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American Morning

Prisoner Swap for British Sailors?; CNN Center Shooting; New Poll: Edwards Up, Clinton Down

Aired April 04, 2007 - 08:00   ET

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

MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: A developing story. There's news this morning of a prisoner exchange that could break the standoff over those captured British sailors and marines.
KIRAN CHETRY, CNN ANCHOR: Here's a health alert. A new study makes some startling claims about fighting migraines and the drugs in combination to fight them.

We're paging Dr. Gupta to get to the bottom of it.

O'BRIEN: Plus, hopes for a bumper crop touted as the answer to America's energy crisis. But is ethanol really the cure-all that we are told?

CHETRY: We're live from Amman, Atlanta and the Kansas heartland today.

It's the most news in the morning, and it's right here on AMERICAN MORNING.

O'BRIEN: Good morning to you, Tuesday April 4th.

I'm Miles O'Brien.

CHETRY: And I'm Kiran Chetry, in for Soledad today. Thanks so much for joining us.

There's been a lot of indications that a prisoner swap may be in the works for those 15 sailors and marines being held in Iran.

CNN's Barbara Starr is live at the Pentagon for more details for us.

Hi, Barbara.

BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Good morning to you, Kiran.

Well, let's be very clear, officially the word from Washington is no exchange, no swap, no quid pro quo, none of that. They say there is no linkage between the five al Quds members that the U.S. military is holding inside Iraq and any deal for the release of the 15 British detainees. That's the official word.

Why are these five people being held, these five al Quds Iranian members? Well, they were seized in a raid back in January. The U.S. contention is that these five Iranians were involved in shipping advanced weapons into Iraq specifically, some of those advanced IEDs that have been killing American troops. So, they've been in custody, they've been held, actually, under the terms of the Geneva Convention.

So, they have been seen by members of the International Committee of the Red Cross, including, we have been told, an Iranian member of the International Committee of the Red Cross. Now, this morning, the next step.

There are reports that the Iranian government is now asking to see those five people. They want to make a visit to them. The U.S. military has said that request is under consideration, but, as we speak now, Kiran, no deal for a release just yet.

CHETRY: And wouldn't that then set the stage for more kidnappings of British or Western troops anywhere? So how do you broker a deal from that?

STARR: Well, you know, that is a significant concern on the part of the U.S. military and on the part of the U.S. government. Anything that is seen as a negotiation for an exchange of prisoners, an exchange of people that have been in detention by either government, could be very problematic, according to top officials. It could set the stage for more of this activity down the road.

But one thing is emerging. How might it all work if there is some deal to do it? Well, they are in U.S. military custody. They could then be turned over to the Iraqi criminal court system for processing, and part of that Iraqi processing could always include sending them back to Iran -- Kiran.

CHETRY: All right. Barbara Starr for us at the Pentagon.

Thanks.

O'BRIEN: Iran's president may be shedding some light on all of this momentarily. Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is set to hold a news conference in just a few minutes. We're watching that very closely, of course.

CNN's Aneesh Raman watching it for us from Amman, Jordan -- Aneesh.

ANEESH RAMAN, CNN MIDDLE EAST CORRESPONDENT: Miles, good morning.

We expect to hear from him any moment now. The sense I get on the ground is that Iran's president isn't calling the shots in terms of this dispute between Tehran and London. But the characterization of the situation by Mahmoud Ahmadinejad will certainly shed some light on to where things stand.

Now, on the issue of some sort of prisoner swap, Iran's government has been keen to not explicitly call for a prisoner exchange, aware that that would certainly change the dynamic of this standoff that up until now has been about a territorial dispute. But on the other hand, some things to tell you about.

First, just yesterday, a senior member of Iran's Foreign Ministry was quoted by The Associated Press as saying the release of the five Iranians in coalition custody in Iraq would help the situation in terms of the release of the 15 British military personnel. Now, we also know that the U.S. military, in response to media reports in Iran that an Iranian envoy will get to see the Iranians in coalition custody, is saying, look, we've received this request but we haven't made a decision.

We also know that on Tuesday, an Iranian diplomat that was seized by gunpoint in Iraq some months ago was released. It was unclear who exactly was holding him or why, but within Iran, of course, the sense is that timing of that release is quite interesting -- Miles.

O'BRIEN: You've had a lot of experience reading the tea leaves from President Ahmadinejad. What should we be listening for this morning?

RAMAN: Well, I think in terms of the standoff with Britain, we're looking to see how he speaks of the British government. Does he call them arrogant, as he's done before? Are his comments more subdued? If they are subdued, it would suggest in the background things are getting close to some sort of resolution.

Now, the other headline we're waiting to hear is on Iran's nuclear program. Ahmadinejad said on Sunday he would have good news on the program soon. So, he could, this morning, up the ante on that nuclear dispute.

Iran, of course, has just been sanctioned again over its nuclear defiance. The IAEA, the U.N.'s nuclear watchdog, eagerly trying to put cameras in the nuclear facility in Natanz. This all as Iran moves ever closer to nuclear self-sufficiency, and it could be that that's where he makes the biggest news this morning -- Miles.

O'BRIEN: Aneesh Raman in Amman, Jordan.

Thank you -- Kiran.

CHETRY: Well, earlier on AMERICAN MORNING, New Mexico governor, former U.N. ambassador and presidential hopeful Bill Richardson spoke to Miles about what he thinks is the best way it manage the standoff with Iran.

Let's listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GOV. BILL RICHARDSON (D-NM), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Here it's clear we should back the British, we should follow their lead. They have been our closest allies. And what Iran is trying to do is test the resolve, not just of the British, but the entire Western coalition. So, we have to show some resolve with the Iranians, too. (END VIDEO CLIP)

CHETRY: And Governor Richardson was speaking to us from the campaign trail in New Hampshire.

Meantime this morning in Syria, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi spoke to reporters after her controversial meeting with Syrian president Bashar al-Assad.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. NANCY PELOSI (D-CA), HOUSE SPEAKER: These are important issues not only to fight against terrorism, but important priorities for us, peace -- peace in the Middle East. We expressed our interest in using our good offices in promoting peace between Israel and Syria.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHETRY: Pelosi's trip has kicked up a firestorm of outrage back in Washington. After all, Syria is still on our list of nations that sponsor terror. President Bush slammed that meeting as "counterproductive".

O'BRIEN: An awful lot to tell you about this morning if you're worried about what to feed your pet. Federal food inspectors say they've found the source of all that deadly dog and cat food. It's a Chinese company. The company denies the link, however.

We've been checking in on that with John Vause. He's been at the company headquarters, and we're keeping you posted on that.

Also, lawyers are adding a fraud allegation to a class action lawsuit against Menu Foods. That's one of the companies that issued a big pet food recall. Now, if those lawyers can prove fraud, it would mean pet owners could be entitled to punitive damages for loss and injury of their pets.

Meanwhile, some pet owners are resorting to making their own pet food. Sales of pet food recipe books on Amazon just going right through the tops of the rankings.

And the scare has raised new concerns about the threat of terror, as well. One survey finding 68 percent of us believe the contamination shows how vulnerable the U.S. is to an attack on its food supplies.

And there are claims this morning that both the Food and Drug Administration and Menu Foods were way too slow to respond to this crisis initially. A report in the "San Francisco Chronicle" says that the country's vets were not warned about the unusual numbers of kidney failures, and no pet owners were told to watch their pets for symptoms.

Christine Keith is a contributing editor for petconnection.com. She says a lot of deaths could have been prevented.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHRISTINE KEITH, EDITOR, PETCONNECTION.COM: Without question, we've heard stories on petconnection.com from our readers, heartbreaking stories of people who -- whose pets went into kidney failure, who put them in the hospital, who spent sometimes thousands of dollars getting them well, bringing them home, and feeding them the same foods that had made them ill because they had no idea that that was what was the threat to them. And those pets then died.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

O'BRIEN: Tomorrow on AMERICAN MORNING, we'll ask the Food and Drug Administration about this. We're still waiting for Menu Foods to join us. We've invited them repeatedly and they've turned down all our invitations so far -- Kiran.

CHETRY: Well, the news hit a little too close to home at the CNN Center in Atlanta on Tuesday. An Atlanta man now faces murder charges this morning after police say he shot his ex-girlfriend at the complex.

There you see him on the ground after he was shot by a security guard at the complex. Arthur Mann said to be the shooter.

CNN's Tony Harris is at the CNN Center and joins us live.

And you're right there, it looks like, in the center of where all of that went down.

Hi, Tony.

TONY HARRIS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey, Kiran. Good morning to you.

And certainly it is significant that it happened here, this fatal shooting happened right here in the CNN Center. But I have to tell you, what we're dealing with here -- and it's worth noting as another example of a young woman who, apparently, as the story goes, was trying to get out of this relationship with this ex-boyfriend and distance herself from that relationship. This is a man who, according to the reporting so far, would not have any of that.

And because he would not accept no to this relationship, that the relationship had ended, we have got a 22-year-old woman, Clara Riddles, who today is dead. And right behind me is where the story started to unfold here.

This is the Omni Hotel complex, a part of the CNN Center. And just up there -- Steve, can you get a shot of that, up there on that landing where you see folks talking now -- is where the altercation began, where the suspect, Arthur Mann, began to argue with Clara Riddles. The whole argument escalated.

Our understanding is that he actually dragged her by the hair down the escalator. Imagine that.

This is the CNN Center, the Omni Hotel. You can imagine how many people were on hand witnessing this as it unfolded.

Dragged her down the escalator, brought her over here -- Steve, follow me over here -- to this area here. You see the sign indicating this is the CNN Conference Center, and this is where the actual fatal shooting took place, right in this area here.

And you can see we already have the makings, the beginnings of this little memorial to Clara. One of her co-workers in the Omni complex who had spoken to her just an hour or so before the shooting took place has already left this bunny and card right here.

But what you can't see, what you can't see is that there was a huge struggle here. One of our security guards was close by and was able to take down Arthur Mann, the suspect in this case. But in the exchange of gunfire, you can't see it from this shot, there is -- there is a bullet that that has now been repaired just below one of the pictures there on the other side of that glass.

Just a horrible scene that played out right here, very close to home for us here at the CNN Center -- Kiran.

CHETRY: Tony Harris, definitely a very sad outcome there. Thanks so much.

HARRIS: Sure thing.

(NEWSBREAK)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

O'BRIEN: Welcome back.

A tragic end to a ski trip in Canada. Two skiers died when they were caught in an avalanche near Stewart, British Columbia. They had been dropped from a helicopter to ski remote trails. Search teams did rescue three survivors, however.

And severe thunderstorms swept across Tennessee overnight. These pictures from Nashville. High winds and hail knocking down trees and making driving hazardous, as you saw there.

About a quarter past the hour right now. Chad Myers at the CNN weather center.

(WEATHER REPORT)

CHETRY: Well, it looks like a tight race shaping up for the Democrats in New Hampshire. Here's a closer look at a new CNN-WMUR New Hampshire presidential primary poll. It was conducted by the University of New Hampshire.

It shows Hillary Clinton leading all Democratic candidates in the state with 27 percent. She's actually down, though, from 35 percent back in February.

Meanwhile, John Edwards and Barack Obama are in a virtual tie for second place. Edwards, with 21 percent, Obama with 20.

And Al Gore in fourth place with 11 percent, up three points since February. He's not even a candidate.

CNN Senior Political Correspondent Candy Crowley joins me now from Portsmouth, New Hampshire.

Hi, Candy. What it you make of Hillary dropping and Edwards rising in that poll?

CANDY CROWLEY, CNN SR. POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, what's interesting is, if you look at the numbers, just the math of it, John Edwards went up five points. Al Gore went up three points. Hillary Clinton comes down eight. So, all of her decline has gone to either Edwards or Gore.

And if you look at it, what's happened in the past month since the last time we took the poll, what's happened is Al Gore's film won an Oscar award. He got a lot of play for that. He came up to a very big welcome on Capitol Hill.

As for John Edwards, there was the announcement of his wife's recurring cancer. So, he was looked at with some sympathy and some favorability for how he handled it. So, that those two numbers would go up is not all that surprising. What's interesting is, they all came from Hillary's vote.

CHETRY: The other interesting thing is Al Gore is not even running. So, what happens, you know, when they actually go into the voting booth? Where do those votes go? Or is it just an unknown?

CROWLEY: Well, it's an unknown. I doubt by the time the voting rolls around in January that we still won't know whether Al Gore is running or not. So, the fact of the matter is, what this shows is, if it gets in, he already has a pretty firm base of support.

CHETRY: Let's talk about the favorability ratings among the contenders.

In this poll, Hillary drops 10 points, although we see John Edwards increasing his rating to 80 percent. That's the highest among the Democratic candidates and, of course, comes on the news of his wife's battled -- or renewed battle with breast cancer.

CROWLEY: Right. I think that, again, we can connect John Edwards' increase in favorability to the amount of play he has gotten since his wife's illness was revealed. So, there is some of that. People look up at the screen, they see John Edwards, and they say, oh, I remember that guy, I like that guy, so that his favorabilities would go up is not surprising.

But I tell you, the 10-point drop for Hillary Clinton at this point is inexplicable to me. I'm not really sure how that happened or what's driving that, because you cannot explain that away by saying, oh, people are looking at John Edwards more favorably, or they're looking at Al Gore more favorably. That doesn't come out of Hillary Clinton.

So, interesting to know that something is happening in this state, but we're not quite sure what it is.

CHETRY: How significant is the New Hampshire primary?

CROWLEY: It's really significant. I mean, there's been a lot of talk since we now have what has been called Super Duper Tuesday, when a lot of these big states may, after the New Hampshire primary, after the Iowa caucuses, come in and have a Tuesday where, say, Florida, Illinois, maybe New Jersey, definitely California, have their primaries. And what this does is really enhance the effect of New Hampshire, because if you can get a win in New Hampshire, it gets you a lot of free media, and you sort of roll into that Super Duper Tuesday in play.

Now, you talked to, I know, Governor Richardson of New Mexico just a little while ago. And that kind of hope for New Hampshire to produce a wildcard is obvious in the way they go about this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RICHARDSON: I am doing a lot better than you say. And I am going to win this nomination. So, it's 10 months away, you guys are already settling who's going to win.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CROWLEY: So, it's the beauty of New Hampshire that some of these candidates -- Governor Richardson at this point about four percent in the polls. But they look at New Hampshire and they look at Iowa and they remember that there used to be a time when there was a "Jimmy Carter who?" There was a "Howard Dean who?" when he was up here early on campaigning through New Hampshire.

So, New Hampshire and Iowa are places where people, despite what they're doing in the polls right now, really can make a name for themselves -- Kiran.

CHETRY: All right. So he's got to get up there then. Or at least I think he is, right, today?

CROWLEY: Yes, he is. Today, as a matter of fact.

CHETRY: All right.

Candy Crowley joining us from Portsmouth, New Hampshire.

Thanks.

CROWLEY: Sure.

O'BRIEN: Still to come this morning, the government accuses more than 100 tax offices of some dirty tricks. We'll tell you how to make sure your tax preparer doesn't send IRS agents looking for you.

Then a river runs through it. The toga party, that is. We'll show you the rescue after some kids take a serious wrong turn.

And could it be a silver bullet to stop migraines? We'll tell you what can stop those brutal headaches.

Stay with us for more AMERICAN MORNING.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CHETRY: All right. Well, look around at your friends, your inner circle. Do you see faces just like yours? Well, you might be guilty of what's called self-segregation. And CNN's Paula Zahn is here with a preview of her special investigation.

And we were just talking about it. What you found was fascinating.

PAULA ZAHN, HOST, "PAULA ZAHN NOW": It's fascinating and disturbing at the same time. We're calling our special hour tonight "Divided We Stand". We wanted to know why so many years after the end of legal segregation, self-segregation is thriving.

Now, most of us don't think as ourselves as racist, but we still remain divided by race at work, in our communities, and especially in our social lives. So we headed up to Buffalo and visited a racially- mixed public high school. And I was in the cafeteria throughout their lunch period, Kiran, and this is where it was obvious.

There was the black table, the white table, and the Hispanic table. And I sat down with many of the students to find out exactly why they separate by race.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JONATHAN: They just happen to break up by race. We relate on certain things. We come from the same neighborhood. You know, we probably go to the same church. We like the same clothes. We like the same music.

ZAHN: Do you ever sit with white kids at lunch?

JONATHAN: When I go from table to table. I say hi. I don't necessarily sit there for my whole lunch.

HEATHER: It's more habit. If somebody sits with me, then they sit with me. If they don't, they don't.

ZAHN: Is there underlying tension?

HEATHER: No.

MYRON: White kids are intimidated by black people. People like to sit with people they feel more comfortable with and they relate to.

ZAHN: So how much do you think race is an issue?

MYRON: It is somewhat, but not like a big issue. (END VIDEOTAPE)

ZAHN: It's so interesting that these students try to downplay the importance of race and, yet, simply, it's something you can't ignore.

CHETRY: So you think this was very different than, let's say, what you see here around New York City or in Manhattan?

ZAHN: Absolutely not. No. I think we see it everywhere.

And this school, in fact, tried an experiment a couple of years ago where they tried to mix these kids, forced them to mix at the table. They actually had teachers, and they filmed this all in a documentary, saying, OK, you sit over here. And they actually did mix for a very short period of time, and then within weeks they reverted back to the original patterns.

But these kids will tell you, because they live in such a racially diverse community, they don't consider themselves racists. "We just want to hang out," they say, "with kids that we have something in common with, kids that live close by."

But that is something we're going to tackle tonight. Why do we self-segregate this many years later after so many federal changes?

CHETRY: All right. Well, you've got me watching, so...

ZAHN: You better stay up. Are you going to be awake at 8:00?

CHETRY: 8:00 p.m. Eastern -- yes, sure. Until 8:59, and then I'll go to sleep.

Paula, thanks so much.

And again, Paula's special, "Divided We Stand: Segregation Out in the Open" is At 8:00 p.m. Eastern tonight.

You certainly don't want to miss it -- Miles.

O'BRIEN: Still to come on AMERICAN MORNING, a booming business in the nation's heartland. Farmers seeing gold. There's gold in them cornfields. But is ethanol really the answer to America's oil addiction?

Plus, some possible relief for migraine suffers. Could two drugs be better than one?

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(NEWSBREAK)

(BUSINESS HEADLINES) CHETRY: A lot of people say that they buy foreign cars because they're better on gas. So is there a homegrown answer to America's energy crisis? A lot of farmers are betting on ethanol, planting their biggest crop since World War II.

AMERICAN MORNING's Chris Lawrence is live in Bucyrus, Kansas with a closer look for us.

Hi there, Chris.

CHRIS LAWRENCE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey. Good morning, Kiran.

You know, farmers had planned to be in their tractors putting seeds in the ground this morning, but all that cold, wet weather has pushed back the start of planting season, and with the government's demand for all this alternative fuel, corn fields like this one are just potential gold mines.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

LAWRENCE (voice over): President Bush planted the seed.

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Ethanol has got the largest potential for immediate growth.

LAWRENCE: And the industry has been nurtured by government subsidies.

PHILIP FLYNN, ENERGY ANALYST: They want to believe that ethanol is a source, and they're spending a lot of our money to prove it.

LAWRENCE: Energy analyst Philip Flynn says it's fueling demand for ethanol's main ingredient, and could lead to the largest corn crop in 60 years.

FLYNN: This is a windfall for these -- for these farmers.

LAWRENCE: Flynn says corn growers are selling their crops for record prices, then they invest in the factories where corn is turned into ethanol and make more money off the tax credits.

(on camera): This has a potential to be a record crop. Are corn growers excited about a record profit?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Corn growers are excited about a profit.

LAWRENCE (voice over): Tim McCaully (ph) remembers the years when he barely broke even. Since last month, the price of corn has already dropped about $1 a bushel, but it's still a lot higher than last year.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think that's good news. I think farmers have looked for something like this for a long time.

LAWRENCE: McCaully (ph) says ethanol is bringing business back to rural America. And once it produces 10 percent of the nation's fuel, it won't need subsidies.

We're actually creating this new demand for agriculture, but we're also making our country more secure not buying as much Mideast oil. And as ethanol gets bigger, we'll buy less and less Mideast oil.

LAWRENCE: Senator John McCain embraces ethanol after opposing it seven years ago. And some say it plays well in a presidential campaign.

FLYNN: We're going to have the first primaries in Iowa and in corn states. And these corn states love ethanol because it's like a subsidy where the government doesn't really have to write a check.

LAWRENCE: Politicians looking for votes may be willing to bet the farm on ethanol.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LAWRENCE: And right now there are well over 100 ethanol plants already up and running, another 80 under construction. Ultimately they are going to need about four billion bushels of corn, which a lot of farmers say they can provide and still feed the country -- Kiran.

CHETRY: All right, Chris Lawrence live for us out there in Kansas, thanks so much.

(NEWSBREAK)

O'BRIEN: Coming up in the program, a new headache this tax season. Why thousands of returns may now be invalid.

Plus, another veteran's hospital in the spotlight after five unusual deaths.

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

O'BRIEN: It's down to the wire time for you last-minute tax filers. And if you are planning to take your shoe box of receipts to a Jackson Hewitt tax-prep store, stop and listen. The federal government says the operators of 125 Jackson Hewitts in four cities cooked the books on a whole lot of tax returns. So how do you know if your tax-prep fit outfit is on the up and up, and if they're not, what do you do about it?

CNN's personal finance editor Gerri Willis joining us with some tips.

Good morning, Gerri.

GERRI WILLIS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Miles. Good to see you.

You know the reality of this situation is you are responsible for your taxes. At the end of the day accountants have no licensing requirement and don't have it meet any federal guidelines. It's up to you to know whether they're on the up and up. Anybody can pick up a book and then go set up a shop to do taxes. But I've got to tell you, you don't know unless you check them out. There are no federal regulations, no experience necessary. Congress is attempting to get the IRS to certify preparers, but it hasn't happened yet. So if this morning you wake up and you're worried, it's time to call the Better Business Bureau, see if your accountant has been the subject of complaints there.

O'BRIEN: Yes, it's worth pointing out, anybody can do this. So how do you get to know your tax preparer? How do you check them out.

WILLIS: Well, red flags, first of all. In the case of the Hewitt folks, there were lots of red flags out there that should have been a signal to people that there were problems.

Look, if they claim they can get you larger refunds, that's the first word out of your accountant's mouth, that's a big problem. And if they want to base their fee on a percentage of your refund, well, I'm telling you, you're just setting yourself up for problems, because they're incenting themselves to make your refund huge.

O'BRIEN: A little conflict of interest there, you might say.

WILLIS: If they don't ask to see receipts, big problems. And of course if they don't ask know questions. If they don't say, hey, Miles, don't you have another business on the side somewhere? Or do you have some special kind of special deduction? If they don't ask you serious questions about your taxes, that's not a good person.

O'BRIEN: All right, so what other specific questions should you be asking?

WILLIS: Those are the questions we want you it ask, but you want to find out, also, if they're a member of some kind of professional organization.

Now, this does not mean that they're perfect. I've got to tell you, even certified accountants, certified public accountants, have problems. They discipline their own group. But ask if they're a member of a professional organization, do they take continuing education classes? And here's the dirty little secret, Miles, how many audits have they or their client had, because that's how the IRS finds new people to audit.

O'BRIEN: They have to tell you that, though, if you ask how many audits. They may or may not divulge, right?

WILLIS: Well, it all depends on how straightforward they're being with you obviously. If you feel like you've got somebody who's being straightforward you can ask them that question. But that is a key piece of information to have. If you're interviewing other people who are clients of that firm, you can certainly ask them if they have been audited. O'BRIEN: The truth is, I'm sure, a lot of people go into these places and get a bad feeling, but go with it because the refund is what lies ahead.

WILLIS: Yes, you've got to curve your greed here.

O'BRIEN: Yes. And you are responsible, not them. That's a really important point.

WILLIS: All these folks who are in trouble today, they are going to end up paying those taxes. They'll be on the hook for all the fees, all the back taxes.

O'BRIEN: And they're a lot of low-income people in the group.

WILLIS: That's true.

O'BRIEN: Gerri Willis, thank you very much. Gerri is our personal finance editor. Always a pleasure to have you drop by -- Kiran.

WILLIS: Thank you so much.

CHETRY: Thanks, Miles.

Well, some extreme weather rolled through the South and the Midwest overnight. Here's what's left in Louisville, Kentucky, after a line of storms ripped down trees, tore down power lines, as well. Thousands of people are still in the dark this morning. There are reports of golf ball-sized hail that police say pelted some areas for 20 minutes straight.

(WEATHER REPORT)

CHETRY: CNN NEWSROOM is just minutes away, and Fredricka Whitfield is at the CNN Center in Atlanta with a look at what's ahead.

Hi, Fredricka?

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning to you, Kiran.

Well, we've got these stories in the NEWSROOM rundown. Iran holding calm diplomacy over detained marines and sailors. The 15 British troops now held almost two weeks. We talk live with CNN chief international correspondent Christiane Amanpour.

Pakistan protests turn violent. The demonstrations signaling growth and discontent with President Pervez Musharraf, a key U.S. ally in the war on terror.

And new poll numbers from New Hampshire -- some Democrats drop, some surge, some flatline.

Tony Harris is with me in the NEWSROOM top of the hour on CNN -- Kiran.

CHETRY: All right, we look forward to seeing you. Thanks, Fredricka.

O'BRIEN: Just ahead on AMERICAN MORNING, new hope for migraine suffers. Scientists just tested a new medicine, and there's actually a couple of medicines. It could be a silver bullet for those excruciating headaches. We're paging Dr. Gupta.

Stay with us for more AMERICAN MORNING.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

O'BRIEN: Health headlines now. "The Los Angeles Times" reporting disturbing news at a veterans hospital. Five deaths, vets who had substance-abuse problems, and the "Times" reports at least three of them may have died from illegal drugs. Security inside the hospital has been tightened, and drug testing increased.

Even a little red meat daily can increase a woman's risk of breast cancer by more than half. That's the result of an eight-year study of 3,500 women and the researchers also took into account whether they smoked, how much they weighed and whether they ate fruits and vegetables. The study in the "British Journal of Cancer."

And news about hormone replacement therapy this morning, offering some hope for women in their 40s and 50s who just started feeling menopause symptoms. Turns out the hormone replacement therapy may not be a threat to younger woman's hearts and those women may find relief from hot flashes and other symptoms by taking hormone replacements for a short period of time.

Kiran.

PHILLIPS: Well there is some new hope this morning as well for millions of people who suffer from migraines. A new combination drug and we're paging Dr. Sanjay Gupta in Atlanta to tell us more about this combination. Two drugs they were already using for migraine headaches.

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Kiran, I get to give some good news here. Two drugs could be better than one when treating migraine headaches. About 30 million people suffer from migraine headaches and they can be awful for a lot of these people. Lots of different options out there but some of them simply don't work for a lot of people. So there's been a lot of excitement about trying to combine these medications. You've heard of them, I'm sure, Naproxen is one of them. Five hundred milligrams of that. And Immitrex, 85 milligrams.

As you mentioned, both have been used in isolation to treat migraines but doctors have said they work on different parts of the brain and do different things. If we combine them, might it even be more effective? And the answer is yes. About two-thirds of the people that took this combination pill were pain free within two hours, that is pretty significant, even for people who already had a significant migraine headache and they were already in the works. Also, after 24 hours, a significant number of people were still pain free after an entire day, which is more effective than a lot of the medications out there.

Perhaps most significant about this medication is it sort of heads off the migraine at the pass. A lot of medications out there if you don't take it before you start to get a headache or some of the symptoms, it just doesn't work. This works after you develop a moderate to severe headache. Pretty good news there for a lot of migraine suffers.

But there's a lot of things that make up a migraine headache. People aren't sure if they have one. Nausea, vomiting, those are some of the criteria and sensitivity to light or sound. Sensitivity to light is called photophobia, that can be very significant. What happens during a migraine is it's usually on one side of your head and this throbbing pain and you get all this pain on the one side and the eye, sometimes you get blurriness of vision and nausea and vomiting shortly thereafter. And it can be very difficult.

There are some specific triggers, as well, for migraines that are usually identifiable in people. Hormones can be a trigger. Women are more likely to get it then men. Also certain foods red wine, can be a big culprit, sleep patterns, mainly lack of, certain medications, as well. Migraines are genetic and they can last anywhere between 4 and 72 hours, Kieran. So a lot of people out there who have not been able to get any success with medications out there, this may be an option for them.

PHILLIPS: So when will we see this one pill on the market?

GUPTA: Well, we don't know yet. It is before the FDA right now. They received a letter of approval but it takes a few months for final approval to come in. They think possibly August but keep in mind, a lot of doctors right now, especially doctors who specialize in headaches, may give you the combination sort of off label trying to tell you it combine those two medications in the meantime.

PHILLIPS: So if you do, how much should you take of the Immitrex and the Naproxen?

GUPTA: What seems to work is about 500 milligrams of the Naproxen and 85 milligrams of the Immitrex, again taken at the same time. People will sometimes take one, followed by the other, take them at the same time. At least two-thirds of people have significant benefit.

PHILLIPS: Alright. That's good to know because that Naproxen is over the counter, right? The Aleve and some of the others.

GUPTA: Yes, absolutely. You can get that over the counter. Immitrex you have got to get a prescription for but if you have migraines, you may already have that prescription. Just get a little bit of Naproxen and see what happens.

PHILLIPS: Alright. Sanjay Gupta, you're right. Some good news. Thanks.

GUPTA: Thanks. PHILLIPS: Here's a quick look at what CNN's NEWSROOM is working on.

TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: House Speaker Nancy Pelosi meeting with the Syrian president in Damascus. President Bush says her visit sends the wrong signal.

E-mail exchanges between a gay man and an army recruiter get out of hand.

Cleanup in the South, severe storms strike Tennessee, Arkansas and Kentucky.

And a wily coyote orders in at a Chicago's sub shop. You're in the NEWSROOM 9:00 a.m. Eastern.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE ANCHOR: Well, we're honoring the king. The great Larry King for his 50 years in broadcasting. I'm showing some of his most memorable interviews. At least one of them with Oscar winner Angelina Jolie and a surprise he learned in that interview.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LARRY KING, CNN ANCHOR: Weird night. Angelina Jolie, who is now not with him, was madly in love with Billy Bob Thornton and very bright, by the way, and a very good guest, but weird because she had a little vial around her neck and it was, obviously, an unusual vial and it had an unusual color. Dark red.

And I said, "what is that?"

And she said, "that's the blood of Billy Bob. And we carry it to be bound in blood together." "

Does it make you feel closer?"

ANGELINA JOLIE, ACTRESS: Yes. I travel and we work we're far apart and so things that are just, you know, a bit of his life.

KING: And what does he wear?

JOLIE: Mine.

KING: Your blood?

Well, what do you do with something like that? That becomes what we call interesting. I found it interesting.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLPS: Tonight on "ANDERSON COOPER 360" a special report, what is a Christian? Here's Anderson with a preview. (BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR (voice over): Dinosaurs and people living together in the Garden of Eden. A new museum claims that's the way it was and the founder says he can prove it.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Genesis is written as literal history. Why are we sinners? Because there was an original sin because a real man in a real garden with a real tree and a real fruit, a real event really happened.

COOPER: One of the most famous and respected scientists said no human being can solve the greatest riddle ever: how it all began.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Usually that's one of those fundamental questions that science doesn't seem designed to answer.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: How could something like the universe have had a beginning without having a creator and a creator who is outside of the universe involved in that event? And that sounds like God.

COOPER: And millions of Christians believe God still moves among us, healing the sick through the power of prayer.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Some say the age of miracles is past, I don't believe that. I believe God is still doing miracles today, do you? It is true.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

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