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Congress to Attempt to Override Veto; Middle East Leaders Meet to Discuss Iraq

Aired May 02, 2007 - 13:00   ET

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

DON LEMON, CO-HOST: Hello, I'm Don Lemon live at the CNN world headquarters in Atlanta.
SUSAN ROESGEN, CO-HOST: And I'm Susan Roesgen, again filling in for Kyra Phillips.

We know what the stance is at the White House and on Capitol Hill, but what do the rest of us, what do Americans think about the political drama over the war funding bill? And where would the money come from now?

LEMON: And Iraq's neighbors weigh in. Will Iran's voice be heard at the table that includes U.S. reps?

ROESGEN: Plus, new warnings for young adults who take antidepressants. A developing story from the Food and Drug Administration.

You're in the NEWSROOM.

LEMON: It is the top of the hour. And happening right now, Democrats on Capitol Hill poised to try to override that presidential veto on their Iraq war funding bill. We are monitoring the vote and the White House briefing room for fireworks.

You're looking at that live, on the left-hand side of your screen.

But while Washington focuses on political theater, America wants to know, if not this bill, where will battlefield funds come from? We're covering all the angles for you.

ROESGEN: And top congressional Democrats are heading to the White House in a little while today to discuss the spending bill standoff with the president in person. The president says he will still be against any Iraq withdrawal time line. But already there are early hints of a potential for a compromise.

Our congressional correspondent, Andrea Koppel, is standing by at the Capitol -- Andrea.

ANDREA KOPPEL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Susan. And you know, there's going to have to be a compromise because, depending upon who you listen to, the money for the troops is going to run out in a matter of days or a matter of weeks. So Democrats know now, now that the president has followed through on his threat to veto this bill with a hard time line for U.S. troops to begin withdraw from Iraq, that they have to get down to brass tacks. That's what the negotiating session this afternoon at the White House is going to be about.

What's happening right now on the Hill over on the House side is more than just symbolism. The fact is they're going to have a vote in about an hour to try to override the president's veto.

Now, we know that the Democrats don't have the votes to do so. But what they're doing is sending a very strong message, number of messages to different audiences.

Among them, the Democratic base, the people that put the Democrats in power in November, who want the U.S. to get out of Iraq now. They're saying we are trying every tool, using every tool at our disposal to try and make this happen.

Just listen to one of the new Democrats, one of the freshmen Democrats from Minnesota, Tim Walz.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. TIM WALZ (D), MINNESOTA: Now that the president's rejected our legislation, he has a responsibility to tell the American people how many more years does he expect us to stay? Did he think it will be five? Maybe ten? And what exactly do the ground conditions look like in order to have us beginning to withdraw? Wishful thinking, political talking points, and rigid ideology do not make good foreign policy.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KOPPEL: But there are Republicans on the House floor this morning who were again defending their president, among them Mary Fallin, who's from Oklahoma. This is what she had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. MARY FALLIN (R), OKLAHOMA: It's time to stop the political games and put the needs of our men and our women defending our nation first. The people of America want a solution, to bring the troops home, but not at the expense of jeopardizing the safety and the future of our nation.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KOPPEL: So how do you fund the troops while at the same time getting enough support from Democrats to try to force President Bush to change policy? That's going to be the heavy lifting this afternoon that's going to begin at the White House.

Back to you.

ROESGEN: We will be watching that. Thanks, Andrea, for that report.

LEMON: And we have a reminder for you. We are keeping an eye on the daily White House briefing. We'll bring you any comments from the administration on the Iraq war funding debate.

Also, President Bush this morning defined very specifically what he says success in Iraq will look like.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Slowly but surely, the truth will be known. Either we'll succeed or we won't succeed. And the definition of success, as I described, is sectarian violence down. Success is not no violence. There are parts of our own country that, you know, have got a certain level of violence to it.

But success is a level of violence where the people feel comfortable about living their daily lives. And that's what we're trying to achieve.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: So what is success in Iraq and, given the current debate in Washington, how is it going to be paid for? Our senior Pentagon correspondent, Jamie McIntyre, is standing by with more on that -- Jamie.

JAMIE MCINTYRE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Don, you know, the definition that President Bush just gave is, in many ways, the very simplest definition of success. And it does come down to the number of attacks, the level of violence, the number of people killed and what that means for the ability of U.S. commanders to begin to withdraw troops from Iraq. But U.S. troops could be remaining there for quite a long time.

Obviously, the initial goals of having Iraq be a sort of shining beacon of democracy that might spread reform throughout the Middle East is something that is a very ambitious goal that you don't hear the administration talk as much about.

It's very much a case of understanding that there's been tremendous cost in lives, in money, in sacrifice from Americans to get where they are now in Iraq. And they want to get to the point where they believe they can leave a stable Iraq and begin to withdraw those troops. And they're not at that point yet.

But you know, when you measure success, it isn't actually that hard. You can actually take a look at the number of people being killed, the level of violence. And when that goes down and stays down for some significant period of time, then the U.S. military can say they've achieved something. But right now we're not seeing those trends.

LEMON: All right. Jamie McIntyre, thank you very much.

And as we said, we are monitoring the White House briefing. We want to take you there live now to listen in to Tony snow.

TONY SNOW, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: ... congressional leaders. The fact is both sides have to work together. You may describe it as compromise. You describe it any way you want. There has to be a constructive effort to get a bill that is going to serve our national interest, meet the basic conditions the president's laid out and provide the kind of -- the support that the troops need.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm sure congressional counterpoints are probably handling that end of it, but can you tell us from the White House podium what spirit the president...

SNOW: It's going to be -- it's going to be a spirit of saying let's work together. It is not going to be -- it is not going to be an antagonistic spirit. And the president does look forward to working with both sides.

Like you said, on a number of occasions in recent days, Martha, that he feels confident that we're going to get acceptable legislation out of this. How that takes place we'll find out. But this is not going to be an antagonistic meeting where people are sort or glowering at one other. Instead, it's going to be one where the president says, "Look, let's work together."

HELEN THOMAS, REPORTER: Any give? Any give to the will of the people to move out of this war?

SNOW: Yes. We want to move out of this war by succeeding.

THOMAS: It's escalating every day.

SNOW: Let me stop. Helen, the people have been escalating -- you know, if you take a look at what's been going on recently, there have been a number of al Qaeda attacks that have had the -- that have...

THOMAS: Iraqi attacking an Iraqi.

THOMAS: No, but if you take a look at the M.O. of al Qaeda: bombing attacks. As a matter of fact, you've seen some reports, for instance, of Iraqis, even those who are opposed to the government, going after foreign fighters. There's a real and recognizable problem here, and it has to be dealt with. So those who say we need to fight al Qaeda, part of what we're trying to do is to build greater capability there.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Tony, on that point, this morning the president said that al Qaeda seems to be a bigger problem than sectarian violence. That seems to fly in the face of what we've heard in recent weeks and months on the ground in Iraq.

SNOW: Well, you've got a shifting series of circumstances. If you take a look, for instance, at what al Qaeda -- it's interesting because it's impossible to segregate them entirely. You take a look at what happened at the Golden Mosque in Samarra, very likely an al Qaeda attack that, in turn, spawned sectarian violence over the last year and some months.

LEMON: All right. That's Tony Snow, talking about the situation on the ground in Iraq and also talking about that war funding bill. We want to get you now to Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi. She is speaking on the floor, talking about that issue, as well.

REP. NANCY PELOSI (D-CA), SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE: ... our country. America's farmers devastated by disaster -- natural disasters think it's an emergency. These situations remain emergencies because the president and the last Congress, the Republican Congress, refused to act. So now we must. So they have made it even more of an emergency.

Today the president faces consequences of his own making. This is the seventh supplemental for the war in Iraq. Certainly, somebody was planning something at the White House and could have put, over the years, the funding necessary for this war into the budget. Instead, the president did not do that. I don't know why. Maybe they didn't want the American people to see the real cost of this war in dollars.

Certainly, we know the price that we have paid more seriously, in lives, in health, in reputation, in the readiness of our military and in probably $2 trillion now for this war.

The president claims that this legislation infringes upon the powers vested in the president...

LEMON: And this is a big issue that is going to play out today. They're going to meet later on with Republican leaders, Democratic leaders, as well, to talk about this issue.

So, we know what the people in powerful positions think about this, but what about other Americans watching the war from their living rooms?

We sent CNN's Brianna Keilar out on the National Mall to get your feedback about the president's veto and the funding bill.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think he did the right thing. I think you have to definitely get the money for them. We have to support them.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes. It seems like if you're a Republican or at least you're a supporter of President Bush, then you have to support the troops in Iraq. If you're a Democrat you have to say pull them out. The issue is not so straight black and white. It's what's best for Iraq, what's best for the united states, what's best for the soldiers, not what political party I'm affiliate with and do I have to agree with them because I'm told to.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Get to business, stop the politicking. Take care of business.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LEMON: And we are awaiting the vote. And as soon as that happens, we'll bring it to you live.

Lots more to come here in the CNN NEWSROOM as this entire thing unfolds throughout the day. We want to tell you about our Brianna Keilar. She's going to share more of the viewer responses that you just saw there on the mall a little bit later on in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Back up!

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROESGEN: This was a violent ending to one of the immigration rallies. People moved in, people moved out. The police pushed them aside. What happened? Why? And was it too much force? That's ahead in the NEWSROOM.

LEMON: And Susan, first it was tainted pet food, then U.S. hog farms and now poultry farms. Up next, we'll take a closer look at China's tainted animal feed. How common is it for them to use melamine? That's a new word we're hearing a lot about.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: Fourteen -- almost 15 after the hour. And here are three of the stories we're working on for you right here in the CNN NEWSROOM.

House Democrats are expected to fall short when they try to override President Bush's veto of the Iraq war funding bill. Congressional leaders are going to meet with the president later on today.

A new call for Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert -- Ehud Olmert to resign. This time it's his own foreign minister who's breaking ranks. A government report Monday blamed Olmert for severe failures in last year's campaign against Hezbollah.

And the FDA wants new labeling on antidepressants. The labels warn of an increased suicide risk to adults ages 18 to 24. The drugs already carry warnings for children and adolescents.

ROESGEN: And we know that politicians are talking about Iraq today in this country, but there's a major summit on Iraq getting underway today in Egypt on the shore of the Red Sea.

Secretary of state Condoleezza Rice is heading the U.S. delegation, and more than 60 other nations are attending to talk about security, stability and the Iraqi insurgency.

CNN's Aneesh Raman is there in Sharm el-Sheikh, the Red Sea resort -- Aneesh.

ANEESH RAMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey, Susan, big expectations, at least exist among some of the states that are here to see whether or not some momentum can be achieved with Iraq's neighboring countries to change the situation on the ground and to make this conference different than the ones that have come before that haven't changed much.

As you mentioned, Secretary Rice arriving a short time ago, soon after meeting with the Iraqi prime minister, Nuri al-Maliki, consulting before the conference officially kicks off tomorrow.

Now at the very least, we expect by Friday some announcement of debt, of either aid to Iraq or debt relief. Iraq still owe about $56 billion in external debt.

At best, though, there will be some momentum among these countries. What will determine where things stand in the end is Nuri al-Maliki, the Iraqi prime minister, himself. The reason, Susan, is that he's faced increased criticism from within Iraq for being an ineffective leader.

And from Sunni countries like Egypt, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, that are here in attendance, he's faced criticism for not getting Sunni participation higher in the Iraqi government. So he's going to have to try and navigate these questions from these member states and make this conference something more than a photo-op.

For her part, Secretary Rice, in terms of her goal, said on the way in, quote, "The most important message that I will be delivering is that a stable, unified and democratic Iraq is an Iraq that will be a pillar of stability in the Middle East."

Now, we've heard that before. We'll likely hear that again. What will make those words mean something is if they can rally action here at this conference, both the U.S. and especially the Iraqi government. It's a tall order. Expectations are low, but again, the very fact that they're meeting, there's some hope that will cause something to change on the ground, Susan.

ROESGEN: All right. And hope is good. Thank you. Aneesh Raman, reporting live for us -- Don.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Back up!

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: A violent ending to one immigration rally. Police move in to move people out. That is right ahead in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ROESGEN: New Jersey Governor Jon Corzine had to pull out his checkbook and voluntarily pay a $46 fine for not wearing his seat belt in that terrible car wreck back on April 12.

He was released from the hospital earlier this week, and during a meeting yesterday he personally asked the police superintendent to give him a ticket. Corzine is also paying all of his own medical bills.

LEMON: Time now for business news. A cable company that owns the New York Knicks, the Rangers and the Liberty, well, it's going private. Private? Susan Lisovicz at the New York Stock Exchange with all the details on this multibillion dollar deal.

Susan, it's usually the other way, they're going public and then it's a big deal but now private?

SUSAN LISOVICZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes. Well, you know, I mean, there's a lot of money to be made. This is a big trend on Wall Street. That is for sure.

The latest example of that is Cablevision, whose other famous properties include two of New York City's most popular landmarks, Madison Square Garden and Radio City Music Hall.

The company's main business is providing cable, TV and phone service to more than three million customers here in New York. The company today agreed to be taken private by the Dolan family in a deal worth $10.5 billion.

The Dolans are the folks that founded Cablevision 35 years ago. They still run the company. They own a controlling interest in it. The family made two previous offers for Cablevision, but they were rejected as being inadequate. This time I guess the price was right -- Don.

LEMON: I'm surprised you didn't say MSG, as most New Yorkers say.

LISOVICZ: Right.

LEMON: This is -- we are worldwide. You're such a New Yorker.

The family already controls the company. Why do they want to spend so much money to buy it?

LISOVICZ: Right. It's a reasonable question. And it's because they expect even more money as a result, a big return on their investment.

Like other cable operators, Cablevision has been putting a lot of money into new services like digital, for instance. It was the first major cable provider to offer bundled TV, phone and Internet service. It's a whole new revenue stream for cable companies.

But most of the big investments for those services have already been made, so the spending should decline, but the profits won't, giving Cablevision the potential to throw off hundreds of millions of dollars in cash each year.

And investors think so, as well. Shares of cablevision are gaining more than 8 percent here at the NYSE.

(STOCK REPORT) LISOVICZ: Coming up next hour, a CEO is outed, and now he's out of the executive suite. Don and Susan, back to you.

LEMON: All right. I wonder, do any people -- any experts worry about the Dow just climbing so rapidly that it's going to drop or burst?

LISOVICZ: I'm one of them.

LEMON: You are?

ROESGEN: No.

LEMON: Yes.

LISOVICZ: I mean, you know, gravity has to take effect. And you know, it will give back...

LEMON: Yes, all right.

LISOVICZ: ... at some point. Hopefully not 900 points.

LEMON: All right, Susan. Thanks. We'll check back throughout the day here in the NEWSROOM.

LISOVICZ: You got it.

ROESGEN: Don, if you jinxed it, I'll be so upset.

LEMON: No, not at all. Not at all. Just wondering.

ROESGEN: No, it's not going to roll back. No, no.

LEMON: It's always like that, when it goes up, you know, people worry that it's going to come down.

ROESGEN: No. Up. Up.

LEMON: Yes.

ROESGEN: OK.

Well, first it was the tainted pet food, and then American hog farms, and now poultry farms. Up next, we'll take a closer look at China's tainted animal feed and what it might mean for our food.

LEMON: And cheers to coffee lovers. More good news about your morning cup of joe. That's straight ahead, right here in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: Hello, I'm Don Lemon live at the CNN word headquarters in Atlanta.

ROESGEN: And I'm Susan Roesgen, filling in for Kyra Phillips. Melamine, that potentially toxic additive, turns up in chicken feed, feeding chickens that could be headed to your table. The feds say it's time to get serious about food safety at home and abroad.

You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.

LEMON: But first we get to you Washington live. The debate happening now on the House floor, leading up to a vote on overriding President Bush's veto. Just moments ago, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi still urged members to override the president's veto right from the House floor.

Let's take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PELOSI: Now into the fifth year of a failed policy, this administration should get a clue. It's not working. This is the fourth surge they have proposed. So what is this? We'll be into another whole year of this war, far longer than World War II. Nobody who serves in this body, who takes the oath of office to protect and defend the Constitution needs anybody to tell them whether you're a Democrat or Republican what our responsibility is to protect the American people. Nobody needs a reminder that what the threat of terrorism is to our country. But we do need to work together to keep our focus on where the war on terror really is. If we clear up this matter, bring this war to an end in Iraq, we can give the war on terror our fullest attention.

DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR, NEWSROOM: Meantime, President Bush out and about today, downplaying what success in Iraq means.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Slowly but surely the truth will be known. Either we'll succeed or we won't succeed. The definition of success, as I described, is sectarian violence down. Success is not no violence. There are parts of our own country that have got a certain level of violence to it, but success is a level of violence where the people feel comfortable about living their daily lives. And that's what we're trying to achieve.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: Again, we are monitoring that vote there. It should happen, at least start within the hour. Democratic leaders concede though that they don't have the votes to override the veto. They are still speaking, trying to get folks to do it though. Later today they will meet with the president and their Republican counterparts to discuss what happens now. Susan.

SUSAN ROESGEN, CNN ANCHOR, NEWSROOM: Meanwhile, an investigation into what started as a peaceful rally for immigrant rights. That's how this rally ended. The Los Angeles police are promising a full investigation into this violent confrontation between the marchers and the officers. About 10 people were taken to hospital there and CNN's Ted Rollins was there.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

TED ROLLINS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: What was otherwise a very peaceful day here in Los Angeles of marches and demonstrations ended in chaos and dramatic fashion when officers from the Los Angeles police department in riot gear fired rubber bullets into a very large crowd that had gathered in Macarthur Park. This is a park in the shadow of downtown Los Angeles. This was the spot, the final spot of the final march. People had gathered here to hear speakers and to get together. A lot of families were in the park. It's unclear what exactly happened, but chaos did ensue. Riot-cladden police officers fired rubber bullets into this crowd trying to disperse them. We were caught right really in the middle of it. There didn't seem to be any warning but officers were trying to systematically clear people from the park as soon as possible. They were firing their weapons with these rubber bullets, not just sporadically, but consistently to presumably scare people and also to get them moving. We did talk to an individual who was hit with one of these bullets. They're very soft, but as you will see and hear, they really do hurt.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The people, they wanted a peaceful march to demand full legalization and amnesty. What they are doing, they are psychologically torturing the people so that they can go ahead and think this is a police state. All we wanted was to walk demanding full immigration rights.

ROLLINS: Now according to the Los Angeles police department, this started when one of their motorcycle officers was hit by one of the protesters or marchers and fell down. That started what became a very tense situation. That is what prompted them to clear the park and end this rally.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's unfortunate that the actions of a few individuals among the many thousands who were here throughout the day marching and demonstrating peacefully and in a very coordinated, organized way, the actions of a few who were clearly intending to cause disturbances and disruptions that they, in fact, did do just that. And that their actions provoked a response from the police.

ROLLINS: Now as dramatic as this all was, with the amount of bullets that were fired, we have not heard of any reports of any serious injuries from any of the protesters or any of the officers involved. Clearly, a dramatic and surprising end to a day that was otherwise a very peaceful day here in the city of Los Angeles. Ted Rollins, CNN, Los Angeles.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ROESGEN: And the debate continues. CNN's Lou Dobbs talking about the immigration issue again today. A prime time special tonight, a town hall meeting from Hazelton, Pennsylvania. Broken borders, a Lou Dobbs prime time special here on CNN tonight at 8:00 p.m. Eastern.

LEMON: Putting a horrible semester behind them. Classes for the spring wrap up today at Virginia Tech just a little more than two weeks after a massacre on campus that left 32 students and also professors dead. Earlier today the student body president talked to CNN about what it's like on campus now.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ADEEL KHAN, VIRGINIA TECH STUDENT BODY PRES: It's definitely a lukewarm feeling. Usually it's sort of - it's the normal studying for your final exams, but right now it's still people mourning. But I'd say the campus is definitely looking a bit up. People are having fun again. People are smiling again. It's getting more and more back to what it had been before the tragedy.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: This is also the day students must let the school know how they want to handle the semester. They can either finish as usual, take a grade based on their work before the shooting or withdraw from spring courses entirely without penalty. A bit later we will be talking with Amy Steele. She's the editor of the school newspaper.

ROESGEN: The food additive that sparked a massive pet food recall has turned up again and this time it's in poultry feed at 38 farms in Indiana, where chicken is grown for you to eat. Investigators say the threat to people is so small that they are not issuing a recall of the chicken. But on CNN's AMERICAN MORNING, a former Food and Drug Administration official said the FDA is under staffed and under funded and that, he says, puts us all at risk.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

WILLIAM HUBBARD, FMR FDA ASSOC. COMM: The country is being flooded with foreign imports from around the world, including developing countries and the FDA staff has not increased. In fact it's been cut to protect our food supply. So I believe there is real risk.

KIRAN CHETRY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Is that the only line of defense, the FDA or does the Department of Agriculture and others get involved in these types of, these types of monitoring?

HUBBARD: The Agriculture Department inspects and they do a good job with that. They're well resourced. But FDA has 80 percent of the food supply, including all the vegetable proteins that are involved in this pet food issue.

CHETRY: You are right and we have the numbers here. Last year it looks like nine million food shipments arrived in U.S. ports, only 20,000 were actually sampled by FDA inspectors. That's less than 1 percent of all shipments. You want to ask, how come we haven't seen this before? How come we haven't been in more trouble before if that's how little inspection is going on?

HUBBARD: Well, there have been import problems in the past. They tend to be ignored because people move on. I would hope that this time this is a wake-up call that this could have been human food and some people could have died from this and there needs to be a strengthening of the FDA so that the FDA can do what the public expects it to do.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROESGEN: Past and present FDA commissioners have been testifying this week on Capitol Hill and the FDA says it now has a food safety czar, but lawmakers on both sides of the aisle agree that more needs to be done.

And as Federal health officials warn that they expect more farms in the U.S. to be affected by melamine, this animal feed ingredient imported from China, we are learning more about just how common that ingredient is in Chinese products. CNN's John Vause reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JOHN VAUSE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): When U.S. officials traced the chemical melamine to two factories in rural China, including this one, they initially thought both were isolated cases of melamine contaminated wheat gluten, which was used in pet food. That led to a massive recall across the U.S. But a major melamine supplier in China has now told CNN, companies buying melamine all the time to make animal feed. It's a common practice.

CAROLINE SMITH DEWAAL, CTR FOR SCIENCE IN THE PUBLIC INTEREST: They essentially added melamine to have it pass a protein test and so they could sell it for more money.

VAUSE: Both factories are now closed and melamine banned by the Chinese government as a food additive. With China the third biggest exporter of food to the U.S., there's concern about how much of it is safe.

DEWAAL: There are a number of examples of food from China and food sold in China domestically that give us cause for concern.

VAUSE: Liu Weifang knows how dangerous China's food can be. One of 300 million Chinese sickened by bad food every year. She ate snails infested with parasites, sending her to the hospital for more than a month. Even now, a year later, she needs daily injections.

LIU WEIFANG, VICTIM OF FOOD POISONING: When food comes to the table, I have to ask is it safe, she told me.

VAUSE: Outbreaks of mass food poisonings are common here, often caused by poor hygiene, or bad preparation. But also by criminals like this man who was recently sentenced for making lard from sewage.

(on-camera): Officials here say melamine, which is normally used in making plastics, is not highly toxic. Even so they are working to improve export inspections, in particular looking for food products which contain melamine. John Vause, CNN, Beijing.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LEMON: They are supposed to help, but could they actually make matters worse for some? Ahead in the CNN NEWSROOM, new fears about the potential side effects of antidepressants.

ROESGEN: And cheers to coffee lovers. More good news about that morning cup of coffee just ahead in the NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: You might remember the flap about increased suicidal tendencies among kids and teens taking antidepressants and how the FDA had drug makers add warnings to their products' labeling. Now the agency says the same risks apply to 18 to 24-year-olds and it's asking that the warnings be expanded. CNN medical correspondent Elizabeth Cohen is here with more information on that. So serious enough, obviously, to expand that.

ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Right, serious enough do an expanded warning. The concern here is that while antidepressants work beautifully for many people, they might be problematic for other people. So we are talking about antidepressants like Wellbutrin, which you see here, Prozac, Zoloft, all the big names. We're not talking about any one in specific, but the whole class of drugs and what the FDA has came out just today saying is that they are asking these drug companies to include a new warning that would say that these drugs may increase the risk of suicidal behavior in children, teens and adults up to age 24.

Now, this warning is already on there for children and teens. What they are adding here is the adults up to age 24 and this is a black-box warning. This is pretty much what it looks like on there. It is the highest level of warning. It goes right up at the top. It's very big and it's very obvious. A similar warning used to be in the text of the pamphlet that came with the drug and now the FDA saying that is not enough. We want it right there at the top in a box.

LEMON: OK, so let's say your doctor wants to prescribe these to you. How do you know, how do you know if you are one of the people who it's going to help or it's going to hurt? Do you know?

COHEN: You don't know. That's the problem and neither does your doctor. There's no test your doctor can do to see if it's going to work for you or not, nothing definitive. But there are a couple of things that you can remember. When your doctor puts you on one of these drugs, you and your friends and your family and your doctor need to watch for changes in your behavior or in your thinking, especially in the first two months that you are on these drugs or when your doctor orders a dose change.

Another hint if you start these drugs, ask your doctor, am I depressed? I know it sounds kind of strange to ask that question, but sometimes doctors prescribe antidepressants when people have other emotional issues and that's sometimes where people get into trouble. Antidepressants, if you've got an emotional issue other than depression, that's can be problematic.

LEMON: You know, it used to be people didn't talk about it, but now most people or a lot of people are on antidepressants, people you work with, people in your family. So suicides are the issue here, but not everybody is prone to them. It's not going to happen to everyone. It happens in a small number of people, correct?

COHEN: The FDA was very clear on a conference call with reporters today that this usually does not happen. Usually these antidepressants don't cause these problems. The FDA got very specific with numbers. They said that their studies show that for every 1,000 patients under the age of 18, they're seeing 14 extra cases of suicidal thinking or behavior when people go on these drugs. In other words, 14 cases of suicidal thinking or behavior that you wouldn't see if they weren't on these drugs. For every 1,000 patients aged 18 to 24, the FDA says that studies show there are five extra if you will cases of suicidal thinking or behavior. In other words, five cases they wouldn't expect to see if people weren't on the drugs. But if you're one of those five, I mean five out of 1,000 doesn't sound like much and it is a low number, but if you are one of those five who become suicidal after taking an antidepressant, it's a huge problem, considering the millions of people also that are taking these drugs.

LEMON: Absolutely. Usually they say if the benefits outweigh the risks, but still if you're one of the five as you said, it's very serious.

COHEN: Absolutely.

LEMON: Elizabeth Cohen, thank you.

COHEN: Thanks.

ROESGEN: Some good news for all of us java junkies. The experts say drinking moderate amounts of coffee, moderate amounts could have some serious health benefits, among them reducing the risk of developing type II diabetes and preventing some types of cancer, but there's always a little bit of bad news in these kind of studies. Coffee may also increase the risk of leukemia and stomach cancers in some people.

LEMON: A frightening scene in the sky over Kansas. Severe storms are a concern today in parts of the nation's midsection. Eye on the sky straight ahead in the NEWSROOM.

We're going to get you live now to Washington because we are watching - we're watching a vote there. It should start at any moment. Of course Democrats urging Republicans to try to override the president's veto. They're going to meet later. The Democrats, Republican leaders and the president. We're going to have it for you here right here in the CNN NEWSROOM. You're watching CNN, the most trusted name in news.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ROESGEN: You are looking live again at the debate on the floor of the House. The debate over whether or not Congress will be able to override the president's veto of the war funding bill. They don't expect an override to be possible, but Democrats are giving it their best shot trying to persuade primarily Republican opponents that they should override the presidential veto of the war funding bill. We expect the vote any moment now and we will bring you the results as soon as it's in.

LEMON: They don't call it the long arm of the law for nothing. After a year on the lam, an alleged child molester and pornographer has been caught in Hong Kong. Kenneth John Freeman was on both the U.S. marshals and customs most wanted lists. He is accused of raping and molesting his own daughter and posting videos of it online. Multi agency task force tracked him to China, which has no extradition treaty with the U.S. Hong Kong does, though, and Freemen was arrested on a visit to the territory.

ROESGEN: After the shootings at Virginia Tech, the University of Georgia isn't taking any chances. Just two weeks before he is scheduled to receive his MBA degree, a 27-year-old student has been arrested for allegedly threatening a faculty member and confronting police with a gun. Reporter Duffy Dixon of CNN affiliate WXIA has that story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DUFFY DIXON, WXIA CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Inside the University of Georgia's Terry college of business, a student said something so disturbing a professor called campus police.

CHIEF JIMMY WILLIAMSON, U. OF GEORGIA POLICE: Those comments that were made were no overt threats or direct threats to any one individual group, faculty, staff, anybody related (INAUDIBLE) or off campus. Nothing was directed, but they were in such a way that we felt that person may be at risk of injuring themselves or somebody else.

DIXON: Armed with a court order for a mental evaluation, police went to the apartment of MBA student Brandon Ginyard (ph). They thought he wasn't home, but as the landlord let them in, they learned otherwise.

WILLIAMSON: As we identified ourselves and were starting to clear the apartment, my officers came in contact with the party in the rear bedroom. At that time he brandished a firearm.

DIXON: Ginyard now faces not only a mental evaluation but two charges of aggravated assault against officers. Campus police have sent since out this e-mail to all faculty, staff and students calling it simply a public safety matter.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ROESGEN: More than 30,000 students attend the University of Georgia. It's in Athens, Georgia, which is about 60 miles east of Atlanta.

LEMON: A third straight stormy day across Texas. Look at that rain and the threat of more flash flooding. Yesterday 10 Ft. Hood soldiers had to be rescued by helicopter after their tanks got stuck in a flooded creek. At the time they were training for a low-water crossing. Three other storm ravaged areas of that state have been declared Federal disaster areas. One includes Eagle Pass. We've been talking about Eagle Pass. It's on the Texas/Mexico border. A tornado tore through that city last week killing seven people and leaving as many as 200 families homeless.

And check this out. Funnel clouds, tornadoes, and flooding also hit parts of Kansas. A funnel cloud spotted near Alma, Kansas. That was yesterday. No word on any injuries or any damage there. In Topeka though, when the sirens went off, state lawmakers took shelter in an underground parking garage at the state capital. Wow. Jacqui Jeras, looks like some folks are going to maybe - thank you very much. Some folks may be sadly running for cover today. It's very serious stuff.

JACQUI JERAS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: It really is. In fact just in the last two minutes we got a tornado watch for parts of Texas so this was just issued now and this will be ongoing through the afternoon for much of central and southwestern parts of Texas. Those pictures that we just saw, we're going to see more of those likely today and throughout the month. Because May, we see more tornados on average than any other month of the year. So we should expect to see this kind of busy weather.

We do have a severe thunderstorm watch to the west of there and once in a while we can get rotation, even though it's not a tornado watch. That's something you need to keep in mind, because these cells right in this area, three different ones are showing areas of rotation. So, Glass (INAUDIBLE) Sterling and Tom Green (ph) counties are under tornado warnings. Look at all those live lightning flashes right now, dangerous situation. In addition to the chance of a tornado here, we could also see some very large hail, like two-inch hail. That's like the size of an egg. That's very large hail. That can cause a lot of damage to you and to your vehicle. So make sure you stay inside and wait until this storm passes.

We have a weak frontal system that's moving in across parts of the Ohio valley. We are looking at some light rain showers overall, but we could see maybe an isolated storm with a little bit of hail. We had a lot of hail damage yesterday in parts of Indiana, Ohio and Pennsylvania. Our I-reporters caught some of that video. Let's go ahead and take a look at that right now. This is in north western Pennsylvania. It's about 40 miles to the north of Wilmington. This is from Brano Cikel from New Wilmington, Pennsylvania. Look at that hail video, about the size of nickels he said. It lasted about 15 minutes. Can you hear it? Is there a little audio on that? I thought we could hear a little bit of that, too. No sound, I guess. But that's some incredible hail. Imagine that, that's the size of nickels guys, egg- sized hail right now in Texas so like four times as big as that.

LEMON: I can do this for you. Maybe that will help.

JERAS: Thank you. That's good.

LEMON: That was pretty good, huh? Jacqui, can we get back to those funnel clouds? Do we often have video of them forming? I think it's in Kansas, we saw that. Do we usually see video of that? JERAS: It's not that unusual. When we expect severe weather to happen, we will usually get some video out of it because there are a lot of storm chasers out there wanting to get and sell that video. So we certainly see it more and more.

LEMON: That's some good pictures coming out of Kansas. We wish everyone well. We're going to check back with you Jacqui Jeras. Thank you.

ROESGEN: Once again, the debate on the House floor leading up to a vote as House Democrats try to override President Bush's veto of the war spending bill. We expect the vote to start any minute. At the top of the hour we'll have a live report from the White House. CNN NEWSROOM will be right back.

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