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CNN Live Today
Harkin Calls for Rumsfeld's Resignation
Aired May 06, 2004 - 11:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: I'm Daryn Kagan at CNN Center in Atlanta. Let's check the headlines "At This Hour."
American tanks and troops rolled into the Iraqi city of Najaf today. They retook the governor's office but came under fire afterward. Our Jane Arraf with the troops reports the U.S. is trying to reestablish control and install a new governor. Radical Shi'ite cleric Mubarak al-Sad's militia has a strong presence in Najaf.
A suicide attack near coalition headquarters in Baghdad today killed one U.S. soldier and six Iraqis. U.S. authorities say the car bombing bears the hallmarks of insurgent figure Abu Musab Zarqawi who reportedly has al Qaeda connections.
Elsewhere in Karbala, at least one suspected insurgent was killed during a coalition raid that reportedly turned up several weapons caches. A U.S. soldier was wounded in that operation.
And "The Washington Post" has published new photographs from the Abu Ghaith Prison in Iraq today. Like previous ones, these pictures showed naked Iraqi prisoners in humiliating poses. The paper says it obtained 1,000 digital images that were loaded on to a CD and distributed to troops.
Lawmakers want some answers from Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld about the Iraqi prisoner abuse scandal. They hope to get them tomorrow during a hearing. Congressional correspondent Ed Henry is on Capitol -- with details on that. Good morning.
ED HENRY, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Good morning. We have the first senator to call for Secretary Rumsfeld's resignation today. Senator Tom Harkin, Democrat of Iowa, has now put out a statement in the last few minutes, saying he believes Rumsfeld should resign over this prison abuse scandal and the failure to handle it properly. Harkin adds in the official statement that if Rumsfeld does not resign, President Bush should fire him.
We also had tough talk out of the House. House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi accused Rumsfeld of a cover-up this morning, in a press availability with the media. Pelosi was explaining that last week Secretary Rumsfeld came up to the Hill, briefed House members privately, then briefed senators privately on the very day CBS News broke the story, showed the photos later that evening.
Pelosi was furious about the fact that Rumsfeld decided not to inform members of Congress about this on the very day it was with to explain. Here's what she had to say.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. NANCY PELOSI (D-CA), MINORITY LEADER: The secretary has said subsequent last week that, Well, we did make that public in January. Public revelation of this in January. So what you're hearing now is what we straight forwardly have put forth, and not something that the press has undertaken to investigate.
And of course you know that that is simply not the truth. Mr. Rumsfeld has been engaged in a cover-up from the start on this issue and continues to be so.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HENRY: Daryn, Republicans are also privately expressing frustration up here on Capitol Hill directed at Rumsfeld.
In fact a Senate Republican source told CNN early today that the committee, the Armed Services Committee is frustrated with the fact that when the Army brass came up Tuesday and briefed, finally, the Armed Services Committee about this scandal, the Army brass did not bring a copy of the official report that had been circulating around and had been in the media over the weekend.
The committee then demanded a copy of the report. It did not come over right away. So committee staffers ended up going on the Internet, printing the report out. The report finally arrived later from the Pentagon.
But the point there is Republicans are saying they're trying to give Rumsfeld a life preserver politically, but he's not helping himself -- Daryn.
KAGAN: And what about calls on Capitol Hill to simply demolish the Abu Ghaith Prison?
HENRY: That's right. We're now seeing an increasing amount of senators in both parties saying that this prison should be demolished. It started with Democratic Senator Ben Nelson of Nebraska. He called for it, then Pat Robert of Kansas, now John McCain of Arizona.
The point here is that these senators believe it would be symbolic gesture that would show the entire world that this prison will no longer be around for American soldiers to abuse prisoners. But also it will not be around anymore for Saddam Hussein. Let's not forget that that was a former torture chamber of Saddam Hussein.
Senators saying it would be a symbolic gesture along the lines of the statue of Saddam Hussein that fell last year, that this would really send a strong signal -- Daryn.
KAGAN: Ed Henry on Capitol Hill. Ed, thank you for that report.
HENRY: Thank you. KAGAN: This programing note: CNN plans live coverage of Secretary of Defense Rumsfeld's appearance on Capitol Hill, tomorrow, taking place just about 24 hours from right now. You'll see live coverage right here on CNN.
Some of the detainees rounded up after the September 11 attacks are alleging they were abused here in the U.S. Jason Carroll has that story.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JASON CARROLL, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Ehab Elmaghraby saw pictures of Iraqi prisoners being abused by U.S. soldiers and thought of the abuse he says he suffered while being held in a U.S. prison.
EHAB ELMAGHRABY, FORMER DETAINEE: From the first day, five officers and one lieutenant just come and start to grab me and kick me in the back and hit me in the head and hit me in the chest.
CARROLL: Elmaghraby told his story from his home in Alexandria, Egypt. He says when he lived in New York City he was one of hundreds of Arabs and Muslims detained in the weeks following 9/11. His life as a restaurateur in Times Square ended when federal agents showed up at his home September 30, 2001.
ELMAGHRABY: Some officers start to grab me from my head to hit me in my back, to kick me in my leg.
CARROLL: The abuse is alleged in a federal lawsuit naming a former warden, several officers and U.S. Attorney General John Ashcroft as defendants saying one day Elmaghraby is stripped and an officer inserts a flashlight into his anal cavity until he bled. Another day a pencil is used, racial slurs, broken teeth, strip searches in front of a female staff member.
ELMAGHRABY: Any kind of abuse (unintelligible). They may strip search you like three, four times a day. They kick in the door. They leave the light on 24 hour, I can't -- couldn't make any phone calls to my family for the first four months and when I asked anybody they say no social call for terrorists.
CARROLL: Allegations of abuse became so prevalent the warden at the time required videotaping whenever a 9/11 detainee was moved. Some images, like this one showing officers pushing a detainee's head against a wall, were included in an investigative report by the U.S. Inspector General.
GLENN FINE, INSPECTOR GENERAL: We found evidence indicating that in some cases detainees were slammed against the wall, that the correctional officers stepped on their chains as they were walking. Some correctional officers bent their fingers and arms back.
CARROLL: An attorney for the facility's former warden says his client did nothing wrong and any comparisons to what may have happened at the prison to what happened to Iraqi prisoners is wrong. Elmaghraby was cleared of any terrorist involvement. He pled guilty to credit card fraud and was deported. He has no plans to return to the country he once loved.
Despite the inspector general's findings and Elmaghraby's claims, the Justice Department did not find sufficient evidence to bring charges against anyone at the prison. A spokesman for the Bureau of Prisons would not comment on the abuse allegations, but says it's conducting its own investigation.
Jason Carroll, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KAGAN: As we have reported, the Iraqi prisoner abuse scandal appears to be taking its toll on President Bush's job rating. But where does he stand in his race to stay in the White House? Let's check in with "INSIDE POLITICS" anchor Judy Woodruff in Washington. Judy, good morning.
JUDY WOODRUFF, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning, Daryn. Thank you.
A new poll suggests the presidential contest is closer than it was just a couple weeks ago. A Gallup poll of likely voters shows Senator John Kerry leading President Bush by one point. Now Bush was five points ahead of Kerry in mid-April. There is not much change when independent candidate Ralph Nader is factored in, with Kerry and Bush still running neck in neck.
Now a slightly different result in a new NBC/"Wall Street Journal" poll. That shows Bush leading Kerry 46 percent to 42 percent, among registered voters. A different universe. Nader getting 5 percent.
John Kerry, meantime, says if elected president he will hold teachers to higher standards, but reward them with higher pay. In California on the final leg of a three-day education tour, Kerry is calling for tougher testing for teachers, along with rewards of up to $5,000. Schools that boost student achievement would get up to $500,000. His campaign says the plan would be financed by repealing Bush tax cuts for people earning more than $200,000 a year.
President Bush helped the Republican Party set a fund raising record last night here in Washington. Boxing promoter Don King was among the 1,500 donors who contributed $38.5 million to the GOP at the party's annual gala. Before last night, the single event fund-raising record was the Republican's 2002 gala, which brought in $30 million.
Well, it may seem like a drop in the bucket after last night, but a watchdog group says President Bush has raised more money from lobbyists than has John Kerry. The Center for Public Integrity says lobbyists have given bush $1.1 million since the campaign began. The groups says lobbyists have given Kerry just over $300,000. Well, if some here in Washington have their way, Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld may soon be fighting to keep his job. Will he survive the Iraqi prisoner abuse controversy? I'll ask two members of the Senate Armed Services Committee live this afternoon. Plus, former United Nations Ambassador Richard Holbrooke weighs in on the prisoner abuse scandal as well, when I go "INSIDE POLITICS" at 3:30 p.m. Eastern.
But for now, right back to Daryn at the CNN Center in Atlanta.
KAGAN: All right, Judy, thank you so much for that.
From presidential politics to the stuff you just have to deal with at home. Do you need some help from Heloise? Heloise is here with us. She's is taking your questions about how you deal with some of those nagging problems in your house. Send us some e-mail. LIVETODAY@cnn.com. Heloise along in just a bit to answer your questions.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAGAN: In our "Daily Dose" of health news, a major drugstore chain joins the push to legalize prescription drug imports. The chairman of CVS Pharmacy says millions of Americans are importing prescriptions because they can't afford not to. Studies have shown that prescription purchases from across the border are cutting into U.S. drugstore sales. Attorneys general from 18 states are asking the Bush administration to legalize that practice.
She's been called the high priestess of household hints. We're talking about Heloise, the syndicated columnist from Texas. Two of her best-selling books have been updated, "Heloise A to Z" and "All The New Hints from Heloise" are being re-released. Heloise is here with us this morning, and she'll be answering your e-mail questions.
Good morning. Thank for being with us.
HELOISE, AUTHOR, "HELOISE A TO Z": Good morning.
KAGAN: I hope things are clean enough.
HELOISE: Oh, let's say. Oh, dust, oh, no.
KAGAN: People get paranoid when you show up. How do you update cleaning?
HELOISE: Well, it's not just cleaning. You can update cleaning, as a matter of fact. These two books are probably my best-selling books, but they're 10 years old and 13. And I went back and re-edited them, and it's amazing that in only 10 to 11 years, things have changed. We have new technologies.
KAGAN: New things to clean.
HELOISE: New things to clean -- computer screen, cell phones. We have new cleaning agents. We have new textiles. There are actually -- here's the Heloise update. There are whites, a white shirt that you buy, that you can't bleach. KAGAN: There are not. Stop.
HELOISE: Yes, there are bath towels, white bath towels that say no chlorine bleach.
KAGAN: And so you still have to know how to clean them.
HELOISE: You still have to know how to clean them.
KAGAN: By the way, how do you clean white things with no bleach?
HELOISE: You can use what I think is the redundant term of say, it's a nonchlorine bleach, but basically what it is, it's hydrogen peroxide based, which acts as a slower, milder bleaching agent, but you really have to read the care label.
And we have in the new book, or these books, a lot of myth busters, as I say, the Heloise update. And everyone says, oh, I know, you got a stain on white, you put lemon juice on it and put it out in the sun. Well, that was in my mother's books, the original Heloise. That was in my books. It's out.
KAGAN: It is out. What do you do instead?
HELOISE: Because of the new materials, are manufactured with. These whites are manufactured with an optical brightener in on them. You put lemon juice on it and put it out in the sun, it's going to turn yellow.
KAGAN: That's not good. Let's go to our e-mail, because there are a lot of people who would like some hints from Heloise.
First one, it's a question asking about if using bleach does as good a job at cleaning tubs, basin toilets and countertops as the numerous products on the market for each cleaning option. Can you just use a big bottle of Clorox or whatever?
HELOISE: Well, remember, bleach disinfects. It does kill germs. Now, it may not clean away the dirt, but it will -- so it depends on what you're trying to get to do. There are a lot of cleaning products on the market, and no, you don't need one that does windows, and then one that does stainless steel and then one that's just four mirrors. Vinegar and water, alcohol and water, will take care of that.
KAGAN: Very good, and cheap. '
To be the most effective, should I dust or vacuum first?
HELOISE: Oh, gosh -- this is the chicken or the egg one.
KAGAN: Now we're getting into philosophy here.
HELOISE: It depends. If you've got a good vacuum cleaner that actually -- a new one -- you want to dust so the dust supposedly falls on the floor and you vacuum it up. If you have an older vacuum clean that doesn't work very well, all it's going to do is bring more dust into the house.
KAGAN: Invest in a new vacuum cleaner seems to be the answer to that question.
Final question here, "Every time we spray pesticides in the house for bugs, I end up getting sick. Do you have any suggestions on way to take care of insects without using chemical pesticides?"
HELOISE: That's a Pandora's Box, in that you have to be very careful. Vinegar is supposed to keep flies away, if you wipe down the picnic table. Boric acid kills roaches and ants. You have to be careful, that can be toxic, so you don't want to have it around children, small pets.
Some of the newer aromatherapy type things might work, but my suggestion would be you want to have your house sealed as tight as possible so roaches don't come in, silverfish don't come in, that kind of thing.
KAGAN: Do you have one household chore that you really don't like?
HELOISE: I don't like cleaning the bathtub.
KAGAN: There you go, you heard it here on CNN.
Heloise, thank you so much. Thanks for updating cleanliness, and thanks for stopping by. Appreciate it.
It is about 11 minutes to the top of the hour. We'll head to Wall Street, get a check of the market action. Also, why is "Spider- Man 2" coming to a base near you? Major League Baseball in the middle of that one. We'll explain when we come back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(STOCK MARKET UPDATE)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAGAN: "Spider-Man 2" comes to theaters and Major League ballparks next month. Ads for the new movie will be placed on bases at 15 stadium from June 11 to June 13. Baseball purist are crying foul, who say America's pastime is selling out to commercialism.
(WEATHER REPORT)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAGAN: And that's going to do it for me, Daryn Kagan. Wolf Blitzer takes over from Washington D.C.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
Aired May 6, 2004 - 11:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: I'm Daryn Kagan at CNN Center in Atlanta. Let's check the headlines "At This Hour."
American tanks and troops rolled into the Iraqi city of Najaf today. They retook the governor's office but came under fire afterward. Our Jane Arraf with the troops reports the U.S. is trying to reestablish control and install a new governor. Radical Shi'ite cleric Mubarak al-Sad's militia has a strong presence in Najaf.
A suicide attack near coalition headquarters in Baghdad today killed one U.S. soldier and six Iraqis. U.S. authorities say the car bombing bears the hallmarks of insurgent figure Abu Musab Zarqawi who reportedly has al Qaeda connections.
Elsewhere in Karbala, at least one suspected insurgent was killed during a coalition raid that reportedly turned up several weapons caches. A U.S. soldier was wounded in that operation.
And "The Washington Post" has published new photographs from the Abu Ghaith Prison in Iraq today. Like previous ones, these pictures showed naked Iraqi prisoners in humiliating poses. The paper says it obtained 1,000 digital images that were loaded on to a CD and distributed to troops.
Lawmakers want some answers from Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld about the Iraqi prisoner abuse scandal. They hope to get them tomorrow during a hearing. Congressional correspondent Ed Henry is on Capitol -- with details on that. Good morning.
ED HENRY, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Good morning. We have the first senator to call for Secretary Rumsfeld's resignation today. Senator Tom Harkin, Democrat of Iowa, has now put out a statement in the last few minutes, saying he believes Rumsfeld should resign over this prison abuse scandal and the failure to handle it properly. Harkin adds in the official statement that if Rumsfeld does not resign, President Bush should fire him.
We also had tough talk out of the House. House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi accused Rumsfeld of a cover-up this morning, in a press availability with the media. Pelosi was explaining that last week Secretary Rumsfeld came up to the Hill, briefed House members privately, then briefed senators privately on the very day CBS News broke the story, showed the photos later that evening.
Pelosi was furious about the fact that Rumsfeld decided not to inform members of Congress about this on the very day it was with to explain. Here's what she had to say.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. NANCY PELOSI (D-CA), MINORITY LEADER: The secretary has said subsequent last week that, Well, we did make that public in January. Public revelation of this in January. So what you're hearing now is what we straight forwardly have put forth, and not something that the press has undertaken to investigate.
And of course you know that that is simply not the truth. Mr. Rumsfeld has been engaged in a cover-up from the start on this issue and continues to be so.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HENRY: Daryn, Republicans are also privately expressing frustration up here on Capitol Hill directed at Rumsfeld.
In fact a Senate Republican source told CNN early today that the committee, the Armed Services Committee is frustrated with the fact that when the Army brass came up Tuesday and briefed, finally, the Armed Services Committee about this scandal, the Army brass did not bring a copy of the official report that had been circulating around and had been in the media over the weekend.
The committee then demanded a copy of the report. It did not come over right away. So committee staffers ended up going on the Internet, printing the report out. The report finally arrived later from the Pentagon.
But the point there is Republicans are saying they're trying to give Rumsfeld a life preserver politically, but he's not helping himself -- Daryn.
KAGAN: And what about calls on Capitol Hill to simply demolish the Abu Ghaith Prison?
HENRY: That's right. We're now seeing an increasing amount of senators in both parties saying that this prison should be demolished. It started with Democratic Senator Ben Nelson of Nebraska. He called for it, then Pat Robert of Kansas, now John McCain of Arizona.
The point here is that these senators believe it would be symbolic gesture that would show the entire world that this prison will no longer be around for American soldiers to abuse prisoners. But also it will not be around anymore for Saddam Hussein. Let's not forget that that was a former torture chamber of Saddam Hussein.
Senators saying it would be a symbolic gesture along the lines of the statue of Saddam Hussein that fell last year, that this would really send a strong signal -- Daryn.
KAGAN: Ed Henry on Capitol Hill. Ed, thank you for that report.
HENRY: Thank you. KAGAN: This programing note: CNN plans live coverage of Secretary of Defense Rumsfeld's appearance on Capitol Hill, tomorrow, taking place just about 24 hours from right now. You'll see live coverage right here on CNN.
Some of the detainees rounded up after the September 11 attacks are alleging they were abused here in the U.S. Jason Carroll has that story.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JASON CARROLL, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Ehab Elmaghraby saw pictures of Iraqi prisoners being abused by U.S. soldiers and thought of the abuse he says he suffered while being held in a U.S. prison.
EHAB ELMAGHRABY, FORMER DETAINEE: From the first day, five officers and one lieutenant just come and start to grab me and kick me in the back and hit me in the head and hit me in the chest.
CARROLL: Elmaghraby told his story from his home in Alexandria, Egypt. He says when he lived in New York City he was one of hundreds of Arabs and Muslims detained in the weeks following 9/11. His life as a restaurateur in Times Square ended when federal agents showed up at his home September 30, 2001.
ELMAGHRABY: Some officers start to grab me from my head to hit me in my back, to kick me in my leg.
CARROLL: The abuse is alleged in a federal lawsuit naming a former warden, several officers and U.S. Attorney General John Ashcroft as defendants saying one day Elmaghraby is stripped and an officer inserts a flashlight into his anal cavity until he bled. Another day a pencil is used, racial slurs, broken teeth, strip searches in front of a female staff member.
ELMAGHRABY: Any kind of abuse (unintelligible). They may strip search you like three, four times a day. They kick in the door. They leave the light on 24 hour, I can't -- couldn't make any phone calls to my family for the first four months and when I asked anybody they say no social call for terrorists.
CARROLL: Allegations of abuse became so prevalent the warden at the time required videotaping whenever a 9/11 detainee was moved. Some images, like this one showing officers pushing a detainee's head against a wall, were included in an investigative report by the U.S. Inspector General.
GLENN FINE, INSPECTOR GENERAL: We found evidence indicating that in some cases detainees were slammed against the wall, that the correctional officers stepped on their chains as they were walking. Some correctional officers bent their fingers and arms back.
CARROLL: An attorney for the facility's former warden says his client did nothing wrong and any comparisons to what may have happened at the prison to what happened to Iraqi prisoners is wrong. Elmaghraby was cleared of any terrorist involvement. He pled guilty to credit card fraud and was deported. He has no plans to return to the country he once loved.
Despite the inspector general's findings and Elmaghraby's claims, the Justice Department did not find sufficient evidence to bring charges against anyone at the prison. A spokesman for the Bureau of Prisons would not comment on the abuse allegations, but says it's conducting its own investigation.
Jason Carroll, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KAGAN: As we have reported, the Iraqi prisoner abuse scandal appears to be taking its toll on President Bush's job rating. But where does he stand in his race to stay in the White House? Let's check in with "INSIDE POLITICS" anchor Judy Woodruff in Washington. Judy, good morning.
JUDY WOODRUFF, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning, Daryn. Thank you.
A new poll suggests the presidential contest is closer than it was just a couple weeks ago. A Gallup poll of likely voters shows Senator John Kerry leading President Bush by one point. Now Bush was five points ahead of Kerry in mid-April. There is not much change when independent candidate Ralph Nader is factored in, with Kerry and Bush still running neck in neck.
Now a slightly different result in a new NBC/"Wall Street Journal" poll. That shows Bush leading Kerry 46 percent to 42 percent, among registered voters. A different universe. Nader getting 5 percent.
John Kerry, meantime, says if elected president he will hold teachers to higher standards, but reward them with higher pay. In California on the final leg of a three-day education tour, Kerry is calling for tougher testing for teachers, along with rewards of up to $5,000. Schools that boost student achievement would get up to $500,000. His campaign says the plan would be financed by repealing Bush tax cuts for people earning more than $200,000 a year.
President Bush helped the Republican Party set a fund raising record last night here in Washington. Boxing promoter Don King was among the 1,500 donors who contributed $38.5 million to the GOP at the party's annual gala. Before last night, the single event fund-raising record was the Republican's 2002 gala, which brought in $30 million.
Well, it may seem like a drop in the bucket after last night, but a watchdog group says President Bush has raised more money from lobbyists than has John Kerry. The Center for Public Integrity says lobbyists have given bush $1.1 million since the campaign began. The groups says lobbyists have given Kerry just over $300,000. Well, if some here in Washington have their way, Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld may soon be fighting to keep his job. Will he survive the Iraqi prisoner abuse controversy? I'll ask two members of the Senate Armed Services Committee live this afternoon. Plus, former United Nations Ambassador Richard Holbrooke weighs in on the prisoner abuse scandal as well, when I go "INSIDE POLITICS" at 3:30 p.m. Eastern.
But for now, right back to Daryn at the CNN Center in Atlanta.
KAGAN: All right, Judy, thank you so much for that.
From presidential politics to the stuff you just have to deal with at home. Do you need some help from Heloise? Heloise is here with us. She's is taking your questions about how you deal with some of those nagging problems in your house. Send us some e-mail. LIVETODAY@cnn.com. Heloise along in just a bit to answer your questions.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAGAN: In our "Daily Dose" of health news, a major drugstore chain joins the push to legalize prescription drug imports. The chairman of CVS Pharmacy says millions of Americans are importing prescriptions because they can't afford not to. Studies have shown that prescription purchases from across the border are cutting into U.S. drugstore sales. Attorneys general from 18 states are asking the Bush administration to legalize that practice.
She's been called the high priestess of household hints. We're talking about Heloise, the syndicated columnist from Texas. Two of her best-selling books have been updated, "Heloise A to Z" and "All The New Hints from Heloise" are being re-released. Heloise is here with us this morning, and she'll be answering your e-mail questions.
Good morning. Thank for being with us.
HELOISE, AUTHOR, "HELOISE A TO Z": Good morning.
KAGAN: I hope things are clean enough.
HELOISE: Oh, let's say. Oh, dust, oh, no.
KAGAN: People get paranoid when you show up. How do you update cleaning?
HELOISE: Well, it's not just cleaning. You can update cleaning, as a matter of fact. These two books are probably my best-selling books, but they're 10 years old and 13. And I went back and re-edited them, and it's amazing that in only 10 to 11 years, things have changed. We have new technologies.
KAGAN: New things to clean.
HELOISE: New things to clean -- computer screen, cell phones. We have new cleaning agents. We have new textiles. There are actually -- here's the Heloise update. There are whites, a white shirt that you buy, that you can't bleach. KAGAN: There are not. Stop.
HELOISE: Yes, there are bath towels, white bath towels that say no chlorine bleach.
KAGAN: And so you still have to know how to clean them.
HELOISE: You still have to know how to clean them.
KAGAN: By the way, how do you clean white things with no bleach?
HELOISE: You can use what I think is the redundant term of say, it's a nonchlorine bleach, but basically what it is, it's hydrogen peroxide based, which acts as a slower, milder bleaching agent, but you really have to read the care label.
And we have in the new book, or these books, a lot of myth busters, as I say, the Heloise update. And everyone says, oh, I know, you got a stain on white, you put lemon juice on it and put it out in the sun. Well, that was in my mother's books, the original Heloise. That was in my books. It's out.
KAGAN: It is out. What do you do instead?
HELOISE: Because of the new materials, are manufactured with. These whites are manufactured with an optical brightener in on them. You put lemon juice on it and put it out in the sun, it's going to turn yellow.
KAGAN: That's not good. Let's go to our e-mail, because there are a lot of people who would like some hints from Heloise.
First one, it's a question asking about if using bleach does as good a job at cleaning tubs, basin toilets and countertops as the numerous products on the market for each cleaning option. Can you just use a big bottle of Clorox or whatever?
HELOISE: Well, remember, bleach disinfects. It does kill germs. Now, it may not clean away the dirt, but it will -- so it depends on what you're trying to get to do. There are a lot of cleaning products on the market, and no, you don't need one that does windows, and then one that does stainless steel and then one that's just four mirrors. Vinegar and water, alcohol and water, will take care of that.
KAGAN: Very good, and cheap. '
To be the most effective, should I dust or vacuum first?
HELOISE: Oh, gosh -- this is the chicken or the egg one.
KAGAN: Now we're getting into philosophy here.
HELOISE: It depends. If you've got a good vacuum cleaner that actually -- a new one -- you want to dust so the dust supposedly falls on the floor and you vacuum it up. If you have an older vacuum clean that doesn't work very well, all it's going to do is bring more dust into the house.
KAGAN: Invest in a new vacuum cleaner seems to be the answer to that question.
Final question here, "Every time we spray pesticides in the house for bugs, I end up getting sick. Do you have any suggestions on way to take care of insects without using chemical pesticides?"
HELOISE: That's a Pandora's Box, in that you have to be very careful. Vinegar is supposed to keep flies away, if you wipe down the picnic table. Boric acid kills roaches and ants. You have to be careful, that can be toxic, so you don't want to have it around children, small pets.
Some of the newer aromatherapy type things might work, but my suggestion would be you want to have your house sealed as tight as possible so roaches don't come in, silverfish don't come in, that kind of thing.
KAGAN: Do you have one household chore that you really don't like?
HELOISE: I don't like cleaning the bathtub.
KAGAN: There you go, you heard it here on CNN.
Heloise, thank you so much. Thanks for updating cleanliness, and thanks for stopping by. Appreciate it.
It is about 11 minutes to the top of the hour. We'll head to Wall Street, get a check of the market action. Also, why is "Spider- Man 2" coming to a base near you? Major League Baseball in the middle of that one. We'll explain when we come back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(STOCK MARKET UPDATE)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAGAN: "Spider-Man 2" comes to theaters and Major League ballparks next month. Ads for the new movie will be placed on bases at 15 stadium from June 11 to June 13. Baseball purist are crying foul, who say America's pastime is selling out to commercialism.
(WEATHER REPORT)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAGAN: And that's going to do it for me, Daryn Kagan. Wolf Blitzer takes over from Washington D.C.
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