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Boris Yeltsin Has Died; Baghdad Wall; War Funding Bill; Fires In Georgia; Virginia Tech Resumes Classes

Aired April 23, 2007 - 10:00   ET

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

TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: Here's what's on the rundown.
Former President Boris Yeltsin has died. Yeltsin stood up to the communists and pushed Russian toward democracy and a market economy.

BETTY NGUYEN, CNN ANCHOR: Also, a moment of silence on the Virginia Tech campus. Just minutes ago, as you watched it here, students honored those gunned down a week ago today.

HARRIS: The singer and the senior adviser. Things get hot between Sheryl Crow and Karl Rove. Back tie clash over global warming.

It is Monday, April 23rd. And you are in the NEWSROOM.

And again, breaking news just in to CNN. Just happening moments ago. Former Russian President Boris Yeltsin, we have learned, has died at the age of 76. A Kremlin official telling the Associated Press and confirmed just moments ago by CNN's Matthew Chance, that the former president has died, but giving no cause of death or further information. CNN's Jill Daugherty now on the career of Boris Yeltsin.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JILL DAUGHERTY, CNN CORRESPONDENT, (voice over): December 31, 1999, Boris Yeltsin walked away from it all. The presidency, the power, the prestige.

BORIS YELTSIN, (through translator): Today, on the last day of the departing century, I am resigning.

DAUGHERTY: His staff and the nation were in shock. But Yeltsin, in his memoirs says, "to my surprise, I realized I was in a good mood. A very good, cheerful mood." He handed over the so-called nuclear suitcase, which controls Russia's missiles, to his hand-picked successor, Vladimir Putin. "Now I was no longer responsible for the nuclear suitcase and the nuclear button," he wrote. "Maybe I would finally get rid of my insomnia."

And so the man who many accused of being addicted to power was now a pensioner. And he began recording his memoirs for a third and last autobiography, which he could call in Russian "Presidential Marathon."

But he stayed away from politics. His old friend, Bill Clinton, visited him at his country dacha. He met occasionally with the new Russian president, Vladimir Putin, not as an adviser, he said, but as someone to talk with who knows a lot.

He criticized Mr. Putin for bringing back the old Soviet anthem. He said he regretted leaving two difficult decisions to Mr. Putin, whether to remove Lennon's body from its mausoleum on Red Square, and whether to outlaw the communist party.

Four years ago, at the height of his Kremlin power, Boris Yeltsin told CNN he's not concerned about his role in history.

YELTSIN, (through translator): Concerning history, I want to dispense with that issue immediately. I am not thinking about history at all and I'm not planning on thinking about it. I'm thinking about deeds.

DAUGHERTY: But Boris Yeltsin now is part of history. More than three quarters of his countrymen think the Yeltsin era brought Russia more bad than good. Political observers see two sides to Boris Yeltsin.

ANDREI KORTUNOV, POLITICAL ANALYST: He will be remembered as a very talented, very gifted politician, but the hopeless statesman. He knew how to get to power. He knew how to keep in power, but he didn't know what to do with the power that he had.

DAUGHERTY: Another man who once ruled the Kremlin calls Yeltsin power hungry.

MIKHAIL GORBACHEV, FORMER SOVIET PRESIDENT, (through translator): Of course he was no democrat. He came to power adjusting his point of view, deceiving saying he was against privileges. A great democrat. He climbed up on a tank but it was all deception.

DAUGHERTY: Boris Yeltsin, in his last book, saw it differently. "I gave it my all," he writes. "I put my whole heart and soul into running my presidential marathon. I honestly went the distance. If I have to justify anything, here is what I will say. If you think you can do it better, just try. Run those 40,000 kilometers. Try to do it faster, better, more eloquently or more easily, because I did it."

Jill Daugherty, CNN, Moscow.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NGUYEN: There are more suicide bombings to tell you about across Iraq this morning. Police say at least 24 people are dead, 58 others wounded. And one attack near Baghdad's Green Zone, a suicide bomber blew himself up inside a restaurant. Seven people were killed in that explosion.

Now in a different attack, a car bomb targeted police in Baquba. A provincial official says six police officers, including a general, were killed. At least 10 people died in another car bomb attack north of Mosul.

Well, construction is still underway today, but the U.S. military says it is reconsidering a temporary wall it's been building in a Sunni neighborhood of Baghdad. This after Iraq's prime minister objected. Going to get you live now to our Arwa Damon in Baghdad.

So, Arwa, what are both sides saying about this wall?

ARWA DAMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Betty, that wall has been the source of quite some confusion, beginning with Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's comments yesterday where he said that he would be asking for construction on this wall that surrounds the Sunni enclave of Adamiah (ph) to come to a halt. We spent all morning trying to figure out exactly what was going on, because following that today we heard from the U.S. military and the Iraqi military saying that the prime minister meant that he objected to a continuous stretch of concrete being built, but that the current wall that was being established was going to be a mix of concrete barriers, sand barriers, as well as barbed wire and saying that this had been agreed upon by the U.S. and Iraqi militaries and by the Iraqi government itself.

But whether you are calling this a separation wall, like many Iraqis are, whether you are calling it a security barrier, like the U.S. and the Iraqi military are, it is really quite the source of some controversy. Today we saw a few thousand residents of Adamiah take to the streets and calling for the end of what they are calling the sectarian barrier. Many here in Iraq are fearing that the construction of the wall around Adamiah, that is surrounded on all sides by Sunni neighborhoods, as well as other barriers that are being erected throughout the capital, could, in fact, further divide the Iraqi nation.

The U.S. and the Iraqi military, though, are quick to emphasize that these barriers, this wall is not meant to isolate the Iraqi people, but rather secure them. But again, the concern amongst many is that this is only going to lead to even more division.

Betty.

NGUYEN: Well, Arwa, call it a wall, a security barrier, whatever you want, but the question here is, what kind of impact do these walls have on the Iraqis?

DAMON: Well, Betty, when you speak to them about it, they really tell you that they feel like prisoners right now within their own neighborhoods. And there are concerns that, for example in the case of Adamiah, that the residents there will, in fact, become more of an insurgent target because the insurgents will be able to monitor the specific checkpoints where residents are coming in and out and then just pick them off in any number of attacks.

Now the military will tell you that in areas where they have set up these barriers, such as in marketplaces, they've actually seen a decrease in the violence. But the concern here really is, what kind of a nation is being created. And Iraqis are worried that if Baghdad becomes even more a balaberence (ph) of blast walls and checkpoints than it already is, once these walls come up, it is going to be increasingly difficult to bring them down.

Betty.

NGUYEN: All right, CNN's Arwa Damon live for us in Baghdad.

Thank you, Arwa.

HARRIS: Spending showdown. President Bush speaking out today about funding for the Iraq War. Congress expected to pass a bill this week with a non-binding resolution for withdrawal of U.S. troops. But the president says no timetables. Live now to Kathleen Koch at the White House.

Kathleen, good morning to you.

I understand we're pretty close to hearing from the president.

KATHLEEN KOCH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, we are, Tony.

The president met this morning in the Oval Office with General David Petraeus, who has been in Iraq for several months now trying to carry out the president's new plan in Iraq. Now he is back here in Washington reporting back to the president today. Also participating in the meeting, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Peter Pace, also Deputy Secretary of Defense Gordon England.

And this morning in the gaggle, this little get together that Dana Perino, the spokesperson for the White House, has with reporters, we were talking with her about why the president continues to be focusing now on the war on terror, the war in Iraq and what the significance of this meaning is. And, obviously, she says that the White House is in this confrontation now with Congress, trying to get the additional funding, the supplemental funding for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

And the president -- his remarks this morning, these will be the third in a row where he is really coming down hard, pushing Congress, saying that they are causing the Pentagon a great deal of difficulty now in funding the troops. Very strong remarks, as a matter of fact. Friday where the president accused lawmakers of substituting their judgment for the judgment of generals, saying that troops are caught in the middle, that the Pentagon is being forced to move funds around within its budget, transfer money from military personnel accounts in order to cover the funding for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. The president very concerned that the military will not be able to do its job and basically charging Congress with putting the troops at risk.

We're not sure if we're going to hear such strong words today, Tony, but certainly the White House continuing the drum beat.

HARRIS: And if you've got strong Democrats, like Senator Carl Levin, admitting that the funding willing be there at a certain point, the question is, why not now and why not get the president a clean bill. I'm sure that is the president's point of view on this.

KOCH: Certainly. Up on Capitol Hill, the point of view is that in the midterm elections, that the American voters spoke, that they want the U.S. out of Iraq. And so Congress is doing its job by trying to put these timetables in the measures, in the funding measures, saying that we will only fund the troops.

OK, now, let's go to the president and hear his remarks.

HARRIS: Great, Kathleen. Thanks.

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: It's my high honor to welcome General David Petraeus back to the Oval Office and I appreciate Deputy Secretary England and General Pace joining us.

General Petraeus has taken on a very important assignment for the security of our country and for the peace of the world. And that is to help this young Iraqi democracy become stable, evolve into a country that can defend itself and govern itself and serve as an ally in this war against extremists and radicals who wish to do us harm.

General Petraeus has been there for a brief period of time on his second tour. About a little over half of the troops -- or around half of the troops he's requested have arrived on the scene. These troops are all aimed at helping this Iraqi government find the breathing space necessary to do what the people want them to do, and that is reconcile and move forward with a government of and by and for the Iraqi people.

And so, General Petraeus, we welcome you here.

GEN. DAVID PETRAEUS, CMDR., MULTINATIONAL FORCE-IRAQ: Thank you, sir.

BUSH: It's a tough time there, as the general will tell the Congress. He's here not only to check in with me and other members of my team, but also he'll be going up to The Hill, going up to the joint session of the Congress, to brief the members, both Republican and Democrat, about what's going right and what's not going right. He's a straightforward man who is implementing a very good plan to achieve our strategic objectives.

As the general will tell the folks on Capitol Hill, there's been some progress. There's been some horrific bombings, of course. There's also a decline in sectarian violence.

And I appreciate you coming. And I really thank you and your family for your service to our country.

I'll answer a couple of questions.

Deb.

QUESTION: Mr. President, Senator Reid says you're in denial about Iraq and that Congress is going to pass a bill that includes a fair and reasonable timetable for withdrawal. Could you compromise, could you accept anything that looks like that at all?

BUSH: I believe strongly that politicians in Washington shouldn't be telling generals how to do their job. And I believe artificial timetables of withdrawal would be a mistake. An artificial timetable of withdrawal would say to an enemy, just wait them out. It would say to the Iraqis, don't do hard things necessary to achieve our objectives. And it would be discouraging for our troops.

And, therefore, I will strongly reject an artificial timetable withdrawal and/or Washington politicians trying to tell those who wear the uniform how to do their job. I will, of course, be willing to work with the Congress, both Republicans and Democrats, on a way forward. That's what I said during the cabinet room. But I also made it clear that no matter how tough it may look, that for the Congress to micro manage this process is a mistake.

Steve.

QUESTION: The attorney general is still getting a lot of criticism over the U.S. attorney situation. Was his explanation sufficient or is there more he needs to do to kind of turn things around?

BUSH: The attorney general went up and gave a very candid assessment and answered every question he could possibly answer, honestly answer, in a way that increased my confidence in his ability to do the job.

One of the things that's important for the American people to understand is that the attorney general has a right to recommend to me to replace U.S. attorneys. U.S. attorneys serve at the pleasure of the president. In other words, we have named them and I have the right to replace them with somebody else.

And as the investigation, or the hearings went forward, it was clear that the attorney general broke no law. Did no wrong doing. And some senators didn't like his explanation, but he answered as honestly as he could. And this is an honest, honorable man in whom I have confidence.

Thank you all for coming.

General, it's good to have you here.

PETRAEUS: It's great to be here, Mr. President.

HARRIS: OK. And there you have it. President Bush making another statement pushing Congress to send him a clean bill for funding the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. A bill without timetables. General Petraeus there next to the president, giving the president his assessment of how the war effort is going. The new plan, the operation on the ground, the Baghdad security plan, how it is faring so far. He will do the same on Capitol Hill on Wednesday.

And there at the end you heard the president taking a question about the attorney general, Alberto Gonzales. The president saying that he felt the testimony last week was a "candid assessment," an assessment that increases the president's confidence in the attorney general's ability to get the job done. We will continue to follow developments on this story throughout the day here in the NEWSROOM.

But in the meantime, fighting the flames in southeast Georgia this morning. Heavy smoke is a big problem, too, forcing schools to remain close in Ware County for the fifth day. Joining us by phone is Ken Davis with the Georgia Emergency Management Agency.

Ken, thanks for you time this morning.

KEN DAVID, GEORGIA EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT AGENCY: Good morning, Tony.

HARRIS: If you would, give us -- for many folks, because of the events last week, we didn't give this story a lot of attention. If you would, take us back and then bring us forward. How many acres right now are we talking about as being involved?

DAVID: We're talking over 55,000 acres have burned to date. The fire began, I guess in earnest last week and its grown continually. And approximately 360 firefighters are giving it their all. It continues to grow and so forth, but a stellar effort is being given by all those involved.

HARRIS: What are the kind of mitigating factors making the job difficult for the firefighters right now to get a complete handle on this?

DAVID: Primarily erratic winds. Yesterday, for example, the morning, during the morning, great progress was made. However, the afternoon, the winds kicked up and some fire lines were lost. But they settled down somewhat now. The major concern today seems to be -- going to be smoke in the local area. Over the weekend, the winds blew from the east to the west, taking the smoke far away from Waycross, Georgia, actually. Reports of smoke over central Georgia, Atlanta, even up to Chattanooga have been reported.

But the forecast now is for the wind to move more toward the north and we're concerned now about heavy smoke in the local area affecting road conditions and certainly threatening -- being a threat to the driving public.

HARRIS: And as Chad Myers often reminds us, it is the wind -- the winds make it very, very difficult for firefighters. Fifty five thousand acres involved. What percentage of containment are we talking about right now, Ken?

DAVIS: Fortunately it's up today.

HARRIS: Oh, good.

DAVIS: As far as percentage containment I've seen so far, about 45 percent contained. And it still looks like we have about 23 more miles of fire line to build. And these fire lines are in some cases 60 to 100 feet wide. So about 23 more miles of that to be built.

HARRIS: How close to residential areas? We know there have been some evacuations. Will more be need?

DAVIS: Probably. This is a very dynamic and wide spread fire. And as communities or structures become threatened, the structural firefighters, your local firefighters, come out and defend those areas. There have been reports of homes being protected with fires -- with flames coming to within 10 feet of them but being protected, nevertheless.

So far about 18 homes have been destroyed, unfortunately. But considering the wide area and the large number of homes that have been threatened, that speaks highly of the firefighters.

HARRIS: And are you getting everything you need? Mutual aid kicking in? Anything that you need that you're getting enough of?

DAVIS: Absolutely. The woodlands firefighters, the mutual aid for the Georgia Forestry Commission has come from firefighters all over the southeast. All of the south eastern states and the local firefighters have gotten mutual aid from throughout this region, as well as all over the state.

HARRIS: Well, Ken, good luck to you and the firefighters, with a massive job on their hands to be sure. Ken Davis, a public information officer for the Georgia Emergency Management Agency.

Ken, thank you.

NGUYEN: Well, let's shift gears now because Virginia Tech students are returning to class. How long will it take to return to normal? We're going to talk with a student. He's the news director of the campus radio station. That is ahead here in the NEWSROOM.

HARRIS: Also, nature's theme song plays on the plains. It's not sweet music. Parts of Texas battered and bruised. Big hail in the NEWSROOM.

NGUYEN: And Boris Yeltsin's legacy. He stared down communist hard liners from the top of the tank, setting the stage for the collapse of the Soviet empire. A towering figure of the 20th century remembered here in the NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NGUYEN: Virginia Tech returning to class, but far from returning to normal. One week after a gunman's rampage, the campus inches back towards routine. Classes resume, but only after the victims are again honored. Brianna Keilar is live in Blacksburg.

So, Brianna, tell us about that moment of remembrance that we saw just a little bit earlier.

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Betty, at 9:45 a.m. one week ago, the first 911 reports were coming in about the second shooting at Norris Hall. The second shooting where 30 people were killed. Thirty students and professors. And it was at this time that students and members of the community came out to pay tribute to the 32 lives that were lost, here on the drill field here at Virginia Tech, within eyesight of Norris Hall where the tragedy occurred. They tolled a bell once for each of the 32 victims and they released one white balloon for each of the victims. And this was very appropriately symbolic.

I spoke with a member of the staff here at Virginia Tech and he was just appalled at the loss of innocent life here. Something I've heard echoed by so many people here at the university. And I know that everyone's seen the pictures of these people who were lost. And you can just tell looking at them how full of life they were. And we've heard from their family and their friends about how much they were contributing to other people's lives as well.

Now, after the release of these 32 white balloons, there was a mass release of orange and maroon balloons. This was to signify Hokie unity and also, again, very appropriately symbolic because something we've seen in the wake of this horrible tragedy is this amazing banding together of this community here at Virginia Tech and also around the nation, people joining with them in Hokie spirit.

Earlier today, at 7:15 a.m., before classes reconvened here at Virginia Tech, there was another smaller tribute. This was to pay tribute to the first two victims here at Virginia Tech at West Ambler Johnston dormitory. There was a moment of silence there. Dozens of students gathering to remember those two students. Emily Hilscher, a resident of that hall, and Ryan Clark, a very well-known resident assistant of West Ambler Johnston Hall.

Betty.

NGUYEN: Brianna, there is just a whole host of emotions playing out there on that campus today. I want to ask you, how are students doing? How are they really doing as they return to class?

KEILAR: Well, you know, it really depends on which students you're talking with. A lot of them have conflicted feelings. They are looking forward to getting back to the routine, getting back to school and not letting this stop them from finishing out their year. But they admit, it's going to be very difficult to be going back to class.

And then on the other hand, you've got some students who maybe lost a friend, maybe lost a couple friends or a professor and then you have some students who maybe they didn't know the people but, of course, this is affecting them, affecting them in a different way. And then maybe you have a student, for instance, one that I spoke with over the weekend who had this shooting occur on Tuesday, he would have been in one of the classrooms that suffered great casualties on Monday. And he just realized how close he was to this tragedy.

So a whole most of emotions. Some people very ready to get back to school, Betty. Some people really mourning and only just beginning to mourn, as you can imagine.

NGUYEN: Yes, it's definitely going to take a lot of time to heal. Brianna Keilar live at Virginia Tech. Thank you.

GERRI WILLIS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Gerri Willis.

On a totally different topic, the stock market, of course, has been on a tear. What it means for your 401(k). That's next on "Top Tips."

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: And let's quickly get you to White House correspondent Kathleen Koch.

Kathleen, I understand you have some reaction from the White House to the news this morning that former Russian President Boris Yeltsin has passed.

KOCH: Yes, Tony. First it's important to point out that we were told by White House Spokesman Dana Perino that President Bush himself did speak this morning with Russian President Vladimir Putin. She did not disclose the content of that conversation, but one can assume that certainly they did talk about the passing of former President Boris Yeltsin. In a short statement, this from the National Security Council spokesman, Gordon Jonrow (ph) we hear, quote, he was an historic figure during a time of great change and challenge for Russia. Our condolences go to Mrs. Yeltsin, their family and the people of Russia. And, Tony no word yet on any sort of funeral -- any sort of U.S. delegation that would attend Boris Yeltsin's funeral, but certainly something like that would have been planned and would be announced shortly. Also at some point today, we are expecting at least a written statement from President Bush.

TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR, NEWSROOM: OK. Kathleen Koch for us at the White House for us. Kathleen, thank you.

KOCH: You bet.

BETTY NGUYEN, CNN ANCHOR, NEWSROOM: I want to get more now on the life of Boris Yeltsin and for that, we turn to CNN's Jill Dougherty in Washington. Jill, talk to us a little bit about his health concerns because we don't know just yet what caused his death.

JILL DOUGHERTY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Betty, the initial reports are coming in. They have not been confirmed, but it sounds as if it entirely possible that Boris Yeltsin died of a heart attack. And he had a very long history of problems with his heart, numerous heart attacks, heart operations, et cetera. And he also had other health problems, but you would have to say as he -- as time went on he got out of office, he actually looked much better than he did back in the '90s when he was in office. Some of the pressure of the job was off and he even would go to tennis tournaments, et cetera. But apparently -- and this again remains to be confirmed, but it could have been his heart, very likely, Betty.

NGUYEN: How do you think Russians are going to be viewing Yeltsin as they look back at his life and his legacy?

DOUGHERTY: You know here in the west, we tend to look at him as an historic figure who ended communism. In Russia, although some people do remember it that way, many people think of Yeltsin as a man who destroyed the Soviet Union and destroyed the way they lived and some of them lived actually honestly sometimes better in an economic sense under communism than they do now. And that -- it's a very mixed legacy. You know, this man was huge and he was huge in every sense of the word, physically huge, historically huge and everything that he did politically was done with a great sweep and a very, very charismatic politician. So everything that will be written about Yeltsin at this point will probably have to be in gigantic letters with a lot of color because this man was a huge presence in history.

NGUYEN: And despite how people feel on either side of it, though, this man was the first to be elected president in Russia. So how do you think his funeral and being laid to rest, how that's going to play out?

DOUGHERTY: Well, it will be again, a major event. Surely many leaders will be there, internationally. Because if there is a legacy for Boris Yeltsin, it is that he destroyed communism as a ruling force in Russia. Communism still exists but it certainly doesn't rule the country. And that was his major accomplishment. But there were other things that he did that did not work well. You remember when he opened fire on the Russian White House back in 1993. And remember in 1994, probably the thing that he -- that others may regret about his presidency the most, and that is beginning the war in Chechnya. And that is a war that never really quite ended.

NGUYEN: CNN's Jill Dougherty joining us live from Washington, DC today. Thank you, Jill.

Well, Wall Street is on a roll. The stock market set a new record high last week and major indexes scored their third winning week in a row. So you want to cash in? Well, here with her tips, CNN personal finance editor, Gerri Willis to show us how we can cash in. The question is, OK, what's the number one step here to make some money off of this?

GERRI WILLIS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Wow, Betty, you've got to keep your eye on the prize. What is your goal here? Friday the Dow closed at a record high as you say, the S&P and the Nasdaq hit six-year highs. But, hey, that doesn't mean it's going to continue. In fact, today stocks are taking a bit of a breather and don't forget back in February, remember that when the Dow tumbled more than 400 points? We were telling you to stay calm, don't make big changes. The same applies when the market gets really excited and runs up. If you are invested in a 401(k) you should be thinking very long term. Ignore these daily fluctuations. Keep your eyes on the prize, your retirement dollars.

NGUYEN: Well, if you're keeping your eye on the prize, you obviously want to make some moves at some point, want to take advantage of what's available out there. Before you do that, don't you really have to assess your portfolio see what you have?

WILLIS: Absolutely, absolutely right, Betty. You're better off spending your time fixing problems in your 401(k) than you are focusing on how the Wall Street indexes are doing. Make sure you check that asset allocation. One of the biggest problems is over- exposure to a handful of large domestic stocks. To find out exactly what's in your portfolio you may not know. Go to Morningstar.com and chick on their portfolio X-ray. Remember, the more diversified you are, the better off you are. Betty. NGUYEN: Yeah, people just hammer that home year after year, diversify, diversify, diversify. But your next step though is really interesting to me because it says don't forget about those leftovers. What are you talking about?

WILLIS: I love leftovers but they're not good when they come to retirement. If you left a job and you didn't take your 401(k) with you, you're leaving money on the table obviously. What you want to do, roll it into an IRA or into your new job's 401(k). It is much easier to manage and streamline your retirement accounts when you have them all in one place. Betty?

NGUYEN: Should you look outside, though? When you're looking to invest, should you look outside your 401(k) if possible?

WILLIS: Absolutely. You know you've been doing all you should do by contributing to your company's 401(k). But these days, even that may not be enough. It's a good idea to invest in an IRA outside of your 401(k), in addition to look at IRA's that don't have high maintenance fees or custodian fees. A couple of place to go, Vanguard and Fidelity. They are a couple of companies that keep their eyes on the bottom lines and try to charge you lower fees.

NGUYEN: And both 401(k)s and IRAs, there is a maximum contribution. You should really take advantage of that, correct?

WILLIS: Absolutely. Did you get a raise this year or a bonus? You know what, it's a good idea to make a habit of upping your monthly 401(k) contribution whenever you get some extra cash. Contributing the max is one of the most important elements to achieving your retirement goals. Even if you raise your contribution by just 1 to 2 percent, you're going to be so glad later down the road when all of your investment returns start adding up. Viewers, if you have a question, send it to us at toptips@cnn.com. We answer those questions right here every Friday and we love to hear from you.

NGUYEN: We love hearing from you because you help us make money.

HARRIS: And save money.

NGUYEN: Thank you, Gerri.

WILLIS: You're welcome.

HARRIS: Still to come on the NEWSROOM this morning, torn apart by tornadoes, parts of Texas trying to pick up the pieces, some still trying to find the pieces. That's ahead in the NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: Destruction in Texas to talk to you about this morning after tornadoes ripped through parts of the state. Worst hit was tiny Cactus, Texas, in the panhandle. Most of the town lost power when the storms rolled through over the weekend. Look at that cloud. There is a dusk to down curfew in effect right now to cut down on any looting. At least 14 people were injured, one critically. Listen to this now. Amazing video, the same storm system that spawned west Texas, tornadoes brought golf ball sized hail to some parts of north Texas. Chad Myers, you've got tornadoes and hail and wildfires and, boy, locusts, what's next?

CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: I'm not sure. Tony, we have cold, dry air coming out of the mountains. It kind of runs down and pushes these warm moist air up. It's a classic scenario. Today there will be some severe weather western Kansas, west Oklahoma, west Texas, but tomorrow it's the big day when a clash between 50 in Denver and snow for Denver by evening. Not really sticking but it will be snowing. It will be cold enough, cold enough all the way through what we call the column of air. It'll be making snow and it won't be melting on the way down. It'll actually be hitting the ground and then melting, 79 in Dallas, 79 in Memphis. That's the classic scenario of a low pressure here. This rain going this way, this rain going that way. You kind of see the big spin.

There was a bunch of snow, too, across the Sierra yesterday. There will be snow in the higher elevations of Colorado today and into tomorrow. There's your radar. This is the storm, the low. You can kind of see the same spin. This is the one that made the severe weather in Texas. That tornado, all the hail yesterday and the day before yesterday. It's now gone. This now is a new storm that will move into the plains today. make severe weather west of where it will be tomorrow, west in the areas where it's a little more lightly populated. Tomorrow we're into Kansas City, Wichita, Topeka, Tulsa, Oklahoma City, Dallas, Texarkana, Ft. Smith, bigger towns, more things to get in the way and more people to get injured from this. This is going to be a big-time-out break tomorrow. And there you see the snow on the west side of the storm. All the ingredients coming together for a pretty big outbreak tomorrow. And I'm not so worried about today, but it really is for tomorrow that I'm worried about. There will be some tornadoes on the ground today. It's just going to be an area where there's more cows than people. So you kind of get the idea that this is going to be a storm into the plains tomorrow that we're going to have to worry about for big-time warnings all day long. So you need to keep yourself advised. New York City today, 82 and then by Thursday morning, 43.

NGUYEN: Look at that drop.

MYERS: Goes up and down. That's springtime for you.

HARRIS: Chad, the activity in the plains you're talking about for tomorrow, are you talking about in the morning or in the afternoon will we see the atmosphere start to heat up a bit?

MYERS: All together. It will be tornadoes on the ground when we're talking during this show tomorrow morning.

NGUYEN: So a full day event.

MYERS: Absolutely.

NGUYEN: Chad, thank you. MYERS: See you.

NGUYEN: Man's best friend and trusted therapist? How dogs are helping people cope on the Virginia Tech campus. That's in the NEWSROOM.

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HARRIS: Well, last week we saw the Dow industrials top 12,800, then 12, 900. Today, there is a lot of talk about Dow 13,000. So let's go to Susan Lisovicz live on the floor -- on the floor of the New York Stock -- we love it when you're there! Hey, Susan, great to see you this morning. What are we expecting? I'm looking at the numbers inside the first hour, hour and 20 minutes or so and we're up six.

SUSAN LISOVICZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yeah, you know, and so the direction is positive.

HARRIS: Yes.

LISOVICZ: And it has been positive basically for weeks now. You know, some veteran traders are saying that we have not seen a hot streak like this in years. They're actually only three times since the Dow Jones industrials came into existence more than a century ago. Had we seen the Dow Jones industrial go higher in 15 of the last 16 sessions. Here we are after hitting three record highs, Tony in a row, the Dow continues to have a little bit more to give. So it's easy to do the math here. It's up 7 points, 12,969. 13,000 straight ahead. And you know, Tony, a lot of folks are saying they're really surprised at this rally. It's really confounding a lot of experts, a lot of exuberance. There's this expression. There's two things I'm just going to point out. There you see what the Dow's been doing over the past year, up 14 percent from a year ago, or 1600 -- more than 1600 points. And up -- remember, it was just eight weeks ago that the Dow erased everything for the year when it dropped more than 400 points. I don't think many of us will forget that day.

HARRIS: No, no, there's no forgetting that. I have to ask you, though, Susan, what are the factors that you're going to be watching this week that may come into play that have the potential to take this number over 13,000 and keep it growing beyond that?

LISOVICZ: That's a good point Tony because there has been data. Data has been driving this rally. The data of the last week, this week and perhaps the next week, are corporate earnings. This is the busiest week. We're going to hear from nearly 200 companies in the S&P 500. Everybody from Apple and Texas Instruments, Microsoft to 3M, Pepsico, Boeing, General Dynamics, AT&T, ExxonMobil and basically, a very wide range of bit blue chip companies are going to be talk about not only how they continue to make money in a tough environment when the economy is slowing and inflation is just not getting out of the picture. Energy costs are high for them as well. And what we have seen so far, Tony, and this is what helped power the stock market last week, is that they're doing just fine, thank you. We're also going to be hearing from the housing market. Well, that's still a question mark. We'll be getting existing and new home sales this week. We'll be getting a read on consumer confidence if employment cost index, that's an important inflation read. This labor market is pretty tight. It's good to know that our wages are going up. But that puts pressure on wages. And you know the Federal Reserve doesn't like that so much. Finally, we get the first look at GDP, which is the mother lode of all economic reports. We'll get that on Friday. So a lot of data being tossed on the street this week.

HARRIS: A lot of stuff in the mix here. All right, Susan, see you next hour.

LISOVICZ: You got it.

NGUYEN: One week ago, gunshots and heartbreak at Virginia Tech. Today, much different sounds. A violinist honoring the victims of last Monday's rampage with "Amazing Grace." Thirty-two swatches of cloth dangled from strings remembering each person killed. Last hour there was also another tribute. A moment of silence held at 9:45, the time of the second shooting. That silence followed by the tolling of bells. Students are resuming classes this morning. Virginia Tech is allowing them to withdraw from classes without penalty or accept the grades they had when the gunman struck.

HARRIS: How about this? Tragedy strikes another Virginia Tech student. The father of 18-year-old Jeff Soriano says his son survived the massacre at Norris Hall only to be killed in a car accident not far from home.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ENRIQUE SORIANO, CRASH VICTIM'S FATHER: He almost got hit in the massacre because he just left from that building where the massacre is. So he was so lucky.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: Police say Soriano's vehicle flipped several times and struck a tree over the weekend. It happened in Virginia Beach. Soriano's father said his son had returned home with his family last week after the campus massacre.

NGUYEN: Virginia Tech students seeking help in a crisis. They are receiving unconditional love. CNN's Harris Whitbeck reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS WHITBECK, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Sunday on the drill field at Virginia Tech, people visit the half circle of granite stones set out to remember the dead in last Monday's massacre. They leave flowers, some leave notes. Tears are still being shed here. Faces express just how hard the last week has been for this college community.

DAWN EISCHEN, HOPE ANIMAL ASST. CRISIS RESPONSE: We don't expect overnight success.

WHITBECK: A few feet from the memorial Dawn Essen (ph) and her dog Ginger keep an eye on what's going on. Ginger is a crisis therapy dog, part of a nationwide group that provides emotional support to victims of catastrophes. The Red Cross asked for a team to be sent to the Virginia Tech campus.

EISCHEN: Some of them have opened up to us and said some things that, you know, it kind of takes us by surprise sometimes what people will tell you when you're a complete stranger but having the dogs here they just feel like they can open up to you and they just feel more comforted by having you there.

GRACE KAO, VIRGINIA TECH PROFESSOR: Actually I've had a lot of media requests.

WHITBECK: Grace Kao is a professor at the university. She was so moved by the therapy dogs she invited Dawn to bring them to her class on Monday.

KAO I think I associate therapy dogs with so much kindness and I know they've been in so many other tragedies and I guess I never thought that I would be someone who would need to hug a therapy dog.

WHITBECK: There's a lot that goes into becoming a therapy dog. These animals are trained for about a year before they're certified and before they're deployed to crisis situations such as this one, training and experience to provide comfort in times of need and the unconditional support only a pet can give. Harris Whitbeck, CNN, Blacksburg, Virginia.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: So what do you get when you put a singer and a White House political strategist in the same room? Throw in a movie producer and you get something highly volatile. Details coming up in the NEWSROOM.

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HARRIS: Betty, want to stick around and pod cast today?

NGUYEN: I think I might.

HARRIS: Join me in the pod cast universe. It's great. You already know, the folks at home know to catch us every weekday morning 9:00 a.m. until noon Eastern. Now you can take us anywhere with you on your iPod, Tom Fous (ph), wave to the people, say hello. Are you producing the pod cast today, Tom? Beautiful

NGUYEN: Hard at work.

HARRIS: The CNN NEWSROOM pod cast available 24/7 right on your iPod.

NGUYEN: Singer Sheryl Crow and film producer Laurie David meet with congressional leaders about global warming. That is today, but this follows a weekend dust-up the two had with presidential adviser Karl Rove. It happened at the White House correspondents dinner. "Inconvenient Truth" producer David walked over to Rove's table to talk about global warming. She says Rove quoting here, went zero to 100 with me. I have never had anyone be so rude.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LAURIE DAVID, PRODUCER, ENVIRONMENTALIST: So we try to have a conversation with him and, you know, it was odd because he got immediately hostile and very combative and, you know, the conversation went downhill from there.

SHERYL CROW, MUSICIAN: It was very -- I felt it was very disappointing because you want to -- with leadership you want to be able to engage because we're all Americans here and we all have the same concerns and to be shut down, it was very disappointing.

DAVID: Yeah.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NGUYEN: Well, Rove counters that Laurie David, quote, came over to insult me and she succeeded.

HARRIS: Protection or imprisonment? The U.S. says this wall will help keep Iraqis safe from sectarian violence but many residents say it makes them prisoners in their own homes. Live to Baghdad ahead in the NEWSROOM.

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