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Bush, Congress Reach Compromise on War Funding; Firefighters Taming Wildfires in Florida; Boulder School Locked Down After Suspicious People Spotted; Tony Blair Stepping Down as British Prime Minister

Aired May 10, 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, everyone. I'm Don Lemon live at the CNN world headquarters in Atlanta.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CO-HOST: And I'm Kyra Phillips.

No rest for the weary as wildfires blanket much of Florida and South Georgia. Will the storm off the coast bring relief? A live report from the fire lines straight ahead.

LEMON: And a bizarre story still developing in Boulder, Colorado, where two young men, were they wandering a high school in camouflage? And if so, why? Well, the school is closed while police search for answers.

You are live in the CNN NEWSROOM.

PHILLIPS: Our top story, the commander in chief in session today with top brass at the Pentagon. House Democrats, meanwhile, are pushing a war bill with funding only through July.

Mr. Bush says that's acceptable and says warring parties in Congress should compromise now.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Time is running out. Because the longer we wait, the more strain we're going to put on the military.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: To the Pentagon now and CNN senior correspondent Jamie McIntyre. Jamie, what's your reaction?

JAMIE MCINTYRE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Kyra, this strategy in Iraq is designed to buy the Iraqi government more time, but it's also buying George Bush more time, as well. The president will be able to say for the next couple of months, as he did this morning at the Pentagon, let's give this plan a chance to work. In his words this morning, he said let's not play politics. Let's just see what happens.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) BUSH: To succeed in all these efforts, their people must have security. That's why I made the decision I made. That's why we sent additional troops into Baghdad. What we need to give General Petraeus' plan time to work.

There's debate raging in Washington here about how long we're going to be there. We haven't even got all our troops there.

I still find it interesting that General Petraeus was given a unanimous confirmation vote by the United States Senate after he made clear his plan, and before the plan has been fully implemented, some in Washington are saying, "You need to leave."

My attitude is General Petraeus' plan ought to be given a chance to work, and we need to give the troops under his command the resources they need to prevail.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MCINTYRE: One thing that George Bush says that General Petraeus and he both agree on is the need for so-called benchmarks. And he said that he has empowered John -- Josh Bolton to find some common ground on benchmarks with Republicans and Democrats in Congress.

He also cited, of course, some of the things that have to be done. The new oil law in Iraq, the new provincial elections to be set up, the deep advocation (ph) policies that all need to be done over the summer, while the security crackdown is going on in Baghdad and in Anbar province.

But President Bush said he will make his decision about what to do in September based on the report that he gets from General Petraeus, which he continues to say will be an honest assessment of whether the strategy is working -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Well, speaking of honest assessment, Jamie, we had General Richard Cody on earlier this morning. He was actually here in the NEWSROOM in Atlanta. And we asked about what he had to say about the state of U.S. forces and the war effort in Iraq. This is what he said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEN. RICHARD CODY, U.S. ARMY VICE CHIEF OF STAFF: We started this war with an Army that was too small, a Marine Corps that was too small, and the successive deployments are taking a toll on our families and on our soldiers.

The remarkable thing, though, through all of this, is we still have great young men and women signing up to basically tell America, "In your time of need, send me. I'll defend you." And our retention rates right now are holding pretty -- pretty well. But this plus-up bears watching.

(END VIDEO CLIP) PHILLIPS: Basically this was an acknowledgment from the head of the military here for the U.S. Army, the second in charge, that the forces are actually stretched too thin, Jamie.

MCINTYRE: Well, you know, it's interesting because a couple of years ago it would be harder to get that admission, when the war in Iraq was only a year or so old or maybe just a couple years after Afghanistan.

But as the wear has dragged on, as the strain has become greater, there's been a greater acknowledgment that the U.S. military simply isn't big enough to maintain the kind of level of effort that's being required in Iraq without putting very significant strain, as the general pointed out, not just on the soldiers, the troops, but also in particular their families.

PHILLIPS: Jamie McIntyre live at the Pentagon. Thanks so much, Jamie.

Now to Capitol Hill, where beneath that dome, House members are preparing to vote on a short-term war funding bill. This one would pay for military ops in Iran and Afghanistan through July.

Its chances in the Senate are iffy even if it clears the House, and if it clears the Senate, the president says he'll veto it.

Now we're going to monitor the White House briefing. It's about to begin any minute now. We'll bring it to you live as soon as it starts.

LEMON: Fires on the East Coast and L.A., swollen rivers in the heartland, flooding in parts of Missouri may go on for days and reach areas not yet affected. We'll have a full report in just a moment.

First we want to tell you about the fire in L.A.'s Griffith Park. It is now 75 percent contained, but it's already burned close to 1,000 acres, including parts of Mount Hollywood.

Huge problems, again, in extreme southern Georgia and across the state of Florida. Hundreds of wildfires are raging, and a choking haze is spreading far and wide. These folks certainly need some rain.

And in northern Florida, a surging forest fire has forced hundreds of families to grab up what they can and carry it out and get out. Live with the latest from Florida's Bradford County, Ryan Duffy of CNN affiliate WTLV in Jacksonville -- Ryan.

RYAN DUFFY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Don, for the first time, fire crews here in Bradford County say they are actually optimistic fighting this fire. It's a little bit smaller now, down to 15,600 acres and a little bit more contained, around 35 percent. That is mainly due to the weather here, higher humidity, lighter winds. It all helped.

Some of the 1,000 people here that have been evacuated are returning back to their homes today. That's primarily in the northern part of Bradford County. And today fire crews are focusing in on mopping up and strengthening their containment lines.

They're looking at hot spots all along Highway 100 here in the county. That's where the fire crossed over that highway earlier in the week. And now, at least for the moment, it is mostly out there. Today is also giving firefighters a chance to take a little bit of a rest. They've been going non-stop around the clock since Monday.

But they know, as quickly as conditions improved here, they could also get a lot worse, just as fast. They're watching fires burning underground here, below the surface. They're having cases of trees -- trees that looked fine simply collapsing because all their roots were burned out underground underneath them.

But it is still the case here, and they consider this a major accomplishment here, not one House was destroyed in this fire, and so far, no injuries at all.

I'm reporting live in Bradford County. Back to you.

LEMON: Hey, Ryan, I've got a question for you. I've just been reading up on some of the fires here. The smoke so thick that it postponed some state and regional basketball games, also the game between the Dodgers and the Marlins. Some of the players were saying it was like playing in a barbecue. Any idea of when they are going to get a handle on this?

DUFFY: Well, the governor, Charlie Crist, was out here yesterday. He said he's never seen this much smoke in his life. There is smoke just all over Florida. He said hundreds of fires burning throughout the state of Florida; I believe more than 80,000 acres on fire.

So, all that smoke everywhere, and one at a time they're just trying to bring these fires under control. And this one here in Bradford County, Florida, getting a little bit closer to that.

LEMON: Ryan Duffy in Bradford County, Florida, thank you for your report.

We're going to turn now to our meteorologist, Reynolds Wolf.

Reynolds, they could use some rain and, hopefully, they're not going to get much wind.

(WEATHER REPORT)

LEMON: It's definitely been some, to say the least, interesting weather we've had for the past couple of weeks here.

REYNOLDS WOLF, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Feast and famine.

LEMON: Yes. All right. Thank you, Reynolds.

And tonight on CNN, floods, fire and wind. CNN's Larry King takes a closer look at the recent weather and attempts to explain it. That's "LARRY KING LIVE" live tonight at 9 p.m. Eastern, only on CNN. PHILLIPS: Classes are canceled at a Colorado high school that police SWAT Teams are searching room by room right now.

A cook at Boulder High called police early this morning, well before the morning bell. She said she saw two men in a hallway, both wearing camouflage, one wearing a ski mask.

Reporter Chris Parente of KWGN is standing by for us in Boulder.

Chris, what do you know about these guys?

CHRIS PARENTE, KWGN CORRESPONDENT: Hello, Kyra.

It has been a long morning for school officials here in Boulder. As you can see, the police tape is still up, officers still surrounding the building.

Now there's no indication at this point, Kyra, whether or not this whole thing was a high school prank or something more serious. But either way, the police chief telling me he's simply not willing to take any chances.

It all began 6 a.m. this morning. A school cook arrived. She spotted, as you heard earlier, two young men wearing camos, one of them in a ski mask. She immediately called police. They arrived here, locked down the school.

It was early enough in the day there were no other students in the building, but they did cancel classes for the day. And that's when they began to sweep the building. SWAT teams arrived here just after 7.

They have already conducted two room by room searches of this school, looking for anything out of the ordinary. The police chief speaking just moments ago, saying he's not willing to gamble anything in this circumstance.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHIEF MARK BECKNER, BOULDER POLICE DEPARTMENT: We have yet to find anything unusual or suspicious. We have not found anybody in the school. We have not found anything that would raise any further concern. Again, we're just trying to be thorough, to make sure that the school is safe before we reopen the school.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PARENTE: Again, already they have searched this school twice. They do now plan to search a third time with school officials who know every nook and cranny of the school, just to make sure that things are all clear.

And then the plan is to resume classes tomorrow here in Boulder, the 1,900 students at the high school returning to class, hopefully, tomorrow. Again, the chief saying ten years ago it might not have been this big of a deal, but in today's day and age, they want to simply be safe rather than sorry.

Reporting live from Boulder, I'm Chris Parente. Back to you.

PHILLIPS: Understandable. So, Chris, basically, I mean, what is your sense and what are the sources telling you? Does it look like this could be a prank? Or is it more -- are they more on the concern of these guys are on the loose, and we really need to find some leads and know what's going on? Because obviously nothing was done to anybody at the school.

PARENTE: Right. The sense that I get from talking to faculty and students and some of the other folks around town is that it may well have been a prank that got out of hand.

Of course, the seniors are graduating in a week. Oftentimes, we all remember senior prank week.

PHILLIPS: Yes, we do.

PARENTE: This may have been the case.

LEMON: Yes.

PARENTE: But again, they're just not willing to take a chance anymore. And so they are opening to find whoever did this. And we're told that, if they are caught, they're going to face some stiff punishments for sure.

PHILLIPS: Yes. They're probably going to have to pay some money, as well. Chris, appreciate it.

LEMON: Coming up, parents, stick around. We'll have details on a car set recall we're just learning about here in the CNN NEWSROOM.

PHILLIPS: Then, can a pro-choice presidential candidate win the Republican nomination?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RUDY GIULIANI (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Guess we're going to find out, right? Instead of telling the Republicans what they should believe, maybe we should find out and let the Republicans decide.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Savvy campaign strategy or political suicide? Stay in the CNN NEWSROOM for more of Rudy Giuliani's intriguing moves.

LEMON: And after ten years, there's soon to be a new occupant of 10 Downing Street. Ahead in the NEWSROOM, we'll look at the highs and the lows of the Tony Blair decade.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) LEMON: We want to get you straight to the NEWSROOM now. Fredricka Whitfield working on the details of a developing story.

What do you have, Fred?

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Well, Don, if you or anybody out there has an Evenflo Embrace infant car seat or carrier, you need to listen up, because this type of car seat and carrier has now been recalled, 450,000 of them, because there have been cases of the handle unexpectedly just sort of releasing, which means about 160 children have been injured in the reported 679 cases of that actually happening.

So, again, if you have an Evenflo Embrace infant car seat/carrier, you're being asked to call 1-800-490-7497. And perhaps this is a carrier specifically to those that were made before April 8, 2006.

You can also go to the web site and get some more information about what to do if you have that type of carrier. It's a pretty frightening thing for any parent out there who has this kind of carrier/car seat.

LEMON: Yes. And a lot of people have them. And again, I want to give that number, because it wasn't up on the screen. Again, 800- 490 -- right, Fred?

WHITFIELD: Yes.

LEMON: 7497?

WHITFIELD: That's the number I've got.

LEMON: OK, 490-7497.

WHITFIELD: Right.

LEMON: Call that number. Fredricka, thank you.

WHITFIELD: All right. Thanks so much.

PHILLIPS: A changing of the guard ahead in Britain, and it's not at Buckingham Palace.

Prime Minister Tony Blair ended the suspense today. He says he's going to step down June 27 after ten years in office. Britain's treasury chief, Gordon Brown, is expected to replace him.

CNN's European political editor, Robin Oakley, now joins us from London with the news.

A lot of folks there living in England were not surprised, right, Robin?

ROBIN OAKLEY, CNN EUROPEAN POLITICAL EDITOR: No surprise at all, Kyra. This has been coming for some time. Tony Blair had promised to go before the next election. His unpopularity over Iraq has led his own party to push him out much sooner than he would want to go.

And as you say, Gordon Brown, the finance minister, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, is the man most likely to succeed him in 48 days' time.

Tony Blair carries on, of course, as prime minister until then. He'll be coming to Washington soon to see President George W. Bush. He'll be going to the G-8 summit in Germany. He'll be going to a European summit, so it's business as usual. But we are expecting to have a new prime minister here in Britain on June the 27th -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: And Robin, Britain has always been a tremendous ally to the United States, specifically in the war on terror and with its role in Iraq. What does this resignation mean for that? Will it affect it?

OAKLEY: Not enormously, no. Gordon Brown is very much an Atlanticist (sic). He's got lots of contacts with U.S. politicians, mostly, of course, on the Democratic side, contacts going back to the days of President Bill Clinton.

Being finance minister for over 10 years, he's met a lot of people through the World Bank and IMF organizations. And Gordon Brown has always taken his holidays for preference in Cape Cod. He's somebody who will very much appreciate the need to maintain a strong alliance with the United States.

But it won't be quite the same kind of personal relationship with President George W. Bush. You wouldn't expect it to be. Look at the practicalities of politics.

A president in trouble, a weakened president on his way out. Before Gordon Brown has to fight an election here, George Bush will have gone. So, Gordon Brown will have to have an eye to who might be following George Bush and what kind of policies they might have on Iraq before he completely takes his own position.

But he won't be pulling troops back early. He, after all, as chancellor, has provided the money for the British operations in Iraq. And he's not going to come up with a dramatic change in policy now, Kyra.

PHILLIPS: All right. And probably won't change his travel plans. Cape Cod, that's pretty impressive. He's got good taste.

Robin Oakley, live from London, appreciate it.

LEMON: Big news in the world of auto racing with a financial twist. So we called in our very own Susan Lisovicz.

SUSAN LISOVICZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Don, he's already the most popular driver in NASCAR. Now Dale Earnhardt, Jr., is the most coveted free agent in stock car history. Details next on NEWSROOM.

You're watching CNN, the most trusted name in news.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: One of the most popular NASCAR drivers is a free agent. Susan Lisovicz is at the New York Stock Exchange to tell us about a move that's sure to shake up Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s legions of followers.

Hi, Susan.

LISOVICZ: Yes.

LEMON: I'm also told here by my partner he's one of the most eligible bachelors. And she's...

PHILLIPS: Yes, he is.

LISOVICZ: I wasn't sure -- I wasn't sure that he was...

PHILLIPS: He's -- he's on the market, so I hear.

LISOVICZ: You know, I have to check my sources on that one, but...

LEMON: You learn something every day, don't you?

LISOVICZ: Nice piece of reporting, Kyra.

Junior has put himself on the market professionally. Dale Earnhardt, Jr., announcing today that he will leave Dale Earnhardt Inc., the company his legendary father founded, the move sure to spark a bidding war for NASCAR's most popular driver.

And whichever team gets him could get his sponsor, too, Budweiser as well. Earnhardt says he isn't sure which team he'll join just yet, but you know we will cover the story. And you know that there will be big bucks involved, Don.

LEMON: Oh, yes, not going to leave out any details.

So, we're also seeing some other high profile figures, you can say, that are on the move today, as well?

LISOVICZ: And both involving some consequences, unfortunately.

Two chief executives getting the boot. JetBlue ousting its founder, David Neeleman, from his CEO spot. The move comes three months after the airline took a major blow to its reputation for customer service when that Valentine's Day storm roared through the northeast, leaving hundreds of passengers stranded for hours on grounded jets. Neeleman will stay on as chairman.

And in the media business, three days after his Las Vegas arrest on allegations of assaulting his girlfriend after a fight, which HBO showed, Chris Albrecht is stepping down as CEO of HBO.

Albrecht has been with the network for more than 20 years. He helped build the network into a powerhouse, engineering a lineup that included hit shows such as "The Sopranos", "Sex & The City", "Six Feet Under". "The Sopranos" scheduled to end its run next month.

Time Warner is the parent company of HBO and CNN.

(STOCK REPORT)

LISOVICZ: And what can make one lunch worth $600,000?

LEMON: A date with you.

LISOVICZ: You just blew the tease.

LEMON: It's the truth. Is it really? No. You're kidding me, right? A date with Susan?

LISOVICZ: No, no, I just vicariously enjoyed the lunch with the Oracle of Omaha.

LEMON: I had no idea. I was just joking around.

LISOVICZ: No, I vicariously enjoyed it. I had to report the fed decision. We had a very fine representative from CNN go and interview Mr. Buffett again.

LEMON: I would gladly pay $650,000 to have lunch with Susan Lisovicz, and I'm sure many people would.

LISOVICZ: Got it on record. She's got it on record.

LEMON: Cheap date. Kyra would pay a million.

LISOVICZ: Next trip to New York.

LEMON: All right. Thanks, Susan.

LISOVICZ: Thank you.

PHILLIPS: Can a pro-choice presidential candidate win the Republican nomination?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GIULIANI: I guess we're going to find out. Right? Instead of telling the Republicans what they should believe, maybe we should find out and let the Republicans decide.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Savvy campaign strategy or political suicide? Stay in the CNN NEWSROOM for more on Rudy Giuliani's intriguing move.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: Well, he says he is personally opposed to abortion, but Rudy Giuliani also says, ultimately, there has to be a right to choose. How will this effect his chances to win the Republican presidential nomination? You're live in the CNN NEWSROOM. But first, the rains are long gone but the water is still rising in parts of Missouri. People living along the Platte, Grand and Missouri Rivers are comparing these floods to the horrors of 1993. Just like then, levee failures are a big part of that problem. CNN's Sean Callebs is in Big Lake, Missouri.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SEAN CALLEBS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, standing here on highway 111, right in the heart of Big Lake, Missouri and really living up to its name. I want to pull out and give you a wide shot, just to show you the graphic image of just how far, how widespread this flooding is. Fertile farmland to my left, just underwater, actually irrigation equipment out that is just almost a joke if you think about the amount of water that is out here. Residents we talked to in this community say they lived through this back in 1993. They were hopeful it wouldn't happen again. But it did. They blame the levee system near the Missouri River that is supposed to protect this area. Many say it simply, in their words, a joke. We talked to one gentleman who said on his front porch he could see where the levee gave way, a couple of miles down the road. He can actually see the water roll toward his house. The entire town has been evacuated. No one is going to be allowed back in for the near future. They want this water to go down.

Back in '93, it took just about a month for all of the flood water to go back to the Missouri, wash its way down south. No one knows how long it's going to take this time. They hope -- they hope it begins receding by the weekend. What's at stake here? Just all this cropland. There was corn planted over there, hundreds of acres more to the north of us. There's also an important rail line that carves its way right through the middle of this community.

For the past couple of days or so, crews have been out there with a lot of heavy equipment, doing what they can to shore up that elevated rail system. It's only a few feet above the flood stage so they're doing what they can to make sure it doesn't give way. They want to give that vital link open. And when this begins to recede, we know residents are going to be allowed to come back. But what they're going to come back to they just don't know. Sean Callebs, CNN, Big Lake, Missouri.

LEMON: Got a couple questions for Reynolds Wolf. Has the river crested or the rivers crested and when will it start to recede?

REYNOLDS WOLF, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Good question. We're going to start seeing improvement over the next couple of days. One thing that's really good is that there's no scenario where we're seeing heavy rainfall moving into that part of the world for the time being so that is great news for people there. Still they've got a big mess to clean I'm sure. It's frustrating. It's going to be something they're going to deal with for a while, but it will be getting better.

One place where things may be getting worse will be in upstate New York as well as Pennsylvania. At this time we have a severe thunderstorm watch that is in effect for a good part of the empire state as well as the keystone state. And a few severe thunderstorms that we are keeping a close eye on, one just way to the north of Syracuse, we're talking way up -- actually, northeast of Watertown this time. This one cell is certainly one that we are keeping an eye on. We've got some deadly lightning with some of this, just to the east of Utica at this point and just to the west of Schenectady. Now, all of this is going to drift its way towards the east, maybe affecting New York City, I'd say, later on this evening. But for the time being, the show is taking place mainly near the Finger Lakes region, southward, just to the north of State College. You are seeing some cells pop up and just west of Williamsport at this hour.

Sunbury, back over to Wilkes-Barre, I would say that within the next hour or so, much of this activity will sweep through your neighborhoods. For you in Jamestown, back over to Buffalo, you are in the clear for the time being. But it's going to be this area, right here through parts of New York and into Pennsylvania, that we are going to be dealing with those severe thunderstorms, at least through 8:00 this evening. That's the latest we've got for you. Let's send it back to you at the news desk.

LEMON: Reynolds, they need a break. They certainly need a break, all right. Thank you.

KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR, NEWSROOM: Let's get straight to the NEWSROOM now. Fredricka Whitfield is working details of a developing story. Fred, what do you have?

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hello Kyra. Well, can't take any chances. This is part of the times we live in. Those are the words from the Boulder, Colorado, police chief, Mark Beckner (ph) who says why they are now doing a second very thorough search of the Boulder High School. As they are responding to initial reports coming from a kitchen personnel worker who said between 6:00 and 6:30 a.m. Mountain time they saw two young people, not recognizable students at the high school, but two young people who were wearing camouflage and possibly had ski masks with them. As a result, the police came in. They did a lock-out of the school, meaning they didn't allow anyone to enter or leave. Classes were canceled for the day, as a precaution.

Now the police chief says this second thorough search, this time involving SWAT team members, is being conducted. All closets are being opened, all doors being opened as well. And then the police chief says a third search will be conducted and that will be accompanied by administrators because they, obviously, know the school grounds well and the police chief said they want to make sure that no stone is unturned. If they do eventually locate these two suspects who have caused this kind of disruption, the police chief says that disrupting school operations or government operations are among the charges that they could face. Kyra?

PHILLIPS: All right, Fred. We will keep checking in. We appreciate it.

LEMON: How about this? Peanuts in the ice cream but not on the label? That is a problem. Another recall to report. We'll tell you about it in the CNN NEWSROOM. PHILLIPS: And want to give your daughter the best possible shot at avoiding cervical cancer? You want to hear the latest report on that new cancer vaccine. It's just ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: It's 1:39 right now east coast time. Here are three of the stories that we are working on in the CNN NEWSROOM.

President Bush tells reporters he's working on a deal with Congress to pay for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. He also says he would veto a bill now being considered that would fund the wars only through July.

Police in Colorado say they found nothing suspicious so far in Boulder High School. That's where a cafeteria worker says she saw two suspicious men inside the school early this morning. Classes were delayed, then canceled for the day.

The maker of the painkiller Oxycontin has agreed to a $600 million penalty as part of a plea deal. Purdue pharma was charged with misleading doctors and patients about the drug's addictive properties.

LEMON: We have been hearing a lot lately about the HPV vaccine designed to prevent cervical cancer. Some states are considering making it mandatory for girls entering the sixth grade and a new study may support that. Our medical correspondent Elizabeth Cohen joins us now with details on that. Elizabeth.

ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: You know Don, this vaccine has now been out for about a year, so for a year we have been hearing some of the controversy that's been surrounding it. But there's a new study out that's being published this week in a medical journal that supports data that says that this is a safe and effective vaccine. Let's take a look at the numbers that came out of this study. The study found in the "New England Journal of Medicine" that it's 98 percent effective in young women who are vaccinated before being exposed to the virus that causes cervical cancer.

However, it doesn't completely protect against cervical cancer, so women still need to have pap smears in order to be protected against getting cervical cancer. Now, the shot is recommended for girls starting at age 11. They want to get girls before they become sexually active because if someone is sexually active first and then gets vaccinated, the shot doesn't work nearly as well.

LEMON: You said recommended, meaning that's voluntary but some states are considering making this mandatory. What's going on with that?

COHEN: Right. Various state legislatures are considering whether or not to make it mandatory so let's take a look. We have a map that shows all of the states that are considering whether or not to make it mandatory. Those are the states that you see there in green. In addition, there is a state -- one state there in yellow where they passed it, where they say this shot is mandatory for all girls entering the sixth grade. The states in red are states that have defeated that legislation. The legislation was proposed, let's make this mandatory and that legislation was defeated. So, this is a hotly debated topic. One of the things that people say, if you give this girl the shot, is it implicitly telling her go ahead and have sex? Other people say that's crazy. Girls aren't going to think that.

LEMON: So sitting there listening taking some notes. Let's clarify. If it's mandatory, does your daughter have to get it? If it's not mandatory, can you still get it?

COHEN: Right. This gets very confusing. There actually is a simple answer. Even if a state says that it's mandatory that your daughter has to get this vaccine in order to go to school, parents can still opt out. That's true of all vaccines, so parents always have the choice of saying, for philosophical or medical or religious reasons, I don't want my daughter to get this vaccine or I don't want my child to get any vaccine. If it's not mandatory, you can still get it. It's out there. You can get it. However, there is a catch here. This is an expensive vaccine, $360 for a series of three shots. And it's a little bit unclear right now, some insurances cover it, some insurance programs don't. So that's the issue here. Really the politics and the law and the legislation, that's almost secondary to the money at this point.

LEMON: You always have the option to opt out, even if it's mandatory, $360. That's a lot for a vaccine.

COHEN: It is a lot. If you're paying it out of your pocket it's a lot.

LEMON: Elizabeth Cohen, thank you. Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Check your freezer. Mayfield dairy is calling 7,000 cartons of turtle tracks ice cream. The company says it was mixed with chocolate-covered peanuts instead of pecans. That could cause an allergic reaction in some people and I'm not talking hives. The ice cream is sold in Tennessee, Georgia, Alabama and Kentucky. Look for this code, 41108.

Tackling the high school dropout problem, there are higher expectations and more challenging courses the answer. We're going to talk about that straight ahead in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: Blunt talk about abortion from a Republican candidate for president. After several months of soft pedaling his support for abortion rights, Rudy Giuliani is making it crystal clear, even in anti-abortion strongholds. Here's what he said in Alabama just yesterday.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RUDY GIULIANI (R) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I personally oppose it. I support a right of choice. Some people say that that's inconsistent. I really disagree with that. That would say that something like 60 or 70 percent of the American people are inconsistent because that represents largely the view of the American people.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: Advisors tell CNN Giuliani will give a full outline of his views on abortion before next week's debate in South Carolina. They deny reports the campaign my write off states where anti-abortion sentiment is strong.

PHILLIPS: Well, will this help or hurt the Giuliani campaign? Joining me now, Republican pollster Kellyanne Conley and Democratic strategist Donna Brazile. Donna, let's start with you. What do you think? Is this for real? Is he saying what me he means?

DONNA BRAZILE, DEMOCRATIC STRATEGIST: First of all, I think it's a gutsy move. After straddling the fence for so many months on abortion, he's come out and said I'm pro choice. There's nothing wrong with Rudy Giuliani being pro choice. The majority of Americans are pro choice. In last year's election, 23 members of the Congress were elected, Democrats in red districts, they were pro choice and of course, three United States senators. I think he's in the mainstream of America. He may not get a lot of conservative support for his beliefs, but at least he's being honest.

Kellyanne, what do you think? Is he being honest? Why is he doing this?

KELLYANNE CONWAY, REPUBLICAN POLLSTER: I don't know what took so long because he's also been pro choice and a full-throated pro- abortion rights person. He actually favors Federal funding for abortions which some -- many Democrats, including some running for president, do not support. So he's been a long time patron. One has to wonder why he sort of nuanced that in last week's debate, when he was asked the question whether or not it would be a good day if Roe versus Wade was overturned. If you look at the tape, he actually shrugged this shoulders. That's the kind of thing that irritates people, primary voters and otherwise. There are two types of people who are going to have a difficult challenge winning the Republican nomination, number one, an abortionist, number two a contortionist and I think right now Mayor Giuliani has proved to be both.

PHILLIPS: OK, how is it going to affect the vote? He was asked that. This is what he said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GIULIANI: Instead of telling the Republicans what they should believe, maybe we should find out and let the Republicans decide -- they have to decide several things. Is that an acceptable position for them? There will be some who say it isn't. And I'm -- I'm at peace with that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Is he at peace with that?

CONWAY: No, I don't think he's at peace with that in the following sense. Had he been at peace with that, he would have had this, this -- this big agenda about abortion where he stands on it months ago. This man has been running for president for six months now. So, there was a little bit of backtracking, trying to have it both ways. Here's the question I would ask him. I would say, Mayor Giuliani, your views should be respected, that's fine. You've given to Planned Parenthood six times. Have you ever given to a crisis pregnancy center? Have you ever done anything in terms of adoption policy? You can be pro choice. but have you done something to actually try to reduce the number of abortions in this country which is something Hillary Clinton said is a noble cause.

PHILLIPS: Interesting. Donna, is that the next step? Is that what he needs to do, just take this one step farther?

BRAZILE: Well, first of all, he should tell the American people and so (INAUDIBLE) Romney should do the same, that Planned Parenthood produces a range of reproductive services, including adoption. They do a great deal to prevent abortions and perhaps he should just go out there and again tell the truth. Again, he may alienate some conservatives, but there are many moderate Republican pro choice Americans, including independents, that might be turned on by an individual who tells the truth as well as someone who is considered strong on national security and other matters that he is hoping to present to the American people.

PHILLIPS: Donna, you bring up Mitt Romney because of his donation to Planned Parenthood, correct?

BRAZILE: His wife gave it. I don't want to get in trouble with Mitt Romney. Al Sharpton is in enough trouble.

CONWAY: Don't they have a joint checking account, though?

BRAZILE: You know, I --

PHILLIPS: That's the next question. I wonder how much they do have together.

BRAZILE: Well, he'll have to answer this question. I'm sure like the mayor, he'll try to put out some statement before next -- the next week's debate. But I think the mayor is trying to, you know, put this issue out there so that he hopes it goes away and allows him an opportunity to get his campaign back on message so that he can resonate with some of those early primary voters.

PHILLIPS: Kellyanne, if people -- there is a stereotype out there. If you're a Republican, then you are pro life. But there are even organizations out there, one specifically Republicans for Choice. So it's not like he's doing anything that's out of the ordinary, right?

CONWAY: Look, if these are his views he should just be frank and candid about that, but that was not the Rudy Giuliani you heard last week in the debate or the one that frankly some of his pro life advisors are counseling him to nuance. I think it's going to be good for him to be consistent because the worst thing that can befall you in an election season is flip-flopping. That cost John Kerry the election, frankly and people don't like that. They will forgive you disagreement on a core issue, but not if you look uncomfortable in your own skin.

May I just say this? There's not the dichotomy in this country anymore as Donna clearly knows between pro life and pro choice. Many people have struggled with that issue in a way that they say it really depends. It depends on what stage of the pregnancy a woman has. Most Americans, over 80 percent of Americans are against partial birth abortion in the eighth and ninth month. And Rudi Giuliani has said he's against that. He should be asked how he feels about parental consent or spousal notification or interstate transfer of minors and all these other issues that aren't just so black and white.

PHILLIPS: Abortion is definitely an issue that's up there, right at a global warning and then comes gun policy, stem cell research and policies on gays. So it's definitely an issue that everyone's going to be watching in the presidential race. Donna Brazile, Kellyanne Conway, we appreciate your time today.

CONWAY: Thank you.

BRAZILE: Thank you.

PHILLIPS: For the record, Giuliani's position is unique among the Republican presidential contenders. He is the only GOP candidate to support abortion rights. On the other side are Senator Sam Brownback, former Governors Jim Gilmore and Mike Huckabee, present Senators Duncan Hunter and Tom Tancredo. Former Senator Fred Thompson, former Governor Tommy Thompson and Representative Ron Paul, Senator John McCain and former Governor Mitt Romney also oppose abortion rights except when a mother's life is in jeopardy or in cases of rape or incest. Don?

LEMON: All right Kyra. Tackling the high school dropout problem, are higher expectations and more challenging courses the answer? That is ahead in the NEWSROOM.

But first as we go to break, let's take a look at the big board. There it is. The stock market is down this hour. More NEWSROOM in just a moment, a full report on it from Susan Lisovicz. You are watching CNN, the most trusted name in news.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: A hundred kids start high school. How many graduate? 90? 80? The fact is on average fewer than 70 stick around to earn their diplomas. CNN's Brianna Keilar met some dropouts, some stay-ins and some dropouts who dropped back in again at a forum in Washington.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Lyle Lowes (ph) is now back in high school after two years on the streets, dealing drugs, getting arrested. Janelle Harrison was at risk to drop out, but despite the odds, she graduated.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I was one of the lucky ones.

KEILAR: They are the experts on America's dropout crisis, here to give policymakers, teachers and parents a reality check. Not all of their stories are successes.

FALLON O'HAGAN, HIGH SCHOOL DROPOUT: I definitely made the wrong decision by dropping out of school.

KEILAR: Fallon O'Hagan left in ninth grade. She now works two jobs as a waitress.

O'HAGAN: After I left, I felt like I had gone too far and I couldn't go back. And then that's -- the longer I said that to myself, the longer I stayed out of school and that's what happens, I guess. One day I just woke up and realized that, you know, I wasted it.

KEILAR: By many estimates, nearly a third of public high school students fail to graduate with their class. Minority students fare even worse. About half of African-American, Hispanic and native American students leave high school without a diploma. They complain of teachers who don't care and a lack of interest in what they're learning.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It didn't really excite me.

O'HAGAN: And I guess I just got bored and left.

KEILAR: It may see seem counter intuitive, but experts say higher expectations and more challenging coursework may help. They also point to smaller classes and the importance of students having a strong connection with at least one teacher or mentor at school. It's a crisis that has caught the attention of an odd assortment of partners who met in Washington, among them, first lady Laura Bush.

FIRST LADY LAURA BUSH: Dropouts are more likely to be unemployed and to receive public assistance. They're more likely to be in prison or unhealthy or divorced. They're more likely to be single parents and to raise children who drop out of high school themselves.

KEILAR: MTV is also raising awareness with a documentary called "The Dropout Chronicle."

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think to myself, like, oh, what am I doing here? Why didn't I learn this?

KEILAR: It profiles three young people and their struggles to graduate. As in real life, some make it and some don't. Many drop- outs like Fallon regret leaving school, but getting back on track can seem insurmountable. Is it sort of daunting and scary?

O'HAGAN: Yeah. Very. KEILAR: I mean, I can see it a little bit on your face that it seems like this huge mountain you have to climb ...

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