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Iraq Security Plan; Florida Fires; Catalina Fire; Virginia Tech Graduation; Car In Swimming Pool; Gerri's Mail

Aired May 11, 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: Tony Harris. Stay informed in the CNN NEWSROOM. Here's what's on the rundown for you this morning.
California's Catalina Island, the famed resort fighting back flames today. One of several major wildfires burning on both parched coasts, this hour.

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: A coalition commander in Iraq calling for more. He says he doesn't have enough troops in one corner of the country. His candid concession straight ahead.

HARRIS: Well, she could have cashed in, but a charity worker cashes out. A big wad of cash in donated clothing leads to good will found. It is Friday, May 11th, and you are in the CNN NEWSROOM.

A stunning admission from a U.S. commander about troop levels in one part of Iraq. Pentagon correspondent Barbara Starr joins us live with details.

And, Barbara, reset the story that you shared with us just a short time ago. Comments made this morning in a briefing by Major General Mixon.

BARBARA STARR, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Tony. Major General Benjamin Mixon commands the multinational division in northern Iraq, including the very critical Diyala Province. This is in eastern Iraq, in the north borders up along the Iranian border. An area of considerable violence right now. An area that it is believed al Qaeda is using as one of its strongholds.

General Mixon could not have been more candid. He was very blunt. He said he doesn't have enough U.S. troops to control the violence. Have a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MAJ. GEN. BENJAMIN MIXON, U.S. ARMY: I have enough soldiers in my area, Nineveh Province, Salahuddin Provence and also Kirkuk Province, to provide that security and to conduct operations with those divisions in that area and to move them forward. I do not have enough soldiers right now in Diyala Province to get that security situation moving.

We have plans to put additional forces in that area. I can't discuss the details of that. We have put additional forces in there over the last couple of months, an additional striker battalion. But I'm going to need additional forces in Diyala Province to get that situation to a more acceptable level so the Iraqi security forces will be able in the future to handle that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

STARR: You know, up there in Diyala Province, Tony, General Mixon has, at minimum, a reinforce brigade of about 3,500 U.S. troops. But what he is really saying here is, those U.S. troops that are dealing with the violent situation up there do not have everything they need. They need more help. They need more firepower. They need more boots on the ground.

I think you can anticipate later today that the Pentagon will say that they're doing everything they can to get General Mixon what he needs and that all commanders always say they need more help and more troops. But General Mixon being very candid here that the violence continues to be on the rise in that area. The insurgents are moving in from Baghdad, from where there's been that security crackdown and this he needs more help.

Tony.

HARRIS: Isn't this, in some respects, an admission of what we've heard from -- Senator John McCain comes to mind -- that what U.S. forces are dealing with here is this game of whack-a-mole. We have talked about the stepped-up security plan for Baghdad and what has happened, is that the insurgents have simply moved to another province, in this case, Diyala?

STARR: That's right. What most commanders will tell you is they're doing what they can with what they have. Baghdad is priority number one. You simply cannot afford the risk of losing the capital. So really, truly, they are focusing these extra troops, this security crackdown, on Baghdad. Then they're focusing on what they call the belts around Baghdad.

The areas around Baghdad where they see the networks operating, that are making the IEDs, that are making the suicide car bombs, trying to focus on controlling that flow of weapons and insurgents into the capital. Diyala, though, is becoming really the next hotbed. For many weeks now there have been reports and some very clear evidence and you just have to look at the map to see it, that the insurgents and these networks are moving from Baghdad where the security crackdown is working into Diyala.

General Mixon was talking about the fact, Tony, that when he first went into Diyala, he had a security plan. He was getting more troops. But now, as the violence upticks, he needs more yet again.

Tony.

HARRIS: Boy, I have another question that maybe we can tee up for later about whether or not General Mixon is out ahead of even General Petraeus in these comments. But let's talk about that later.

Pentagon correspondent Barbara Starr for us. Barbara, thank you.

STARR: Sure.

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Right now in this country, big problems. Fire from north Florida to southern California. Temperatures and little rain have created a terrible recipe for disaster. You're look right now at live pictures, Catalina Island. About 25 miles west of Los Angeles. Several homes there have burned and hundreds of people have heed the warning to voluntarily evacuate. Well, now the military, the U.S. military, is helping to contain the wind-swept fire. In less than one day, more than 4,000 acres have burned.

And fires are raging along the Georgia-Florida state line. Hundreds of homes there have been evacuated as well. Nearly 300 square miles have burned. CNN meteorologist Jacqui Jeras is near the Florida-Georgia line. And her colleague, Reynolds Wolf, is here in the CNN Weather Center. Our Ted Rowlands will also be joining us from Catalina Island.

So, we have correspondents posted along the fire lines. Let's begin right now in Florida. Let's begin with Jacqui Jeras.

Jacqui, what's the situation?

JACQUI JERAS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Fredricka, we're still waiting to find out more information. This fire has been so aggressive, they don't even know how large it is anymore. They think it could potentially have doubled in size.

We're here in Lake City and this town is not on fire at this time. The fire is about six miles north of here, north of Interstate 10. But they're being effected by the smoke.

Look behind me. Look at the visibility here. It's, you know, a matter of yards, as opposed to talking maybe a quarter of a mile or so. It's very difficult to see. There's been a weather inversion in places, as we call it, where there's a warmer layer of air, up higher into the atmosphere and that kind of traps all this smoke here. So it's been sitting here all morning long.

But just in the last hour, our weather conditions are starting to dramatically change. The sun looks like a big ball of fire in the sky itself. It looks orange and red because of all of the haze and all of the smoke. And now that that sun's been out for a little while, we're starting to feel the winds pick up and our visibility is starting to improve a little bit. And that's actually a really big concern because once we start to clear some of this out of here and we get lower humilities as that sun really affects the area and heats up the temperatures, those winds are going to be picking up this afternoon. So we're very concerned about this progress of the fire getting closer to Interstate 10.

We have some pictures to show you from along I-10. It was very difficult traveling. Cars just seemed to appeared out of nowhere on the interstate coming out of the smoke. I-10 is open right now. However, it could potentially be shut down later on today, depending on how close that fire gets and just how bad the visibility situation does become.

Now north of I-10, about 600 families have been evacuated from Columbia and Baker Counties. The town of Taylor has been evacuated. And we'll watch and see what happens as the fire gets closer for the people here in Lake City.

Over here, my shoulder, too, I just want to show you all of the fire crews that are lined up. We're getting word there are about 100 trucks here today. All these guys that you see sitting here, they are on alert. They were sleeping in their trucks, on their trucks, ready to be deployed when that call comes in. So there are more crews being called in, getting ready to help this situation when and if that fire continues to rage and get closer to this area here in Lake City.

Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: All right, Jacqui, thanks so much for that update out of Lake City. Some pretty terrible conditions. Very uncomfortable conditions as well.

HARRIS: Can you imagine trying to drive-thru that?

WHITFIELD: No.

HARRIS: Those pictures looked a little insane. Let's get you to . . .

WHITFIELD: Drive slow if you are.

HARRIS: Absolutely. Reynolds Wolf is in the Severe Weather Center for us.

Reynolds, we need some cooperation here from the weather.

(WEATHER REPORT)

HARRIS: Now let's travel off the coast of California. CNN's Ted Rowlands is on Catalina Island, west of Los Angeles.

Ted, we're going to talk to fire inspector Scott Ross (ph) in a couple of minutes here. Maybe you can set the stage for that conversation. What's happening at your location right now? Set the scene for us, if you would.

Oh, we don't have him?

Oh, Ted, we just -- I apologize for that. We don't have the audio on Ted Rowlands. We will get back to Ted in just a couple of minutes, as soon as we can make that connection work out better.

WHITFIELD: All right. Well, something that's very difficult for a lot of folks, particularly in Virginia, focusing on a bright future, yet at the same time reflecting on tragic past. Thousands of Virginia Tech students are trying to do both today. They graduate tonight, just 25 days after a gunman's deadly rampage. CNN's Jim Acosta joins us live from Blacksburg, Virginia.

So, Jim, what is it like on campus there right now?

JIM ACOSTA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Fredricka, this will be part commencement and part remembrance this evening. They're planning a special tribute for the victims on that tragedy on April 16th. One of the things that they'll be doing this evening is honoring the students who were slain with posthumous degrees. And then each of the victims, both students and faculty, will have their pictures projected on the jumbo screen at the stadium behind me during tonight's ceremony.

And we have some video to show you of the scene being set at Lane Stadium, the scene of tonight's graduation. All of those chairs neatly arranged on the football field. And as one writer put it, even when those seats are filled tonight, there will still be a feeling of emptiness in the air. And we notice that sense of loss still palpable on the campus here at Virginia Tech after talking to one graduating senior and a prominent member of the faculty here.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BRICE BRADFORD (ph), VIRGINIA TECH SENIOR: It's really hard to feel accomplished or self-congratulatory right now when you know that there should be a dozen or so other people walking across the stage with you that aren't even alive anymore.

NIKKI GIOVANNI, VIRGINIA TECH POETRY PROFESSOR: People say move forward, but we haven't moved backwards. So what we'll continue to . . .

ACOSTA: What does that mean, we haven't moved backwards?

GIOVANNI: We haven't. We haven't moved backwards. Here we stand. We just have to find a way to continue to wrap the love around ourselves.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ACOSTA: And the main commencement speaker at tonight's graduation ceremony will be retired General John Abizaid, who told reporters that he had not written his commencement address prior to April 16th. And so he's opening that this address that he has written since the tragedy occurred will help in the healing here.

Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: Well, let's hope so. We wish all the best for everyone there.

Jim Acosta, thanks so much, from Blacksburg, Virginia.

Finding answers to an inconceivable crime. Something else, investigating the Virginia Tech massacre. A live interview with a key figure in that probe. And that's straight ahead in the NEWSROOM.

HARRIS: A father confesses to killing his young son. So why would he be released from jail? That story ahead in the NEWSROOM.

WHITFIELD: And finders keepers? Well, not this lady. She found five grand stuffed in the pocket of some donated PJs.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Oh, my God. I was shocked. A big shock because I thought I would never find that big of an amount of money.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Yes, a lot of money.

HARRIS: Charity begins at home, doesn't it?

WHITFIELD: It does and it did here. She gave it back.

HARRIS: Oh, OK.

WHITFIELD: Yes. Talk about good will. We'll find out more about that story.

HARRIS: And look at this. Remember this scene from yesterday? Fists flying at the Boston Pops? Well, today, meet the man who says he was on the receiving end.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Turns around and tells me, hit me again. I'm going to throw you over the balcony.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Whew!

HARRIS: Man, get up out of your chair and fight back, huh?

WHITFIELD: (INAUDIBLE) seeing ladies who are all dressed up in their pretty dresses in the middle.

HARRIS: In the middle of the scrum and he's sitting there. All right. It is the Symphony Hall smackdown.

WHITFIELD: That's another issue.

HARRIS: Coming up in the NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: We've got a developing story that our T.J. Holmes is watching from the NEWSROOM.

T.J., what do you have? T.J. HOLMES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, we got one heck of a pool cleaning that needs to be done in Florida. Take a peek at the pictures we're getting out of Davie, Florida. That car there, that not going to be taken up by the automatic vacuum at the bottom of a pool. But, yes, you're looking at that right. That is a car in the bottom of a pool. This is in Davie, Florida.

Now you can see some wood pieces and whatnot. Yes, that appears to be part of a fence. A fence that has a pretty good size hole in it now that one can assume that the car drove through. Again, we don't have a lot of videos.

There we go. The video panning over. But it certainly does appear -- you see a hubcap there, just for good measure -- but you can pretty much put together what happened here. This vehicle was on the road just -- you can see it there. It appears busted through that fence and ended up going off the diving board into the shallow end of the pool, it appears.

We don't know, again, many details about this. We understand from the affiliate that the helicopter was actually on the way somewhere else and just spotted this and stopped to take a few pictures. We do see, of course, police there on the scene and we also saw looks like someone sitting on the edge there. So it looks like, and certainly hopefully, whoever was in that vehicle got out all right. Didn't see any video of any balances or anything like that on the scene. So certainly a good thing there.

But certainly an interesting picture. And you see that again. That was a good shot over there just a moment ago. A good size hole in that fence there. Don't know what the circumstances may have been. What was going on with the car. Mechanical issues. Someone not paying attention. Who knows how this could have happened, but certainly not something you see every day or want to see any day, a vehicle in the bottom of your pool.

WHITFIELD: And let's just hope that everyone had good insurance.

HOLMES: Yes. Yes.

WHITFIELD: And maybe that person sitting at the whirlpool there is the dejected driver.

HOLMES: Yes. The dejected driver. Good way to put it there. And probably a dejected homeowner . . .

WHITFIELD: Right. All of the above.

HOLMES: Who probably just turned on the TV and saw their pool on TV right now.

WHITFIELD: And hopefully they have liable insurance. Yes. All right.

Thanks a lot, T.J.

HOLMES: All right. We'll try to get some more details there, Fred.

WHITFIELD: That sounds good.

Tony.

HARRIS: In New Jersey this morning, terror suspects in court. Six men arrested Monday, accused of plotting to kill soldiers at Fort Dix. Federal authorities say the men planed to buy automatic weapons and attack the Army base outside of Philadelphia. Prosecutors want the suspects held without bail. They say they were all born outside the states and are a flight risk. Four are from the former Yugoslavia, one from Jordan and one from Turkey.

WHITFIELD: And now let's talk again about what's taking place off the coast of California. Just 20 miles or so outside of Los Angeles is Catalina Island. And more than 4,000 acres burning now. Our Ted Rowlands is there.

We have re-established the audio, Ted, and we understand also the U.S. military is helping in bringing supplies to fight this fire.

TED ROWLANDS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes. Last night the L.S. County Fire Department asked the U.S. Navy to help ferry firefighters and trucks and all to the island. Twenty miles west of Los Angeles, west of southern California. They needed the help and the Navy provided that help. And so now they do have firefighters on scene here.

And they're getting a lot of help from mother nature, too, because the winds that were gust in excess of 20 miles an hour yesterday, which brought a wall of flames dangerously close to the city of Avalon here on Catalina Island. That wind has now diminished and you can barely feel any wind at all. We heard Reynolds talk about the wind out here today and it is expected that the wind will not gust to the levels that it did last night. And that is great news for firefighters and for the folks here who were very nervous last night as they literally saw this wall of flames descending upon their town. Ash was flying in the air.

And people -- many people actually left. In excess of 3,000 people were ferried out throughout the night. They ran constant ferries throughout the night to get everybody off the island they wanted off the island. There was no imminent danger to those folks. But many people did decide to just get out. A lot of those folks were tourists.

Now we have seen some flying -- some helicopters this morning attacking this fire. We expect we'll see more of that. We're waiting for an update from fire personnel as to how much acreage has burned overnight and what the situation is.

But I can tell you, it is a much different picture here right now. A much better picture. There is a lot of smoke, but you don't have that wall of flames. And it just doesn't seem as though the danger is imminent as it was last night. They did lose a couple of buildings here, but if the weather conditions stay as they are now, it is probably most likely the firefighters will be able to get a handle on this or at least protect these structures.

WHITFIELD: All right. That's very encouraging. We like to hear that.

Ted Rowlands, thanks so much, Catalina Island.

HARRIS: A fire on the coast, but it is too much water in the heartland. Big rivers cresting this weekend in Missouri. A flood update in the NEWSROOM.

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

Next on "Top Tips" in the NEWSROOM, we answer questions like, what to do if your spouse has a lousy credit score. Coming up next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: Reverse mortgages, credit scores and what you need to know about that swing set in your backyard. Viewer e-mails on those topics with CNN personal finance editor Gerri Willis. She joins us from New York with her "Top Tips."

Gerri, great to see you. Good Friday to you.

WILLIS: Happy Friday.

HARRIS: Should we dive into the e-mail bag here, Gerri?

WILLIS: Absolutely. Let's to it.

HARRIS: OK. This is from Michael. Michael writes, "my credit is very good," Gerri Willis. "My wife's is not" so good. "If I add her to my checking account and/or add her name to my mortgage, will this bring my credit rating down?"

WILLIS: Good question from Michael. You know, in his case, if you add his wife's name to the mortgage, his score will remain the same, provided, of course, they make their payments on time. But his wife could get a nice boost on her own credit score. The big difference would be if they were applying for a new mortgage together. Then the lender will give them a loan based on the lower credit score, that is her credit score, which would mean they'd have to pay more for the loan. As an aside, though, your checking account has absolutely no bearing on your credit score.

Tony.

HARRIS: Oh, that's good. That's good. That's good.

WILLIS: Yes. Yes. Yes.

HARRIS: Second question from Jitka. "I'm 65. I own my own home and would like to maximize the equity in it. Is a reverse mortgage a good way to do that? Also, which company should I approach for this? I am a widow with no children." WILLIS: You know, a lot of people are asking this question. And a reverse mortgage can be a good idea if you plan on staying in your home the rest of your life, because you'll get a monthly income since you're drawing down the equity in your home each and every month. Now the downside, of course, is that it can be expensive.

And, of course, a reverse mortgage means that you're not giving your home to any of your heirs, childrens, cousins, aunts, uncles. Remember, you can't have any debts if you take out a reverse mortgage, like a home equity line of credit or a regular mortgage.

For info go to aarp.org to find out how to get counseling services. And to find out more about different lenders, you might want to get in touch with the National Reverse Mortgage Lenders Association. They've developed something called best practices for lenders. Their website reversemortgage.org.

HARRIS: We have talked about reverse mortgage a few times here. It's good advice, you have to be careful and be smart about this.

WILLIS: Yes. But, you know, I think more and more people will do it, Tony, as the boomers age.

HARRIS: I think you're right.

WILLIS: They're going to tap that equity.

HARRIS: Well, you know what, you ask folks for questions. They send you questions. And then they offer their thoughts and advice as well. So we've got a tip from a viewer. Susan writes, "here's something people don't think about if they've never experienced a tornado." How about this, swing sets and jungle gyms. "We found out firsthand how they can fly. They are not heavy enough to stay put. Anchor them. It's well worth it."

How about this, Gerri?

WILLS: I think this is great advice. You know, I love it when people write in and give us ideas. Isn't that awesome?

HARRIS: Yes.

WILLIS: But, you know, if you do want to do this, you can buy a ground anchor system at any local home improvement store. They're only about $20. Another way to do it is to set the legs in concrete, below ground level, of course. This is a permanent fix. So you want to be very careful if you're doing that.

And, of course, if you have a question or a tip, send it to us at toptips@cnn.com. We answer them right here every Friday. And we love to hear from you.

HARRIS: I just want to take a second and have you talk about the big "Open House" show because we want to drive each and every one of our viewers to your show this weekend. WILLIS: I love that. "Open House" this Saturday, protect your home from dangerous weather. We've got a ton of it. Save money on summer travel. 9:30 a.m. Eastern right here Saturday morning on CNN.

HARRIS: Good Friday, good weekend to you, Gerri. Thanks for your time this morning.

WILLIS: You as well, Tony. Good to see you.

ANNOUNCER: You're watching CNN NEWSROOM, on CNN, the most trusted name in news.

HARRIS: Bottom of the hour. Welcome back, everyone, to the CNN NEWSROOM. Great to see you, Fred. I'm Tony Harris.

WHITFIELD: Good to see you as well. I'm Fredricka Whitfield, in for Heidi Collins.

Smoke on the water. Wildfires are raging from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific. We begin off the coast of Southern California. We're looking at live pictures right now. Evacuations are under way at Santa Catalina Island. Several homes have been burned, as flames raced across more than 4,000 acres. The military also joining the firefighting efforts.

In the southeastern United States fires raised across tinder-dry brush there. Nearly 300 square miles have burned in both Georgia and Florida.

Let's get the latest on the fire now raging on Catalina Island. Joining us on the phone is inspector Scott Ross of the Los Angeles Fire Department.

He's in Avalon, the main city on the resort island.

All right, Mr. Ross, give us your best assessment about how this blaze might be contained?

SCOTT ROSS, L.A. FIRE DEPT.: Well, right now we have -- or throughout the day here we're going to have a total of about 500 firefighters on the ground here in Avalon and the island of Catalina. Today is going to be an air show, so to speak. You're going to have 10 helicopters doing water drops, as well as five air tankers making retardant drops as well. So we're going to hopefully with the weather that's been a little bit more favorable for us today, get a little jump on this fire.

WHITFIELD: And do you feel like you really have to rely on these water drops because of the location of the concentration of this fire? It's just too difficult to get to any other way?

ROSS: Yes. Where we have fire now is real difficult terrain. So we do have hand crews that are trying to get access, but the most beneficial is definitely going to be our air support.

WHITFIELD: What are the biggest challenges? As we look at this file tape we're showing this smoke being whipped and these flames being whipped by the winds there. Is it still very windy? Is that still a hindrance?

ROSS: No, actually the weather has become favorable for us today. There are low winds, humidity is up, and the temperatures are down. So it's definitely turned in our favor as far as our firefighting efforts.

WHITFIELD: The U.S. military has been very helpful, hasn't it, by providing Blackhawks, Chinooks to help fly in a number of the firefighters, and then we also understand some high-speed hovercrafts have been used to help carry in water. Can you tell me a little bit more about that effort?

ROSS: Yes. With the military, both the Navy and Marine Corps out of Camp Pendleton, have been instrumental in getting us over here to get our job done. They've been a huge asset for us, and they've been working very well with us. We're very pleased to have a working relationship with them.

WHITFIELD: So right now the evacuations are voluntary, is that right? How close are you to mandatory, if that's the case?

ROSS: We have an area that is mandatory. They have an area that -- and town folk will know, everything west of Sumner Avenue in the city of Avalon is an evacuation area, that they're not allowing residents or business owners back into that area. That is going to be reassessed around noon today, and we'll decide at that point if we'll be able to open it up to residents and business owners.

WHITFIELD: All right, Inspector Scott Ross with the L.A. Fire Department, thank you so much for your time.

HARRIS: And still to come this morning in the NEWSROOM, a coalition commander says he does not -- does not -- have enough troops in one Iraqi province. Candid, on camera, in the NEWSROOM.

ANDREA KOPPEL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: And I'm Andrea Koppel on Capitol Hill with a status report on what's happening to that money, the emergency money, for U.S. troops. I'll have an update coming up in the NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: Money for the Iraq war, on the installment plan. More than $40 billion up front. The rest based on a progress report. But the bill approved by the House last night faces an uncertain future.

Congressional correspondent Andrea Koppel is following it all, and she is with us from Capitol Hill.

So, Andrea, what are the chances that this bill -- we've asked this question a couple times over the last couple weeks. Where do we go from here?

KOPPEL: Well, where we go from here is the Senate now has to pass its own bill. And even Speaker Pelosi has conceded that the bill that just passed yesterday in the house, the $40 billion-plus, the installment plan, as you just referred to it, isn't likely to be the final language that gets to the president's desk. It's not popular at all over in the Senate.

What's happening over there, Tony, is that they are really -- Democrats and moderate Republicans, have a whole bunch of balls in the air, and they've got a number of different plans that they're working on that would include those benchmarks that President Bush mentioned yesterday, Iraqi progress reports. And then either tie to it things like U.S. troops having to leave if they don't meet them or withholding some Iraqi reconstruction aid. But there are a number of plans that are being talked about right now.

HARRIS: So the Senate has to work on its version. And then we've got -- tell us about the process here and then that the conferees have to get together and hammer out one bill, correct?

KOPPEL: That's right. And, again, there is really little expectation that there should be the short-term funding that would be included. Really what House Democrats have been doing is trying to satisfy their base, which is pushing for U.S. troops to get out. But also keep the pressure on President Bush and keep the pressure on Republicans who do not want to have these votes every time, showing themselves siding with President Bush in a very unpopular war -- Tony.

HARRIS: All right, congressional correspondent Andrea Koppel, following the back and forth for us from Capitol Hill.

Andrea, thank you.

WHITFIELD: President Bush meantime willing to bend on benchmarks in a war-spending bill, but he says he'll veto any piecemeal approach, like the bill approved in the House. For more on the president's position right now, White House correspondent Elaine Quijano joining us live.

So the president seeing now reason to budge?

ELAINE QUIJANO, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, no reason to budge on this two-stage war-funding bill. We heard the president talk about this yesterday. He would veto this legislation if, in fact, it does get to his desk, because they just don't think it's workable. They don't think it's a way the war can be run. Now, at the same time, President Bush yesterday did open the door to this idea of including benchmarks in a war-funding bill.

Now, embracing the idea of benchmarks is certainly now nothing new. That's something the White House has been talking about, in fact, working with the Iraqi government on, for some time. What are some of those benchmarks? The president laid them out yesterday. Nuri al-Maliki's government having to come together and finally pass an oil revenue-sharing bill, also preparing for provincial elections, as well as employing debaathificaton policy.

Now this debate over war funding certainly has inched along here. The president laying out the benchmarks idea yesterday, that he would be open to them, but Democrats insist that any benchmarks have to have teeth. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi saying yesterday that benchmarks without consequences or enforcement would be meaningless.

Well, today, in fact, just a short time ago, a senior administration official shot back, pushing back against that comment and also citing the house vote yesterday on the two-stage war funding proposal, saying that voting on legislation that will not ever become law is, "meaningless as well."

And pressed on whether or not in the White House's view, consequences as a Democrats see them, amount to conditions, something President Bush has been very adamantly opposed to, whether or not that equates to consequences, this official would not say, would only say that that's a very good question. One that Josh Bolton, the president's chief of staff, is negotiating with members on the Hill and congressional leaders would be discussing -- Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: All right, Elaine Quijano, thanks so much for that update.

HARRIS: Want to get you to T.J. Holmes in the NEWSROOM, and T.J. is following a story of an overturned tanker in Marion County, Georgia. That is very near the Florida line. T.J., what do you have for us?

T.J. HOLMES, CN ANCHOR: Actually, we're told this is in Marietta here, this tanker we're looking at, Marietta here, just outside of Atlanta. Our affiliate WXIA providing this live picture. But there's a tanker on its side. And this live picture, and you can see that liquid, something has spilled out of that tanker and is running across that road. This is specifically at the area of Cherokee Street and the loop. This is in downtown Marietta, which again, Marietta, just northwest of where we sit here in Atlanta, Georgia.

Told that this was -- according to the affiliate at least, that this was a 5,000-gallon fuel tanker. But looking at this fluid, we've been trying to figure out, this liquid -- it appears to be thick and it appeared to be oil. But no way we can know that for sure. Here's another view of it. But this tanker ended up on its side, and certainly leaking something.

We see fire crews and police officers down there trying to -- police specifically trying to manage traffic down there. This is a pretty busy spot, pretty busy location. And firefighters trying to work to shut off the leak, stop whatever is leaking from leaking. Also, we've seen some -- they're tossing dirt in certain areas, trying to soak it up, in some instances, also trying to keep it from spreading anymore. There's some heavy equipment there, dumping dirt around the area as well.

So, I don't know of anything about the condition of the driver, if the driver was able to make it out of this OK or the severity of any injuries he may have had -- he or she may have had. But just kind of another mess here we're taking a peek at. And certainly this is a oil or fuel or something that can certainly light up. They're certainly being careful about it right now.

So, keeping an eye on them trying to clean up this mess right now -- Tony.

HARRIS: Marietta, Marion County, I'm thinking about the fires, the wildfires in the area, and -- and Marietta, that's, what, 20 minutes up the road here from the CNN Center.

HOLMES: Oh, yes.

HARRIS: And downtown Atlanta. All right, T.J., appreciate it. Thank you, sir.

HOLMES: No problem, Tony.

HARRIS: Finding answers to an inconceivable crime, investigating the Virginia Tech massacre. A live interview with a key figure in that probe, just ahead in the NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Taking a hard look at the Virginia Tech massacre and what led up to it. Right now, a special review panel is doing just that.

Joining us live from Richmond, the man who is heading up that panel, former Virginia State police superintendent, Colonel Gerald Massengill. Good to see you, Colonel.

COL. GERALD MASSENGILL, VIRGINIA TECH REVIEW PANEL: Well, thank you. Thank you for having me.

WHITFIELD: So, what's been taking place in the meeting?

MASSENGILL: Well, yesterday we had our first full panel meeting. And we got a briefing from the governor as to his expectations. We had -- the panel itself is an eight-person panel. And it's just a uniquely filled with experiences that I think will relate to those challenges that face us as far as information gathering and decisions that have to be made, recommendations that have to be made. So it was a good day yesterday, a productive day.

WHITFIELD: All right, so encouraging because so often after a tragedy, when advisory panels are formed or perhaps there are recommendations that come from lengthy discussions, often times people are critical because really all that happens is there's a lot of venting, that there's no real change or nothing really comes of it. Are you getting the sense that this might be a little different?

MASSENGILL: Oh, yes. I think if you look at this panel again, and the individuals that's on it, you're talking about individuals that just have distinguished themselves so greatly in their fields, from psychiatry to mental health issues to violent crime analysts, on and on.

So, I am optimistic. And I understand the challenges that we face, but I'm optimistic that we will identify those best practices and lessons learned and get it out. So, not only ...

WHITFIELD: So what would you say is the primary objective? What do you really feel comfortable with knowing at the end of this advisory panel set of meetings? That you all agree on, what, to create what kind of change, whether it be on the Virginia Tech campus or whether it may affect other college campuses in that state?

MASSENGILL: Well, I think the goal is to identify the best practices and to identify those gaps that may be out there that we need to make recommendations on, whether it deals with response from law enforcement, EMS or the mental health community or whatever. But our goal is to see what lessons we can learn from this.

WHITFIELD: Well, let's talk about some lessons to be learned, because you probably learned a lot of lessons as you worked with the 9/11 investigation of the Pentagon hit, as well as the D.C. sniper case a few years ago. As you look upon your involvement with those investigations, what do you suppose can be applied to this Virginia Tech investigation?

MASSENGILL: Well, I think that my experience in the -- after action of those situations will serve me well. I do believe that the instances dealing with the sniper situation if you recall, the information flow, with multi-jurisdictional issues were really challenges. This particular investigation has its own challenges. We're dealing with the mental health community and trying to balance private industry interests with that of public interests. And so, there are going to be challenges. But I think maybe what I've been through will serve me well.

WHITFIELD: Would you want the family members of the shooter, Cho, to be involved in any kind of discussions that you all continue to have?

MASSENGILL: Well, as a matter of fact, some of our work groups that we put together that are trying to determine how are we going to go out and gather this information have been discussing that. And quite frankly, I think that's going to be up to the Cho family. And we're not going to press that issue but we do want to learn as much as we can about Cho and his background, even from a child up. But, we'll see how that plays out. But, we certainly would like to have as much information as we can about him.

WHITFIELD: Colonel Gerald Massengill of the Virginia Tech Review Panel. Thanks so much for your time.

MASSENGILL: Thank you, ma'am.

HARRIS: One of the nation's biggest insurance companies is giving an entire state the cold shoulder? Susan Lisovicz is at the New York Stock Exchange to tell us about the controversial move.

Susan, good morning.

(BUSINESS HEADLINES)

WHITFIELD: Well, wildfires, nothing to smile about there. Coast-to-coast, the battles inch by inch, the latest in the NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: OK, a busy weekend shaping up here on CNN. T.J. and Betty now with a preview of CNN "SATURDAY MORNING."

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

HOLMES: Hello there. We're going to have words of wisdom from the queen of talk.

BETTY NGUYEN, CNN ANCHOR: Oh, yes. Oprah Winfrey will share her real world advice with graduates at Howard University. We have live coverage at her commencement address. That is tomorrow at 10:00 a.m. Eastern.

HOLMES: And of course, we all know gas prices reaching record levels, but do you know what actually happens to the money you spend at the pump? Where does it go? We'll show you the breakdown in our Saturday reality check.

NGUYEN: Plus, I'll have a special report as part of CNN's Uncovering America series. Have you ever heard of a hoppa (ph), it's a person of mixed race, usually half Asian. They're labelled the face of the future but often facing an identity crisis. It's one I can personally relate to and I'm going to share my story and the struggles of millions of people just like me, CNN SATURDAY and SUNDAY MORNING beginning tomorrow at 7:00 Eastern.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BARBARA STARR, PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: I'm Barbara Starr in the Pentagon. Still more troops needed for Iraq. I'll have that story coming up in the NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: And good morning again everyone, you're with CNN, you're informed. I'm Tony Harris.

WHITFIELD: And I'm Fredricka Whitfield in for Heidi Collins today. Developments keep coming into the CNN NEWSROOM on this Friday morning, May 11th, and here is what's on the rundown.

Flames, racing across California's Catalina Islands (ph) this hour. Hundreds of residents and tourists are making a beeline for the mainland today.

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