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CNN Saturday Morning News
Missing White House E-mail; Royal Split; Human Growth Hormone; The Latest Violence in Iraq; Devastation in Texas.
Aired April 14, 2007 - 07:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
T.J. HOLMES, CNN ANCHOR: Hey there, everybody, good morning.
Hope you're doing well.
We're at the CNN Center here in Atlanta.
This is Saturday.
We've made it through Friday the 13th.
BETTY NGUYEN, CNN ANCHOR: And believe it or not, we're OK.
HOLMES: Yes.
We're OK.
NGUYEN: We're OK, right?
HOLMES: We're cool.
It is the 14th now here on Saturday.
Hello to you all.
I'm T.J. Holmes.
NGUYEN: Yes, good morning, everybody.
I'm Betty Nguyen.
We want to thank you for starting your day with us.
Would have a lot of new to tell you about. So go ahead and grab that coffee and settle in.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They're as big as golf balls.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No, they're bigger than that.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: Well, this was a big -- big story overnight. A rough night in Texas, really. Heavy rain, wind and baseball-sized hail, baseball sized. NGUYEN: That'll do some damage.
HOLMES: Yes.
This is new video coming into us here at CNN.
NGUYEN: Wow!
HOLMES: And this extreme weather now moves east.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's what I...
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NGUYEN: Well, on top of that, there is chaos in Iraq -- a market bombing and another bridge attack. We're going to take you live to Baghdad.
HOLMES: Also, the buzz in Washington, D.C. this morning -- missing White House e-mails. We're not just talking about one or two misplaced or lost. We are talking about possibly five million e-mails lost.
NGUYEN: How do you lose five million e-mails?
Well, we'll discuss that.
And it is lost love in the U.K.
HOLMES: Say it ain't so.
NGUYEN: Take a good look because a royal breakup has just been announced. Yes, ladies, Prince William is back on the market. And we are live at Buckingham Palace on this CNN SATURDAY MORNING.
Well, we do want to begin this hour with the wicked weekend weather. Nature pumping out everything from heavy snow to deadly tornadoes. Powerful storms just slammed into North Texas yesterday.
Two tornadoes were spotted in the Dallas/Fort Worth area, killing at least one person. The storm also damaged buildings, overturned tractor trailers and knocked out power to thousands of homes and businesses.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's what I -- the size of an egg.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NGUYEN: And that, my friends, will do a lot of damage.
This I-Report video coming from Saginaw, Texas, which is just north of downtown Fort Worth, sent to us by Lee Bendix (ph). Now, Lee says he was walking down the street in his neighborhood when dark clouds came out of nowhere and the tornado sirens started wailing. You can hear them in the background. And huge chunks of hail starting falling.
Just listen to it.
(AUDIO CLIP)
NGUYEN: Lee says he made it home just in time to avoid getting hit by all that hail.
Now, I grew up in Texas, and I can tell you that hail doesn't mess around. Once it starts coming down, anything, you know, from dime sized to here baseball sized, can really do some damage.
HOLMES: Yes. That's serious.
Can you imagine baseballs falling down on your head?
NGUYEN: There was one time during a Mayfest there...
HOLMES: Yes?
NGUYEN: ... softball sized hail. Now, that is some serious insurance claims right there.
HOLMES: Well, we've got severe weather we're probably going to be watching throughout the day, as that big system moves east, we were talking about. And a tornado warning happening right now, we understand.
Is that right -- Bonnie?
BONNIE SCHNEIDER, ATS METEOROLOGIST: That's right.
HOLMES: Bonnie Schneider here with us in the Severe Weather Center.
(WEATHER REPORT)
HOLMES: We want to turn to Iraq now.
Dozens of people killed this morning, the victims of a pair car bombs, one targeting a major bridge in Baghdad, the other in a crowded shopping area south of the capital city.
CNN's Kyra Phillips joins us now live from Baghdad.
Hello to you -- Kyra.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: Hi, T.J.
And all too often we talk about these car bombs, but every now and then we're able to get some pictures. As you know, it's hard for us even to respond to a scene and get to a scene because of the security situation and because of explosions like this. But Iraq TV was able to get this video for us. We'll take a look at the pictures there. This was broadcast and you can see that there are hundreds of people just crowded around this bomb site. Emergency crews responding, trying to take care of the injured and trying to deal with the dead.
It happened this morning here, when we got word of it. We're told right now that at least 43 people have been killed, 55 wounded.
It was a parked car bomb when it exploded in a very busy shopping area there in Karbala, a popular area to go and shop, specifically on the weekends. A number of stores had already opened when this car bomb went off.
As you travel through the city, this is always your concern in busy areas, whether you're pulling up to an intersection or going into a crowded shopping area or a market.
T.J. car bombs are always of great concern. Extremists love to do this sort of activity when they know lots of people will be around and it will cause a lot of destruction and obviously bring us pictures like this.
It's also located, this explosion, right next to the Imam Hussein Shrine. That's where the grandson of Islam's Prophet Muhammad is buried. It's one of the most popular sites, one of the most busy sites for Shiites to visit.
We're also getting word today about another bridge that was -- that came under attack, not as big as the one two days ago, T.J. when we reported about the Al-Sarafiya Bridge that was destroyed. A huge chunk of that bridge taken out so people could not travel back and forth into Baghdad.
But this bridge that was hit today, the Jadriya Bridge, not a lot of damage. However, 10 people were killed and 15 were wounded when that explosion took place on that bridge.
And it's interesting, T.J. we saw the attack on the Iraqi parliament, that suicide bomber. We talked a lot about that. But for Iraqis, when these bridges get attacked, I mean this affects their everyday life. This is how they get back and forth to work, how they see family, how they see friends. There's a lot of history behind these bridges.
So it's just one more way that the extremists are looking for a way to attack the people here in Iraq.
HOLMES: All right, our Kyra Phillips there.
We know those bridges so often can be lifelines for a lot of folks and especially there in Baghdad for the Iraqis there.
Kyra Phillips for us in Baghdad.
Kyra, as always, thank you so much. NGUYEN: Well, back here stateside, Lewis "Scooter" Libby will appeal his perjury conviction but will not ask for a new trial. Libby is the former chief of staff for Vice President Dick Cheney. He was found guilty last month of lying and obstruction during the investigation into the leak of Valerie Plame Wilson's identity as a CIA agent. Sentencing is scheduled for June 5th.
HOLMES: Well, those comments by former radio talk show host Don Imus, well, they've drawn reaction now from the highest ranking African-American woman in government history. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice says it was disgusting for Imus to refer to the Rutgers women's basketball team as "nappy-headed 'hos," as he did. In an interview with a talk show host, Rice said the players on that team were showing that they're really fine athletes playing under extraordinary pressure and their deeds were ruined by Imus' disgusting remarks.
Meanwhile, a CNN/Opinion Research Corporation poll finds most Americans think Imus' remarks were, in fact, offensive. But blacks and whites differ on how they view the talk show host.
More than half of African-Americans consider Imus a racist. Fewer than a third of whites feel that way.
NGUYEN: And for more on Don Imus' controversial remarks and the media fallout, you can tune into "RELIABLE SOURCES." That is tomorrow morning, 10:00 a.m. right here on CNN.
New Jersey Governor Jon Corzine was supposed to mediate Thursday night's meeting between Don Imus and the Rutgers women's basketball team. But instead, he was involved in a major car accident. And look at this. Corzine remains in intensive care after this accident. The governor suffered multiple broken bones. State police are still looking for a red pickup truck that's believed to have caused it.
The extent of Corzine's injuries, though, may be partly blamed on the fact that he was not wearing a seatbelt. The governor was in the passenger's seat. The state trooper who was driving the SUV was released from the hospital Friday afternoon.
HOLMES: More troops staying in Iraq longer than they expected.
NGUYEN: Yes, the military admits its forces are stretched.
So what is the top brass doing on the recruitment front?
VERONICA DE LA CRUZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: And good morning to you out there.
I'm Veronica de la Cruz from the Dot-Com Desk.
On that note, we're going to be asking you how you feel about reinstating the military draft. You can send us your e-mails to weekends@cnn.com and we're going to be reading those shortly.
And back to you -- T.J. HOLMES: All right.
Thank you so much, Veronica.
We'll see you shortly.
And allegations that millions of White House e-mails are missing. Democrats in Congress want some answers and some e-mails.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
NGUYEN: OK, you don't want to miss it -- all new at 8:00 a.m. Eastern. Prince William is single once again, ladies.
T.J.
He and his long time girlfriend are splits-ville and it's big tabloid news in Britain. In fact, we have a live report from London. That is at 8:00 Eastern.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
NGUYEN: Testimony resumes this morning in the trial of a preacher's wife accused of murdering her husband.
A Tennessee jury heard a tearful taped statement from Mary Winkler one day after she allegedly killed her minister husband last March. She told police: "My ugly came out."
Here's part of that interrogation.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You don't recall if it was one of the (UNINTELLIGIBLE) the night before? Is a day, you know, a day thing that (UNINTELLIGIBLE)...
MARY WINKLER: Not necessarily. No. I guess that's just the thing with nerves, that you never know what is coming next. And then things will happen every day and then bam, I'm nervous about something and he's a (UNINTELLIGIBLE). But there's no excuse for it. But, you know, it wasn't (UNINTELLIGIBLE).
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NGUYEN: Well, defense lawyers say Winkler was an abused wife. While they're not denying she confronted her husband with a gun, they do say that that gun discharged accidentally.
HOLMES: Well, a new concern for the White House -- five million e-mails allegedly missing over a two-and-a-half year period.
CNN's Ed Henry has this story.
(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE) ED HENRY, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Even as Democrats have Karl Rove in their sights over Republican National Committee e-mail that may have disappeared, fresh signs there could be a much bigger problem -- missing e-mail from the White House itself.
A new report by a liberal watchdog group charges that over a two year period, official White House e-mail traffic for hundreds of days have simply vanished, in possible violation of the federal Presidential Records Act.
MELANIE SLOAN, CITIZENS FOR RESPONSIBILITY & ETHICS: There were, between March of 2003 and October of 2005, apparently over five million e-mail that were not preserved. And these are e-mail on the regular White House server.
HENRY: White House Spokeswoman Dana Perino stressed there is no indication the e-mails were intentionally lost. But she was careful not to dispute the group's allegations.
DANA PERINO, DEPUTY WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: I'm not taking issue with their conclusions at this point. We're checking into them. And, again, you know, there's 1,700 people in the executive office of the president. Allegations that there could be days -- whole days missing -- and what I'm saying is we're looking into that.
HENRY: In fact, Patrick Fitzgerald, the special prosecutor in the CIA leak case, disclosed last year that some White House e-mails in 2003 were not saved, as standard procedure dictated.
In a January 2006 letter to the defense team of former White House aide Lewis "Scooter" Libby, Fitzgerald wrote: "We advise you that we have learned that not all e-mail of the office of vice president and the executive office of president for certain time periods in 2003 was preserved through the normal archiving process on the White House computer system."
Democrats charge this raises questions about whether the public has gotten the full story on everything from the CIA leak case to the fired U.S. attorneys controversy.
SLOAN: Here is a White House that is deliberately violating an existing statute that requires them to preserve all records. And we have significant evidence now, both from the RNC e-mail and the White House e-mail that are missing, that the White House was using every means possible to avoid complying with the law.
HENRY (on camera): Robert Luskin, Karl Rove's personal attorney, told CNN that his client always believed the RNC e-mail was being archived and he did nothing wrong.
But as for White House e-mail, Luskin says he believes the special prosecutor that, in fact, there was a gap in White House official e-mail, a development that could ratchet the pressure on the administration.
Ed Henry, CNN, the White House. (END VIDEO TAPE)
NGUYEN: Well, with more National Guardsmen getting called back to Iraq, we could see a military draft or not. Coming up, we're going to ask our military expert, retired Brigadier General David Grange about the chances of that.
HOLMES: And, of course, you know it's tax season.
Do you ever wonder how much the first couple pays in taxes and maybe how much they give to charity?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They're as big as golf balls.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No, they're bigger than that.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NGUYEN: Yes, when you hear those sirens and the hail pounding outside, you'd better take cover. And we are watching the severe weather. A tornado warning in Mississippi. We're going to track it for you. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
NGUYEN: Let's talk about some tornado warnings out there. You're looking at the radar. Not a good sign when you see some yellows and some reds in there. And this is why. Yazoo County, Mississippi, you have a tornado warning. It's issued, in effect, until the next 25 minutes. Of course, this storm, as you see there, moving eastward and we're going to stay on top of it all morning long for you.
HOLMES: Meanwhile, U.S. troops staying longer in the combat zone. That's been kind of a hot button issue this week for many folks.
NGUYEN: Yes.
HOLMES: And CNN's Veronica de la Cruz has been tracking your responses at the Dot-Com Desk -- good morning to, kind ma'am.
DE LA CRUZ: Well, good morning to both or you.
You know that Defense Secretary Robert Gates has announced this week that U.S. service members in Iraq and Afghanistan would have their tours of duty extended from 12 to 15 months. So, we've been asking you this morning how you feel about this.
And here's what some of you have been saying.
Jennifer Howell (ph) of Fort Campbell, Kentucky says: "I'm an active duty Army wife with a deployed husband and I'm fed up and disgusted with this entire thing, not to mention this administration. Why does just the active duty Army have to carry the extra burden? It is absolutely unfair. And that extra $1,000 each month comes up to $1.38 an hour. Do you think that's fair? Bring them all home now."
Here's another one from Tim Bavard (ph) of Indianapolis, Indiana, who says: "As a Vietnam combat vet, the only thing that kept us sane with the fact that when your 12 month tour was over, you would never worry about being shot at again. We had the heat, snipers, no showers and sometimes no drinkable water. But we knew the date it would all end. God bless our troops."
And we have this one from Mike Huffman (ph) of Merryville, Tennessee, who says: "I believe it is time to activate the draft system. Twelve months of duty is enough and only one tour every five years should be enough, also. It's time for everyone to get involved, male and female. Let's get this war on and over with already."
So, reinstating the draft, as you can see right there, is the elephant in the room. The issue has been debated off and on since 9/11. But some Americans now feel the need is more urgent.
You can weigh in with your thoughts this morning on our quick vote at cnn.com.
Let's go and check those results right now.
Forty-one percent are saying that, yes, we should bring the draft back. Fifty-nine percent are saying no.
You can also weigh in with your thoughts at weekends@cnn.com.
We're going to be reading more of those e-mails a little bit later on this morning -- T.J. Betty.
NGUYEN: All right, thank you, Veronica.
So, how does your tax return compare with the president's, huh?
HOLMES: Ohm, I've got to see this.
NGUYEN: What do you think?
Well, let me tell you, President and Mrs. Bush paid over $186,000 in federal taxes for 2006. That is based on a taxable income of more than $642,000. The Bushes gave more than $78,000 to charity, including the volunteer fire department in Crawford, Texas, where they own a ranch.
So, are you still sweating your tax returns?
Just remember this. This year, you actually get a two day extension. April 15th is on a Sunday and April 16th is Emancipation Day, a legal holiday in the nation's capital. So, the tax filing deadline is on Tuesday.
And you have yours done yet, T.J.?
HOLMES: It is done. I don't need the extension at all.
NGUYEN: Signed, sealed, delivered, even got a return.
HOLMES: No. I got a return. I'm good to go.
You?
NGUYEN: All is well.
HOLMES: All right.
Well, we've gotten our business taken care of. Hopefully you have yours taken care of.
NGUYEN: Yes.
HOLMES: But you do have an extra two days.
We're going to move on this morning and talk more about what happened over in Baghdad.
A second bridge blast there this morning. We're going to talk live with retired Brigadier General David Grange about today's violence. That's coming up.
JOSHUA LEVS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The military says recruitment and retention are both strong.
So, given that, why do we need to extend deployments right now?
Hey, everybody, I'm Josh Levs.
That is coming up today in the CNN Reality Check -- Betty.
NGUYEN: All right, thank you, Josh.
Also, following the e-mail trail. This is some storm video and we're going to tell you why we're showing it to you, dealing with e- mails.
Did a top insurance company try to avoid paying claims after Hurricane Katrina?
We'll get to the bottom of that.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)
GERRI WILLIS, PERSONAL FINANCE EDITOR (voice-over): Before you file those taxes, keep this in mind. If you own a phone -- land line, wireless or Internet -- you're entitled to at least $30 back from Uncle Sam. The one time refund is payback for an old telephone excise tax the government has been making people pay for a century. You can get up to $60 for families of four or more.
Simply find the line on your 1040 and collect what's due to you. All in all, the government is expected to refund about $10 billion.
(on camera): I'm Gerri Willis and that's your Tip of the Day.
For more ideas, strategies and tips to save you money and protect your house, watch "OPEN HOUSE" every Saturday at 9:30 a.m. Eastern, right here on CNN.
(END VIDEO TAPE)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
NGUYEN: All right, take a look at this. Waking up to some extreme spring weather. Powerful winds, hail, even snow and a Nor'easter in the brewing stages.
HOLMES: Well, the Pentagon taking extraordinary steps to maintain fighting forces. Bonuses in the thousands of dollars, deployments extended.
Is a military draft the next logical step?
NGUYEN: Good morning, everybody.
I'm Betty Nguyen.
HOLMES: And I'm T.J. Holmes.
Good morning to you all.
So glad you could be here with us this morning.
NGUYEN: We want to start with those thunderstorms, tornadoes, hail, even snow -- a major storm moving through the Southeast right now. This system slammed into North Texas yesterday. Two tornadoes were spotted in the Dallas/Fort Worth area, killing at least one person.
Now, the storm also damaged buildings, overturned tractor- trailers and knocked out power to thousands of homes and businesses.
Forecasters say that same storm could produce a nor'easter later this weekend.
So, let's get the latest.
CNN meteorologist Bonnie Schneider is keeping track of a tornado warning that is in effect. Those reds and yellows never a good thing -- Bonnie.
SCHNEIDER: No. The red indicates a tornado warning. The yellows indicate a severe thunderstorm watch or a severe thunderstorm warning. And we have that in Vicksburg.
(WEATHER REPORT)
HOLMES: All right, Betty. In Iraq, at least 10 people killed via car bomb near the Green Zone. This morning insurgents targeting the Jadriya Bridge. That bridge crosses the Tigris River just south of the Green Zone. The bridge wasn't badly damaged by that blast.
Also a similar attack was carried out in Baghdad just two days earlier, that attack on a main bridge just north of the Green Zone. The main difference, though, is that in Thursday's attack the bridge was badly damaged. Ten people were killed, also, in that attack. Eleven major bridges span the Tigris River in Baghdad.
NGUYEN: Well there is more strain on U.S. army families. Earlier in the week, the Pentagon announced longer tours of duty from 12 months to 15, and that is effective immediately.
Now critics say this is one more sign of a military that is just stretched too far. Josh Levs joins us now with a "Reality Check," and on top of that, a lot of critics are saying perhaps does this mean we're going to have to reinstate the draft?
JOSH LEVS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, that's what some people are looking at and wondering. What we wanted to do today was take a look at this because in a way, you might be hearing mixed signals out there. The military is saying two things are going great, recruitment and retention which makes it sound like the numbers are really good.
Yet at the same time we've got them extending deployments. So we wanted to look into that. What we're finding is that the military actually is meeting a lot of its big goals. However, there's a bigger issue here and that is the overall size of the military.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
LEVS (voice-over): As some U.S. troops who have served leave the military, and some others are killed or wounded, the overall size has stayed about the same, around 1.4 million over the last few years. Military officials say recruitment and retention are high but, deployment to Iraq still need to be extended.
ROBERT GATES, DEFENSE SECRETARY: If the army were quote, unquote, "broken," you would not see these kinds of retention rates, and our ability to recruit. I think that what this recognizes, though, is that our forces are stretched. There's no question about that.
LEVS: Here's the deal. The army and marines grew a little last year through heavy recruiting. The army met its goal of 80,000 sign- ups, partly by raising payments.
A few recruits got $40,000. To get troops to re-enlist the army and marines combined spent a billion dollars. Six times what was spent in 2003, the year the war began. So, the military avoided a major drop. Then came this.
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: So I've committed more than 20,000 additional American troops to Iraq.
LEVS: Military leaders say that move, on top of other commitments, including Afghanistan, stretches the military because of its size. President Bush has considered trying to expand the armed forces, but he has not brought a proposal to Congress. So defense officials say extended deployments in Iraq are the answer.
GEN. PETER PACE, JOINT CHIEFS CHAIRMAN: What it does is it allows us to provide to the nation, if needed, the amount of force that's currently deployed for a sustained period of time.
LEVS: Many Democrats say it's a sign the president's strategy is wrong.
SEN. JIM WEBB (D), VIRGINIA: I think there are limits to human endurance. And there are limits to what families can put up with.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LEVS: Now military officials point out that troops will get a full year off between these 15-month deployments. However, Betty, we're also being told that these 15 months are some of the longest deployments U.S. troops have faced since World War II.
NGUYEN: It is a tough time. In fact, General David Petraeus sent a letter to military families talking about the fact that they're asking them to serve longer, and that he is thanking them for that.
LEVS: Yeah, he did. It's a personal letter. We have a little part of it for you here to take a look at. This is a letter that the top U.S. general in Iraq has put out, General David Petraeus. We'll read you this little part of it.
He says, "We know what you and your loved ones have gone through in recent years, and we - and all Americans - are grateful to you. You, too, have been soldiering along with your favorite trooper."
And Betty, he thanks them for their sacrifices and he also points out his own personal experience. He said I've been stuck in Iraq for a long time. It's tough for me and my family.
What this does is it reminds us in every possible way that this isn't just about large numbers, more than 100,000 troops. We're talking about individual families going through the sacrifice and the difficulty and the challenge of being away from each other while someone is at war.
NGUYEN: Absolutely. Josh, we appreciate that report, we truly do - T.J.?
HOLMES: All right, thanks, Betty. With troop numbers stretched overseas and longer tours of duty, could a military draft be next? Retired brigadier David Grange joins us on the phone from Illinois. General, thank you so much as always for being with us.
Help us sort this out here. The military is telling us one thing, that they're meeting their retention goals, they're meeting recruiting goals but at the same time they're having to shell out huge amounts of money to entice people to stay in or get into the military. So what is the reality as you see it?
DAVID GRANGE, RETIRED BRIGADIER GENERAL (on phone): Well, first of all, some of the comments that the army, the ground forces, you really talk about the army and marine corps, is broken.
I do not think it's broken because of the quality of the people, and is still able to meet the emission requirements. The long haul, the military is truly too small to meet all the commitments around the world.
And so where you have the units overseas in good shape to do their combat missions, the ones back in the states are under-manned, under-equipped and not meeting all their training requirements that's needed to rotate. Will they, when it's time for them to rotate? Yes. But there are extraordinary measures, to include the pay that you talked about.
HOLMES: So you say it's too small. How do you get the military to grow and this has been talked about a lot, a possible draft. Is a draft something that you see as a real possibility? And how much could it help?
GRANGE: Well, I don't think the draft politically would be acceptable. Or would it be acceptable to the American people right now.
At least the draft in the old sense of what it looked like. In other words, the old draft, and I remember that from Vietnam, though it goes across section of society, there are loopholes in there, where some people don't have to serve.
It wasn't fair. And I don't think that you can employ a draft. I do think you can employ something like a national service that has people do some kind of citizenry responsibility for at least a year sometime during their younger years. But it's for not just the military, but other public service needs which the whole country could use anyway.
HOLMES: And sir it certainly helps some of the military goals, it helps to extend these tours of duty that we're seeing now. That, according to the military, needs to be done to meet some of those requirements on the battlefield.
But what is it doing to the morale of these soldiers, as well, and these families? Like we heard a senator say, Senator Webb say, there's just so much that a human being can endure.
GRANGE: Well, that's true. And it is an issue, because over 60 percent of the army is married. And the readiness retention factor is how the families feel about these deployments. So that is a readiness issue.
However, I think that it is the best course of action, with Secretary Gates saying look, up front for 100,000 troops in Afghanistan, Somalia and Iraq, it's 15 months. Get it on the table early. Get the bad news out there, so the expectations are there, instead of piecemealing it at the last minute. Oh, you're getting ready to leave, well don't get on the airplane, you've got to stay here another two months. Do it up front, so the expectations are there, and then you can give out good news if you can, in fact, leave early. Actually good move.
HOLMES: All right, sir, before we let you go. We certainly want to ask you and get your thoughts on this, we saw a second bridge blast in Iraq. We've seen all kinds of attacks, but two attacks on the bridges in a two or three-day period. Should we be reading anything into this as more of a change in kind of a tactic or should we be more concerned about this, or should we chalk this up to just another insurgent attack?
GRANGE: Well, you know, was the bridge targeted or not? Obviously the other day the bridge was targeted. In this case you know, bridges are good targets to take out vehicles or people because you have restricted movement area. In other words, everybody's funneled in to this line of communication, this avenue approach, and so it's a good target for that reason. Even if it's not to take down the bridge, but to destroy vehicles or kill people.
HOLMES: All right, brigadier general David Grange. Sir, as always we appreciate your time and your expertise. We'll see you.
GRANGE: My pleasure.
HOLMES: All right and tonight at 7:00, "THIS WEEK AT WAR" looks at the debate over possible extended troop tours. "THIS WEEK AT WAR" with host John Roberts at 7:00 p.m. Eastern.
And we've been asking for your opinion this morning. Should the military draft be reinstated in the U.S.? You can e-mail us at weekends@CNN.com and Veronica de la Cruz will be back with some of your responses. She's coming up in just a few minutes.
NGUYEN: Want you to take a look at this face. Not ours, but that one right there. An innocent baby at the center of a struggle over life support. A mother's wishes and a hospital's decision.
HOLMES: And this isn't kid's play. Look at the sculptures here made of sand. We're going down under, ahead on CNN SATURDAY MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: A heartbreaking court battle over a baby's life or death. A Texas judge has ordered an Austin hospital to keep Emilio Gonzales on life support, at least until another hearing next week.
The boy's family is fighting the hospital, which wants to take him off his respirator and is allowed to make that call, according to Texas law. Hospital officials say a terminal disease has destroyed the boy's higher brain functions, and that further medical treatment is futile.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) MICHAEL REIGER, HOSPITAL ETHICS COMMISSION: This child is someone who has an irreversible progressive fatal disease. And what they're doing now is harmful to him, it's causing him to suffer, it's causing him pain, pain that we may not even be able to know about.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: Well, Emilio's mother certainly disputes that. She now hopes to find another hospital to provide care for Emilio.
NGUYEN: Well, parts of the country are dealing with some really wicked weather today. Bonnie Schneider is in our Severe Weather Center. Bonnie, we're looking at this hail. You see it right there. This i-reporter was showing us a shot of it. It looks about egg size, maybe perhaps baseball-size. Why is it getting so big? What causes us to see such large hail?
(WEATHER REPORT)
HOLMES: The damage after Katrina and the battle with insurance companies. Now new questions and a controversy surrounding a major insurer. CNN's Katheen Koch reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KATHLEEN KOCH, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Less than two months after Katrina, State Farm called and threatened to fire an engineering firm it had hired to evaluate damaged homes because several reports cited wind, instead of water damage, meaning State Farm would have to pay up.
E-mails obtained by CNN show a debate between company executives over what they have to do to keep the contract. Quote, "I managed to get us back on the rolls with State Farm, but we need to have a very frank discussion with the boys down south."
The firm's Mississippi engineer says CEO Bob Kochan are seen by a female State Farm manager as quote, "too emotionally involved and are all working very hard to find justifications to call it wind damage."
Vice President Randy Down objects. Quote, "I really question the ethics of someone who wants to fire us simply because our conclusions don't match hers. What about the obvious fact that State Farm would love to see every report come through as water damage so that they can make the minimum settlement?"
CNN has obtained a report the company did on one home before the e-mails. That found, quote, "interior damage primarily due to wind." After the e-mails, the engineer responsible was pulled from doing State Farm work.
And the firm did a new report finding quote, "the damage predominantly caused by storm surge and waves." Mississippi Attorney General Jim Hood says the e-mail shows State Farm was pressuring the engineering firm to change its reports. JIM HOOD, MISSISSIPPI ATTORNEY GENERAL: I think this document clearly shows what they were up to, that they were coercing their engineers, they were colluding in an attempt to not properly pay claims.
KOCH: State Farm denies that. In an e-mailed response saying its employees are quote, "committed to conducting themselves in an ethical and appropriate manner. Any suggestions to the contrary are simply wrong."
Kochan in a phone interview also denied his company was coerced.
BOB KOCHAN, CEO, FORENSIC ANALYSIS & ENGINEERING CORP: State Farm never specifically asked us to change anything.
KOCH: CNN reached Down, who has left and started his own firm.
(on camera): Was this normal for insurance companies you had as clients after just a couple of months of work to call and complaint about the results they were getting and ask you to fire engineers? Did this happen on a regular basis?
RANDY DOWN, FORMER VP, FORENSIC ANALYSIS & ENGINEERING CORP: No.
KOCH (voice-over): Despite his outrage in the e-mail, Down says his concerns were eventually resolved.
DOWN: I'm not aware of anything, you know, that was done inappropriate.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KOCH: Still, Mississippi's attorney general believes the e-mail documents will help thousands of Mississippians who've gone to court or are considering going to court to force State Farm to pay for hurricane damage to their homes. Kathleen Koch, CNN, Washington.
NGUYEN: All right, talk about being buried in style.
HOLMES: I don't know about this.
NGUYEN: Literally.
HOLMES: Whoa.
NGUYEN: How about a coffin in the shape of your favorite hobby? Hmm. Straight ahead, apparently someone's favorite hobby was drinking Red Bull. You might need that. It is early on this Saturday morning. We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
NGUYEN: The sound is back.
HOLMES: Folks, why would you settle for a plain old coffin?
NGUYEN: Why?
HOLMES: When you can be buried in a fashion statement? Yes, there's an undying appetite out there for exotic coffins these days.
NGUYEN: An undying appetite. Nice, T.J. Well the funky funeral business is booming for this custom casket maker in Britain. Whatever your particular passion, apparently skiing, the sky's the lime it.
HOLMES: The whole concept took off when a woman requested a coffin shaped like a jet fighter. Maybe she was a fan of "Top Gun" or maybe she wanted to zoom off to her final resting place, wherever that might have been. Hopefully it was up instead of down. What would yours be, Betty?
NGUYEN: A nice pair of stiletto heels. I don't know. What would yours be?
HOLMES: I don't know. That's a good question.
NGUYEN: You're going to have to edit yourself because I heard what your real request was.
HOLMES: I can't tell you what the real request was.
NGUYEN: We're going to move right along. I thought there was some sound there.
HOLMES: No.
NGUYEN: OK.
HOLMES: What have we got to see? We've got to check some sculptures out. Impressive sand sculptures actually displayed in Sydney, Australia. They almost didn't survive the opening day. An hour and a half of hard rain nearly washed all this away.
NGUYEN: Oh, my goodness. That would be a mess. But the artists, they were not giving up and within hours they had repaired most of the damage. Can you imagine that repair kit? What does that entail? By the way, this theme land is quite a figure, if it were a winter wonderland. But not the case, too sunny for that.
HOLMES: Still thinking about the coffin. Veronica de la Cruz is at the dot.com desk for us. She's been sifting through e-mails this morning. What?
VERONICA DE LA CRUZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Did Betty say a nice pair of shiny stiletto heels?
NGUYEN: Just one. I only need one as long as you can fit me down in it, some Christian Louboutins or something, I don't know.
DE LA CRUZ: All right, back to the e-mail question of the day, guys, how do you feel about reinstating the draft? That's what we're asking you this morning. This is from Lynn Young who says, "No way, we need to get out. If we cannot admit we went into the area illegally, cannot support our troops with body and vehicle armor, killing innocent people and are in the middle of a civil war that supports big American corporations, we are in bigger trouble than just the war. Protect our troops and get out."
This one from Bill Oswalt who writes: "We should station George W. Bush and Cheney in Baghdad the rest of their term and bring back our service people. We are only there because of his lies and tactics."
And then from Ed Hein who says: "This is the first test of the all-volunteer army in a major, protracted engagement. It is failing. There is no shared sacrifice in the country. We need to bring back the draft, send 400,000 to Iraq and Afghanistan, put down the insurgency and kill al Qaeda." Ed Hein, U.S. Navy retired.
And checking in on the quick vote really quick, 3,494 votes so far, 39 percent say yes, the United States should reinstate the military draft. And 61 percent right now are saying no.
So again you can weigh in with your thoughts this morning. We're going to be reading those e-mails all morning long. Weekends@CNN.com is the place.
NGUYEN: All right, Veronica, We appreciate it. See you soon.
HOLMES: All right. All bets are off. People are putting wagers on this thing. We're going to be hearing today that Prince William isn't getting married after all.
NGUYEN: That's true. And if you put your bets on it, you probably lost your money. Hi there, Alphonso.
ALPHONSO VAN MARSH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right. Why the second in line to the British throne is regaining an unofficial title, one of the world's most eligible bachelors. I'll have details.
HOLMES: All right. We will be hearing about that, a lot of people curious there. I know you're interested, as well, Miss Betty.
But also at 8:00 a controversial treatment that some think will help slow the aging process, human growth hormones. Are they worth it?
NGUYEN: And at 8:30, Dr. Sanjay Gupta shows us how to live longer and stronger, even up to 100-years-old. Stay with us. You're watching CNN SATURDAY MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BETTY NGUYEN, CNN ANCHOR: Hi there, everybody. Good morning.
From the CNN Center here in Atlanta, I'm Betty Nguyen.
T.J. HOLMES, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm T.J. Holmes.
We're so glad you could start your Saturday right here with us.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It was just fast and terrible.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NGUYEN: Definitely a rough night for folks in Texas. Twisters, hail, rain. And this extreme weather? Well, it is now on the move. We'll tell you about that.
HOLMES: Also, youth in a bottle. Well, stock the shelves. Well, fighting old age with hormones, kind of a controversial treatment here. Is it a fountain of youth or is it a risky remedy?
We're "Chasing Life" with our Dr. Sanjay Gupta.
NGUYEN: And all the big buzz this morning. Have you heard about it? Well, there is a breakup to tell you about, a royal breakup.
Yes, we are showing you the right video. Prince William is now available. The man is on the market.
And we're going to take you live to Buckingham Palace.
First, though, Baghdad rocked by another car bomb this morning. The attack targeting a bridge across the Tigris River. Now, the Tigris cuts right through the center of Baghdad.
At least 10 people were killed. It is the second time in the last few days that insurgents targeted one of the Tigris bridges. Thursday, a bridge just north of the Green Zone was badly damaged.
And about 70 miles south of Baghdad, another car bombing to tell you about, this one at a crowded market in Karbala. More than 40 people were killed there. At least 55 were injured. That blast coming near the Imam Hussein holy shrine. That shrine is one of the holiest sites for Shiites in Iraq.
HOLMES: Turning to weather now. Thunderstorms, tornadoes, hail, snow. A deadly mix of weather moving through the southeast and up the East Coast later this weekend. Two tornadoes were spotted in the Dallas-Ft. Worth area yesterday, killing at least one person.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's the size of an egg.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: This report coming to us from Saginaw, Texas. That's just north of Ft. Worth. This sent to us by Lee Bendix.
Lee says he was walking down the street in his neighborhood when dark clouds came out of nowhere, then the tornado siren started whaling and chunks of hail started falling. Lee says he made it home just in time to avoid getting knocked out by some of this hail. Already this morning there has been a tornado warning. It however, just expired minutes ago.
But Bonnie Schneider is in the weather center for us.
(WEATHER REPORT)
HOLMES: Meanwhile, a showdown brewing over missing White House e-mail. Not just a few, not just a couple, not just a thousand. As many as five million e-mails may have been lost, and that could be a possible violation of federal law.
We want to head now to Kathleen Koch, who is at the White House this morning.
Kathleen, you see any e-mail lying around the White House lawn this morning?
KATHLEEN KOCH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I haven't spotted any, T.J., but that's the question. Just what did happen to them?
There already had been a great deal of concern about top presidential advisers improperly using the server at the Republican National Committee to send e-mail messages that disappeared. And now a watchdog group, a liberal watchdog group, alleges that over a two- year period, starting in March 2003, that White House e-mail traffic for hundreds of days has simply vanished.
Now, if so, that is a possible violation of the federal Presidential Records Act that requires such records to always be preserved. The White House says it's investigating the allegation.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DANA PERINO, DEPUTY WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: There are allegations that there could be days, whole days missing. And what I'm saying is we're looking into that, but I would caution people from breaking any broad conclusions about that, for the reasons I've stated, which is there is no indication that that was -- that that would have been intentional, and there are ways that you can find missing e-mails, and that's one of the ways they do that. I'm not a technical expert, but they have the expertise on that.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KOCH: Now, why is all of this important? Not only for historical purposes, but also, it's very important in conducting investigations, like that into the firing, the recent firing of the eight U.S. attorneys, also the CIA leak case involving Scooter Libby, among others. In fact, it was the special prosecutor in that case, Patrick Fitzgerald, who last year revealed that he had found that some of the White House e-mails from 2003 had not been saved, as was standard procedure. Now, not surprisingly, Democrats are livid about this. They say this raises very serious questions about whether any recent investigations have gotten the full truth on the goings on in the Bush White House -- T.J.
HOLMES: All right. Kathleen Koch for us at the White House.
Thank you so much.
KOCH: You bet.
NGUYEN: All right, so if you are just waking up, sit down just for a might be and watch this.
HOLMES: Oh, come on.
NGUYEN: Especially you women out there. Single women, that is.
HOLMES: It's not that serious.
NGUYEN: We have a royal split to tell you about this morning. T.J.'s not so interested, but there are people who are. So here we go.
Prince William and his long-time girlfriend have called it quits. Yes, this according to the London "Sun" newspaper.
And CNN's Alphonso Van Marsh, very dapper himself, joins us now live from Buckingham Palace this morning with the latest on the big split.
Hey there, Alphonso.
ALPHONSO VAN MARSH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Betty. You have pretty much given away the headline that Prince William has indeed, it's been reported, separated from long-term girlfriend, Kate Middleton. Now, it was first reported in one of the tabloids here, the "Sun," with the big headline "Wills & Kate Split," as you mentioned.
Now, it's interesting that Prince William's official spokesperson says that he will not comment on Prince William's personal, private life, but it is being widely reported here in the press that the two have split apart. Again, the "Sun" here saying that the breakup was amicable and speculating on possible reasons that it was due to this intense media pressure, intense pressure on this young couple, and Prince William's decision to put his military career first.
Now, joining me now is one of the authors of one of those articles, Arthur Edwards, who is a royal photographer.
Please, tell me, to what degree were you surprised by this news?
ARTHUR EDWARDS, ROYAL PHOTOGRAPHER: Well, I was surprised -- I was shocked rather than surprised, because I did think this couple would get married. They survived four years of university living together, and I just figured that they would just be a perfect couple and she would just look right for him. They looked great together and I thought they would get married, and it was a surprise. Although there have been clues recently that everything's not as it should be.
VAN MARSH: Well, you wrote a little bit about how you may have been privy to one of those clues, that Prince William actually told you himself that he didn't want to get married until later on.
EDWARDS: That's right, 28 he said, 28 to 30 was a good time to get married. And he told me that in New Zealand last year when I was on tour with him, and he said that. And, you know, that's another four years.
And maybe Kate, at 25, with her own career to pursue, perhaps wants to concentrate on her own career and not just sit there waiting one day for William to say, "Will you marry me, Kate?"
VAN MARSH: Now, she's an accessories purchaser here in the capital, but what we've been seeing a lot in recent months is this intense media pressure on her, this spotlight on her, even causing her to file a complaint. Tell me more about that.
EDWARDS: Well, that's true. And on her birthday, it was horrendous. It was like sharks after red meat in the water. It was crazy. They just drove her mad.
They were outside the house from very early on. Even now, she can't even go out for a cup of coffee without the press photographers out there.
And the reason she made the complaint is they all day, four photographers, harassed her unmercifully, on the bus, in the traffic, at her office, and they had to get the security guards to throw them out. That's the -- that's the pressure she's been under. And I don't think she wants four more years of that.
VAN MARSH: That's understandable. I guess the big pressure now is to get her side of the story, or even Prince William's side of the story.
EDWARDS: Well, you'll never get Prince William's side. And I think you'll be very lucky to get Kate's side. I think the one thing about that girl is she's kept quiet up until now, and I think she'll keep quiet.
VAN MARSH: Arthur Edwards, thank you so much for your time.
And again, that is from somebody who spent a lot of time with the one-time couple. Hopefully, the spokesman for Prince William will give some more details at some point, but those are the details here from Buckingham Palace.
Back to you, Betty.
NGUYEN: Well, there's one thing that we can tell you. There are women who are ready to line up. Thank you, Alphonso.
HOLMES: Well, wait. What about her, Kate? She's a cute girl.
NGUYEN: Well, she's -- she's a beautiful young lady.
HOLMES: Guys are lining up. Yes. So she's back on the market as well.
NGUYEN: Good for both of them.
HOLMES: What was the little finger snap you did there? What was that for?
NGUYEN: That was my little support -- applauding now.
HOLMES: All right.
We will move on here to talk about a possible fountain of youth: human growth hormones. Is that really a fountain of youth, or is it a shorter path to death?
NGUYEN: It looks painful.
HOLMES: Just a little.
We're going to take them (ph) and this controversial therapy. That's coming up.
Also, Veronica is here.
Good morning.
VERONICA DE LA CRUZ, CNN PIPELINE ANCHOR: Hey there, T.J.
All right. Listen to this: his arm was chewed off by an alligator. Does he survive? We're going to show you the video next from the .com/DESK.
HOLMES: I don't want to talk to Veronica anymore this morning.
NGUYEN: Yes, I don't know if a human growth hormone will help that, if your arm is chewed off by an alligator. But we'll get to the bottom of it.
Also, Dr. Sanjay Gupta is here with a preview of today's "HOUSE CALL".
DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Betty, thanks.
You know the decisions you make every day can have a huge impact in how long you live and how healthy those years are. Everybody wants that.
Coming up on "HOUSE CALL," we're going behind the science. We're going to answer your e-mails about how to live longer and stronger. We'll learn from people who seem to have that down.
Plus, my guests will take apart my day, tell me what I'm doing right and what I'm doing wrong. We could all learn from that.
That's coming up on "HOUSE CALL" at 8:30.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
NGUYEN: All right, let's talk about staying healthy as we age. Decisions we make every day may add or even subtract from our lives.
This is the focus of CNN Medical Correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta's new book called "Chasing Life". One of those controversial decisions? Well, that's using human growth hormones.
Dr. Gupta reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
GUPTA (voice-over): Like many approaching retirement age, Ed and Beth Lothamer were starting to feel less energetic than they once did, until Beth decided to try a controversial and increasingly popular treatment -- human growth hormone.
ED LOTHAMER, USES HUMAN GROWTH HORMONE: She kept telling me how good she was feeling, and, you know, I was getting a little sluggish, but she said, you know, "Why don't you at least come and take a shot at this?"
BETH LOTHAMER, USES HUMAN GROWTH HORMONE: You just stick it there.
GUPTA: So now they each take a shot, every day. Ed Lothamer says he felt the effects within a month.
E. LOTHAMER: When I woke up I wasn't fatigued. I noticed in the gym I was much stronger. I had more endurance, my memory was sharper.
GUPTA: Click on the Internet, you'll find countless pitches for human growth hormone.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANNOUNCER: Yes, by dramatically supporting healthy endocrine function, research suggests that we can increase energy and stamina.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GUPTA: Not everyone shares the enthusiasm. Dr. Thomas Perls is an outspoken critic.
DR. THOMAS PERLS, CENTENARIAN PROJECT, BOSTON UNIV.: No one sends me any scientific articles indicating that growth hormone works for combating aging simply because they don't exist.
GUPTA: But that depends who you ask. Multiple studies have found that growth hormone reduces fat while building up bones and muscle, but those studies also found a lot of side-effects, like joint pain and swelling. And to Perls, that's not even the worst of it.
PERLS: It shortens life span and it probably increases people's risk for cancer.
GUPTA: Perls says the risk is just too big to take. But to others, the gamble is worth it.
E. LOTHAMER: I'm sure it's not for everybody in the world. For us, we think it works, and so we do it.
GUPTA: To be clear, the Lothamers are taking human growth hormone with a doctor's prescription. He diagnosed them with a deficiency. Human growth hormone for anti-aging treatment is illegal.
Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN, reporting.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
NGUYEN: And you can catch all of Sanjay's hour-long CNN special, "Chasing Life". That is tonight and Sunday at 8:00 Eastern only here on CNN.
You can also find more information on the special's Web site, cnn.com/chasinglife -- T.J.
HOLMES: All right, Betty.
Of course, this morning we've been following severe weather in the southeast. The same severe weather system pushed through the Dallas-Ft. Worth area yesterday.
And reporter Rebecca Lopez of affiliate WFAA joins us now from Haltom City, Texas.
Good morning to you, Rebecca.
REBECCA LOPEZ, REPORTER, WFAA: Well, good morning.
There is a lot of devastation here in Haltom City this morning. Let me just show you as people are beginning to clean up the devastation, the mess.
You can see the tornado where it hit these two vehicles. And this is the home of Kenneth and Tina Cain, and they're going to join me live here. They rode out the tornado in their homes.
Tina, tell me what you heard and saw.
TINA CAIN, TORNADO VICTIM: All I could feel was the actual rotation, the spiral rotation. I could feel that.
I thought the roof was going to come off. Windows were bursting. Dirt and debris had come through the house, so it was really hard to see. But I could see trees and steeples coming toward us, so I knew -- I thought the walls were going to cave in. I thought -- I thought it was pretty much over for us.
LOPEZ: And speaking of that steeple, you can actually see it if we can walk around.
Kenneth, tell me -- you actually saw that coming toward you?
KENNETH CAIN, TORNADO VICTIM: I looked out the window and I had seen it coming toward the house and the playground, coming around, and that's when we ran for cover. But it was all just blowing and coming in, and it was over so quick. It was -- just come and gone.
LOPEZ: And also, you saw the gentleman. There was one person that was killed at a lumber yard nearby, and you saw what happened.
K. CAIN: After everything calmed down, I went down there and they were trying to revive him, but he was already passed away. He was gone.
LOPEZ: Did you ever expect anything like this? I mean, we do live in Texas, but you said you just expected it to hit somewhere else.
T. CAIN: I expected it to hit the racetrack. We were concerned about the racetrack, not so much us. Maybe high winds, rain, but not anything like this.
We never expected this. Total, total shock. Total shock.
LOPEZ: OK. Thank you so much for joining us.
That's Kenneth and Tina Cain.
And let me just show you this sign over here. That's actually Ft. Worth. We are right on the border of Haltom City and Ft. Worth, but you can see the sign that is just blown apart.
There are homes where roofs have been blown off. And so just a lot of devastation as they clean up here in Haltom City and in Ft. Worth, Texas.
Reporting live, Rebecca Lopez, CNN.
HOLMES: All right, Rebecca. Thank you so much for that report this morning.
Awesome destruction there, of course, caused by Mother Nature.
(NEWSBREAK)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Chocolate cake, 620 calories. Pecan pie, 530 calories. Hot fudge sundae, nearly 600 calories. Desserts, we love them, but they don't always love us. Two- thirds of Americans are battling the budge, but dieticians will tell you denial is not the answer, portion control is. More and more restaurants are now answering the craving by offering miniature desserts. Bite-size sweets are the hottest food trend of the year.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The larger desserts that can carry sometimes 500 to 600 calories. A small dessert might only have about 200.
COSTELLO: Chef Clifford Plow (ph) uses traditional ingredients in his desserts, not low-fat substitutes. He says compromising taste is not an option, so he thinks small. Just what dieticians want to hear.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We always encourage portion control, and to see the restaurants kind of on our side, that's a great thing.
COSTELLO: So, if you want just a taste of heaven after your meal, go with a little, not a lot.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm thinking about having two.
COSTELLO: It's tempting. But on second thought, maybe not.
Carol Costello, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(WEATHER REPORT)
NGUYEN: Well, we do have amazing video this morning on CNN.com that you have got to see.
So, for today's "Most Popular," let's take it over to Veronica De La Cruz at the .com/DESK.
Hi there.
DE LA CRUZ: Hey, guys.
You know, I do have to warn you though, the most popular video this morning, it might be a little bit too much for some people out there. So fair warning. Close your eyes if you are squeamish or if you're eating breakfast.
All right, take a look. Here it is.
That crocodile has a man's arm in its mouth. Once we pull back, we'll see it. It belonged to a vet who was trying to give the giant reptile some medicine.
Zoo officials managed to get the man's arm back, more or less, in one piece. Surgeons were then able to reattach it. Again, you can find that video online at CNN.com, a crocodile with a man's arm in his mouth.
Also popular this morning, Don Imus's trademark cowboy hat is AWOL. CNN's Jeannie Moos has the humorous sidebar to the serious story that everyone has been talking about. We'll have that report for you right here in just a minute.
And let's go ahead and place a bet right here. Man versus cheeta. Can this man outrun a cheetah?
If you think no, think again. CNN's Jeff Koinange has the unusual story from South Africa of this big cat and the fast man.
Just a couple stories making that "Most Popular" list.
And want to also remind you of our e-mail "Question of the Day". We're asking you: Should the military draft be reinstated in the U.S.?
You can send us your e-mails to weekends@cnn.com.
And T.J., Betty, we are getting tons and tons of responses.
NGUYEN: Right.
DE LA CRUZ: We're going to be reading those throughout the morning.
NGUYEN: Hey, but back to the man versus cheetah...
HOLMES: Yes.
NGUYEN: ... I don't think the cheetah was really trying. I mean, I really don't.
DE LA CRUZ: Oh, come on, zero to 60 in three seconds is what...
NGUYEN: No, no, no. The guy had a head start, right?
HOLMES: He had a head start.
DE LA CRUZ: He did.
NGUYEN: It was so unfair.
DE LA CRUZ: Kind of unfair.
HOLMES: The cheetah got cheated.
NGUYEN: He sure did.
DE LA CRUZ: The cheetah got cheated.
NGUYEN: And if I was the cheetah, I'd call for a redo.
HOLMES: Look at that. NGUYEN: Do that over.
DE LA CRUZ: Exactly, redo.
NGUYEN: Did they have like a little rabbit or something that the cheetah was chasing to make it run?
DE LA CRUZ: Something like that. Yes.
NGUYEN: Yes. You see that little thing? What was that?
DE LA CRUZ: Yes, he was.
NGUYEN: All right.
DE LA CRUZ: Seventy miles an hour is what the cheetah was doing, so...
NGUYEN: How many?
DE LA CRUZ: Seventy miles an hour.
NGUYEN: Seventy?
DE LA CRUZ: Seventy miles an hour. So the guy was running pretty fast.
HOLMES: OK.
NGUYEN: He wasn't running 70 miles an hour, I can tell you that.
HOLMES: He was not. All right.
DE LA CRUZ: Yes. Redo.
HOLMES: All right.
DE LA CRUZ: I think they should call for a redo, definitely.
HOLMES: Thank you, Veronica.
Well, we've got more video, interesting video. Two different cars smash into buildings. One was an accident. One not so much.
Yes, you probably forgot which is which by that video there.
NGUYEN: The guy running? You think?
HOLMES: Stay tuned.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
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