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American Morning
A Discussion With First Lady Laura Bush; An Unusual Move by Authorities in Orlando Trying to Crack Internet Child Porn Case
Aired April 28, 2005 - 09:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Headlines now with Carol Costello.
Good morning, Carol.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: I don't think I need to hear any more of that.
BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: A little more.
COSTELLO: I'm just kidding.
Good morning, everyone.
Now in the news, a woman in Duluth, Georgia, missing just days before her wedding. Police now saying the search for her has become a criminal investigation. Thirty-two-year-old Jennifer Wilbanks went jogging on Tuesday night. She has not been heard from since. Officials say they have very few clues in the case.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MAJ. DON WOODRUFF, DULUTH POLICE DEPT.: Based on the circumstances of her disappearance, according to family members and friends, this is totally uncharacteristic of her. It's been suggested by some that she had premarital jitters. Family and friends completely dismissed that and say that this is totally out of her character, and that being the case, we feel that, you know, we have to classify it as a criminal investigation and proceed forward in that respect.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: Wilbanks' family is urging anyone with information in the case to come forward. Police say the wedding scheduled for this Saturday has of course been called off.
In the Middle East, Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas telling militants to keep calm or risk their lives. Abbas threatened earlier today to use an iron fist against anyone who violated a ceasefire with Israel. Abbas says the peace plan will continue until at least the summer, when Israel settlers are planning to withdraw from Gaza.
Out in California, Michael Jackson set to face his ex-wife Debbie Rowe on the stand. She's due for a second day of testimony. Rowe told jurors Wednesday she agreed to help Jackson rebut a damaging TV documentary because she hoped it would help her gain more access to her children. But then contradicted the prosecution, saying the interview was not scripted or rehearsed.
And it appears actor Tom Cruise has found himself a new gal. Katie Holmes, the former "Dawson's Creek" actress. She's 16 years younger than Cruise, just in case you wanted to know. The actors' reps confirms the two have been an item for just a few weeks, but they announced it in Rome. They were holding hands. He's 42, she's 26, and...
O'BRIEN: She was previously engaged to Chris Klein. The called that off after five years.
COSTELLO: Just in March.
O'BRIEN: How do I know that? I don't know, but I do.
COSTELLO: See, there are a lot of questions about this, Bill.
HEMMER: You guys are upset about this, aren't you?
O'BRIEN: No, good for them. I wish them the most happiness, blah, blah, blah. We'll be talking about it again when they're all dating other people in a year.
(CROSSTALK)
COSTELLO: True.
O'BRIEN: That's true.
HEMMER: The first lady Laura Bush visiting a middle school today in California this morning, promoting her new outreach program, called Helping America's Youth. That focuses on faith-based and community programs that help ensure young people a successful people.
Dana Bash is traveling with Mrs. Bush, and she sat down with the first lady in an interview you'll only see here on CNN.
Dana, good morning.
DANA BASH, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Bill.
And you know, Laura Bush is moving beyond promoting education and books, and she's taking on what seems like an unlikely issue for a librarian from Midland, Texas, and that's gangs. She yesterday in Los Angeles met for the first time face to face with some former gang members trying to make good. She was promoting a program there to help give them jobs.
Now this is a first lady trying to step out a bit, but she's still quite careful about issues she chooses to weigh in on, and it's that caution many see as a major factor in her enormous popularity.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BASH: Mrs. Bush, I think you are well aware that your approval rating is 85 percent, but you might not be aware that, just to sort of put that in perspective, that's higher than the pope's was right before he died. So I guess my question for you is, why do you think your approval rating is so high?
LAURA BUSH, FIRST LADY OF THE UNITED STATES: Well, I have no idea. And I'm very flattered of course. But also I know that I have the opportunity to point out programs like this, and I think Americans like that. I know that Americans want to know how they can help.
BASH: During the campaign, you also did take on some pretty high-profile roles, campaigning for your husband, of course, talking about some other issues like the war in Iraq, like stem-cell research, and for example, the White House just finished a 60-day tour, trying to sell the president's Social Security reform proposal, something that polls show needs some help. So...
BUSH: Am I going to go on the road for Social Security?
BASH: Mean, why not take on issues that -- to use your popularity, for example, to help your husband, like you did during the campaign, on an issue like Social Security?
BUSH: Well, that's a very good question. Maybe I'll do that. But I'm having a really great time pointing out the programs I've visited for the last three days while we've been traveling here on the West Coast. And I think that's really where my expertise is. And I think it's really a better use of my time really.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BASH: So despite being President Bush's not so secret weapon during the campaign, she is at least for now not parlaying that into helping him with his second-term priorities, troubled ones, like Social Security.
But Mrs. Bush, the private Mrs. Bush, is known for being a calming presence for her husband, even someone who perhaps quietly puts him in his place from time to time, but beyond loving books and family, the private Laura Bush is still somewhat of a mystery.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BASH: This is your, you're well in your fifth year in office.
BUSH: Um-hum.
BASH: And although we think we know you, there are a lot of sort of issues in terms of the personal you that we don't know about. Surprise me, tell me, is there something that the public simply doesn't know that perhaps would surprise them about Laura Bush?
BUSH: They may not know that I love music and that I like to listen to rock and roll and that sort of music like that, and have a very large record collection from my youth.
Let's see what else they might not know. I know they know I love to read. That's something that's really... BUSH: Guilty pleasures?
BASH: It's very important for me.
Not really, you know.
BASH: "Desperate Housewives" maybe?
BUSH: No, not really. I don't watch "Desperate Housewives," but I do have a stack of the DVDs of the first series which I keep saying I'm going to watch, but so far I haven't.
BASH: Recommended by your daughters, I assume?
BUSH: Recommended by a daughters, exactly.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BASH: Now Mrs. Bush insists that she and the president really haven't changed much, even now, as she mentioned, now going into their fifth year in office. But she says they do feel liberated now that they're in their second term, but she does enjoy sneaking out, sometimes to go to restaurants, to shop. She even went hiking in Death Valley recently, all, she says, an attempt to try to keep a normal life, but she does insist, Bill, that she always takes her Secret Service with her.
HEMMER: And we'll get to back to her, too, on the reviews she has for those DVDs, whenever she finds the time.
BASH: Yes, absolutely.
HEMMER: Thanks, Dana, Bash in San Francisco.
The president holds a primetime news conference later tonight, expected to talk about Social Security and rising gas prices. CNN has primetime coverage, 8:00 Eastern here on CNN -- Soledad.
O'BRIEN: Well, an unusual move by authorities in Orlando who are desperately trying to crack an Internet child porn case. They released a picture of a young girl who may be an important witness in their investigation.
Dave Mattingly reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DAVID MATTINGLY, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Her face remains hidden to the public, but she is well known to child porn investigators around the world who are desperately trying to find her in ways they've never dared before.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We are releasing the photograph of the material witness in hope that if a citizen can identify her, it will greatly increase the chances of successfully identifying the perpetrator and recovering the victim. MATTINGLY: Orlando police now take the extraordinary step of going public with a child they believe is a material witness in the case, about 9 years old in this picture when it was taken a couple of years ago. Investigators have no evidence she is a victim or witnessed any acts of abuse. But they believe she is sitting on the same couch in the same room where this highly sought after girl was photographed being sexually abused.
A tip line has been set up in Central Florida to take calls from anywhere, 1-866-635-HELP. Find the girl on the couch, investigators hope, and they will find their victim.
DET. SGT. PAUL GILLESPIE, TORONTO POLICE: I'm confident that the victim perhaps knows this person and this witness might be able to help us out with that.
MATTINGLY: On the trail of this case for years, Paul Gillespie of the Toronto Police Child Exploitation Unit has been hampered, he says, by secrecy. It's been the rule in law enforcement to never reveal the faces of child pornography victims out of fear that it could place the child in danger from the abuser. But according to Gillespie, it's a rule, he says, that needs to be changed.
GILLESPIE: I think we have to take into account that we have to start taking, perhaps, a little more aggressive measures to get in and break this cycle.
MATTINGLY: Using computers earlier this year, Toronto detectives removed the victim girl from her own pictures and re-created the rooms behind her. Pictures they could then show to the public.
And it paid off, someone recognized a bed spread from an Orlando resort. It was an unheard of break, but the hotel records, with thousands of names, didn't take them very far.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think those records are going to prove valuable from an historical standpoint. But at this point, we have no idea who we're looking for. So one name means nothing more than the next name at this point.
MATTINGLY: Investigators believe this potential witness photograph is their last, best hope. Years spent scouring more than 200 photographs of the unknown victim have yielded few usable clues. If this girl's photograph doesn't help find their victim, more extreme measure, they say, may be taken.
(on camera): How close are you to releasing this girl's picture?
GILLESPIE: That's always going to be an option, to be quite honest with you.
MATTINGLY: If that comes to pass, it would be a landmark step in the fight against child pornography. But for now, investigators in two countries wait, hoping the next phone call brings the break they've been looking for.
David Mattingly, CNN, Orlando, Florida.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
O'BRIEN: Police believe the abuser is a family member or a close relative of the victim. If you've got any information about the case, we have the number that you can call on our Web site. Go to CNN.com.
(WEATHER REPORT)
HEMMER: Diet plans are not cheap, but there are ways to save money and make them more effective. Some tips coming up in a moment. We promised this. We'll get to it.
O'BRIEN: Also, man bites dognapper in Boston. You're not going to believe what one owner went through to try to recover his stolen puppy. That story's up next on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
O'BRIEN: With two-thirds of Americans considered overweight or obese, it is no surprise that dieting is a multibillion-dollar business. According to a "Forbes" survey, the average American spends 55 bucks a week on food, while the average dieter spends about $85 on average.
Why are weight-loss plans so costly? What's a dieter to do? Leah Hoffman from forbes.com joins us to talk about all of that.
Nice to see you. Good morning.
LEAH HOFFMAN, FORBES.COM: Hi. Good morning.
O'BRIEN: Were you surprised that they were more expensive. Many people would say, hey, you know, fresh fruits, fresh vegetables, all of those things are usually part of a diet. They are going to cost more.
HOFFMAN: Well, we were surprised that they were expensive. We were surprised that they were so expensive.
O'BRIEN: And in fat, if you look at numbers, let's go through the most expensive. At the top of the list, Jenny Craig, $137 more, almost $138. Atkins, over $100 a week for the diet.
HOFFMAN: Right.
O'BRIEN: Why are they so expensive?
HOFFMAN: Well, there are two main reasons. I mean, with Jenny Craig and Nutri Systems, you've got companies that are delivering all of your meals, and you're going to pay for that service.
With other diets like Atkins and South Beach, for instance, you know, they try to make their recipes more entertaining, and you've got some expensive ingredients, or you have a very long shopping list, and that adds up. O'BRIEN: All those things add up to extra money at the end of the day. When you look at some of the less expensive, again, still above the average non-dieter's bill for the week. Ornish, $78.74. Subway, you have there, even though Subway's not really an official diet, coming in at $68.60.
HOFFMAN: Sure, sure. Right.
O'BRIEN: Is there a sense that, hey, a more expensive diet like Jenny Craig is significantly more effective than the Subway diet, which sort of people have made up, but seems to work for to some?
HOFFMAN: Right. Well, I mean, the short answer is no. Different things work for different people, but you know, scientific studies have shown that long-term, most of these fad diets are not effective in helping people keep the weight off.
O'BRIEN: You've talked to a zillion nutritionists in the work for doing this article. What have they told you about ways that a dieter could shave off some the cost? I would imagine for Jenny Craig and Nutri Systems, no way.
HOFFMAN: Right. Well, I mean, most of the nutritionists we spoke to said that it's very simple, you just have to eat less, control your portions and get outside and exercise.
O'BRIEN: So it's less about buying the more expensive ingredients and really just about having the giant portion that you would eat.
HOFFMAN: Right, right.
O'BRIEN: You could cut that cost in half.
HOFFMAN: That's right. You could.
O'BRIEN: Good thinking.
I was surprised to read also, you said you think a lot of these diets paid lip service to exercise.
HOFFMAN: Yes, I mean, these diets do tell you, as people probably already know, you know, getting outside and getting some exercise is good for you, but really incorporating that into your daily routine is so important for losing weight, and for maintaining it.
O'BRIEN: At the end of the day, maybe you spend that $180 a week on a really good pair of running shoes.
HOFFMAN: That's right. I wouldn't do that.
O'BRIEN: Eat whatever you want for one week and buy a new pair of running shoes and get out there and get some exercise.
Leah, nice to have you. Thanks for talking with us, again, from Forbes.com -- Bill.
HOFFMAN: Thanks so much.
HEMMER: All right, Soledad.
"CNN LIVE TODAY" is up next hour.
Daryn Kagan, what you working on, Daryn? Good morning.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: Oh, Bill, we have a lot happening this morning, including shoring up the shores. We're going to show you brand new technology designed to thwart terrorists and keeps weapons of mass destruction out of the U.S. It's a CNN security watch.
And you know, we're all sick of paying those high gas prices, but the pain at the pump is actually proving profitable for some. We are talking billions of dollars. Find out how much and who is getting all the cash on "CNN LIVE TODAY."
HEMMER: See you in 13 minutes, OK, Daryn. All right.
The old pill bottle is getting a big makeover, designed to help reduce the chance for error. And Andy Serwer has the new look. He has it next here, "Minding Your Business," right after this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HEMMER: A picture of health today. Andy Serwer got that. Also a bit more on the markets, too. What's happening?
ANDY SERWER, "FORTUNE" MAGAZINE: Let's talk about the Markets first of all, a bit of a have downer here, at the outset at least. There's the Big Board. You can see it's down, what is that, 64 points. Exxon reported huge numbers, but Wall Street was looking for a little bit more. More, more, more, that's Wall street. Stock is down about 2 percent.
I think the real problem this morning, though, is we got a first read on how the economy fared in the first quarter of this year. 3.1 percent was the number, that's how fast the economy is growing, the slowest in two years, not terrible, but less than what we were looking for.
Yes, let's talk about Polaroid. Of course the instant photography giant went bankrupt in October of 2001, was bought by one of those Wall Street buyout firms. Sold yesterday to a company in Minneapolis. Petters, it's called. So far so good. Top executives got $41 million, the two top guys. One of them, Jack Nasser, used to be the head of Ford, he got $12.8 million. That happens, but guess what? While they were in bankruptcy, they reneged on all of the retirees' health care benefits and all of their pensions, so each of 6,000 retirees got $47 each out of this whole thing, and that's it. I mean, it's just terrible, and you know, they get to do this, there's machinations, there's justification, but it really stinks, doesn't it?
O'BRIEN: How long was he with Polaroid? SERWER: Well, he was only there for a couple of years, subsequent to the bankruptcy, I think two or three years.
O'BRIEN: People who had years and years of service with that company walked away with $47.
SERWER: Forty-seven dollars apiece. And one retiree said it was like picking at an old scab. That's how he felt.
O'BRIEN: That's so sad.
SERWER: And then here's an interesting thing going on at your pharmacy, at least at Target. The pill bottle, which is sorely in need of a redesign, I think, is being redesigned by Target. This is really cool. Look at that. Flat, turned on its head with a label that you can actually read.
O'BRIEN: Shocking!
SERWER: It's really cool, and those rings are color coded for each family member, because you know, are those my wife's pills? Are those my husband's pills? No. I think this is going to take off, because...
HEMMER: That's target?
SERWER: It's better. Target is doing this with their pharmacies. So look for that.
HEMMER: Thank you, Andy.
O'BRIEN: The Question of the Day is about energy.
JACK CAFFERTY, CNN ANCHOR: Energy, which I'm running very low at the time we're speaking.
You know, those childproof caps they came out with on prescription bottles a few years ago, I still have trouble with those.
SERWER: Yes, grownup proof.
CAFFERTY: Yes, I mean, they're awful. New oil refineries and nuclear power plants, will they help solve the United States power problems? This is something the president's going to talk about later tonight, which I am sure we will carry right here on CNN.
Gary in Flushing, New York writes, "There's a reason we stopped building oil refineries and nuclear power plants. The first aren't necessary if you don't have the oil to refine, and the second can cause a major crisis if something goes wrong."
John in Mississippi, "It does seem curious that a president and vice president with such close ties to the energy industry waited until the situation was so bad to do anything. I guess the picture of Bush holding the hand of the Saudis was more prophetic than we knew." And Rich in Maryland writes, "It's time you media liberals stop misquoting the president. He said we need more 'nucular' power plants."
HEMMER: Thank you, Jack.
We talked about this story up in Massachusetts, right, all morning long. This guy had his truck stolen; his dog was inside. And, boy, what a story developed after that.
WCVB up in Boston, Lynn Joliker is the reporter on this story for this morning.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I was just nervous. I wanted him to be all right, and that's all I kept telling the guy.
LYNN JOLIKER, WCVB REPORTER: A whole two pounds, mostly fur, meet Dakota, victim of death threats.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He threatened to kill me about 1,000 times and, you know, kill the dog, but hey.
JOLIKER: Subject of ransom demands.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I said, we want to negotiate for the dog. He goes I want $500. I want it in an envelope.
JOLIKER: The ordeal started when Tim Connors (ph) left his pomeranian-maltese mix and his keys in his pickup outside this Quincy (ph) 7-11. I was in there I think one minute. It took 28 seconds for the guy to take the truck.
JOLIKER: Connors, who will leave all the camera time to his canine, says he immediately called his cell phone in the truck and reached the thief identified by police as Steven Sear (ph) of Salem. Connors then called the cops, and friends, including Dave Doran (ph) who helps negotiate with an agitated abductor.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You know, if I see any cops, I'm going to kill you. I've got three guns. I'm crazy.
JOLIKER: Doran followed the dognapper's demand to met him at Boston's downtown crossing, where police were waiting to pounce.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We chased him down the street and a cop on a 10-speed went by us and was able to dive on him.
JOLIKER: A moment made for the movie, complete with four-legged star and reveling rescuers.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It was the principle. Who is this guy to do this to you, you know what I mean?
JOLIKER (on camera): Were you nervous when you first approached him?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No, I was excited.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HEMMER: He's the star in all of this. He worked the magic. He set him up with the cash and everything, kind of cool.
O'BRIEN: The puppy's safe, happy ending, ad the owner's going to be next hour with Daryn, too, by the way. He was in that 7-11, he said, 29 seconds.
SERWER: And he shouldn't have left his keys.
O'BRIEN: Don't leave your keys in the truck, that's the moral.
HEMMER: Go Red Sox. You'll hear more next hour. Back in a minute.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
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Aired April 28, 2005 - 09:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Headlines now with Carol Costello.
Good morning, Carol.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: I don't think I need to hear any more of that.
BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: A little more.
COSTELLO: I'm just kidding.
Good morning, everyone.
Now in the news, a woman in Duluth, Georgia, missing just days before her wedding. Police now saying the search for her has become a criminal investigation. Thirty-two-year-old Jennifer Wilbanks went jogging on Tuesday night. She has not been heard from since. Officials say they have very few clues in the case.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MAJ. DON WOODRUFF, DULUTH POLICE DEPT.: Based on the circumstances of her disappearance, according to family members and friends, this is totally uncharacteristic of her. It's been suggested by some that she had premarital jitters. Family and friends completely dismissed that and say that this is totally out of her character, and that being the case, we feel that, you know, we have to classify it as a criminal investigation and proceed forward in that respect.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: Wilbanks' family is urging anyone with information in the case to come forward. Police say the wedding scheduled for this Saturday has of course been called off.
In the Middle East, Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas telling militants to keep calm or risk their lives. Abbas threatened earlier today to use an iron fist against anyone who violated a ceasefire with Israel. Abbas says the peace plan will continue until at least the summer, when Israel settlers are planning to withdraw from Gaza.
Out in California, Michael Jackson set to face his ex-wife Debbie Rowe on the stand. She's due for a second day of testimony. Rowe told jurors Wednesday she agreed to help Jackson rebut a damaging TV documentary because she hoped it would help her gain more access to her children. But then contradicted the prosecution, saying the interview was not scripted or rehearsed.
And it appears actor Tom Cruise has found himself a new gal. Katie Holmes, the former "Dawson's Creek" actress. She's 16 years younger than Cruise, just in case you wanted to know. The actors' reps confirms the two have been an item for just a few weeks, but they announced it in Rome. They were holding hands. He's 42, she's 26, and...
O'BRIEN: She was previously engaged to Chris Klein. The called that off after five years.
COSTELLO: Just in March.
O'BRIEN: How do I know that? I don't know, but I do.
COSTELLO: See, there are a lot of questions about this, Bill.
HEMMER: You guys are upset about this, aren't you?
O'BRIEN: No, good for them. I wish them the most happiness, blah, blah, blah. We'll be talking about it again when they're all dating other people in a year.
(CROSSTALK)
COSTELLO: True.
O'BRIEN: That's true.
HEMMER: The first lady Laura Bush visiting a middle school today in California this morning, promoting her new outreach program, called Helping America's Youth. That focuses on faith-based and community programs that help ensure young people a successful people.
Dana Bash is traveling with Mrs. Bush, and she sat down with the first lady in an interview you'll only see here on CNN.
Dana, good morning.
DANA BASH, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Bill.
And you know, Laura Bush is moving beyond promoting education and books, and she's taking on what seems like an unlikely issue for a librarian from Midland, Texas, and that's gangs. She yesterday in Los Angeles met for the first time face to face with some former gang members trying to make good. She was promoting a program there to help give them jobs.
Now this is a first lady trying to step out a bit, but she's still quite careful about issues she chooses to weigh in on, and it's that caution many see as a major factor in her enormous popularity.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BASH: Mrs. Bush, I think you are well aware that your approval rating is 85 percent, but you might not be aware that, just to sort of put that in perspective, that's higher than the pope's was right before he died. So I guess my question for you is, why do you think your approval rating is so high?
LAURA BUSH, FIRST LADY OF THE UNITED STATES: Well, I have no idea. And I'm very flattered of course. But also I know that I have the opportunity to point out programs like this, and I think Americans like that. I know that Americans want to know how they can help.
BASH: During the campaign, you also did take on some pretty high-profile roles, campaigning for your husband, of course, talking about some other issues like the war in Iraq, like stem-cell research, and for example, the White House just finished a 60-day tour, trying to sell the president's Social Security reform proposal, something that polls show needs some help. So...
BUSH: Am I going to go on the road for Social Security?
BASH: Mean, why not take on issues that -- to use your popularity, for example, to help your husband, like you did during the campaign, on an issue like Social Security?
BUSH: Well, that's a very good question. Maybe I'll do that. But I'm having a really great time pointing out the programs I've visited for the last three days while we've been traveling here on the West Coast. And I think that's really where my expertise is. And I think it's really a better use of my time really.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BASH: So despite being President Bush's not so secret weapon during the campaign, she is at least for now not parlaying that into helping him with his second-term priorities, troubled ones, like Social Security.
But Mrs. Bush, the private Mrs. Bush, is known for being a calming presence for her husband, even someone who perhaps quietly puts him in his place from time to time, but beyond loving books and family, the private Laura Bush is still somewhat of a mystery.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BASH: This is your, you're well in your fifth year in office.
BUSH: Um-hum.
BASH: And although we think we know you, there are a lot of sort of issues in terms of the personal you that we don't know about. Surprise me, tell me, is there something that the public simply doesn't know that perhaps would surprise them about Laura Bush?
BUSH: They may not know that I love music and that I like to listen to rock and roll and that sort of music like that, and have a very large record collection from my youth.
Let's see what else they might not know. I know they know I love to read. That's something that's really... BUSH: Guilty pleasures?
BASH: It's very important for me.
Not really, you know.
BASH: "Desperate Housewives" maybe?
BUSH: No, not really. I don't watch "Desperate Housewives," but I do have a stack of the DVDs of the first series which I keep saying I'm going to watch, but so far I haven't.
BASH: Recommended by your daughters, I assume?
BUSH: Recommended by a daughters, exactly.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BASH: Now Mrs. Bush insists that she and the president really haven't changed much, even now, as she mentioned, now going into their fifth year in office. But she says they do feel liberated now that they're in their second term, but she does enjoy sneaking out, sometimes to go to restaurants, to shop. She even went hiking in Death Valley recently, all, she says, an attempt to try to keep a normal life, but she does insist, Bill, that she always takes her Secret Service with her.
HEMMER: And we'll get to back to her, too, on the reviews she has for those DVDs, whenever she finds the time.
BASH: Yes, absolutely.
HEMMER: Thanks, Dana, Bash in San Francisco.
The president holds a primetime news conference later tonight, expected to talk about Social Security and rising gas prices. CNN has primetime coverage, 8:00 Eastern here on CNN -- Soledad.
O'BRIEN: Well, an unusual move by authorities in Orlando who are desperately trying to crack an Internet child porn case. They released a picture of a young girl who may be an important witness in their investigation.
Dave Mattingly reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DAVID MATTINGLY, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Her face remains hidden to the public, but she is well known to child porn investigators around the world who are desperately trying to find her in ways they've never dared before.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We are releasing the photograph of the material witness in hope that if a citizen can identify her, it will greatly increase the chances of successfully identifying the perpetrator and recovering the victim. MATTINGLY: Orlando police now take the extraordinary step of going public with a child they believe is a material witness in the case, about 9 years old in this picture when it was taken a couple of years ago. Investigators have no evidence she is a victim or witnessed any acts of abuse. But they believe she is sitting on the same couch in the same room where this highly sought after girl was photographed being sexually abused.
A tip line has been set up in Central Florida to take calls from anywhere, 1-866-635-HELP. Find the girl on the couch, investigators hope, and they will find their victim.
DET. SGT. PAUL GILLESPIE, TORONTO POLICE: I'm confident that the victim perhaps knows this person and this witness might be able to help us out with that.
MATTINGLY: On the trail of this case for years, Paul Gillespie of the Toronto Police Child Exploitation Unit has been hampered, he says, by secrecy. It's been the rule in law enforcement to never reveal the faces of child pornography victims out of fear that it could place the child in danger from the abuser. But according to Gillespie, it's a rule, he says, that needs to be changed.
GILLESPIE: I think we have to take into account that we have to start taking, perhaps, a little more aggressive measures to get in and break this cycle.
MATTINGLY: Using computers earlier this year, Toronto detectives removed the victim girl from her own pictures and re-created the rooms behind her. Pictures they could then show to the public.
And it paid off, someone recognized a bed spread from an Orlando resort. It was an unheard of break, but the hotel records, with thousands of names, didn't take them very far.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think those records are going to prove valuable from an historical standpoint. But at this point, we have no idea who we're looking for. So one name means nothing more than the next name at this point.
MATTINGLY: Investigators believe this potential witness photograph is their last, best hope. Years spent scouring more than 200 photographs of the unknown victim have yielded few usable clues. If this girl's photograph doesn't help find their victim, more extreme measure, they say, may be taken.
(on camera): How close are you to releasing this girl's picture?
GILLESPIE: That's always going to be an option, to be quite honest with you.
MATTINGLY: If that comes to pass, it would be a landmark step in the fight against child pornography. But for now, investigators in two countries wait, hoping the next phone call brings the break they've been looking for.
David Mattingly, CNN, Orlando, Florida.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
O'BRIEN: Police believe the abuser is a family member or a close relative of the victim. If you've got any information about the case, we have the number that you can call on our Web site. Go to CNN.com.
(WEATHER REPORT)
HEMMER: Diet plans are not cheap, but there are ways to save money and make them more effective. Some tips coming up in a moment. We promised this. We'll get to it.
O'BRIEN: Also, man bites dognapper in Boston. You're not going to believe what one owner went through to try to recover his stolen puppy. That story's up next on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
O'BRIEN: With two-thirds of Americans considered overweight or obese, it is no surprise that dieting is a multibillion-dollar business. According to a "Forbes" survey, the average American spends 55 bucks a week on food, while the average dieter spends about $85 on average.
Why are weight-loss plans so costly? What's a dieter to do? Leah Hoffman from forbes.com joins us to talk about all of that.
Nice to see you. Good morning.
LEAH HOFFMAN, FORBES.COM: Hi. Good morning.
O'BRIEN: Were you surprised that they were more expensive. Many people would say, hey, you know, fresh fruits, fresh vegetables, all of those things are usually part of a diet. They are going to cost more.
HOFFMAN: Well, we were surprised that they were expensive. We were surprised that they were so expensive.
O'BRIEN: And in fat, if you look at numbers, let's go through the most expensive. At the top of the list, Jenny Craig, $137 more, almost $138. Atkins, over $100 a week for the diet.
HOFFMAN: Right.
O'BRIEN: Why are they so expensive?
HOFFMAN: Well, there are two main reasons. I mean, with Jenny Craig and Nutri Systems, you've got companies that are delivering all of your meals, and you're going to pay for that service.
With other diets like Atkins and South Beach, for instance, you know, they try to make their recipes more entertaining, and you've got some expensive ingredients, or you have a very long shopping list, and that adds up. O'BRIEN: All those things add up to extra money at the end of the day. When you look at some of the less expensive, again, still above the average non-dieter's bill for the week. Ornish, $78.74. Subway, you have there, even though Subway's not really an official diet, coming in at $68.60.
HOFFMAN: Sure, sure. Right.
O'BRIEN: Is there a sense that, hey, a more expensive diet like Jenny Craig is significantly more effective than the Subway diet, which sort of people have made up, but seems to work for to some?
HOFFMAN: Right. Well, I mean, the short answer is no. Different things work for different people, but you know, scientific studies have shown that long-term, most of these fad diets are not effective in helping people keep the weight off.
O'BRIEN: You've talked to a zillion nutritionists in the work for doing this article. What have they told you about ways that a dieter could shave off some the cost? I would imagine for Jenny Craig and Nutri Systems, no way.
HOFFMAN: Right. Well, I mean, most of the nutritionists we spoke to said that it's very simple, you just have to eat less, control your portions and get outside and exercise.
O'BRIEN: So it's less about buying the more expensive ingredients and really just about having the giant portion that you would eat.
HOFFMAN: Right, right.
O'BRIEN: You could cut that cost in half.
HOFFMAN: That's right. You could.
O'BRIEN: Good thinking.
I was surprised to read also, you said you think a lot of these diets paid lip service to exercise.
HOFFMAN: Yes, I mean, these diets do tell you, as people probably already know, you know, getting outside and getting some exercise is good for you, but really incorporating that into your daily routine is so important for losing weight, and for maintaining it.
O'BRIEN: At the end of the day, maybe you spend that $180 a week on a really good pair of running shoes.
HOFFMAN: That's right. I wouldn't do that.
O'BRIEN: Eat whatever you want for one week and buy a new pair of running shoes and get out there and get some exercise.
Leah, nice to have you. Thanks for talking with us, again, from Forbes.com -- Bill.
HOFFMAN: Thanks so much.
HEMMER: All right, Soledad.
"CNN LIVE TODAY" is up next hour.
Daryn Kagan, what you working on, Daryn? Good morning.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: Oh, Bill, we have a lot happening this morning, including shoring up the shores. We're going to show you brand new technology designed to thwart terrorists and keeps weapons of mass destruction out of the U.S. It's a CNN security watch.
And you know, we're all sick of paying those high gas prices, but the pain at the pump is actually proving profitable for some. We are talking billions of dollars. Find out how much and who is getting all the cash on "CNN LIVE TODAY."
HEMMER: See you in 13 minutes, OK, Daryn. All right.
The old pill bottle is getting a big makeover, designed to help reduce the chance for error. And Andy Serwer has the new look. He has it next here, "Minding Your Business," right after this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HEMMER: A picture of health today. Andy Serwer got that. Also a bit more on the markets, too. What's happening?
ANDY SERWER, "FORTUNE" MAGAZINE: Let's talk about the Markets first of all, a bit of a have downer here, at the outset at least. There's the Big Board. You can see it's down, what is that, 64 points. Exxon reported huge numbers, but Wall Street was looking for a little bit more. More, more, more, that's Wall street. Stock is down about 2 percent.
I think the real problem this morning, though, is we got a first read on how the economy fared in the first quarter of this year. 3.1 percent was the number, that's how fast the economy is growing, the slowest in two years, not terrible, but less than what we were looking for.
Yes, let's talk about Polaroid. Of course the instant photography giant went bankrupt in October of 2001, was bought by one of those Wall Street buyout firms. Sold yesterday to a company in Minneapolis. Petters, it's called. So far so good. Top executives got $41 million, the two top guys. One of them, Jack Nasser, used to be the head of Ford, he got $12.8 million. That happens, but guess what? While they were in bankruptcy, they reneged on all of the retirees' health care benefits and all of their pensions, so each of 6,000 retirees got $47 each out of this whole thing, and that's it. I mean, it's just terrible, and you know, they get to do this, there's machinations, there's justification, but it really stinks, doesn't it?
O'BRIEN: How long was he with Polaroid? SERWER: Well, he was only there for a couple of years, subsequent to the bankruptcy, I think two or three years.
O'BRIEN: People who had years and years of service with that company walked away with $47.
SERWER: Forty-seven dollars apiece. And one retiree said it was like picking at an old scab. That's how he felt.
O'BRIEN: That's so sad.
SERWER: And then here's an interesting thing going on at your pharmacy, at least at Target. The pill bottle, which is sorely in need of a redesign, I think, is being redesigned by Target. This is really cool. Look at that. Flat, turned on its head with a label that you can actually read.
O'BRIEN: Shocking!
SERWER: It's really cool, and those rings are color coded for each family member, because you know, are those my wife's pills? Are those my husband's pills? No. I think this is going to take off, because...
HEMMER: That's target?
SERWER: It's better. Target is doing this with their pharmacies. So look for that.
HEMMER: Thank you, Andy.
O'BRIEN: The Question of the Day is about energy.
JACK CAFFERTY, CNN ANCHOR: Energy, which I'm running very low at the time we're speaking.
You know, those childproof caps they came out with on prescription bottles a few years ago, I still have trouble with those.
SERWER: Yes, grownup proof.
CAFFERTY: Yes, I mean, they're awful. New oil refineries and nuclear power plants, will they help solve the United States power problems? This is something the president's going to talk about later tonight, which I am sure we will carry right here on CNN.
Gary in Flushing, New York writes, "There's a reason we stopped building oil refineries and nuclear power plants. The first aren't necessary if you don't have the oil to refine, and the second can cause a major crisis if something goes wrong."
John in Mississippi, "It does seem curious that a president and vice president with such close ties to the energy industry waited until the situation was so bad to do anything. I guess the picture of Bush holding the hand of the Saudis was more prophetic than we knew." And Rich in Maryland writes, "It's time you media liberals stop misquoting the president. He said we need more 'nucular' power plants."
HEMMER: Thank you, Jack.
We talked about this story up in Massachusetts, right, all morning long. This guy had his truck stolen; his dog was inside. And, boy, what a story developed after that.
WCVB up in Boston, Lynn Joliker is the reporter on this story for this morning.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I was just nervous. I wanted him to be all right, and that's all I kept telling the guy.
LYNN JOLIKER, WCVB REPORTER: A whole two pounds, mostly fur, meet Dakota, victim of death threats.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He threatened to kill me about 1,000 times and, you know, kill the dog, but hey.
JOLIKER: Subject of ransom demands.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I said, we want to negotiate for the dog. He goes I want $500. I want it in an envelope.
JOLIKER: The ordeal started when Tim Connors (ph) left his pomeranian-maltese mix and his keys in his pickup outside this Quincy (ph) 7-11. I was in there I think one minute. It took 28 seconds for the guy to take the truck.
JOLIKER: Connors, who will leave all the camera time to his canine, says he immediately called his cell phone in the truck and reached the thief identified by police as Steven Sear (ph) of Salem. Connors then called the cops, and friends, including Dave Doran (ph) who helps negotiate with an agitated abductor.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You know, if I see any cops, I'm going to kill you. I've got three guns. I'm crazy.
JOLIKER: Doran followed the dognapper's demand to met him at Boston's downtown crossing, where police were waiting to pounce.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We chased him down the street and a cop on a 10-speed went by us and was able to dive on him.
JOLIKER: A moment made for the movie, complete with four-legged star and reveling rescuers.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It was the principle. Who is this guy to do this to you, you know what I mean?
JOLIKER (on camera): Were you nervous when you first approached him?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No, I was excited.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HEMMER: He's the star in all of this. He worked the magic. He set him up with the cash and everything, kind of cool.
O'BRIEN: The puppy's safe, happy ending, ad the owner's going to be next hour with Daryn, too, by the way. He was in that 7-11, he said, 29 seconds.
SERWER: And he shouldn't have left his keys.
O'BRIEN: Don't leave your keys in the truck, that's the moral.
HEMMER: Go Red Sox. You'll hear more next hour. Back in a minute.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
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