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American Morning
Bush, Blair Discuss Iraq; Controversy Surrounds Jefferson Raid; Will High Gas Prices Affect Holiday Travel?
Aired May 26, 2006 - 08:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KATHLEEN KOCH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Kathleen Koch at the White House. What mistakes does George Bush think he's made in Iraq? I'll tell you, coming up.
BOB FRANKEN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: I'm Bob Franken in Washington. The White House and Congress are snarling at each other and it's not even about immigration. That's coming up.
MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Your baby is sick and needs some surgery. But some genius at the insurance company tells you what can be done in one operation needs to be done in four. That's the rules, ma'am.
Well, does it make any sense? of course not. We'll give you some tools to fight back.
REYNOLDS WOLF, CNN METEOROLOGIST: And Memorial Day Weekend is upon us and you've got to know the travel forecast. I'll show you what to expect coming up in just a few minutes.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Plus, a major milestone to tell you about.
Remember this young lady? This is our friend, Lizzie Maloy. Remember, she shared her post-Katrina life with us? Well, now she's graduated. We've got her story and the story of her community, too, just ahead on this AMERICAN MORNING.
It was so nice to see Lizzie Maloy graduated.
M. O'BRIEN: It makes you smile, yes.
S. O'BRIEN: Remember this young lady...
WOLF: We may get a little misty.
S. O'BRIEN: ... we gave her the TV camera? Of course, her community just DVD in the wake of Hurricane Katrina.
M. O'BRIEN: Right.
S. O'BRIEN: Well, she's moving on to the next big thing.
We'll check in with her ahead this morning.
Welcome back, everybody. I'm Soledad O'Brien.
M. O'BRIEN: And I'm Miles O'Brien.
Thanks for being with us on this Friday morning.
Washington still buzzing this morning after that remarkable spectacle last night at the White House. Stanch Iraq War allies Tony Blair and George Bush admitting mistakes and missteps in the conduct of the war they championed.
All that said, the British prime minister and the president are sticking by their guns, insisting the decision to remove Saddam Hussein from power was the right call.
Kathleen Koch live now from the White House with more -- good morning, Kathleen.
KOCH: Good morning, Miles.
And, yes, the two men did present a united front on this war that they launched together more than three years ago. They know it's been divisive. They know that it will, indeed, determine their legacies as presidents. But they both, as they spoke at length on Iraq, insisted that despite the heavy costs, that removing Saddam Hussein was certainly, in their opinion, still, today, the right thing to do.
President Bush also deflected a question about whether now that Iraq has a new government, whether U.S. troops can start coming home.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I have -- I will talk to General Casey. Once he has conferred with the new government of Iraq -- they don't have a defense ministry yet. They're in the process of getting a defense minister. So it probably makes a lot of sense for our commander on the ground to wait until their defense structure is set up before we discuss with them, and he with me, the force levels necessary to achieve our objective.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KOCH: Now, Iraq's new prime minister, for his part, predicted just Wednesday that he believes that Iraqi security forces should be able to take over control of the country, defending their own country by the end of 2007 -- Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: Kathleen Koch at the White House.
Thank you very much.
Later this hour, we'll go live to our European political editor in London.
CNN has a unique ability to bring you the very latest reaction to the president and prime minister's admissions last night -- Soledad. S. O'BRIEN: U.S. House Speaker Dennis Hastert says the Justice Department is trying to intimidate him. He's upset over an ABC News report saying that he might be linked to an influence peddling scandal involving lobbyist Jack Abramoff.
The Speaker threatening to sue ABC.
AMERICAN MORNING'S Bob Franken joins us from Washington, D.C. -- hey, Bob, good morning.
FRANKEN: Hi.
That's just the opening sentence. The plot really thickens on this one. This has to do with the uproar of congressional leaders over an FBI raid into a Democrat congressman, William Jefferson, who has been implicated in the scandal -- one of the scandals that's been going on on Capitol Hill. They're saying that this is a violation of the constitution.
And what Hastert is saying is, is that the leaks about his being part of another investigation are really part, to quote his interview with WGN Radio in Chicago, "This is one of the leaks," he says, "that come out to try to intimidate people and we're just not going to be intimidated on it."
Now, the denials have been running fast and furious from the administration. As a matter of fact, those denials that there was intimidation went all the way to the White House.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TONY SNOW, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: Any official in a position of responsibility at the Department of Justice, it's just not true. And that they're not leaking -- that they're not leaking information to try to undermine the House Speaker. Just false, false, false. I mean I got pretty categorically denials.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FRANKEN: This used to be a real slow news town, particularly the relationship between Congress and the White House. But just about every front right now there is a battle going on -- immigration, there is going to be one coming up. And now this one between Republicans and the Republican president -- Soledad.
S. O'BRIEN: What's behind that?
I mean, you're right, on every single front, it seems like there is a battle between Congress and the administration.
FRANKEN: Well, there are many who believe, in Congress, including some Republicans, that this administration has really been disdainful of Congress since the very beginning, treating the members like they're part of a Greek chorus. And so as the president's position seems to have weakened a little bit with his lowered standard in the polls, a lot of people now have a lot of resentment that seems to be part of this equation.
S. O'BRIEN: Bob Franken for us this morning.
Thanks, Bob.
A battle looming in Congress, as Bob just mentioned, over immigration reform. The Senate passed its version of the bill on Thursday. That would create a path to citizenship for illegal immigrants. House conservatives are calling it amnesty for undocumented workers.
But for the millions of undocumented people who are living here in the U.S. it's perceived as a step forward.
AMERICAN MORNING'S Alina Cho reports from one town where migrant workers thrive.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ALINA CHO, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Last minute immigrants, Miguel and Leticia Quinones left Mexico-for the American dream. They found it in Dalton, Georgia.
(on camera): How has Dalton treated you?
MIGUEL QUINONES, MEXICAN IMMIGRANT: Perfect. Good.
CHO (voice-over): They were drawn to Dalton by jobs in the carpet industry. Known as the carpet capital of the world, Dalton welcomes immigrants. Most of the workers in the mills are Latino.
(on camera): The racial shift in Dalton has been dramatic. Between 1990 and 2000, the city's demographic changed from 80 percent white to 40 percent Latino. Today, it's possible Latinos outnumber whites. But it's impossible to know because so many of them are here illegally.
(voice-over): Illegal immigrants like the Quinones family, who crossed the border six years ago.
"Why did I cross? I crossed because you can make a better living here."
Here, Miguel and Leticia collectively earn $700 a week, far more than they would in their native Mexico. In Dalton, they don't have to go far to find the comforts of home and a good education for their children.
Dalton has an international academy where kids come to learn English before moving on to mainstream schools. One hundred percent of incoming students grades four through 12 are Latino.
Dalton Mayor Ray Elrod calls the Latino residents good neighbors.
MAYOR RAY ELROD, DALTON, GEORGIA: God fearing, hard working and they're beginning to be community minded. CHO: Dalton, a city of 30,000, has 300 Latino owned businesses. Twenty years ago, there were two. A decade ago, football was the sport of choice. Today, it's soccer. There's a Spanish radio station and two Spanish language newspapers.
But not everyone is embracing the change. Ron Chastain says illegal immigrants are stealing jobs.
RON CHASTAIN, DALTON RESIDENT: If you're new and desperate in this country, you're going to -- you're going to work for whatever amount.
CHO: The mayor says there are enough jobs for everyone. The carpet companies say they make every effort to verify legal status, but admit there are undocumented workers in the mills.
In the schools, there's a feeling of unity.
In the Quinones home, there is one U.S. citizen in the family already. Two-year-old Alessandra was born here, another way this sleepy mill town is turning into a melting pot.
Alina Cho, CNN, Dalton, Georgia.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
S. O'BRIEN: The Senate bill would provide 200,000 new temporary guest worker visas a year, a separate guest worker program for immigrant farm laborers and undocumented immigrants here five years or longer would be allowed to stay and apply for citizenship -- Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: let's check on the forecast now.
Reynolds Wolf in for Chad Myers, who I assume is, I don't know, fishing somewhere probably or something like that.
WOLF: Something, fishing or something.
M. O'BRIEN: Yes.
WOLF: It's always fishing or something.
M. O'BRIEN: Or something, yes.
WOLF: Especially the something part.
M. O'BRIEN: He's gone fishing.
All right.
WOLF: It sounds good to me.
M. O'BRIEN: Yes.
(WEATHER REPORT) S. O'BRIEN: Coming up this morning, President Bush and British Prime Minister Tony Blair admit mistakes in Iraq. We'll take you live to London to see how people there are reacting this morning.
M. O'BRIEN: Also ahead, a trip to the hospital, no fun-at all. Even worse when you -- if you have to fight your insurance company just to pay the bills. We'll have some tips on how to handle the battle.
S. O'BRIEN: And later, a convicted sex offender manages to stay out of prison all because he's too short.
That story is ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.
We're back in a moment.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
M. O'BRIEN: A pair of world leaders who publicly profess strong friendship and much in common, including a toothpaste brand, are now seeing if their relationship can stand the test of tough times.
Have you seen the latest "Economist?"
Check this out -- a picture of the prime minister, Tony Blair, and President Bush on the cover. The headline: "Axis of Feeble."
Robin Oakley watching this all unfold from London.
"Axis of Feeble" -- Robin.
What does that say about how people in Great Britain think about Prime Minister Tony Blair?
ROBIN OAKLEY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, it pretty well sums up the position here these days, Miles, because Tony Blair is under attack not only for his role in the Iraq War and backing George Bush, an unpopular president in Britain. Over that, he's attacked for his competence in government, with people being released from prison and not deported, as they should be; with the chaos in the national health service despite big spending.
Tony Blair is very much on the rocks. And he needed to be able to go into that press conference with George Bush, really, and give some new hope to his critics at home by announcing some sort of timetable for the withdrawal of troops from Iraq.
But, of course, neither man was in a position to do that. Instead, we had Tony Blair signaling that he wants the world to go on backing the Iraqi government and staying in Iraq to tackle those who are opposed to democracy.
M. O'BRIEN: All right.
Well, why don't we show a little bit of Tony Blair saying just that? (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TONY BLAIR, BRITISH PRIME MINISTER: I'm more than ever convinced that what is important for them in Iraq is to know that we will stand firm with them in defeating these forces of reaction.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
M. O'BRIEN: Interesting, I thought, Robin, that this whole thing occurred 7:30 Eastern time here, well past bedtime for most people in Great Britain.
Was that deliberate?
OAKLEY: I think it possibly was deliberate because every time Tony Blair goes over to visit George Bush in Washington or at Camp David, his opinion poll ratings tend to drop another couple of points in this country -- Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: What -- where does that lead for him? I mean what are his political prospects at this point, Robin?
OAKLEY: Well, Tony Blair, I think, the picture was a little fogged by something that President Bush had to say in their joint conference when he said that Tony Blair was a good friend and he wanted him around until the end of his presidency. Well, that presidency takes him through 2008, of course.
Tony Blair is said to have indicated to ministers here, particularly Gordon Brown, the finance minister, who lives next door to him here in Downing Street, that he's going to quit next summer, after 10 years on the job, and give Gordon Brown the chance to get bedded in as his successor before fighting another election. And people are looking at President Bush's remarks last night and saying hang on a minute, has he been telling President Bush something different? Is Tony Blair planning to hang on longer than he's been indicating -- Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: Well, I guess the question is if what President -- if we take what President Bush said at face value, can Tony Blair hang on that long?
OAKLEY: I think it would be very difficult for him to hang on much beyond next summer. It is a complicated process, trying to get rid of a prime minister who's in office in the Labor Party. You've got to get 70 vets of Labor M.P.s in the first place. You've got to have a majority vote of the Party conference and so on. A difficult process to get through.
And I think Tony Blair's political cover is pretty well blown these days. He knows he's got limited time, but he's trying to put new force into things, making a big speech today on the United Nations to show that he's still a world statesman, tackling big subjects at home like reintroduction of nuclear power, recasting the whole pension system in Britain. He's trying to show he's still a player. He's certainly a fighter, but not many people would give too much for his chances of staying beyond next summer, early autumn -- Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: Would most people in Great Britain agree that Tony Blair's legacy is linked completely to the fortunes of British troops in Iraq?
OAKLEY: I think they probably would. And I think that has been Tony Blair's undoing. It's what saw his majority slashed at the last general election from 160 odd to around 60 seats.
The problem for Tony Blair was the way in which he sold the war in Britain. More focus than President Bush put on Iraq having weapons of mass destruction, Saddam Hussein having those weapons of mass destruction. People believed Tony Blair used faulty evidence and evidence which he knew, to a degree, at least, to be faulty, to take Britain into war.
So he lost a lot of respect at that point. He's never really picked up in the opinion polls since. And things have got worse for him with a feisty new young leader of the main opposition party, the Conservatives.
M. O'BRIEN: Our European political editor is Robin Oakley, joining us from Number Ten Downing Street, something you'll see only here on CNN.
Thank you very much -- Soledad.
S. O'BRIEN: Ahead this morning, what do you do if your health insurance refuses to cover a treatment?
We're going to talk to a woman who fought the company for six months over an $18,000 bill and she won. She'll tell us how she did it.
Then later, a convicted sex offender avoids prison time because the judge thinks he's too short. That story is ahead. Stay with us. We're back in a moment.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The man adding more pep to Pep Boys on today's Blue Chips.
He was trained as a paratrooper and built Canada's largest bookstore chain. When Larry Stevenson took the wheel at the nation's leading automotive after market retail and service chain, he had no experience in the car industry.
LARRY STEVENSON, CEO, PEP BOYS: It's a great idea to seek out new challenges. Once you're out of your comfort zone, you start learning things about yourself and about the people you work with.
UNIDENTIFIED CORRESPONDENT: Stevenson is tuning up 85-year-old Pep Boys by remodeling stores and adding products. Since he came on board three years ago, stock prices have more than doubled.
STEVENSON: There's three things I have learned over the years about success in business. The first one is surround yourself by great people. The second is focus. Finally, I'd say it's create an environment where people can challenge you as a CEO.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
M. O'BRIEN: And now a parent's nightmare and some invaluable advice on how to fight back in a health care system that does not seem to care about health sometimes.
Lauren Young's 11-month-old boy needed surgery to remove a large mole on his back. The doctors said it could be done in one operation. The insurance company insisted on four.
Why?
Well, Lauren happens to be a reporter for "Business Week," so she asked some questions about this.
She has penned a first person account of her saga.
And she joins us now with more on this amazing tale.
Lauren, good to have you with us.
LAUREN YOUNG, "BUSINESS WEEK": Nice to see you, Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: So what they wanted to do was the same procedure repeated four times in one surgery. And the people at the insurance company said what to you?
YOUNG: Well, they said, you know, we can't cover it this way. The way it's coded, he would have to have the surgery four separate times, which, as you know, is ridiculous, because this...
M. O'BRIEN: Brilliant!
YOUNG: ... anesthesia, you don't want to put an 11-month-old baby under anesthesia four times.
M. O'BRIEN: No.
YOUNG: And you certainly don't want them to stay in the hospital for four visits, because it costs tens of thousands of dollars.
M. O'BRIEN: it makes no sense whatsoever. It's going to cost more money to do it...
YOUNG: Correct.
M. O'BRIEN: ... the way it is coded.
Did that make you want to scream? YOUNG: The whole process made me want to scream. It took six months to get this cleared up and during that time, I developed really bad insomnia. It was really stressful. I also got this ringing in my ear. And apparently I'm not alone. Sixty-two percent of people who deal with insurance problems experience some kind of stress.
M. O'BRIEN: Oh, I would think that's low. I would think, you know, because it's almost always something like this.
So you had to get through voice-mail hell to somebody who could say, you know what? We'll change the code because this makes no sense.
What did it take to get there?
YOUNG: It took 200 hours of my time and most of that was during work. So it really took 200 hours of my employer's time. I'm really lucky in that I had very supportive bosses.
M. O'BRIEN: Two hundred hours?
Now, let me just ask you honestly, because a lot of people would think you're a "Business Week" reporter.
Were you calling as a "Business Week" reporter or just as Lauren, trying to get through the system?
YOUNG: When I started the process, I knew I could pull strings.
M. O'BRIEN: Yes.
YOUNG: I knew that I could just call up the P.R. person...
M. O'BRIEN: Right.
YOUNG: But I really wanted to experience it and see what it would be like...
M. O'BRIEN: OK.
YOUNG: ... so that I could help other people learn how to navigate through the system.
M. O'BRIEN: What...
YOUNG: So, believe me, there were times when I wanted to pull that favor, but I didn't.
M. O'BRIEN: Now, we're talking about United Healthcare here. I use them, as well. No one wants to spend 200 hours doing this. Meanwhile, your baby needs the surgery.
YOUNG: Right. Well, United is one of the largest insurers in the country.
M. O'BRIEN: Yes. YOUNG: And to be fair, I didn't have any problems with any of the hospital bills. I never had problems with when I had the baby. But...
M. O'BRIEN: Right. It's just the code.
YOUNG: It was this code. And it was -- it was really astounding what it took to get the right number.
M. O'BRIEN: All right.
What you do in your piece, which is very helpful to people and why you should probably pick it up and take a look, is offer some concrete advice. Now, one of the things -- and as a reporter, this is something that comes as second nature -- but you really have to be informed.
Explain how you get informed, though, when you're talking about codes, of all things?
YOUNG: Right. You have to read those packets of information that you get when you...
M. O'BRIEN: Ooh, man.
YOUNG: I know. It's...
M. O'BRIEN: Talk about a cure for your insomnia.
YOUNG: But you need to know what your rights are and what is covered and what isn't.
M. O'BRIEN: Yes.
YOUNG: So it's so crucial to read that information packet when you sign up for the plan.
M. O'BRIEN: All right, read the thing.
All right, what about getting organized? What do you do?
YOUNG: You need to keep all those names and phone numbers of everybody you've talked to...
M. O'BRIEN: That is important.
YOUNG: ... and everyone that you're going to call on one list by the phone. And make sure you get a file folder. And you want to start filing your claim so that you've got all the information there.
Incidentally, a lot of insurance companies now, you can look at claims online and actually their process -- you can see how quickly they've been processed online. It's usually faster than when you get them at snail mail. So keep that Web site, log onto it while you're on the phone with these people so you can look through all the claims as you're talking. M. O'BRIEN: Yes, it's really important to get a name of the person you're talking to and if there's a direct dial back, that's helpful, too, I think.
YOUNG: And write down the time that you spoke to that person, too.
M. O'BRIEN: All of that stuff. Keep a little log, right? I mean a paper trail.
Why is that important?
YOUNG: Well, you want to, when you go to the doctor, because the doctor tells you one thing and the insurance company tells you something else. Get the diagnosis, get the prescriptions from the doctor when you're in the office. That way you have that information.
M. O'BRIEN: Yes.
YOUNG: And any letters that you write, everything, you make copies. You send them to important people like the head of H.R. if you work for a big company.
M. O'BRIEN: Right.
YOUNG: Or even a small company. But you want to have all that documentation in place.
M. O'BRIEN: And prepare an appeal.
What is that all about? Is there a specific way of doing this?
YOUNG: It's almost like being an in-house counsel, but you don't have a law degree.
M. O'BRIEN: Wow!
Yes.
YOUNG: You really need to know -- you need to talk their language. Federally sponsored plans -- most employers will have about 180 days where you can appeal something if a claim has gone wrong. So you've got this window of time that you can file an appeal. And you need to know what the appeals process is, who you should send the letters to. So definitely check to see what -- what the actual rules are on your plan.
M. O'BRIEN: Now, when you say get a point person, what does that mean?
YOUNG: Well, what I found -- and this was actually very helpful -- is that I work for a big company, McGraw Hill, and they've got nurses that work at United who just monitor our account and take care of us. They were invaluable for me, because I had someone on my side.
M. O'BRIEN: Ah! YOUNG: If you have some...
M. O'BRIEN: Big companies might have this, right?
YOUNG: Big companies might have this.
M. O'BRIEN: Yes.
YOUNG: Even small companies. But, also, at the insurer, there's usually specialists who deal with particular things, like cancer, breast cancer. Get to know those specialists because they also can be very helpful in cutting through that red tape.
M. O'BRIEN: And is -- you say, also, use a patient advocate.
Is that the same or is...
YOUNG: No.
M. O'BRIEN: What is that?
YOUNG: No. Often -- some companies will actually have patient advocates as a benefit. You can actually just call them up and say I've got a problem, can you fix this. And you just hand it over to them. It's great.
M. O'BRIEN: Wow!
Wouldn't that be nice?
YOUNG: But sometimes you have to pay for it.
M. O'BRIEN: Right.
YOUNG: But there are plenty of patient advocacy companies out there and they literally cut through that red tape like you wouldn't believe. But if you have to pay for it out of pocket, it's not cheap.
M. O'BRIEN: Right.
So you have decide what 200 hours is worth to you, I guess, really, in that case, whether you go with an advocate.
YOUNG: Right.
M. O'BRIEN: That's invaluable advice.
As you look back on it, are you just amazed at what you went through?
YOUNG: Oh, you know, I can't believe. It was like the fight of my life. I feel almost like Norma Rae or something.
But in the end, I think that, you know, we resolved it. My son is fine. That's the most important thing. And I -- and hopefully other people will learn from my experience. M. O'BRIEN: Yes.
Check out the piece, "Business Week" magazine.
Lauren Young, a first person account.
We're glad it came out well for you and your son. And hopefully this will help a lot of people out there.
YOUNG: OK.
M. O'BRIEN: Thanks for being with us.
YOUNG: Thanks, Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: Soledad.
S. O'BRIEN: Coming up this morning, absolutely, positively everything you need to know about holiday travel this weekend. We'll tell you what to expect on the roads and at the airport, too.
And then later, our friend Lizzie Maloy -- remember this lovely young lady? We met her after Hurricane Katrina destroyed her hometown.
Well, now she has done it. She'd graduated from high school. We're going to check in with her.
We're back in a moment.
Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BRYAN BLANKENSHIP, MAGICIAN: I'm getting wound up here. Oops. Somebody sneaked out.
JENNIFER WESTHOVEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Who would quit a job in sales and marketing to become a magician?
Bryan Blankenship is bringing magic to the world and he doesn't just do tricks.
BLANKENSHIP: Well, this is my workshop. Come on in. I do everything from electronics to wood working, because it all fits into magic in one way or the other.
WESTHOVEN: His home is now full of hats, ropes and a box for unsuspecting ladies.
BLANKENSHIP: Put your feet out that side and head out this side.
I mean I've worked for some very large corporations. But I've always believed that the American dream is owning your own business, controlling your own destiny.
WESTHOVEN: From the tired game of politics at work, presto -- he's amazing and delighting people, mesmerizing the crowd as his alter ego, Van Doren.
BLANKENSHIP: Are you thirsty?
To see the spark of belief in magic in a child, that's quite rewarding. If you have, you know, a thought in your mind that maybe I should leave my career and take a chance, I would suggest, you know, give it serious thought and take that jump. I don't think anybody would ever regret doing what they love.
Thank you all very much.
WESTHOVEN: Jennifer Westhoven, CNN.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
S. O'BRIEN: Millions of people are hopping into their cars for the Memorial Day weekend. Will high gas prices cause everybody to scale back the holiday plans? We'll take a look.
Then, pomp and circumstance for our good friend Lizzie Maloy. We follow her back to school after Hurricane Katrina, and now she's a new high school graduate. Got her story just ahead. Oh.
M. O'BRIEN: I'm just getting a little misty.
S. O'BRIEN: I know. You and Lizzie are like this. And Lizzie's mom.
M. O'BRIEN: Sweet Lizzie.
S. O'BRIEN: I know, I know. She's going on to bigger and better things. We're going to update you not only on what's happening with Lizzie, but also with her entire town, that was absolutely devastated in the wake of Hurricane Katrina.
M. O'BRIEN: The class of Katrina, as she put it. We're going to get some headlines in, too.
(NEWSBREAK)
S. O'BRIEN: Let's get right to the latest CNN gas gauge. The national average, $2.86 for regular unleaded. A month ago it was $2.92 and a year ago, it was $2.11. Now higher gas prices usually mean shorter trips, or fewer trips, but millions of people are still going to hit the highways for the Memorial Day weekend. Let's get right to CNN's Allan Chernoff. He's live near a rest stop near the New Jersey Turnpike.
Hey, Allan, good morning.
ALLAN CHERNOFF, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Soledad.
We actually have good news for travelers here along the New Jersey Turnpike. During the past hour, they actually lowered the price of gas. Now $2.92.9, down by five cents a gallon. But that's still pretty steep -- steep enough to affect travel plans for many families.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CHERNOFF (voice-over): Fill ups are painful for Ingrid Ciaston, who drives one of the biggest SUVs on the road.
INGRID CIASTON, TRAVELER: Sixty-three dollars and one cent.
CHERNOFF (on camera): Wow.
I. CIASTON: That's a lot, yes.
CHERNOFF (voice-over): Enough to squeeze her family's Memorial Day weekend plans. In years past, the Ciastons have driven both their GMC Yukon and Dodge Ram pickup to their summer home on the New Jersey shore. But not this year. Walt Ciaston, who sells insurance part time, says only one of the gas guzzlers will be hitting the road.
WALT CIASTON: Between the two vehicles, we would use a good tankful of gas for the trip back and forth, which you're talking in the range of 30 gallons or whatever it is. By using one, we'll cut that in half.
CHERNOFF: Along the nation's highways, many Americans are cutting back this holiday weekend; if not for the size of their vehicle, then with the distance they'll travel.
New Jersey resident Bob Mayfield (ph) typically drives to Maine for Memorial Day.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This year, with the gas prices, we're going down to Pennsylvania, just a couple of hours away.
CHERNOFF (on camera): Closer?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: A lot closer, a lot closer. A lot less gas.
CHERNOFF (voice-over): Gas is only one part of a more expensive holiday for those who will be renting vehicles. Rates are up 20 percent from last year. It will be a challenge to save elsewhere. AAA estimates food and lodging are up more than 5 percent, meaning a family of four will spend an average $261 a day for meals and hotel this weekend. That's why the Ciaston family plans to eat at their vacation home, which will help them continue feeding the GMC Yukon.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHERNOFF: AAA estimates that about 31 million Americans will be driving on the road more than 50 miles from their home this holiday weekend, a slight increase from last year -- Soledad. S. O'BRIEN: Allan, how does it look like right now? It kind of looks like it's moving behind you, at least.
CHERNOFF: Yes. Traffic not too bad at all. So if you're heading down from the Jersey shore right here, just outside of the Lincoln Tunnel from New York City, time to go. Definitely get in the car and get moving.
S. O'BRIEN: Allan sounds like he's two seconds away from doing just that. Allan Chernoff for us this morning. He's got his car running, ready to go. Thanks, Allan.
M. O'BRIEN: He's ready to go. Got the kids. I'm out of here myself.
S. O'BRIEN: The whole family is packed right there.
M. O'BRIEN: It is getaway day. Thirty-seven million of us going somewhere this weekend, hopefully fast, high gas prices notwithstanding.
Let's check in with some experts on travel, as we begin the summer travel time. Janet Libert is editor of "Executive Travel Magazine." She joins us from La Guardia Airport, where I hear there's a ground stop. We'll talk -- ask her about that in a sec. And Amy Ruiz, who is national spokeswoman for AAA. She's joining us from Pompano Beach, Florida. She's at a service station along the Florida turnpike.
Amy, how much is gas there?
AMY RUIZ, AAA NATIONAL SPOKESMAN: We're averaging, on a national average, at $2.80, give or take, for a regular tank of gas.
M. O'BRIEN: Yes, but right there, is it cheaper or is it right about at average?
RUIZ: It's pretty much average with the nation, Miles. And you know what? We anticipate at least 31 million people are going to be gassing up, packing up their cars, taking the kids, now that they're on holiday, and going away to have some fun in the sun.
M. O'BRIEN: You know, here's what's interesting, Janet. When you start doing the math -- filling up my Yukon XL, on some trips, it might actually be cheaper to hop on an airplane, you know?
JANET LIBERT, "EXECUTIVE TRAVEL MAGAZINE": Exactly. If you do the math and you look at air prices, which, although up a little bit, are still far less than they were five, six years ago, it's sometimes less expensive to fly. And certainly you get there faster and it's little more convenient for the family in many cases.
M. O'BRIEN: Yes. Of course, when you start bringing the kids along -- I was thinking about having to leave the kids behind. That does kind of multiply the cost out a little bit. Janet, what are you seeing right there at La Guardia today? I know the weather is not so great right now. There's a little bit of a ground hold. Of course, that's just another day at the office for La Guardia. Are you seeing a lot of additional -- some evidence of people getting out of town?
LIBERT: You know what? We are seeing a lot of people getting out of town. In fact, 4.3 million people will take to the airs this weekend. And right now, in La Guardia, we are seeing delays on arrivals as well as departures. The interesting thing about air travel this year is that airlines have cut back about a million seats a week. So the flights will be very, very crowded, and the airports will also very, very crowded. The good news, though, is that people are traveling. This is the most record level of travel in five years. So it's good to get out there.
M. O'BRIEN: So why did they cut -- why are cutting back a million seats a week, just to make us more miserable when fly? I mean, why?
LIBERT: You know what? Airlines are doing what's best for their bottom line. And it's much more profitable to fly internationally than it is domestically right now in the U.S. So a lot of airlines have taken planes that normally would fly in the U.S. and put them on international routes.
M. O'BRIEN: When you say much more profitable, that probably means less of a loss, really, in this case.
LIBERT: Exactly.
M. O'BRIEN: Amy, give us the outlook for the summer. What's your take on, you know, whether people are going to be gassing up and taking long trips in those SUVs, or are they going to stay closer to home or are they going to just stay home, period?
RUIZ: No, on the contrary. We're definitely seeing that people are taking advantage and hitting the road. Most recently, we have actually been seeing a pickup in people traveling in RVs. Why? Because you actually can take the extended family along, and you can actually save on eating and lodging, et cetera. And you can travel quite a distance in those RVs.
M. O'BRIEN: Boy, I got to tell you, though, Amy, whenever I see those RVs, and I wonder what the gas bill is when they fill those things up. You've got to wonder. I guess if you do the math, though, if you've got a big family and you're saving on all those other things, maybe it does come out all right in the end, huh?
RUIZ: It certainly does.
And there are so many things going on right now. Here in Miami, for example, it's -- we have the largest -- world's largest cruise ship docked in the port of Miami, so there's a lot of excitement in terms of travel.
Now, where are we seeing a lot of people going this Memorial holiday? Las Vegas, Miami, large metropolitan cities like San Francisco, and then there's also quite a bit of excitement going in the areas of Cancun, which you know had been affected by the hurricane last year, so travel agents have reported to AAA that a good number of people are planning to go to Cancun, even though they had suffered quite a bit last year.
M. O'BRIEN: All right Well, if you're going to Cancun, don't try to take the RV there. No the a good way to go. Amy Ruiz with AAA, Janet Libert, from "Executive Travel" magazine, thanks for the travel update, and happy travels to you all on this Memorial Day Weekend, and through the rest of the summer for that matter.
LIBERT: Thank you.
(WEATHER REPORT)
S. O'BRIEN: Andy's "Minding Your Business," coming up next. What do you got?
ANDY SERWER, "FORTUNE" MAGAZINE: Soledad, we're talking television. What's the hottest TV show on the air besides "American Idol."
Plus...
S. O'BRIEN: "AMERICAN MORNING."
SERWER: After "American Idol" and "AMERICAN MORNING."
S. O'BRIEN: Go ahead.
SERWER: Plus, have they pulled the plug on the Pussycat Dolls. Say it ain't so. I think it is, though. We'll tell you about that.
S. O'BRIEN: I know what they are. We'll explain to you in the break.
(LAUGHTER)
(CROSSTALK)
SERWER: It's not quite like that, Miles.
S. O'BRIEN: Oh, it's so not. We'll explain later.
Also ahead this morning, remember our good friend, Lizzie Maloy? We met her after Hurricane Katrina. Guess what, she's graduating.
SERWER: Oh, wow.
S. O'BRIEN: She's going to join us to talk about not just her graduation and sort of what's the personal journey's been like, but how her hometown is coming along as well.
We're back in a moment. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BUSINESS HEADLINES)
S. O'BRIEN: Coming up, let's turn to a much easier subject to talk about. Our good friend and now high school graduate Lizzie Maloy is going to join us. Remember we first met this lovely young lady after her hometown was devastated by Hurricane Katrina. She's a graduate. She's moving on. She's going to tell us not only about her plans, but how her town is doing as well.
Then later, in A.M. Pop, our summer movie preview. "X-Men 3" opening nationwide today. We're going to you a little sneak peak, all ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
S. O'BRIEN: It's been seven months since we first met our friend Lizzie Maloy, a high school senior from Long Beach, Mississippi. Back in October, you'll remember we gave her a camera, told her to shoot her own video diaries of her life at her high school and her town after Hurricane Katrina blew right through.
Well, Lizzie Maloy, little Lizzie Maloy, is now a graduate of Long Beach High School and she joins us from right in front of her former high school. Nice to see you, Lizzie. Good morning.
LIZZIE MALOY, HIGH SCHOOL GRADUATE: It's amazing to see you. It's been so long.
S. O'BRIEN: I know. It has been quite a while, hasn't it? How do you feel? You're -- you know, you're a graduate now.
MALOY: Pretty amazing, actually. It's kind of surreal, though.
S. O'BRIEN: Why?
MALOY: Because -- just because I've loved this place so much and now I'm leaving so...
S. O'BRIEN: Uh oh.
MALOY: You establish amazing relationships -- I know.
S. O'BRIEN: You're getting all misty on us, I can tell. We've only gotten one question into the interview, Lizzie. Let me ask you a question. You gave the -- a really beautiful speech. Really, truly, a lovely speech.
MALOY: Thank you so much.
S. O'BRIEN: You were the class orator. And it was a speech that got you a standing ovation. I want to play a little bit for folks so they can hear just a chunk.
MALOY: OK.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) MALOY: Many of us lost homes and possessions, some even family and friends. We lost businesses and churches. But why focus on the negative? We do not have to look back on this year and sigh instead of smile. Think about what we have gained. Learning to enjoy each day, despite all of the debris and despair. Remembering to thank those who came and helped us more than they could ever know.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
S. O'BRIEN: Those have got to be hard lines to deliver.
MALOY: It was pretty intense, but it was lots of fun. I'm ready to do it again, actually.
S. O'BRIEN: You know, it's hard for people to believe -- I mean, you're talking about silver lining. And I think sometimes, when you look at the damage after Hurricane Katrina, you say, well, what silver lining? I mean, how can you look at the positive side, as you tell people, when there's not a lot, necessarily.
MALOY: Well, if you think of it in the right way, there is a lo. Because we've all learned so much, and we just have to focus on what we have learned. Like I said, remembering that the relationships in life are what's important, not the material possessions. And learning to be so appreciative of people who have helped us. Because that's really what's so important. Because we've had -- we've had help from you and from everybody in the nation. And we just have to remember that peoples' kindness is what we have to focus on.
S. O'BRIEN: Bring us up to speed on a couple of things. First of all, is that your yearbook you're holding there?
MALOY: I am! We're so excited. And I wanted show you, Soledad.
S. O'BRIEN: OK.
MALOY: We made a thank you ad for you guys. I don't know -- it's on page 298.
S. O'BRIEN: Oh, it looks good.
MALOY: And it reads: "To Michelle Kumbo (ph), Kim Bondy, Soledad, Miles and everyone else at CNN who cares about Long Beach High School students, thank you from the bottom of our hearts."
S. O'BRIEN: Well, you are most welcome. But we really have to thank you. I mean, we put you to work pretty much. Bring us up to speed on what's going on in your community now. You know, the last time we talked -- and it has been a while -- you know, you were pretty depressed about piles of debris, things not really moving as fast as they needed to.
MALOY: Pretty much everything -- everything now is pretty much cleared out. But we're still at a standstill. Not -- not exactly a standstill, because, of course, there is planning. My mom's actually on the community steering committee to help come up with a master plan. And I think we're voting on June 6th.
But in terms of the standstill, it comes in on -- no action is really happening yet, because we have so many kinks to work out, if you will. Because there really is so much to decide before we can take action on a plan. And that's going to be the difficult part, is finding the money that our city doesn't have and figuring out where we want to go with the rebuilding, of course.
S. O'BRIEN: Boy, you know, that's a story that we've heard from anybody who was affected by -- actually not only Hurricane Katrina, but lots of the hurricanes that blew through last year.
Final question for you. You've got exams after graduation, I know. What are you doing next? Where are you going? What's the plan?
MALOY: I am attending the University of Southern Mississippi.
S. O'BRIEN: Congratulations.
MALOY: As -- majoring in graphic design.
S. O'BRIEN: Lizzie, I thought for sure you were going to be a journalist and, you know, come and hang out with us.
MALOY: I know. I've thought about it. I really...
S. O'BRIEN: We'll talk off camera.
MALOY: OK.
S. O'BRIEN: Miles. Lizzie is not going to go into journalism, man!
M. O'BRIEN: I was pushing her to go to Emerson. I did everything I could.
S. O'BRIEN: We'll talk later, we'll talk later.
Lizzie, congratulations. Please send our love to your mom and your whole family.
MALOY: Thank you. She says hi, as well.
S. O'BRIEN: Oh, thanks, thanks. We'll check in with you again soon.
Short break. We're back in just a moment.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
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