people for which no matter what we put out this issue will not be put to rest. but i'm speaking to the vast majority of the american people as well as to the press. we do not have time for this kind of silliness. we got better stuff to do. i've got better stuff to do. we've got big problems to solve. i'm confident we can solve them but we have to focus on them. not on this. >> let's take a closer look at the president's birth certificate. tom foreman is here to help us dig deeper. what does this document show that the previous certificate of live birth didn't show? >> what this document shows is details. the president referred to this as a side show and silliness. that's framing. let's look at framing of our own. 12 missions from nasa since this controversy began. twitter went from 300 daily tweets to more than 140 million. gas prices from 1.60 to 3.88 and iphone went through four generations. all of that has gone on while this debate has raged about whether barack obama was born on this island and in this hospital and finally after all this time what we have is details and a lot more of them. details about who the doctor was. specifically where the family was. a lot of things we didn't see in the original document when we saw it which was a much simpler document in you look at that. just a few details. certification of live birth. so there are still questions despite this. despite all these details, for example. some of the people who are still very concerned about the authenticity of this point out in the name it says obama ii. they argue it would have been more typical if this is genuine to say junior. they also point to this. race of father. african. back then you would have written negro even though his father had history in kenya. at this point they raise these questions again because politically those questions have produced some kinds of results. look at this. if you look at poll data along through this process, back in july of 2010, definitely yes. was president obama born in the u.s.? 42% said yes. probably yes, 29%. probably no, 16%. those numbers really haven't changed a lot from july of last year to march of this year. they are still in the same ballpark but these were still significant weighty numbers for a president in office to have to deal with. that many people still question whether or not he might even be legitimate. after all of these events that we saw out there, finally after all this time, we have the paperwork that says there is a difference in the detail we can see now compared to what we saw before. wolf? >> thanks very much. donald trump is taking credit for the release of the president's birth certificate. he's been staking out his possible presidential bid on this so-called birther issue. and now says and i'm quoting him now, i've accomplished something nobody else was able to accomplish. trump was in the first primary state of new hampshire today. that's where cnn's chief national correspondent john king is right now. he landed the first interview with donald trump after all of this broke. how did that interview go, john? >> wolf, it was pretty contentious in part. you know donald trump well. you know he's big in real estate and big in reality television and big in self-promotion. he got off his helicopter this morning and he was bragging and pounding his chest saying i got the president to do this. no one else could get the president to do this. as donald trump has risen in polls among perspective republican candidates by focusing on this so-called birther debate, he's said a number of things that don't stand up to the fact check and so when i sat down with him earlier today, he did do bragging but i also tried to press him on a few points. let's listen a little. >> you said the president should release this -- >> you raised this. >> i didn't call a press conference earlier this week. >> every time i sit down with the press all they want to talk about the birth certificate. i got him to do something that nobody else could get him to do. >> you raise this issue of his credibility. if he has it, he should release it. there are some people who question yours in the middle of this. the other night you went on anderson cooper saying your investigators told you it was missing or it wasn't there. >> excuse me. >> what was that based on? >> very simple. i have people looking into it. now i don't have to have the people. i can call them back. i haven't seen this. i'm sure a lot of experts will analyze this. >> if serious people told you it was missing or not there, here it is. >> would i pay them? i'll let you negotiate for me. i can say this. let me tell you, i don't make up anything. let me tell you something, i have done a great service to the american people. >> and i will say i have a copy of it here. i had it with me the newly released certificate of live bert and mr. trump said he wanted to inspect it himself. he didn't want to see my copy and would look at one himself. he said in recent interviews with abc and cnn if president obama released his birth certificate perhaps he would release his tax forms. he backtracked. he said if he makes an official bid for president, he'll put out his financial records and not now and not after this. he's being cagey but all indications from republicans he met with here is they are convinced he's going to run and make that decision in early june. if he does run, here's a footnote internally. he promised to participate in our debate. donald trump said if he's in the race, he's in that debate. >> a lot of skeptics of donald trump think he's doing this to promote ratings for his tv show "celebrity apprentice" to get as many viewers out there as possible and then he'll announce never mind. you covered politics for a long time. what impression did you get? >> he has flirted with this in the past. promoted himself in the past and walked away. he's doing more. he's more serious this time. republicans in new hampshire say he's talking to people about hiring them. he still has plenty of wiggle room to get out, wolf. he's flirting more aggressively this time i guess. we'll see in the end. you can count me as a skeptic. he's doing more this time than he has in the past when he flirted. >> full interview airs at the top of the hour on "john king, usa," is that right, john? >> that's right, wolf. >> we'll watch it 7:00 p.m. eastern at the top of the hour, "john king, usa." shall we say contentious interview with donald trump. let's go to chad myers. amazing pictures coming in. look at this tornado in tuscaloo tuscaloosa, alabama. tell our viewers what's going on here? >> this is a tornado on the ground. it's been on the ground a very long time. just north of i-22 there in tuscaloosa. the storm has been rotating for 100 miles and this video here, this is live video coming out of tuscaloosa. might have just froze up a bit there on us. it's still on the ground causing damage. if you are in tuscaloosa including alabama university, you need to take cover right now. this is at least 120 to 150-mile-per-hour tornado on the ground and it will be causing damage. i'll take you to radar right now as it moves out and up toward haleyville and there we go back over here to this side right back up there. we have video on the air? are we back to it? okay. let's go back to it. let's take it live. wbma obviously the camera bouncing due to the wind and this is just moments ago on tape. a large tornado moving into tuscaloosa. if you are anywhere near there, you need to take cover. this is major tornado and this is a very big night for tornadoes. there will be many more just like this on the ground. >> what a horrible -- i don't know if it's normal or not normal but it seems to me that there have been more tornadoes in these past few weeks than in a long time i've been covering these stories. unusual or regular? >> very unusual at this point. we started out the year very slow. not too many tornadoes. and in the past three weeks we've had a jet stream pattern where tornadoes have formed almost every night and sometimes we've had a very high probability of tornadoes and that night was yesterday and we had a night of that on monday and we have another night of this tonight. this will not certainly not be the last tornado we see. we're back to live again. we saw just a couple of frames there of live tv before it froze up on us again. you can see a tower there in the foreground. this is a large -- we call this a wedge tornado. you can understand the reason why. >> it's a city tuscaloosa. does it look like the tornado is moving right into the city of tuscaloosa? >> it sure does. i don't have doppler radar at my disposal as i look at this. it appears it may be moving to the south side of the city. although right now from this vantage point and this angle and me being blind by radar, i cannot tell. it's definitely in the city of tuscaloosa moving in from the southwest at almost 50 miles per hour. you need to take cover now. get away from windows. inside the building. there it goes. it just moved again. you can even see some of those guide wires there bloos and there it is as they pan to the left we see it again live. this is a f-3 tornado at least. probably 130 to 150 miles per hour picking up things and you can see debris on the sides of the picture there. this is a major problem for the city of tuscaloosa. get inside a building. don't get out and look it. you don't need to be a storm chaser now. you need to be inside and save your life. >> go to the lowest possible location if there's a bathroom, go into the bathtub they say. that's good advice usually for a lot of folks in the course of these tornadoes, chad, right? >> it is except i sometimes hesitate to say bathroom because sometimes bathrooms have windows. don't want you near a window. windows break. when windows break, glass shatters and then you can get cut. if you can be inside of a closet, make sure there's nothing heavy above you. inside of a closet inside of a room, then you put as many walls between you and the outside as possible because when you see a tornado hit a house, the only thing that's left is the middle part sometimes when you get a tornado that's that big. here's radar right here. here's tuscaloosa. the rotation. sometimes we look for the hook on the back of the storm. i'll draw it for you here. the hook here and rotation. tuscaloosa the alabama university right up there. university of alabama. this has been traveling right in from the southwest to the northeast still there moving. we still have any of those pictures? >> we know it's on the black warrior river. university of alabama as you say in tuscaloosa. this is a city of about 100,000 people. this is a major city. >> no question this is a deadly situation for people that don't get out of the way. you can get just as injured by flying debris as by anything else. people typically don't get picked up like going to kansas in the wizard of oz. that's not how people get hurt or get killed. they get killed because they get hit by something. they get hit by wood or shingles or debris flying outside. that's why it's so important to get inside and while we say get to the lowest level, it's because if you ever look at a two-story house and the house gets hit by a tornado, the top story is gone and the bottom story is still standing and you have another layer if you get to the basement, the basement is always, always the safest place in a tornado if you have one. >> we see that video. it keeps freezing on us. we're not seeing it live given the weather circumstances. stay in close touch. we'll get back to you. thank you. tornado hitting tuscaloosa, alabama, right now. jack cafferty is coming up next with "the cafferty file" and then we'll go back to this other story. extraordinary day. the birthers are reacting to the release of the president's birth certificate. are they now convinced he was actually born in hawaii? stand by. a cnn crew makes its way to misratah and finds a virtual wasteland. an entire city in ruin after weeks of brutal fighting, killing, led by gadhafi's thugs. and he's held multiple powerful posts in washington and now leon panetta is poised to leave the cia and become the next secretary of defense. announcer: naturals from delicious, real ingredients with no artificial flavors or preservatives. naturals from purina cat chow. share a better life. [ male announcer ] the motorola xoom. upgradable to 4g lte and access to the fast growing apps in android market. it's everything the tablet should be. starting at $599. you want that? you want a warm, super-delicious strawberry toaster strudel yeah but now i have nothing to eat sure you do. hey! you can have the pop tart! pillsbury toaster strudel. the one kids want to eat let's check in with jack cafferty for "the cafferty file." >> republican congressman ron paul of texas announced he's forming a presidential exploratory committee. he joins a small pool of really unexciting republicans who have done the same thing. these include former governors mitt romney of massachusetts, tim pawlenty of minnesota, rick santorum from pennsylvania and other names like sarah palin, mike huckabee, michelle bachmann have been tossed around as possible contenders. so far a weak field. billionaire real estate developer donald trump has talked a lot about running himself. i don't think he will but he's talking about it. according to the polls, voters are not wowed by any of these possibilities including ron paul. it's not the first time that paul, who is a physician, has thought about being president. he won the libertarian nomination in 1988 and in 2008 he ran in the republican primaries but never got more than 10% of the vote. things could be different this time. ron paul has a small but rabid following. he's capable of raising buckets of money, which of course is a necessity in today's elections. he's an outspoken fiscal conservative and main message is smaller government and less debt. he doesn't think we should fight wars half a world away. at his announcement yesterday, paul says the united states has changed a lot in the last four years and that more and more americans are subscribing to a smaller government anti-interventionist philosophy. if he should be successful, what a breath of fresh air he would be compared to the status quo of presidential politics in this country. here's the question then. could the third time be a charm for ron paul? go to cnn.com/kafcaffertnn.com/ pest on my blog. >> always available to do interviews on television. isn't shy. >> the other thing about him is he seems to be honest, which is really refreshing. >> his son is now a senator. >> but the son ain't the dad. i like the dad. >> son is impressive. i like him. rand. both smart guys. jack, thanks. we've now seen the birth certificate but the conspiracy theoe theorist out there are still not impressed. wait until you hear what they are saying now. when donald trump arrived in new hampshire today, he took his conspiracy levels to a new level. >> how do you get into harvard if you're not a right student? i don't know why he doesn't release his records. ing... do you even have a name? well, it doesn't matter. because it's about to change. there's a cheaper, cleaner way to fuel up now. the volt plugs into any socket, and fuels up at home. sure it could use gas, but for most commutes you won't need much, if any. so from now on, fuel tube... we'll just call you...plan b. the 2011 chevrolet volt. it's more car than electric. that weight watchers online was for guys, too. i'm like, it's not rainbows and lollipops. after i read this beer cheat sheet, i knew what the difference was between a light beer and a dark beer as far as points go. i use the grilling cheat sheet -- you drag it over onto the grill and it gives you a point value. this is a plan for men. i lost 109 pounds. 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[ men laugh ] [ male announcer ] hurry, join for free today. weight watchers online for men. finally, losing weight clicks. more now on the president's surprise move today releasing copies of his original long form birth certificate to show once and for all that he was in fact born in the united states. even he admits some fringe elements out there will never be satisfied no matter what he does. cnn's brian todd is getting reaction from some of those doubters including the so-called birther movement activists. >> some say it's a good first step but many question the timing and some say it's flat out not enough. it's been a tortured road of conjecture and implied conspiracy over the president's birth and even with the release of his long form birth certificate, that road winds on. >> i think it raises more questions than it answers. >> why? >> because this issue has gotten side tracked to the focus of where he was born. >> reporter: the ceo of wnd.com is a conservative journalist and tea party ally who launched a public campaign demanding proof of the president's birth place. he says because mr. obama's father was a kenyan citizen, he might be a dual citizen and not what the founders had in mind as natural born american. he goes even further by questioning whether mr. obama was adopted by his indonesian stepfather which puts further down on his citizenship. cnn has found no evidence of either assertion or anything that would disqualify president obama from his office. you get this and you want other things to nail the president with. other documents. it's never going to end. >> right. and that's an accusation i can certainly understand. i can certainly appreciate. the thing i would point out is we are dealing with an issue of pre-eminent importance. we're dealing with the eligibility of not just a candidate for the president but now somebody who has been in the office for two years. >> the doubters aren't quieted on conservative talk radio either. >> it doesn't put anything to rest for me. >> i don't trust whatever comes out of his mouth. >> the bulk of calls to the radio station don't question the legitimacy of this document but more the question of the timing. the political reasoning behind it. why now when it could have been two or three years ago. wmal host chris plant is not a birther but says the timing of the release raises too many suspicions? >> why today? if it's not big deal releasing it today, why was it a big deal releasing it last week? there's something that doesn't make sense. something that seems dishonest about it all. >> the white house said today they believed they resolved this issue at least two years ago when they released the printout of the official state of hawaii certification of live birth. they say this has only recently come up as a big story in the media, hence the timing. cnn has done many stories investigating the birth issue. many recently spurred by donald trump's assertions. >> the holdouts are skeptics and point to one individual that played a significant role. >> everywhere we went today conservatives mentioned what about the guy who refused orders to deploy to afghanistan contending that president obama was not legally the commander in chief and didn't have authority to send him there. he's an army colonel. he was court-martialed and jailed for that conservatives say the obama team let him rot in jail saying they released this a long time ago he could have been freed. what really happened was he was jailed for disobeying orders. that's the reason for the court-martial. >> i remember that. thanks very much. rightly or wrongly, donald trump is taking lots of credit, all of the credit for the release of the president's birth certificate and true to form, he's not shy about it. listen to this. >> today i'm very proud of myself because i've accomplished something that nobody else has been able to accomplish. i was just informed while on the helicopter that our president has finally released a birth certificate. i am really honored frankly to have played such a big role in hopefully, hopefully getting rid of this issue. is it real? is it proper? what's on it? i hope that it checks out beautifully. i am really proud. i'm really honored. i feel i've accomplished something really, really important. i'm honored by it. you have to ask the president why didn't he do this a long time ago? why didn't he do it a long time ago? you could have many people looking at it and obviously they're going to have to make a decision because it is rather amazing that all of a sudden it materializes. honestly, i'm very proud i was able to bring thi to a point. nobody else was. are you an intelligent man? let me ask you? are you intelligent? have you been listening. i have a very successful show on television. the number one show on nbc. a show that even "the new york times" yesterday said is a very successful show. i have a show called "celebrity apprentice." i cannot announce until that show is over. just can't do it. i would love to do it for you, but i can't do it for you. when the show is over -- let me explain. when the show is over and the finale will be on may 22nd. when the show is over, i will then be free to announce. i think you will be surprised at a number of things, but i think you will be surprised at what my announcement is. i heard at columbia he wasn't a good student. he then gets to harvard. how do you get into harvard if you're not a good student? maybe that's right or wrong. i don't know why he doesn't release his records. >> let's talk about this with our senior political analyst david gergen and gloria borger. i know you have been doing reporting, gloria, on this. why didn't the president personally who made this decision decide today he was going to release the birth certificate? >> it was the president who decided this. it was some time last week. the words that came up in my conversations with senior white house aides were frustrated, corrosive, this infected our politics. the president gave a big deficit speech. he got asked about the birther issue and that led the evening news and that's what got him upset. i was also told by one senior aide that there's a personal element to this that can't be underestimated. there's a sense that the birther movement and maybe those who believe that the president is a muslim is another way to delegitimatize the presidency itself and that this was something that got to barack obama. he had to send a personal attorney to hawaii to look into this. bring back the documents. they came at 4:00 in the afternoon yesterday. they were released today. >> do you understand donald trump, david gergen? you teach at harvard. the president of the united states went to harvard law school and graduated top 10% of his class, president of the harvard law review. obviously a very good student. and all of a sudden he's pointing to when he was a freshman in california maybe he didn't have such great grades. how did he get into columbia and then harvard? what's the point? why is donald trump doing this? >> donald trump wants to be larger than life. he builds great hotels but he's also got a very big mouth and he wants to -- i have to tell you, wolf, i think most americans are sick and tired of this story and they're right. they think that donald trump is doing this only for personal grandizement and they think we've been hijacked and that we in the press are complicit in this and giving this guy tons of time and letting him run his mouth and meanwhile people can't find jobs and america is rich. china is rising beyond us. we have other issues. most of america would like to see the end of this today and move on. >> let's hope that this is a the end of it and we will move on. you got to admit as a presidential scholar, when the president of the united states two years into his presidency does something like this, it's obviously worth reporting on and assessing and then moving on. >> i agree with that. i'm glad we reported on it. the president deserves his day in court. we deserve to know he's frustrated. donald trump had his say. let's move onto more important issues. on the issue of harvard, barack obama as you point out, he was a stellar student at one of the toughest law schools in the country. first african-american to be elected president of harvard law review. that's what got him a book contract to write a book. you know, i do think it's time to move on. i'm glad we gave it the news but it's time to move on. >> thanks very much. the horrors of war revealed. cnn's reza sayah has managed to get into libyan city of misratah to find a scene of near total devastation and cia director leon panetta now poised to become defense secretary. a major shake-up in the obama administration. ♪ [ male announcer ] in 2011, at&t is at work, building up our wireless network all across america. we're adding new cell sites... increasing network capacity, and investing billions of dollars to improve your wireless network experience. from a single phone call to the most advanced data download, we're covering more people in more places than ever before in an effort to give you the best network possible. at&t. rethink possible. better than any other luxury brand. ♪ intellichoice proclaims that lexus has the best overall value of any brand. ♪ and j.d. power and associates ranks lexus the highest in customer satisfaction. no wonder more people have chosen lexus over any other luxury brand 11 years in a row. see your lexus dealer. i don't know, something. 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[ female announcer ] thinking mexican tonight? hamburger helper has five festive flavors like crunchy taco. hamburger helper. one pound. one pan. one happy family. let's follow up on devastating pictures you see this tornado hitting tuscaloosa, alabama. home of the university of alabama. joining us on the phone is one of seven or eight people in the lobby of a hotel. what happened? pick up the story when you got word that this tornado was headed your way. >> caller: well, it was going to be a couple miles north of us so we were watching out the window and just saw this huge black funnel bearing down on us. we ran for the bathroom. we huddled in the bathroom until it moved past us some. when we came out, we were just watching it and it was about a couple miles off maybe and you could just see the debris. you could see it picking up debris and just throwing stuff everywhere. >> how much damage was there to the econolodge? >> there was none. a trash can got blown across the parking lot and that was it. >> all of the folks that were with you were okay? >> yes. >> you guys were lucky that as of now we're getting no reports at least so far thank god of fatalities in tuscaloosa. we'll stay on top of this. thanks very much. glad you guys got out safe and sound. moving on to other news we're following. a man who held many high positions in washington is about to take another huge job. you'll hear where cia director leon panetta is heading next. also cnn's john king gets the first interview with donald trump since president obama's long form birth certificate was released today. is trump ready to put the so-called birther issue to rest? his heated response and more. >> announcer: this past year alone there's been a 67% spike in companies embracing the cloud-- big clouds, small ones, public, private, even hybrid. your data and apps must move easily and securely to reach many clouds, not just one. that's why the network that connects, protects, and lets your data move fearlessly through the clouds means more than ever. itchy, irritated skin... not only does cortaid 12-hour advanced cream relieve itch fast, but a clinical study shows its unique itch shield technology lasts longer than the leading cream. for 12 hour protection. for long lasting protection try cortaid. we're following these tornadoes in the south and now apparently birmingham, alabama, right in the eye. chad myers is watching what's going on. we saw what happened in tuscaloosa just a little while ago and now birmingham. an even bigger city. >> huey town and birmingham in the path of a large tornado. we took about a hook. the cell is moving right up the interstate eventually into birmingham. this is a large and deadliest tornado. this is the biggest tornado we have seen so far today. the tornado would be right there. that's what we call on the radar that spot right there, that dark spot, we call it a debris ball. it's not rain. it's not hail. it literally is the debris from homes and trees and shingles and cars. it's the debris that is now being picked up in the cell in the tornado itself because a metal plate or an aluminum siding is very easy to see on a radar picture and that radar bounces off that stuff and it is a completely deadly situation here with at least an f-3 on the ground possibly larger. we knew it was that large when it moved just to the south of the university of alabama about half hour ago and is now headed into another major populated area. >> let's hope and frpray for th best for the folks in birmingham. other news we're following including a major shake-up in president obama's national security team. sources telling cnn the president will nominate the cia director leon panetta to replace the outgoing defense secretary robert gates with afghan war commander david petraeus replacing panetta at the cia. panetta held a number of powerful positions in washington. lisa sylvester is taking a closer look at leon panetta and his extensive resume. what are you learning? >> leon panetta has served in the army. served for two years after law school. when he first went into government service, he was actually a republican. he left the nixon administration and became a democrat and has since rotated through some incredibly high positions in government. panetta has worn so many hats in washington it can be a little hard to keep track. he came to washington as a young congressman from california in 1976 serving for nine terms. as a former chairman of the house budget committee, president clinton tapped him to head up the office of management and budget. playing a key role during the 1993 budget negotiations. >> it's a tough budget and a big budget. >> panetta served as president clinton as chief of staff from 1994 to 1997. longtime friend founder of the center for american progress, worked under panetta at the white house. >> he has tremendous respect from people who work for him because he gives respect to the people who work for him. he expects a lot out of you but he gives you respect in return and i think he has the right kind of skills and quality to be a tremendous leader in the pentagon. >> reporter: panetta is a good fit for the job as secretary of defense, he says. knowing how to navigate capitol hill and his experience serving in the white house and having a pulse on the intelligence community and being an expert on all things budget related. >> a lot of people say he really has the perfect resume for this job and especially for what the defense department needs to do. in the coming years it's less about fighting wars and more about fighting the bureaucracy and bringing down the pentagon's budget to meet the sort of overall austerity that the whole federal government will have to reach. >> repter: budget experience yes but some in congress question his lack of experience in the intelligence field. when he was named by president obama as cia director two years ago. but being an outsider at the pentagon could have its advantages. >> he certainly comes to the department with somewhat of a clean slate. he has not been part of the pentagon bureaucracy. he is not part of the inner service rivalries that exist within the pentagon and all of the different factions that are competing for the secretary of defense's time. >> reporter: panetta is seen as confirmable. key in washington politics. his friend jokes with a resume like this -- >> there's only one thing left for him to do which is maybe he should run for president in 2016. >> any predictions there? >> i don't think so. >> panetta is 72 years old now. if confirmed he'll be one of the oldest people to be secretary of defense so all joking aside, panetta will want to enjoy time in beautiful monterey, california, where he's from after a stint at the pentagon. >> beautiful home out there. as everyone knows who knows him, he's a smart and nice guy. he's a real gentleman. we wish him good luck at the department of defense. thanks very much, lisa, for that. can the third run for president be the charm for ron paul? jack cafferty and your e-mail coming up next. and coming up at the top of the hour, john king gets reaction from donald trump to the release of the president's birth certificate and jeanne moos takes a closer look at the media birther circus. 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[ male announcer ] hurry in to your authorized mercedes-benz dealer for 1.99% financing during our certified pre-owned sales event through may 2nd. let's check in with jack. he's got the cafferty file. jack. >> the question is hour is can the third time be a charm for ron paul? looks more and more like the texas congressman is going to take another run at the white house. carl writes, i hope so, we need a true change, not just more words. something different than those two corrupt political parties that exist today. ray in tennessee, the gop nominees probably gonna be a tea party republican, that will draw from ron paul's true libertarian base. i don't think that bodes well for the congressman. terrence in new jersey writes, try three times and you're out is more like it. shawn writes, probably not, i wrote him in in '08 and i will again in 2012 but the majority of americans don't seem to realize how much trouble this country is in. besides, he's honest. jay in new york write he the only person on the right side of the aisle i would even consider voting for. john in vermont, he's certainly much better presidential timber than the rest of the gop carnival show. he's the only one with a good dose of integrity but he won't win over the crazies which now dominate the gop. ben in ohio says, if gas prices keep rising, forget ron paul, rupaul could win the election. in illinois, ron paul has a lot of ceptisensible thoughts on ch we ought to be making. then he suddenly heads off the deep end, just as he has me believing. think his biggest problem within the republican party is he's not flashy, madison avenue enough for them. it sooms as though you have to be a can val act to quote their full party endorsement. how many sad. we'll see but i wouldn't bed the farm on him. and joseph writes, sure, all he has to do is prove today's version of president obama's birth certificate say forgery, he's in. if you want to read more on the su subject, go to my blog, cnn.com/caffertyfile. donald trump repeatedly questioned where president obama was born. what's the potential presidential candidate saying now that the president's long form birth certificate has been released? cnn's john king finds out during a rather feisty one on one interview with the business mogul. that airs at the top of the hour. but up next, we take a look back at the media circus surrounding the so-called birther movement. stay with us. you're in "the situation room." building up our wireless network all across america. we're adding new cell sites... increasing network capacity, and investing billions of dollars to improve your wireless network experience. from a single phone call to the most advanced data download, we're covering more people in more places than ever before in an effort to give you the best network possible. at&t. rethink possible. better than any other luxury brand. ♪ intellichoice proclaims that lexus has the best overall value of any brand. ♪ and j.d. power and associates ranks lexus the highest in customer satisfaction. no wonder more people have chosen lexus over any other luxury brand 11 years in a row. see your lexus dealer. unlike fish oil, megared softgels are small and easy to swallow with no fishy smell or aftertaste. try megared today. the birther movement has received lots of traction in the news. cnn's jeanne moos. the people who love to talk about it with the cameras rolling. >> reporter: hold 'em high. >> until today -- >> additional information -- >> blockbuster development -- >> reporter: blockbuster enough for one network to break into its royal wedding coverage. could the bells be tolling for the death of the birth certificate issue? we're going to miss hearing donald trump bello -- >> i want him to show -- there's something on that birth certificate he doesn't like. >> reporter: the president sure didn't look like there was something he didn't like as he released it. maybe it's time to hand out eggs. to all the folks who have egg on their face. >> just a birth certificate. >> us birthers were right. >> his behavior shows a guilty mind. >> take that, obama. >> reporter: there's one lady who's going to need several eggs for her performance at a town hall. >> why are you people ignoring his birth certificate? it is not an american citizen. he is a citizen of kenya. >> reporter: donald trump wasn't acting like he had egg on his face. he took credit for getting the president to release his long form certificate. >> i am really proud. i am really honored. >> reporter: how proud and honored was donald trump? let us count the ways. >> i'm very proud of myself. i am really honored. and i'm honored by it. honestly, i'm very proud. i'm really honored and i'm really proud. >> reporter: then trump got dumped by the networks going live with president obama whose sudden appearance in the briefing room was early similar to the one in the movie "the american president." >> good morning. >> hello, everybody. >> we've got serious problems. >> we live in a serious time. >> reporter: substitute donald for bob. >> this is a time for serious people, bob, and your 15 minutes are up. my name is andrew shepherd and i am the president. >> we do not have time for this kind of silliness. we got better stuff to do. i've got better stuff to do. >> reporter: the award for worst timing goes to the author of the upcoming book, "where's the birth certificate," due out next month. >> will you ask the president to show me his gift certificate -- i mean his -- gift certificate? his birth certificate. >> reporter: gift certificate, birth certificate, what's next on the shopping list, college grades? >> why doesn't he release his occidental records? >> reporter: jeanne moos, cnn, new york. >> he was a freshman at occidental university out in california, then went on to columbia to finish up his b.a., went to harvard law school where he graduated magna cum laude day. was president of the harvard law review, the first african-american ever president of the harvard law review. that does it for me. thanks very much for watching. i'm wolf blitzer in "the situation room." "john king usa" starts right

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