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CNN Live At Daybreak

Security Watch; Immigration Issues; New Food Pyramid; Seeking Immortality

Aired April 21, 2005 - 05:30   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.


KELLY WALLACE, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning, and welcome to the second half-hour of DAYBREAK. From the Time Warner Center in New York, I'm Kelly Wallace in today for Carol Costello.
"Now in the News."

Escalating violence in Iraq. Police say a car bomb killed two people on the road to the Baghdad airport today. Plus, more than 50 bodies were found in the Tigris River, and 20 Iraqi soldiers were found shot to death. We will have a live report at the top of the hour.

The full Senate votes today on John Negroponte's nomination to be the nation's first Director of National Intelligence. He's expected to be easily confirmed and will oversee 15 intelligence agencies.

Meanwhile, the House is expected to approve an energy bill that opens the Alaska Wildlife Refuge to oil drilling.

This is also our e-mail "Question of the Day," will Alaska oil drilling lower gas prices? Tell us what you think. E-mail us at DAYBREAK@CNN.com.

Chad, I don't think we've received a lot of e-mails so far, so.

MYERS: No, I picked up a few here,...

WALLACE: You have? Good.

MYERS: ... but I'll tell you what, they're not short of opinion, we'll just put it that way.

WALLACE: Passions are high on this issue.

MYERS: Yes, exactly.

Good morning.

(WEATHER REPORT)

WALLACE: Chad, remember when we thought a few weeks ago 60 degrees would be great?

MYERS: Yes, you lower your standards because it's cold. And then, all of a sudden, it gets to 80 and you think 60 is freezing.

WALLACE: You get a little cocky and you think,...

MYERS: Yes.

WALLACE: ... OK, we like the 80 degrees.

MYERS: That's spring for you.

WALLACE: Exactly. OK, Chad, we'll talk to you in a few minutes.

MYERS: Good enough.

WALLACE: Thanks so much.

MYERS: OK.

WALLACE: And now time for our CNN "Security Watch."

This week, residents of Oklahoma City remembered the victims of the bombing there 10 years ago. A truck bomb, as you know, was used in that terrorist attack. And now federal agents are learning more about the dangers of future attacks.

Our Kelli Arena has more in this America's Bureau report.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KELLI ARENA, CNN JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This is what's left of a Honda Civic loaded with 25 pounds of ammonium nitrate and blown to pieces. It's the same material used by Timothy McVeigh in Oklahoma City, but this time, the bombing is part of an FBI training exercise.

KEVIN FINNERTY, FBI AGENT: This is where the vehicle was parked, so you can see that that's the back half of the vehicle.

ARENA: Most of these agents are senior employees who lead response teams. But they've learned the hard way that explosions can come in twos, the second going off just as first responders show up.

PAUL GARTNER, FBI AGENT: We're looking for secondary devices that may be in the area, as well as any unexploded explosives.

ARENA: The team carefully goes through the paces.

JIM RICE, FBI SUPERVISOR: The rule of thumb is you find your initial piece of evidence that's the furthest away from the scene, usually a large piece of metal that's been thrown. If that's 100 yards, then you double your crime scene to 200 yards.

ARENA: Agents swab for chemicals and flag evidence. This team knows the clues are there, they're just harder to find after an explosion.

In this instance they get lucky, a calling card has flown out of the car intact. THOMAS O'CONNOR, FBI AGENT: That's a huge piece of evidence to find something like a credit card, a phone card, anything with numbers on it that you could link back.

ARENA: If a bomb were to go off in the D.C. Area, FBI supervisor Jim Rice would head up the response.

RICE: Statistically, the car bomb is the number one weapon of choice of the people that we're facing right now. We have seen it in the embassies. We have seen it overseas. We see it in the Middle East repeated over and over and over again.

ARENA: Especially in Iraq. Both the FBI and the ATF have agents stationed there.

MIKE BOUCHARD, ASSISTANT DIRECTOR, ATF: We're using our presence there to gain the knowledge of what these terrorists are doing overseas. In the event they come to the United States, we're prepared for them. In other words, we're fighting tomorrow's war today.

ARENA: The ATF has conducted tests with vehicle bombs using up to 20,000 pounds of explosives, which would impact a 5,000 foot radius.

BOUCHARD: It helps us better design buildings, both federal buildings, as well as private buildings. We've better-educated security guards to recognize what a suspicious vehicle looks like outside of the buildings.

ARENA: The ATF has also reached out to the agricultural community, because, as we learned in Oklahoma, the fertilizer ammonium nitrate can be deadly in the wrong hands.

ANDY ACKLEY, ROYSTER CLARK FARM SUPPLY: They come out on a regular basis and actually look through the location, ask very pointed questions about what we've done to secure our supply of ammonium nitrate, ask if we've come in contact with anyone that was suspicious, and again, reiterate what to do if that case were to happen.

ARENA: Both the farming community and law enforcement have certainly learned a lot in the last 10 years. Still, the FBI's Jim Rice says that he's surprised there hasn't been a truck bomb attack in the United States since then.

RICE: And I think if you talk to just about anybody in this business that they will give you a similar answer that they're surprised that it has not happened again.

ARENA: Surprised, but also determined to keep their winning streak alive.

For CNN's America Bureau, Kelli Arena, in Quantico, Virginia.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WALLACE: Now to immigration issues and the so-called sanctuary laws. You may not be familiar with them, but a recent incident involving a New York City deliveryman brought these rules very much into the spotlight.

And our Carol Costello has more now in this story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CAROL COSTELLO, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A week and a half ago, Ming Kung Chen was where he wanted to be, in America and safely under the radar. But now his secret is out, and he's landed in the middle of a battle that's much bigger than just him.

JOHN C. LIU, NEW YORK CITY COUNCILMAN: People now know his status and his picture is plastered everywhere.

COSTELLO: His status: he's illegal. His bubble burst in the unluckiest of ways; he got stuck in an elevator for three-and-a-half days. Too afraid, some say, to push the emergency button, fearing it would bring police. Finally, he did hit the button and help came.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He wants to thank everyone spend time look for him in the past four days.

COSTELLO (on camera): Everyone agrees Chen's ordeal was horrible, but it also calls into question the country's confusing immigration laws. There are those who believe Chen should be kicked out of the country, especially now since immigration officials know he's illegal.

HEATHER MACDONALD, MANHATTAN INSTITUTE: I think he should be deported. He's here illegally. He took his chances.

COSTELLO (voice-over): Heather MacDonald, who studies immigration issues with the Manhattan Institute, just testified before Congress on what's keeping Chen here, so-called sanctuary laws.

New York has one. It's called Executive Order 41. It forbids New York City agencies, including the police, from asking people their immigration status and sharing that information with federal agencies, including Homeland Security.

The order, signed by Mayor Michael Bloomberg, took effect nearly two years after 9/11, an attack carried out by terrorists, some of whom were in this country illegally.

New York City Councilman John Liu says the order is designed to make undocumented immigrants feel comfortable approaching police. He says it's unfair to compare Chen to the 9/11 hijackers.

(on camera): What makes them different from Ming? We don't know what his background is.

LIU: What makes them similar to Ming?

MACDONALD: You have to start enforcing the immigration laws and send the message that once you're inside the country you can't expect to be home free.

COSTELLO (voice-over): For now, Chen remains in hiding. He lost his delivery job. And as for whether he'll be deported, Homeland Security is undecided. In its words, he doesn't seem to be a threat.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WALLACE: Such an interesting story. And of course that was CNN's Carol Costello reporting. You can catch her filling in for Soledad O'Brien today on "AMERICAN MORNING." And Carol tells us this that Chen says he passed all that time away while stuck in the elevator by meditating. That is right.

And of course stay tuned to CNN day and night for the most reliable news about your security.

Still to come on this Thursday on DAYBREAK, Jeanne Moos has an eye full of advice about what's supposed to go in your stomach. An attempt to help you eat better, if only you can figure it out. That's the key issue here.

But first, here's a look at what else is making news this Thursday morning.

We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WALLACE: And welcome back.

Your news, money, weather and sports. It's just about 41 minutes after the hour, and here is what is all new this morning.

At least two people are dead after a roadside bomb explodes on the road to the Baghdad airport. A caravan of three SUVs was passing by when the device went off. Plus, more than 50 bodies were found in the Tigris River, and 20 Iraqi soldiers were found shot to death. A live report in just 20 minutes.

Hail the size of tennis balls fell in Kansas as part of a spring storm in the Plain State. The hail broke windows, marred cars and caused all sorts of other damage across central Kansas.

In money news now, Ford Motor Company posted a 38 percent drop in its first quarter earnings. Even with the losses, the company did better than analysts had expected, boosting Ford shares on Wall Street by nearly 2 percent in trading.

In culture, blockbuster best seller "The Da Vinci Code" is named Britain's book of the year. The conspiracy thriller about the Catholic Church has ignited a religious debate around the world.

In sports, the Chicago Cubs Nomar Garciaparra likely will undergo an MRI exam today. He injured his left groin during the third inning of last night's Cubs win over St. Louis.

Chad, you see him there, he clearly looks like he's in pain.

MYERS: Yes, sure didn't come off that stance very well.

WALLACE: No.

MYERS: I don't know if he slipped or what happened, but that...

WALLACE: Hope he'll be OK.

MYERS: ... sure was an ugly little play that got going on there.

(WEATHER REPORT)

Kelly, back to you.

WALLACE: Chad, so you know that that food pyramid, the original food pyramid we all came to know,...

MYERS: Right.

WALLACE: ... it's out.

MYERS: Right. Now it's multiple pyramids, depending on how old you are, how much you exercise. It's called mypyramid.gov.

WALLACE: Exactly.

MYERS: Type in your name and your -- or not your name, your age and your sex and how much exercise you do a day. And I did that, and it says less than 30 minutes exercise or more than an hour, I can eat one more ounce of meat, if I exercise for another hour a day.

WALLACE: Really?

MYERS: So I'm pretty sure I'm not going to be exercising another hour if I can only eat one more ounce of meat.

WALLACE: I mean it's not like you can eat a hot fudge sundae, let's make it really attractive, shall we?

MYERS: You can only eat -- I can only eat six ounces of meat or beans.

WALLACE: Wow!

MYERS: Now do you think a guy is going to eat five ounces of beans and one ounce of meat? No, he's going to take the beans and not eat them at all.

WALLACE: Exactly. The thing is, just as you said, it's so complicated. Life is complicated enough. The question is how is this all going to help? How is it going to help us change the way we eat?

Well, Chad, CNN's...

MYERS: I know who will tell us. WALLACE: Yes, you know, you know the fabulous, the wonderful Jeanne Moos taking a look at the shape of things.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEANNE MOOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): You can visit the pyramids, you can form a pyramid, but can you remember this pyramid?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Vaguely.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Sort of.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No. No thank you.

MOOS (on camera): What is funny about the food pyramid?

(voice-over): The old food pyramid got no respect.

(on camera): Did you ever use the food pyramid for anything?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Jeanne, do I look like I ever used a food pyramid?

MOOS: (voice-over): If your belly shakes like a bowl full of jelly, maybe you should check out the new improved food pyramid. The old one went horizontal. The new one goes vertical. They considered other shapes, like a plate, but opted to stick with a pyramid. The guy running up the steps symbolizes exercise, which was emphasized at the press conference where the new food pyramid was unveiled.

DENISE AUSTIN, FITNESS EXPERT: Now come on, stretch that spine! Your spine is your lifeline. Keep it healthy. Keep it strong.

MOOS: The old pyramid was good for kiddie games. There were versions ranging from vegetarian to low carb, but the new pyramid is interactive.

MIKE JOHANNS, AGRICULTURE SECRETARY: Every single American can find a My Pyramid that is right for them at mypyramid.gov.

MOOS: Want to bet? Dietitian Lisa Drayer typed in her age and sex and amount she exercises. You're suppose to get one of 12 food pyramids personalized for your type. But we, and thousands of others, waited and waited for a pyramid that never appeared.

(on camera): The agency that created the pyramid, the spokesperson can't get on.

LISA DRAYER, DIETICIAN: Really?

MOOS: Because they're getting 48 million hits in a day.

DRAYER: The concept is good. The science is good. The recommendations are good.

MOOS: (INAUDIBLE) make it worst. (voice-over): Cartoonists are already taking aim at the food pyramid's makeover. What's wrong with the one we have now?

Food consultant Clark Wolf noted the rainbow colors and spandex- clad figure and told "The San Francisco Chronicle" the pyramid looks as though all you need to do to be healthy in America is be gay and exercise.

Some folks never figured out that the bottom of the old pyramid was supposed to be good.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And I don't eat that stuff.

MOOS (on camera): No, this is the good stuff down here. That's not the crap. That's the crap.

(voice-over): As for the guy going up the steps on the new pyramid.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There should be an escalator.

MOOS: Jeanne Moos, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WALLACE: "Health Headlines" for you now this morning.

Remember that deadly flu virus sent to so many laboratories around the globe? Well the World Health Organization now says the final sample has been located in Lebanon. It, too, will be destroyed.

And it appears that obesity is not as big a deal as the government said last year. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimated that 400,000 people would die from obesity- related illnesses. But the CDC recalculated and came up with a new figure, about 112,000. The agency also says being just a little overweight is not as much a health threat as suggested previously, but still encouraging all of us to stay in shape.

Well people have long searched for the Fountain of Youth, hoping, hoping to live forever. Well now a doctor and a scientist say they have the answer to immortality.

CNN's senior medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta has the details.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN SENIOR MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Fifty-seven-year-old Ray Kurzweil's daily routine: 250 supplements, 10 cups of green tea, four miles of brisk walking, all part of his quest for immortality.

RAY KURZWEIL, AUTHOR, SCIENTIST: The diseases that kill 95 percent of us are not things that just hit us one day walking down the street. You can find out where you are on that process and stop that process and reverse it fairly readily with the right lifestyle, the right supplements.

GUPTA: That right lifestyle is outlined in "Fantastic Voyage," live long enough to live forever. Ray is not a doctor but an award- winning scientist. He and co-author, Dr. Terry Grossman, recommend intravenous supplements for better digestion, acupuncture and regular biological testing to determine body age. All geared towards taking advantage of biotechnological advances they say are just over the horizon.

KURZWEIL: I expect and hope to be in good shape when we have these powerful new techniques from biotechnology 10, 15 years from now. For example, have devices called the nanobots that can actually perform functions inside our bloodstream, augment our immune system, destroy pathogens in cancer cells, enhance our red blood cells, for example, so that we can breathe better.

GUPTA: Sound like science fiction? While oddly reminiscent of the 1966 film "Fantastic Voyage" in which scientists travel in vehicles through the blood system. In fact, humans have made giant leaps in life expectancy. Consider this, in 1900 the average American life span was 47 years. By 1960, it had risen to the early '60s. Now life expectancy is 77.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's for headache, earache, toothache.

DR. THOMAS PERLS, BOSTON UNIV. MEDICAL CENTER: We're always going to hear some special potion or nostrum for immortality, and that's not new.

GUPTA: Dr. Thomas Perls, a leading researcher on centenarians, says that living healthier longer is a good message. But relying on Ray's plan to do it is another.

PERLS: Much of the book is based upon Ray and Terry's own anecdotal personal experience of what works for them. What the book is asking people to do, is everybody to be a guinea pig. And I think that's very dangerous.

GUPTA: Anti-aging is a multimillion industry. And as Baby Boomers grow older, they want greater control over their own longevity.

KURZWEIL: I would like to keep on living indefinitely. I would like that decision to be in my own hands, and not in the figurative hands of fate.

GUPTA: Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN, reporting.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WALLACE: And for more on this or any other health story, head to our Web site. That address, CNN.com/health. Time now to read some of your e-mails. We've been talking about it this morning, the House expected to approve the energy bill today that would allow drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Reserve in Alaska. Some of your responses to our question: Alaska oil drilling, do you think it will lead to lower gas prices? Do you support it?

Chad, what are you seeing so far?

MYERS: Got one from Daniel (ph) in Monterey, California. U.S. has sunk $170 billion in the Iraq War and oil prices have only gone up. Now Alaskan oil, which is only a fraction of the Middle East oil, will change nothing. Let's invest hundreds of billions of dollars in alternative energy sources, support American companies and jobs and rid ourselves of this oil nightmare for once and for all -- Kelly.

WALLACE: Chad, this is Scott (ph) from Myersville, Maryland. He says I certainly believe that oil drilling in Alaska will lower oil prices. We can have a single oil spill or a strike at a refinery and prices jump up within days, so why not a drop when suddenly there is a threat of a better supply? Laws of supply and demand, according to Scott -- Chad.

MYERS: Yes. Well Vern (ph), again, back to the supply and demand, drilling in Alaska might lower oil prices just low enough so that it doesn't hurt the U.S. consumer anymore, but we're still ravaging the environment. We'll forget that as soon as it's a little easier on our pocketbooks. Those lower prices will force another invasion of another oil-rich nation as to drive them right back up where the big picker (ph) companies want them anyway.

WALLACE: Yes, it seems like most of the people are saying they are against drilling in Alaska.

MYERS: Yes.

WALLACE: Here, this one from -- not clear who it's from. I think it will not lead to lower gas prices. If it does lower gas prices, it will only be a temporary and foolish solution. Are we not learning that when you hit Mother Nature she hits back harder? Wake up, America, we'd be making a foolish choice to ruin untouched land.

MYERS: Yes, we have had a lot of e-mails. I wish I could read them all. I'm surprised at how many are saying let's build some nuclear power plants so that we don't have to use as much oil or coal to make electricity. Now when we're getting to that point, now something -- there's a change going on. I think that change of $2.25 a gallon.

WALLACE: Yes, people are feeling it and saying something needs to be done.

MYERS: Yes.

WALLACE: All right, keep the e-mails coming, DAYBREAK@CNN.com, we want to hear from you.

Chad, talk to you in a few minutes.

MYERS: OK.

WALLACE: Here is what is all new in the next hour of DAYBREAK.

A group of Muslim-Americans stopped and searched at the U.S.- Canadian border. Well, they're suing the government, claiming violation of their civil rights. We'll get a live update from Buffalo.

This is DAYBREAK for a Thursday. We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WALLACE: Some lovely shots of New York City on this Thursday morning, so time to talk entertainment, what's making headlines this morning.

First, casting news on the movie version of the blockbuster "Da Vinci Code." "Variety" reporting Sir Ian McKellen has signed on to play Sir Teabing, a wealthy man who helps Tom Hanks' character search for the Holy Grail.

Next, apparently Paris Hilton is making it simple, you can say. She and former best friend and "Simple Life" co-star Nicole Richie are on the outs. Richie is hoping to recruit another friend for the "Simple Life 4."

And finally, "People" magazine reporting Ben Affleck and Jennifer Garner are engaged. Well neither side will confirm or deny reports. We'll have to see what they say. I don't think our video was matching what I was talking about. We'll keep you posted.

And for all your entertainment news, you can catch A.J. Hammer and Karyn Bryant on "ShowBiz Tonight" every weeknight at 7:00 p.m. Eastern on CNN Headline News.

The next hour of DAYBREAK begins right now.

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Aired April 21, 2005 - 05:30   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KELLY WALLACE, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning, and welcome to the second half-hour of DAYBREAK. From the Time Warner Center in New York, I'm Kelly Wallace in today for Carol Costello.
"Now in the News."

Escalating violence in Iraq. Police say a car bomb killed two people on the road to the Baghdad airport today. Plus, more than 50 bodies were found in the Tigris River, and 20 Iraqi soldiers were found shot to death. We will have a live report at the top of the hour.

The full Senate votes today on John Negroponte's nomination to be the nation's first Director of National Intelligence. He's expected to be easily confirmed and will oversee 15 intelligence agencies.

Meanwhile, the House is expected to approve an energy bill that opens the Alaska Wildlife Refuge to oil drilling.

This is also our e-mail "Question of the Day," will Alaska oil drilling lower gas prices? Tell us what you think. E-mail us at DAYBREAK@CNN.com.

Chad, I don't think we've received a lot of e-mails so far, so.

MYERS: No, I picked up a few here,...

WALLACE: You have? Good.

MYERS: ... but I'll tell you what, they're not short of opinion, we'll just put it that way.

WALLACE: Passions are high on this issue.

MYERS: Yes, exactly.

Good morning.

(WEATHER REPORT)

WALLACE: Chad, remember when we thought a few weeks ago 60 degrees would be great?

MYERS: Yes, you lower your standards because it's cold. And then, all of a sudden, it gets to 80 and you think 60 is freezing.

WALLACE: You get a little cocky and you think,...

MYERS: Yes.

WALLACE: ... OK, we like the 80 degrees.

MYERS: That's spring for you.

WALLACE: Exactly. OK, Chad, we'll talk to you in a few minutes.

MYERS: Good enough.

WALLACE: Thanks so much.

MYERS: OK.

WALLACE: And now time for our CNN "Security Watch."

This week, residents of Oklahoma City remembered the victims of the bombing there 10 years ago. A truck bomb, as you know, was used in that terrorist attack. And now federal agents are learning more about the dangers of future attacks.

Our Kelli Arena has more in this America's Bureau report.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KELLI ARENA, CNN JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This is what's left of a Honda Civic loaded with 25 pounds of ammonium nitrate and blown to pieces. It's the same material used by Timothy McVeigh in Oklahoma City, but this time, the bombing is part of an FBI training exercise.

KEVIN FINNERTY, FBI AGENT: This is where the vehicle was parked, so you can see that that's the back half of the vehicle.

ARENA: Most of these agents are senior employees who lead response teams. But they've learned the hard way that explosions can come in twos, the second going off just as first responders show up.

PAUL GARTNER, FBI AGENT: We're looking for secondary devices that may be in the area, as well as any unexploded explosives.

ARENA: The team carefully goes through the paces.

JIM RICE, FBI SUPERVISOR: The rule of thumb is you find your initial piece of evidence that's the furthest away from the scene, usually a large piece of metal that's been thrown. If that's 100 yards, then you double your crime scene to 200 yards.

ARENA: Agents swab for chemicals and flag evidence. This team knows the clues are there, they're just harder to find after an explosion.

In this instance they get lucky, a calling card has flown out of the car intact. THOMAS O'CONNOR, FBI AGENT: That's a huge piece of evidence to find something like a credit card, a phone card, anything with numbers on it that you could link back.

ARENA: If a bomb were to go off in the D.C. Area, FBI supervisor Jim Rice would head up the response.

RICE: Statistically, the car bomb is the number one weapon of choice of the people that we're facing right now. We have seen it in the embassies. We have seen it overseas. We see it in the Middle East repeated over and over and over again.

ARENA: Especially in Iraq. Both the FBI and the ATF have agents stationed there.

MIKE BOUCHARD, ASSISTANT DIRECTOR, ATF: We're using our presence there to gain the knowledge of what these terrorists are doing overseas. In the event they come to the United States, we're prepared for them. In other words, we're fighting tomorrow's war today.

ARENA: The ATF has conducted tests with vehicle bombs using up to 20,000 pounds of explosives, which would impact a 5,000 foot radius.

BOUCHARD: It helps us better design buildings, both federal buildings, as well as private buildings. We've better-educated security guards to recognize what a suspicious vehicle looks like outside of the buildings.

ARENA: The ATF has also reached out to the agricultural community, because, as we learned in Oklahoma, the fertilizer ammonium nitrate can be deadly in the wrong hands.

ANDY ACKLEY, ROYSTER CLARK FARM SUPPLY: They come out on a regular basis and actually look through the location, ask very pointed questions about what we've done to secure our supply of ammonium nitrate, ask if we've come in contact with anyone that was suspicious, and again, reiterate what to do if that case were to happen.

ARENA: Both the farming community and law enforcement have certainly learned a lot in the last 10 years. Still, the FBI's Jim Rice says that he's surprised there hasn't been a truck bomb attack in the United States since then.

RICE: And I think if you talk to just about anybody in this business that they will give you a similar answer that they're surprised that it has not happened again.

ARENA: Surprised, but also determined to keep their winning streak alive.

For CNN's America Bureau, Kelli Arena, in Quantico, Virginia.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WALLACE: Now to immigration issues and the so-called sanctuary laws. You may not be familiar with them, but a recent incident involving a New York City deliveryman brought these rules very much into the spotlight.

And our Carol Costello has more now in this story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CAROL COSTELLO, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A week and a half ago, Ming Kung Chen was where he wanted to be, in America and safely under the radar. But now his secret is out, and he's landed in the middle of a battle that's much bigger than just him.

JOHN C. LIU, NEW YORK CITY COUNCILMAN: People now know his status and his picture is plastered everywhere.

COSTELLO: His status: he's illegal. His bubble burst in the unluckiest of ways; he got stuck in an elevator for three-and-a-half days. Too afraid, some say, to push the emergency button, fearing it would bring police. Finally, he did hit the button and help came.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He wants to thank everyone spend time look for him in the past four days.

COSTELLO (on camera): Everyone agrees Chen's ordeal was horrible, but it also calls into question the country's confusing immigration laws. There are those who believe Chen should be kicked out of the country, especially now since immigration officials know he's illegal.

HEATHER MACDONALD, MANHATTAN INSTITUTE: I think he should be deported. He's here illegally. He took his chances.

COSTELLO (voice-over): Heather MacDonald, who studies immigration issues with the Manhattan Institute, just testified before Congress on what's keeping Chen here, so-called sanctuary laws.

New York has one. It's called Executive Order 41. It forbids New York City agencies, including the police, from asking people their immigration status and sharing that information with federal agencies, including Homeland Security.

The order, signed by Mayor Michael Bloomberg, took effect nearly two years after 9/11, an attack carried out by terrorists, some of whom were in this country illegally.

New York City Councilman John Liu says the order is designed to make undocumented immigrants feel comfortable approaching police. He says it's unfair to compare Chen to the 9/11 hijackers.

(on camera): What makes them different from Ming? We don't know what his background is.

LIU: What makes them similar to Ming?

MACDONALD: You have to start enforcing the immigration laws and send the message that once you're inside the country you can't expect to be home free.

COSTELLO (voice-over): For now, Chen remains in hiding. He lost his delivery job. And as for whether he'll be deported, Homeland Security is undecided. In its words, he doesn't seem to be a threat.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WALLACE: Such an interesting story. And of course that was CNN's Carol Costello reporting. You can catch her filling in for Soledad O'Brien today on "AMERICAN MORNING." And Carol tells us this that Chen says he passed all that time away while stuck in the elevator by meditating. That is right.

And of course stay tuned to CNN day and night for the most reliable news about your security.

Still to come on this Thursday on DAYBREAK, Jeanne Moos has an eye full of advice about what's supposed to go in your stomach. An attempt to help you eat better, if only you can figure it out. That's the key issue here.

But first, here's a look at what else is making news this Thursday morning.

We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WALLACE: And welcome back.

Your news, money, weather and sports. It's just about 41 minutes after the hour, and here is what is all new this morning.

At least two people are dead after a roadside bomb explodes on the road to the Baghdad airport. A caravan of three SUVs was passing by when the device went off. Plus, more than 50 bodies were found in the Tigris River, and 20 Iraqi soldiers were found shot to death. A live report in just 20 minutes.

Hail the size of tennis balls fell in Kansas as part of a spring storm in the Plain State. The hail broke windows, marred cars and caused all sorts of other damage across central Kansas.

In money news now, Ford Motor Company posted a 38 percent drop in its first quarter earnings. Even with the losses, the company did better than analysts had expected, boosting Ford shares on Wall Street by nearly 2 percent in trading.

In culture, blockbuster best seller "The Da Vinci Code" is named Britain's book of the year. The conspiracy thriller about the Catholic Church has ignited a religious debate around the world.

In sports, the Chicago Cubs Nomar Garciaparra likely will undergo an MRI exam today. He injured his left groin during the third inning of last night's Cubs win over St. Louis.

Chad, you see him there, he clearly looks like he's in pain.

MYERS: Yes, sure didn't come off that stance very well.

WALLACE: No.

MYERS: I don't know if he slipped or what happened, but that...

WALLACE: Hope he'll be OK.

MYERS: ... sure was an ugly little play that got going on there.

(WEATHER REPORT)

Kelly, back to you.

WALLACE: Chad, so you know that that food pyramid, the original food pyramid we all came to know,...

MYERS: Right.

WALLACE: ... it's out.

MYERS: Right. Now it's multiple pyramids, depending on how old you are, how much you exercise. It's called mypyramid.gov.

WALLACE: Exactly.

MYERS: Type in your name and your -- or not your name, your age and your sex and how much exercise you do a day. And I did that, and it says less than 30 minutes exercise or more than an hour, I can eat one more ounce of meat, if I exercise for another hour a day.

WALLACE: Really?

MYERS: So I'm pretty sure I'm not going to be exercising another hour if I can only eat one more ounce of meat.

WALLACE: I mean it's not like you can eat a hot fudge sundae, let's make it really attractive, shall we?

MYERS: You can only eat -- I can only eat six ounces of meat or beans.

WALLACE: Wow!

MYERS: Now do you think a guy is going to eat five ounces of beans and one ounce of meat? No, he's going to take the beans and not eat them at all.

WALLACE: Exactly. The thing is, just as you said, it's so complicated. Life is complicated enough. The question is how is this all going to help? How is it going to help us change the way we eat?

Well, Chad, CNN's...

MYERS: I know who will tell us. WALLACE: Yes, you know, you know the fabulous, the wonderful Jeanne Moos taking a look at the shape of things.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEANNE MOOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): You can visit the pyramids, you can form a pyramid, but can you remember this pyramid?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Vaguely.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Sort of.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No. No thank you.

MOOS (on camera): What is funny about the food pyramid?

(voice-over): The old food pyramid got no respect.

(on camera): Did you ever use the food pyramid for anything?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Jeanne, do I look like I ever used a food pyramid?

MOOS: (voice-over): If your belly shakes like a bowl full of jelly, maybe you should check out the new improved food pyramid. The old one went horizontal. The new one goes vertical. They considered other shapes, like a plate, but opted to stick with a pyramid. The guy running up the steps symbolizes exercise, which was emphasized at the press conference where the new food pyramid was unveiled.

DENISE AUSTIN, FITNESS EXPERT: Now come on, stretch that spine! Your spine is your lifeline. Keep it healthy. Keep it strong.

MOOS: The old pyramid was good for kiddie games. There were versions ranging from vegetarian to low carb, but the new pyramid is interactive.

MIKE JOHANNS, AGRICULTURE SECRETARY: Every single American can find a My Pyramid that is right for them at mypyramid.gov.

MOOS: Want to bet? Dietitian Lisa Drayer typed in her age and sex and amount she exercises. You're suppose to get one of 12 food pyramids personalized for your type. But we, and thousands of others, waited and waited for a pyramid that never appeared.

(on camera): The agency that created the pyramid, the spokesperson can't get on.

LISA DRAYER, DIETICIAN: Really?

MOOS: Because they're getting 48 million hits in a day.

DRAYER: The concept is good. The science is good. The recommendations are good.

MOOS: (INAUDIBLE) make it worst. (voice-over): Cartoonists are already taking aim at the food pyramid's makeover. What's wrong with the one we have now?

Food consultant Clark Wolf noted the rainbow colors and spandex- clad figure and told "The San Francisco Chronicle" the pyramid looks as though all you need to do to be healthy in America is be gay and exercise.

Some folks never figured out that the bottom of the old pyramid was supposed to be good.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And I don't eat that stuff.

MOOS (on camera): No, this is the good stuff down here. That's not the crap. That's the crap.

(voice-over): As for the guy going up the steps on the new pyramid.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There should be an escalator.

MOOS: Jeanne Moos, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WALLACE: "Health Headlines" for you now this morning.

Remember that deadly flu virus sent to so many laboratories around the globe? Well the World Health Organization now says the final sample has been located in Lebanon. It, too, will be destroyed.

And it appears that obesity is not as big a deal as the government said last year. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimated that 400,000 people would die from obesity- related illnesses. But the CDC recalculated and came up with a new figure, about 112,000. The agency also says being just a little overweight is not as much a health threat as suggested previously, but still encouraging all of us to stay in shape.

Well people have long searched for the Fountain of Youth, hoping, hoping to live forever. Well now a doctor and a scientist say they have the answer to immortality.

CNN's senior medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta has the details.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN SENIOR MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Fifty-seven-year-old Ray Kurzweil's daily routine: 250 supplements, 10 cups of green tea, four miles of brisk walking, all part of his quest for immortality.

RAY KURZWEIL, AUTHOR, SCIENTIST: The diseases that kill 95 percent of us are not things that just hit us one day walking down the street. You can find out where you are on that process and stop that process and reverse it fairly readily with the right lifestyle, the right supplements.

GUPTA: That right lifestyle is outlined in "Fantastic Voyage," live long enough to live forever. Ray is not a doctor but an award- winning scientist. He and co-author, Dr. Terry Grossman, recommend intravenous supplements for better digestion, acupuncture and regular biological testing to determine body age. All geared towards taking advantage of biotechnological advances they say are just over the horizon.

KURZWEIL: I expect and hope to be in good shape when we have these powerful new techniques from biotechnology 10, 15 years from now. For example, have devices called the nanobots that can actually perform functions inside our bloodstream, augment our immune system, destroy pathogens in cancer cells, enhance our red blood cells, for example, so that we can breathe better.

GUPTA: Sound like science fiction? While oddly reminiscent of the 1966 film "Fantastic Voyage" in which scientists travel in vehicles through the blood system. In fact, humans have made giant leaps in life expectancy. Consider this, in 1900 the average American life span was 47 years. By 1960, it had risen to the early '60s. Now life expectancy is 77.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's for headache, earache, toothache.

DR. THOMAS PERLS, BOSTON UNIV. MEDICAL CENTER: We're always going to hear some special potion or nostrum for immortality, and that's not new.

GUPTA: Dr. Thomas Perls, a leading researcher on centenarians, says that living healthier longer is a good message. But relying on Ray's plan to do it is another.

PERLS: Much of the book is based upon Ray and Terry's own anecdotal personal experience of what works for them. What the book is asking people to do, is everybody to be a guinea pig. And I think that's very dangerous.

GUPTA: Anti-aging is a multimillion industry. And as Baby Boomers grow older, they want greater control over their own longevity.

KURZWEIL: I would like to keep on living indefinitely. I would like that decision to be in my own hands, and not in the figurative hands of fate.

GUPTA: Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN, reporting.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WALLACE: And for more on this or any other health story, head to our Web site. That address, CNN.com/health. Time now to read some of your e-mails. We've been talking about it this morning, the House expected to approve the energy bill today that would allow drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Reserve in Alaska. Some of your responses to our question: Alaska oil drilling, do you think it will lead to lower gas prices? Do you support it?

Chad, what are you seeing so far?

MYERS: Got one from Daniel (ph) in Monterey, California. U.S. has sunk $170 billion in the Iraq War and oil prices have only gone up. Now Alaskan oil, which is only a fraction of the Middle East oil, will change nothing. Let's invest hundreds of billions of dollars in alternative energy sources, support American companies and jobs and rid ourselves of this oil nightmare for once and for all -- Kelly.

WALLACE: Chad, this is Scott (ph) from Myersville, Maryland. He says I certainly believe that oil drilling in Alaska will lower oil prices. We can have a single oil spill or a strike at a refinery and prices jump up within days, so why not a drop when suddenly there is a threat of a better supply? Laws of supply and demand, according to Scott -- Chad.

MYERS: Yes. Well Vern (ph), again, back to the supply and demand, drilling in Alaska might lower oil prices just low enough so that it doesn't hurt the U.S. consumer anymore, but we're still ravaging the environment. We'll forget that as soon as it's a little easier on our pocketbooks. Those lower prices will force another invasion of another oil-rich nation as to drive them right back up where the big picker (ph) companies want them anyway.

WALLACE: Yes, it seems like most of the people are saying they are against drilling in Alaska.

MYERS: Yes.

WALLACE: Here, this one from -- not clear who it's from. I think it will not lead to lower gas prices. If it does lower gas prices, it will only be a temporary and foolish solution. Are we not learning that when you hit Mother Nature she hits back harder? Wake up, America, we'd be making a foolish choice to ruin untouched land.

MYERS: Yes, we have had a lot of e-mails. I wish I could read them all. I'm surprised at how many are saying let's build some nuclear power plants so that we don't have to use as much oil or coal to make electricity. Now when we're getting to that point, now something -- there's a change going on. I think that change of $2.25 a gallon.

WALLACE: Yes, people are feeling it and saying something needs to be done.

MYERS: Yes.

WALLACE: All right, keep the e-mails coming, DAYBREAK@CNN.com, we want to hear from you.

Chad, talk to you in a few minutes.

MYERS: OK.

WALLACE: Here is what is all new in the next hour of DAYBREAK.

A group of Muslim-Americans stopped and searched at the U.S.- Canadian border. Well, they're suing the government, claiming violation of their civil rights. We'll get a live update from Buffalo.

This is DAYBREAK for a Thursday. We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WALLACE: Some lovely shots of New York City on this Thursday morning, so time to talk entertainment, what's making headlines this morning.

First, casting news on the movie version of the blockbuster "Da Vinci Code." "Variety" reporting Sir Ian McKellen has signed on to play Sir Teabing, a wealthy man who helps Tom Hanks' character search for the Holy Grail.

Next, apparently Paris Hilton is making it simple, you can say. She and former best friend and "Simple Life" co-star Nicole Richie are on the outs. Richie is hoping to recruit another friend for the "Simple Life 4."

And finally, "People" magazine reporting Ben Affleck and Jennifer Garner are engaged. Well neither side will confirm or deny reports. We'll have to see what they say. I don't think our video was matching what I was talking about. We'll keep you posted.

And for all your entertainment news, you can catch A.J. Hammer and Karyn Bryant on "ShowBiz Tonight" every weeknight at 7:00 p.m. Eastern on CNN Headline News.

The next hour of DAYBREAK begins right now.

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