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American Morning

Anna Nicole Case; Dangerous Backlog? War Equipment Repairs; Fighting Back Against Customer Service Outrages

Aired February 23, 2007 - 07:59   ET

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

MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning to you, Friday, February 23rd.
I'm Miles O'Brien.

SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm Soledad O'Brien.

Thanks for being with us.

(NEWSBREAK)

S. O'BRIEN: We want to update you now on the JetBlue meltdown, and the recovery, too. Remember all those passengers who -- some of them felt like they were being hostage on JetBlue planes that were stuck for hours on runways at New York's JFK airport, and days of cancellations followed? Well, JetBlue is now out with a full-page ad in some East Coast newspapers, sending e-mails, too, to frequent flyers, telling customers, "We are committed to you and we are taking immediate corrective steps to regain your confidence in us."

Those steps include a passenger bill of rights. JetBlue's CEO, David Neeleman, described that for us a little bit earlier this week on AMERICAN MORNING.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DAVID NEELEMAN, JETBLUE CEO: You're on an airplane and, you know, you arrive in a city and you can get off that airplane, within 30 minutes, you get compensation, starting at 30 minutes. And if you get to two hours, you get the full credit on your trip back.

If you are departing, it's obviously a little bit of a different situation. If you're in line with a bunch of airplanes, you start getting compensation at, you know, three hours. Then at four hours you get a free ticket and full credit. And then we have to take you off that airplane within five hours.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

S. O'BRIEN: All right. So we did a checkup for you. It turns out that new passenger bill of rights is retroactive to February 15th. And remember, those are planes that were stuck on February 14th. So they are not covered by that. The people on those planes had been offered refunds.

JetBlue is claiming today that all of their bookings remain steady.

Live reports this morning on some of the most common complaints that just make your blood boil. And we've got specific advice to help you fight back this morning.

We're calling it "Fight Back Friday."

Ali Velshi is tackling cell phones for us. Gerri Willis is taking a look at home repairs. And Greg Hunter tells us how to avoid being ripped off when you're taking your car in for service.

Those reports are all straight ahead in this hour.

First, though, a story we just cannot help but watch -- Anna Nicole Smith. The body is now headed for burial in the Bahamas. A contentious issue finally settled, kind of, in a courtroom hearing that gave new meaning to the term "odd".

CNN senior legal analyst Jeff Toobin joins us this morning.

Wow. This was like a train wreck watching this. And the judge specifically kind of a leader of the train wreck as it went off the tracks.

Let's watch a little bit first of some of what he had to say in court.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JUDGE LARRY SEIDLIN, BROWARD FAMILY COURT: Anna Nicole Smith was one complicated individual. Shakespeare -- she could have filled maybe the character in Shakespeare and "Hamlet," Ophelia.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

S. O'BRIEN: OK. That was kind of apropos of nothing.

JEFFREY TOOBIN, CNN SR. LEGAL ANALYST: Yes, maybe. Maybe. Shakespeare? I don't think so. But anyway, OK. That was...

S. O'BRIEN: Just weird. That was one. And then when he finally announces the verdict, he starts bawling. I think we have that clip, too.

Let's roll that.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEIDLIN: And I'm not going to talk about this case ever again. And I hope to god, you guys give the kids the right shot.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

S. O'BRIEN: You know, "freak show" is not a word I use a lot, but it was a freak show yesterday. TOOBIN: Well, and, I mean, the lawyers, some of the -- one lawyer was singing in her answer to the judge at one point. She asked the judge out for a drink. I mean, it was so surreal. I have never -- I have never seen a court proceeding remotely like that one.

S. O'BRIEN: It just seemed to me -- I mean, honestly, it was a very disturbing insight into -- into our legal system to some degree.

TOOBIN: Yes, I mean, the one thing you can say in his defense is in the end of the day, the result in the case seemed like the right one. I mean, but according to the evidence, there was really no doubt that Anna Nicole Smith wanted to be buried next to her late son in the Bahamas. And that's the way it's going to wind up.

But the court's opinion didn't even say that specifically. He made the most complicated, lengthy process out of a fairly straightforward issue. When you consider all that's still to be resolved in the Anna Nicole Smith situation, this was really a tiny corner of it. And it turned into this freak show, as you said.

S. O'BRIEN: And he slowed things down. I mean, at one point -- here he is talking about how he used to be a tennis instructor. Did you...

TOOBIN: He used to be a tennis instructor.

S. O'BRIEN: Listen to this. This is just weird.

TOOBIN: OK.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEIDLIN: When I used to teach tennis, I used to wear white shirts and a white top. It always looked good.

You look good.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

S. O'BRIEN: OK. So I'm watching this in bed yesterday. I'm like, what is going on in this courtroom? This is insane.

TOOBIN: Pretty novel to wear white playing tennis, too. He thought that was...

S. O'BRIEN: As an instructor.

TOOBIN: Isn't that what you are supposed to wear in tennis?

S. O'BRIEN: Just bizarre.

Now, here's a guy who, I guess, in a survey of other judges, a bar survey back in 2004, was rated among the very lowest.

TOOBIN: That was -- and I did some reporting among, you know, lawyers that I know in south Florida, and that was certainly consistent with their view.

S. O'BRIEN: Yes, really. So how did he get picked for a case that's this important, this high profile, where really, in a lot of ways -- I mean, not to exaggerate it, but it kind of got the eyes of the nation watching what he's doing.

TOOBIN: Random assignment. He has been a judge, though, since he was 28 years old, which is pretty remarkable.

He was in -- and probate court in Florida is not a very high level, but it's not the lowest either. And he has been a judge for almost 30 years.

So it's not lack of experience. And I think in a way he -- the attempted folksiness, which was all this crazy personal stuff, is probably something that he has been doing for a long time. It's just that...

S. O'BRIEN: Well, that's a scary thought. Don't you think?

TOOBIN: Well, you know...

S. O'BRIEN: And at the end of the day, legally speaking, he made a decision to essentially delegate the decision.

TOOBIN: Well, that was the thing that was so appalling, is that, you know, he hears this long...

S. O'BRIEN: Drawn out.

TOOBIN: ... witnesses about, you know, where Anna Nicole should be buried. And his decision -- this 21-page opinion, essentially punts on the decision.

S. O'BRIEN: I'm going to hand that right off to the other guy.

TOOBIN: He gives it up, hands it over to the guardian that he appointed for the little baby, Dannielynn, the 6-month-old baby.

So that -- it was Milstein, the guardian, who said that Anna Nicole is going to be buried in the Bahamas. It wasn't even the judge. But that -- but there's also an appeal...

S. O'BRIEN: Right.

TOOBIN: ... of this decision, which I think has almost no chance of success which may be heard today. But, you know, the legal ramifications of her death are only beginning. You've got the paternity situation, which is...

S. O'BRIEN: But totally different judges now start tackling...

TOOBIN: Yes, I think -- I think...

S. O'BRIEN: And you also have -- I mean, apparently he was saying that he really -- one of his dreams would be to be like a Judge Judy on TV.

TOOBIN: Well, that's the rumor. We don't know. But he made Judge Judy look like John Roberts. So I don't think he's...

S. O'BRIEN: As rumors go, I'm buying that one. I'll tell you that.

TOOBIN: Well, it certainly seemed possible.

S. O'BRIEN: That was just weird.

All right.

TOOBIN: It was -- you know, it was the train wreck.

(CROSSTALK)

S. O'BRIEN: It really was.

CNN senior legal analyst Jeff Toobin for us this morning.

Thank you, Jeff.

We certainly have had -- heard plenty about the military being stretched too thin. But what about the military's equipment? A report on the alarming backlog of repairs that are needed. That's coming up next.

And it's "Fight Back Friday" here on CNN. Ahead, we're going to tell you how to avoid getting taken for a ride by your mechanic.

You're watching AMERICAN MORNING. The most news in the morning is right here on CNN.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

S. O'BRIEN: The most news in the morning is right here on CNN.

Senate Democrats are planning to unveil new legislation next week that could revoke authorization for the war in Iraq. And it could lead to a drawdown of American troops there.

Overnight, Iran's president repeated that he's not going to pull the plug on his country's nuclear program despite the threats of new U.N. sanctions.

M. O'BRIEN: The wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are taking a heavy toll on the equipment U.S. troops need to do their job.

AMERICAN MORNING'S Sean Callebs is at a military repair depot in Texas where they are fighting the war of attrition with wrenches, hammers, and welding torches.

Good morning, Sean.

SEAN CALLEBS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Miles. Indeed, every day trains come in here bringing Humvees, Bradleys, tanks, all kinds of vehicles. You can see this bulletproof glass up front is shattered. Also, here in back, this vehicle shows no signs that it flipped over. So we presume that it's some kind of sharp projectile, a bullet or something.

Want to show you just some of the Humvees here. Enough work here for some time to come.

But a lot of the damage is simply from the elements, such as sand or the rugged desert environment. The areas where vehicles are hit by IEDs or some other kind of live fire, the military didn't want us to shoot that too much. Concerned that it would show vulnerable points on a vehicle like a Humvee. But regardless, with all the work left to be done, with a military stretched so thinly, there is enough work scheduled here for the next three years.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CALLEBS (voice over): Work at the Red River Army Depot could mean the difference between life and death for America's fighting men and women. This northeastern Texas base is where a large percentage of Humvees, Bradley fighting machines, and tanks roll through for service and repairs.

LT. COL. DOUGLAS EVANS, COMMANDER, RED RIVER ARMY DEPOT: We got hit with an IED.

CALLEBS: Lieutenant Colonel Douglas Evans is the commanding officer.

EVANS: I spent a year in Iraq. And when you press the gas, you want that vehicle to go. When you press the brake, you want that vehicle to stop. And when you need to shoot, you need to communicate that it works properly, because we are absolutely putting soldiers in harm's way if we don't.

CALLEBS: With about 40 percent of U.S. military equipment deployed in Iraq and Afghanistan, the 4,000 civilian employees at Red River are being asked to do a lot. For example, the number of Humvees.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, two years ago, we were producing two to four vehicles a day. And currently, we produce 32 vehicles a day.

CALLEBS: An exponential increase. And with attacks overseas, coupled with President Bush's decision to send 21,000 more troops to Iraq, there are growing concerns that equipment is being spread too thinly.

The Pentagon admits that if U.S. forces were deployed to yet another hot spot, there would be significant concern about the number of available armored vehicles. They also say the war time effort and training are not suffering.

EVANS: Backlog is kind of a misused term. The Army is refurbishing equipment on a three-year plan. One year, the soldiers are training on the equipment. The next year, that equipment is in Iraq. And then the next year, the equipment is coming back from Iraq and going through the depot.

CALLEBS: With so many vehicles damaged by insurgent attacks, the obvious goal -- get the machinery out of Texas and back to troops as quickly as possible without sacrificing quality.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We live by the slogan, "Build it as if our lives depend on it, because theirs do."

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CALLEBS: You know, and each of the vehicles basically has its own story. This, for example, was a medevac unit. You can see it was written up here, and whoever was in the passenger seat made a list of things to do, location of pickups, radio frequency, number of patients and procedure.

And also, why do they do all this? Why do they come back and refit all these? The cost.

A new Humvee is $110,000. To refit one is about $50,000.

I want to show you under the hood here. For example, this piece right here is $500. So this could be reused. This will be reused.

But the hoses, brakes, things like that that are sensitive, Miles, could be damaged. They use all new parts for that to make sure servicemen and women get the best equipment they can overseas -- Miles.

M. O'BRIEN: Sean Callebs in Texarkana.

Thank you -- Soledad.

S. O'BRIEN: It is quarter past the hour. Time to check in with Rob Marciano, who is in the weather center watching a big old storm take shape.

(WEATHER REPORT)

S. O'BRIEN: Here's a question for you. If the customer is always right, then how come it feels like we are getting the shaft a lot? This morning we are giving you the tools you need to fight back against lousy service.

And Fight Back Friday rolls on. We're going to find out how to keep contractors from robbing the roof over your head.

Plus, Hollywood told the story of pursuing happiness. This morning we meet the real Chris Gardner, coming up right here on AMERICAN MORNING.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

S. O'BRIEN: Be sure you're watching CNN this weekend. Betty Nguyen has a look at what they've got going on.

(NEWSBREAK)

M. O'BRIEN: We've been arming you all morning long, ways you can fight back on those customer service outrages. CNN devoting the entire day and night. We are calling it Fight Back Friday.

Right now we check in with Greg Hunter. He's got tips on putting the brakes on car service ripoffs.

And Gerri Willis with some tips for homeowners. She is in the kitchen somewhere.

Greg's in a garage. She's in the kitchen.

We begin -- let's start with the garage and Greg in New Jersey.

Good morning, Greg.

GREG HUNTER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey, good morning, Miles.

I came up with three tips that you should say no to when you are getting your car serviced or when you're thinking about improving your car's gas mileage.

Here's tip number one: Engine oil flushing. You go get your oil changed, the mechanic will come out with a dipstick or the white rag and say, "Look how dirty your oil is. You need your engine flushed to flush out all that nasty gunk and stuff in your engine."

The answer to that is no, and no, you don't. Regular oil changes are all you need.

The second thing you need to say no to is fuel injection cleaning. You know, a fuel injector cleaner that you hook up to a machine, it costs $125, $150 for regular maintenance. If you have a problem, the thing is missing, your "check engine light" is on, yes, maybe you need fuel injection cleaning. But for regular maintenance, say no to that.

It's $124, $150. It happened to my own mother. She actually got fuel injection cleaning when the car was running just fine. I got the dealer to refund her money.

And the last thing is, any device or any additive that promises you, oh, you're going to get a bunch of gas mileage, as one expert explained to me, if General Motors can improve gas mileage by two or three miles per gallon by putting a little fin on it or by putting a pill in the tank, they would do it. And you know what? They won't. They have brilliant engineers at General Motors.

So, all that stuff, according to the EPA, devices and additives that improve gas mileage, they don't work. Don't do it.

All right.

Right now I'm at Mooney's Garage in Clifton, New Jersey.

If you look over here, here is Jim. He is one of the family members here, Jim Mooney. Putting a car up, working here.

And look at this garage. Take a look at the floor. It's clean. This place is clean. But not so clean where they are not getting any work done here.

Here is Andy Mooney. Andy is the owner of the garage here. And you know we've been talking to him all morning long.

And here is a big question that came from the producers back at CNN. How do you find a good mechanic?

ANDY MOONEY, OWNER, MOONEY'S GARAGE: Good question. It is good to be a good mechanic, but you really need a good reputation. You really do.

We have been here 50 years, so it's a big plus for me. Everybody comes in and says, "Wow, you guys have been here a long time. I have seen you here a long time." And that's how we gain a lot of customers.

And we also gain a lot of customers by word of mouth. People talk to people and they really feel confident, and I can build their trust, they will be very happy with me.

HUNTER: So word of mouth. Ask around. See if somebody has treated you right.

MOONEY: Ask around. See how long they have been in business, check out their facility. And go from there.

HUNTER: OK. Your facility is clean. Does that help you out?

MOONEY: Absolutely. Absolutely. Cars are expensive today. People want their cars taken care of.

HUNTER: OK. All right.

MOONEY: That's what they want to do.

HUNTER: Thank you, Andy. Appreciate it.

All right. Back to you in the studio.

M. O'BRIEN: Thank you, Greg. Good advice -- Soledad.

S. O'BRIEN: All right. Let's turn to your home now.

CNN's Gerri Willis is just north of New York City, in Hartsdale, New York.

Hey, Gerri. Good morning.

GERRI Willis, CNN PERSONAL FINANCE EDITOR: Hey. Good morning, Soledad.

You know, I'm in a kitchen here that has been recently remodeled. Now, if you are hiring a contractor, the devil is in the details.

First off, make sure you ask for a license. You can check them out at the attorney general's Web site for your state. That's where they have to file all that stuff.

And then you want to make sure you ask for references of any contractor -- general contractors, a subcontractor. You want some references. Make sure that they are not buddies of the contractor.

Check out the work, too, of the subcontractors, because it is just as important that the guy doing your floor is as good as the general contractor.

Also, we mentioned this before. Don't pay all at once. You want to put down 10 to 25 percent at the first go, and then slowly pay over time as the major systems of your reno get done, whether that's electrical or plumbing. Each step, give them a little bit of money along the way, and then hold back a little at the end.

It is called retainage (ph). This will give you some power over your contractor if that final punch list isn't finished the way you want it finished.

Finally, if you do have a problem, you can take them to court. You don't have to hire an attorney to get help.

You can go to small claims court. It costs $30. You'll present your case yourself in front of the judge, and then you will have some kind of resolution.

Now, if you are not getting money back from your contractor that you want, go to that licensing board. They will help nail down that payment from your contractor.

But again, it's only $30. Easy enough to do. Cheap enough to do.

We're going to have more on this topic Saturday morning, 9:30 a.m., on "OPEN HOUSE." "Ripped Off." Join us then.

S. O'BRIEN: All right. We sure will. Gerri, thank you.

Ahead this morning on AMERICAN MORNING, top stories of the morning are coming up. A fight on the home front. Vets returning home. An update on some of the conditions at Walter Reed Medical Center straight ahead.

Plus, the inspiring true story -- Will Smith is up for an Oscar this weekend for his role as the homeless dad-turned-millionaire in "The Pursuit of Happyness." Well, now we will introduce you to the real man behind that story.

That's straight ahead on AMERICAN MORNING. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

M. O'BRIEN: It is Fight Back Friday. We are standing up to crummy customer service, including how to hang up on dropped cell phone calls and sticky contracts.

S. O'BRIEN: On the home front this morning, what it's like to be a single mother one day and then a soldier serving in Iraq the very next.

M. O'BRIEN: Plus, a true Hollywood story. We are talking to the man behind the hit movie "The Pursuit of Happyness." A role model and inspiration for the Oscars on this AMERICAN MORNING.

S. O'BRIEN: And welcome back, everybody. It's Friday, February 23rd.

I'm Soledad O'Brien.

M. O'BRIEN: I'm Miles O'Brien.

Thanks for being here.

S. O'BRIEN: Here's what's happening this morning.

(NEWSBREAK)

M. O'BRIEN: JetBlue tried to make it up to passengers after the Valentine's Day meltdown. That lasted a week with a passenger's bill of rights. But it got us to thinking how often we don't get satisfaction when it comes to customer service.

CNN decided to devote an entire day to helping you fight back with specific advice to help you.

Ali Velshi's helping us fight back against lousy cell phone service. He's downstairs, our man on the street.

Hello, Ali.

ALI VELSHI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Miles, this is one of the most common things in America, 230 million cell phone users the United States, which means complaints about cell phones top the list of the Better Business Bureau's list of complaints of all industry.

Now one of the biggest complaints about cell phones, billing, dropped calls and contracts. Billing is the No. 1 complaint. It's, you know, things on the bill that don't make sense. Fees and surcharges that people don't understand. How do you solve those problems? Well, when you phone in, make yourself heard. Make sure that the person you before you get into your entire litany of complaints, make sure the person you're talking to is actually the person who has the authority to fix your problem, so you don't get the frustration about being transferred and transferred around.

You should escalate your problem before you debate your problem. I'm a big debater. I can spend a lot of time arguing with someone. But the bottom line is your going to get frustrated and not get your call -- your problem dealt with unless you get it to a supervisor, someone with the authority to actually do things. One of the complaints that we've heard a lot about is that calls get transferred to people with similar levels of authority. You've to get a supervisor and someone who can change things. One of the most effective ways to get the cell phone providers to address your concern is if they think you're going to leave. It is very expensive for cell phone providers when people change cell phone companies. Obviously, if you're locked into a contract that's less of a likelihood.

But even with those expensive charges for breaking a contract, the bottom line is if you're early in your contract and you do leave to go to another company, then they have lost you, and they lose all that revenue every month that you spend.

In the end, if you cannot get your complaint resolved, you can call the Better Business Bureau, you can call other people, but you should complain to the Federal Communications Commission, FCC.gov. You can do it online. You can call them. They collect these complaints. They are the only federal agency that the cell phone companies are actually answerable to, and they aggregate them, they figure out where the big problems lie, and they can move ahead on those.

So don't give up the fight. But rather than spending your time arguing and not getting things done, follow a path that is going to actually get your problem solved, and the cell phone companies in the end, there are a bunch of them, they do have to compete with each other. They may not compete as well on price, but they need your business, they want your contract, they want your monthly fees; use that as your weapon -- Miles.

M. O'BRIEN: I've got to admit, Ali, when you tell me call the FCC, that does not seem like an appealing alternative, to go from the cell phone bureaucracy to the federal government.

VELSHI: It absolutely doesn't, but they really do -- they are making a push at wanting to help on this front. And again, the cell phone companies answer to no one else. They answer to their customers, their shareholders and the FCC.

M. O'BRIEN: All right, Ali Velshi, thank you. Good tips.

By the way, if you want to save money on your home phone, dump the phone company. You don't need them. You don't need them. You can do it with the cable companies, or you can the VOIP deals, you know Vonage and the like, about $15 is where a lot of them start at and unlimited long distance.

S. O'BRIEN: But if you lose power you could be in trouble, so you probably should have...

M. O'BRIEN: If it's really essential you can do battery backups or you have one plain old telephone line if you want. It's up to you. Or you've got your cell phone. Remember you've got your cell phone, too.

S. O'BRIEN: I know. But I can never find it in my handbag.

M. O'BRIEN: Just chirping away there. Where is it?

S. O'BRIEN: We have more tips online for you. Be sure to check out our Web page for all the day's advice. Go to CNN.com/AM.

Well, this weekend Chris Gardner's going to be watching the Academy Awards very closely, especially the best actor category. No, he is not an actor; he is the real life guy who inspired Will Smith's role in the movie "The Pursuit of Happyness." The movie, as you know, was a big hit. His story is one of persistence, and dedication and love, and it's all chronicled in his bestselling book called "The Pursuit of Happyness."

Chris Gardner joins us from our L.A. Bureau. He's the author.

Nice to see you. Thanks for talking to us this morning. Appreciate it.

CHRIS GARDNER, AUTHOR, "THE PURSUIT OF HAPPYNESS": Hi, Soledad. Thank you.

S. O'BRIEN: You know, I was sitting around thinking you are going to be watching the Academy Awards and being very nervous, am I right?

GARDNER: Man, I'm nervous already. And you know what, I'm probably -- from what I'm hearing, I'm the only person in Los Angeles that thinks Will's going to walk away with this thing, and I still believe that.

S. O'BRIEN: And no, I believe it, too; I'm rooting for him to win.

GARDNER: All right, good. Good.

S. O'BRIEN: Because I'm rooting for you to win, too. Your story is so remarkable. I mean, it is such an incredible story.

And I've got to tell you, the book is even better than the movie, and the movie was a great movie. It's a story of how, in a nutshell, you were abandoned by your dad. You had a tough, tough childhood. You entered the military. You tried to basically get a job in finance. It was kind of a critical chicken-and-egg issue, where just how do you get a job when you're poor and try to make it when you have a kid and you don't have child care? I mean, it was -- it's just a tough story.

I guess the question for me was, why did you never give up? I mean, in every page of your book you sort of just go on to the next thing and keep trying. Why didn't you say, I give up?

GARDNER: I got all of that, Soledad, from my mom. And I would not be doing anything that I have done in my life were it not for my mother, who always taught me that I could do anything that I wanted to do. But more importantly, she showed me every day in what she did with her life. And it is all about my mother, and that's why my next book, I'm developing this concept of spiritual genetics. I think that it is something that is very, very, important.

S. O'BRIEN: What does that mean?

GARDNER: Well, we understand genetics. You are going to get your mom's eyes, your dad's nose, nothing you can do about it. But the spirit of who you're going to become as a person, I believe you can make a conscious choice and commitment towards grace, that spirit. You read my book. You know, I could have embraced the spirit of my stepfather. And I could have become another alcoholic, wife-beating, child-abusing, you know, loser, but I chose to embrace the lightness in my mother. And that concept is something we're developing now.

S. O'BRIEN: The circumstances that you went through in a lot ways are kind of one in a million. And it's an amazing tale for people who don't know it. It takes a lot of twists and turns, and we can get to all of them at this moment. But people should read the book.

But at the same time I felt there was a message of I'm going to get -- this is where I want to get, and I'm just going to keep trying until I get to where I want to get. Did you write this book to sort of role model for a lot of young -- especially black and Latino men who sometimes find themselves in a position you were in many years ago?

GARDNER: No, I did not. That book is for everyone, not black men, not Latino men. That book is the story of my life, but it's the book of us. It's the book of us, in that all of us who had every opportunity to become everything negative that was right in our faces that made a conscious choice to go the other way.

And the book, by the way, has been eight weeks No. 1 in "The New York Times" bestseller, bestseller's list around the world right now. It's not a black book. It is not a black story. Commitment to your children, passion for your children is universal. That's not a black thing.

S. O'BRIEN: You write about Cecil Williams, who I knew very well when I used to work in San Francisco, who ran the shelter where you stayed with your son. He's a remarkable, remarkable guy.

GARDNER: Absolutely.

S. O'BRIEN: How important is it -- you know, I thought there was a message, in you've got reach out and you've got to help other people, which is what he did. That's what they do at GLAD (ph) Memorial. They help people all the time, give them a hand. I know you are dedicated to that, too.

GARDNER: Absolutely. One of the most important things, I think, any of us can do is not just for yourself but things for others. And the group of people, Soledad, that I'm spending a great deal of time on getting educated on how I can help right now, 12 percent of all of the homeless people in this country have jobs and go to work every day. In some communities that number is as high as 30 percent. Homeless, working, with a family. You know what's interesting to me, we are into this time of year where all of the presidential aspirants are talking about all the great things they are going to do for the country and the world. I haven't heard any element yet saying anything about poor folks or working people.

S. O'BRIEN: Well, yours is a remarkable story. I know you're going to be nervous. I'm crossing my fingers for you. Did you have the same kind of afro that Will Smith sports in that movie?

GARDNER: Actually I did. Actually, I did.

S. O'BRIEN: Chris, good luck to you. Good luck to you. We're rooting for you this weekend.

GARDNER: Soledad, thank you. Thank you. Bless you. Thank you very much.

S. O'BRIEN: Thank you. My pleasure.

M. O'BRIEN: That's a good look, in the context of the times.

S. O'BRIEN: I loved it. And my mother had that, too, you know, out to there.

M. O'BRIEN: So what was it in the peanut butter that made so many people so sick? We have been talking a lot about salmonella. And now we have the definitive answers, and we'll tell you about what one family says may be the ominous results.

And our special look at the homefront is ahead. What it's like for single mothers in the military when they go from being mom to major.

You're watching AMERICAN MORNING, the most news in the morning, right here on CNN.

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M. O'BRIEN: "CNN NEWSROOM" just moments away. Fredricka Whitfield is at the CNN Center with a look at what is ahead.

Hello, Fred.

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning to you.

Well, we've got these stories coming up in the "NEWSROOM": a judge rules on Anna Nicole Smith's burial. But the courtroom drama is not over yet. Two Florida judges dealing today with legal issues left behind by the tabloid starlet.

Small resume say some, but big appeal. Two influential African- Americans talk about the pros and cons of Barack Obama's presidential run.

Are everything is bigger in Texas, right? But good grief, a $24 billion power bill? Fighting city hall on this one will be a slam dunk.

And it's a fight back Friday in the NEWSROOM as well. Tony Harris joins me at the top of the hour -- Miles and Soledad.

M. O'BRIEN: Twenty-four billion? Just send them a check. What are they going to do?

WHITFIELD: I know everything is big in Texas, big checks as well.

M. O'BRIEN: That's a lot of power there. All right, thank you, Fred.

On the battlefield they may be lieutenant or major, but at home, their mom: Single mothers in the military, part of our look at the homefront, up next.

Stay with us for more AMERICAN MORNING.

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S. O'BRIEN: An update for you this morning on Walter Reed. We've been telling you about some of those reports of shoddy housing for returning troops at the Army's premier medical center in Washington D.C.

Well, the White House announced last night that Assistant Defense Secretary for Health Affairs William Winkenwerder is out. The Pentagon says he was planning to leave the job since last year anyway, and that the announcement is not connected to the situation at Walter Reed.

You'll see right there some renovations are under way right now to try to fix those leaky ceilings and moldy walls, and a host of other problems there.

Did you know that of all the veterans who serve in our military, 16,000 of them are single mothers? We are going to meet one of them this morning. You might call her "Sergeant Supermom," in our ongoing look at the homefront today.

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NISHIMURA: Come on.

S. O'BRIEN (voice-over): Morning time at Leana Nishimura house.

LEANA NISHIMURA: Time to get up. Come on. Oh, my goodness, there's a kid under there. Come on. Come on. Come on.

S. O'BRIEN: The sheer logistics of being a mom with three children is daunting. There's wakeup calls for T.J., who's 9, And Dillon (ph), who's 8, and hugs for Cheyenne, who's 5. There's hair to be braided in between.

NISHIMURA: It's the life of a single mom.

S. O'BRIEN: And report cards to worry about. But this single mom has even more stress. Leana Nishimura is in the Maryland National Guard, and could be deployed to Iraq at any time, and it wouldn't be the first time. Two years ago, she left her three young children with her mother for 18 months when she went to serve in Iraq.

NISHIMURA: It was very tough. My oldest started crying. T.J. started crying, and he told me, mommy, what if you don't come back.

S. O'BRIEN (on camera): Were you more scared for them or for yourself?

NISHIMURA: I was more worried about what would happen to them if I didn't come back. It wasn't an oh, my goodness, what if I die? It wasn't, what if I get hurt? It was, what would happen to my babies? Who could care for them? You know, who would explain to them...

S. O'BRIEN: Explain what?

NISHIMURA: Who would explain to them what happened to their mom?

S. O'BRIEN (voice-over): Before she left, Leana's mom took this picture of Leana and little Cheyenne.

NISHIMURA: Wow. What if this is the last time I slept with her, period?

S. O'BRIEN: And that thought was on her children's mind, too.

DYLAN HASELHOFF, LEANA NISHIMURA'S SON: We'd snuggle with her a lot before she left. And when she was gone for all that time we couldn't.

S. O'BRIEN: Eighteen months later and after many close calls from mortar attacks, Leana returned home to a new set of worries -- T.J. had separation anxiety. Leana suffered from post-tramautic stress, but she managed to find a new home and move. It's a stable environment where all of the kids are honor students, and the boys are proud Cub Scouts.

NISHIMURA: If they weren't so positive and encouraging, and so accepting of the fact that, you know, things are the way they are, it would be -- it wouldn't be as easy to, you know, go on and keep a smile and be accepting of the fact that, you know, I may be going again.

S. O'BRIEN: Leana Nishimura says she knew when she put on the uniform that she had to take the responsibility that goes along with the commitment. She has an answer for those who feel it is too high a cost for the children to pay.

S. O'BRIEN (on camera): There could be an exception. I would say if you're a mom and your kids are under the age of 14, you don't have to go.

NISHIMURA: It doesn't mean I love my kids any less. I chose to serve in the military, which means when my name is called for deployment, I need to fulfill that commitment, fulfill the military commitment.

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S. O'BRIEN: Sixteen-thousand women are in the same boat as Leana Nishimura, 16,00 women.

M. O'BRIEN: You have to ask questions. The kids do not have the opportunity to volunteer. You know, they are -- is it fair to the kids to put them in that position?

S. O'BRIEN: You know, I asked her -- I said if a woman came to you and said -- I'm in the same boat, should I be in the military? And she said, you know, should I -- what advice would she give? And she said, you know, I would say, do you love your country, and do you want to serve your country? And that's what it is about.

M. O'BRIEN: I know. That's their decision. They're adults, they can make those decisions -- the kids don't have a choice.

S. O'BRIEN: There are plenty of people who's mom are in the military who have a mom and dad and who have dysfunctional families, and they're plenty of people who have a single mom and have healthy good families. And plenty -- you know, that's is her life. This is what she's chosen for her family.

M. O'BRIEN: Not an easy one.

S. O'BRIEN: I'll bet.

M. O'BRIEN: Here's a quick look at what "CNN NEWSROOM" is working on for the top of the hour.

TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: See these stories in the "CNN NEWSROOM": A U.S. soldier facing 100 years in prison. He pleads guilty to rape and murder at this house in Iraq.

A third day of jury deliberations in the perjury trial of former vice presidential aide Scooter Libby.

Salmonella confirmed in peanut butter. Some 300 people sickened.

Unusual rescue -- about 20 pigs trapped after heavy snow brings down a barn roof. You're in the NEWSROOM, 9:00 a.m. Eastern, 6:00 Pacific.

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