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Michael Jackson Trial; Stand and Shoot; Hybrid or SUV

Aired April 27, 2005 - 10:59   ET

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

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


DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: Here's a look at what's happening right "Now in the News."
House Speaker Dennis Hastert says he's willing to repeal new ethics rules that came under fire from Democrats. Democrats said the changes were designed to protect embattled Majority Leader Tom DeLay. Hastert made the announcement within the last half-hour. You saw it live right here on CNN.

A suspect has been arrested in a string of arsons in the D.C. area. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms says the arrest was made in Maryland today. The serial arsonist is suspected in more than 40 fires in the area.

The man who will be Iraq's new prime minister says a vote on a government will come tomorrow in the transitional assembly. Ibrahim al-Jaafari submitted his list of cabinet officials today. He did not reveal any names, but al-Jaafari says the government will reflect Iraq's diverse ethnic population.

Police in Iraq say a female member of the Iraqi National Assembly was assassinated today. She was gunned down outside her house in eastern Baghdad.

The woman is the first assembly member killed since the January 30 elections. But there had been other attempted assassinations in recent days.

Accounting firm Arthur Andersen is before the Supreme Court this morning trying to overturn a criminal conviction stemming from the Enron scandal. The firm was convicted of corruptly encouraging employees to shred tons of Enron documents. Arthur Andersen is challenging the judge's instructions to the jury.

Just a minute past 11:00 a.m. on the East Coast. For those of you joining us from the West, 8:00 a.m. for you.

From CNN Center in Atlanta, good morning once again. I'm Daryn Kagan.

First, to the Michael Jackson trial. At this hour, they shared a three-year marriage and two children. And undoubtedly, there are a lot of secrets there. Today, Debbie Rowe is a witness for prosecution in the child molestation trial. Court begins in 30 minutes.

CNN's Ted Rowlands gives us a preview now from Santa Maria, California. (BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

TED ROWLANDS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Debbie Rowe, Michael Jackson's ex-wife, is expected on the stand this morning. What she says could make or break the conspiracy portion of the prosecution's case against Jackson. Rowe is expected to say that Jackson himself is in the middle of a deal to get her to participate in a pro-Michael Jackson video.

CRAIG SMITH, LEGAL ANALYST: Given what they're left with, Debbie Rowe is probably their strongest way to finish up. She brings with her the aura that she's an insider and has information to tell about what really went on with Michael Jackson and what it's like to live there.

ROWLANDS: But Rowe may be unable or unwilling to say too much about Jackson. She's currently involved in a custody battle with him, and Judge Rodney Melville has indicated that he plans to restrict her testimony.

ANDREW COHEN, LEGAL ANALYST: And I think she's going to given instant credibility because of who she is, her relationship with Jackson and what she may know. And the unanswered question is, how much does she get to say before Thomas Mesereau and the judge cut her off?

ROWLANDS: In court yesterday, a travel consultant said she was told by a Jackson associate to arrange a one-way trip for the accuser's family to Brazil. A former Jackson photographer then took the stand and said he overheard a telephone conversation about "getting the family out of the country."

Prosecutors hope both witnesses will help bolster the claim that Jackson and his associates planned to force the accuser's family to Brazil. The same travel consultant has been questioned by the FBI about her role in secretly videotaping Jackson on a private flight that she organized.

(on camera): The photographer, Hamid Moslehi, will be on the stand when court resumes. Debbie Rowe is expected to be next. Prosecutors say they will be finished presenting evidence in their case by the end of the week.

Ted Rowlands, CNN, Santa Maria, California.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KAGAN: Topping our CNN "Security Watch," concerns about the nation's color-coded terror alert system. A House committee takes up a bill today that says the system is too vague.

There's a look at it. It calls for other ways of communicating threat information to the public.

Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff has said he's considering changes to the system. But he says he has no plans to scrap the color-coded warnings entirely.

The future of the Patriot Act is the focus of a hearing under way. Live picture there from the Senate Intelligence Committee.

Some provisions of the law will expire at the end of the year unless Congress renews them. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, FBI director, Robert Mueller, and CIA director, Porter Goss, are among those testifying today. The Patriot Act was passed in the wake of the September 11 attacks to give the federal government broader powers in fighting terrorism.

An Algerian man faces sentencing today for plotting to bomb Los Angeles International Airport on the eve of the millennium. The hearing for Ahmed Ressam is set to begin at the bottom of the hour. He was caught smuggling explosives into the U.S. in December of 1999.

Prosecutors say Ressam was providing them with information on terror cells and camps. But he has stopped cooperating. They are asking for a sentence of 35 years behind bars.

A Senate panel is examining just how vulnerable the country's chemical plants are to terrorists. By some estimates out there, an attack on a plant near an urban area could kill as many as one million people. The Department of Homeland Security says it has identified 300 plants that pose the greatest risk. Officials say that security has been improved at 160 of those facilities.

There's a new Florida gun law taking effect October 1. It's called Stand Your Ground, and it allows residents to use deadly force in public if they believe they're being attacked. No longer is there a legal duty to retreat. Critics say the new law will turn Florida into a tropical wild west.

Here now, CNN's John Zarrella.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JOHN ZARRELLA, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A year and a half ago, Greg Drewes lost his only son.

JOHN DREWES, VICTIM'S FATHER: That's him, that's Mark. That's about three weeks before it happened.

ZARRELLA: The man who shot and killed Mark Drewes said he was sorry.

JAY LEWIS, DEFENDANT: I want to apologize to the Drewes family for their loss and for the mistake I made that night. And every day I think about your son.

ZARRELLA: The night he died, Mark Drewes and some friends were playing door-knocking pranks. Jay Levens told police he was scared. He had heard sounds outside his door, thought it was a burglar.

When he opened the door, Levens said he thought Drewes was armed and turning towards him. He shot Drewes in the back. Levens pleaded guilty to manslaughter. If the incident happened today there might have been no punishment for the man who shot Greg Drewes's son.

DREWES: It's a bad joke. It's an unbelievable, bad joke.

ZARRELLA: Under a new Florida law, the state attorney who handled the case says he might not have been able to file criminal charges.

BARRY KRISCHER, PALM BEACH CO. STATE ATTORNEY: It was my belief that it was as reasonable for him to have merely shut the door, rather than pull the trigger. Under this law, he has no obligation to shut the door. Under this law, he has a right to stand there and shoot.

ZARRELLA: The legislation, signed into law by Governor Jeb Bush, says any person can stand their ground, meet force with force, if he or she believes it's necessary to prevent death or bodily harm. There is no longer a duty to retreat, whether in your house, your car or on the street. Common sense, says the governor.

GOV. JEB BUSH (R), FLORIDA: When there's a life-threatening situation, to have to retreat and put yourself in a very precarious position defies common sense.

ZARRELLA: The Florida legislature overwhelmingly supported the bill, which was backed by the National Rifle Association. It's the kind of law the NRA says will reduce crime rates.

MARION HAMMER, NRA ACTIVIST: The law is constructed to give law- abiding people the right to protect themselves when they are attacked. I think the message to criminals is going to be -- you break into a home, you run the risk of being shot. You attack people on the street, you run the risk of being shot.

ZARRELLA: Greg Drewes fears some people will simply take advantage of it.

DREWES: You shoot somebody in anger, what are you going to say? I did it -- I made a mistake. I wasn't in danger at all. Take me away? They're all going to lie. They're all going to say, I did it protecting myself. I was in definite fear of my life.

ZARRELLA: Some states already have similar measures. Critics say the laws give people the opportunity to use deadly force even when it isn't necessary. Supporters say law-abiding people can now protect themselves without fear of prosecution.

John Zarrella, CNN, Boca Raton, Florida.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KAGAN: CNN "Security Watch" keeps up to date on safety. Stay tuned day and night for the most reliable news about your security.

Rising gas prices and unhappy consumers. President Bush is offering another energy strategy. What's his new plan? We'll take a look.

And the super star of planes takes off for its maiden voyage. We go along for the superjumbo. That story is coming up.

And a bride bites her future husband before the wedding vows. That was a little glitch in a not so traditional ceremony from India. We'll take a look at that as well.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(STOCK MARKET REPORT)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAGAN: President Bush is faced with some rising gas prices and some unhappy motorists. So he's going to tweak his energy strategy today.

Senior officials says he'll propose a plan to convert closed military bases into new oil refineries. There hasn't been a new one built in the U.S. in almost 30 years. Mr. Bush will also call on Congress to make it easier to build new nuclear power plants. The last one of those was built in the U.S. in 1973.

The president is feeling some political sting from record-high gas prices. An ABC-"Washington Post" poll finding barely a third of Americans approve of his energy policy. Fifty-four percent say they do not like it.

President Bush's energy speech you can see live here on CNN. You can watch it just shortly after 2:00 p.m. Eastern. That is 11:00 for those of you in the West.

President Bush's energy strategy also includes a tax credit when you buy a hybrid vehicle, up to $4,000. But, here's the catch: CNN's Chris Huntington reports now that America's love affair with the SUV isn't tanking just quite yet.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CHRIS HUNTINGTON, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Rick Nosek is sitting pretty in his Toyota Prius hybrid.

RICK NOSEK, HYBRID OWNER: In the old days, when I drove a van, and it would cost me $90 a week to gas up, now I'm gassing up every two weeks. It's costing me about $16.

HUNTINGTON: Nosek says he get 40 to 50 miles per gallon. That's 10 less than the stated mileage for his model. But he enjoys the attention he receives for driving on the cutting edge. Gasoline engine for the highway, and an electric motor that kicks in for stop- and-go traffic.

NOSEK: A lot of people notice the car. And I'll get a thumb's up or I'll get a wave.

HUNTINGTON: But Nosek is far from the average American car owner. Hybrid vehicles account for less than one-fifth of one percent of the cars currently on the American road. And while demand for them has spiked with gas prices, even the most optimistic projections put hybrids at only about two percent of all American passenger cars by 2010.

That's because size still matters. DeLain Climmons and her husband Gerald (ph) own two SUVs, and they are in the mainstream. Living in Atlanta, they don't neat four-wheel drive. But they like feeling safe and say it's worth the higher fuel bill. Elaine is a real estate broker and uses her Toyota Sequoia as an office on wheels.

DELAIN CLIMMONS, SUV OWNER: Before I bought this SUV, I drove a small Mazda. It was mid-sized. And when I had clients in the car, a lot of times we were shoulder to shoulder. So it was a little bit too cozy.

HUNTINGTON: And she is philosophical about gas prices.

CLIMMONS: I need gas in my car, I need my car to make a living. And there is nothing that I can really do to influence the price of gas either way.

HUNTINGTON: Walter McManus studies American driving and car- buying habits. He drives an SUV.

WALTER MCMANUS, UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN: The gas price probably has to be in the neighborhood of $5, which is kind of what it is in Europe, before you see significant change in the kinds of vehicles people buy.

HUNTINGTON: McManus stresses that fuel efficiency is just one of many factors, from size and horsepower, to cup holders that Americans consider when buying a car. DeLain Climmons knows what she wants.

CLIMMONS: Even though I might consider a hybrid in the future, I do have more of a sense of security with a larger vehicle.

HUNTINGTON: Rick Nosek swears he'll never go back and has only one complaint about his hybrid.

NOSEK: I wish I had about one more inch of leg room in the driver's side.

HUNTINGTON: But he says the mileage he gets and the example he sets make up for that.

NOSEK: It makes me feel like I'm actually pulling one over on the oil companies.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HUNTINGTON: Now, if the president's proposal of raising the tax credit available on hybrids goes through and becomes law, that could indeed inspire more production of hybrids. But, Daryn, the problem right now is that the major automakers are really just producing a very, very small amount.

As we showed you in the report there, the most optimistic projections would only put hybrids at about two percent of all vehicles on the road by 2010. So unless the automakers dramatically increase the output of hybrids into the marketplace -- and they're frankly reluctant to do that until they're sure of the demand -- then really this is just going to be a drop in the bucket, so to speak, of the impact on fuel use in this country.

KAGAN: And so, meantime, we see hybrids up on eBay with like $2,000 or $3,000 sticker -- not sticker price, but the price increase on top of that.

HUNTINGTON: Yes, you're seeing -- you're seeing -- and there's a lot of anecdotal evidence, particularly out in California, of people right now paying a premium for the hybrids. This could be a short- term phenomenon, and it may by a signal to the automakers that there really is demand out there.

And I've been -- we've been having extensive conversations with the automakers, Ford in particular, which has a hybrid SUV, the Escape, and is planning to make a Mercury version of the same vehicle. They're trying to gauge how many of these they should crank out. And it's a difficult think for the automakers. They don't want to have these things sitting on the lot.

KAGAN: That is the last thing an autmoaker wants. Chris Huntington, thank you.

HUNTINGTON: You're welcome.

KAGAN: We're going to do a little counting ahead of our own. One, two, three, four, five -- five babies. A surrogate mother gives birth to quintuplets. How the babies and parents are doing -- all the parents -- coming up next.

And there's new hope for those battling breast cancer. Health news coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAGAN: I want to show you videotape we're just getting in from Santa Maria, California. Michael Jackson arriving at the courthouse today for another day of testimony in his child molestation trial.

Today a key day. His ex-wife, Debbie Rowe, will be taking the stand. She'll be testifying about a taped interview she gave back in 2004. It's considered a blow to the defense that she's being allowed to testify, and yet her testimony will be restricted to very specific areas.

More from Santa Maria just ahead.

A woman in Arizona delivers on her promise to help a childless couple become parents. And boy, I mean, boy, did she ever deliver.

Teresa Anderson gave birth to five baby boys. Doctors say four of the babies are doing well and should be able to go home in a few weeks. The other will have to undergo surgeries to correct a heart defect.

Anderson, by the way, did waive the $15,000 surrogate fee to help out this newly--expanded family. Congratulations to all of them.

There is some encouraging news in the fight against breast cancer. Researchers say a drug used to treat the sickest patients now shows promise in helping even more women than that.

Our medical correspondent, Elizabeth Cohen, is here with details and our "Daily Dose" of health news.

Good morning.

ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Good morning.

Daryn, the drug is called Herceptin. And doctors used to think it would only help women who had advanced breast cancer. In other words, breast cancer that had spread to other parts of the body. But now, a new study -- studies, I should say, from the National Cancer Institute show that it actually can help women who have early stage breast cancer.

They looked at more than 3,000 women, and here's what they found.

They found that these women who had early stage breast cancer, when they were only given chemotherapy, they had a 15 percent chance -- or rather a 30 percent chance that their cancer would come back. So chemo alone, 30 percent chance that the cancer would come back.

But the women who got chemotherapy plus Herceptin had only a 15 percent chance that their cancer would come back. That obviously is a huge difference. In fact, these results are so promising that doctors released them early so that all women with breast cancer would have access to the information.

Now, there are two caveats. One, is that this is a very expensive drug. A round of treatment almost $25,000. Women without health insurance could really face some challenges here. Also, Daryn, this drug appears to cause congestive heart failure in some women. So women do have to be very carefully monitored.

KAGAN: Another one of those where you might have to make a choice.

COHEN: That's right.

KAGAN: So does it apply to all women with breast cancer?

COHEN: It doesn't apply to all women. You have to have a very specific kind of breast cancer. One out of four women have this kind of breast cancer that Herceptin appears to be able to help.

KAGAN: So they had this "oh wow" moment, look, it works, but do they know how it works and why it works?

COHEN: They do know how it works, because they've been using it in women with advanced breast cancer for so long. And the way that it works is that it attacks a very specific protein called HER-2. It attacks the protein, and it can even kill the cancer cells, or at least slow down their growth.

It's really a new generation of breast cancer drugs. It's very different from chemotherapy and works well with chemotherapy.

KAGAN: Thanks for that update. A lot of people will be interested in that. Elizabeth, thank you.

And for your "Daily Dose" of health news online, log on to our Web site. You'll find the latest medical stories, special reports, and a health library. The address is cnn.com/health.

We're going to go ahead and check in on weather.

(WEATHER REPORT)

KAGAN: The scrutiny of steroids in the sports world has now turned to football. The government and the NFL tackling the issue today with hearings on Capitol Hill. A live report coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAGAN: We are very close to the half-hour. Good morning once again. I'm Daryn Kagan. Let's take a look what's happening "Now in the News."

The man who will be Iraq's new prime minister says a vote on a government will come tomorrow in the transitional assembly. Ibrahim al-Jaafari submitted his list of cabinet officials today. He did not reveal any names, but al-Jaafari says the government will reflect Iraq's diverse ethnic population.

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 27, 2005 - 10:59   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: Here's a look at what's happening right "Now in the News."
House Speaker Dennis Hastert says he's willing to repeal new ethics rules that came under fire from Democrats. Democrats said the changes were designed to protect embattled Majority Leader Tom DeLay. Hastert made the announcement within the last half-hour. You saw it live right here on CNN.

A suspect has been arrested in a string of arsons in the D.C. area. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms says the arrest was made in Maryland today. The serial arsonist is suspected in more than 40 fires in the area.

The man who will be Iraq's new prime minister says a vote on a government will come tomorrow in the transitional assembly. Ibrahim al-Jaafari submitted his list of cabinet officials today. He did not reveal any names, but al-Jaafari says the government will reflect Iraq's diverse ethnic population.

Police in Iraq say a female member of the Iraqi National Assembly was assassinated today. She was gunned down outside her house in eastern Baghdad.

The woman is the first assembly member killed since the January 30 elections. But there had been other attempted assassinations in recent days.

Accounting firm Arthur Andersen is before the Supreme Court this morning trying to overturn a criminal conviction stemming from the Enron scandal. The firm was convicted of corruptly encouraging employees to shred tons of Enron documents. Arthur Andersen is challenging the judge's instructions to the jury.

Just a minute past 11:00 a.m. on the East Coast. For those of you joining us from the West, 8:00 a.m. for you.

From CNN Center in Atlanta, good morning once again. I'm Daryn Kagan.

First, to the Michael Jackson trial. At this hour, they shared a three-year marriage and two children. And undoubtedly, there are a lot of secrets there. Today, Debbie Rowe is a witness for prosecution in the child molestation trial. Court begins in 30 minutes.

CNN's Ted Rowlands gives us a preview now from Santa Maria, California. (BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

TED ROWLANDS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Debbie Rowe, Michael Jackson's ex-wife, is expected on the stand this morning. What she says could make or break the conspiracy portion of the prosecution's case against Jackson. Rowe is expected to say that Jackson himself is in the middle of a deal to get her to participate in a pro-Michael Jackson video.

CRAIG SMITH, LEGAL ANALYST: Given what they're left with, Debbie Rowe is probably their strongest way to finish up. She brings with her the aura that she's an insider and has information to tell about what really went on with Michael Jackson and what it's like to live there.

ROWLANDS: But Rowe may be unable or unwilling to say too much about Jackson. She's currently involved in a custody battle with him, and Judge Rodney Melville has indicated that he plans to restrict her testimony.

ANDREW COHEN, LEGAL ANALYST: And I think she's going to given instant credibility because of who she is, her relationship with Jackson and what she may know. And the unanswered question is, how much does she get to say before Thomas Mesereau and the judge cut her off?

ROWLANDS: In court yesterday, a travel consultant said she was told by a Jackson associate to arrange a one-way trip for the accuser's family to Brazil. A former Jackson photographer then took the stand and said he overheard a telephone conversation about "getting the family out of the country."

Prosecutors hope both witnesses will help bolster the claim that Jackson and his associates planned to force the accuser's family to Brazil. The same travel consultant has been questioned by the FBI about her role in secretly videotaping Jackson on a private flight that she organized.

(on camera): The photographer, Hamid Moslehi, will be on the stand when court resumes. Debbie Rowe is expected to be next. Prosecutors say they will be finished presenting evidence in their case by the end of the week.

Ted Rowlands, CNN, Santa Maria, California.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KAGAN: Topping our CNN "Security Watch," concerns about the nation's color-coded terror alert system. A House committee takes up a bill today that says the system is too vague.

There's a look at it. It calls for other ways of communicating threat information to the public.

Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff has said he's considering changes to the system. But he says he has no plans to scrap the color-coded warnings entirely.

The future of the Patriot Act is the focus of a hearing under way. Live picture there from the Senate Intelligence Committee.

Some provisions of the law will expire at the end of the year unless Congress renews them. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, FBI director, Robert Mueller, and CIA director, Porter Goss, are among those testifying today. The Patriot Act was passed in the wake of the September 11 attacks to give the federal government broader powers in fighting terrorism.

An Algerian man faces sentencing today for plotting to bomb Los Angeles International Airport on the eve of the millennium. The hearing for Ahmed Ressam is set to begin at the bottom of the hour. He was caught smuggling explosives into the U.S. in December of 1999.

Prosecutors say Ressam was providing them with information on terror cells and camps. But he has stopped cooperating. They are asking for a sentence of 35 years behind bars.

A Senate panel is examining just how vulnerable the country's chemical plants are to terrorists. By some estimates out there, an attack on a plant near an urban area could kill as many as one million people. The Department of Homeland Security says it has identified 300 plants that pose the greatest risk. Officials say that security has been improved at 160 of those facilities.

There's a new Florida gun law taking effect October 1. It's called Stand Your Ground, and it allows residents to use deadly force in public if they believe they're being attacked. No longer is there a legal duty to retreat. Critics say the new law will turn Florida into a tropical wild west.

Here now, CNN's John Zarrella.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JOHN ZARRELLA, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A year and a half ago, Greg Drewes lost his only son.

JOHN DREWES, VICTIM'S FATHER: That's him, that's Mark. That's about three weeks before it happened.

ZARRELLA: The man who shot and killed Mark Drewes said he was sorry.

JAY LEWIS, DEFENDANT: I want to apologize to the Drewes family for their loss and for the mistake I made that night. And every day I think about your son.

ZARRELLA: The night he died, Mark Drewes and some friends were playing door-knocking pranks. Jay Levens told police he was scared. He had heard sounds outside his door, thought it was a burglar.

When he opened the door, Levens said he thought Drewes was armed and turning towards him. He shot Drewes in the back. Levens pleaded guilty to manslaughter. If the incident happened today there might have been no punishment for the man who shot Greg Drewes's son.

DREWES: It's a bad joke. It's an unbelievable, bad joke.

ZARRELLA: Under a new Florida law, the state attorney who handled the case says he might not have been able to file criminal charges.

BARRY KRISCHER, PALM BEACH CO. STATE ATTORNEY: It was my belief that it was as reasonable for him to have merely shut the door, rather than pull the trigger. Under this law, he has no obligation to shut the door. Under this law, he has a right to stand there and shoot.

ZARRELLA: The legislation, signed into law by Governor Jeb Bush, says any person can stand their ground, meet force with force, if he or she believes it's necessary to prevent death or bodily harm. There is no longer a duty to retreat, whether in your house, your car or on the street. Common sense, says the governor.

GOV. JEB BUSH (R), FLORIDA: When there's a life-threatening situation, to have to retreat and put yourself in a very precarious position defies common sense.

ZARRELLA: The Florida legislature overwhelmingly supported the bill, which was backed by the National Rifle Association. It's the kind of law the NRA says will reduce crime rates.

MARION HAMMER, NRA ACTIVIST: The law is constructed to give law- abiding people the right to protect themselves when they are attacked. I think the message to criminals is going to be -- you break into a home, you run the risk of being shot. You attack people on the street, you run the risk of being shot.

ZARRELLA: Greg Drewes fears some people will simply take advantage of it.

DREWES: You shoot somebody in anger, what are you going to say? I did it -- I made a mistake. I wasn't in danger at all. Take me away? They're all going to lie. They're all going to say, I did it protecting myself. I was in definite fear of my life.

ZARRELLA: Some states already have similar measures. Critics say the laws give people the opportunity to use deadly force even when it isn't necessary. Supporters say law-abiding people can now protect themselves without fear of prosecution.

John Zarrella, CNN, Boca Raton, Florida.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KAGAN: CNN "Security Watch" keeps up to date on safety. Stay tuned day and night for the most reliable news about your security.

Rising gas prices and unhappy consumers. President Bush is offering another energy strategy. What's his new plan? We'll take a look.

And the super star of planes takes off for its maiden voyage. We go along for the superjumbo. That story is coming up.

And a bride bites her future husband before the wedding vows. That was a little glitch in a not so traditional ceremony from India. We'll take a look at that as well.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(STOCK MARKET REPORT)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAGAN: President Bush is faced with some rising gas prices and some unhappy motorists. So he's going to tweak his energy strategy today.

Senior officials says he'll propose a plan to convert closed military bases into new oil refineries. There hasn't been a new one built in the U.S. in almost 30 years. Mr. Bush will also call on Congress to make it easier to build new nuclear power plants. The last one of those was built in the U.S. in 1973.

The president is feeling some political sting from record-high gas prices. An ABC-"Washington Post" poll finding barely a third of Americans approve of his energy policy. Fifty-four percent say they do not like it.

President Bush's energy speech you can see live here on CNN. You can watch it just shortly after 2:00 p.m. Eastern. That is 11:00 for those of you in the West.

President Bush's energy strategy also includes a tax credit when you buy a hybrid vehicle, up to $4,000. But, here's the catch: CNN's Chris Huntington reports now that America's love affair with the SUV isn't tanking just quite yet.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CHRIS HUNTINGTON, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Rick Nosek is sitting pretty in his Toyota Prius hybrid.

RICK NOSEK, HYBRID OWNER: In the old days, when I drove a van, and it would cost me $90 a week to gas up, now I'm gassing up every two weeks. It's costing me about $16.

HUNTINGTON: Nosek says he get 40 to 50 miles per gallon. That's 10 less than the stated mileage for his model. But he enjoys the attention he receives for driving on the cutting edge. Gasoline engine for the highway, and an electric motor that kicks in for stop- and-go traffic.

NOSEK: A lot of people notice the car. And I'll get a thumb's up or I'll get a wave.

HUNTINGTON: But Nosek is far from the average American car owner. Hybrid vehicles account for less than one-fifth of one percent of the cars currently on the American road. And while demand for them has spiked with gas prices, even the most optimistic projections put hybrids at only about two percent of all American passenger cars by 2010.

That's because size still matters. DeLain Climmons and her husband Gerald (ph) own two SUVs, and they are in the mainstream. Living in Atlanta, they don't neat four-wheel drive. But they like feeling safe and say it's worth the higher fuel bill. Elaine is a real estate broker and uses her Toyota Sequoia as an office on wheels.

DELAIN CLIMMONS, SUV OWNER: Before I bought this SUV, I drove a small Mazda. It was mid-sized. And when I had clients in the car, a lot of times we were shoulder to shoulder. So it was a little bit too cozy.

HUNTINGTON: And she is philosophical about gas prices.

CLIMMONS: I need gas in my car, I need my car to make a living. And there is nothing that I can really do to influence the price of gas either way.

HUNTINGTON: Walter McManus studies American driving and car- buying habits. He drives an SUV.

WALTER MCMANUS, UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN: The gas price probably has to be in the neighborhood of $5, which is kind of what it is in Europe, before you see significant change in the kinds of vehicles people buy.

HUNTINGTON: McManus stresses that fuel efficiency is just one of many factors, from size and horsepower, to cup holders that Americans consider when buying a car. DeLain Climmons knows what she wants.

CLIMMONS: Even though I might consider a hybrid in the future, I do have more of a sense of security with a larger vehicle.

HUNTINGTON: Rick Nosek swears he'll never go back and has only one complaint about his hybrid.

NOSEK: I wish I had about one more inch of leg room in the driver's side.

HUNTINGTON: But he says the mileage he gets and the example he sets make up for that.

NOSEK: It makes me feel like I'm actually pulling one over on the oil companies.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HUNTINGTON: Now, if the president's proposal of raising the tax credit available on hybrids goes through and becomes law, that could indeed inspire more production of hybrids. But, Daryn, the problem right now is that the major automakers are really just producing a very, very small amount.

As we showed you in the report there, the most optimistic projections would only put hybrids at about two percent of all vehicles on the road by 2010. So unless the automakers dramatically increase the output of hybrids into the marketplace -- and they're frankly reluctant to do that until they're sure of the demand -- then really this is just going to be a drop in the bucket, so to speak, of the impact on fuel use in this country.

KAGAN: And so, meantime, we see hybrids up on eBay with like $2,000 or $3,000 sticker -- not sticker price, but the price increase on top of that.

HUNTINGTON: Yes, you're seeing -- you're seeing -- and there's a lot of anecdotal evidence, particularly out in California, of people right now paying a premium for the hybrids. This could be a short- term phenomenon, and it may by a signal to the automakers that there really is demand out there.

And I've been -- we've been having extensive conversations with the automakers, Ford in particular, which has a hybrid SUV, the Escape, and is planning to make a Mercury version of the same vehicle. They're trying to gauge how many of these they should crank out. And it's a difficult think for the automakers. They don't want to have these things sitting on the lot.

KAGAN: That is the last thing an autmoaker wants. Chris Huntington, thank you.

HUNTINGTON: You're welcome.

KAGAN: We're going to do a little counting ahead of our own. One, two, three, four, five -- five babies. A surrogate mother gives birth to quintuplets. How the babies and parents are doing -- all the parents -- coming up next.

And there's new hope for those battling breast cancer. Health news coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAGAN: I want to show you videotape we're just getting in from Santa Maria, California. Michael Jackson arriving at the courthouse today for another day of testimony in his child molestation trial.

Today a key day. His ex-wife, Debbie Rowe, will be taking the stand. She'll be testifying about a taped interview she gave back in 2004. It's considered a blow to the defense that she's being allowed to testify, and yet her testimony will be restricted to very specific areas.

More from Santa Maria just ahead.

A woman in Arizona delivers on her promise to help a childless couple become parents. And boy, I mean, boy, did she ever deliver.

Teresa Anderson gave birth to five baby boys. Doctors say four of the babies are doing well and should be able to go home in a few weeks. The other will have to undergo surgeries to correct a heart defect.

Anderson, by the way, did waive the $15,000 surrogate fee to help out this newly--expanded family. Congratulations to all of them.

There is some encouraging news in the fight against breast cancer. Researchers say a drug used to treat the sickest patients now shows promise in helping even more women than that.

Our medical correspondent, Elizabeth Cohen, is here with details and our "Daily Dose" of health news.

Good morning.

ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Good morning.

Daryn, the drug is called Herceptin. And doctors used to think it would only help women who had advanced breast cancer. In other words, breast cancer that had spread to other parts of the body. But now, a new study -- studies, I should say, from the National Cancer Institute show that it actually can help women who have early stage breast cancer.

They looked at more than 3,000 women, and here's what they found.

They found that these women who had early stage breast cancer, when they were only given chemotherapy, they had a 15 percent chance -- or rather a 30 percent chance that their cancer would come back. So chemo alone, 30 percent chance that the cancer would come back.

But the women who got chemotherapy plus Herceptin had only a 15 percent chance that their cancer would come back. That obviously is a huge difference. In fact, these results are so promising that doctors released them early so that all women with breast cancer would have access to the information.

Now, there are two caveats. One, is that this is a very expensive drug. A round of treatment almost $25,000. Women without health insurance could really face some challenges here. Also, Daryn, this drug appears to cause congestive heart failure in some women. So women do have to be very carefully monitored.

KAGAN: Another one of those where you might have to make a choice.

COHEN: That's right.

KAGAN: So does it apply to all women with breast cancer?

COHEN: It doesn't apply to all women. You have to have a very specific kind of breast cancer. One out of four women have this kind of breast cancer that Herceptin appears to be able to help.

KAGAN: So they had this "oh wow" moment, look, it works, but do they know how it works and why it works?

COHEN: They do know how it works, because they've been using it in women with advanced breast cancer for so long. And the way that it works is that it attacks a very specific protein called HER-2. It attacks the protein, and it can even kill the cancer cells, or at least slow down their growth.

It's really a new generation of breast cancer drugs. It's very different from chemotherapy and works well with chemotherapy.

KAGAN: Thanks for that update. A lot of people will be interested in that. Elizabeth, thank you.

And for your "Daily Dose" of health news online, log on to our Web site. You'll find the latest medical stories, special reports, and a health library. The address is cnn.com/health.

We're going to go ahead and check in on weather.

(WEATHER REPORT)

KAGAN: The scrutiny of steroids in the sports world has now turned to football. The government and the NFL tackling the issue today with hearings on Capitol Hill. A live report coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAGAN: We are very close to the half-hour. Good morning once again. I'm Daryn Kagan. Let's take a look what's happening "Now in the News."

The man who will be Iraq's new prime minister says a vote on a government will come tomorrow in the transitional assembly. Ibrahim al-Jaafari submitted his list of cabinet officials today. He did not reveal any names, but al-Jaafari says the government will reflect Iraq's diverse ethnic population.

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