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American Morning
"90-Second Pop"; Elizabeth Edwards' Diagnosed With Cancer; "Extra Effort"
Aired November 05, 2004 - 09:30 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.
BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning, everybody. 9:30 here in New York. Soledad's out today. Kelly Wallace with us.
Good morning again to you.
KELLY WALLACE, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning again to you.
HEMMER: Opening bell from Wall Street a short time ago. They'll be weighing that jobs report that come out an hour ago.
WALLACE: Big rally the past few days since President Bush won.
HEMMER: 337,000 jobs up, just reported, so.
Also in a moment here, we're checking in with Barbara Starr at the Pentagon, finding out what she is hearing for the battle plans for Falluja. Is the U.S. now on a verge of a major assault? And if so, what's the time frame for all of that? We'll get to Barbara.
And also, Bill, we've been talking all morning about Elizabeth Edwards diagnosed with breast cancer. Dr. Susan Love wrote a best- selling book on the disease. She'll be with us in a few minutes to talk about the specific kind of cancer we're talking about and the treatments.
Let's check now on the stories in the news with Daryn Kagan.
Good morning, Daryn, and happy Friday.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: Oh, that it is.
Kelly, thank you.
Now in the news, Israeli and Palestinian official are keeping close tabs on the condition of Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat. According to two U.S. officials, the Palestinian leaders is kept alive by machines at a Paris military hospital, while negotiations continue on where he should be buried. But a spokeswoman for Arafat says that he is in what she is calling a reversible coma, and could come out of it.
To California now, the six-man, six-woman jury go back to work on the Scott Peterson trial in less than two hours. This will be day three of deliberations in the double-murder case. When a verdict is reached, the public will be able to hear it, but not watch it. The judge yesterday banned live television coverage of the final proceedings.
A decision could come as early as today on whether pilots for Northwest Airlines will accept steep paycuts. Northwest pilots rank among the second highest paid in the country, but under a proposed plan, they would forfeit 15 percent of their pay for two years, and in return the carrier would not cut retirement plans. The pilots concessions could save the airline $265 million.
And talk about a sugary mess on the New York highways. It's cleaned up in time for this morning's rush hour. A tanker spilled 45,000 pounds of liquid chocolate last night. You see some of it here, coating the northbound lanes, a bridge and another car. The fire chief says the scene smelled like a Hershey bar. A cup of hot chocolate anybody on this Friday morning?
WALLACE: A chocolate-y mess. I like that, Daryn.
Hey, Daryn, what's coming up ahead on your show at 10:00 a.m.?
KAGAN: We, of course, are continuing to follow what's happening with Yasser Arafat out of Paris. We're also in Jerusalem and around the world, and we're going to talk to the correspondents for "Time" magazine, go behind the scenes. What really happened in the final days on both of the campaigns? Of course, Kelly, you could write that article yourself for the Kerry campaign. For the rest of the world, we'll talk to the "Time" reporters next hour.
WALLACE: All right, Daryn, we'll be watching. Have yourself a great weekend.
KAGAN: You, too.
HEMMER: Iraq's new interim Prime Minister Ayad Allawi already talking today, again, about Falluja, saying the window is closing for a peaceful settlement there.
To the Pentagon and Barbara Starr, trying to find a better timeline now.
Barbara, good morning. What do you have?
BARBARA STARR, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning to you, Bill.
Well, now all indications are that U.S. and Iraqi forces are trained and ready to launch that ground assault into Falluja if and when the order comes.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
STARR (voice over): As U.S. troops prepare for a ground attack, Marines know that once inside Falluja, snipers may lie in wait, booby traps may already be laid.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is antiaircraft ammunition. These are some of the copper wires they use for the side where road bombs are, as people call them, we call them IEDs. STARR: Intelligence indicates thousands of insurgents remain in the Falluja area. Troops are now searching cars for fighters trying to escape.
Defeating the insurgency in Falluja is now seen as a vital step towards controlling the country.
MAJ. JIM WEST, MARINE INTELLIGENCE OFFICER: It is not, though, the panacea. Just by taking it out does not mean the rest of the insurgency will fall. But it will be a big chip in that block out there.
STARR: It is called the tipping point, the point at which insurgents believe they have no hope of winning. That is the fundamental challenge across Iraq.
One senior U.S. military officer told CNN, we may be at an operational stalemate. We are nowhere near the tipping point.
Insurgents number between 8,000 to 12,000 strong, conducting about 80 attacks a day nationwide. But intelligence experts say they still don't have a good handle on what is motivating many.
One assessment: Sunni and Baath loyalists, trying to regain power, won't stop their fight, raising the prospect of violence for years to come. But on this day, U.S. troops near Falluja are focused on their mission.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Do you know what you're writing?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Stay away or we'll kill you.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
STARR: Bill, military officials are strongly emphasizing that they believe this will be a very tough fight, that once they enter the city, they do expect booby traps, improvised explosive devices and insurgents fighting in small teams, trying to stop their progress through the city -- Bill.
HEMMER: Barbara, back to this comment that you made at the top of your report about Iraqi forces being involved. What is their role, and to what extent would they be involved with the U.S. military?
STARR: Every indication at this point, Bill, is that it will be the Marines and the Army leading the major combat force if there is in the next several hours or days that order to go into Falluja. There are trained and equipped Iraqi forces, of course, who are expected to fight alongside them. But every indication is that U.S. forces will go in very heavy, that there will be a significant armor capability, a significant air capability. That would be of course very standard practice. Iraqi forces will support them, but U.S. forces are expected to be at the tip of the spear -- Bill.
HEMMER: Barbara, thanks. Watch for us, at the Pentagon -- Kelly. WALLACE: Thanks, Bill.
John Edwards' family is said to be in good spirits this morning and optimistic that Elizabeth Edwards will beat breast cancer. She was diagnosed just hours after her husband and John Kerry conceded the presidential election on Wednesday.
Dr. Susan Love is an oncologist, and the author of "Dr. Susan Love's Breast Book." She joins this morning from Los Angeles.
Dr. Love, thanks for being with us today.
DR. SUSAN LOVE, AUTHOR, "THE BREAST BOOK": Thank you, Kelly.
WALLACE: First question to you. Elizabeth Edwards has what doctors are calling invasive ductal cancer. Tell us what this is, and a little bit about the recovery and the treatment.
LOVE: Well, invasive ductal cancer is the usual kind of breast cancer. All breast cancers starts in the lining of the milk ducts, and so that's the ductal part, and the invasive means it's gotten out of the ducts into the surrounding tissue. It doesn't necessarily mean it's gotten into the whole body. It just means that it's capable of getting into the rest of the body. So this is the usual kind of breast cancer that we see. The two-thirds of women with breast cancer are cured of breast cancer. So overall, the prognosis is generally very good.
WALLACE: And what about possible treatments? Is it likely, a lumpectomy, radiation, chemotherapy? I know you don't know her specific case, but traditionally, with this kind of cancer, what is the typical treatment.
LOVE: Well, the treatments get divided into two parts. You do one treatment to take care of the breast and prevent breast cancer from coming back in the breast, and that's either a lumpectomy and radiation or a mastectomy, and they're equal. The recurrent rate's about 10 percent after lumpectomy and 10 percent in the scar after mastectomy. So it's about the same. And then the second kind of treatment is what you do to the rest of the body in case there's any cells that might have gotten out, and that's chemotherapy or hormone therapy. And in this day in age, most women get a combination, and get both surgery, radiation and chemotherapy, and sometimes hormone therapy in addition.
WALLACE: Of course horrified news for any family to learn a loved one has breast cancer. You talk and write a lot about the myths about breast cancer. What are some of the main myths right now about this cancer?
LOVE: Well, I think the biggest myth is that the diagnoses of breast cancer is an emergency, that you have to rush right in there and do something very quickly or it's going to spread all over. Most breast cancers have been there for eight to 10 years by the time you can feel a lump or see it on a mammogram. And so if it wanted to get out, it's had time to get out, and really there is time to get a second opinion, to look at all of your options, to do all the tests, and to make a really planned decision about the treatment. You don't have to rush into anything.
WALLACE: Does stress play a role here? Of course Elizabeth Edwards was out on the campaign with her husband, months and months of travel, away from her family. Does stress play a role at all in this kind of cancer?
LOVE: Well, stress certainly doesn't cause breast cancer. But you know, cancer doesn't grow in a nice, orderly pattern; it spurts, and then it rests, and then it spurts again. And so what stress may affect is why it showed up now and not six months ago, or six months from now. So I think it has some affect, but it's not the cause of cancer.
WALLACE: Important information today. We thank you so much, Dr. Susan Love, author of "The Breast Book." Thanks for being with us on AMERICAN MORNING.
LOVE: Thank you.
(WEATHER REPORT)
WALLACE: Still to come, America's getting fatter, yes, that's right, and you are paying the price when you buy an airplane ticket. Andy's Minding Your Business" with that.
Also, the Hollywood superheroes are getting fatter too, but will it be enough to keep "The Incredibles" from knocking them dead at the movies weekend? "90-Second Pop" has that, after this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
HEMMER: Welcome back, everybody, on a Friday. "90-Second Pop" time for that now. The pop players, Sarah Bernard back with us, contributing editor for "New York" magazine.
Sarah, how are you?
SARAH BERNARD, CONTRIBUTING EDITOR, "NEW YORK" MAGAZINE: Good.
HEMMER: The weekend is almost here.
B.J. Sigesmund, staff editor for "US Weekly."
Good morning, B.J.
B.J. SIGESMUND, STAFF EDITOR, "US WEEKLY": Good morning, Bill.
HEMMER: And Jessica Shaw for "Entertainment Weekly."
Nice to see you, Jessica, as well.
JESSICA SHAW, "ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY": You too. HEMMER: Here we go. "The OF COURSE," started a new season last night.
BERNARD: Thank god!
HEMMER: No. 1 on my DVR list, by the way.
BERNARD: That's right.
HEMMER: How was it?
BERNARD: It was really good, I've got to say. I think they crammed too much into one hour, but that's fine, because I will watch no matter what they do.
Now, this is the show that is kind of like the "90210" of 2004. It is so successful, partially -- well, I think, you know, the casting and the bikini scenes don't hurt, but really the writing. Josh Schwartz, who is the creator of this show, was only about 26 when he pitched it. And he really -- the thing that's so good about it is the dialogue sounds like the way real teenagers talk. And that is so hard to come by on TV.
SIGESMUND: And it also moves so quickly, right? In the first two episodes, there is something like six big breakups. You know, people are constantly splitting up, getting back together, screaming at each other, blackmailing each other.
SHAW: It's basically a reality show.
HEMMER: It's like "Melrose's Place."
BERNARD: It is. It is a lot like "Melrose's Place."
SHAW: And there are some truly great soap moments. In the scene that we were just showing, Marissa, who is one of the main characters, has a complete meltdown with pool furniture and just throws all of the stuff into the pool, which I truly think will go down in the books as one of great soap moments of all time.
HEMMER: Must-see TV, right?
SHAW: Absolutely must-see.
HEMMER: Box office this weekend, what's out? There is an animated movie out called "The Incredibles."
SIGESMUND: Yes.
HEMMER: Disney did it?
SIGESMUND: Right, yes. This is a Disney movie. Disney is about to hit the jackpot with this movie, "The Incredibles."
HEMMER: Really? SIGESMUND: This is the next "Finding Nemo." It's opening on almost 4,000 screens. This is easily going to make $60 million or $70 million this weekend. Everyone loves it, kids, adults. We gave it three and a half stars in "US Weekly."
HEMMER: No kidding?
SIGESMUND: It's about a story of a family of superheroes that have to go into the equivalent of the Witness Protection Program and fit into suburbia, even though they look like superheroes. Craig T. Nelson and Holly Hunter are the voices of the mother and father, and it's going to be huge.
BERNARD: And Samuel L. Jackson is one of the voices, right?
HEMMER: You say it's the next "Nemo."
(CROSSTALK)
SIGESMUND: Yes. Well, this is Pixar, and they totally delivered with "Nemo" and with "Toy Story." And this is the next one.
HEMMER: Is it breaking new ground animation-wise, technology- wise?
SIGESMUND: I don't know that it's new. I don't know that it's breaking new ground like the "Polar Express" is next week, but it just is clever and its PG...
HEMMER: All right.
SIGESMUND: ... as Sarah pointed out.
BERNARD: Yes, that's the other thing that's great about it. It's not the G-rated movie. So if you want to go and you don't have kids, you don't have to feel...
SIGESMUND: Yes.
SHAW: And we were all talking, we were all really excited to see this.
BERNARD: Oh it really is.
SIGESMUND: Yes.
SHAW: I mean, I'm 7, but...
SIGESMUND: But conversely, there is another new movie this weekend, "Alfie." Now, for all of the movies that Jude Law has been in, he's never really headlined his own until now. And unfortunately, this movie, "Alfie," is going to tank.
HEMMER: Really?
SIGESMUND: I'm not expecting it to even make $10 million. Jude Law is really charming in it. I thought he was great. But the script is awful! So boring, dull, obvious.
HEMMER: And they've put an awful lot of promotion in that, too.
BERNARD: I think a lot of people are going to see it just because his real-life girlfriend, __ Miller, is in this. And this is kind of her introductory role.
HEMMER: Really?
BERNARD: So I think a lot of people will actually want to see them together.
SIGESMUND: Yes.
SHAW: Well, I wonder, I mean, six movies.
HEMMER: Kind of like...
SHAW: That is a lot. That's over exposure time.
HEMMER: Let's leave it there. Have a great weekend -- Kelly.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WALLACE: Thanks, Bill.
Still to come, America's obesity problem is weighing down airlines, and it's costing you money. Andy's "Minding Your Business."
Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HEMMER: Welcome back, everyone. Get your football picks ready.
Trading's underway on Wall Street. Back to Andy Serwer watching that and more. Good morning.
ANDY SERWER, "FORTUNE" MAGAZINE: Good morning to you.
We're expecting the market to be trading higher after that gangbusters job report this morning. There we go. Let's go check the board. Get out of the way! We've got a rally going on. Forty-seven points up. Created 337,000 jobs in October.
Unemployment rate ticked up slightly. But the big news is that jobs report, the creation of all of those jobs, twice as many as expected. You have to go back to March of this year -- six months ago to get numbers like that -- and before that, March of 2000. So, really some impressive news there.
Let's talk a little bit about the airline industry, though.
WALLACE: Yeah.
SERWER: Because still trouble. And you talk about job growth, there's no job growth there. In fact, there is job losses.
United Airlines looking for job cuts there, Kelly -- maybe $725 million in savings, and that's all going to come out of jobs. Northwest Airlines looking to save 15 percent across the board in pay cuts, as well. Average pilot there makes about $273,000 a year. That's the high-end pilots. Second highest in the business after Delta, make about $320,000. So, they're looking to cut -- you know, take money right out of those paychecks, which is really something.
WALLACE: What about this? The government study -- airlines spending hundreds of millions of dollars dealing with people getting fatter and fatter?
SERWER: Yeah, I thought this was pretty remarkable, actually. It's a study that comes out of the Centers of Disease Control down in Atlanta. They actually were able to quantify how much more airlines are spending because we're fat. And this is truly amazing.
They're saying the average weight of the American population is up about 10 pounds since the 1990s. And they're saying in the year 2000, that translates into $275 million more of fuel costs for airlines. Airlines spent $350 million more -- they used $350 million more gallons, more fuel that costs $270 million.
HEMMER: Who comes up with this stuff?
WALLACE: Yeah, i know. That's the thing, right?
SERWER: The Centers for Disease Control. They talked to the Air Transportation people, and they said they hadn't validated the study. But the guy said, "Sounds about right."
Isn't that amazing? I mean, this is real dollars and cents. Yeah, sounds about right. Sounds about right, yeah.
WALLACE: All right, bizarre, bizarre, bizarre.
SERWER: We're too fat.
WALLACE: All right. Diets -- diets all around.
OK, every week we recognize people who go to the additional mile for others. This week's "Extra Effort" highlights a man who risked his own life to help a woman in trouble.
Meet Matt Casias, who was shot while trying to save a mugging victim. He joins us now from Denver. Hi, Matt. Thanks for being with us.
MATT CASIAS, GOOD SAMARITAN: Hi, how's it going?
WALLACE: Matt, tell us what you saw that afternoon.
CASIAS: Well, I was sitting at my desk and -- when I was working, I noticed that there was a lady walking to her car. And at moment she was walking to her car, I noticed a group of men following her walking fast behind her. At that time, I noticed one was walking a little bit faster than the rest. I knew something was wrong with that picture.
WALLACE: But why -- some people might say why didn't you just call 911 as opposed to running out. Weren't you worried that you could be in danger yourself?
CASIAS: At that point, just -- it was adrenaline and pure reaction kicked in. I noticed that he grabbed her and started trying to take her purse, was shaking her. And at that point, again, there was no thought that went into it. I just -- I bolted out the door and went to help her. It was just something that was purely a reaction.
WALLACE: Did you see any of them with the gun?
CASIAS: I did not see a gun at the time. When I pulled him off of her, he pulled the gun out at that point and pointed it to my chest and opened fire and pulled the trigger at point blank.
WALLACE: How are you feeling right now? I know you were in the hospital. What is your situation right now?
CASIAS: Well, I'm still in a lot of pain. It hasn't obviously completely recovered yet. But it's still very painful. I think I got a few more weeks before most of this pain is over with.
WALLACE: And I understand there's going to be a benefit to try and help you raise money for medical expenses. What can you tell us about that? The community seems to have been galvanized by your story.
CASIAS: Well,the community's been great. Everyone seems to pull together, and I can't say enough about the community. I want to really thank everybody that's came together to help me out in this situation. I think, to me, they are the true heroes in this whole situation.
WALLACE: Well, Matt Casias, thanks for being with us. And after a break, we're going to meet the woman that you helped save. That's right after this.
Stay with us, right here on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WALLACE: And we're continuing our "Extra Effort" segment. Joining us now, Brenda Turner in Denver who was saved by a good samaritan -- the good samaritan we just talked to, Matt Casias.
And Brenda, I understand you and Matt just met for the first time today in Denver. What was it like to meet the man who, in essence, saved your life?
BRENDA TURNER, MUGGING VICTIM: Oh, I was very happy to meet him. I was very grateful.
WALLACE: What's your -- what do you remember of that day, Brenda?
TURNER: Unlocking my car door. Somebody grabbing my arm and swinging me around, grabbing my purse and saying, "I have a gun. You don't want me to shoot you." And held it up in front of my face about eight inches away. And I was holding onto my purse, pulling it away from him. And all of a sudden, he let go, and I fell back. And then, I heard a pop, and I had my eyes closed the whole time.
WALLACE: When did you find out that Matt was involved and that Matt actually got shot saving your life?
TURNER: A couple of minutes -- well, a few -- a minute later, maybe. I got up and walked into his store and sat down, and I of course saw him on the floor while he was trying to breathe and stay alive.
WALLACE: What's your sense -- I know the community is trying to raise money for his medical expenses. Are you involved in that, and what do you think of that effort?
TURNER: Oh, we're 100 percent behind it, and yes, they're going to start with an auction tonight, and certainly we're all contributing.
WALLACE: And the first words you said when you saw Matt today in that studio in Denver were what?
TURNER: Thank you.
WALLACE: Well, you are very lucky, Brenda Turner. Thanks so much to you and also to Matt Casias who joined us. We appreciate it very much.
TURNER: Thank you very much.
HEMMER: That's what "Extra Effort" is all about.
WALLACE: That's right.
HEMMER: We've got to run. But one more reminder, Toure is so cool...
SERWER: Can't get enough here.
HEMMER: He flew to London, hung out with Eminem, and you can read his story in "Rolling Stone" magazine, so...
WALLACE: So cool. Very cool.
SERWER: Well done.
TOURE: Thank you.
HEMMER: You guys have a great weekend, all right?
SERWER: You too, Bill. HEMMER: Here's to Daryn and Rick now at the CNN Center. Hey, guys. Good morning.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: From Eminem to AMERICAN MORNING. That's either quite a rise or quite a fall, depending on the company you...
(LAUGHTER)
WALLACE: Quite a rise. Quite a rise, Daryn and Rick.
HEMMER: But we still like Daryn. She's our friend.
RICK SANCHEZ, CNN ANCHOR: There's a transition for you. Here's another one -- we're going to be watching a lot of news today. Obviously everything going on with Mr. Arafat and any rumblings of things that take place in Falluja. We'll take you there, as well.
KAGAN: But right now, let's take a look at what is happening now in the news.
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Aired November 5, 2004 - 09:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning, everybody. 9:30 here in New York. Soledad's out today. Kelly Wallace with us.
Good morning again to you.
KELLY WALLACE, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning again to you.
HEMMER: Opening bell from Wall Street a short time ago. They'll be weighing that jobs report that come out an hour ago.
WALLACE: Big rally the past few days since President Bush won.
HEMMER: 337,000 jobs up, just reported, so.
Also in a moment here, we're checking in with Barbara Starr at the Pentagon, finding out what she is hearing for the battle plans for Falluja. Is the U.S. now on a verge of a major assault? And if so, what's the time frame for all of that? We'll get to Barbara.
And also, Bill, we've been talking all morning about Elizabeth Edwards diagnosed with breast cancer. Dr. Susan Love wrote a best- selling book on the disease. She'll be with us in a few minutes to talk about the specific kind of cancer we're talking about and the treatments.
Let's check now on the stories in the news with Daryn Kagan.
Good morning, Daryn, and happy Friday.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: Oh, that it is.
Kelly, thank you.
Now in the news, Israeli and Palestinian official are keeping close tabs on the condition of Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat. According to two U.S. officials, the Palestinian leaders is kept alive by machines at a Paris military hospital, while negotiations continue on where he should be buried. But a spokeswoman for Arafat says that he is in what she is calling a reversible coma, and could come out of it.
To California now, the six-man, six-woman jury go back to work on the Scott Peterson trial in less than two hours. This will be day three of deliberations in the double-murder case. When a verdict is reached, the public will be able to hear it, but not watch it. The judge yesterday banned live television coverage of the final proceedings.
A decision could come as early as today on whether pilots for Northwest Airlines will accept steep paycuts. Northwest pilots rank among the second highest paid in the country, but under a proposed plan, they would forfeit 15 percent of their pay for two years, and in return the carrier would not cut retirement plans. The pilots concessions could save the airline $265 million.
And talk about a sugary mess on the New York highways. It's cleaned up in time for this morning's rush hour. A tanker spilled 45,000 pounds of liquid chocolate last night. You see some of it here, coating the northbound lanes, a bridge and another car. The fire chief says the scene smelled like a Hershey bar. A cup of hot chocolate anybody on this Friday morning?
WALLACE: A chocolate-y mess. I like that, Daryn.
Hey, Daryn, what's coming up ahead on your show at 10:00 a.m.?
KAGAN: We, of course, are continuing to follow what's happening with Yasser Arafat out of Paris. We're also in Jerusalem and around the world, and we're going to talk to the correspondents for "Time" magazine, go behind the scenes. What really happened in the final days on both of the campaigns? Of course, Kelly, you could write that article yourself for the Kerry campaign. For the rest of the world, we'll talk to the "Time" reporters next hour.
WALLACE: All right, Daryn, we'll be watching. Have yourself a great weekend.
KAGAN: You, too.
HEMMER: Iraq's new interim Prime Minister Ayad Allawi already talking today, again, about Falluja, saying the window is closing for a peaceful settlement there.
To the Pentagon and Barbara Starr, trying to find a better timeline now.
Barbara, good morning. What do you have?
BARBARA STARR, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning to you, Bill.
Well, now all indications are that U.S. and Iraqi forces are trained and ready to launch that ground assault into Falluja if and when the order comes.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
STARR (voice over): As U.S. troops prepare for a ground attack, Marines know that once inside Falluja, snipers may lie in wait, booby traps may already be laid.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is antiaircraft ammunition. These are some of the copper wires they use for the side where road bombs are, as people call them, we call them IEDs. STARR: Intelligence indicates thousands of insurgents remain in the Falluja area. Troops are now searching cars for fighters trying to escape.
Defeating the insurgency in Falluja is now seen as a vital step towards controlling the country.
MAJ. JIM WEST, MARINE INTELLIGENCE OFFICER: It is not, though, the panacea. Just by taking it out does not mean the rest of the insurgency will fall. But it will be a big chip in that block out there.
STARR: It is called the tipping point, the point at which insurgents believe they have no hope of winning. That is the fundamental challenge across Iraq.
One senior U.S. military officer told CNN, we may be at an operational stalemate. We are nowhere near the tipping point.
Insurgents number between 8,000 to 12,000 strong, conducting about 80 attacks a day nationwide. But intelligence experts say they still don't have a good handle on what is motivating many.
One assessment: Sunni and Baath loyalists, trying to regain power, won't stop their fight, raising the prospect of violence for years to come. But on this day, U.S. troops near Falluja are focused on their mission.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Do you know what you're writing?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Stay away or we'll kill you.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
STARR: Bill, military officials are strongly emphasizing that they believe this will be a very tough fight, that once they enter the city, they do expect booby traps, improvised explosive devices and insurgents fighting in small teams, trying to stop their progress through the city -- Bill.
HEMMER: Barbara, back to this comment that you made at the top of your report about Iraqi forces being involved. What is their role, and to what extent would they be involved with the U.S. military?
STARR: Every indication at this point, Bill, is that it will be the Marines and the Army leading the major combat force if there is in the next several hours or days that order to go into Falluja. There are trained and equipped Iraqi forces, of course, who are expected to fight alongside them. But every indication is that U.S. forces will go in very heavy, that there will be a significant armor capability, a significant air capability. That would be of course very standard practice. Iraqi forces will support them, but U.S. forces are expected to be at the tip of the spear -- Bill.
HEMMER: Barbara, thanks. Watch for us, at the Pentagon -- Kelly. WALLACE: Thanks, Bill.
John Edwards' family is said to be in good spirits this morning and optimistic that Elizabeth Edwards will beat breast cancer. She was diagnosed just hours after her husband and John Kerry conceded the presidential election on Wednesday.
Dr. Susan Love is an oncologist, and the author of "Dr. Susan Love's Breast Book." She joins this morning from Los Angeles.
Dr. Love, thanks for being with us today.
DR. SUSAN LOVE, AUTHOR, "THE BREAST BOOK": Thank you, Kelly.
WALLACE: First question to you. Elizabeth Edwards has what doctors are calling invasive ductal cancer. Tell us what this is, and a little bit about the recovery and the treatment.
LOVE: Well, invasive ductal cancer is the usual kind of breast cancer. All breast cancers starts in the lining of the milk ducts, and so that's the ductal part, and the invasive means it's gotten out of the ducts into the surrounding tissue. It doesn't necessarily mean it's gotten into the whole body. It just means that it's capable of getting into the rest of the body. So this is the usual kind of breast cancer that we see. The two-thirds of women with breast cancer are cured of breast cancer. So overall, the prognosis is generally very good.
WALLACE: And what about possible treatments? Is it likely, a lumpectomy, radiation, chemotherapy? I know you don't know her specific case, but traditionally, with this kind of cancer, what is the typical treatment.
LOVE: Well, the treatments get divided into two parts. You do one treatment to take care of the breast and prevent breast cancer from coming back in the breast, and that's either a lumpectomy and radiation or a mastectomy, and they're equal. The recurrent rate's about 10 percent after lumpectomy and 10 percent in the scar after mastectomy. So it's about the same. And then the second kind of treatment is what you do to the rest of the body in case there's any cells that might have gotten out, and that's chemotherapy or hormone therapy. And in this day in age, most women get a combination, and get both surgery, radiation and chemotherapy, and sometimes hormone therapy in addition.
WALLACE: Of course horrified news for any family to learn a loved one has breast cancer. You talk and write a lot about the myths about breast cancer. What are some of the main myths right now about this cancer?
LOVE: Well, I think the biggest myth is that the diagnoses of breast cancer is an emergency, that you have to rush right in there and do something very quickly or it's going to spread all over. Most breast cancers have been there for eight to 10 years by the time you can feel a lump or see it on a mammogram. And so if it wanted to get out, it's had time to get out, and really there is time to get a second opinion, to look at all of your options, to do all the tests, and to make a really planned decision about the treatment. You don't have to rush into anything.
WALLACE: Does stress play a role here? Of course Elizabeth Edwards was out on the campaign with her husband, months and months of travel, away from her family. Does stress play a role at all in this kind of cancer?
LOVE: Well, stress certainly doesn't cause breast cancer. But you know, cancer doesn't grow in a nice, orderly pattern; it spurts, and then it rests, and then it spurts again. And so what stress may affect is why it showed up now and not six months ago, or six months from now. So I think it has some affect, but it's not the cause of cancer.
WALLACE: Important information today. We thank you so much, Dr. Susan Love, author of "The Breast Book." Thanks for being with us on AMERICAN MORNING.
LOVE: Thank you.
(WEATHER REPORT)
WALLACE: Still to come, America's getting fatter, yes, that's right, and you are paying the price when you buy an airplane ticket. Andy's Minding Your Business" with that.
Also, the Hollywood superheroes are getting fatter too, but will it be enough to keep "The Incredibles" from knocking them dead at the movies weekend? "90-Second Pop" has that, after this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
HEMMER: Welcome back, everybody, on a Friday. "90-Second Pop" time for that now. The pop players, Sarah Bernard back with us, contributing editor for "New York" magazine.
Sarah, how are you?
SARAH BERNARD, CONTRIBUTING EDITOR, "NEW YORK" MAGAZINE: Good.
HEMMER: The weekend is almost here.
B.J. Sigesmund, staff editor for "US Weekly."
Good morning, B.J.
B.J. SIGESMUND, STAFF EDITOR, "US WEEKLY": Good morning, Bill.
HEMMER: And Jessica Shaw for "Entertainment Weekly."
Nice to see you, Jessica, as well.
JESSICA SHAW, "ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY": You too. HEMMER: Here we go. "The OF COURSE," started a new season last night.
BERNARD: Thank god!
HEMMER: No. 1 on my DVR list, by the way.
BERNARD: That's right.
HEMMER: How was it?
BERNARD: It was really good, I've got to say. I think they crammed too much into one hour, but that's fine, because I will watch no matter what they do.
Now, this is the show that is kind of like the "90210" of 2004. It is so successful, partially -- well, I think, you know, the casting and the bikini scenes don't hurt, but really the writing. Josh Schwartz, who is the creator of this show, was only about 26 when he pitched it. And he really -- the thing that's so good about it is the dialogue sounds like the way real teenagers talk. And that is so hard to come by on TV.
SIGESMUND: And it also moves so quickly, right? In the first two episodes, there is something like six big breakups. You know, people are constantly splitting up, getting back together, screaming at each other, blackmailing each other.
SHAW: It's basically a reality show.
HEMMER: It's like "Melrose's Place."
BERNARD: It is. It is a lot like "Melrose's Place."
SHAW: And there are some truly great soap moments. In the scene that we were just showing, Marissa, who is one of the main characters, has a complete meltdown with pool furniture and just throws all of the stuff into the pool, which I truly think will go down in the books as one of great soap moments of all time.
HEMMER: Must-see TV, right?
SHAW: Absolutely must-see.
HEMMER: Box office this weekend, what's out? There is an animated movie out called "The Incredibles."
SIGESMUND: Yes.
HEMMER: Disney did it?
SIGESMUND: Right, yes. This is a Disney movie. Disney is about to hit the jackpot with this movie, "The Incredibles."
HEMMER: Really? SIGESMUND: This is the next "Finding Nemo." It's opening on almost 4,000 screens. This is easily going to make $60 million or $70 million this weekend. Everyone loves it, kids, adults. We gave it three and a half stars in "US Weekly."
HEMMER: No kidding?
SIGESMUND: It's about a story of a family of superheroes that have to go into the equivalent of the Witness Protection Program and fit into suburbia, even though they look like superheroes. Craig T. Nelson and Holly Hunter are the voices of the mother and father, and it's going to be huge.
BERNARD: And Samuel L. Jackson is one of the voices, right?
HEMMER: You say it's the next "Nemo."
(CROSSTALK)
SIGESMUND: Yes. Well, this is Pixar, and they totally delivered with "Nemo" and with "Toy Story." And this is the next one.
HEMMER: Is it breaking new ground animation-wise, technology- wise?
SIGESMUND: I don't know that it's new. I don't know that it's breaking new ground like the "Polar Express" is next week, but it just is clever and its PG...
HEMMER: All right.
SIGESMUND: ... as Sarah pointed out.
BERNARD: Yes, that's the other thing that's great about it. It's not the G-rated movie. So if you want to go and you don't have kids, you don't have to feel...
SIGESMUND: Yes.
SHAW: And we were all talking, we were all really excited to see this.
BERNARD: Oh it really is.
SIGESMUND: Yes.
SHAW: I mean, I'm 7, but...
SIGESMUND: But conversely, there is another new movie this weekend, "Alfie." Now, for all of the movies that Jude Law has been in, he's never really headlined his own until now. And unfortunately, this movie, "Alfie," is going to tank.
HEMMER: Really?
SIGESMUND: I'm not expecting it to even make $10 million. Jude Law is really charming in it. I thought he was great. But the script is awful! So boring, dull, obvious.
HEMMER: And they've put an awful lot of promotion in that, too.
BERNARD: I think a lot of people are going to see it just because his real-life girlfriend, __ Miller, is in this. And this is kind of her introductory role.
HEMMER: Really?
BERNARD: So I think a lot of people will actually want to see them together.
SIGESMUND: Yes.
SHAW: Well, I wonder, I mean, six movies.
HEMMER: Kind of like...
SHAW: That is a lot. That's over exposure time.
HEMMER: Let's leave it there. Have a great weekend -- Kelly.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WALLACE: Thanks, Bill.
Still to come, America's obesity problem is weighing down airlines, and it's costing you money. Andy's "Minding Your Business."
Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HEMMER: Welcome back, everyone. Get your football picks ready.
Trading's underway on Wall Street. Back to Andy Serwer watching that and more. Good morning.
ANDY SERWER, "FORTUNE" MAGAZINE: Good morning to you.
We're expecting the market to be trading higher after that gangbusters job report this morning. There we go. Let's go check the board. Get out of the way! We've got a rally going on. Forty-seven points up. Created 337,000 jobs in October.
Unemployment rate ticked up slightly. But the big news is that jobs report, the creation of all of those jobs, twice as many as expected. You have to go back to March of this year -- six months ago to get numbers like that -- and before that, March of 2000. So, really some impressive news there.
Let's talk a little bit about the airline industry, though.
WALLACE: Yeah.
SERWER: Because still trouble. And you talk about job growth, there's no job growth there. In fact, there is job losses.
United Airlines looking for job cuts there, Kelly -- maybe $725 million in savings, and that's all going to come out of jobs. Northwest Airlines looking to save 15 percent across the board in pay cuts, as well. Average pilot there makes about $273,000 a year. That's the high-end pilots. Second highest in the business after Delta, make about $320,000. So, they're looking to cut -- you know, take money right out of those paychecks, which is really something.
WALLACE: What about this? The government study -- airlines spending hundreds of millions of dollars dealing with people getting fatter and fatter?
SERWER: Yeah, I thought this was pretty remarkable, actually. It's a study that comes out of the Centers of Disease Control down in Atlanta. They actually were able to quantify how much more airlines are spending because we're fat. And this is truly amazing.
They're saying the average weight of the American population is up about 10 pounds since the 1990s. And they're saying in the year 2000, that translates into $275 million more of fuel costs for airlines. Airlines spent $350 million more -- they used $350 million more gallons, more fuel that costs $270 million.
HEMMER: Who comes up with this stuff?
WALLACE: Yeah, i know. That's the thing, right?
SERWER: The Centers for Disease Control. They talked to the Air Transportation people, and they said they hadn't validated the study. But the guy said, "Sounds about right."
Isn't that amazing? I mean, this is real dollars and cents. Yeah, sounds about right. Sounds about right, yeah.
WALLACE: All right, bizarre, bizarre, bizarre.
SERWER: We're too fat.
WALLACE: All right. Diets -- diets all around.
OK, every week we recognize people who go to the additional mile for others. This week's "Extra Effort" highlights a man who risked his own life to help a woman in trouble.
Meet Matt Casias, who was shot while trying to save a mugging victim. He joins us now from Denver. Hi, Matt. Thanks for being with us.
MATT CASIAS, GOOD SAMARITAN: Hi, how's it going?
WALLACE: Matt, tell us what you saw that afternoon.
CASIAS: Well, I was sitting at my desk and -- when I was working, I noticed that there was a lady walking to her car. And at moment she was walking to her car, I noticed a group of men following her walking fast behind her. At that time, I noticed one was walking a little bit faster than the rest. I knew something was wrong with that picture.
WALLACE: But why -- some people might say why didn't you just call 911 as opposed to running out. Weren't you worried that you could be in danger yourself?
CASIAS: At that point, just -- it was adrenaline and pure reaction kicked in. I noticed that he grabbed her and started trying to take her purse, was shaking her. And at that point, again, there was no thought that went into it. I just -- I bolted out the door and went to help her. It was just something that was purely a reaction.
WALLACE: Did you see any of them with the gun?
CASIAS: I did not see a gun at the time. When I pulled him off of her, he pulled the gun out at that point and pointed it to my chest and opened fire and pulled the trigger at point blank.
WALLACE: How are you feeling right now? I know you were in the hospital. What is your situation right now?
CASIAS: Well, I'm still in a lot of pain. It hasn't obviously completely recovered yet. But it's still very painful. I think I got a few more weeks before most of this pain is over with.
WALLACE: And I understand there's going to be a benefit to try and help you raise money for medical expenses. What can you tell us about that? The community seems to have been galvanized by your story.
CASIAS: Well,the community's been great. Everyone seems to pull together, and I can't say enough about the community. I want to really thank everybody that's came together to help me out in this situation. I think, to me, they are the true heroes in this whole situation.
WALLACE: Well, Matt Casias, thanks for being with us. And after a break, we're going to meet the woman that you helped save. That's right after this.
Stay with us, right here on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WALLACE: And we're continuing our "Extra Effort" segment. Joining us now, Brenda Turner in Denver who was saved by a good samaritan -- the good samaritan we just talked to, Matt Casias.
And Brenda, I understand you and Matt just met for the first time today in Denver. What was it like to meet the man who, in essence, saved your life?
BRENDA TURNER, MUGGING VICTIM: Oh, I was very happy to meet him. I was very grateful.
WALLACE: What's your -- what do you remember of that day, Brenda?
TURNER: Unlocking my car door. Somebody grabbing my arm and swinging me around, grabbing my purse and saying, "I have a gun. You don't want me to shoot you." And held it up in front of my face about eight inches away. And I was holding onto my purse, pulling it away from him. And all of a sudden, he let go, and I fell back. And then, I heard a pop, and I had my eyes closed the whole time.
WALLACE: When did you find out that Matt was involved and that Matt actually got shot saving your life?
TURNER: A couple of minutes -- well, a few -- a minute later, maybe. I got up and walked into his store and sat down, and I of course saw him on the floor while he was trying to breathe and stay alive.
WALLACE: What's your sense -- I know the community is trying to raise money for his medical expenses. Are you involved in that, and what do you think of that effort?
TURNER: Oh, we're 100 percent behind it, and yes, they're going to start with an auction tonight, and certainly we're all contributing.
WALLACE: And the first words you said when you saw Matt today in that studio in Denver were what?
TURNER: Thank you.
WALLACE: Well, you are very lucky, Brenda Turner. Thanks so much to you and also to Matt Casias who joined us. We appreciate it very much.
TURNER: Thank you very much.
HEMMER: That's what "Extra Effort" is all about.
WALLACE: That's right.
HEMMER: We've got to run. But one more reminder, Toure is so cool...
SERWER: Can't get enough here.
HEMMER: He flew to London, hung out with Eminem, and you can read his story in "Rolling Stone" magazine, so...
WALLACE: So cool. Very cool.
SERWER: Well done.
TOURE: Thank you.
HEMMER: You guys have a great weekend, all right?
SERWER: You too, Bill. HEMMER: Here's to Daryn and Rick now at the CNN Center. Hey, guys. Good morning.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: From Eminem to AMERICAN MORNING. That's either quite a rise or quite a fall, depending on the company you...
(LAUGHTER)
WALLACE: Quite a rise. Quite a rise, Daryn and Rick.
HEMMER: But we still like Daryn. She's our friend.
RICK SANCHEZ, CNN ANCHOR: There's a transition for you. Here's another one -- we're going to be watching a lot of news today. Obviously everything going on with Mr. Arafat and any rumblings of things that take place in Falluja. We'll take you there, as well.
KAGAN: But right now, let's take a look at what is happening now in the news.
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