Return to Transcripts main page
CNN Live At Daybreak
Security For Our Skies; A New Controversy Involving Illegal Immigrants
Aired April 15, 2005 - 06:00 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.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Straight ahead on DAYBREAK, security for our skies. Some measures beef up while others relax. So why is there no uniform code for airline safety?
And in search of a loving home -- an art project hopes to connect open hearts with kids in need.
And later, an update on the wayward whale in the Delaware River. I'll talk to an expert in charge of the team tracking this well traveled beluga.
It is Friday, April 15, tax day.
You are watching DAYBREAK.
And good morning to you.
From the Time Warner Center in New York, I'm Carol Costello, along with Chad Myers.
Another story we're working on this morning, illegal immigrants and higher education. Some lawmakers want to offer discounted tuition.
But first, now in the news, Europe's longest reigning monarch is being buried today. The funeral procession of Monaco's Prince Rainier is underway right now. You're looking at live pictures. As you know, he died last week of lung, heart and kidney failure. He was 81 years old.
It is a busy day for insurgents in Baghdad. A suicide car bomber targets a U.S. military convoy, killing five civilians nearby. Later, a roadside bomb goes off alongside an Iraqi Army convoy, killing one civilian and wounding three others.
In the City of Lights, a nightmare. This is central Paris, where a fire has killed 17 people now and injured 65 more, many of the victims children.
And in Boston, Yankee outfielder Gary Sheffield gets into it with a Red Sox fan. Take a look at that. Sheffield was chasing a ball near the right field wall when the fan, he says the fan swung at him and split his lip. Sheffield stayed in the game. The fan was ejected even after Sheffield threw that roundhouse punch. But I guess he missed so -- Chad.
CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: That has been our DAYBREAK Question of the Day, the e-mail question, should he have been ejected?
COSTELLO: Yes.
MYERS: I think a lot of folks want some kind of a screen up between the players and the fans now, or some...
COSTELLO: That's what we're getting a lot of this morning.
MYERS: ... some type of gap. And that would be sad, because that's not really what baseball is all about. It's about being able to sit right down by them. But the fans just have to realize that they're not part of the game. They are fans, not players.
(WEATHER REPORT)
COSTELLO: In the CNN "Security Watch," 10,000 reasons you might feel a little safer this morning. Law enforcement authorities across the country have announced the largest number of arrests ever reported during a single operation. The week-long fugitive hunting mission was dubbed Operation Falcon and it was led by the U.S. Marshals Service. Authorities say more than 10,000 individuals were captured. One hundred sixty-two of them have been accused or convicted of murder. Six hundred thirty-eight were wanted for armed robbery and 553 were wanted for rape or sexual assault.
Attorney General Alberto Gonzales praises the round-up.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ALBERTO GONZALES, U.S. ATTORNEY GENERAL: This was a very concentrated effort, intense effort in this particular one week period, to try to round up as many fugitives as we could. We are very, very pleased at the results of this. And, as a result, I think that it warrants serious consideration for future such programs.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: The attorney general will be live on CNN's "AMERICAN MORNING." That comes your way about an hour from now.
A warning system is being put in place for pilots flying around Washington. Red and green lasers will be used to warn pilots when they've strayed into restricted airspace. The low power lasers are not expected to endanger the aircraft or the pilots' eyes. The system should be up and running by mid-May.
The first day of the airport lighter ban caught many people by surprise. In Atlanta, for example, more than 700 cigarette lighters were confiscated. More than 600 were grabbed in Honolulu. And South Florida's airports topped the 1,000 mark.
But some experts say the bans are totally unnecessary, especially since you can bring matches on board.
Paula Hancocks has more.
(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)
PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): You can take your cigarettes, but leave your lighters at home, another thing banned from U.S. flights. The latest security measure has been attributed by some to Richard Reid, the passenger who tried to ignite an explosive hidden in his shoe on a flight from Paris to Miami in December, 2001, though his attempt was made with matches.
The ban on lighters is one step too far for many European experts.
CHRIS YATES, "JANE'S TRANSPORT": And it's going to do absolutely nothing. It's another example, quite frankly, of the public relations exercise that has gone on since 9/11 to convince the traveling public that something is being done about security. We've banned an awful lot of inoffensive items from airplanes and, quite frankly, the list is ludicrous.
HANCOCKS: The changes are going the other way on British flights. From April 25, a ban on knitting needles and nail scissors of a certain size, as well as metal cutlery, will be relaxed.
RICHARD GARNER, CIVIL AVIATION SECURITY CONSULTANT: The ability for someone to do some damage either with a sharpened playing card or some splinters of plastic from the present cutlery that's on board is going to be just as damaging.
HANCOCKS: U.K. ministers believe reinforced cockpit doors and the deployment of armed sky marshals means most sharp objects in the cabin are useless in the hands of a would be hijacker. European ministers agree many airlines have already relaxed their bans on metal cutlery. But there is a lack of international standardization when it comes to airline security.
FRANCES TUKE, ASSOCIATION OF BRITISH TRAVEL AGENTS: Each government does have different ideas about what that would be and they obviously listen to their each country's airlines, as well. And so it's unlikely to be workable or enforceable to have a body that oversees every single country's airline.
HANCOCKS: Other countries, including New Zealand, are also considering relaxing rules on some sharp objects.
Paula Hancocks, CNN, London.
(END VIDEO TAPE)
COSTELLO: U.S. Customs announces that 29 Chinese nationals were apprehended April 4 at a Los Angeles shipping terminal. Officials say this human smuggling attempt was the second in three months at the nation's busiest harbor complex. Both incidents involved illegal Chinese migrants concealed in 40-foot shipping containers.
Stay tuned to CNN day and night for the most reliable news about your security. Now a new controversy involving illegal immigrants. A move is underway in North Carolina to offer undocumented students instate college tuition rates. It has been the talk of talk radio in the state.
Joining us live from Raleigh is WPTF Radio talk show host Kevin Miller.
Good morning, Kevin.
Thanks for joining us.
KEVIN MILLER, WPTF RADIO TALK SHOW HOST: Carol, good morning.
Great to be with you.
COSTELLO: You know, I'm almost afraid to ask.
How are people reacting to this?
MILLER: Well, on WPTF we cover the entire state. So you've got about 90 percent of the people who are extremely, extremely upset. They're very concerned. Colleges in North Carolina are tough enough to get into if you're an in-state student, if you're a native North Carolinian. And the concern is that these seats will go to other people. We've had the state reps on that have co-sponsored this bill and they seem to be out of touch with the electorate here.
COSTELLO: Well, but, I mean what's so wrong with offering kids who are here anyway, who live in North Carolina -- because don't they have to show proof that they've attended high school in North Carolina for four years?
Isn't it better to try to get them into college instead of pushing these kids?
MILLER: Carol, that's what the proponents of the bill say. But, however, we're missing one big point. And yesterday when we had Representative Fisher on WPTF, right after I said well, what about the law, ma'am? You have great intentions, but legal versus illegal, the proponents of the bill say we're going to have to deal with it.
There's another issue, though, that if this goes into effect, North Carolina already the second largest state with a growing Hispanic population. We're number two in the nation in attracting legal and illegal immigrants here. All of a sudden, Carol, we're going to have more people coming because of the great deals on tuition. Everybody, whether you live in Central or South America or Canada or Mississippi or Alabama, they're going to come to North Carolina.
And the issue here, then, is if you're going to let people that are not legal citizens here, what do you say to somebody from South Carolina or Alabama?
COSTELLO: Well, I want to put up the requirements for this. And this is proposed legislation in North Carolina. I want to make that clear. It isn't a law yet. You need a high school diploma from a North Carolina school. You need to attend a North Carolina high school for four consecutive years. You also must apply for legal immigration status.
That's a good thing, isn't it?
MILLER: A lot of our listeners on WPTF say that's a great thing, but, however, it should be even better. They should be in the process already.
COSTELLO: So what do you guess will happen?
MILLER: I think that the great silent majority that listen to talk radio and watch CNN and that are upset about this are e-mailing their legislators. Already four legislators -- this is a bipartisan bill -- have withdrawn support. And I believe that it's not going to go anywhere.
COSTELLO: Kevin Miller, we'll be following it.
Thank you for joining DAYBREAK this morning.
We appreciate it.
Still to come on DAYBREAK, a controversial proposal, another one, to take philosophy out of the pharmacy.
Plus, an art project that hopes to open hearts and fill homes.
We'll also have advice for keeping your personal information away from prying eyes.
And when will this beluga be free? It's a whale of a job. An update from an expert leading the effort.
But first, here's a look at what else is making news this Friday morning.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: A few fussy pharmacists and now the federal government gets involved. This week, we've heard of several pharmacists who've refused to fill a birth control prescription because of his or her religious or moral beliefs. Now Congress has introduced new legislation saying no one should get in between doctors and their patients.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. CAROLYN MALONEY (D), NEW YORK: We are merely saying let the laws of this country stand. Let a woman be treated with dignity when she has a prescription from her doctor. That privacy should be respected. She should be respected.
(END VIDEO CLIP) COSTELLO: The federal measure would preempt laws being considered in as many as 10 states that would allow pharmacists to refuse to fill certain prescriptions.
Your news, money, weather and sports.
It is 6:12 Eastern.
Here's what's all new this morning.
The funeral for Monaco's Prince Rainier is underway at this hour. Dozens of foreign dignitaries and world leaders are on hand to pay tribute. Prince Rainier will be buried next to his late wife, Grace Kelly.
In money news, the House has approved a bankruptcy bill and President Bush could sign it as early as next week. The bill, which already passed the Senate, makes it more difficult for you to file for bankruptcy.
In culture, "The Wedding Singer" is coming to Broadway. That's right. A new musical version of the Adam Sandler movie could be heading to a New York stage as early as next year. The show will include at least two of the songs proposed by Sandler himself.
In sports, President Bush was just a little off target with his first pitch at the Washington Nationals home opener. But it turned out to be good luck for the home team. They beat the Arizona Diamondbacks 5-3 -- Chad.
MYERS: Good morning, Carol.
Do you have allergies and are they acting up? Your allergy forecast for today. Look at the orange area all across the West, all across the Southeast. That's where the pollen numbers are very high. Look at some of these numbers, across Atlanta, considering 90 is high, Atlanta had 3,551. So I don't even know where that puts that.
Charlotte very high again. Even Dallas at 105 in the high category. Miami and New York still building the pollen out there.
(WEATHER REPORT)
COSTELLO: That's a look at the latest headlines for you this morning.
Have you done your taxes yet? You still have a little more than 17 hours to go. If you are your own boss, though, we'll have some tax tips for you, because it's a little complicated when you're self- employed.
Also, helping open hearts and homes for one community's foster kids, when DAYBREAK continues.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) COSTELLO: Let's talk money because, you know, today is tax day, in case you've forgotten. Today is a taxing time for millions of Americans trying to complete their income taxes. But it's even worse if you own a small business.
Robert Hughes is president of the National Association for the Self-Employed.
He joins us live now from Dallas.
Good morning.
ROBERT HUGHES, ASSOCIATION FOR THE SELF-EMPLOYED, WWW.NASE.ORG: Good morning, Carol.
COSTELLO: So if you're trying to finish up and you don't think you can make it and you're having a nervous breakdown, what should you do?
HUGHES: Well, the very first thing you should do is relax, because even though the deadline is just a few hours away, you can still file an automatic extension of time to file, which gives you another four months to prepare the tax return and send it into the IRS.
COSTELLO: Yes, but that form takes some time to fill out in itself, because don't you have to estimate what you might owe?
HUGHES: Well, that's a good point. The extension is a time to file, not a time to pay. So you still have to estimate your taxes and send a check to the IRS today.
COSTELLO: That's still scary, I'm sorry.
Why is it so difficult? Why is it more difficult, I should say, for the self-employed to file their taxes in the proper way?
HUGHES: Well, the self-employed really file a business return along with their individual tax return. And that business return is called a Schedule C for the self-employed. And there'll be about 21 million tax returns this year that include Schedule Cs. And it's a difficult form because it's a business form and most people don't really understand it.
COSTELLO: Most people don't understand the other forms, either.
You say one of the things that you really should do is check for hidden deductions.
What might they be?
HUGHES: Well, there are a number of hidden deductions that we refer to. Among them are the business use of an automobile is an example. If you use your car in business, then you likely have a tax deduction. Further than that, if you use your home for an office for your business, then you likely have a tax deduction. And you should take advantage of all of those.
COSTELLO: You say check your math. So that must mean a lot of people make mistakes on their subtraction and addition and multiplying.
HUGHES: You know, you would think that it's the underreporting of income and the over reporting of deductions that cause problems with tax returns. But it's really simple addition and subtraction. It's errors on Social Security numbers. It's errors on bank account numbers for the electronic deposit of refunds.
So the key is check your math, check it again and check it a third time.
COSTELLO: And if you're at your wits end, you can still look for help and get it, right?
HUGHES: Well, there are a lot of helpful resources around. I like irs.gov on the Internet. The IRS site is very helpful, it has targeted publications and you can download forms there. In addition, our organization, at nase.org, has helpful professionals online that can provide help for you immediately.
COSTELLO: Robert Hughes, thanks for the advice.
I know many people need it out there.
We appreciate your joining DAYBREAK today.
HUGHES: Thank you very much.
COSTELLO: Coming up in the next half hour of DAYBREAK, farewell to a prince. We'll take you live to Monaco, where the funeral of Prince Rainier is underway at this hour. You're looking at live pictures now.
And how will volunteers redirect this long lost beluga whale? How much danger is this whale in? I'll ask the man in charge, when DAYBREAK continues.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: I've been in this business a long time and frankly there are few stories that make me cry, but this one did. It's about New Jersey's Heart Gallery, an effort to place foster kids who want what most of us are lucky to already have -- a mom and dad.
(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Just like that. Don't move! Don't move! Look right at the lens. That's good. Great! That's very nice.
COSTELLO (voice-over): If a picture is worth a thousand words, can it also be worth one good home? Master prays at night.
(on camera): Have you lived in a series of foster homes? MASTER: Yes.
COSTELLO (voice-over): He's smart, he's funny and he's looking for a mom and dad. The problem is he's not a bouncing baby boy anymore and not many people are willing to take him in at 12. But Master and the 327 other kids in the New Jersey foster care system will show the country what great kids they are through a lens of a camera.
It's called the Heart Gallery and it's the brainchild of Najlah Feanny-Hicks and a few of her closest friends.
NAJLAH FEANNY-HICKS, HEART GALLERY: It was the easiest project that has ever come together that I know of in any project that any of us ever worked for.
COSTELLO: The project is part of a nationwide effort, one that puts the kids in front of the cameras of some of the country's best photographers, guys like Jeffrey Salter, who has shot for "Sports Illustrated," James Salzano and Norman Lono, photographers who make a living shooting celebrities but are volunteering their time and talent here.
NORMAN LONO, VOLUNTEER: That's all we're trying to do is so that you shoot the kids so that people will look at them and go, yes, you know, I'll give them a chance.
COSTELLO: But with kids who have spent years in the system, it isn't always easy. And it isn't always about just finding a family.
LONO: A lot of them are really close. You have to work them really hard to get them to open that door, you know, and say hi, you know? So -- and once they do that you go wow, that's gold.
FEANNY-HICKS: For the 20, 30, 45 minutes that they're photographed by a photographer who just photographed Bruce Springsteen or the president, they feel special.
COSTELLO: Back to Master. For what's at stake, he's taking it all in stride.
MASTER: I'm ready for my close-up.
I always wanted to say that.
COSTELLO (on camera): Well, see, now you have your opportunity. And you look like a natural. Maybe this is your future.
MASTER: Maybe. I'll be the next Will Smith.
COSTELLO (voice-over): But for now his goals, like so many other kids in his position, are much simpler.
MASTER: I'm just waiting for the perfect home. I just, just keep waiting for the perfect one at the right time. Maybe when I get older, I might take a foster kid and adopt them so if I'm not going to get helped, I'm going to help someone else. So anyway I win.
FEANNY-HICKS: My dream is for one child to find a family. I think that everything that we have done is for one child to, you know, wake up one day and call somebody mom and dad. That's our dream.
(END VIDEO TAPE)
COSTELLO: Learn more about the Heart Gallery at www.heartgallerynj.com.
DAYBREAK will be back in a moment.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: Good morning to you.
From the Time Warner Center in New York, I'm Carol Costello, along with Chad Myers.
Now in the news, Europe's longest serving monarch, Monaco's Prince Rainier III, will be buried today. His funeral service is getting underway at a chapel there in Monaco. You're looking at live pictures. Prince Rainier will be laid to rest beside his wife, the American actress Grace Kelly, who died in a car accident in 1982. We'll take you back live to Monaco and Becky Anderson in just a few minutes.
The mother of the boy accusing Michael Jackson of molestation says she does not plan to file a civil suit against him seeking damages. She also testified Jackson tried to control her son. Testimony starts up again this morning.
In Atlanta, Brian Nichols is back in court this morning for a pre-indictment defense motion. Police say Nichols killed four people in a shooting spree that began at the Fulton County Courthouse.
And the next crew of the international space station is up, up and away. The two astronauts and one cosmonaut blasted off from a launch pad in Kazakhstan and should reach the station late Saturday night.
To the Forecast Center now and Chad -- good morning.
MYERS: Good morning, Carol.
(WEATHER REPORT)
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 April 15, 2005 - 06:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Straight ahead on DAYBREAK, security for our skies. Some measures beef up while others relax. So why is there no uniform code for airline safety?
And in search of a loving home -- an art project hopes to connect open hearts with kids in need.
And later, an update on the wayward whale in the Delaware River. I'll talk to an expert in charge of the team tracking this well traveled beluga.
It is Friday, April 15, tax day.
You are watching DAYBREAK.
And good morning to you.
From the Time Warner Center in New York, I'm Carol Costello, along with Chad Myers.
Another story we're working on this morning, illegal immigrants and higher education. Some lawmakers want to offer discounted tuition.
But first, now in the news, Europe's longest reigning monarch is being buried today. The funeral procession of Monaco's Prince Rainier is underway right now. You're looking at live pictures. As you know, he died last week of lung, heart and kidney failure. He was 81 years old.
It is a busy day for insurgents in Baghdad. A suicide car bomber targets a U.S. military convoy, killing five civilians nearby. Later, a roadside bomb goes off alongside an Iraqi Army convoy, killing one civilian and wounding three others.
In the City of Lights, a nightmare. This is central Paris, where a fire has killed 17 people now and injured 65 more, many of the victims children.
And in Boston, Yankee outfielder Gary Sheffield gets into it with a Red Sox fan. Take a look at that. Sheffield was chasing a ball near the right field wall when the fan, he says the fan swung at him and split his lip. Sheffield stayed in the game. The fan was ejected even after Sheffield threw that roundhouse punch. But I guess he missed so -- Chad.
CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: That has been our DAYBREAK Question of the Day, the e-mail question, should he have been ejected?
COSTELLO: Yes.
MYERS: I think a lot of folks want some kind of a screen up between the players and the fans now, or some...
COSTELLO: That's what we're getting a lot of this morning.
MYERS: ... some type of gap. And that would be sad, because that's not really what baseball is all about. It's about being able to sit right down by them. But the fans just have to realize that they're not part of the game. They are fans, not players.
(WEATHER REPORT)
COSTELLO: In the CNN "Security Watch," 10,000 reasons you might feel a little safer this morning. Law enforcement authorities across the country have announced the largest number of arrests ever reported during a single operation. The week-long fugitive hunting mission was dubbed Operation Falcon and it was led by the U.S. Marshals Service. Authorities say more than 10,000 individuals were captured. One hundred sixty-two of them have been accused or convicted of murder. Six hundred thirty-eight were wanted for armed robbery and 553 were wanted for rape or sexual assault.
Attorney General Alberto Gonzales praises the round-up.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ALBERTO GONZALES, U.S. ATTORNEY GENERAL: This was a very concentrated effort, intense effort in this particular one week period, to try to round up as many fugitives as we could. We are very, very pleased at the results of this. And, as a result, I think that it warrants serious consideration for future such programs.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: The attorney general will be live on CNN's "AMERICAN MORNING." That comes your way about an hour from now.
A warning system is being put in place for pilots flying around Washington. Red and green lasers will be used to warn pilots when they've strayed into restricted airspace. The low power lasers are not expected to endanger the aircraft or the pilots' eyes. The system should be up and running by mid-May.
The first day of the airport lighter ban caught many people by surprise. In Atlanta, for example, more than 700 cigarette lighters were confiscated. More than 600 were grabbed in Honolulu. And South Florida's airports topped the 1,000 mark.
But some experts say the bans are totally unnecessary, especially since you can bring matches on board.
Paula Hancocks has more.
(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)
PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): You can take your cigarettes, but leave your lighters at home, another thing banned from U.S. flights. The latest security measure has been attributed by some to Richard Reid, the passenger who tried to ignite an explosive hidden in his shoe on a flight from Paris to Miami in December, 2001, though his attempt was made with matches.
The ban on lighters is one step too far for many European experts.
CHRIS YATES, "JANE'S TRANSPORT": And it's going to do absolutely nothing. It's another example, quite frankly, of the public relations exercise that has gone on since 9/11 to convince the traveling public that something is being done about security. We've banned an awful lot of inoffensive items from airplanes and, quite frankly, the list is ludicrous.
HANCOCKS: The changes are going the other way on British flights. From April 25, a ban on knitting needles and nail scissors of a certain size, as well as metal cutlery, will be relaxed.
RICHARD GARNER, CIVIL AVIATION SECURITY CONSULTANT: The ability for someone to do some damage either with a sharpened playing card or some splinters of plastic from the present cutlery that's on board is going to be just as damaging.
HANCOCKS: U.K. ministers believe reinforced cockpit doors and the deployment of armed sky marshals means most sharp objects in the cabin are useless in the hands of a would be hijacker. European ministers agree many airlines have already relaxed their bans on metal cutlery. But there is a lack of international standardization when it comes to airline security.
FRANCES TUKE, ASSOCIATION OF BRITISH TRAVEL AGENTS: Each government does have different ideas about what that would be and they obviously listen to their each country's airlines, as well. And so it's unlikely to be workable or enforceable to have a body that oversees every single country's airline.
HANCOCKS: Other countries, including New Zealand, are also considering relaxing rules on some sharp objects.
Paula Hancocks, CNN, London.
(END VIDEO TAPE)
COSTELLO: U.S. Customs announces that 29 Chinese nationals were apprehended April 4 at a Los Angeles shipping terminal. Officials say this human smuggling attempt was the second in three months at the nation's busiest harbor complex. Both incidents involved illegal Chinese migrants concealed in 40-foot shipping containers.
Stay tuned to CNN day and night for the most reliable news about your security. Now a new controversy involving illegal immigrants. A move is underway in North Carolina to offer undocumented students instate college tuition rates. It has been the talk of talk radio in the state.
Joining us live from Raleigh is WPTF Radio talk show host Kevin Miller.
Good morning, Kevin.
Thanks for joining us.
KEVIN MILLER, WPTF RADIO TALK SHOW HOST: Carol, good morning.
Great to be with you.
COSTELLO: You know, I'm almost afraid to ask.
How are people reacting to this?
MILLER: Well, on WPTF we cover the entire state. So you've got about 90 percent of the people who are extremely, extremely upset. They're very concerned. Colleges in North Carolina are tough enough to get into if you're an in-state student, if you're a native North Carolinian. And the concern is that these seats will go to other people. We've had the state reps on that have co-sponsored this bill and they seem to be out of touch with the electorate here.
COSTELLO: Well, but, I mean what's so wrong with offering kids who are here anyway, who live in North Carolina -- because don't they have to show proof that they've attended high school in North Carolina for four years?
Isn't it better to try to get them into college instead of pushing these kids?
MILLER: Carol, that's what the proponents of the bill say. But, however, we're missing one big point. And yesterday when we had Representative Fisher on WPTF, right after I said well, what about the law, ma'am? You have great intentions, but legal versus illegal, the proponents of the bill say we're going to have to deal with it.
There's another issue, though, that if this goes into effect, North Carolina already the second largest state with a growing Hispanic population. We're number two in the nation in attracting legal and illegal immigrants here. All of a sudden, Carol, we're going to have more people coming because of the great deals on tuition. Everybody, whether you live in Central or South America or Canada or Mississippi or Alabama, they're going to come to North Carolina.
And the issue here, then, is if you're going to let people that are not legal citizens here, what do you say to somebody from South Carolina or Alabama?
COSTELLO: Well, I want to put up the requirements for this. And this is proposed legislation in North Carolina. I want to make that clear. It isn't a law yet. You need a high school diploma from a North Carolina school. You need to attend a North Carolina high school for four consecutive years. You also must apply for legal immigration status.
That's a good thing, isn't it?
MILLER: A lot of our listeners on WPTF say that's a great thing, but, however, it should be even better. They should be in the process already.
COSTELLO: So what do you guess will happen?
MILLER: I think that the great silent majority that listen to talk radio and watch CNN and that are upset about this are e-mailing their legislators. Already four legislators -- this is a bipartisan bill -- have withdrawn support. And I believe that it's not going to go anywhere.
COSTELLO: Kevin Miller, we'll be following it.
Thank you for joining DAYBREAK this morning.
We appreciate it.
Still to come on DAYBREAK, a controversial proposal, another one, to take philosophy out of the pharmacy.
Plus, an art project that hopes to open hearts and fill homes.
We'll also have advice for keeping your personal information away from prying eyes.
And when will this beluga be free? It's a whale of a job. An update from an expert leading the effort.
But first, here's a look at what else is making news this Friday morning.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: A few fussy pharmacists and now the federal government gets involved. This week, we've heard of several pharmacists who've refused to fill a birth control prescription because of his or her religious or moral beliefs. Now Congress has introduced new legislation saying no one should get in between doctors and their patients.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. CAROLYN MALONEY (D), NEW YORK: We are merely saying let the laws of this country stand. Let a woman be treated with dignity when she has a prescription from her doctor. That privacy should be respected. She should be respected.
(END VIDEO CLIP) COSTELLO: The federal measure would preempt laws being considered in as many as 10 states that would allow pharmacists to refuse to fill certain prescriptions.
Your news, money, weather and sports.
It is 6:12 Eastern.
Here's what's all new this morning.
The funeral for Monaco's Prince Rainier is underway at this hour. Dozens of foreign dignitaries and world leaders are on hand to pay tribute. Prince Rainier will be buried next to his late wife, Grace Kelly.
In money news, the House has approved a bankruptcy bill and President Bush could sign it as early as next week. The bill, which already passed the Senate, makes it more difficult for you to file for bankruptcy.
In culture, "The Wedding Singer" is coming to Broadway. That's right. A new musical version of the Adam Sandler movie could be heading to a New York stage as early as next year. The show will include at least two of the songs proposed by Sandler himself.
In sports, President Bush was just a little off target with his first pitch at the Washington Nationals home opener. But it turned out to be good luck for the home team. They beat the Arizona Diamondbacks 5-3 -- Chad.
MYERS: Good morning, Carol.
Do you have allergies and are they acting up? Your allergy forecast for today. Look at the orange area all across the West, all across the Southeast. That's where the pollen numbers are very high. Look at some of these numbers, across Atlanta, considering 90 is high, Atlanta had 3,551. So I don't even know where that puts that.
Charlotte very high again. Even Dallas at 105 in the high category. Miami and New York still building the pollen out there.
(WEATHER REPORT)
COSTELLO: That's a look at the latest headlines for you this morning.
Have you done your taxes yet? You still have a little more than 17 hours to go. If you are your own boss, though, we'll have some tax tips for you, because it's a little complicated when you're self- employed.
Also, helping open hearts and homes for one community's foster kids, when DAYBREAK continues.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) COSTELLO: Let's talk money because, you know, today is tax day, in case you've forgotten. Today is a taxing time for millions of Americans trying to complete their income taxes. But it's even worse if you own a small business.
Robert Hughes is president of the National Association for the Self-Employed.
He joins us live now from Dallas.
Good morning.
ROBERT HUGHES, ASSOCIATION FOR THE SELF-EMPLOYED, WWW.NASE.ORG: Good morning, Carol.
COSTELLO: So if you're trying to finish up and you don't think you can make it and you're having a nervous breakdown, what should you do?
HUGHES: Well, the very first thing you should do is relax, because even though the deadline is just a few hours away, you can still file an automatic extension of time to file, which gives you another four months to prepare the tax return and send it into the IRS.
COSTELLO: Yes, but that form takes some time to fill out in itself, because don't you have to estimate what you might owe?
HUGHES: Well, that's a good point. The extension is a time to file, not a time to pay. So you still have to estimate your taxes and send a check to the IRS today.
COSTELLO: That's still scary, I'm sorry.
Why is it so difficult? Why is it more difficult, I should say, for the self-employed to file their taxes in the proper way?
HUGHES: Well, the self-employed really file a business return along with their individual tax return. And that business return is called a Schedule C for the self-employed. And there'll be about 21 million tax returns this year that include Schedule Cs. And it's a difficult form because it's a business form and most people don't really understand it.
COSTELLO: Most people don't understand the other forms, either.
You say one of the things that you really should do is check for hidden deductions.
What might they be?
HUGHES: Well, there are a number of hidden deductions that we refer to. Among them are the business use of an automobile is an example. If you use your car in business, then you likely have a tax deduction. Further than that, if you use your home for an office for your business, then you likely have a tax deduction. And you should take advantage of all of those.
COSTELLO: You say check your math. So that must mean a lot of people make mistakes on their subtraction and addition and multiplying.
HUGHES: You know, you would think that it's the underreporting of income and the over reporting of deductions that cause problems with tax returns. But it's really simple addition and subtraction. It's errors on Social Security numbers. It's errors on bank account numbers for the electronic deposit of refunds.
So the key is check your math, check it again and check it a third time.
COSTELLO: And if you're at your wits end, you can still look for help and get it, right?
HUGHES: Well, there are a lot of helpful resources around. I like irs.gov on the Internet. The IRS site is very helpful, it has targeted publications and you can download forms there. In addition, our organization, at nase.org, has helpful professionals online that can provide help for you immediately.
COSTELLO: Robert Hughes, thanks for the advice.
I know many people need it out there.
We appreciate your joining DAYBREAK today.
HUGHES: Thank you very much.
COSTELLO: Coming up in the next half hour of DAYBREAK, farewell to a prince. We'll take you live to Monaco, where the funeral of Prince Rainier is underway at this hour. You're looking at live pictures now.
And how will volunteers redirect this long lost beluga whale? How much danger is this whale in? I'll ask the man in charge, when DAYBREAK continues.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: I've been in this business a long time and frankly there are few stories that make me cry, but this one did. It's about New Jersey's Heart Gallery, an effort to place foster kids who want what most of us are lucky to already have -- a mom and dad.
(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Just like that. Don't move! Don't move! Look right at the lens. That's good. Great! That's very nice.
COSTELLO (voice-over): If a picture is worth a thousand words, can it also be worth one good home? Master prays at night.
(on camera): Have you lived in a series of foster homes? MASTER: Yes.
COSTELLO (voice-over): He's smart, he's funny and he's looking for a mom and dad. The problem is he's not a bouncing baby boy anymore and not many people are willing to take him in at 12. But Master and the 327 other kids in the New Jersey foster care system will show the country what great kids they are through a lens of a camera.
It's called the Heart Gallery and it's the brainchild of Najlah Feanny-Hicks and a few of her closest friends.
NAJLAH FEANNY-HICKS, HEART GALLERY: It was the easiest project that has ever come together that I know of in any project that any of us ever worked for.
COSTELLO: The project is part of a nationwide effort, one that puts the kids in front of the cameras of some of the country's best photographers, guys like Jeffrey Salter, who has shot for "Sports Illustrated," James Salzano and Norman Lono, photographers who make a living shooting celebrities but are volunteering their time and talent here.
NORMAN LONO, VOLUNTEER: That's all we're trying to do is so that you shoot the kids so that people will look at them and go, yes, you know, I'll give them a chance.
COSTELLO: But with kids who have spent years in the system, it isn't always easy. And it isn't always about just finding a family.
LONO: A lot of them are really close. You have to work them really hard to get them to open that door, you know, and say hi, you know? So -- and once they do that you go wow, that's gold.
FEANNY-HICKS: For the 20, 30, 45 minutes that they're photographed by a photographer who just photographed Bruce Springsteen or the president, they feel special.
COSTELLO: Back to Master. For what's at stake, he's taking it all in stride.
MASTER: I'm ready for my close-up.
I always wanted to say that.
COSTELLO (on camera): Well, see, now you have your opportunity. And you look like a natural. Maybe this is your future.
MASTER: Maybe. I'll be the next Will Smith.
COSTELLO (voice-over): But for now his goals, like so many other kids in his position, are much simpler.
MASTER: I'm just waiting for the perfect home. I just, just keep waiting for the perfect one at the right time. Maybe when I get older, I might take a foster kid and adopt them so if I'm not going to get helped, I'm going to help someone else. So anyway I win.
FEANNY-HICKS: My dream is for one child to find a family. I think that everything that we have done is for one child to, you know, wake up one day and call somebody mom and dad. That's our dream.
(END VIDEO TAPE)
COSTELLO: Learn more about the Heart Gallery at www.heartgallerynj.com.
DAYBREAK will be back in a moment.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: Good morning to you.
From the Time Warner Center in New York, I'm Carol Costello, along with Chad Myers.
Now in the news, Europe's longest serving monarch, Monaco's Prince Rainier III, will be buried today. His funeral service is getting underway at a chapel there in Monaco. You're looking at live pictures. Prince Rainier will be laid to rest beside his wife, the American actress Grace Kelly, who died in a car accident in 1982. We'll take you back live to Monaco and Becky Anderson in just a few minutes.
The mother of the boy accusing Michael Jackson of molestation says she does not plan to file a civil suit against him seeking damages. She also testified Jackson tried to control her son. Testimony starts up again this morning.
In Atlanta, Brian Nichols is back in court this morning for a pre-indictment defense motion. Police say Nichols killed four people in a shooting spree that began at the Fulton County Courthouse.
And the next crew of the international space station is up, up and away. The two astronauts and one cosmonaut blasted off from a launch pad in Kazakhstan and should reach the station late Saturday night.
To the Forecast Center now and Chad -- good morning.
MYERS: Good morning, Carol.
(WEATHER REPORT)
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
