2013.2.3

1. sn-020113.cnn.mp3

STUDENT NEWS

Hagel Grilled on Capitol Hill

Aired February 1, 2013 - 04:00:00 ET

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

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UNIDENTIFIED MALES AND FEMALES: This is Ms. Shilaki`s (ph) classroom, (inaudible) High School. And you`re watching CNN STUDENT NEWS. Take away, Carl.

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CARL AZUZ, CNN ANCHOR: Thank you all very much for that excellent introduction, we`re going to jump right in and talk about the presidential cabinet today. The advisors who run different parts of the U.S. government. When the president starts a second term, that`s when you might see a lot of change in the cabinet. Some members stay, some go. We`re seeing that right now with the Obama administration. The president picks who he wants to be in the cabinet, but he doesn`t make the final call, the U.S. Senate does that. It`s part of something called advice and consent, and it goes all the way back to the U.S. Constitution. The president`s pick to be his next Secretary of Defense is Chuck Hagel. He is a former senator, his is a military veteran and he`s kind of a controversial pick, because of some things he said in the past. Before the Senate decides, whether Hagel will be the next defense secretary, it holds confirmation hearings, a chance for senators to ask Mr. Hagel questions. Yesterday, things got tense during this exchange with Senator John McCain.

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SEN. JOHN MCCAIN, (R ), ARIZONA: Were you correct or incorrect when you said that the surge would be the most dangerous foreign policy blunder in this country since Vietnam? Were you correct or incorrect? Yes or no?

FORMER SEN. CHUCK HAGEL: My reference to the surge ...

MCCAIN: Are you answering the question, Senator Hagel? The question is, were you right or wrong. That`s a pretty straightforward question.

HAGEL: Well, I ...

MCCAIN: I would like the answer whether you were right or wrong and then you are free to elaborate.

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AZUZ: Then looking at the issue of immigration this week. Our shows on Tuesday and Wednesday talked about it. You can find those in the transcript archived cnnstudentnews.com.

We brought you a lot of perspectives on this issue, now we are looking at some of your perspectives. This came from our viewers at Facebook.com/studentnews. From Sam, "Immigration regulations are designed to protect citizens from potential enemies of the state. I`d rather have a difficult immigration process than one that almost anyone can successfully make it through." From Dulce, "We came here as immigrants, and after many generations of residing here, we decide to take charge of saying who has the right to have the same chance we did?" Colby now, "With the government having ultimate control, states are left powerless on the matter. The government needs to step up its game or allow the states to do more to prevent illegal immigration." Kaylen writes, "America is a locked door that leads to opportunity. It should be unlocked for anybody who needs change in their life." Caleb says, if an illegal immigrant comes and applies for a job, don`t hire them! Employers are the real reason that illegal immigrants are getting jobs." And from Haden, "I am all for people immigrating to this country legally. Immigrants who do not take the time to get naturalized should not get the same advantages that immigrants who do take the time to earn their citizenship."

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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Today`s first "Shoutout" goes out to Mr. Nelson and Mr. Skaris` classes at Hartsville High School in Hartsville, South Carolina. "What is something that keeps sauces or other foods from separating? Is it an emulsifier, marinade, reduction or bouillabaisse? You`ve got three seconds, go! The emulsifiers keep foods and liquids from separating. And they can help extend their shelf life. That`s your answer and that`s your "Shoutout."

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AZUZ: Helps drinks last longer, keeps them mixed, keeps the colors and flavors from separating, emulsifier sound great, but a teenager in Mississippi thought the idea of drinking one of these was too much to stomach. She shared her opinion online, hundreds of thousands of people agreed with her, and now a major company is making a change. Lisa Sylvester gathers the ingredients of this story.

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LISA SYLVESTER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Sarah Kavanagh is a volleyball player and a self-described Gatorade lover, but after reading up on the ingredients, she dumped out the rest of the bottle she was in the middle of drinking. Then she launched an online petition asking the company to drop one of the additives.

SARAH KAVANAGH, STARTED PETITION TO GATORADE: The Gatorade company in the U.K. doesn`t use it. They don`t think it`s necessary, so obviously, we can make the same product without these ingredients.

SYLVESTER: The substance is called BVO, brominated vegetable oil, it keeps the ingredients from separating. Food safety activists point out it`s banned in Japan in Europe, and has also been patented by chemical companies as a flame retardant, according to "Scientific American."

MICHAEL JACOBSON, CENTER FOR SCIENCE IN THE PUBLIC INTEREST: A couple of studies have been done, and one of them done on animals. It found that it caused behavioral problems where the animals just behaved differently in this laboratory tests.

SYLVESTER: Those animal tests were at higher doses, the Food and Drug Administration today reiterated "at the levels used, BVO is safe and presents no health risks .. based on several long-term animal studies." Gatorade said in the statement "While our products are safe, we are making this change because we know that some consumers have a negative perception of BVO in Gatorade, despite being permitted for use in North American and Latin American countries."

While consumer concern prompted it to change, it had already completed extensive taste tests for a switch before the petition. Either way, Kavanagh is looking forward to soon having her favorite sports drink again.

KAVANAGH: I didn`t expect all the attention to be brought to, but I`m definitely grateful for it.

AZUZ: Well, Sarah got her message out on social media, that`s how we want you to tell us, if you`d ever done something like this, if you`ve ever gone online to get support for something or to get something changed, do you think social media are an effective tool for doing that? Our blog is up at cnnstudentnews.com. If you`re on Facebook, it`s Facebook.com/CNN STUDENT NEWS.

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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It`s time for a "Shoutout Extra Credit" Who is known as the father of black history? You know what to do? Was it Frederick Douglass, George Washington Carver, Martin Luther King Jr. or Carter G. Woodson? Put another three seconds on the clock, and go!

The father of black history is Dr. Carter G. Woodson. An idea of Black History Month, which starts today all goes back to him. Dr. Woodson was a historian, one of the first historians to focus on the lives and experience of African Americans. He wanted to raise awareness about African Americans contribution to society. And in 1926, he established a week-long celebration to do just that. It used to be called "Negro History Week." So why did he pick February? Well, for two reasons or more specifically, two birthdays. Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglass. Both men were involved in ending slavery. And their birthdays were right around the same time. Black History week was celebrated the second week of February, and it got more and more popular throughout the years. So, Dr. Woodson established the week, but how do we get to Black History Month? For that answer, you have to go to 1976. The 200th birthday of the United States, and a 50th anniversary of the first week-long celebration. That`s when President Gerald Ford expanded Black History week into Black History Month. He invited Americans to "Seize the opportunity to honor the too- often neglected accomplishments of black Americans in every area of endeavor throughout our history." So there you have it. From Dr. Carter G. Woodson in 1926 to President Gerald Ford in 1976. A little history about black history.

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AZUZ: Whether it`s in a food court or your school cafeteria, there is probably nothing about this that looks so unusual. People having lunch, sitting wherever they want. But in 1960, in Greensboro, North Carolina, that didn`t happen until this day, 53 years ago. That`s one four African- American college freshmen sat down at the lunch counter at Woolworth. Until then, the counter sits were for whites only. The four men didn`t get serviced, but they also didn`t leave. They just sat in a peaceful protest. They came back the next day and the next day for six months straight, until Woolworth desegregated the lunch counter. And during those six months, the sitting protest idea spread to dozens of other cities. It started with four men, the Greensboro four. They sat down at the counter and helped make history.

Before we go today, some Super Bowls fun facts: Jerry Rice, retired San Francisco star receiver won`t be playing this year, but he still holds the record for most career Super Bowl touchdowns. It`s eight. But while bowls and Rice go together, more Americans opt for wings, hot wings, buffalo wings, barbecue wings, honey mustard wings, lemon pepper, Thai curry wings. This Sunday, more than 1.2 billion wings are headed on their last flight. But while Americans want wings, the players want rings, Super Bowl rings, bans of gold and diamonds worth several thousand dollars a piece. If a player wanted to sell it, though, he`d get a helping hand from collectors who`d likely pay thousands more to get their fingers on one. Speaking of thousands, you`d need about two grand just to get in the door of the Super Dome. That`s the price of the cheapest seats, but you`ll need some tissue for when your nose starts bleeding. And the cost of commercials will bleed some businesses of profits. The price of a 30 second spot, nearly $4 million. But with exposure like that, the benefits could add up.

If not, it was just an ad idea to begin with. That`s about all the time we ad today. If you ad a few minutes and you`re on Facebook, you could find us at Facebook.com/cnnstudentnews, and tell us what`s next you ad in mind for the Super Bowl. That`s all, folks, until Monday.

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